Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-02-14
,By MAC HYMAN
Copyright 1854 by Mac LYMAN

THE STORY UP TO NOW
The man from the Draft Board came to
the bdckpoodS farm of viii Stockdale to re-
mind him that four letters had failed to bring
him In for induction. Wills Pa is Infatuated
By the stranger and ciGses him of the prop
erty after a loud exchange TN Which Pa
demonstrates that Will can really read. After
Pa Gains do,vn, he eats and oro,us thoughtful
His mind is on the merit Draft Board inuGsioH
CHAPTER III
So after that there warnt much that
could do about it. He got it in his head how
he wanted to fix up the place so nobody could
come busting up like that any more, and we
worked half the night on it. I never seen Pa
so full Of plans and things in my life neither
The first thing he wanted to do was pull out
all the rolls Of barbed wire we had in the barn
and drag them out front and leave them in
rolls on this log fence we had out there.
well just stack it up along here" he said
THAT way man will have right hard time
getting through it. What do you think about
that, Will?"
1T sounds like mighty good idea." said.
"Sho." Pa said Come, on lets get the rest
of it," and he took off for the back again.
moving faster and more spry than had seen
him in many year.
Anyhow. we worked on the fence about
two hours. I guess, and both of us worked
pretty hard too. I don't think would have
cared too much for it. only there was big
moon out and Pa begun singing to himself
making kind Of party out of it, and the dogs
were running around real excited. and after
bit. 1t begun to be kind of fun. Pa went in
and got bottle and we both had drink, and
then he got to singing all the church songs he
knowed with these bundles of wire over his
shoulder. He sung that one about Just a
little walk with theeee" and come in on the
chorus of 1t and We made right good duet
out of it, Pa had about as bad voice as
ever heered, though. and didn't know but two
notes with one of them high and the other
one low, but he hoped back and forth be-
tween the two pretty good and didn't sound
anywhere near as bad as usual so it really
warnt too bad. We finished laying out the
bundles along the fence. and then Pa got the
idea of stringng what he had left from tree
to tree out in the woods, just about the level
of the grass, so that a man coming along
might trip over 1t. So we done that on both
sides of the house, working about another
hour at it, guess and thought Pa had real
ly outdone himself in thinking Of things to do.
but then he got the idea of tying the dogs out
there to the trees so they could set up howl
If they heered somebody coming, and that
took a little while to do because the dogs
didn't quite recognize Pa with him singing and
taking on the way he was and wouldn't come
anywhere NEAR him. He had to chase the
only one he caught by running around the
house about three times behind him. and only
managed it then by diving headlong after
him. which almost scared the poor dog to
death. But we finally managed to get them
all but Blue and we never could get him be-
cause he never did come back out OF the woods
no more. We seen him every once in a while.
setting behind a bush with his head poked
around the side. watching everything. but he
never would come out no more. so finally We
just had to give him up for good.
The Chickens, Too
Anyhow, thought that would be enough
for Pa, but he was sweating and happy and
still hadn't tired none, and he said. VIII.
this is one time we can get some good out OF,
them chickens" and then told me another
idea he had about catching them all too
and stringing them up by one foot to the
bushes out in the woods and using them as
kind of watchdogs too.
well, that sounds like mighty good idea"
I said But it'll take a pretty long time
catching and tying up them chickens and We
been at this about three hours now and -"
That don't matter" Pa said. I'VE got all
night, amt we? Come on, lets have one more
drink and get down to it now"
So we started on that, chasing the chickens
around the yard with them squawking and
Tapping their wings In your race ana making
noises like you were wringing their neckS.
And really was kind of surprised that Pa got
through that one because he never really
cared for chickens nohow. and one of the big
ones got right on his shoulder and beat his
wings over his face and pecked at him until
he fell in one of the bundles of wire one time.
SO that it took me nearly half hour to get
him out of It, But it didn't stop him neither;
he went right on until we had them all out.
~oJ hat thought
they would We had them tied by one foot
so they wouldn't get tangled up, and when we
finished and went over to the well for drink
of water, throwed rock down in the woods