Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-03-17

through Cne mOL1OnS OF LABOR ana ACCOM-
plishing very little. Ever and anon he
would stop and feel his pigtail to make sure
nothing had happened to the sacred append
age. # was a question of theology that
bothered his pagan mind Quite manifestly
the yan-k7cei who came in the last nights
dream had warned Bung to get haircut.
But who had sent the demon!
MRS. OLIVER decided after lunch to
AvA take the afternoon train for San Fran
cisco and go to the theater with her sister.
She often did this, the regular family
arrangement being for the Judge to drive
her to the station and leave the horse and
cart at a local livery stable awaiting her re-
turn On the midnight train. The Judge
usually walked the three miles back to the
ranch
GO hitch Daisy to the red blackboard"
commanded the Judge of Bung, who was
digging postholes in half-hearted fashion.
"Yep, Boss!" replied the melancholy ser
vitor. There was a long standing feud be-
tween Bung and the old sorrel mare, dis
pute made doubly irritating from the fact
that Daisy instinctlvely realized that Bung
was afraid of her.
"Whoa-up! Whoa-up!" commanded Bung
as he sided into the stall with collar and
bride. The auburn steed looked insolently
round to determine what she should Whoa
up" for. AS he nervously adjusted the col
lar over her shoulders she brought down her
hoof sharply within an inch of his toe, caus-
ing the old man to jump as though he had
been stung by wasp. Just as he was re-
covering himself she slapped him in the face
with her tail. She presented front of hypo-
critical gentleness while he was removing
| her halter; but the moment he seized her
| forelock to force the bit in her teeth, she
suddenly elevated her head after the fashion
| of a giraffe, backing away at the same mo-
ment and dragging Bung half the length of
| the stable.
ooh, hellee! Hoss Clay fool all time!"
| calculated Bung. attempting to bride the
steed by the very force of his fury. For
| time prodigious racket of bowls and tramp
| ing hoofs shook the walls of the stable. 1t
was noise suitable to man and a horse ex-
piring together in considerable agony. Then
silence. Soon afterward the carriage house
door slid back, and Daisy, becomingly har
messed to the red blackboard, trotted sedately
| forth with Bung at the reins. She had gone
through the regular procedure of being har-
messed by Chinaman, and rehshed the SEN
Sation.
Seesawing and slapping at the reins, Bung
stopped Daisy on the drive near the veranda
He accomplished this maneuver by pulling
back full strength, which caused Daisy to
stop on all four feet at once, thus jerking
Bung halfway over the dashboard.
81 see you've still got your pigtail Bung,"
said the Judge jocularly as he disposed his
rheumatic limbs in the narrow vehicle and
helped his wife to her place beside him.
"Still got" admitted the coolie; "but no
can tell how long, Judge Olivah. One devil
come me last night say he catch EN- plenty
quick
maybe you can cheat the devil" sug-
gested the Judge.
"Ah, no. Them devil velly smart fellas,"
responded Bung, moodily returning to his
postholes.
THE Swedish servant was away on va
cation; SO the ranch house was deserted
| that afternoon, save for Gertrude Oliver,
who had been washing her hair, and, clad
in a shabby kimono, sat in the sunlight be-
fore bedroom window. Bung continued
| to dig postholes, now and then pa1sing to
| finger his pigtail refectively. A white hen
escaped from her prison yard and began dig
ging the roots of a flower bed. Bung OBJ
served the culprit and gave stern chase. The
hen in her flight elected to cut an almost per-
| feet circle round and round the house, and,
being in the heyday of her youth, she had
little trouble in widening the distance be-
|