Rocky Ford enterprise. (Rocky Ford, Colo.) 1887-1950, 1914-04-03

certainly gives very practical example
OF the simple life. for his needs ~
duced to minimum. Food. shelter and
clothing of the rudest kind are all that N;
he requires as he wanders from desert to X
tell with his focks. Like the bishop of
Brownings poem. he seems only to ask
that
That hutch should rustic with sufficient
straw"
but he is nevertheless said to suffer
greatly from rheumatism caused by In
cessant exposure to all weathers. and also from
ophthalmia, which is a real scourge among the
natives OF Algeria and results all too frequently
in complete blindness.
About week or ten days before Christmas the
courses indgenes." native race meeting takes
place at Biskra. This meeting is. of course much
less popular than the fashionable which
held in the spring, but good number of French
people always attend 1t. There is superstition
in Biskra that this particular week is always the
windiest in the year, and certainly. the soil
tary occasion of which have had experience. the
reputation was justified Even in the shelter Of
the stand we were thicky powdered with fine
white sand that blown in upon by the high.
strong wind. We drove out to tie course in one
of the sbaky little carriages drawn by two swift
ponies, which can be hired cheapy in the town.
The Hppodrome DEL ALA was thronged with
people, French for the most part. with sprinkling
of English and Germans. and some native Kaids
gorgeously appareled. The first part, Courses
du Ministere de la guerre" consisted only of two
events, the distance in each being 1,500
meters. In the second part Courses de la Com
mune 1ndgene, there we're three events, and the
longest distance 2400 meters. this
being open to horses of all ages The horses bore
such names Boucoucha. LAMAR Salah and
Mabrouk while the jockeys figure the pro-
gram under such nomenclature Messaoud-den-
Chebha, Belgacemben Mohamed and forth. The
course is of hard, white sand. upon which the fly
ing hoofs beat with noise like thunder.
The streaming burnouses of the Arab jockeys
red and white and blue of all shades-made
atnI,o- ~ hill ol,- Nf
raucous-voiced bookmakers shouting the odds;
doubt good deal of quiet betting went
wearing the pale blue tunic of the famous
Chasseurs d'Afrique. Most of them combn-
ing business with pleasure, for the Arabs from
all parts of the desert bring their best horses to
compete in the races. and these frequently
bought for the remount department of the African
cavalry. Every effort is being made by the
French government to encourage horse-breeding
among the Arabs.
Close to the grand stand some of the harem
carriages, with their suffered windows, could be
wherein the Arab ladies of quality were sit
ting, concealed, catching imperfect glimpses of
the and also of what probably interested
them far more-the toilettes of the French wom-
A group of Spahis in their bright red
burnouses and high red boots, added to the pic
turesqueness of the gay scene. When the races
were over we were invited to mount up into the
judges box to witness the fantasia This was
thrilling and rather dramatic finale TO the days
proceedings.
The men of each goum, or tribe rode past head
ed by their kaid or chief. gallopng In rapid sue