The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1915-02-26
CHAPTER ~.
=
Beginning of Life Anew.


But must go on with my story.
Travelled through deserted land. AS
the time went by | began to yearn
more and more for human beings. But
never found one, and grew lonelier
and tonelier. crossed Livermore
valley and the mountains between It
and the great valley of the San Joa-
quin. You have never seen that val
Iey- but 1t is very large and it is the
aome of the wild horse. There are
great droves there, thousands and tens
OF thousands. l revisited it thirty
years after, SO | know. You think
there are lots of wild horses down
mere In the coast valleys, but they
are as nothing compared with those
ca the San Joaquin. Strange TO say,
T7e COWS, when they went wild, went
hack into the lower mountains. Evil
IDENTITY they were better able to protect
themselves there.
In the country districts the ghouls
and providers had been less in evi.
dence, for | found many villages and
towns untouched by fire. But they
were filled by the pestllential dead,
and / passed by without exploring
Them. II was near Lathrop that, out
OF my loneliness, picked up pair of
eu3lae dogs that were 80 newly free
ssat they were urgently willing to
return to their allegiance to man.
These collies accompanied me for
many years, and the strains of them
are in these very dogs there that you
bays have today. But in sixty years
the collie strain has worked out. Those
hrUSes are more like domesticated
wnAves than anything else"
Hare-Lip rose to his feet, glanced
Co see that the goats were safe, and
looked at the suns position In the
afternoon sky advertising impotence
at the prolixity OF the old mans tale.
Urged to hurry by Edwin, Ganser
went on:
There is little more to tell With
my TWO dogs and my pony, and rid
Eng horse | had managed to cap
tuns, 1 crossed the San Joaquin and
wesaG on to wonderful valley in the
SiGrTas called Yosemite. In the great
h0tei there found a prodigious sup
ply of timed provisions The pasture
WIS abundant, as was the game, and
the river that ran through the valley
WAS full of trout. ! remained there
three years in an utter loneliness that
none but a man who has once been
Aignly civilized can understand. Then
could stand it no more. ! felt that
u was going crazy. Like the dog,
wSs q social animal and needed my
kind. | reasoned that since | had
survived the plague, there was a pos
sihility that others had survived.
Also, ! reasoned that after three years
The plague germs must all be gone
and the land be clean again.
with my horse and dogs and pony,
" set out. Again | crossed the San
Joaquin valley, the mountains beyond.
and came down into LiYermore val
ley. The change in those three years
was amazing All the land had been
speendidly titled, and now could
scarcely recognize it. such was the |
sea OF rank vegetation that had over
ran the agricultural handiwork of
EHEaT. You see, the wheat, the vege-
saE1aes, and orchard trees had always |
been cared for and nursed by man, SO |
that they were soft and tender. The |
~Eneds and wild bushes and such |
1fadRgs. on the contrary, had always
been fought by man, 30 that they
we're tough and resistant AS a result,
when the hand of man was removed
the wild vegetation smothered and de-
sfEuyed practically all the domesti-
Gated vegetation. The coyotes were
greatly increased. and it was at this
time that first encountered wolves,
sfraying In twos and threes and small
packs, down from the wild regions
where they had always persisted.
ut was at Lake Temescal, not far
From the one-time city OF Oakland.
efHat came upon the first live human
being. Oh, my grandsons, how can |
describe to you my emotions, when.
zsfride my horse and dropping down
she hillside to the lake, I saw the
smoke of campfire rising through
Eite trees. Almost did my heart stop
beating. felt that was going crazy.
Then heard the cry OF babe-a hu.
a1an babe. And dogs barked and my
5ags answered. | did not know but
mat was the one human alive in the
sfote world. 1t could not be true
mat there were others smoke, and
he cry of babe.
Emerging on the lake, there. be-
ure nay eyes. not hundred yards
Gway. | saw q man, large man. He
vas standing on an outjutting rock
nd fishing Twas overcome. stopped