The Bozeman courier. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1919-1954, 1923-10-10
signs And
SIMPLETONS

did you notice how many people
there are who seem to have a weak
cog somewheres in their make-up?"
said Ranger Bill as he threw a bunch
of new enamel signs that had been
shot full of holes into the woodshed.
mind you l don't claim such folks
are what you would call foolish, but
they sure lack good sense to pull
| some of the tricks they do. OF
| course sometimes it's due to thought
l~essness, but pure ~cussedness would
be more like it, 1 reckon, in a good
many cases.
"Who'm / alluding to? Why, just
them folks, big and small, that go
around shooting up signs and writing
their names on rocks and trees and
| buildings and any old handy place.
We got a lot of them up here on the
National Forests in the summer
time-natives and city people and
dudes out on a vacation, who either
think it's smart to make a pepper
box out of a sign or else want to
leave a monument to themselves by
scribbling all over the landscape.
You know the old saying about Fools
names & 3 =?
"You think l am putting it too
strong? Well / don'tH you could
trade places with me for a season
and see some of the stunts of these
vandals, you'd know why l get hot
under the Stetson. Let's look at this
business with common sense Here's
the forest service and the automobile
associations of the state spending a.
lot Of good money each year to put
up fine enamel signs so that u own
folks and all the people who visit
this district can tour around in the
mountains without getting lost. Then
along comes some smart Aleck with
a III and-Bang! Bang! another sign
is shot full of holes and ready for the
ash heap. And it isn't only one, but
thousands of them that get made in
to a sieve hathaway. Seems like
these fellows would appreciate rath-
er than ~depreciate a sign, and think
a bit about the people that's coming
after. Every time a sign is badly
defaced a new one has to be made
and put up, and that means more
money and work. Once in a while we
catch these birds, and the way the
Judge usually hands it to them sure
does a mans heart good. If there is
anyone that ought to get it, and get
t it good, it's these sign poachers.
"Now look at those autograph
sharks and some of their artistic
work. Why, only last week 1 found
the name of a professor of one of
: our big state universities scrubbed
over the newly painted door Of a
D lookout station up at 10 600 feet
E What do you suppose his idea was
0 If he wanted me to know he'd called
, why didn't he leave a card or write
On a piece of paper? If I can tie-ir
with him Pm sure going to make him
I. back-track up there and scrub that
name off with sapolio. Just you stoI
and take a peek at that big forest
sign down at the forks of the road
I only put it up this spring, and nov
e you'll find a regular telephone di
rectory scratched all over it's face
No, sir, it amt the kids that pull al
e this stuff, but real grown up mel
> and women who ought to know
enough to respect other peoples prop
erty.
IS "A fellow was telling me the othe
ID day that the temples in Egypt hav
RS all kinds of names and pictures tina
rs senseless people scratched on tn
Of stones three or four thousand year
= ago. l always thought we'd kin
:" of advanced in civilization sine,
then, but it pears like we've go
as simpletons in these days same a
g. they had back in King Tut's time.