The Pulaskian., 1920-10-28

grounds. Near the bank of the creek IS one of the best springs in the county, both as to quality and quan. tlty ot the water. Across the creek from 1t Is another mountain. and if the visitor would start to make it's ascent, he would soon come upon. an abandoned mine. During the first settlement of this country. over one hundred years ago, couple of men hired labor, as they said, to dam the creek, and make fish pond right at this point, but their real object was to mine silver, which thev knew existed here in paying quantities. Wolves and bobcats, or catamounts. are very numerous in this section.
 The bobcats have their habitat along the creeks and the wolves on the mountains. There is also an oc- casIonal panther, and plenty of pos sums, squirrels and some coons and other varmints and game. Mr. ]. W. Baker IS raising a bunch of six hounds. Manager Ferguson of the big ranch (of some l8,000 acres) also has a bunch, and Attorney Gates has the best leader of all. On the ranch where the varmints are very destructive of hogs as we'll as other small domestic animals and poultry, the most important duty is following the hounds, when their loud voices announce a hot trail. At such times all other business stops. whether it be sleeping sweetly in warm bed at 3 o'clock in the morn ing, or just starting for the city after breakfast to send an important tele- gram, or at work branding pen of stock. The loud-mouth calls of the hounds on a hot trail are commands which are obeyed above all other duties, for on keeping down the numbers of the wild animals depends the success of the ranch. There are many other men, and women, too, in this section who love their dogs with an affection that is not equaled even by the Missourian's love for his hound.
 Not far away is the Arkansas river valley, and just little further north is the Big Maumelle. Surely this section has the most divertifed as we'll as the largest section to draw from of any of the fairs.
 With Messrs. Sargent and Smith we rode through Pulaski Heights and Forest Park and on northwest until we crossed the Little Maumelle before we left the main old Fort Smith military road, and then we turned square to the left and when we reached the Little Maumelle and crossed 1t again we were on the fam ous old Prothro camp grounds, the site of the Baptist church and the Masonic hall, the lower floor of the latter building belonging to the com munity and used for all proper com IluLlty purposes.
 In this hall we found few people busy arranging mass of exhibits, my main criticism of which is that they had too much to display prop erly. They were late getting started, and hence had to work fast, and there were only few to do the work, for everybody was busy in the crops. The site was away off from any store and local people had many exhibits of rocks and minerals, so with an in- ward smile 1 thought to myself that l would not have to put up my ex- hibit and could just enjoy myself visiting with my neighbors, for this is my home fair district, but no, 1 inquired for a show case and was in- formed there was no possible chance to get one. Then l ran across Tom W. Newton and he informed me that they had one which 1 would be wei come to if 1 could use 1t, but 1t had a hole in one corner. MT. Newton also invited me to spend the night with him, which I did. It was eight miles to his home, beautifully locat- ed on the bank of the Arkansas river at the lower end of as fine a valley farm as one could wish for.
 At the fair I made the acquaint- ance of two of his children, Peggy and Billie, too young to go to school, and the baby, at home were two at tending school. These two have to go three or three and a half miles, and walk during fair weather, which must be fine for them, and lots of fun, as they gather up more children as they go, until finally there must be a jolly bunch of them, and from the life they put into the sond l