The Virginia enterprise., 1908-05-22

out of the mouths of faithful union
ferrets. IT'S my belief that is an i'm
ported pauper-labcr ferret
Uncle Billy was might: indignant
at hearing HIS little worker abused.
""That's an American ferre>, trained
and educated by an honest American
farmer. AS to his being a n:.urion
ferret, he's president, secretar9 and
sole charter member Of Ferrets' tia:on
No. I. He's the pioneer and ancestor
of race of cable-laying ferrets.
Pete, finding that he wasn't able
to stir up any hard feeling against the
ferret on the labor question:, went
away, growing and grumbling to him.
self. But it. panied him to see all the
good coin Uncle Billy was accumu-
lating, and he kept puzzling his brain
for some means of blocking the game
A few days later Uncle Billy took 4
contract to lay the cables through a
conduit in nearby town. He had
grown so proud of his success that he
boasted freely, and Pete heard of the
contract and went over to the town
the day before Uncle Billy was to be-
gin work. I warned Uncle Billy that
Pete was up to some mischief
Pete isn't making that trip just
to arrange things comfortably for you,'
l told him. You had better make some
inspection of the conduits before you
send your trusted ferret into Them
But, no, it was the ferret's business
to look out for the conduit end of the
work, and Uncle Billy wasn't going to
disturb his head about it. The next
day, when everything was ready for
work, he released a rat, and the fer
ret chased it into the first conduit. In
about minute out came the rat, then
came skunk, and last of all, the fer.
ret. But he looked pretty disgusted
with his job
1.-The ferret has done what he con-
considers good days work under the
circumstances l said to Uncle Billy.
You had better let him have the rest
of the day Off,
Uncle Billy didn't see it that way
and insisted on sending the ferret in
to another conduit. Pete had evident
ly done thorough job, for the ferret
looked even more weary when he
came out of the second conduit than
when he had left the first. The odor
he gave out showed that he had good
reasons for his disgust. When Uncle
Billy tried to send him into a third
conduit, even the faithful, hard-work-
ing ferret decided he had had enough
of it. Then Uncle Billy lost his tenn
per, and seizing stick began beating
the ferret.
"'Do you think brought you to this
town just to have you give an exhibi-
tion Of ferret in tantrum?' said
Uncle Billy angrily. No ferret that is
afraid of few skunks will ever make
his mark in the great world of ferrets.
The ferret didn't look at it in this
light, and as Uncle Billy kept on beat
ing him, he finally turned with little
snarl, bit Uncle Billy on the hand, and
then scampered away at the top of his
speed. Uncle Billy was almost heart
broken at the loss of his valued as
| sistant, and seemed to think the ferret
! had been mighty ungrateful.
"I've educated and cherished that
ferret like son. said Uncle Billy sor
rowfully, and now, on account of 8
few playful taps with a stick, he
abandons me in the middle of q con
tract. 1ngratitude, thy name ia fer
ret
"'Your pet wasn't entirely tt
blame,' told Uncle Billy severely
Even the most faithful of ferret,
would draw the line on going agains,
that odoriferous conduit game tt.e>
! times in the same day."