The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-10-04

| in the sunlight like a beautiful story on
a crystal page.
Boyles and Russell rugged up that
army tent and the three cots filled it
like a sardine can. Then they dragged
out enough fishing tackle to catch
enough fish to keep a cannery busy all
| winter. They gave me a fussy steel
pole and a silver reel and a mile of
silk line and We all climbed into that
leaky boat and went fishing.
Not a Bite: Nary a Nibble.
At sunset [ mutinied and threatened
to upset the boat and these stark, star
ing fishermen consented to pull for the
shore. Not bite. Not a nibble. Not
Irritation with single fish, turtle or
eel. Now in Kansas we would at least
have lost our bait from the visitations
of a turtle. We were fishing with live
frogs for bait. And 1 forgot to state
that we almost missed our McHenry
train from Chicago on account of those
frogs. Bought 'em alive from depart
ment store on State street. We ought
to have done our fishing in that store.
Would have caught more fish.
It was dusk when we landed at the
camp. That summer day had fled to
join the others that had gone before
And the wind that blew from the north
across that river had icycles in its
breath l was fresh from Kansas
where the days were 100 and the nights
SO and L was no more fit for that night
than Panama mat weaver would be
for hunting polar bears in Baffin's bay
Supper in the Dark.
We fumbled around in the dark and
cooked supper over the camp fire and
I spoke words to those fishermen call
culated to make the sons of Job rise
up and go to war. The supper we ate
would have lasted nine men in town
for a week. The wind picked up a lit
tie more speed and some one turned
it began to get cold. That summer day
just passed seemed to have drifted so
far astern that it had become some half
remembered recollection of my boy
hood.
We fed that camp fire with old dry
wood and sat around it and talked about
the old days and the old boys we had
known. 1t was all very fine, after all.
And then We crawled into that tent
and each man went to bed in his little
cot. Feeling fine. We sat up and sang
old songs. Boyles called it harmony,
but his prejudice in favor of our music
was as strong as concentrated I've
mixed with little water
1t Was a Cold Night. Mates.
1 went to sleep a last. 1 may have
slept an hour or an hour and a half at
the most, when l walked up freezing
to death. Cold! Name of a nameI but
it was cold. 1 had a cheesecloth quilt
me and the cold passed through to my
bones like going through a screen door
left ajar
L got up and put on my coat and
raincoat and shoes and then crawled
under that quilt again. No go. The
cold wind from Canada walked up and
down my person with blue feet. Shiv-
cred and sighed and cursed the man
who invented fishing. Then from
over on the other side of the tent
pain has him in its clutches Rus
sell was sitting up in bed. L heard
his teeth chattering. l asked him
what allied him. He was cold, and he
told me SO with emphasis and detail
that left never a doubt in my mind
Lets get up and make fire.
said Russell.
Agreed" said I.
We did.
Got Up and Made a Fire.
Russell coaxed a lighted match and |
some kindling to be good friends while /,
1 wandered around in the dark like |
a duck on an iceberg looking for |
wood. We made noble fire and /
huddled up closer to it than any lover /
to his sweetheart. The wood was dry |
and burned out quick. We went for |
more. 1t was hard to find. Now |
frozen mans conscience is dead and |
buried at l o'clock in the morning of |
a situation like this. We stole wood. |
we lOOh one VI lldI llOlel man ID
bles and chair or two and an old
door and chopped them up into fire
wood lengths and saved two men from
death.
The Night Wore On.
The night wore on. Boyles slept in
that cold storage tent like young sea
lion or a polar bear cub. Russell and
l sat by the fire. The wind was new
er weary. We rugged up a piece of
sailcloth for windshield. using
crooked stick. a chair and a tree for
stage properties, working with numb