Charlevoix county herald., 1914-03-21


ever precious fluid. This, too, after
we told hlm that he could replenish
ms supply within hive miles OF where
we stood, as we all distinctly remem-
Dered having seen a Gasoline FOR
Sale" sign that we had passed, TOO
happy, care-tree and speedy TO think
OF our own needs IN this line OF wet
goods. All to no purpose. or course
after he refused us point blank, on
the ground that he was AFRAID ne
wouldn't have enough for his own
needs, we simply looked at him IN
amazement and disgust. We really
did not comprehend that he had re-
| fused-positively refused-to help us
out until after he had pulled away.
Then our pent-up Indignation, coupled
with our extreme disgust, broke forth.
AS we gazed at the departing car, we
said things. The brute lacked not only
| the common courtesy OF the road, but
the milk of human kindness. We
called him all the names in the Inter
national Century combined and then
! looked up few extra ones in the Blue
Book. The book had the right color
and the indigo spread all over that
part of Iowa as we vented our dis
pleasure. But that didn't get us any
where and besides the man couldn't
! hear our opinion of him anyway. Even
if he could have heard he wouldn't
have understoOd; he didn't have the
brain capacity to understand the Ian
guage of gentlemen properly and
righteously indignant. We all agreed
that he didn't even have brains enough
to fill the small hole in the valve stem
of the inner tube of an automobile
tire. And believe four of us-that's
some small hole! We all know cause
we've all monkeyed with those holes
! for $500 miles-every few miles
sometimes-and we know what we are
talking about.
This man-getting back to the thing
! that drove an automobile and had a
tank well filled with gasoline and
wouldn't help fellow with quart or
! two-this fellow, this-swinish clod-
| hopper. There that will hold him for
a while and make his left ear ring
| this-this! is not even almost human
and thank the Lord he is not an Amer
/ lean. He is a foretinger who has not
vet learned how to be friend in need.
| We were shortsighted enough not to
get his name or the number of his car,
| though we did see that it was regis
! tered as from Iowa and for this 0,
! Iowa! we hold thee responsible. You
have fallen 999.99 per cent in our es-
timation If we had the mans name
we would publish it if it cost US all a
years income.
! This story, however is not about the
man, hut about the trip and we can't
! continue the story or the "Trip without
! gasoline, so one of our boys set off on
! foot for the nearest farm house some
mile away. He found not only the
! farm house, but real 1S-carat man
| in IL; also two quarts of gasoline. An
Irish farmer by name j. II. Cum
mingS. Van Horn, Iowa, Rural Free
| Delivery Route No. and he accom-
panied our companion the full half
mile back TO the car, carrying the can
of fuid--sO he could carry the empty
/ can back home, he said, and save us
/ the trouble and delay. Get that p
save US the trouble and delay. Has
| that man got any brains? Well, ask
the tourists who took this trip.
As a slight token of our apprecia-
ton, we paid him well with cash and
our best cigars and let him know that
common courtesy was splendid asset
even if accompanied with but two
gallons of gasoline to stranded au-
tomobile party.
Between Chelsea and Gladstone,
Iowa, We pitched our first tent for a
night in camp. We found an ideal
spot under the trees and near farm
house, with plenty of straw for our
beds
We had made 200 miles that day
and we cheerily sat about preparing
our evening meal, consisting of eggs,
potatoes, bacon, milk, etc. Large
wooden blankets covered up the straw
on the ground and after satisfac-
tory supper and a smoke from the
old jimmy pipes, we put on our night
clothes, crept into our sheltering A
tent and were soon fast asleep, dream
ing more or less of the brainless idiot
who refused Us gas and the fairy God
father who came TO our rescue.
Iowa is certainly one fine farming
state. Rolling pillows of land, fertile
and pleasing to the eye greet one on
every hand. Corn is king here for
sure and all in all the state appears to
he the most prosperous of any of the
purely farming states through which
we passed. Her soil is uniformly ex-
celient, the land lays well. Hcr
horses beat them all in size, proper
ton and numbers.
Thursday morning, August 22d
found us all packed up and on our way
at 7:15. We had not travelled far be-
fore we ran into a slight patter OF
rain. 1t amounted to but little and we
did not even put on our rain coats. II
was purely local and we soon rar
away from it.
We passed the 500th mile at 1885 a
M, and our way to Des Moines passed
through Belle PLANES, Chelsea, Tams
Tan Indian reservation), Montour
, Marshalltown, State Center, Ames anC
Ankeny.
Within six miles of Des Moines W,
passed the old coal mining settlement
of Marquesvilc. The usual type OF
poor houses stand near the mines anC
the people look like the houses. TIL,
country road about, however, is fine
, fertile and prosperous looking We
| Nynr1HaraA bxy xxrntIlh cnlasf \