The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1925-10-02
CHAPTER vi

Spool was as good as his word. The
following Sunday we saw his OK team
| as a slowly-growing speck on section
Eleven. and mile away we heard re-
marks to the "bally bullocks' which,
presumably, were intended to be conf
Dental,
Il just brought the bullocks for ex-
ercise," he explained. when he drew
up before our shack. II could have
walked much easier, and much quicker,
but they keep my arms and voice In
FORM"
The girls were waiting in the shade
at the eastern side of the shack; in
their Sunday dresses of fiimsy stuff
appropriate to the hot weather they
looked very sweet and charming.
"Ah, here are the ladies'" said
Spool, and in his manner there was a
touch Of gallantry that in some way
seemed foreign to either Jack or me.
Real prairie roses, and no mistake"
as he took their hands in his. "It's
jolly decent to ask a stranger over.
All this out-of-doors dawns, sunsets,
sky, distance-all very fine, but it isn't
good to be too much alone with it.
Rather overwhelms one, don't you
think %
II have felt that" said Jean, while
Marjorie was fumbling for words.
Its too grand; it Expresses one. It's
its all soul; no body"
That's it-that's it," Spool agreed
'All soul-nO body. / shall write that
to the governor The governor, dear
old chap, thinks this country is rather
bit off the map. have promised to
shoot him polar bear for Christmas,
and he's quite looking forward to it.
He writes to know If find the native
labor satisfactory, and can my man
mix a decent whisky and soda. must
set his mind at rest | let him think
| run quite an establishment, you I'M
derstand: he sends a check now and
again. which, of course, bears rela-
tionship to the position am supposed
to occupy in local society,""
Doesn't your conscience trouble
your" Marjorie queried, the converse
ton having swung into her orbit.
mot at all. l am doing the gov
ernor kindness. He spends rather
too much money on whisky and soda
particularly the former-so am mere
ly getting him Interested in another
kind of extravaganza. A Younger Son
is a very successful form of extray-
agance, don't you think? What is it
Kipling says-'By the bitter road the
Younger Son must tread or something
like that? SO why shouldn't the gov
ernor sweeten the bitter road a little,
and drink less whisky to his solar"
While we were busy thinking of
some appropriate remark Spool re-
membered his bundle of papers.
81 ventured to bring these over" he
said, rendering them to Jean. "Just
some old copies Of the Illustrated Lon
don News and the Graphic. There are
some sketches by an artist showing his
conception of homestead life. I rather
suspect the governor has let him read
my letters"
Presently the conversation turned to
agricultural topics, and we were more
at ease.
''My plowing," Spool explained, "has
gone better since discarded my COM
pass. The bullocks never took kindly
to the compass. No doubt it was a
foolish notion of. mine that a furrow
should run either east and west or
north and south, seeing that the whole
farm has to be plowed anyway. l now
let them veer and tack as they please,
and we are making considerable head
way"
"Any crop in?"
mot this year. A chap in Regina
advised me to plant sack of rolled oats
and raise my own porridge, but, thank
Heaven, I'm not Scotch. No reflection
on the Scotch" he added hurriedly,
noting warning flash in Marjorie's
eyes. "They are very wonderful
people. They eat oatmeal. and thrive
on It, A very wonderful people. Oh,
/ say! Can't we have some tea?
Beastly dry business, homesteading !;
no afternoon tea. / must speak to my
man about that. He's the same man
as mixes my whisky and sodas, accord
ing to the governors idea of it," Spool
explained.
The girls went inside, and in short
while brought out tea and sandwiches.
do you know" said Spool, when
the girls had cleared up the tea things
and were out of hearing. "the thing
Of which stand most in need at the
present moment-that thing which is
so essentially English. and from which
have been divorced for more days
than I care to number-that thing for
which / would gladly give half of my
kingdom, meaning the northwest quar-
ter of section Two? No? Observe