Barbour County index., 1906-06-13
A PUFF" FOR THE TOWN.
Z. A. McNeal Makes a Few Remarks
About His Old Love.


concerning Medicine Lodge and
Barber. We reproduce it to show
that Tom still thinks about us
down this way:
We have just taken a run down
to the country where we first To-
Gated in Kansas.
That was 27 years ago.
Goodness, how tempus does
fugit.
AT that time there was mighty
little west of Wichita except jack
rabbits and landscape.
We rode from Wichita to Medi-
cine Lodge on a freight wagon
and it was our opinion we had
never str uck country as long on
landscape as that country was then.
We might also say that we had
never seen a country where there
was such a superabundance of at
mosphere. 1t seemed to us then
that the wind blew all the time at
the rate of IS miles an hour. We
were mistaken, however. There
were times when it did not blow
more than SO miles an hour.
The country looked as if it hadn't
rained since Noah made his land
ing and it also looked as if it
would never rain again. 1t did,
however.
Two months after our arrival
we were out in a rain storm that
made any rain we had ever seen
before appear like the sprinkle
from watering pot.
A man who pretended to know
informed us that it rained on top
OF a hill faster than it could run
off on both sides, but we have Of
ten thought since that possibly he
was a liar.
1t did rain so fast, however, that
to b cut IN it vas like standing up
in hogshead of water. We came
near drowning while running
across the prairie. We supposed
that the ground would be soaked
down not less than two feet, but
that was where we were mistaken
again. The ground was wet down
about half an inch and inside of "a
hours there was hardly an indica-
tion that the ground had been even
moist since the landing of Colum-
bus.
In those days most Of the strang-
ers within the gates of the city Of
Medicine Lodge slept in a livery
stable.
There was hotel in the town
built partly of brick and partly OF
cottonwood, but the guests said
THAT there was too much life about
to make it suitable for slumber.
1t was said that the bugs in that
cid hotel formed a union and
worked in eight hour shifts. By
the time the third shift got through
with man he looked like a sucked
grange.
There was really no occasion fo1
professional phlebotomy in that
town at that time. The bugs
saved the doctors the trouble and
acted as if they were glad to do it
So the boarders at the hotel re-
tired to the loft of a livery stable
when they were ready for slumber
In the morning they were wakec
by the salutation, clay, there?"
A person who slept in that stable
was liable to feel his oats. A com
mon salutation was, "How are you
old hoss?" One man told us tina
he had slept in that livery stable Sc
long that he had ring bones anc
spavins on both legs. We have al
ways suspected him of being =:
prevaricator.
At that time Medicine Lodg
was town of about 200 people
It had beautiful location. Tha
was all you could say for it asid
from the fact that the most of tn
few people who were there wer
exceptionally generous and like
able. There were few people II
the town and surrounding country
however, who needed killing NOR
than almost any persons | hav
ever seen. At that time practical
ly all of Barber county and the ter
ritory south and west was consid
cred as good for nothing excep
grazing purposes. 1t may be sal
in passing that, their contentio
looked reasonable.
There were times when if w
( had had title to the whole count
I we would have traded the who'll
business for team and wagon an
pulled out of the country.
Medicine Lodge really never ha
..rho4 could be called a hnnu