i. ass THEIR LAST RIDE By ETHEL S. PHILLIPS (® by Short Story Pub, Co.) MERGING from behind the shel. tering walls of the canyon, the team settled into a flve-mile gait, The wagon rattled and rumbled over the hard surface of the mesa road that lay lke a pale snake across the land, keeping ever to the tops of the ridges, curving to avoid arroyos, yet always descending grad- ually across the vast expanse of the foothills to the green valley of the Rio Grande. ach mile of the road, bordered with ever-recurring patches of mesquite, soap weed and creosote, was like every other mile; perhaps differing In the minor detail of spacing, yet disclosing no variation. Like the pever-changing, ever-chang- ing aspect of the country, were the two men who occupied the seat of the wagon. Differing as one man from another, yet allke as a type: lean, griz- zled and bronzed; as typical of the cow country as the sparse vegetation of the long dry and barren plains skirting the better pasturage of the canyons and higher reaches of the foothills. In the wagon box, inanimate as the water harrel, the battered pail and the sack of feed which shared its bed, Iny a slight, stark object wrapped in a gray blanket. The blanket was wet, | and the air, immediately above Its! gruesome folds, was cooler than would seem possible under the brazen glare of the climbing sun, The Increasing heat of the open road, thrust itself interruptingly upon the silence of the two men, Jim Riley looked restlessly behind him snd then at the other man whom he addressed. “Funny notion some folks get about dyin’, ain't it? As If it made any dif- ference what becomes of the bank hook enshed checks. after you've in your Seems lke the more elvilized | an’ Christianized folks get. the more onreligious they Is in thelr notions about hein’ burfed. It's plumb foolish shippin’ dead folks hack home” “Does seem foolish, but I reckon It's n sight of comfort to thelr folks” suid | Porter, slapping the lines along the | horses’ backs, | “Well, that's Take this chap; it to I'm gettin® at int been home fer like what he a ain't they hadn™t livin® him Why. since he's heen to the ranch. he | oftener'n They've gotten over runnin’ door every time the postman | Suppose we'd jest writ. i tellin’ ‘em that he never knowin’ | three vears: gotten nsed withont ain't written home month, to the nes ten to pescefnl an’ it the when once nj Nee? ‘*m died | ike, uns comin’ till the end, leavin’ that of his PARRY out | fear his looked out blood o eyes | lips, an’ here in the foot. he tasted that he hills n wns lyin’ out in the open, where he died a grand lastin’ with nld mountain fer his ever monument. Wanldn't that've leon this? An’ this ain't al! tho 1 reckon it's the wo It's n long wavs bark to Tennessee In a bag gage car No it fer mine! If I'm lucky enough to get mine in the open, let me lay right there in half a conti nent a-rollin’ in front of me That's big enongh fer me. [ want lay where [| die an’ my boots on” Riley ended. Then shifting in his seat he raised a restraining hand. Porter brought the team to a halt Riley jumped to the road and went to the back of the wagon. “Lord, but it's hot,” he said gravely, dipping the pail into the barrel and dashing water over the stark form wrapped In the gray blanket. Presently the wagon moved on Drop after drop the water fell froto the cracks In the wagon bed, only to he absorbed hy the dust-dry atmosphere, almost before it reached the burning gravel “Poor I bet he'd never have asked ns to ry to get him to El Paso in time If he'd have known what the heat means on a job like this—an’ I'm not knowin®' vet, that we'll be In time. Seems ilke this Is hotter weather 'n common.” “We can't do no mor'n to try.” Por. ter sald. “1 felt like tellin’ him it wasn't no use, but his eves looked so kinda huongry, an’ he spent the last hreath he had longin' for home-him a lyin’ there lookin’ out dt the sunrise over heyontl the Sacramentoes.” “Sure, we're doin’ the only thing we ean do, but it's almighty tough.” At noon the drooping horses de manded a rest. The men climbed down and made eamp. True to thelr cowhoy training, they had made no provision for themselves, but the horses were fed and watered and rest. ed tor an hour. Fed and watered and rested by the burning, unsheltered roadside, but fanned by a merciful breeze, Porter took a folded blanket from the wagon =ent and threw ft over a couple of mesquite bushes; It cast a narrow strip of shade and the two men, seeking tis, stretched out in the hot send “Pror devil” Riley sald. watching the drip of the water under the wagon “Died like u Christian an’ a sport, an’ then—this Well it's what he watited, an’ | reckon that's all the livin® ean do fer the deng™ . “You het,” Riley replied laconieally. better'n rat gir-re, none of lost hy, with a down hil} to asain hoy, *Y' sed’ be was an exile, an’ these great old plains with the lights an’ the shaders a-changin’ an’ a-changin in the moonlight an' under the stars they wasn't filled with nothin’ fer him but loneliness. Y' remember him a-sayin' some poetry, out of a maga: zine, about ‘lookin’ out on the sage brush an’ stretchin’ yearnin' hanfls, an’ the long unbroken reaches of th' des. ert’s burnin’ sands? Well, that's what this country was to him-—a desert. Now, you an' me, we're used to the bigness an’ we don't call it lonesome, It's the land of memories to us, jest like Tennessee was the land of mem- ories to him~-an’ that's what a man hankers fer, I reckon, when he comes to the great divide. Like a little kid a-wantin’' of his mother, a man's a-wantin’ of his home.” Riley raised on his elbow: “Yep, you're right, all right, an’ I'm hopin’ by the Eternal, that we'll beat time to the undertakers. Let's drag If, what d'yvou say? Goshi but those birds up there, Is gettin’ on my nerves." Porter opened his eyes and looked, out and above, into the blue of the sky where vagrant clouds. like drifts of snow, were drifting from the west. There, soaring on lazy wing. circling, sailing, drifting on the wind, buzzards watched afar. When again upon the road, the two men lasped Into silence. Each time that Riley dipped the battered into the lowering water in the barrel, his soul grew sick within him, hole hefore them varmints, gets onto my job" up the changing shadows on the when one was gone, another followed, without end. be seen, a faint cloud graveled hills I'm he but wil his shroud, poor chap, it'll stay down till We've done our best goin' to beat us to Ii. to take no more rides like this" “Nor me. I liked this chap fine, but not he sorry Ry time.” Riley sald brusquely. standing on the hack the last trump but the to keted nt that stark ing still form, eves lingering there, fumped. An automobile coming from A y e great divide of a at of his last consclous. to the shadow smile the voluntary bidding ness, when fear and shock had passed “ Of a lifetime, the choked ad 1 itiar his throat, and, shocked as he was It was nothing that gave outward sign, The was, Porter. grappling with ened horses, mfam gray and grim sonnd within to the sorrow no man from iaid the automoblle, It Riles’s battered body w he } that fixed seemed now, to stare horror at the black against the evening sky ; specks less eyes with =a ‘pecks salled and soared and drifted on the wind, “*Anythin' you can Riley till I can bring somebody. It " ful job 1 tough on the lady, but it's the best we can do. I've got one dead man aboard already Fifty we've hrought that could be buried decent, back in Tennessee, We've got hime In a blanket, an’ we've kept it wet all the way, but the sun's heen flerce an’ th' evaporation ain't done much good. so ¥' see | can't walt now. But I'll be right back, an’ say, If you've got any pull, I want to dig a hole right here fer Riley. That was what he wanted -t dle In the open—an’ to lay-— that do? Sure. Stay vir a lox know; miles he half a lifetime together, an’ I'll give the rest of mine to see that he gets what he wants-—wanted, “Well, so long, I'll he pullin’ my freight Git up toany! Gi up Boney! Poor old eaballos—y'ain't got much hustie left in you, have yon? nut one lighter, now, was.” Porter choked as started down the steep grade. “Sa he got his in the open, poor old Jim,” Porter mused. HI face was drawn and gray but a new determina tion stamped it now, “Well, pard, I'll gee that you lle In the open too, with half the world Iyin’ at your feet, an’ the grand oid monn tain'll be your everlastin’ monument, an' sou'll be sleepin’ right at home. An’, Jim.” he sald, looking up into the marvelous blue that surrounded the riot of the sunset, “the birds is a-fol- lowin' of my freight an’ there ain't no black specks, back there, a-flyin' be tween you an' heaven.” we're Indoor Sports Dr. William D. Haggard, of Nash. ville, president of the American Medleal association, sald at Atlantic City the other day. “Why do so many Americans spend the summer abroad when our At lantie const has the best summer “A Nashville man spent last sum mer In England and France. It rained all day and every day over thers. “Have un good time? 1 asked him when he got back, HO leenr—nettish, you know,’ he sald; ‘hut—tell you what doctor'— und his face brightened up—'l learned to crochet darn well!” Po CABINET (@, 1926, Western Newspaper Union.) Harvest and birds aswing; Orchard and vineyard with rich fruit. age crowned, And golden sheen on the sheaves well bound. Fulfillment in every thing. Edith Bradt, ECONOMICAL SUGGESTIONS All liquids in which vegetables ure cooked should be saved; either serve combined with thickening for a or cream, In gra- vies, or simply chill and use ax a drink for those who need iron and the various min. eral salts. young carrots are ccoked will be moge effective than iron pills or tonle, been cooked, have heen in though we times past that It will found good bread, griddle cakes and gravy. When cooking such succulent greens he in dralued off should be used in the food for the family. When cooking vegetubles that ground, do not add until they are nearly ready to serve, as it toughens the fiber and makes them less of the above any grow sult ligestible, teaspoonful of sugar added to the ket. tie when cooking wlll greatly enhance the flavor. However, do not as it will be and unnatural, A small steak which could serve hint three answer well for five or six in the following dish: Chop Suey.—Brown a in suet, cut into small onlon or not as one's and simmer with a little warer half hour on the back of the then add bunc {if or- dinary size} of celery cut inte small pleces, and continue to until the celery is tender hut not soft, fon few teaspoonfuls of chop suey sauce Serve In hot platter with a border of cooked rice well sea goned and sprinkled with suey sauce, Lefi-over meals teed for this ne an little pork browned and up A sommil amount of thus flavors a large dish and it is one that most families call overdo the sweetening, noticeable will small steak small pleces, add a taste die. tates, for a two es sir or the center of a chop may be dish, such ronst veal with fresh a Ad ment for again and again, Corn Souffle. Melt add and stir antl! potr on one ouj ul of one two tablespoon butter, tablespoonfuls flour then well hilended, the boiling point and add and one fourth * 41 ofie 3 Mor a few grains of yolks of two egus ben until Turn Into a buttered and bake in a moderate minutes Suggestions for Dinner, t cocktail is a good beginning Slice a ripe peeled pear into fine strips, and dry dish thirty baking oven add a peeled sliced peach or two, then a more melon balls; are prepared with a pots Put the mix sherbet dozen or these fo SCOOP ture into and pour over a sugar sirup mu sugar, water, lemon juice and a bit of rind grated Chill and serve for the first course, Breast of Veal Stuffed.—The market man will cut a pocket as deep us one likes in a breast of veal, Fill fR stuffing, using breaderumbs, buiter, eggs, salt, pepper, onion finely chopped de ol the with is i ang such poultry dressing as one likes Sew up and roast, basting often during the roasting. Serve with: Spanish Potatoes.—Boll as many po tatoes as the familly needs, drain and { shake over the heat dry. Into a {| vegetable dish which has been well | heated. put plenty of batter and a i small onion very finely minced. Mix well and turn in the hot potatoes, cut | with a knife, mixing until all are well seasoned, Hashed Brown Potatoes. Try fo out | remove the scraps: there should i one-third of a cupful of fat. cupfuls of cold bolled potatoes, finely chopped, with pepper and alt needed. Mix the potatoes thoroughly with the fat, cook three minutes, stir ring constantly, then let stand to brown underneath. Fold as an omelet and turn out on a hot platter. Garnish with parsley, flavor. Potato Muffins. Mashed potato, left over, put into buttered gem pans and baked until brown is both attractive and good. ‘Serve as a garnish to piatter of fish or chopa Browned Cheese Cracksre—Split milk erackers and spread with butter, sprinkle with grated cheese and cay- enne. Put into a dripping pan and buke until delicately brown, Mock Crab.—Meit one tablespoontul of butter, add iwo tablespoonfuls of flour and stir until well blended, then add one cupful of wilk and cook until thick. Add one ean of corn, one and one-fourth teaspoonful of salt, a tea. gpoonful of worcestershire ghuce and # half teaspoonful of mustard, Add two eg: yolks and the beaten whites nt the lust. Duke slowly until set, Nerie Magma be Egg and Poultry Societies Thrive Cooperative Marketing Has Rapidly Developed in Past Few Years. (Prepared by the United States Department of Agriculture.) poultry in the United States has un- dergone great development [n the last 10 yeurs. One hundred and elghty- three farmers’ business organizations report handling eggs or poultry or both during 1024. 000,000 dozens of mately 322 000.000 of the trnly co-operative type, these 31 han- died HO per cent of the egg business. Formerly practically all poultry products were sold on a flat price ba- sis. Eggs brought the same price re- gurdiess of quality. Poultry, which wus usually sold allve, was pald for on the pound bagis with little regard to its age or condition. This method, besides offering no inducement to pro- divers to limprove the quality of thelr ponltry about sea- Although only 31 smd eggs, brought Improvement Made, Great improvement was made when ponitry producers in of the country adopted co-operative meth- of marketing eggs and poultry. These efforts, at first local and primi. tive, eventually spread and complex, try and egg successt’ully conducted of years In Paelfie Egg and poultry marteting orgnized stntes been yours marketing Hampshire, various parts nls became wide Large-scale pon CO operatives been for a number Const states, quite have the has been in attention cooperatively many Considerable given in the last or thre» the co-operative method poultry in Maine, New Connecticut, New York, Ohlo, Indiana, liinols, Minnesota, Mis sourl, Utah, Texas, New Idaho, Alabama. Kentucky ginla. In Minnesota ure federated for seMing Elsewhere most of the recently forged are of the nunstock, nonprofit (ype. A survey In 1924 showed 31 egg and Iwo {to of and Vir jocal associations purposes nssncintions Twenty of them both eggs and poultry. Eight handled Only eZgs, one handiefl only poul- try. Missouri, with nine associations, wns the with the ber: Minnesota California third, with four fourth, with three cintions that gave the department formation erations and the ning of that year, Cooperative egg marketing was first developed by the present meth the J'ncifie const. fartned wo and state largest pun. with six; and Texas 0) wns second, AERO in. op they } 1920, 1% 10 when before the were organized remainder since od on An association was in 1913 in Tulare county, Call with hers Year Last year its sales were nearly Sani nx Poultry i of con. trul Californian formed an organization in 1916. and this concern last year had SMXLONN) hens covered hy its fornia sbout 100 men its (xx " on first its sales exceeded $25.- roducers contracts died and are In good demand in East. ern markets. The Poultry of Southern California, Ine. a organization formed In 1017, bandied 87.003 enses of eggs in 11s first sear Last it handled 139.000 In 1917 the Washington Co.op- Egg and Poultry formed with headquarters nat Seattle, This association now handles nhout 300,000 cases of eggs n year, and its net worth has increased from about $100 10 ETON Producers erative year led CHR erutive associgtion was Records of Progress. erntion are cited by the United States To Avoid Winter-Killing Sow Plenty of Seed. Oats are used mainly for hay or grain, seldom being turned under, They should be sown on good land. On poor soils they do not give satisfactory returns In either hay or grain, and make less growth than rye for turning under. “Yet oats make a fine crop for farm. ers,” says E. C, Blalr, extension agron- omist at the North Carolina State college. “Under favorable conditions they may be expected to yleld 2,500 to { 3,000 pounds of cured hay per acre, The hay contains 9.3 per cent protein, fis compared to 5.9 per cent for timo { thy and 15.4 per cent for soy beans. A | strong point In favor of oats is that | hairy vetch sown with them will ma- ture at the same time, making a bay | richer in protein than oats alone. Of seed, ere, sow them early enough to get a good start before weather, best time Is October, A | BOW i" to disk the feed | still, drill them in, after corn or sOy beuns. It would be tog inte to sow them after cotton Octoher-sown oats | far outyield fall or spring-sown oits in both hay and grain” Mr. Blair suggests that if oats be gin to run up in the fall they should be grazed down or cold weather will damage them. They may be grazed for a while In the spring, but should be taken not to graze them too long Fertilizer cold good way in, or better late care experiments North Carolina that spond well nitrogen. However, the land fertile, or has received a good application of fertilizer In spring. oats need not be fertilized the fall. They may be given pounds of pitrate of soda per acre early in the spring if they appear to | need It. Oat hay should be cut when grains are in the dough stage tag made In show {to is in then it is easy to cure and excellent in quality. | Limberneck Is Result is Limberneck it or blind staggers, as Is sometimes known in some localities, may result of soning caused by food whic h, in th means be the plomaine pol- eating some rancid e case of poultry, gen meat. It may, graing. Some out merely by erally however, decay ed nean me idy times it indigestion caused by clogging the Ey Nn some way, possibly by feeding too much fiber such as is found in the buriey, or allowing gross COthes seule bulls of oats ete, them to eat The thin for a day and then or Give dried tough 4 £& 10 do is to starve the birds or #0 to get the crop » cach one a teaspoonfu ® emg iy give two of olive oll and empty the in t to nothing but sand or grit and water Then feed some eas) 3 the fowl he meantime access y digestible, high- ly nutritious feed, such as bits of raw meat that have been slightly brofled: or, if the fowl can handle it. stale dried bread soaked in sweet milk High Living Is Bad There always among hens no + are cured for. It is probable that me of t deaths among hens are due to long confinement houses with rich rations, feeding and Inck of exercise. This condition tends to bring on liver trouble and other dis orders. It is one of the penalties the poultryman must pay geting a larger number of eggs. His problem in some mortality matter how well tt mat he 1 in good nigh for the gafl. furnished hy other states mentioned. Poultry 1821 with 438 members. unfortunate experiences in some and last year it handled approximate. Poultry and eggs have been mar cooperatively In the last ten years through co-operative creameries This plan is considered ideal for assembling egg, although It werchandising. Bo as te develop a better selling or a pian In operation in This association, en December 3 inst, was selling products from 14. 000 members, Self-Feeders for Calf Not Always Efficient According to an experiment recently conducted by the dalry department of the South Dakota State college, Brookings, In regard to the efficiency of self-feeders for calves it was found that calves do not select thelr own rations to the best advantage they eal too much of the protein feeds and keep themselves too fut. In an- other experiment as to the value of soy beans for dalry cattle, the results show that ground soy benhs make a desirmble feed because of their high protein content, but that soy Lidan hay Ie tun us cheap u logure roughage in South Dakota us altaifa ho, conse quently soy bean bay is recommended a8 u feed only In localities where ale ify wud clover are Ror, grown, § AR Fresh manure may be spread on the garden In the fall. . . * Think of weeds as leaks swiftly de pleting the water supply. Just think. » - . Last call for the cull hens September 10 it is difficult to pick the poor ones. »- - » The best way of pasturing soy beans with hogs Is to grow the beans with corn and then hog the combination down. * - » It costs just as much to raise a 40 bushel crop as one that yields 50 bush. ele, so why not plant your farm to adapted varietlea? » » . Dockage consists of dir, "sand, weed seeds, and chaff, Why pay freight rates on 4.005000 pounds of dockage every fall? Ld - r straw, Smutty wheat results In enormous losses in ylelds of wheat and in the value of the contaminated grain, The odor and color of the smutty grain render it inferior for milling. . = = Musty wheat Is very objectionable because of the bad odor I! vives the flour. Nearly 4 per cent of the wheat recelved at Kansas Clty 1x mon ked down on secount of belng sprouted «. "0 It 18 nn good policy to en the silage up fine. It pucks tn the 8! o beiter and aloo feeds better. It may take a tittle funger to put the stalks through the cutter when cut fine, but it puys well to do se, GNU AND COAT “There are a few of us left.” sald the White-Talled Gnu. He looked like a very of a horse and his face showed that he and did for ugly sort WHE Cross not care anyone “oq Pose BU vill mind,” answered the White Beard ed Gnu They were named these nan easily e8 a8 you can he. One's all guess CHIISe wag white town The White. Tailed Gnu. GOn't BUDDORE I don't sup If there weren't kind around, my Gnu compliment.” “Well, none of us sald the White-Beard “That Is true enough. But be? I care to rt to be friendly an “Nelther wonle Talied Gnu. “They say it comes quite some creatures,” ! tenrded Gnu, “What! To be I ean't understand 11." =: he id " Talled Gon are 80 3 we eff wouldn't to Fo § friend ¥ ang id the ¥ the keeper tell day the other grow nt sho CTOEROT wg how af we grow older Y CTORSer thi for this “Why § Thes in a His ported yard name anything sort.” “yr + iat * sald Billy mw Aare “Ah that 1 a agreed Tan, haking his head, as though it pleased “I won't ms None fire he You CTOs ves lost of for myself” ANTOne come the me. In 3 other goats good enough I have km by “What to youn say is perfectly true” “No, no, no" again =o sald Tan, shaking his that his long beard Tan had something to eat In his of other goats, as he was friendly and “When I say that I am an imported commenced Tan, after a few “I mean that I have been brought here from a foreign land that is a land from far away. “You see that makes me and Interesting. And It feel ns if 1 oouldn’t be too friendly with common crea tures around me, They wouldn't me! Why once a man came in my yard to clean It out and 40 see if 1 were all right, and 1 went for him with my horns! Wellet almost, almost killed him !™ “Yes, 1 heard of sald Billy. “But you needn't be so conceited. In the first pluce of all there are many creatures Ig this zoo whe have come from lands, far sway, They lave had more interesting ex. periences than you have had. The zon is ted with interesting animals Thet 1 the most Importanr tne ahom A rooto get na many animals from Bl over the world as posslde "Se you nesdn’t be sa neeid and besides we don't {ike # cross gon such As you are, uny more than you care unusual makes me have that”
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers