The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1925-10-16

WlSt1ul little Dody VINO seemed likely
| to have plenty to visit over before her
| children We're raised on the living that
a gamekeeper would wiring from the
| soil. On the northwest Of Eighteen,
| just four miles west of us, a Scottish
| shipbuilder named Smith had located.
| He appeared to be unmarried Three
miles north of us, on Thirty -four, a
| Swede named Hansen had built
shanty twelve feet square, in which
he was housed with his wife and six
children, and on Thirty-six Russian
had dug himself sort of cave in the
bank of the gully. He, too, had
wife ano numerous offspring, but the
exact number had not yet been ascer-
tanned.
"Ay tank thar bane plenty" Ole
Hansen had said, when discussing the
subject with Spool And as Ole re-
garded his own six hopefuls as 'yust
a nice commeoce," the Imagination
was rather stirred by the possibili-
ties of what the cave on Thirty-six
might disclose to the census taker.
How do you say his name?" Spool
had inquired.
yah don say it. Yah sneeze it."
Ole explained
"Sneezit-that'll do" said Spool.
And so, quite without his knowledge
or consent, cur Russian neighbor was
supplied with an English name;
name which may some day-who
knows?-be borne with pride by one
of our best families.
Then there was Burke, an Ameri-
can from Iowa, man with a lust for
labor and for doing things on a big
on section Twenty about the middle
of August, and, ignoring the tradition
that it is useless to break prairie sod
in the fall, had already turned over
broad strip from end to end of their
quarter section. Burke it was who in
troduced mules into the settlement.
From what the girls were able to
gather from Spool mules called for
an even more extended vocabulary
than did oxen
And you want us to believe that
Spool told you all these things with
out ever coming into the houses"
challenged.
"Never a foot over the doorstep"
said Jean. THAT is, hardly ever. It's
big country; why be so particular
for foot or two?
"Oh, I'm not; not at ALL I'm mere
1v ny hat laS
night"
"In my intoxication over your re-
turn! How could you, Frank?" And
with that l had to be satisfied.
But the best is yet!' Marjorie ex-
claimed. Guess who's marriedT'
"Jake !" we answered together.
"Oh, somebody told. Yes, Jake. He
and his wife are settled on Sixteen.
They've a little shack up, and Jake
is farming the community, as he calls
it. 'Acquaintances, he says, are
about all I'll be able to cultivate this
year He spends most of his time
at Spoofs, but l don't notice that
Spoof's work goes along any quicker
on that account. They called on US
a couple of times-Jake and his wife,
I mean they have the advantage over
the other settlers of having a light
wagon and a team of ponies, which
make it easy for them to get about.
Mrs. Jake impresses one as being
angular and competent, with perhaps
more heart in her than her appear
ance would suggest. They say 1t was
an agency match"
At that point we took up the story
with Jake's account of his cOurtship
and wedding, censored, of course, to
suit the audience.
That's mostly lies," said Marjorie,
in her matter-of-fact way. HE adj
vertised for her all right, but he went
to Minneapolis to meet her, and it
was only when he promised to go on
a homestead that she consented to
come. She told me that much; said
she'd had enough of the town, and
wanted to get away from everything
and everybody. She has touch Of
humor, too; said, I guess that's what
1 did, all right, when 1 came out on
the baId-headed with Jake"
"But the telegram? He had her
telegram"
"He must have faxed that. He
knew he would meet you boys before
he went back, and he had story
made up to show himself in the best
light possible"
"How about Mrs. Alton" / asked.
"She doesn't come out. We've gone
over a couple of times, and she re-
ceives us with great friendliness, but
when we ask her to return our visit
she always makes out that she can't
leave the boy. OF course she could
bring him with her, so that Is only
an excuse. For some reason she
wants to stick close to her home
stead"
H. ,