"I know how to make our Frontier passengers feel right at home. That's because I fly the area where I grew up. Don't all airline stewardesses?" This is Patty O'Neill. She used to call Omaha her home. Now she likes to tell people she's from Frontierland. An expert figure skater, Patty is also an expert at making your Frontier flight more pleasant. Like all of our stewardesses, she's just naturally neighborly. She's proud of her hometown area — and the airline she flies. She'd be happy to see you fly it, too. It's the airline that knows the West. Best. FRONTIER AIRLINES FRONTIER AIRLINES SERVES 65 CITIES IN 11 MOUNTAIN AND PLAINS STATES. THESE ARE SOME OF THE GROWINGEST CITIES IN THE WEST INCLUDING DENVER. PHOENIX. TUCSON. EL PASO. ALBUQUERQUE. LINCOLN. OMAHA. CHEYENNE. RAPID CITY. BISMARCK. GREAT FALLS. SALT LAKE CITY AND FARMlNGTON. 2 NEBRASKAland

SPEAK UP

NEBRASKAland invites all readers to submit their comments, suggestions, and gripes to SPEAK UP. Each month the magazine will publish as many letters as space permits. Pictures are welcome. —Editor.

STAG PARTY-"The idea behind your magazine is commendable, but I question if it reflects well if we use titles such as Dam Good Trolling. It might have seemed inspiration at the time, but better taste is more appreciated in the long run.

"I noticed your staff is made up of men, and men who I suspect of never being English majors. May I encourage less padding with adjectives in the articles? Straight-hitting adventure, with occasional pauses for petty details and description, are always more stimulating and effective."-Linda C. Larsen, Lincoln

ALBINO SPARROW - "We think it is interesting that our 12-year-old son, Neil Jorgenson, has acquired for a pet, an albino sparrow. It has been identified by local bird experts as an albino. It was first noticed on the barn roof. Neil kept watch every day for 10 days, and finally captured it at night. The bird is all white, including the beak, and has pink eyes.

"Neil, who is a 4-H Club member, has many hobbies. He raises collie pups, and is a collector of rocks, seashells, cacti, and preserved animals, including snakes and snake eggs. He wanted to exhibit his preserved collection at the fair, but was told there was no category for it, and they did not dare put it with the pickled beets." — The Marvin Jorgensons, Gothenburg.

FREE PERMITS-"I have always enjoyed receiving my NEBRASKAland magazine. That is until Mr. M. O. Steen came out with Management in Danger. To a veteran, this article may not have been quite so irritating if it had appeared at any other time than 25 years after Pearl Harbor.

"As a veteran I accepted my free hunting and fishing permit as a token of appreciation from the citizens of the State of Nebraska. I feel all veterans accept their free permits with the same feeling. Some do very little hunting and many do none at all.

"Mr. Steen does not state at what ages the young hunter should start to pay for a license. Of course there is something to be said on this subject from the land owner's point of view, and I'm certain many will speak for themselves."-Bob Bannan, Chadron.

The article Management in Danger says that exemption from the payment of the fishing and hunting permit tax is popular, especially as concerns ex-servicemen, but is also dangerous. To the individual, a few dollars a year doesn't seem to make much difference, but when there are thousands of individuals exempted, the result can become disastrous.

This has been proven by the experience of others. Just recently, one state repealed a law exempting all ex-servicemen from the payment of permit fees. For many years game management in that state had suffered severely, and the repeal came only when the servicemen decided that they would rather pay this tax than see the management of public resources in their own state deteriorate further.

My ancestors came from Norway a century ago, and every generation of Steens since that time has served this country in a major war. I was a machine gunner in World War I, and my son wore the uniform, with distinction, in World War II. I am not unsympathetic, but I can't think of one good reason why either I or my son should be exempt from the payment of fishing or hunting permit taxes. We served because we wanted to (Continued on page 10)

Golden Top Can! Golden Tap Draft! Here's a great new can especially made for a great draft beer. It's a ring-pull can with a golden top. What's inside? Nothing but the Choicest Product of the Brewers' Art: Falstaff Golden Tap Draft. Falstaff Brewing Corp., Omaha, Nebraska. APRIL, 1967 3

NEBRASKAland

APRIL Vol. 45, No. 4 '967 THE DEPUTY 6 Elizabeth Huff TWO WHEELS TO PHEASANTS 13 Bob Snow TEACHER GOES CALLING 16 Bob Fuss THIS FLY-FISHING KICK 18 George James Jr. MURDER AT THE SODDY 22 Martha E. Lambert A VISIT TO ARBOR LODGE 24 RICH LODE AT AGATE 32 Lowell Johnson STORY OF A BAND 34 Carl Wolfe FISHING IN NEBRASKAland 36 KNOT FOR SALE 42 CAN-DO TREES 44 Jane Graff NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA 46 John Sweet HOW TO KEEP DRY WITHOUT REALLY TRYING 52 Lou Ell THE COVER: Don Lewton, Ace put two-wheeled pheasant buggy through its overland paces. Photo by Allan M. Sicks SELLING NEBRASKAland IS OUR BUSINESS EDITOR, DICK H. SCHAFFER Editorial Consultant, Gene Hornbeck Managing Editor, Fred Nelson Associate Editors: Bob Snow, Clenda Peterson Art Director, Jack Curran Art Associate, C. G. "Bud" Pritchard Photography, Lou Ell, Chief; Charles Armstrong, Steve Katula, Allan M. Sicks Advertising Representative, Ed Cuddy Advertising Representatives: Harley L. Ward, Inc., 360 North Michigan Ave., Chicago, III. GMS Publications, 401 Finance Building, P.O. Box 722, Kansas City, Mo., Phone (816) GR 1-7337. DIRECTOR: M. O. Steen NEBRASKA GAME, FORESTATION AND PARKS COMMISSION: Rex Stotts, Cody, Chairman; A. H. Story, Plainview, Vice Chairman; Martin Gable, Scottsbluff; W. C. Kemptar, Ravenna; Charles E. Wright, McCook; M. M. Muncie, Plattsmouth; James Columbo, Omaha. OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland, published monthly by the Nebraska Game, Forestation and Parks Commission, 50 cents per copy. Subscription rates: $3 for one year, $5 for two years. Send subscriptions to OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland, State Capitol, Lincoln, Nebraska 68509. Copyright Nebraska Game, Forestation and Parks Commission, 1967. All rights reserved. Second-class postage paid at Lincoln, Nebraska and at additional mailing offices. 4 NEBRASKAland

THE DEPUTY

by Elizabth Huff

IN SOUTH DAKOTA, there is a little town by the name of Beresford, and it boasts an unusual claim to fame. Martin Lane, who runs Truck Towne there, is a NEBRASKAlander, and he is the only member of the growing tourist program who hails from outside the State of Nebraska.

While Mr. Lane is busy promoting Nebraska across the northern border, he had plenty of compatriots within the "where the WEST begins" state. NEBRASKAlanders, 128 strong, are beating the drums about the attractions, lore, and facilities available here.

For those who may be unfamiliar with the program, NEBRASKAlanders are an arm of the Game Commission's tourism promotion. Tourist-related businesses, such as attractions, service stations, motels, hotels, and restaurants, act as official visitor information centers to supplement Game Commission-operated stations. There are certain requirements to become NEBRASKAlanders. The business or organization must come into regular contact with the tourist, meet certain standards, and pass open-book tests on Nebraska points of interest. They must be knowledgeable on all Nebraska attractions and must be enthusiastic salesmen.

Now, these ambitious NEBRASKAlander boosters will have additional help. A brand new program is being initiated to enable individuals interested in promoting tourism to participate. They will be Deputy NEBRASKAlanders, sworn to uphold the standards of the NEBRASKAlander program and exert their energies in "selling Nebraska" to visitors wherever they find them.

The Deputies will receive the same patches as regular NEBRASKAlanders, plus subscriptions to NEBRASKAland magazine and the twice-monthly newsletter. They will have to pass the standard NEBRASKAland examination to qualify. In addition, they will have priority on Game Commission NEBRASKAland films and slides and will receive NEBRASKAlander decals for their car windows. Deputies are also authorized to purchase and wear either of the official western outfits. For the gals, there is the light blue denim skirt, with the white western blouse and NEBRASKAland Symbol. Gents can choose either a tan denim outfit or the dress uniform. The denim jacket also carries the NEBRASKAland Symbol on the back. The dress outfit includes the red frontier coat and NEBRASKAlander patch and stylish ranch pants.

In addition, Deputies will receive the regular NEBRASKAlander travel test kit and press copies of all new informational materials and brochures as they go into production. They may then request, as needed, quantities of these brochures for special projects such as conventions, programs, and the like.

Enrollment as a Deputy NEBRASKAlander is $10 a year and covers the cost of the magazine, Travel Talk, NEBRASKAland Travel Kit, patches, and mail expenses. The regular NEBRASKAlander fee remains at $20 a year, but in addition, covers materials such as signs, racks, and a continuing supply of brochures on state attractions.

Creation of the Deputy NEBRASKAlander program was prompted by numerous inquiries from individuals interested in being NEBRASKAlanders but who were unable to qualify since they were not actually involved directly with the tourist through their business. As with regular NEBRASKAlanders, the Deputies will receive certificates designating them as Deputies, and the enrollment will be on an annual basis, running from the date the test is passed and the certificate signed. The Game Commission takes care of the paper work.

While the NEBRASKAlander program obviously benefits the tourist promotion efforts in the state, it has the added inducement of pulling visitors into those places displaying the official tourist information sign. Here, where guests stop for information on travel in Nebraska, they also buy services like gas, meals, lodging, souvenirs, or even a newspaper. And members of the program are highly enthusiastic about it.

One avid booster is Mrs. Jack Alden, who operates the Sutherland Handcraft Shop. Mrs. Alden and other residents of Sutherland are dedicated Nebraskans and are bent on letting guests in their area know about their home state.

"When someone stops and asks a question here, they better have time to listen," Mrs. Alden said.

Although she had to be away on personal matters at times last summer, Mrs. Alden stuffed her station wagon with literature and proceeded to pass out information while away from home. She also drafted other Sutherland business people to distribute data in her absence. Mrs. Alden enjoys being a NEBRASKAlander. She not only talks to tourists about her favorite state, but she sends out literature as well. Her enthusiasm is typical of others in the program.

Mrs. Alden is an eager booster and says, 'I may just stick my NEBRASKAlander sign in my car window, so if you see a station wagon with a red and white NEBRASKAlander sign on the highway, you'll know Mrs. Alden is promoting Nebraska."

Maybe not all NEBRASKAlanders have quite as much enthusiasm about promoting Nebraska as Mrs. Alden, but they are all very definitely interested and spend considerable time and energy in letting visitors know about the state. And that's the whole idea-to get every Nebraskan stirred up enough to brag, and blow the horn for the "where the WEST begins" state.

Anyone who is interested in more information on becoming either a NEBRASKAlander or a Deputy should write NEBRASKAland, State Capitol Lincoln, Nebr. 68509.

THE END 6 NEBRASKAland APRIL, 1967 7

NEBRASKAland HOSTESS OF THE MONTH Nana Jane Karnes A lovely Omaha miss promises a perfect hit for all who join the April action in Nebraska. Nana Jane Karnes, NEBRASKAland's hostess of the month, rates sports at the top of her fun list, but she enjoys a host of less-agile pleasures. Daughter of Mr. and Mrs. L. L. Karnes of Omaha, Nana Jane is a sophomore at Hastings State College. The brunette co-ed has competed in swimming contests and is a lifeguard at Country Club Manor Pool in Omaha. She is a member of the "Fillies," the pompom drill squad for the Hastings Broncos. Nana was chosen by vote of the students to represent Hastings College in the 1966 NEBRASKAland pageant. Other interests of this versatile beauty are music and sewing. She is a member of the Bellevue House and Spiritual Life Committees at Hastings College, and serves as a dorm counselor.

APRIL Roundup

Nebraska's leading jester, Johnny Carson, to head lineup of prodigal sons and daughters who will kick off month's action

NATIONALLY FAMOUS Nebraskans will kick off this month's action as they appear in the State Centennial Show scheduled for April 1 in Lincoln. Heading the list will be Johnny Carson, star of NBC's "Tonight" show.

Carson, a former resident of Norfolk and an alumnus of the University of Nebraska, will be joined by singer Julie Wilson, formerly of Omaha. A special section will honor 12 famous native Nebraskans who have made significant contributions to the national scene.

The two-hour show also will feature a singing group, "The Kids Next Door, Graduates of the Young Americans" and a dancing group, "The Manhattan Rockets".

Another special centennial event will emphasize health for people of all ages. Expected to attract 100,000, the Centennial Health Fair will be held at Pershing Auditorium in Lincoln, April 29 through May 5.

The theme "Family Health for Family Happiness" will be carried out in exhibits, a variety of health display media, and first-hand contact with professionals and workers in the health field.

Objectives of the fair are to give the general public the opportunity to see and hear about the health services that are available and to stimulate student interest in them.

Boy Scouts of the Southeast Nebraska Council will demonstrate their scouting skills at the Boy Scout Centennial Show on April 20. Booths prepared by the boys will be on exhibit in the afternoon and evening at Pershing Auditorium in Lincoln.

The Centennial observance takes another form as the University of Nebraska Centennial Rodeo brings one of the traditional Wild West attractions to the Capital City. Riders will compete in the usual rodeo fare such as bronc busting, bull riding, and roping at the fairground coliseum on April 21 and 22.

"Art of Print Making", the traveling exhibit sponsored by the Library of Congress and University of Nebraska galleries, will visit three towns this month. The exhibit in four parts, Techniques, 15th Century through 18th Century, 19th and 20th Centuries, and American, will be on display in Holdrege April 1 through 7, at Lexington all month, and in Mullen from April first to third.

One of the great cellists of our time, Zara Nelsova will perform at Joslyn Concert Hall April 3 and 4 in the seventh concert of the Omaha Symphony Orchestra season.

Lincoln will again host the National A.A.U. wrestling championships at Pershing Auditorium April 5 through 15.

University of Nebraska Repertory Theatre will present two comedies in six performances. Samuel Beckett's "Waiting For Godot" will be April 14, 15, 28 and 29. "The Hostage" by Brendan Belran will be April 21 and 22.

Turkey callers can try their skills in competition at the Crawford Turkey Calling Contest the weekend before going after the gobblers in the spring turkey season.

Sparkling with the Centennial spirit,. April offers a month of fun and action for native and visitor alike.

THE END

WHAT TO DO 1-"Little Blue and Little Yellow", Sheldon Art Gallery, Lincoln 1 — Nebraska State Centennial Show, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln 1 — Prairie Schooners' Square Dance, Sidney 1-7 —Centennial Print Exhibit, Holdrege 1-30 —Centennial Print Exhibit, Lexington 1-3 —Centennial Print Exhibit, Mullen 1-2 —The Omaha Home Show for Modern Living, Civic Auditorium, Omaha 2 —Centennial Square Dance Festival, Omaha 3-4 —Zara Nelsova, cellist, Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha 5 —Midwestern Art, Exhibit, and Lecture, Peru State College, Peru 5-15 —National A.A.U. Wrestling Championships, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln 7-"The Bailiff', Sheldon Art Gallery, Lincoln 7-Film, "Cry the Beloved County," Midland College, Fremont 7-8 —Block and Bridle Judging Contest, Lincoln 7-8 —Fine Arts Festival, University of Nebraska, Lincoln 7-9 —Centennial Rock and Gem Show, Hastings 9-"Duck Soup", Sheldon Art Gallery, Lincoln 9 —Centennial Outstanding Callers Series Square Dance, Livestock Exchange Building, Omaha 9 —Midstate Centennial Square Dance Festival, Columbus 9-15 —Shrine Circus, Omaha 10 —Orchestra Concert, Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha 10 —Community Concert, Martha Schlamme, folk singer, Hastings 11—Band Concert, Wesleyan University, Lincoln 13 —American Legion National Oratorical Contest, Northeast High School, Lincoln 14-15, 28-29-Play, "Waiting for Godot", University of Nebraska, Lincoln 14-15 —Community Theatre Production, Hastings 14-16 —Centennial Science Fair, Nebraska City 15 —Centennial Benefit Square Dance, Elks Ballroom, Ogallala 15_Willa Cather Day observed by the Nebraska Writers' Guild, Red Cloud 16-Indianapolis Symphony, McCook 16 -Chamber Orchestra, Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha 16 —Centennial Square Dance, Snyder 16-May 7- Paintings and Drawings by Dorothy LaSalle on display, Wesleyan University, Lincoln 18-Sinfonia Concert, University of Nebraska, Lincoln 18-19-Midwest Conference on World Affairs, Kearney State College, Kearney 18-23 -Ak-Sar-Ben Ice Follies, Omaha 19-Indianapolis Symphony, Hastings APRIL, 1967 9   20 - Catherland, Mildred Bennet, speaker, Peru 20-Lancaster County "Century Family Banquet", Lincoln 20-21-Quarter Horse Show, Lincoln 21-"Intolerance", Sheldon Art Gallery, Lincoln 21-22 —University of Nebraska Centennial Rodeo, fairgrounds coliseum, Lincoln 21-22-Play, "The Hostage", University of Nebraska, Lincoln 21-22-"The Ballad of Baby Doe" presented by Omaha Civic Opera Society, Omaha 22-Centennial Boy Scout Show, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln 21 —Promenaders Square Dance Festival, High School Auditorium, Plattsmouth 22-Film, "Don Quixote", Midland College, Fremont 22-23-Annual Art Exhibit, Cozad 22-23-4-H Centennial Tree-Planting Day, Nebraska National Forest. Halsey 23-Three Silent Comedies, Sheldon Art Gallery, Lincoln 23-Arbor Day Program and Planting, Rising City 23-Centennial Arbor Day Celebration, Nebraska City 23-University Singer's Spring Concert, University of Nebraska, Lincoln 24-28-University of Nebraska E-Week, Lincoln 27-29-Union College Homecoming, Lincoln 28-Buena Vista Band Concert, Weller Hall, Seward 28-29-Midwest Motor Sports Show, Civic Auditorium, Omaha 28-29-Centennial Outdoor Production, Doane College, Crete 29 —Miss Norfolk Pageant, Norfolk 29-Boy Scout Centennial Conservation Day, Cornhusker Scout Reservation, Humboldt 29-May 5-Nebraska Centennial Health Fair, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln 30-Maywood Trail Ride, Maywood Another fine "FLYING L" Product Discover Nebraska in FLYING L Fiberglass Canoe! 3 Models, priced from $198. Broad beam plus flotation chambers for extra safety. Rugged, 1-piece hull never needs maintenance. Adventure awaits you on Nebraska's thousands of miles of canoe waterways. This summer, let a "Flying L" canoe glide you safely along these uncrowded streams and rivers. These Nebraska-made canoes are as easy to handle and as rugged as you'll find. Their unsinkable 1-piece hull is precision-molded from fiberglass with integral flotation chambers at each end. You can portage them and carry them on your car-top with ease-and you can forget about maintenance. Three models, 15, 18, 18 1/2 feet, match any canoeing need from family use to racing. This summer-just for fun-get a "Flying L" canoe. SOME DEALERSHIPS AVAILABLE LINCOLN STEEL CORPORATION P.O. Box 1668, Lincoln, Nebraska 68501 NEBRASKAland's SAVINGS HEADQUARTE Mr. Green Thumb's home at Union Loan and Savings is your home when it comes to savings in NEBRASKAland. Your savings earn a big current rate of 4 1/2% compounded quarterly and they're insured up to $15,000 by an agency of the U. S. government. Union Loan and Savings has three savings centers waiting to serve you. For added convenience, save by mail. WESTERN NEBRASKA EASTERN NEBRASKA UNION LOAN AND SAVINGS UNION LOAN AND SAVINGS 1610 First Avenue, Scottsbluff 209 So. 13th—56th & O, Lincoln ...Our Business Is Selling NEBRASKAland

SPEAK UP

(continued from page 3)

preserve the country we knew and loved. If the people of this state want to do us a favor because we served, we ask that it be something which will not, in the long run, hurt Nebraska far more than it helps us! — M. O. Steen, Director.

CHIMNEY ROCK-"I find it a disappointment that Chimney Rock has not been made a national monument. There is a marker and a small recessed parking area but no access road to the base of the rock. It was truly a beacon to the pioneers on the Oregon Trail and probably more often mentioned in letters and diaries than any spot on the road between Independence and Sacramento. It really ranks as a national monument whether the federal government recognizes it or not.

"On our trip back to Nebraska this fall we went north from Ellsworth toward Gordon and visited the Old Jules Fruit Farm. This is a lovely trip all the way to the Niobrara and beyond. Back from the highway are some of the most productive and attractive cattle ranches in the whole U.S.A. These hills are rolling, but there are no blowouts, and rarely any soapweed. Grass on these hills in the summer and fall ranks with the Bluegrass Country of Kentucky. And I have found that all too few Nebraskans know about it. Thanks to your publication, more are learning that all Nebraska is not flat corn land, important as that is." —Ivan H. Linder, Carmichael, Calif.

Chimney Rock is a National Monument —Editor

MAILING LABEL SUGGESTION-"Please place the mailing label somewhere other than on the front cover of NEBRASKAland. I have wanted to use the cover for display purposes, but have felt restrained, because the label ruined the otherwise artistically excellent cover." —James K. Uphoff, Lincoln

Thank you for your suggestion. I feel it deserves a personal answer. Since advertisers pay premium prices for the back page, it would not be fair to cover their ad with a mailing label. Soon, however, we hope to mail all magazines in envelopes or wrappers. — Editor

WING AND RABBIT SHOOTING-! would like to comment on the combination bird and rabbit hunting story, 'Her Name is Barbara'. It has long seemed foolish and dangerous to me for a member of a bird hunting group to shoot rabbits or anything on the ground when wing shooting. Also it will drive the best of dogs out of their wits. I certainly 10 NEBRASKAland hope your magazine does not condone this type of hunting." —Chick Cooper, Liberal, Kansas.

You are right. It is not a good idea to hunt ground game when you are behind a good bird dog, but in our story, "Her Name is Barbara", it did not seem to bother "Pixie" at all. Only three rabbits were killed over her during the day-long hunt and she was some distance away.

We do not recommend this, but for the purpose of the story there was nothing else we could do. The dog used did not seem to be affected. Besides it was late in the afternoon when the Johnsons killed the rabbits, and the dog was so tired that I doubt very much if she cared at all about the bunnies. — Editor

LETTER NEEDED?-"While I know that printing schedules make it almost impossible for you to get the very latest news items into NEBRASKAland, it would be appreciated if you could devise some way to keep readers informed about such matters as lakes poisoned for restocking and the need for instant kill and chill of trout caught at Two Rivers. How about slipping a newsletter into each issue?" —Don R. McMahill, Sr., Omaha

News items as such are a physical impossibility because of printing schedules. However, such news is covered in special releases and a weekly packet sent to all media in Nebraska. Readers can keep abreast of current happenings through their local newspaper, radio, and television stations. — Editor

PERSHING STORY-"Since my story, 'Pershing and the Poacher' was published in the November NEBRASKAland I received a telephone call from my friend and trapping partner of that story, Vernon Sandy. It came as a great surprise to me because I had believed from 1931 on, that he was no longer alive.

"He is living in Bakersfield where he has been since 1933. We are now planning to get together soon.

"Evidently from the number of phone calls I've received from this area, and several letters from more distant places, NEBRASKAland is read and enjoyed throughout the land." —Edward Grimes, Oakland, California.

SONG WRITING-"I want to write a song about Buffalo Bill. Where do I get it copyrighted? How? What is the cost? Where could I get a music cover for the song like the booklet, 'Big Howdy', that you put out?

'Would I need permission to use Buffalo Bill's picture? Please do write me soon."—Vinta Phillips, Champion.

For answers to all questions on copy-rights, write to the Register of Copy-rights, Library of Congress, Washington 25, D.C. Help with music might be secured through the music department of your local school system or the nearest college. A cover for your song would no doubt be supplied by the music publishing company. — Editor

BONES AND ARROWS- In Saunders County, near Ceresco and Valparaiso, I found my first arrowheads 25 years ago. I am still collecting them, along with rocks and minerals. In this farm neighborhood, the skeleton of a plesiosaur was found in a shale bank on the farm of Adolph Rexac. It is now at Morrill Hall in Lincoln.

"While digging a ditch to straighten the creek which runs through our farm, my brothers and I found the thigh bone of an elephant."—Fred Plam, Ceresco.

CALIFORNIA VS NEBRASKA-"I would like to say stories on traffic jams on freeways of southern California are not myths. There are literally wall-to-wall people for some 50 to 80 miles in almost any direction from the center of Los Angeles. During the rush hours the freeways are known locally as the longest parking lots in the world.

"With this situation and the everpresent smog in mind, I can say sincerely that the people of NEBRASKAland are most fortunate to live in that great sportsman's paradise."—John C. Gable, Los Angeles, California.

How Can You Improve... ON THE BEST? SNYDER'S DID! New Modern Designed LIFE-Liner The ideal fiber glass carry-all top for sportsmen or commercial users. Completely weather resistant. After years as the "best in the field," now the sleek "Sleeper" is improved for even greater, more challenging service. NOW ONLY $288.00 *Full 32 high. Large side windows which open with screens; 8 windows in all. Self-insulated. White color-impregnated. Bolts on to pick-up box. Optional window arrangement. Recently christened...already a favorite for fishing, hunting, or just pleasure boating. Smooth lines with chrome trim, mini-decks and two cushioned seats. Built to salute Nebr. Centennial. Write for complete details. Dealerships open NEW ti LIFE-Kraft Dressed-Up Brother" to the SHARK "always look for the GREEN" LIFE-Line Products FIBER GLASS CO (New Plant) 4620 Fremont Street Lincoln, Nebraska 68504 a leader in fiber glass manufacturing Builders of Life-Lined tanks for farm and commercial use basement window caps and other items. CAN WE PRODUCE YOUR PRODUCT? APRIL, 1967 11

NEBRASKAland COLOR MURALS

For your home or office

Capture the beauty of NEBRASKAland with this wide assortment of photographic masterpieces. New from the cameras of NEBRASKAland Magazine Photographers, these giant 38 1/2" x 58" murals will match any decor. Make perfect gift too. Show your colors. Decorate your home, office, or place of business with NEBRASKAland Color Murals today. Send your check or money order to: NEBRASKAland Murals, State Capitol, Lincoln, Nebraska 68521.

ORDER YOURS TODAY! SPECIAL CENTENNIAL OFFER 9 EACH Regular Price $7.95 each When ordering, please order by mural number, M-l, M-2, M-3, M-4. Allow three Weeks for delivery. 12 NEBRASKAland

TWO WHEELS TO PHEASANTS

Scooting through fields on bird search, hunter, bike, and dog form amazing trio by Bob Snow

THE STARTLED coyote must have thought it was raining black Labradors when the dog came soaring off the fast-moving motorbike.

Ace, the retriever had jumped a second too soon, though, and instead of the coyote cushioning his leap, the Lab just nudged the coyote's back and rolled over and over. The dog's bone-crunching effort to nail the prairie wolf from the two-wheeler had failed, but he gathered himself together and turned the hoped-for battle into a foot race.

Don Lewton pulled the yellow bike to a stop. Dog and master had been making farm chore rounds when the coyote jumped from a roadside ditch. The Republican City farmer wasn't surprised when Ace leaped from the bike that was hitting 45 miles per hour, for Ace is liable to do anything.

APRIL, 1967 13   14 NEBRASKAland

Ten minutes later, the Lab dejectedly trotted over to the bike and without a moment's hesitation jumped up to the small plywood platform on the back of the wheel.

"Never thought that dog would ride with me again after that spill. But he just hopped on as if nothing had happened," Don mused, recalling the incident.

Pheasant season was heading into its last days when I first had the opportunity to visit Don and his much-talked-about dog. One of Lewton's neighbors had tipped me off about Don and his motorbike-riding pal. The date, Friday the 13th, should have been enough to discourage a hunting expedition, but my host knew where there were a few birds and he didn't think the jinx day would hamper our tries. Afterward, when I mulled over the day's events, the fact that it was a comedy of errors, my last hunt, and Ace's ability to ride tandem on a motorbike didn't seem important. What seemed more important was Ace's devotion to his master, and Don's devotion to the dog.

Before we were done, Ace had become almost human. He has a set of values, feelings, a personality, and a long list of accomplishments that should put him in a "Who's Who", of dogdom. About the only thing Ace can't do is talk, but his tail wags, eyes, barks, and movements are better than human sign language when it comes to letting you know what he thinks.

If Ace were human, chances are he would be an arctic explorer, a mountain climber, or a big-game hunter. Ace is curious and likes adventure. Riding on a two-wheeler fits his personality.

Don, bearded for the Centennial, usually doesn't hunt from his bike when the temperatures are near freezing. He claims it is like riding an icebox in your underwear. Without a windshield (he doesn't have one because it would soon be broken off) the cold wind makes his eyes water so bad he is almost driving blind, and that's not good. When we started out at mid-morning the temperature was barely 34°. But because of my "show me" attitude, Don fired up the cycle and slipped his 12-gauge into the bike's scabbard. One pat on the 14 by 16-inch dog seat, and Ace jumped on and was ready to go.

"One bad thing about motorbike hunting, you can't take anyone with you," Lewton said as he revved the engine. "I would offer to take you along, but with Ace on the back end, and me in the driver's seat, it doesn't leave much room for you. Why don't you follow in the car?"

Don didn't promise to hunt all day from the sputter buggy, but he was willing to try a couple of places. Even when the bike jerked forward and started down the farm lane, I found it hard to believe that a 70-pound dog was a passenger on this unusual contraption.

It was just warm enough to melt the heavy snow cover, and when Don turned down a muddy side road, I thought it was good-bye dog. On the main road Ace sat erect, peering over Don's shoulder. When they hit the muddy stuff, Ace instinctively crouched on the board seat, his tail wagging up a hurricane.

As the two-wheel hunter topped a hill, a quagmire of mud fish-tailed the bike. In an instant, Don's legs were spread-eagled as he fought to regain control. With the near accident averted, I got a real insight into Ace's personality. Not once during the wild ride did he stop wagging his tail, or attempt to leap from the bike. That the Lab has complete confidence in his master was immediately evident as the two got squared around and resumed their ride.

Most dogs won't even get close to a power bike. Don has another fine black Labrador called Deuce, Ace's daughter. He tried to coax Deuce to a ride, and on one occasion lifted the heavy dog onto the small plywood seat. When the young farmer turned the motor over, the dog was off the bike like a shot from a cannon.

Deuce rivals Ace when it comes to hunting. Both dogs like to fight coyotes, both are excellent quail and pheasant dogs, and in one weekend treed 28 coons. Ace has retrieved as many as four ducks at one time. Deuce would (Continued on page 50)

APRIL, 1967 15

TEACHER GOES CALLING

by Bob Fuss Shriek of wounded jack rabbit is music to any coyote's ears. When Bob Fuss plays bunny serenade, yodel dogs come running NEABRASKAland

THERE WAS nothing to indicate it but I was only four minutes away from one of my greatest hunting thrills. Several times before, I had tried to bring in coyotes with a predator call and drawn blanks, but that morning I had a half hour left to hunt and with nothing to lose, I gave it another try.

My partner and I had selected this last spot with a little care. We parked below the crest of a hill and then cautiously worked up the slope. I took one side of the road and my companion the other. He used a patch of wild sunflowers for a hide while I flattened out and half-crawled to the crest. From there, I could get a good long view of the rolling pastureland before us.

As the dying squeal of the jackrabbit call agonized across the countryside, I thought I saw an object near some hay stacks about three-quarters of a mile away. A second look confirmed that it was a coyote running right toward me. I motioned my companion to hit the dirt and turned again to the approaching animal.

The "dog" stopped for a few seconds and then deciding that an easy meal was in the offing resumed his effortless lope. There was a little dip between me and my target, so when the coyote dropped into the little depression I took advantage of the terrain mask to ready my rifle.

My yodel dog was filling up the telescopic sight now, so I decided to chance him before he got too close. Perhaps it was over eagerness, the animal's loping gait, or just a touch of "coyote" fever, anyway my first shot was a miss.

That coyote didn't want any part of a lead-spitting jackrabbit. He veered to the right, headed for a deep draw, and opened the throttle.

I established my lead and fired again. The 130-grain slug from my .270 caught him in the chest and sent him end over end.

What a big, big moment it was for me. My first coyote taken with a call! It was a brand new hunting experience for me and new experiences always give me great satisfaction. I felt good for days just recalling the incident.

I'm a teacher at Fairbury High School and do a lot of hunting whenever I can, but coyote calling is far and away my favorite. Calling the sly prairie wolves into rifle range adds just the right amount of suspense and anticipation to an already-exciting sport.

Since that eventful morning, I've called in and shot quite a few coyotes. Every one of them has been a capital-letter accomplishment in my book of hunting memories. At first, I made mistakes but time and experience have smoothed out the boners and made me more adept with the call. I pay more attention to such factors as wind direction, bullet backstops, and coyote behavior patterns than I used to. Unlike many predator callers, I seldom wear camoflauge clothing but it might be a help.

Windless mornings are my favorite hunting periods. A good snow cover helps but I don't forego hunting if there isn't any. I start hunting about mid-November and keep at it every weekend until the first of March. My call has a good sound range and if atmospheric conditions are right, its squeal can be heard for a mile. Once I called in a coyote from more than a mile away to within 150 yards of my stand. I didn't get a shot at him but I wasn't too disappointed. Just bringing him in was satisfaction enough.

Movement is the greatest spooker in coyote calling. If you can keep still and have just enough concealment to break up your (Continued on page 48)

APRIL, 1967 17

THIS FLY-FISHING KICK

by George James Jr. as told to Bob Snow Dry lure angling is answer to wife's aversion to "creepy, slimy things". Mate Una's it challenging

OLD CLAUDIUS Aelian who roamed around Rome about 200 A.D., was a pretty good reporter. One day, he chanced on a group of compatriots fishing with bits of fluff and feathers. Claudius sat down and scratched out a description of fly fishing, Roman style. Reading his story, you gather that Claudius's people were novices with the artificials.

But they weren't any greener at the game than my wife, Denise, and myself. Although we live in the heart of Nebraska's trout country, we never tried fly fishing until last August. John Kurtz, superintendent of Fort Robinson State Park, was our tempter. He's always raving about the joys of dry-fly angling and after prolonged exposures to his sales pitches, we finally succumbed.

Prior to John's brain washing, our fishing was limited to a few expeditions with spin and bait-casting rigs and a Florida go at deep-sea fishing. To us, flies were something to be swatted, not fished.

From the start, Denise was in favor of the idea. "I don't like messy old worms. Ugh! Creepy, slimy things," she shivered. "I much prefer these nice shiny flies."

I figured I would get John off his fly-fishing kick by suggesting that he teach us the rudiments of casting. He rose to the bait like a hungry brown and knocked my left-handed strategy galley west.

Before we could say, "Black Gnat", John had us out on the lawn, showing us how to cast the weightless flies. He explained that the momentum of the cast comes from the line itself which is heavier and thicker than conventional fishing lines. Our mentor complicated the lesson by telling us that we were using HDH tapered lines. They could have been C.O.D.'s, for all I knew.

After a few sessions, I got the hang of shooting out line and so did Denise. My biggest trouble was learning to use my wrist instead of giving the rod the old full-arm heave ho. Just before John turned purple from frustration, we learned to lift the rod tips at exactly the right time to let the flies hit the surface first and then let the leaders and lines follow. We weren't good but we were passable by the time our teacher turned us loose on the upper Niobrara River.

I always thought fly fishermen were a pixillated lot. No angler in his right mind would splash upstream, whipping the water to a froth with a snakey hank of enameled string, or so I thought.

"Why, even the dumbest of bullhead would have the whiskers scared off of him with those antics," I declared, smug in my ignorance.

It doesn't work that way. After I got bit by the fly bug, I learned that trout feed upstream and that if you keep behind them and move cautiously, you can get surprisingly close to a feeding fish without spooking him. There are a lot of five-dollar explanations for this and the big boys in the game like to toss around such terms as "visual acuity" and "windows of perception". Boil them down to size and they mean this. Trout are like you and I; they haven't got eyes in the backs of their heads.

It was a bright and beautiful morning when Denise and I reached the river. It was hot and the water was sparkling clear. Looking into it, I was impressed by its sparkling clarity. The moss and water weeds under the surface were a brilliant green and as I watched I could see several small browns finning lazily.

18 NEBRASKAland APRIL, 1967 19  

Old Izaak Walton would have been proud of our appearances. We were decked out in waders and creels and carried 8-foot, 4-ounce fly rods. John had pressed a collection of flies on us, probably as bribes to keep us out of his hair. Before he turned us loose, John warned us that back casts have a passionate affinity for brush, telephone lines, wire fences, dead limbs, and other stream-side hazards.

We stepped into the river and rediscovered that waders can and will leak. Besides, they have an enormous capacity for cold water when you unwittingly step into a deep hole. Denise is like a cat; she doesn't like wet feet, but her interest in trying the fly was greater than her distaste for sodden socks. She bore up bravely.

At little intervals, I could feel objects bumping against my booted legs and after a couple of wild conjectures, I came to the conclusion that they were trout. I didn't deem it wise to acquaint Denise with this fact, for women are apt to be squeamish about things like that.

Remembering John's advice about back casts, I discreetly steered my better half toward the more open water. There was an innocent-appearing telephone line running parallel to the river, but its wires were high and I didn't anticipate any problems. An exasperated squeal proved me wrong. Denise had coiled her line around a wire and was in that particularly helpless state that women can turn on and off like a faucet at the sight of a gallant male.

"What are you trying to do, telephone for help?" I queried as I tried to untangle the mess.

"I never saw that wire and besides, John said you should keep your back cast fairly level. I think that mean old wire just reached down and grabbed my line", Denise sniffed. "Hurry up, I want to go fishing."

A couple of Herculean tugs solved the problem, but I had to take another five or six minutes to rebuild the terminal rig on Denise's amputated leader.

The fish were rising and after a few misses I got the hang of setting the hook at just the right instant. I had to break myself of the tendency to reef back hard on the rod every time a trout mouthed the fly, but before long, I was raising the rod tip just the right amount to sink the barb into the lip of my catch.

One brown slammed the tinsel hard and streaked under a cutbank as he felt the sting of the steel. I couldn't tease him out with the line, so I decided to get basic. I groped under the bank with my hands and grabbed him. Right then, he remembered an elsewhere appointment and slithered out of my clutching fingers like he was greased. Feeling the slack in my untended line, he broke free and was gone.

"Doggone you, I could practically smell you frying," I griped, recovering my gear and shaking the water from it.

Denise was shrieking like a banshee with a toothache. She had latched onto a scrappy little nine-inch brown and he was an aerialist. He went up in an arcing leap, splashed back into the water, sulked for a second, and then knifed skyward again, shaking his head like a dog. Plumb mad, he fell back and streaked away but the odds were too great and he tired. As I watched Denise fumbling with the net, I marveled that such a small fish could pack so much explosive energy.

Novices that we were, we didn't understand netting. Instead of drawing the fish into the submerged net, we tried to scoop him up by swishing it toward him. A bystander would have had conniptions watching us as we tried to net him, but we got the job done.

I didn't realize that time was slipping away so fast until my stomach issued a couple of warning growls. It was way past our usual lunch so we took a break. I never knew that cheese sandwiches garnished with fresh watercress could taste so good. After eating, we resumed our fishing. Practice with the rods and increasing confidence paid dividends. We caught and released a number of fish and even got fancy a couple of times and tried some accuracy casts. Most of our take were browns around 9 inches long but one was a 12-incher. I'm not going to tell you who took him.

Toward the shank of the day, I grew reflective. We had hit it lucky. The trout were plentiful and in the mood to hit. Our skill was just enough to make this new-fangled fishing interesting but not routine. I knew that most of our luck was of the beginner's variety but that didn't detract from our fun. The weighty creels were satisfactions, but even more important was the pure esthetics of trout fishing. Denise and I had never taken time to study the fascinating mosaic of sunlight on the ripples or watched the swirl and play of submerged moss as it felt the current's caress. For the first time we heard all the little silences that are so loud along a trout stream. Never before had we felt so tuned to the world around us.

There was new beauty in the land and a tranquillity of spirit about us. Both of us experienced a sense of well being that was tangible but still indefinable. It was a great fulfillment and we felt refreshed and renewed as we left the river.

Come next summer, I have a hunch that we'll be back, and this time John Kurtz won't have to do any arm twisting to get us to come.

THE END APRIL, 1967 21

MURDER AT THE SODDY

by Martha E. Lambert Over three-quarters of a century has passed since a terrified girl watched death on the plains. Now she recounts story

A BLOODY tragedy that took place on the doorstep of our Nebraska soddy in 1884, has haunted the hallways of my mind for more than 80 years, and to this day I cannot endure the sight of human blood.

Since I was four years old at the time, I cannot remember all the details, except that the story was retold time after time over the years by my parents until it is as vivid a reality as a personal memory. I do remember hanging onto my mother's skirts and screaming with fright as a trail of blood zigzagged across the floor behind Billy Owens.

"The fortune teller said I would die with my boots on," Billy gasped, as my father and mother led him to the bed.

Our homestead lay in sparsely settled country in Hitchcock County. The village of Culbertson was 12 miles away across a lonesome stretch of prairie, that rose higher and higher until it reached the highest point above the Republican River Valley.

Culbertson was a haphazard little hamlet at the junction of the Republican and Frenchman rivers. Not that there was much to see —a store, post office, bank, saloon, and "under a spreading cottonwood", a village blacksmith shop. A mile east of the settlement was a small, red, boxlike structure that made do for a depot to accommodate the one train a day that stopped. Other trains rumbled through on the Burlington Railroad between Omaha and Denver, but they did not stop at Culbertson.

22 NEBRASKAland

A mile west, up the creek, the Elihu Currence family lived in a two-room log house. This family consisted of Elihu, his wife Jane, his sister Eliza, and her husband Billy Owens.

A big, hot-headed, shiftless cowboy, Elihu Currence was always looking for a fight. He spent most of his time and money at the Culbertson saloon.

Billy Owens was a short, easy-going tenderfoot from Pennsylvania, who had come West to stake a claim and seek a fortune. Billy had a small stake sewed in the waistband of his blue jeans. With it he hoped to buy cattle and start ranching. Shortly after coming to the Culbertson area, he met Eliza Currence, fell in love with her, and they married.

Elihu saw in his new relative a chance to make a quick profit with little effort. So he soon promoted the plan of a partnership. Billy was to buy the cattle and Elihu would furnish the pasture. Each year the calf crop was to be divided between them.

Neighbors shook their heads doubtfully over this arrangement, and my father predicted trouble. It came on February 15.

It had been a warm day, almost Indian Summer weather. Mother was preparing supper and the small cook stove was red-hot. Our door stood open to the fresh breezes for relief from the hot stove. Dusk was dropping into the tree tops, when a figure darkened the door. There stood Billy Owens puffing like a race horse. One eye was black. His buckskin jacket was torn and dirty, and blood oozed from a cut on his cheek.

"Why Billy! You frightened me," mother exclaimed. "Where did you get the black eye?"

"It was —it was Elihu," Billy stammered. "We had a fight! He said —said he was going to kill me. I want no trouble and no killing in the family, so I left."

"Well, come on in. I'm putting supper on. We're having rabbit and wild currant pie."

Father came in from the barn just then with the evening's bucket of milk.

"What's this I hear about you and Elihu?" he inquired as he strained the milk into crocks.

Billy's dull blue eyes flared with anger. "Elihu's been drunk for several days. We had a fight over the calf crop. He tried to beat me out of my share of the calves. I got mad and he kicked me out. He says I can't have my Eliza any more."

"Oh! that won't last long. Eliza loves you," mother said in encouraging tone, as she set the platter of golden brown rabbit on the table.

"Little enough there is to tell." Billy mumbled as he helped himself to potatoes and meat. "Nobody alive can get along with that Elihu. I've done all the work and now he is trying to cheat me out of my share. What I want to do is to take Eliza and move to myself."

"Not a soul would blame you for not wanting to live with Elihu," my father agreed. "He's known all around the country as a mean man and a dirty fighter."

"I guess I never told you before," Billy continued, "but I went to McCook to see the fortune teller. She told me my wife would leave me and I would die with my boots on. I'm certain scared of Elihu. If you'd let me stay here awhile, I'd be much obliged."

"Why, of course, Billy," mother invited. "We are crowded here, but we can make room for you, until this quarrel blows over."

Neighbors knew little about Elihu Currence, except that he was ugly tempered and quick on the draw. His nature seemed to be sadistic because he took delight in abusing his animals. He had beaten his cow until he knocked her horns off. He brutally kicked his dog for no reason at all and at times even struck his wife. He often had a hang-dog expression as if he felt guilty and was running away from something. A slave of Elihu's was a small, pure white mustang pony. Whenever the pony was seen tied to a hitching post, Elihu was sure to be close by. Elihu and his pony were so closely associated, that the mustang became his trademark throughout the countryside.

The morning following the fight, just after sunrise, my father was walking the path to the barn when he saw Elihu riding his pony at a dead run along the creek road. When Elihu saw my father he reined the pony to her haunches and shouted.

"Is that no-account brother-in-law of mine over here?"

"Yes, Billy's here," father answered. "Where are you going so early in the morning?"

"Town," Elihu snarled with an oath, "I mean to get drunk as soon as the saloon opens."

"No need to kill your horse, getting there," father said, "you've got all day."

Digging his spurs into the flanks of his white pony, Elihu raced down the hill and forded the creek at a run.

Late in the afternoon, that day, father heard hoof beats and he and Billy walked outside. Elihu was taking the steep creek hill with the mustang at a run. He turned in, and reined the pony to a sliding stop.

The white mustang was blown. She breathed hard through red and distended nostrils, and her sides heaved like the bellows of a blacksmith shop. Lather foamed on her flanks and ran in a thin soapsudy trickle down her withers. Spur marks criss-crossed her belly like the marking of a vivid red pencil. A whiskey bottle bulged from Elihu's hip pocket.

"I thought I'd find you here, you yellow-bellied dog," he hissed out, squirting out tobacco juice.

"If you ever set foot on my place again or even try to see my sister, I'll blow you to hell and back."

"I'm not scared of you!" Billy boasted bravely, trying to bolster his courage with strong words. "I'll be coming up there to get my wife, my cattle, and my trunk."

'Where you're going you won't need a trunk," Elihu snarled, whipping a gun from his belt.

"For God's sake man, don't shoot!" My father shouted, rushing toward Elihu.

But the gun barked and Billy fell in the dust.

The mustang leaped to a run as the spurs dug deep. Mother, hearing the shot, ran outside just as Elihu turned into the creek road. Jerking the mustang to a stop, Elihu stood up in the stirrups, and flung the gun far out into the bushes along the Driftwood.

Father and mother raised Billy up and helped him into the house. Blood oozed from his mouth and spurted in a crimson spout from the wound in his chest. Gasping out the warning of the fortune teller, Billy lapsed into unconsciousness.

The nearest doctor was at Cornell, 15 miles away. Father rode with all possible speed to fetch him. It was daybreak when he and the doctor returned to the soddy. By that time Billy was dead.

On the evening of the shooting, Joe Carlson, from Upper Driftwood, came down hunting some stray cattle. He stopped at the Currence place, and found Elihu in the barn painting black spots on his white pony's hips and sides.

As soon as Billy died, the sheriff was called, but Elihu had a 24-hour (Continued on page 50)

APRIL, 1967 23

A VISIT TO ARBOR LODGE

24 NEBRASKAland> PHOTOGRAPHS BY STEVE KATULA AND CHARLES ARMSTRONG APRIL, 1967 25   26 NEBRASKAland

STANDING OVER Nebraska City, Arbor Lodge mansion looks like something out of the antebellum South. Its towering white columns and circular drive recall genteel plantation luxury, but it is as much Nebraska as the State Capitol. Here J. Sterling Morton, founder of Arbor Day, built a shrine to trees, and unwittingly, to himself.

A walk through the hallowed halls of the mansion recalls some of the spirit of the family that founded it. The lodge is a monument to a man with force enough to make dreams realities.

Other clues to the lives of Morton and his family are in evidence everywhere. Part of the house has become museum like, but much of the mansion is just as it was when the Morton family lived there. Arbor Lodge is visible proof of the value of preservation, and as one looks upon the possessions which now are public, there is sincere appreciation of the man who made it possible for today's visitors to see the splendor of a dimming era.

Where now there is magnificence, there was once just a humble one-story building with four large rooms. J. Sterling Morton and his wife, Caroline, had left their homes in Detroit, Michigan, on their wedding day, October 30, 1854, for the greener pastures that Nebraska Territory offered. He had enough audacity in his character and enough drive in his soul to make their future assured.

Bellevue was their new home, but as the tide of politics changed and Omaha took possession of the capital, Morton became disillusioned and began to seek a new home. Nebraska City caught his eye, partly because it was growing, partly because it had a newspaper. A burning interest in politics, and training as a journalist landed him a job on the Nebraska City News.

He immediately began influencing his readers. Although a journalist by profession, Morton was a conservationist by nature, and his adeptness with a pen was his access to the farming population. He wrote of trees, something that was sadly lacking on the prairie. And he wrote of agriculture, something that his readers could easily understand.

Farmers had long known the need for shelter from the stormy winds which swept across the plains, but it took the fiery writer with his love of trees to get action. While his editorials had a great impact on tree planting in the territory, the written word had its limitations. Too many people believed only half of what they read. So Morton put his preachings into hard fact. He began planting trees around his four-room cabin. At one time, his arboretum was the only one between the Missouri River and the Pacific Coast.

Morton's fame grew as he planted more and more trees and soon his example spread over the territory. Farmers who couldn't afford seedlings began to transplant trees from river beds and slowly but steadily, the barren prairie found the shade and shelter it had long lacked.

While planting trees was a primary concern, the determined editor and politician wasn't satisfied with this meager victory. He began to push for an agricultural union to preserve what was being built. And it was a drive that temporarily spanned political boundaries.

He was largely responsible for the formation of a Board of Agriculture in 1858. Serving as president of the new group was Robert W. Furnas, orchardist and nurseryman of Brownville, who later became governor of Nebraska. Now came the real push to establish tree planting in the state, and the word was spread far and wide. A few years later, with formation of the State Horticultural Society, emphasis was placed on orchard trees.

At a meeting of this society, Morton was i appointed to formulate and address setting forth: "All important facts relative to fruit growing in the state". His message was instrumental in establishing eastern Nebraska as a commercial orchard area. A distinction it still enjoys.

J. Sterling and Caroline Morton began one of the first landscaping projects in the state. Roads and lanes were laid out and the planting of trees, shrubs, and hedges began. Fences were built and flowers, vines, and evergreens planted in the fields. Fruit trees were seeded and expanded every year until more than 70 acres were in orchards.

As plantings increased, so, too, did the house. From time to time as the need and the means were realized, rooms were added and the whole rebuilt. The original house was not abandoned, its very timbers were used as a basis for what ultimately became a mansion of 52 rooms. Much of the early construction was inspired by Mrs. Morton.

She knew each tree, and many of them were given names which recalled incidents within the family circle. One was the apple tree known as "Mother's Tree" which bore her favorite fruit. An evergreen brought from the mountains was placed in front of the house. Its site is now marked by a stone.

While her husband occupied himself with the political and agricultural future of Nebraska, Mrs. Morton transformed their home into a verdant paradise. Flowers and greenery abounded among the orchards, and the home itself was ever a place of dancing, games, and joy to family and friends.

Art objects, books, and furnishings added to the household were of the best. Added to their own furnishings were valuable and memorable gifts from visitors, many of them dignitaries. Mrs. Morton was an excellent artist, and created many of the fine paintings which can now be seen at the lodge. A fine APRIL, 1967 27   collection is now exhibited in her bedroom. On the back of one, apparently put aside during illness or other interruption, is written "not finished", and signed with her initials.

A severe injury to her knee came as the result of a fall early in June of 1880, and another mishap shortly thereafter increased its seriousness. Medical care was unavailing and the dreaded happened —the disease spread. She said during this time:

"My sons have never made my hair gray. Very few women have lived so long and so happily in a human home and shed so few tears as I."

A year after the accident, on June 29, 1881, Mrs. Morton visited briefly with her husband and two sons who were home. She kissed the oldest, Joy, twice. It was her last conscious act to send kisses to the two sons who were absent. A short time later she died.

Arbor Lodge was perhaps the center of what ultimately became a state, national, and finally an international observance, but such was not Morton's intention. His home has become a symbol of conservation and man's affinity with nature, but to its original owners, it was but a structure of beauty and fulfillment.

Morton took a giant stride toward lasting fame during meetings of the Horticultural Society and the State Board of Agriculture in Lincoln on January 4, 1872. Morton gave stirring addresses at each. The idea of planting trees had really "taken root" by this time, but added impetus was given to the effort that day.

His famous "fruit address" was given at the horticultural meeting, and he presented his Arbor Day resolution at the agricultural meeting, where it was adopted. Prizes were offered to counties and individuals planting the greatest number of trees on that day. More than one million trees made their appearance as a result.

Of such importance did Arbor Day become in Nebraska that the state actually went into debt over it. Under an act approved by the legislature in 1869, settlers could have $100 worth oftheir property exempted from taxation for each acre of planted trees. As money was scarce, plots of trees sprang up all over the prairie until nearly all the claims had enough planted on them to exempt the settlers from all taxes. So little money came into the state treasury there was not enough to meet expenses, and the government was forced to borrow. In 1877, the law was repealed, but the benefits of the program were, and still are, in evidence.

Following the death of Morton in 1902, the property at Nebraska City was inherited by the oldest son, Joy, of Chicago. He had more remodeling done, and greatly expanded the home. The porches were removed, the two-story colonial front portions added, and the entire house bricked over and stuccoed. It was used by his family as a summer home for many years.

Joy offered the property as a state park in 1922, and it was formally accepted and so designated on September 28, 1923. More than 100,000 visitors now stop at the home and grounds each year. Only about 40,000 actually tour the mansion, however.

Arbor Lodge State Historical Park is operated r\ by the Parks Division of the Game, Forestation and Parks Commission. It is open year-round, with the mansion open daily from April 15 through October 30. Its tree-covered grounds are beautiful and striking even in the winter, but they reach their glorious best during the summer. Midway in the park is the memorial statue of J. Sterling Morton dedicated in 1905 by President Grover Cleveland. In the mansion, though, are the priceless treasures of the founders. These things were a part of the Mortons' daily lives.

The first set of monogrammed china and the last used by them are there. Silver purchased by them, and pieces presented to them on special occasions adorn the dining room. Portraits of various members of the family hang throughout the house. The Title Room alone would make a visit worthwhile, yet it is a small part of the total. Rare and unique chairs and other furniture, delicate and precious glass and china, intricate, beautiful sculpture, and valuable paintings axe also there.

Tiffany light fixtures and an opalescent skylight in the sun parlor are special points of interest. So are the carpets, the handmade furniture, and the leather-topped desk and round table in the Title Room which is one of only two similar sets in the world. The stairway from the reception hall to the second and third floors is a thing of beauty, as are the five fireplaces.

Several museum displays are set up in parts of the house. These include a fine Indian clothing and artifact collection, guns, knives, canes, glassware, and many others. There are also the former stables of the lodge, which now house a fine exhibit of carriages, coaches, and fire-fighting equipment. Some of the vehicles on display were used by the Mortons.

Now, Arbor Lodge with its splendid mansion, formal garden, and lush grounds belongs to the people.

Gone is J. Sterling Morton and his determined courage and convictions, and gone is Caroline with her sensitive, feminine charm. But the heritage they left behind is ever appreciated by those who can see what one determined man and his loyal wife accomplished in NEBRASKAland - an accomplishment that brings enjoyment and inspiration to all who view it.

THE END 28 NEBRASKAland   30 NEBRASKAland APRIL, 1967 31

RICH LODE AT AGATE

by Lowell Johnson

SHAGGY BEASTS STOOD suffering in stoic silence as heavy rains soaked their hairy coats and pounded the prairie into slime. Some were on their feet, but most had settled into the ooze to await the end of the downpour.

Far in the distance there was a rumbling sound, but few of the animals paid any heed —they had heard rumblings before, for the young earth was still suffering growing pains. There was not even enough spirit left in the giant hogs for them to fight or even pick on the lesser inhabitants of the Nebraska prairie.

When the deluge came, it was too late. A wall of water, several feet high and rushing at tremendous speed, flooded over the trapped beasts. The torrent smashed into the flatlands along the river, sweeping all before it. Slashing hooves and clawing toes only added to the turmoil, and few escaped the boiling current as it rushed to lower ground. Somewhere down-stream where the river slackened, the bodies of the drowned would be dumped unceremoniously in a heap, to be covered and recovered with silt washed from many miles away. And, so they were preserved for many centuries.

Now through action of the U.S. Congress the final burial ground of these prehistoric animals is a national monument titled The Agate Fossil Beds National Monument. Creation of the monument in northwest Nebraska came in 1965, and money is presently available for land purchase and construction of an interim headquarters complex. The area will encompass about 3,000 acres adjacent to Nebraska Highway 29 and on both sides of the Niobrara River.

Agate is about 20 miles south of Harrison and 40 miles northwest of Scottsbluff. Fossils eroded from the bluff were first discovered by Captain James Henry Cook as he traveled the area looking for a future home. The land belonged to his future father-in-law, Dr. E. B. Graham, and Cook was planning on settling down there after his marriage. He had come west at the age of 16 from his home in Michigan, and for some time rode herd on Texas longhorns on the drives from the Rio Grande River to Montana. He later became a big-game hunter and guide in Wyoming, sometimes journeying into the Agate area. After serving with distinction as a scout for the Eighth U. S. Cavalry in New Mexico during the 1885-86 campaign against Geronimo and his Apache band, he returned to Agate.

Cook married and began a new life of ranching in the heart of Sioux country, and became good friends with them. Among his more notable Indian friends was Chief Red Cloud who visited with Cook on occasion. During his travels, Cook had also met two renowned paleontologists, E. D Cope and O. C. Marsh, and it was through them that he developed a deep interest in the fossils available at Agate.

In 1891, students from the University of Nebraska, under Professor EH. Barbour, first visited the fossil hills, and the first excavations were undertaken in 32 NEBRASKAland 1904 by Captain Cook's son, Harold, and O. A. Peterson of the Carnegie Museum of Pittsburgh. They discovered a rich quarry, containing a type of ancient rhinoceros that was new to science. About the size of a Shetland pony, he was subsequently called Diceratherium cooki. His age was set at 18 million years.

Age dating tests have indicated that all fossils found at the Agate sites were from the Miocene period of Tertiary Epoch and are between 10 and 20 million years old. Bv 1908 there were 25 men from five famous institutions working in the quarry, moving the long-buried inhabitants to museums and universities all over the world. It was also in 1908 that Professor Barbour named the two buttes at the ranch "Carnegie" and "University".

Paleontology, the study of life in former geologic times, has found a rich lode at Agate. One expert said that Agate has the most remarkable deposit of mammalian remains of the Tertiary Age that has ever been found in any part of the world. Not only is there a wide variety of different species, but they are remarkably well preserved. One 44-square foot area contained 4,300 separate bones and skulls.

Among the specimens unearthed are the midget camels, Stenomylus, which were only two feet high. It is believed some catastrophy struck while they were in their bedding grounds, and they were quickly covered and not disturbed until fossilized. Nearly all those found had their heads and necks arched back as if trying to avoid some agonizing death. More different kinds of pre-historic camels have been found in Nebraska than any other region of the world. Their fossilized remains range in size from 2 to over 11 feet tall.

How the animals came to be where they are is a matter for some speculation. One theory is that flash floods swept through the river valley from heavy mountain rains, burying the wildlife under tons of silt. Perhaps the cycle was repeated over and over until several layers were deposited. The sands were eventually compressed and cemented into sandstone, and bones gradually fossilized by mineral seepage.

Another idea is that herds of animals moving into the river area to drink sank into a quagmire to be sealed off and preserved by the slimy shroud.

With extreme changes in topography through upheavals, massive glaciers, and the rasping of wind and water, the burial places were again partially exposed. Possibly there were other vast deposits, but they may have been removed by the very agents that brought the Agate beds to the surface.

Also collected from Agate were giant hogs about the size of modern buffalo. They must have been mean tempered and probably stupid for the number of broken bones indicates frequent, heated combat between them and other residents of the area. Probably the most common inhabitant of the ancient plains was the small, swift rhinoceros. He and his fellows were probably as numerous (Continued on page 56)

APRIL, 1967 33

STORY OF A BAND

by Carl W. Wolfe Senior Biologist Enigma of Sand Hills grouse activity is far from being solved. But with perseverance, tags may supply answer

THE ECHO OF a 12-gauge was still rolling through the lonely hills as the lanky, denim-clad hunter picked up his downed bird. The plastic and aluminum bands on the feathered legs went unnoticed until the hunter dropped his prize into the nearby pickup. Then, the worn lettering, ''Notify Nebr. Game Comm" glinting in the fading sun caught his eye. After some 10 months another mobile Sand Hills wanderer had been recovered. Luckily, the hunter remembered to send in the bands to the Nebraska Game Commission.

Technicians there discovered that the sharptail had outdone herself. She had traveled 44 miles from the original banding site. With the hunter's recovery of these bits of plastic and aluminum, another piece was fitted to the peculiar puzzle of prairie grouse movements. No sharp-tailed grouse or prairie chicken had ever been known to travel this far before. Of almost 1,200 prairie grouse banded by Nebraska research biologists since 1959, few have been recovered, so the enigma of grouse movements is far from being solved.

Still, the low band returns isn't discouraging to the researcher who is studying grouse life histories, for the sparse recoveries have provided highly important information. Interpreted by trained personnel, such low returns indicate that Nebraska's prairie grouse population is affected little by hunting. Over seven years and some 1,200 banded birds, hunters have returned only about two per cent of the bands. Researchers believe that hunters miss them when they dress out birds or if they see them, they do not know what to do with them. All bands should be sent into the Nebraska Game Commission at Lincoln no matter how they are recovered. A finder should enclose a short note giving the date of recovery, location, how the band was found, and the possible causes of the wearer's death.

The powerful forces of nature are constantly at work. Recovery bespeaks only a few of the many natural 34 NEBRASKAland tragedies that befall these Sand Hills residents. Several bands have been recovered from sharptails drowned in half-filled windmill tanks. Some bands have been recovered after the owners came out second best against an automobile. One band was found after a predator had killed a nesting hen. In some cases, the band merely turns up, and its story remains forever untold.

But, the story of a band recovery doesn't end with final distance plotting and entry in file records. Rather, the real story begins late in the fall when ear corn is hauled to potential trap sites before winter comes to the Sand Hills. From lengthy observation, the biologist has already selected areas where birds are likely to concentrate. It is at these locations that both sharptails and prairie chickens can be best attracted and enticed into traps.

Traps and trapping methods range from powerful cannons that hurl nets over feeding birds to elaborate drift traps which herd birds into a corral. All of these schemes have been tried at one time or another. But the walk-in pen trap has proven most effective during the winter period for Nebraska prairie grouse. This trap is nothing more than two long and two short panels of 2 x 4-inch woven wire set upright with heavy netting over the top. Key to its success is the two or four entrance funnels extending into the trap. Formed of wire mesh, these funnels are just slightly larger than the birds themselves. Then all a bird has to do is walk in, but not out. Birds always seek a way out by exploring only the inner face of the trap, overlooking the funnels.

Trapping operations begin with cold weather. When the snow covers the withered wild rose hips and wrinkled poison ivy berries, mainstays of the grouse diet, birds begin to drift into the sheltered river valleys and the ranchstead windbreaks. Here annual weeds, shrubs, and trees are more abundant than in the snow-covered hills. Fruits and buds of the red cedar, Russian olive, and cottonwood are eagerly sought and readily eaten by the prairie grouse. A small field of corn is especially attractive. With the addition of several bushels of unshelled corn, these areas usually prove productive trap sites. Traps are held in readiness until the birds have accustomed themselves to feeding on the corn bait. As soon as a noticeable feeding pattern develops, traps without the net top are cautiously moved into the bait area. When birds begin to perch, walk in, and feed with in the trap itself, the time has come for the final step in the long wait. Draping heavy net over the top of the panels is done after the last birds depart from their late afternoon feeding.

Come morning, researchers know the familiar ache of numbed fingers as they take out and band the catches. Trapped birds must be handled quickly and carefully through all the data collecting steps before their release. In spite of the cold, experienced men can usually sex, age, weigh, band, tag, or color mark a bird within a few minutes. Some mighty odd-looking birds have departed from project trap sites.

Experimental marking of birds so that they can be readily identifiable in the field follows different methods. Numbered back tags made of tough, flexible plastic have been attached with elastic harnesses over the wings; tail undersides have been brightly colored with long-lasting dyes; and colored leg bands are routinely attached, designating different trap sites. Each of these marking methods have proven useful for following grouse movements. In the spring, males with bright yellow tails are especially visible on their traditional mating grounds. Back-tagged hens have been observed while nesting. The aluminum leg band provides the most permanent marker for it directs the finder to the Game Commission. None of these devices hamper the birds' wing or leg movements. Some strange stories could be told by these bands before they are finally recovered. Some travel for many miles on the legs of their wild owners and sometimes years elapse before the wearer meets his final end.

From grouse banded near the National Forest at Halsey, it's already known that the female sharptail is obviously not of the weaker sex among these grassland travelers. Band returns show that the gals of the sharptail clan average about 8 1/2 miles total movement from banding to recovery over an average period of 496 days. On the other hand, male sharptails, are recovered within an average of 1/2-mile from the banding site in an average of 313 days.

In addition to the travel record of 44 miles, females also hold the time record. One sharp-tailed hen, banded in February 1961, was recovered in October 1964 after a lapse of 1,349 days. Surprisingly, she had moved only 1/2-mile from the trap site.

Such are the pieces to the puzzle — bits of aluminum and plastic — often worn thin, battered, and dirty, but each with a message. Hopefully every message will someday aid in understanding the real story of the travels, perhaps even migrations, of Nebraska's unique inhabitants, the prairie grouse.

THE END APRIL, 1967 35

When nature dug out 1.500 valleys and Ulled them with ground water, she created fish haven in Sand Hills

LONG BEFORE humans ever occupied the sandy, grass-covered hills of north-central Nebraska, nature was busy there. Using the restless winds and the hammering rains as tools, she gouged out some 1 500 small valleys that soon filled with ground water to form hundreds of lakes and ponds. Most of us call this rolling, uncluttered expanse of land, the Sand Hills. The Nebraska Game Commission calls it District Two.

Now hundreds of years later, people in their desire to escape the hustle and strain of the 20th Century are taking advantage of nature's ancient handiwork. Somewhere along the line, man decided that he needed a recreation that combined excitement with solitude, so he took up fishing. Today in many other states, he 36 NEBRASKAland finds too many waters teeming with humanity instead of fish. However, there are some who, for the price of a Nebraska fishing license, know how to escape the growing frustrations of elbow-to-elbow angling. These are the Sand Hills fishermen who safari the hills to find more than 150 fishable lakes, and miles of streams and rivers.

NO. NAME SPECIES, BEST TIME, AREA, METHOD, AND BAIT 1 Long Pine Creek Rainbows, Browns, all year, above Bone Creek. Casting, still fishing. Minnows, flies, worms, spinners 2 Plum Creek Browns, all year, north of Highway 20. Casting, still fishing. Worms, spinners 3 Schlagel Creek Browns, all year, lower six miles. Casting, stilt fishing. Flies, minnows, worms, spinners 4 Snake River Browns, all year, south of Gordon to south of Merriman. Casting, still fishing. Flies, minnows, worms, spinners. Access poor 5 N. Loup River Browns, all year, north of Whitman to north of Mullen. Casting, stiil fishing. Worms, minnows, spinners, and flies 6 Coon Creek Browns, all year, entire creek. Casting, still fishing. Flies, minnows, worms, and spinners 7 Grade Creek Rainbows, Browns, all year, entire creek. Casting, floating bait. Flies, minnows, worms, and spinners 8 Niobrara River Channel catfish, May to Oct., near power dams at Valentine to Spencer Dam. Still fishing. Catfish baits, crayfish, worms. Sauger in the spring 9 Calamus River N. pike, spring, west of Highway 7. Still fishing plugs and spoons. Channel catfish, May to Oct. Burwell west to Highway 183. Minnows, frogs, prepared bait 10 N. Loup River Channel catfish, May to Oct. Cushing west to Brewster. Minnows, frogs, prepared baits. Still fishing, set lines 11 M. Loup River Channel catfish, May to Oct. Boelus west to Thedford and below Milburn Dam. Still fishing, set lines. Minnows, frogs, prepared baits 12 Dismal River Browns, all year, west of Highway 97. Casting, still fishing, float bait. Spinners, flies, worms. Channel catfish, May to Oct. Usual baits 13 Hofelt Lake Bullhead, late spring, summer, early fall. Still fishing, worms 14 Long Lake Renovated in 1966. Bullhead fishing in 1967. Bass, bluegill, N. pike, yellow perch by fall of 1968 15 Clear Lake Bullhead, bluegill, entire lake, spring and fall, worms. L.M. bass, spring or fall. Casting. Spoons and plugs. Boats can be used 16 Swan Lake Bluegill, west end of lake, spring and fall, flies and worms. N. pike, entire lake, spring and winter, spoons, minnows. Bullhead, May to Sept., entire lake, worms. Boats can be used 17 Merritt Reservoir S.M., L.M. bass, Boardman Bay, spring and fall, plugs, spoons, minnows. Bullhead, shallow bays, summer, stili fishing, worms. Trout, winter, early spring, entire lake, artificials, trout eggs, worms 18 Shell Lake Yellow perch, winter, entire lake, worms, minnows, grubs. Bluegill, spring and fall. Usual baits. N. Pike, spring and fall, minnows. Boats can be used 19 Cottonwood Lake N. pike, spring and fall, entire lake, spoons. Bluegill and bullhead, spring, summer and fall, flies and worms. Boats can be used 20 Big Alkali Lake Renovated. Bullhead fishing in 1967. L.M. bass, n. pike, walleye, white bass, bluegill, and yellow perch by spring of 1968 21 Round Lake Walleye, entire lake, spring, fall, and winter, plugs, minnows, spoons. L. M. bass, spring and fall, entire lake. Plugs, minnows. Boats can be used 22 School house Lake Yellow perch, entire lake, winter. Ice fishing with minnows, worms, perch eyes 23 Watts Lake N. pike, entire lake, early spring. Casting, spoons, worms. Yellow perch, entire lake, late fall, winter. Ice jigging 24 Hackberry Lake N. pike, entire lake, early spring, late fall, winter spoons, beef melt. Bullhead, west end of lake. Still fishing, worms. Boats can be used 25 Dewey Lake Walleye, entire lake, spring and fall, casting, spoons, spinners, plugs. L.M. bass, entire lake, spring and fall. Spinners, spoons, plugs. Rock bass, entire lake, spring, fall, winter. Boats can be used 26 Duck Lake Bluegill, entire lake, spring, fall, winter. Casting, still fishing, jigging. L.M. bass, entire lake, spring, fall winter. Plugs, spoons, spinners. Bullhead, entire lake, late spring, summer, early fall. Still fishing, worms. Crappie, entire lake, spring, fall, winter. Boat or wading 27 Rice Lake Same as Duck Lake 28 Clear Lake Sacramento perch, entire lake, spring, fall. Casting or bottom fishing with worms. Walleye, entire lake, early spring, late fall. Casting. Plugs, spoons, spinners. L.M. bass, entire lake, spring or fall. Boat or wading 29 Pelican Lake N. pike, entire lake, early spring, winter. Casting, still fishing. Plugs, spoons, spinners. Bullhead, entire lake, late spring, summer, early fall. Boats can be used 30 West Long Lake L. M. Bass, entire lake, early spring. Casting. Plugs, spoons, spinners. Yellow bass, spring, winter, still fishing, worms. Ice fishing, spinners. Boat or wading

This lonely but beautiful land of sprawling ranches, scattered towns, and few inhabitants runs the gamut of angling pleasures from trouting in cold and picturesque creeks to warm-water catfishing. A land of meandering and unmarked trails, this vast region is loaded with fishing potential that is mostly untapped.

Lakes in the Sand Hills will fill your creel with northern pike, bluegill, crappie, perch, and largemouth bass. Walleye have been introduced in some of the lakes as an experiment and now are doing well.

Some Sand Hills waters are on private property and permission to fish them is needed, but public waters are also abundant and fishing pressure is usually light.

For the first-time Sand Hills angler, the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge with its 3,000 acres of fishing waters, or one of the 11 state lakes in District Two, are the places to go. These 10 plus 1 state lakes total more than 4,900 surface acres.

The Valentine Refuge, located 30 miles south and west of Valentine and managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in co-operation with the Nebraska Game Commission, is pocked with numerous potholes and small lakes. Eight of the lakes —Watts, Hackberry, Dewey, Duck, Rice, Clear, Pelican, and West Long— are open to the public.

They are typical of the Sand Hills fish producers. Shallow, these fish havens are ringed with bullrushes and grasses. A boat or chest waders are real helps to those who want to get their lures into the right places. Boats with motors are restricted but row boats are allowed. No minnows or parts of fish can be used for bait, but other live baits and artificial lures are permitted. Refuge lakes are closed during the waterfowl season. Check your Nebraskaland Fishing Guide for other regulations.

No one can guarantee fish in the frypan but a chat with refuge personnel at the headquarters on the west end of Hackberry Lake gives anglers a jump on where 37 NEBRASKAland   to try. Best methods, lures, and hints to hotspots are among the tips passed out.

Hackberry offers northern pike, carp, and bullhead. Access to the lake is passable except during periods of high water or heavy snow cover. Pike up to 10 pounds have been taken from this 680-acre spread.

If the fish in Hackberry are temperamental, anglers should try Watts Lake. This is primarily a northern pike and yellow perch fishery, with bass and bluegill as added bonuses. Grouchy northerns from 10 to 14 pounds can be taken from April through June and from September to the opening of duck season. The yellow perch and bass in this 230-acre gem run small but spunky. Anglers will probably latch on to some good perch this year since fishery managers returned a goodly number of pike to the water after taking their spawn. These predatory fish will keep the perch from a population explosion.

A lake with the appropriate name of Duck is one of the smaller waters on the refuge but its piscatorial offerings are far out of proportion to its 66-acre size. It has a reputation for bluegill and crappie, but bass up to five pounds are waiting to slam a lure. Spring, fall, and winter months are the best times to match wits with Duck's finny denizens. Access to it is good.

Duck Lake bluegill are the heavyweights of the clan. A fisherman with a flyrod will think he's in 38 NEBRASKAland angling heaven when these slab sides go on a spree. Poppers are the tickets in late spring and early summer. When the fish go deep, sinking lures like wet flies and beetles are usually productive. Experts claim that brightly-colored flies are the best bets. Trial and error selection of flies will pay off sooner or later.

Walleye, largemouth, and good-size rock bass are the offerings at Dewey Lake. Some crappie were stocked last year and may be hungry by this time.

Pelican Lake has a justified reputation for northerns. Pike here seem to run a little bigger than on the other lakes, while its largemouth bass and bluegill are keepers. Fishermen in the know head for the east half of the lake. Refuge northerns are two-fisted fighters and will slam a silver minnow, a spoon, a flatfish, or chunks of beef melt hard enough to satisfy the most blase of anglers. Pike from Pelican, Hackberry, and Watts lakes run from 4 to 10 pounds with an occasional 16-pounder shaking up the anglers.

Walleye in Clear and Dewey lakes usually have a mad on for various spoons, spinners, and plugs. Worm-spinner or spoon combinations are favorites, too.

If you can wade and cast without making like a wounded water buffalo, largemouths, bluegill, crappie, and bluegill will keep you busy at 48-acre Rice Lake. It weeds up in summer but wading fishermen can lick that problem with no sweat.

West Long Lake is a pretty good bass producer. It may not have the biggest bass in the world but most of the time they are accommodating.

Anglers at Clear Lake may be in for some surprises. Sacramento perch have been introduced and seem to like their new home. A fish with a high tolerance for alkalinity, they may be the fish of the future for lakes and ponds that are too alkaline for more conventional gamesters. Tests show that the Sacramento perch are running about 10 inches and will get bigger. Although the import hasn't been in Nebraska long enough for anglers to work out proven techniques for them, streamers and small spinners appear to be promising perch busters. Bass and walleye at Clear Lake are the bread-and-butter attractions.

Inquiries among Valentine area anglers or at the refuge headquarters will give first-time visitors the straight dope on how, when, and where to fish most of these lakes. Sand Hills fish aren't clock watchers in the spring and fall. Any time you can get to a lake, there will be some takers but come summer and its heat, the fish seem to go on dawn and close-to-dusk feedings.

When is the best time to fish the Sand Hills lakes? Corky Thornton, veteran angler from Valentine has this to offer.

"The stretch from mid-April to mid-June is the most productive for me. May and June get the nod for summer bass fishing while January and February are my top winter months. I use a fairly heavy outfit for summer fishing and prefer a medium-action rod and a closed-faced spinning reel loaded with 10-pound-test line. These lakes are usually weeded up during the warm months and the heavy line will save a lot of trouble and hardware."

"Lures should be weedless or else you should develop your casting accuracy to the point where you can drop a conventional lure right into the open pockets. Even so, you can expect plenty of weeds when you make the retrieve," he said.

"My favorite lures are a silver weedless spoon and a pork rind, but I have consistent results with a black spoon and a black pork rind or eel, too," Corky continued.

When Corky wants to put a little more zip into his fishing, he'll go to a No. 3 spinner and work the pockets with short casts. He puts a lot of bass and pike on his stringer this way but it requires careful wading and fair casting accuracy.

Winter fishermen will find angling hotter than the weather if they set up their freeze outs on some of the refuge lakes. Yellow perch, bass, and northerns have winter appetites and are willing to co-operate. Ice flies in yellow, brown, or black are tops but spinners and wax worms are effective.

Holt County's Swan Lake is one of the better bluegill producers in the district. Test nettings on the lake brought in brawlers that averaged just under three-fourths of a pound. Anglers, however, aren't creeling many according to Dick Peckham, fisheries supervisor for District Two. He claims that a good share of the Swan Lake fishermen are going after bullhead and fish the bottom with worms.

"They pick up a few bluegill, but if they would work the shoreline in waders and use flies, spinners, and small spoons, they could pick quite a few more of the popular little scrappers," he explained.

Besides bluegill, nice-size northern and largemouths are possibilities. A state access area is on the south side of the lake.

What species of fish can anglers expect in other lakes in the Sand Hills? Well, just about everything from carp to yellow perch. Probably the main species APRIL, 1967 41   would be bass, bluegill, and yellow perch with carp and bullhead running a close overall second. Many of the lakes on private land are excellent producers but remember permission to fish them is a must.

Big Alkali Lake was renovated in 1965 to get rid of its stunted populations of yellow perch and bullhead. This is a transition year for the lake which once enjoyed a fine reputation as a crappie, yellow perch, northern pike, and bass producer. Walleye have been stocked in Big Alkali and should be coming into their own in another year. Northern pike and bass should be making a good comeback by then, too.

Fish grow fast in the fertile waters of the Sand Hills. Corky Thornton's best northern to date came out of Big Alkali some years back. His prize weighed 14 pounds. In years to come, this lake will yield bigger northerns unless some unseen misfortune destroys its potential.

Anglers who know the Sand Hills naturally have their favorite spots. Ed Booth of Ericson does most of his bass fishing along the Cedar River in eastern Garfield County. This little river holds some surprisingly good bass. Mrs. Irene Booth of O'Neill claims you can't beat farm ponds in Holt County for bluegill. She uses a flyrod and poppers for her forays and usually does very well. Her son, Duane Booth of Creighton, prefers bass over bluegill, but he still votes for the farm and ranch ponds.

Gerald Skinner of Ainsworth and a couple of his fishing buddies, Frank Jones and Harry Sawle claim you can't top Enders and Clear Lakes for pike and bass. They use float tubes, canvas-covered doughnuts, that let them get well out into the water. When they are feeling venturesome, they go to Ballards Marsh. To them, nothing beats the doughnut for whipping the marshy, soft-bottomed lakes that are common in the hills.

Merritt Reservoir, 25 miles southwest of Valentine, is an irrigation impoundment that has given thousands of anglers plenty of trouting thrills during its short history. Unfortunately, Merritt's long-range future as a trout producer is dim but the fishing should be good this year. Warm-water species have been stocked in the lake to replace the gradually diminishing trout.

Irrigation draw down, rising water temperatures, and a build up of competitive rough fish triggered a decision by fishery technicians to make the switch to warm-water gamesters. Smallmouth and largemouth bass, white bass, and channel catfish have been stocked and walleye are going in this spring. Black crappie will get the green light this fall.

Last year, Merritt rainbows averaged 14 inches and weighed about 1.2 pounds. Some four-pounders were taken and there should be some left. Smallmouth should hit an honest 1 to 1/2 pounds this summer with largemouths averaging about two pounds. An occasional six-pounder will surprise anglers.

Boardman Bay on the south corner of Merritt is a hotspot for bass. Submerged trees create good cover while an abundance of golden shiners and green sunfish make it a serve-yourself-cafeteria for dour old bass. A heavy rig will save time, lures, and temper in this snaggy locale.

The Sand Hills must take a back seat to the Panhandle in quantity of trout fishing waters, but not in quality. Some of the best stream trout fishing in the state can be found in tributaries of the Niobrara and Loup rivers.

One of the best and most picturesque streams is Long Pine Creek, a Niobrara tributary that flows near NEBRASKAland the town of Long Pine. Rainbow and brown trout play in its sparkling waters.

Trout are stocked annually as fingerlings and sub-adults. Rainbows are usually stocked as catchables, while browns hit the stream as fingerlings. There is also limited natural rainbow reproduction.

Long Pine Creek is probably one of the better fly-fishing streams in the state. The water is normally clear and the stream is wide enough to work the long rod. In the summer grasshoppers are probably the best bait, but when working rippley waters, a worm will serve. In the spring and early summer, flies or small spinners prove successful. Winter fishing pressure is light, but angling is good. Most winter sportsmen use worms or spinners. Brush and drift piles in the lower end of the creek harbor good browns.

Brown trouting is best on Plum Creek on the four-to-six-mile stretch north of U.S. Highway 20. The stream flows through cedar and oak canyons where pools and graveled riffles provide fertile fishing. Trout average 12 to 14 inches. This stream is stocked.

Schlagel Creek, south of Valentine, is one of the most picturesque streams in the state with small two-to-six foot waterfalls, a few beaver dams, and log piles. Living in a rock-bottomed stream with deep holes for protection, Schagel Creek trout have a chance to reach lunker size. Catches weighing up to three pounds are common. Try undercut banks for the big ones.

Access to the stream isn't too easy but its fishing rewards more than make up for this slight inconvenience. A snake bite kit should be carried as rattle-snakes have been reported in the area.

Four-wheeled trouting would be an apt phrase to describe angling on the Snake River. Although brown trout fishing is excellent from south of Gordon to south of Merriman, a jeep is the handiest way to reach many parts of the river.

Snake River trouting picks up once again from the tail waters below Merritt Dam to close to the Niobrara River. Both rainbow and browns are in the stream, and there is one public fishing area below the dam. All of the Snake River, and most of the other streams in the district, are on private land and permission is needed to fish them.

The North Loup River is spawned from a variety of springs in the remoteness of Cherry County. Although the accessibility can be a problem, the headwaters harbor ready-to-fight browns that can make a man forget the trials of reaching them.

The Sand Hills offer variety with warm water river fishing. The Niobrara River between the power dam, east of Valentine to (Continued on page 49)

APRIL, 1967 41

KNOT FOR SALE

by Glenda Peterson In the twilight of his years, W. F. Eledge turns family custom into angling affair

WESLEY H. ELEDGE of Omaha was doing a lot of thinking about what he would do when he retired. He had worked on the Burlington Railroad for 39 years and had loved every minute of it, but now time was running out and retirement was just around the calendar.

He spent hours thinking about what he would do when he retired and finally came up with a plan. Eledge would fill his days reviving the almost lost art of making nets, an art older than Simon Peter. Many things have changed since Biblical days, but not the art of making nets.

Wesley who prefers the initials, "W. H.", was born on the Missouri River, across from Plattsmouth, and was the son of a commercial fisherman in the days when making your own fishing nets was part of the trade. The elder Eledge taught W. H. and his other sons how to weave skeins of cotton into hoop nets, landing nets, and dip nets. All were used to reap the finny bounty of the Big Mo. The boys and their father carved their own wooden shuttles out of ash, and worked together as a team, weaving and fishing.

One by one the sons left the river for better jobs, young W. H. to shine shoes in a downtown hotel in Plattsmouth: Then he got a job on the Burlington, and the belching steam locomotives became the center of his life. He worked up to foreman before his job took him to Omaha in 1935.

W. H. still liked to fish, when he had time. But time is scarce when you are a railroad man. Once in awhile, Eledge fished with his three sons, Richard, Jack, and Harold, but then World War II came along and took the two older boys into the service, leaving the elder Eledge without anybody to hobnob with. He didn't like fishing alone in those days, so he began weaving nets to speed up the loneliness.

W. H. used to spread out his weaving supplies on the living room floor and work while his wife mended. His hobby was more profitable than he figured for he sold his nets as fast as they were finished. As a former president of The Nebraska Commercial Fishermen he had plenty of contacts. Few commercial fishermen had the patience or the skill to make their own nets. Nylon cord had replaced the old cotton cord. It is twice as strong and more resistant to rot, but it is also twice as slippery and difficult to handle. But Eledge could handle it. Towering over six feet and burly of frame, NEBRASKAland he has the nimble fingers of an artist when it comes to making and tying the intricate knots and loops that form a net. After retirement Eledge put his plan to work. He cleared out the half-basement in his south Omaha home and developed it into a minnow-size shop. He haunted supply snops throughout Omaha for netmaking materials and finally ended up ordering them from St. Louis.

Remembering the hoop nets he had set on the Missouri River, he started making them. The Missouri is the only Nebraska fishing area where hoop nets are legal, but Eledge has plenty of demand for them. He sells a 12-footer for $12. In comparison, commercially made nets retail for about $22. If it is treated with a waterproofing substance like tar, the same net goes for $13. It takes Eledge about six hours from first knot to finished net.

Eledge works with a shuttle, popularly called a needle, made of an amalgam harder than plastic but less brittle. It's a horseshoe-shape implement about 6% inches long, one end closed, the other end divided by a pronged tooth that extends halfway down the tool. After filling the shuttle with No. 18 cord, W. H. is ready to begin his weaving.

He works with a gauge to regulate the size of mesh, using a 1 1/2-inch gauge as the legal mesh for hoop nets. The first chain of meshes looks like a youngster s dandelion necklace. But after a second row is added, the net takes shape. Each diamond square is held m place with a fisherman's knot.

The finished hoop net is a whale-size fish trap that encloses a series of seven hoops connected with woven net. The first hoop, two or three feet in diameter, is anchored about 1 1/2 feet from a second smaller one until the entire enclosure extends to 10 or 12 feet, depending on the size of the starter hoop. Inside are two throats or funnels. Unsuspecting fish work through these funnels and are unable to find their way out again.

W. H. also makes butterfly nets out of dress maker's netting and hand ties fish bags. Two or three types of landing and dip nets round out his offerings. He shortens his mesh chains to develop a bag shape and regulates the size of mesh to the type of net he is making.

People who stop by to see his handicraft vary from the cane pole, bare-foot angler to the serious-minded commercial fisherman, some to buy, some to swap tales.

One of his hoop nets brought in a 50-pound catfish so skinny that his ribs were showing.

"If he had been fat, he would have weighed 70 pounds sure," said one angler.

Eledge's own fish stories run in narrow channels.

"I've fished in Colorado. I've fished in Minnesota. I've fished in the Lake of the Ozarks. I went out to the Pacific Ocean and that was too cold for me. I never caught a fish in any of those places. Everybody said you should have been here last week."

"But I can take some of these little worms or some doughballs and I can go out to the Missouri River and I can catch me a fish in a little bit. I've never come back empty handed. There's a difference," he claims.

But Eledge's catches never reach the family table, and not because Mrs. Eledge isn't a good cook.

"We don't eat fish. I dressed too many of them and I don't care for them (Continued on page 48)

APRIL, 1967 43

CAN-DO TREES

Modern Nebraskans follow old tradition to reclaim land. Help comes from unexpected source by Jane Graff

WHEN WE, the Meurice Graff family, decided to turn our 50 rolling acres on Weedy Creek in Seward County, Nebraska into a wildlife refuge, our overwhelming need was for trees, for without trees land cannot sustain wildlife.

The setting down of a mathematical equation for conservation is a relatively simple matter. Land plus trees plus manpower equal tree-planting project.

To plan such a project is one thing, but to see it take hold is quite another. Every Nebraskan knows the many advantages trees can bring, still when it comes to carrying out a conservation project he may fall short on long-range endurance. All too often the most beautiful and ambitious ideas wither and die from lack of one life-giving factor — money.

Any one of the component parts can become expensive, and often for want of adequate funds, the project is abandoned. Where there is an abundance of land, however, Nebraskans with real conviction about conservation, find that it is possible to plant trees and maintain a realistic budget at the same time. This tree planting-NEBRASKAland style-benefits not only the land, but the people who co-operate to make it possible.

Using this special do-it-yourself technique, we planted trees for a wildlife refuge. This is the story of how we met and handled each part of the problem.

Conservation may seem a rather awesome word, but it really shouldn't stymie anyone. Projects in conservation do not have to start with earth-moving 44 NEBRASKAland equipment, a big dam, and several thousand seedlings. It does not require a section of land or a five-year plan. It need not involve state-owned and supervised lands, or work by Game Commission personnel, or the release of enormous numbers of fish and game birds. It can be a simple project by people who own a small plot of ground and who are on a limited budget.

Our 50 acres of land used in this project was too small to be called a farm by most. It was terraced and farmed for a time, but returned to grasses, timothy, clover, and brome.

Now allocated to the Feed Grain Diverted Acres Program, the acreage in summer and early fall is frequented by pheasants and quail, making it an excellent dog-training area. It has been approved for that purpose by the State.

As winter comes, the birds move to more wooded areas for food and shelter. Woody plantings in sizable clumps are needed to hold and protect them, make natural bird-releasing stations, and give young bird dogs "objectives" to look for.

The land we had, and the next important factor was the trees. We needed at least 300 and we chose Rocky Mountain junipers, Nanking cherries, and Coton-easter bushes. These were chosen because they give year-round shelter and winter food for wildlife. Also they are hardy growers and resistant to many of the insects and diseases in our particular area.

We knew what trees we wanted, but the next problem was where and how to get them. Buying 300 trees at regular greenhouse prices runs into money. So we made inquiries here and there, and learned that some 40 years ago, a group of dedicated conservationists had established a seedling program specifically for tree-planting purposes in conservation.

The tree planting need here was, and is, as old as the name "Nebraska". The wide-open prairies that greeted the homesteader offered light, air, and soil ready for the plow. No woods and stumps had to be cleared away. But the pioneers soon discovered how much they needed trees for building material, for shelter from winds and sun, to add to the food supply, or to temper the burning emptiness of a summer sky.

Through the University of Nebraska Field Extension Service, Clarke-McNary trees are available at nominal cost for projects. These trees can be ordered through any county agent, and if you comply with the requirements in planting and protection, even the initial cost is covered by the Agricultural Conservation Program's cost-sharing fund.

So we solved our tree-supply problem the Clarke-McNary way. But the next step, regardless of our great ingenuity and determination, was not going to be easy. Trees on paper are simple arithmetic, but putting trees in the ground means 300 holes to dig, no matter when, where, or how you dig.

Setting out trees on grasslands, moreover, brings up a different list of problems than those involved in putting out a shelterbelt or strip planting. On a shelterbelt planting project, large scale farm equipment can be used to prepare the soil and tend the seedlings lor a few years. This cannot be done in scattered planting on rolling terrain. When seedlings are only "stepped in" on a sodded area, they do not have a fighting chance for life. They need watering, individual planting, and care.

Our third factor, man power, was the biggest unknown in the problem. We could not plant 300 trees ourselves. Hiring a crew for forestry work for a lew days was equally improbable. Where could we find workers who would learn and gain something from the project more valuable than money? What group would value trees enough to plant and watch their ultimate development without money wages?

At last the idea came through to us, strong and clear. It could be a conservation project for a troop of Boy Scouts. So Troop 256, Sunrise District, made up of 15 boys ranging in age from 11 to 17, became volunteer planters.

We started the preparations for our project in mid-winter. After we had decided on the location and the size of the plantings, the trees were ordered. When the box of seedlings arrived, a chalk talk at the Scout meeting prepared the boys for the job. Ollie Wolff, a representative from the Game Commission, described the total project and made some helpful suggestions about planting in sodded areas.

A crisp breeze was skimming over the hill top on the Saturday morning in April, when these junior foresters ran into the field. Under the direction of Scout Master Elton Dohrman, they laid out the project, dug holes, and planted and watered each of the 300 seedlings.

Some of the older Boy Scouts organized work teams, and assigned jobs. Many times this included the removal of a whole circle of sod as large as 18 to 24 inches in diameter and replacing a portion of the soil from another area before the hole for the tree could be dug.

Six hours and 300 gallons of water later, the last little bush was patted into place and salted with a sprinkling of herbicide to prevent weeds from moving into the open areas and stealing any of the precious water.

Our project disproved the old saying; that when it comes to work — one boy is a boy; two boys is half-a-boy; three boys is no-boy-at-all. This simply did not hold true for the Scouts who had been prepared in advance for the job. The opportunity to earn merit badges was also a spur to their efforts.

Tree planting-NEBRASKAland style-then becomes a matter of community cooperation and not a matter of money. The land, trees, and man power are all a part of Nebraska's natural resources, and are waiting to be organized and put to use. In addition to the trees and bushes growing on the hillside this summer, there are 15 fine boys who have taken another step forward toward responsible manhood. NEBRASKAland can be proud of them both.

Now, as we initiate the Centennial Year, there is renewed emphasis on tree planting, and many conservation projects are being undertaken by many individuals and civic groups.

These efforts hold great promises for the state's future. This is evident when one looks at the rewards Nebraskans have already reaped from the sparse pioneer plantings. Evergreen windbreaks shelter NEBRASKAland farmsteads. Mile after mile of multiple shelterbelt plantings border our highways and edge our property lines. But even more important to us and the soon-to-come benefits of our own project was the realization that the old "can-do" spirit that made Nebraska great is still very much alive.

THE END OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland proudly presents the stories of its readers themselves. Here is the opportunity so many have requested —a chance to tell their own outdoor tales. Hunting trips, the "big fish that got away", unforgettable characters, outdoor impressions— all have a place here. If you have a story to tell, jot it down and send it to Editor, OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland, State Capitol, Lincoln 68509. Send photographs, too, if any are available. APRIL, 1967 45

Wilson's Phalarope

NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA... The female wears the pants in this family, leaving the male to rear the offspring by John Sweet Game Biologist

THE BUSIEST bird at the lake shore or marsh might well be the Wilson's phalarope. This energetic and beautiful bird seems to be constantly on the move, either darting gracefully through the air or feeding in the water or on shore.

The phalarope family, Phalaropodidae, consists of three species. The Wilson's phalarope, Steganopus tricolor, however, is the only truly American member of the family. Its distribution is limited to North and South America.

A phalarope is a relatively small bird. His length is 7 to 9 inches, with a wing-span of about 14 inches. He may be mistaken for a Lesser Yellowlegs in the fall and winter seasons and is quite commonly found in close association with them. Although the bird is a good swimmer, riding lightly on the water, he seems to prefer wading in the shallows or working the shore for his food.

Phalaropes are somewhat unusual in the bird world, in that the female wears the most distinctive breeding plumage. She is the first to arrive on the breeding grounds and takes the lead in courtship activities. The male, in much more conservative plumage, meekly builds the nest, incubates the eggs, and does much of the rearing of the young. The female does consent to lay the eggs. Little is known of the courtship activities. However, phalaropes come to Nebraska in April and early May.

Nests are shallow depressions, scooped in the soil and lined with dry grass. They may be located either 46 NEBRASKAland in sparse or relatively dense cover. The female lays four eggs, never more. Eggs are about 1.3 by .9 inches in size, and the base color is generally buff. Brownish or black markings on the eggs may vary from many small dots to two or three large blotches. Duration of incubation is apparently unknown.

The bird's plumage is mostly gray and white, with tints and stripes of rich cinnamon or chestnut. Females wear a distinctive breeding plumage. Their solid gray wings and back and white breast and throat are set off by a broad stripe which begins with black at the rear of the bill, passes through the eye, and extends down the side of the neck and across the back, gradually changing to a deep cinnamon color. A white patch begins at the back of the head and extends down the neck, blending into gray at the base of the neck.

Males, in breeding plumage, are somewhat drab in comparison. They have the white under coloring and gray back, but the stripe is limited to a mere cinnamon tint at the sides of the neck. There is a small white patch located at the nape of the neck. Legs of both sexes are dark slate or black in summer. Feet are semi-palmated with lobed toes. Phalaropes' bills are black, long, straight, and needlelike.

In winter the sexes cannot be distinguished except by size. Both males and females have solid gray wings and backs, with white rump patches and off-white tails. Bills remain black, while the legs and feet change to a yellowish or yellow-green color.

The breeding range of the Wilson's phalarope extends from the Mississippi Valley to California and from the central states to the southern portions of the Canadian provinces. Wintering areas are inland in central Argentina, Chile, and south to the Falkland Islands of South America. Phalaropes have no love for cold weather and leave Nebraska early in the fall.

Migration routes are almost directly to and from the wintering and breeding areas. Phalaropes are rarely found on the Atlantic Coast and then only after a storm or during the spring. Some birds may be found along the coastal areas of southern and central California.

Wilson's phalaropes are industrious feeders when on the water. They can often be seen bobbing on the surface with their heads submerged, busily sweeping the bottom with their long bills. A very unusual habit is often observed in that they may spin or whirl on the surface, now and then quickly picking up some morsel and resume the activity. One observation of 247 consecutive spins has been recorded.

Much of their feeding activity is carried on while on shore, however, or while wading. The primary food of the phalarope is insects. These consist of mayflies, aquatic bugs and beetles, caddis flies, and dragonflies. Snails, brine shrimp, and water fleas are also taken, as well as some seeds of aquatic plants.

These busy, colorful shore birds may be found at almost any water area or marsh in Nebraska. They are most common in the Sand Hills area, where they add their bit to the endless activity of this wild and unique region.

THE END APRIL, 1967 47

KNOT FOR SALE

(Continued from page 43)

at all. Recently we had salmon patties and that is about as far as we go."

Even when talking, the silvery-hair netmaker keeps on working, his needle weaving in and out, in and out, the silky white nylon cord slipping through his fingers. His gentle eyes twinkle under bushy eyebrows as his tongue keeps pace with his busy fingers. His mind is even faster than his skill.

"You know, I was Santa Claus for five years at department stores here in town. One day a little boy climbed up on my lap, looked up at me and said:

"I didn't know Santa Claus wore glasses."

Santa Eledge came up with a quick answer to the six-year-old's query.

"Well, I didn't until just this last trip. But you know, I was kind of behind as I was going through a valley and I missed a boy down there and I sure regret this. So I went up and got me a pair of glasses."

Some African night crawlers gave the old-timer an eye-full of trouble just last summer. He brought in 7,000 to 8,000 and housed them in two washtubs smack dab in the middle of his shop for resale to anglers.

But the night crawlers had a battle plan all their own. The sneaky critters couldn't maneuver while clashing head on with 3,500 neighbors, so they decided to march into new territory. An army of wriggling night crawlers slithering around a basement isn't exactly conducive to a wife's sense of tidiness. But like most soldiers, they get fatigued when the mercury rises. Eledge put spotlights on the tubs to keep his squadrons warm and fairly inactive.

His know-how has paid off for the police department, too. He has helped to put the hooker into more than one would-be perfect crime. Since he has ferretted out just about every supply shop in town for equipment to make his nets, he is pretty familiar with who handles what, so when a burglary victim is tied up with cord, the netmaker is called on to identify where it was bought. Size 18 cord, like that used in hoop nets, is too strong to be broken. It must be cut.

The fisherboy turned shoe-shine boy turned railroad foreman, turned net-maker, Santa Claus, and detective has even helped with a safari. He made cotton holding nets to trap baboons for medical experimentation.

He repaired nets until two years ago then gave it up. Now he makes his own lead sinkers and keeps supplies on hand for anyone who wants to try weaving themselves. But it's a tricky art and not as easy as it looks.

If you can knit, you probably can make a net. None of Eledge's sons, though, can tie a knot. The river-born netmaker has tied plenty, including a tablecloth he made out of net for a Christmas gift. Now he's knitting placemats.

W. H. never lost his love for fishing, although now he prefers to go it alone. And what about Mrs. Eledge? Does she fish? Her husbands' answer is a quick and emphatic one with no argument from Mrs. Eledge.

"Absolutely not! You see that picture of the missus?"

He reached for a newspaper photo of Mrs. Eledge beside two nets.

"The boy from Colorado (his son, Harold) wrote right away and he said, 'How did you get Mom to stand out there?'

"And I said, if you'll notice she's handcuffed to the railing."

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CALLING

(Continued from page 17)

distinctive outline, you're well on your way to successful calling. If I have to move my rifle or shift my position to get a shot, I try to move very slowly or else wait until a terrain feature masks me from the animal.

Another trick stands me in good stead. I hold the call in my mouth for several minutes to warm up the reed before I start calling. Coyotes have mighty sensitive hearing and are quick to recognize a false note. I try to keep upwind from the expected approach route but this isn't always possible. The breezes fishtail and eddy around the hills where I do most of my hunting and a north wind can become a south one in a twinkling.

Practically all of my hunting is done between dawn and 10 a.m. I give the call all I've got for 10 to 15 minutes and if it doesn't rouse a dog, I move on for a mile or so and try again. Setting up a calling site takes a little study. I try to select 48 NEBRASKAland a spot with good all-around vision for at least a quarter of a mile, but if that's impossible I try to pick a spot that has a good frontal view.

The rolling country, south and west of Fairbury, is my favorite calling area. I keep notes on the coyotes' traveling patterns and try to intercept them. I'll use almost anything for a blind from farm machinery to roadside plum thickets. If I can find a brushy draw between two hills and can get situated so I can watch both sides of it, I'll start calling even if it doesn't look too "coyotey". I don't hunt an area unless I have permission from the landowners.

You can be an expert caller but if you can't shoot a fair score, you won't collect many scalps. My favorite coyote stopper is a .270 with a 28-inch barrel. Hand-loaded cartridges give me about 3,250 to 3,400 feet per second velocity and taut-string trajectory. The rifle is zeroed in for 300 yards and wears a 3 to 9 variable-power scope. I usually have it set on 4-power, a compromise setting that gives me good definition and light gathering and a fair field of view. For some reason, I seem to have days when I can do better on running shots than I can on standing opportunities.

Some of my misses are classics but then so are some of my hits. Three years ago I shot one coyote at 554 yards. It was more luck than anything else but I'm still mighty proud of it.

Off-beat circumstances led to the kill. I was driving to another location when a coyote scuttled across the road in front of my car. I stopped, got out, and dog trotted over a rise, trying for a possible shot. Two tries at 300 yards were futile, so I started back to the car. A slight movement beside a far away weed patch caught my eye and the telescope confirmed that it was a big coyote. Putting plenty of daylight between the crosshairs and the animal's back I squeezed off a round.

The coyote spun around and fell over. A fraction of a second later, he was up and running like the wind. I hurried to the spot and tried to pick up a blood trail but I couldn't find a thing. After a brief search, I had to give it up and go into town to officiate at a mid-morning basketball game. That afternoon though, I went back and resumed the search.

After 10 minutes I found a few drops of blood. It was a faint and hard-to-follow trail but I finally found my quarry. He was stone dead about 100 yards from where I had first seen him. The bullet had lost most of its velocity over the 554-yard stretch and didn't expand enough to create much shock. It was a remarkable hit and as I have said before, it is my bragging shot so far.

A coyote's vitality is amazing. Last winter I shot one at about 335 yards. Bullet placement was excellent, right in the heart and lung area. The animal full-tilted 89 paces up a 30-degree slope before he finally folded. Like deer or any other animal, coyotes on the run can pack more lead than one that is standing still. I always check out my shots, sometimes you can shoot a coyote and he won't even flinch at the hit.

It is my belief that calling is more effective on mornings after a moonless night. I believe the coyotes find lean hunting on dark nights and are more susceptible to the promise of food before they bed down for the day. Also, I think that coyotes are getting more suspicious of calls as the years roll on. More and more hunters are using calls now and it's a cinch a number of the little wolves have run into lead-throwing "jack-rabbits". I have a theory they remember these traumatic experiences for a long time. Becoming tone perfect with the call will eliminate some of this suspicion. There are records available which can help you mimic the squeal of a dying rabbit to the last quaver.

The more I hunt coyotes, the more I respect them. They're clever and crafty and challenging adversaries and when I lure one into range I'm proud of my accomplishment, whether I get him or not. Through the years, coyotes have taught me a lot about hunting. Of course, its been sort of a two-way street, I've taught some coyotes a trick or three, too.

THE END

NEBRASKAland FISHING

(Continued from page 41)

the Spencer Dam north of O'Neill, offers good channel catfishing from May to October.

Catfish usually scrounge for food during the night and snooze the day away under a bank or log. Niobrara River anglers will do well to remember that daytime fishing after a rain is often a good time for catching Old Whiskers. Good-sized chubs, minnows, crayfish, or worms dunked or drifted in deep pools are the most profitable.

Sauger fishermen can catch their share when these finicky bait stealers move up the Niobrara on their spring spawning run from Gavins Point Dam. Fish them deep and fish them hard. They are exasperating until you get the hang of sauger scoring. They are fine eating.

Minnows hooked through the head are choice baits for sauger. Some anglers use a long shank hook and run it through the gills and imbed the barb back of the dorsal fin. If the water is fast, line twisting can be a problem but a swivel and care in arranging the minnow will alleviate some of this trouble.

The upper end of the Calamus River, south of Ainsworth, offers some fine northern pike fishing amid some of the most impressive scenery in Nebraska.

Farther down stream, catfishing is tops. Other rivers that offer good catfishing are the North and Middle Loups. Experts vote for the lower reaches of these two small but picturesque rivers.

Next time your bald-headed boss looks at you cross-eyed, or the maddening noise of downtown traffic drives you stir crazy, grab this article and map out a weekend fishing trip to the Sand Hills. You will be rewarded with fine catches amid the solitude and silence that are part and parcel of the lakes, streams, and rivers in the fascinating hills.

Next month NEBRASKAland will report on fishing prospects in District Three, northeastern Nebraska.

THE END APRIL, 1967 49

MURDER AT THE SODDY

(Continued from page 23)

start. Homesteaders along the lower Driftwood reported having seen a man riding hard on a pinto pony. His trail was followed by the sheriff as far as McCook, about 20 miles away, and there he gave up the chase.

In our soddy a short funeral service was held for Billy Owens. Dan Matson, a homestead-preacher over Ledge Creek way, read:

"In my Father's house there are many mansions, if it were not so I would have told you..."

Then he gave a short prayer. A few hoarse and cracked voices sang three hymns, mostly off key.

Eliza, hysterical with shock, attended the services. After the funeral was over, the cheap, pine coffin was loaded into a wagon. Father drove the wagon to Culbertson and the coffin was placed on a train to be shipped back to Pennsylvania to Billy's mother. A few weeks later Jane and Eliza sold the disputed cattle to my father and left the country. In a few weeks, the neighborhood furor over Billy's murder and Currence's flight died down.

A year after the murder of Billy Owens, Elihu Currence was executed at Lincoln for having killed a man in a barroom brawl.

When Elihu's death was confirmed, father wrote to Jane Currence, and bought the 160 acres of land and the two-room log house from her for $300. We lived there many years and were able to weather the blizzard of 1888 there. When the old log house was finally torn down and cut up for stove wood, it had stood on the place for nearly a hundred years.

Yes, the place is gone. The little soddy is long gone, but to the hallways of my mind they often return, and on many an evening I ponder the cruel fate and violent end of that easy-going tenderfoot, Billy Owens.

THE END OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland proudly presents the stories of its readers themselves. Here is the opportunity so many have requested—a chance to tell their own outdoor tales. Hunting trips, the "big fish that got away", unforgettable characters, outdoor impressions —all have a place here. If you have a story to tell, jot it down and send it to Editor, OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland, State Capitol, Lincoln 68509. Send photographs, too, if any are available.

PHEASANTS

(Continued from page 15)

command a high price, if she were for sale. But Ace is one dog in a million and Don claims it would take more than a million in cash to take the dog away from him.

Ace was born amid tragedy. His mother, a fine hunting dog, was killed three days after she had given birth to a litter of puppies. Life for Ace and his litter mates was uncertain, but he was born lucky.

Don heard about the accident and decided to adopt one of the puppies. Ace's eyes were still unopened when he found his new home. For the next several weeks the young farmer cared for the pup constantly, feeding him three times a day from a baby bottle. Don held in his hands a bundle of life that depended on him for survival. The dog lived, but seven out of his nine litter mates did not make it.

Ace lived by chance, and maybe that is why the dog lives a chancy, but adventuresome life. Providence placed Ace's life in Don's hands, and maybe that is why he trusts his master so thoroughly.

Last summer Don bought a motorbike for pleasure, and to him pleasure is hunting. He figured he might be able to coax Ace into taking a ride, so he fastened a piece of plywood to the back carriage.

"It really didn't take much to get him on the bike the first time. He knew the only way he could go with me was to ride on the back, and he didn't want to be left behind," Don explained.

At first, Ace rode on a plain piece of plywood, but on bumps and corners the dog slid around. Finally, Don put a piece of padded leather over the wood to give him something to hang onto, and the slippage problem was solved. But even with the leather, Ace has fallen a few times.

"Heck, I just stop when he falls, and he'll jump right back on," Don told me.

Don was already putting across a snow-covered field toward a brushy fenceline when I pulled the car to a stop. The short follow behind the two bikesters convinced me that Ace was quite a dog.

Ace wore a discouraged look when I arrived bike side after trudging through the snow. He wanted to hunt and as a foot soldier I was holding them up. As the Labrador ran the brush, Don told me that when the snow is off he works milo fields on the bike.

"A single hunter on foot can't hunt these big fields," he explained as he watched Ace. "But with a motorbike birds are herded into the cover."

Don makes a few passes and then gets off the bike and walks the weed patches and gullies.

"It works pretty good, too. This pheasant season has been one of my best," he smiled.

It is unlawful to shoot game from any motor vehicle, so Don carries the unloaded shotgun in a scabbard while the bike is in motion. Don reminded me that when he hunts with the wheel he asks special permission to use the bike. The cycle does little or no damage to fields and fire danger is nil.

Our conversation ended when Ace picked up a scent. The bird was running, so Don and I quickened the pace. A rooster, barely within range, soared out of a weed patch. Don squeezed off a load of No. 6's, and I followed with a too-late shot, but the bird was already falling.

Ace, a black streak after the first shot, came prancing back with a ringneck. Don stuffed the bird in the saddle bags and Ace, his head held high, jumped on the leather seat.

After a couple of unsuccessful stops at other hideouts, Don suggested we try one more place before going back to the house and a warm up. We'd barely loaded our guns when a rooster took to his wings and flew toward a group of trees that led down to a narrow gully. One shot and Don had a second rooster.

That afternoon Don decided to take warmth over economy, so he switched to his pickup. His bike saves on shoe 50 NEBRASKAland leather and gasoline. It gets 135 miles to a gallon of fuel. He also finds it economical to use the two-wheeler when hunting deer and coyotes. His machine also comes in handy for herding and driving cattle.

As we headed south from the farmhouse in the truck, Don continued to spout the merits of two-wheel hunting. Tough terrain doesn't bother Ace or the bike. Some bike dealers figure you can get 35,000 miles of rough treatment out of one. Don has 2,700 miles on his goer and the spokes aren't even loose. He doesn't consider the wheel dangerous but he's always careful. The hunter has only a few scratches to show for those many miles.

A half mile down a muddy side road, a snow barricade blocked our way. Don grabbed his pump and a few extra shells and headed for a draw.

"Nobody has hunted that valley off since the snow. It should be pretty good," he said.

The grass-and-bush-covered valley with an old abandoned house on its far end looked like a top pheasant hangout. A cornfield bordered one side of the birdy haven. The draw forked to the left and Don suggested that I head for a small tree at the Y of the draw and wait beside a small tree while he walked the long leg. In the past, flushed birds had headed that way for cover.

Ace and Deuce went with Don to flush birds. The snow was boot deep in places and I was getting tired. As I neared the fork, three hens got up under my feet and almost put my heart in my hand. Off in the distance I saw three more birds coming my way. They settled down in the far-off cover. If I would have been in position by the tree, I might have had a pass shot.

Two quick shots broke the stillness of the late afternoon. Three hens and a rooster drifted my way after the shot and I wondered if Don had missed. Ace came bounding up to my weed hideout a few minutes later, and by his look I figured his master had bagged his third bird. I was right.

Sunset wasn't far off, but Don suggested we try for the roosters that had given me the fly by. I turned bird dog, pointing to a clump of bushes where the birds sat down. The way Ace looked at me, I think he half expected me to lift my right leg for a point. I kicked up two of the hens, but the roosters gave us the slip.

It was a long tiring trudge through the snow to the truck and both of us worked up a sweat. I knew the Friday the 13th hex was on me as we started to pull out. We were stuck.

Between grunts as we attempted to dig the pickup out, Don kept muttering.

"If I had my bike I wouldn't be pushing. They are made for this stuff. Two-wheelers just don't get stuck."

When we freed the truck and finally started back, Don apologized for not putting me next to a bird but I wasn't disappointed. I had seen something a lot more exciting and unusual than just a gaudy old rooster pheasant. It isn't every day that you get the chance to see a black Lab riding a motorcycle.

THE END Amazing 100-Year-Old Gypsy Bait Oil MAKES FISH BITE OR NO COST! PICTURES PROVE IT REALLY WORKS! Look at 1295 lbs. fish, those big hard to catch smell-feeders landed by Roy Martin party, Destin, Fla. Gypsy Fish Bait Oil used on all bait. Hundreds of pictures like these on file. Mystery Scent Really Works Fishing scientists are just learning what wandering Gypsies knew 100 years ago . . . many kinds of the most wanted fish such as catfish, bull heads, carp, snappers, etc., etc. are "smell" feeders. Gypsies invented this amazing scented oil formula that excites these fish through the thousands of tiny smell organs covering their bodies. A whiff while feeding and these fish streak madly for your bait. They all fight over it and usually the largest fish wins. Just dab mystery scented Gypsy Fish Bait Oil on your bait . . . fish lakes, rivers, creeks, ponds, or the ocean . . . still fish with pole and bobber, cast, troll or spin ... if yours isn't the biggest catch in the entire party, your money back. Say we're crazy. Be skeptical as you like. But let us send you the DOUBLE STRENGTH GYPSY FISH BAIT OIL to try at our risk. Catch 300 Big Fish or Money Back Send for the new DOUBLE STRENGTH GYPSY FISH BAIT OIL (double size) for $1.98 or 3 for $4.98. Commercial pack 7 for $10.00. On arrival deposit cost plus C.O.D. postage. If not satisfied with first results return unused portion for money back. Cash orders sent ppd. FREE! Handy water-resistant fisherman's pouch for matches, lunch, tobacco, etc. EXTRA FREE BOOK BONUS: "99 Secrets of Catching Catfish" with every order for 3 ($4.98). Order from: WALLING KEITH CHEMICALS, Inc., Dept. 36-B P.O. Box 2112 BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA 35201 ATTENTION! HUNTERS-FISHERMEN Weekly Rates — Freezer Space Kitchen- TV - NMC Member Wally and Marg Jo Curtis — Owners PHONE: 402-387-1670 FOUR STAR MOTEL West Hiway 20 Ainsworth, Nebr. FREE CATALOG Wholesale prices on fishing tackle, guns and hunting equipment, archery, skis, and camping equipment. Finnysports 2967J Sports Bldg. Toledo, Ohio 43614 GUARD DOGS ATTACK DOGS Will your dog actually protect you and your family, or is he just a pet? Would you like to turn him into a first rate guard dog? For information and brochure, sent $1 to AMERICAN GUARD DOG ASSN. 10112 RUSH ST. BOX 3421 SO. EL MONTE, CALIF. Fishermen and Hunters Enjoy the Harlan County Reservoir Stay at -ARROW LODGER Box 606 ALMA, NEBRASKA 68920 Telephone 928-2167 HIGHWAYS Air-Conditioned, 183-383 and 136 TV, Telephones One and Two-Room Units Cafe 1/2 Block Away Laundromat Nearby The Place to Stay On McConaughy Comfortable cabins Trailer parking Cafe Water sports equipment Groceries Fishing tackle, bait Evinrude Chrysler Boats & Motors, Starcraft Boats SPORTS SERVICE Kingsley Dam Ogallala, Nebraska by Esther Brown NEBRASKA RtfliCTIONS Sixfeen original poems each beautifully illustrated Sharply etched word pictures in Haiku and Tanka $1.50 each postpaid with refurn of ad. Unique Centennial Gift boohi marionette booted 312 No. 12th St., Lincoln, Nebraska 68508 Enclosed is $ for copies Dealers write for special discount. STRETCH YOUR GASOLINE $$$$ Witli Econo-Tank auxiliary fiberglas saddle tanks for all pickups. Additional gallonage for Chevrolet Ford JO. CMC UO. Dodge ',0, Completely hidden-installed in one hour. Kit includes two tanks, support bands, 3-way valve and hose. Shipping weight 41 lbs $fi9.r>0 F.O.B. Fort Worth, Texas. Also, fiberglass jeep tank —10 gallon capacity—$24. 50 ea. Send check—money order, write for further details to: m ($10.00 deposit on C.O.D's) Econo-Tank Distributing Co., P.O.Box 7826,Dept. 1, Waco.Texas 76710 Stabilize YOUR canoe with a set of PIEDMONT PONTOONS. Light, tough, instantly detachable. Wear your watch, carry your wallet, use your camera. Enjoy "armcharr" stability whether paddling, sailing or using a motor. Makes ANY canoe "The slickest car-top rig that money can buy. Three models, $29.50 to $69.50. Satisfaction guaranteed. Write for free folder PIEDMONT PONTOONS, INC. . Box 34, Charlottesville, Virginia APRIL, 1967 53

HOW TO KEEP DRY... WITHOUT REALLY TRYING

by Lou Ell

THERE'S AN OLD rhyme about fisherman's luck that alludes to both dampness and hunger. If the tale is true, then fishermen have the market cornered on the wet stuff, and other outdoorsmen enjoy 365 days of sunshine a year. But nature is not consistent. Sooner or later any prowler of the boondocks gets caught in a fog or a three-day rain, and when he does, he had better be prepared to keep his feathers dry.

On foggy mornings, or during brief showers, full rain protection is neither necessary nor desirable. Ordinary clothing that has been treated with water repellent spray will get you by. Several brands of sprays are available, nearly all with a silicone base. Felt or cloth hats, shirts, jackets, and trousers can be treated. Spray adds no weight to ordinary fabrics, and the pores of the material remain open so the garment "breathes." Repellency is long lasting, unless the clothing is laundered or dry cleaned. A good way to treat the clothing is to hang it on a clothes-line on a calm day, and apply the spray according to directions.

For shoes and boots, silicone treatments are available in a dauber bottle. The waterproofing liquid is highly penetrating and very volatile. Pores of the leather absorb it like a sponge, and complete evaporation takes only minutes. Several applications are necessary for maximum water-turning power.

For boots, silicone is not as effective or as long lasting as neat's foot oil treatments, but it is cleaner and simpler to apply. Pores in silicone-treated leather remain open so your feet do not perspire as readily in warm weather and the compound does not rub off to soil surroundings.

Neat's foot oil waterproofing, on the other hand, will last an entire season, even through repeated soakings. Acting as a preservative, the leather dries soft and supple and the oil seals stitching and seams where leaks first develop. Only rubber over-shoes or rubber-bottomed shoe pacs surpass oil-treated boots. The over-shoes and pacs, however, are like carrying a five-pound weight on each foot and are clumsy for walking.

Silicone treatment will not turn a downpour very long. Capillary action allows continuous moisture to 52 NEBRASKAland penetrate wherever the cloth touches the body or rubs against itself. Complete waterproof clothing is the only way out.

The finest fabric ever developed for waterproof camp clothing is neoprened nylon. Lignt, rugged, and flexible in the cold, it can be packed in a snug, tight roll for three or four days without mildewing even if damp. The nylon is quite expensive, but cheaper materials for occasional use, such as rubberized fabrics and ordinary plastic sheeting, are O.K.

Romantically linked with outdoor life is the abominable poncho. The garment has its place in turning water, but not off the human frame. Slip into the tent like gadget, snap the sides together, and you might possibly stay dry across the shoulders. Any wind billows the covering like Batman's cape, and the water whips in from armpits to ankles. Body movements draw the half closed sides against the legs, and the rivulets of water pouring down front and back are channeled to these edges. Within a few minutes you are soacked from the waist down.

If you are a hiker or a camera nut, the poncho has one redeeming feature. It covers your back pack and photo gear with a little room to spare and on a pack trip it will cover both you and your saddle. A Velcro-strip side closure would improve the poncho, but so far manufacturers have not provided it.

As a quick temporary shelter, pitched like a lean-to or A-type tent, the poncho serves another purpose. However, the neck hole, unless it has an attached hood, leaves a hole in the center of the lean-to or at the peak of the shelter, depending on now it is pitched.

A plastic, neoprened, or rubberized raincoat, as long as a granny dress, will keep you reasonably dry. Select one with an attached hood and elastic in the sleeve cuffs. The hood keeps your head dry and eliminates water down your collar. Closed sleeves protect your forearms as you set up camp or when you must work with your hands over your head.

By far the most satisfactory wet-weather garb for almost any outdoor activity is a combination two-piece rain suit. Separate suspendered or draw string pants with snap fastened or elastic cuffs to draw over the boot completes the rain attire. A few people prefer chaps to the pants. The chaps are individual legs which pull over the regular clothing, plus a strip to snap around the trouser belt to hold them up. They provide more ventilation for active campers, but generally are a nuisance to put on and take off. The rain suits, like all closed-pore wet weather gear, work in reverse. While they keep rain out, body moisture has no chance to escape, and over a period of time you will find yourself soaking in your own perspiration. Therefore, when shower activity is intermittent, open the jacket to let body moisture escape. Remove the garment completely when the rain stops.

If you have a lot of tall, wet grass to walk through after a rain, leave the rain pants on. Sitting around a campfire on a cool evening should have esthetic enjoyment, and I can think of nothing more uncomfortable than the squirming and twisting necessary to dry wet, clammy trouser legs.

Fishermen, who like to cast with the rain drumming down, can team the parka jacket with a set of featherweight breast waders, and be fully protected from both storm and stream.

Staying dry in camp involves a few basic procedures. Even a child knows that water runs downhill, collects in depressions, and carves a drainage bed in the floor of a valley. If possible, find a high spot or a small knoll to pitch your shelter, even if it means cleaning away some brush. That nice, open sandy spot lower down will turn into a quagmire during a rain.

Pitch the tent with its back to the direction where rain normally approaches. In Nebraska, storms usually come from the west, or one of its quarters, so you'll be reasonably safe to face the doorway toward the rising sun.

If camp is to remain in one spot for a period of time, put a fly sheet, a canvas tarp in this case, over the tent. Elevate it about four inches above the (Continued on page 56)

APRIL, 1967 53

OUTDOOR ELSEWHERE

High-Priced Buck. Venison is a delicacy, but seldom costs $6 a pound, as one recently cost a California rancher. A 170-pound buck crashed through his glass front door, then gored him twice during a running battle through the hallway and two bedrooms. It finally ended with the buck being shot. Since the buck caused about $1,000 damage to the rancher's home, the boys of a local youth camp dined on expensive meat. — California

Knowing Nose. The human sense of smell is being enlisted by the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Mines for better control of diesel exhausts. Specially-trained people will soon go to work at the Bureau's Petroleum Research Center in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. They will sniff samples of diesel exhaust and rate each according to its odors. Scientists will then try to correlate the ratings. How about that for a nose in the news? — Oklahoma

Tonsil Trouble. If your bird dog seems to have lost his nose, despair not. Instead have his tonsils checked. A Missouri veterinarian reports 70 per cent success in returning a "lost" sense of smell to dogs. A simple tonsillectomy usually does the job. —Missouri

Possum Pace. When the big jet plane touched down on the runway at Tulsa International Airport, it suddenly braked almost to a stop. A minute later, plane's loudspeaker gave out this message: "You may have wondered why we applied the brakes a while ago. Well, there was a fat little possum trotting along the runway right ahead of us, and he wouldn't get over. So even airplanes can give wildlife the "brake" it deserves. — Oklahoma

Litter Bit. A ranger at a state fire tower in New Hampshire has an unusual solution to his littering problems. On the trail leading to his 1,907-foot peak, he put up a sign. It reads: "Please take all litter with you. My wife is coming up next week, and I don't want her to think I keep a messy mountain. —New Hampshire

Alligator Right-of-Way. Ever heard of a "Warning, alligator crossing" sign? Some residents of South Carolina are thinking about putting one up along Interstate 26. An eight-foot alligator claimed the right-of-way there recently. — South Carolina

Grand-Slam Poacher. Poachers, beware! A Texas highway patrolman recently stopped a car for routine check, and he immediately turned the motorist over to local game authorities. The man had in the car 15 doves, 2 dressed deer, and 3 squirrels. Also in the same vehicle was a pistol and a sawed-off shotgun. The culprit went to jail on a $2,500 bond for violations. —Texas

Elusive Bird? Hunters from New York had been stomping Nebraska fields for four days without seeing any ringnecks. Finally, they stopped at the district office to voice their complaints. Upon seeing a stuffed pheasant in the office, one of the hunters exclaimed, "Is that what a pheasant looks like?" Assured that it was, he said, "Why we have seen plenty of them." The next day the New Yorkers proceeded to get their limits. —Nebraska

Rebound. A tall, lanky basketball player has given up hunting for good. It all came about at a Kentucky hunt. A stranger, shooting past him, blew the boy's hat off. "It didn't bother me," the youth said, "until I suddenly remembered that the only head I own was in that hat."— Kentucky

WHEN YOU TRAVEL IN NEBRASKA LOOK FOR THE SIGN OF NEBRASKAlander If your business brings you into contact with the traveling public, you can join the NEBRASKAlander program. Write to the Information and Tourism Division, Nebraska Game Commission, State Capitol, Lincoln, Nebraska for requirements and application.

Lit Up. After a successful antelope hunt, some hunters stopped in the local bar of a small Montana town. Since they were all dressed in red, according to law, a lady tourist from the East asked why the 54 NEBRASKAland men were wearing red. Told of the state law, she exclaimed, "That's wonderful. Drunks everywhere should be made to wear red!" — Montana

For the Birds. One recent U.S. Government experiment found scientists trying to fool sea gulls as a test of intelligence. Last summer, they planted old electric light bulbs in the hot sand at Nantucket, where the gulls sat on the bulbs and tried to hatch them. Just what the scientists expected to prove by the experiment has not been disclosed. —Elks Magazine

Split Decision. When a man was recently fined $10 for fishing without a permit, he made no attempt to hide his scorn for the judge and conservation officer. As he paid the fine, he handed the judge two fives and said:

"Here take these, they'll be easier to split."

As he turned to leave, the judge called him back. "Young man," the judge said dryly, "I'm changing the sentence to 10 days in jail. Now tell us how we can split that!" —Colorado

High Jinx. The highest known elevation of a duck in fight is 21,000 feet. This high-flying height was recorded when a mallard tore a nine-inch hole in a plane above Nevada recently. How is that for a high-flying bird in a tearing hurry? — Nevada

Football Fatal. If you want to live dangerously, play football. The sport appears to be more dangerous than shooting. A 5-year study by Travelers Insurance Company shows 777 hunting claims, as compared to over 4,000 football claims. In fact, shooting ranked last among the eight major causes of accidental deaths in 1964. Firearms accounted for 2,400 of the 105,000 fatalities. —Iowa

By A Finger. A Chicago man stuck his hand in a Minnesota lake. When he pulled his hand out of the cold, blue water, a northern pike was clinging to his forefinger. Quite a fingerling catch, wouldn't you say? — Minnesota

Bewitched Hour. It's a pretty safe bet that Tom Valentino of Mattydale, New York, will be deer hunting at exactly 8:30 a.m. next December 6. At that exact hour and date he has shot record deer for two successive years. —New York

Words of Wisdom-The best advice on mallard shooting was contributed by a Cajun guide in Louisiana. He said: "When the beeg French duck hees come down, shoot hees tail. When hees go up, shoot hees nose. When hees go past, pray. When hees go away, don' shoot." —Illinois

NEBRASKA'S FINEST Lake Mary Ranch is a new summer camp created to provide the utmost in summer recreation and education for your children. Experienced camp directors supervise each activity, and give individual attention to each boy or girl. Let your children have the fun of their lifetime. 1 Week Session $ 75.00 for free brochure and reservation contact: 2 Week Session 14500 LAKE MARY RANCH CAMP 3 Week Session 210.00 Marr Ann Pence 1913 M Street 4 Week Session 275.00 Aurora, Nebraska GREAT IDEA! INDIVIDUAL PACK Mustard-Catsup-Syrup-Jellies-Dressings-Etc. Send $2.00 for sample assortment and price list. Satisfaction Guaranteed. campAides Dept. B Box 53932 Lincoln, Nebraska 68505 ELMS MOTEL Air Conditioning Cable TV-Free Coffee Airport Pickup-Cafe Nearby for reservations call: 402-336-1360 O'NEILL ON HWY. 20 Is it time (or a Checkup ? April 16-22 is Protection Week. This is a special observation for all of us to check up on our insurance protection. During this period independent insurance agents throughout Nebraska have made themselves available for free consultation service. Any agent who displays the seal shown below will be pleased to assist you in analyzing your present policies for correctness as to coverage, limits, and rates charged. This service is one of many reasons to 7 your Independent Insurance agent SERVES YOU FIRST Insure with Your Local Big I Agent APRIL, 1967 55

RICH LODE AT AGATE

(Continued from page 33)

as the buffalo of a later age. More than 800 of them have been found at Agate. Also excavated have been an antelope-like mammal, a beaver, a large dog, a small three-toed horse, and the oredont, a rarity about the size of a large pig. Even more famous than the beavers are their homes, which resemble giant corkscrews, hence the name Daimonelices, or "Devil's Corkscrews". Remains of many of these burrowers have been found encased in their lairs, which vary from three to eight inches in diameter, and up to eight feet in depth.

Future plans for the monument call for an interpretive structure on the side of Carnegie Hill, where the richest deposits are to be found. This will permit visitors to see the fossils in their graves.

Also provided will be in-place exhibits at several other fossil-rich areas within the monument, picnic facilities near the Agate Springs Ranch, a headquarters complex which will include maintenance facilities, employee residences, and a research center. The Cook collection of Indian artifacts will be appropriately exhibited, and the Cook Library will be available for study and research. Both the collection and library were donated by Mrs. Harold Cook provided the monument became a reality by 1967, the Centennial year. Historical research will determine which of the old buildings within the monument should be preserved and eventually displayed.

Already thousands of persons have visited the site, but most have seen only "skeleton" exhibits of what actually will be displayed when the area is fully developed. A temporary summer visitor center has been set up in a trailer. Nearly 2,000 visitors, stopped in 1965, and in the summer of 1966, more than 3,000 people heard the fossil story.

This tourist information center will also be operated in 1967 on the same basis or even more intensively, depending upon how quickly the construction program continues. The center will operate seven days a week, June through August.

Identical bills for establishment of the monument were introduced in 1963 by U.S. Senator Roman Hruska and Representative Dave Martin, both of Nebraska. Finally approved in 1965, the National Park Service will operate the monument. Plans call for construction to begin this year.

It is estimated that hardly a dent has been made in the entombed population. Although worked periodically for many years, there are many untouched portions of the hills. At least 75 per cent of the fossilbearing sections are undisturbed, according to scientists, and will be available for study for many years to come.

Much has been learned already from this site, yet much work remains. Still to be explained is why, or how, millions of prehistoric animals vanished without leaving any descendants. What cataclysmic eruption, what severe changes in the elements, what quake or earth fault, or what gigantic disease swept across the plains, wiping out all before it? All of the animals apparently fell before the onslaught, and even if some survived for a time, it was not for long. If any descendents of the old-timers exist, they are not on this continent.

Battles of the vicious pigs have not been forgotten except by their one-time enemies. As their remains are lifted from their nearly-final resting places and put under the microscope, their lives, struggles, and deaths will be chronicled for future generations. After eons of obscurity poor old "Terrible Pig" will again be king of the hill.

THE END

HOW TO KEEP DRY

(Continuedfrom page 53)

tent's roof, following the natural pitch of the tent, and extend it a few inches beyond the eaves. Stretched smoothly, the fly sheet almost guarantees a dry tent, since it sheds all but a small percentage of a downpour. On a hot day, air space between the tent and fly sheet serves as insulation to keep the tent's interior several degrees cooler.

Pack a few 8x8-foot polyethelene flies in your camp gear. This sheeting can be obtained at any hardware store or lumber yard, and you'll find it mighty handy.

After a downpour, the spot immediately in front of the tent door is often churned to muck, and a small pool of water accumulates. Never rake the leaves or ground duff away from the entrance. Instead, throw down additional natural material such as leaves or twigs to form a makeshift doormat. Then stretch a small polethelene fly as a canopy over the entrance. If shifting winds occur, rain may be driven from side to side across the doorway. Use another fly as a wing on the upwind side of the door. A poncho can serve the purpose, and the neck hole lets air through, and prevents the fly from being torn away in gusty winds.

To build a canopy over your camp table or cooking area, find two seven-foot dead trees, two or three inches in diameter, with a forked branch at the smaller end. Lay the trees on the ground, three feet farther apart than the length of the area to be protected. Use another pole or a long rope for a ridge. Fold a large fly over the ridge, and stand the rig up. Stake down the corners of the tarp and the ridge guy lines. If you use plastic sheeting, secure the stake-out lines to it by tying a smooth stone in the corner of the material or by using a small rubber ball and a shower curtain ring for a tie-down loop.

Additional small fly sheets can be used to protect the wood pile or any gear stacked outside the tent.

Equipped with the right gear and with a few fly sheets for area protection about the campsite, you should come through a period of wet weather in good shape. And if you can cook, you'll never again need to worry about the adversities of fisherman's luck.

THE END 56 NEBRASKAland

NEBRASKAland TRADING POST

Classified Ads: 15 cents a word. minimum order $3.00 July, 67 closing date, May 1 BOATING KAYAKS—One-man $19.50; two-man $24.50; Sailboat $44. Exciting Sitka Kayak Kits known world wide for speed and safety. Assemble in one afternoon. Free pictorial literature. Box 78-N, Brecksville, Ohio. 44141. DOGS HUNTING DOGS: German Shorthairs, English Pointers. WeimaraneTS, English, Irish, and Gordon Setters, Chesapeakes, Labradors, and Golden Retrievers. Registered pups, all ages, $50 each. Robert Stevenson, Orleans, Nebraska. WANTED AKC PUPPIES and purebred kittens. Excalibur Kennels and Cattery, 908 North 40th Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68104—Bird Dog Specialists. TRAINING and boarding; all pointing breeds and retrievers. Field and obedience training. Special rates on year around boarding and conditioning. Occasional top bred pointers and retrievers for sale. Stud service. Individual concrete runs; best of feed and care. Platte Valley Kennels, Route 1, Box 61, Grand Island, Nebraska 68801. BRITTANY SPANIELS — puppies — excellent — white and orange. Sired by Field Champion Loufel's Chippewa Kaer. Female breeding Juchoir and Paradise. Price $50. Norman Haldiman, Dawson, Nebraska. GERMAN GRIFFONS—The All Purpose Hunter. Free Club bulletins and whereabouts. Griffon Club, Secretary, 1633 Woodworth Street, N.E., Grand Rapids, Michigan 49505. DECOYS SOLID PLASTIC DECOYS. Original Do-It-Yourself Decoy Making Kit. All Species Available. Catalog 25c. Decoys Unlimited, Box 69E, Clinton, Iowa 52732. MAKE GOOSE and Duck shell decoys fast and real cheap. Send $1 for sample. C. McCauley, 6911 North 31 Avenue, Omaha, Nebraska. FISH BAIT SUPERIOR Red Worms. 1,000, $6; 5,000, $27.50. Guaranteed. Inquire Worm Service, 1914 Lenox Avenue, Beloit, Wisconsin 53511. HIBRED Brown Nose, red trout worms mixed. 150, $1; 500, $3; 1,000, $5. Postpaid. Mink Ranch, Paxton, Nebraska 69155. FISH LURES FISHERMEN'S SPECIALS Fly fisherman—for a limited time offer receive 12 (assorted colors) extra fancy Skitter streamers $5 postpaid—White bass spinners—receive 12 x/4 oz. spinners $4 postpaid— Try Skitter's jig on white bass-walleye. Receive 2 V4 oz. jigs yellow-white $1 postpaid. SKITTER PRODUCTS, 205 South 15th Norfolk, Nebraska 68701. GUNS AND AMMO NEW, USED AND ANTIQUE GUNS. Send long addressed lOc-stamped envelope for list, or stop in. Bedlan's Sporting Goods, Fairbury, Nebraska. APRIL, 1967 STONEGROUND CORNMEAL. Most complete line Health Foods. Many processed daily. Come see us or write. Brownville Mills, Brownville, Nebraska. COLLAPSIBLE Farm-Pond Fish Traps; Animal Traps, postpaid. Free information, pictures, Shawnee, 3934-AX Buena Vista, Dallas 4, Texas. OLD FUR COATS restyled into capes, stoles, etc. $25. We're also tanners, and manufacture fur garmets, buckskin jackets and gloves. Free style folder. Haeker's Furriers, Alma, Nebraska. 600 ASSORTED SWEET ONION PLANTS with free planting guide. $3 postpaid. TOPCO, "home of the sweet onion," Farmersville, Texas 75031. TURKEY HUNTERS—More fun and hunting success with a deluxe combination hen and gobbler call. Tested and proven on Nebraska gobblers. Native Aromatic cedar construction. Satisfaction guaranteed. Attractive gift for your hunter friends. Full instructions enclosed. $6.95 check or money order. Specialty Wood Products, 2335 North 139 Street, Omaha, Nebraska. AUTOMOBILE BUMPER STRIPS. Low-cost advertising for Special Events, Community Projects, Resorts, Motels, Tourist Attractions, Organizations. Write for Free Brochure, Price List and Samples. Reflective Advertising, Dept. N, 873 Longacre, St. Louis, Missouri 63132. NEW RIDING CAMP. Girls 8-16. Other sports included. $42.50 a week. Write for a free brochure. Myers Albino Acres, Stuart, Nebraska. WANTED old Nebraska Hunting Licenses issued before 1923, also any Duck Stamps. Write, state price. Bill Earnest, Conservation Officer, Valley, Nebraska. CABINS on western Nebraska lakes, Homes in Lincoln and other cities. High-Low Travel Trailers. Call or write: Liljegren Real Estate, 2471 Cornado Court, Sidney, Nebraska or Elwood, Nebraska. SCUBA EQUIPMENT BOB-K'S AQUA SUPPLY Nebraska's largest Scuba dealer. U. S. Divers, Sportways, Voit, Swimmaster, Scubrapro. Air Station. Regulator Repair. Telephone 553-9483, 1419 South 46 Avenue, Omaha, Nebraska. TAXIDERMY KARL SCHWARZ Master Taxidermists. Mounting of game heads - Birds - Fish - Animals - Fur Rugs - Robes - Tanning Buckskin. Since 1910. 424 South 13th Street, Dept. A., Omaha, Nebraska. GAME heads and fish mounting. 40 years experience. Cleo Christiansen, Taxidermist. 421 South Monroe Street, Kimball, Nebraska. FISH MOUNTING A SPECIALTY—Crappie, bass, trout, walleye, Northerns and other trophy fish. Two to three week delivery until fall. 20 years experience. Livingston Taxidermy, Mitchell. Nebraska, TRAVEL TRAILERS NICKELS CAMPER AND TRAILER SALES, Weeping Water, Nebraska. In Stock, pick-up campers: Free-way, Del Rey, Covered Wagon, Hill Crest. Pick-up covers: B & B Toppers. Travel Trailers: Bon Aire, Covered Wagon, De Camp. From standard to self-contained. We rent 8 and 10 ft. pick-up campers, travel trailers and tent type trailers. Over 30 units in stock. Open every day, evenings, and all day Sunday. Phone 267-4855 or 267-3195. When Writing to the Advertisers, Please Mention You Saw it in OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland of the Air SUNDAY KGFW, Kearney (1340 kc) 7:05 a.m. KRGI, Grand Island (1430 kc) 7:40 a.m. WOW, Omaha (590 kc) 7:40 a.m. KMMJ, Grand Island (750 kc) 7:40 a.m. KXXX, Colby, Kan. (790 kc) 8:00 a.m. KBRL, McCook (1300 kc) 9:45 a.m. KAMI, Coxad (1580 kc) 9:45 a.m. KMA, Shenandoah, la. (960 kc) 10:00 a.m. KODY, North Platte (1240 kc) 10:45 a.m. KLMS, Lincoln (1480 kc) 11.00 a.m. KIMB, Kimball (1260 kc) 11:15 a.m. KVSH, Valentine (940 kc) 12:00 Noon KOGA, Ogallala (930 kc) 12:30 p.m. KFOR, Lincoln (1240 kc) 12:45 p.m. KCNI, Broken Bow (1280 kc) 1:15 p.m. KUYR, Holdrege (1380 kc) 2:45 p.m. KNCY, Nebraska City (1600 kc) 5:00 p.m. KRVN, Lexington (1010 kc) 5:40 p.m. KTNC, Falls City (1230 kc) 5:45 p.m. KCOW, Alliance (1400 kc) 7:00 p.m. KFAB, (Mon.-Fri.) Nightly MONDAY KGMT, Fairbury (1310 kc) 1:00 p.m. KSID, Sidney (1340 kc) 6:30 p.m. WEDNESDAY KJSK, Columbus (900 kc) 1:30 p.m* FRIDAY KHUB, Fremont (1340 kc) 5:15 p.m. WJAG, Norfolk (780 kc) 4:15 p.m. SATURDAY KCSR, Chadron (610 kc) 6:15 a.m. KOLT, Scottsbluff (1320 kc) 11:45 a.m. KAWL, York (1370 kc) 12:45 p.m. KHAS, Hastings (1230 kc) 1:00 p.m. KRFS, Superior (1600 kc) 1:00 p.m. KWRV, McCook (1360 kc) 1:45 p.m. KBRX, O'Neill (1350 kc) 4:30 p.m. KMNS, Sioux City, la. (620 kc) 6:10 p.m. DIVISION CHIEFS WHiard R. Barbee, assistant director Glen R. Foster, fisheries Dick H. Schaf fer, information and tourism Richard J. Spady, land management Jack D. Strain, state parks Lloyd P. Vance, game CONSERVATION OFFICERS Chief, Carl E. Gettmann, Lincoln Ainsworth—Max Showalter, 387-1960 Albion—Gary L. Baltz, 395-2516 Alliance—Richard Furley, 762-2024 Alliance—Leonard Spoering, 762-1547 Alma—William F. Bonsall, 928-2313 Arapahoe—Don Schaepler, 962-7818 Benkelman—H. Lee Bowers, 423-2893 Bridgeport—Joe Ulrich, 100 Broken Bow—Gene Jeffries, 872-5953 Columbus—Lyman Wilkinson, 564-4375 Crawford—Cecil Avey, 228 Creighton—Gary R. Ralston, 425 Crete—Roy E. Owen, 826-2772 Crofton—John Schuckman, 388-4421 David City—Lester H. Johnson, 367-4037 Fairbury—Larry Bauman, 729-3734 Falls City—Raymond Frandsen, 2817 Fremont—Andy Nielsen, 721-2482 Gering—Jim McCole, 436-2686 Grand Island—Fred Salak, 384-0582 Hastings—Bruce Wiebe, 462-8317 Hay Springs—Larry D. Elston, 638-4051 Kearney—Ed Greving, 237-5753 Kimball—Marvin Bussinger, 235-3905 Lexington—Robert D. Patrick, 324-2138 Lincoln—Leroy Orvis, 488-1663 Lincoln—Norbert Kampsnider, 466-0971 Lincoln—Dale Bruha, 477-4258 Long Pine—William O. Anderson, 273-4406 Nebraska City—Mick Gray, 873-5890 Norfolk—Robert Downing, 371-2675 North Platte—Samuel Grasmick, 532-9546 North Platte—Roger A. Guenther, 532-2220 Ogallala—Jack Morgan, 284-3425 Omaha—Dwight Allbery, 558-2910 O'Neill—Kenneth L. Adkisson 336-3000 Ord—Gerald Woodgate, 728-5060 Oshkosh—Donald D. Hunt, 772-3697 Ponca—Richard D. Turpin, 2521__ Tekamah—Richard Elston, 374-1698 Thedford—John Henderson, 645-5351 Valentine—Elvin Zimmerman, 376-3674 Valley—Daryl Earnest, 359-2332 Winside—Marion Schafer, 286-4290 York—Gail Woodside, 362-4120 APRIL, 1967 57

WHERE-TO-GO

HAHLE'S FISHING CENTER CAFE AND ICE BOAT AND MOTOR RENTAL BOAT GAS—SKI BOATS TACKLE AND BAITS GUIDE SERVICE RED WILLOW RESERVOIR Rt. #1 McCook, Nebraska Ph. 345-3560 r CD IF YOU LIKE TO SHOOT RELOADING IS FOR YOU » You've heard lots about famous Hornady Bullets. Reload and you can shoot them! Save money (one half to two thirds) by handloading, get in more shooting fun. "Rolling your own" is simple, safe, enjoyable -and you'll shoot better with Hornadys. Send for our catalog g of 73 accurate, deadly, dependable bullets. iflmi HORNADY MANUFACTURING COMPANY V^PEPT.QN, GRAND ISLAND, NEBR. 68801 Cambridge, Nebraska HUNT AND FISH WITH US AT Medicine Creek Lodge (Wesf Side of Medicine Creek Dam) Boats, Bait, Fishing Supplies, Hunting & Fishing Permits, Cafe, Cabins and Year Around Service Phone 697-3774 For centennial FLAGS Flag Poles ACCESSORIES PENNANTS For all occasions U.S.-STATE-FOREIGN Special designing Flags FLAG HEADQUARTERS 2726 N. 39th St. Lincoln, Nebr. Phone 466-2413

WHEN LEWIS and Clark camped along the Missouri River banks in 1804, the river was as untamed and savage as the land it snaked through. The "Mighty Mo" has since been bridled by man to fulfill his arrogant whims. A perfect example of this change is best seen at the explorers' namesake, Lewis and Clark Lake at Gavins Point Dam, 14 miles north of Crofton, Nebraska.

Where the sometimes uncontrollable and mighty river once pursued its undisturbed way south, there now stand 33,000 acres of surface water ready to treat the sports-minded to its wares, whether it be fishing, swimming, water skiing, or boating. Today the word "mighty" refers to Gavins Point Dam more than to the river which it has harnessed. Called the "Mighty Mite", the dam means electrical power and its by-product, recreation to modern man.

"Mighty Mite" is just that-850 feet thick at the dam's base and 8,700 feet long, it makes an imposing figure on the now-tamed river. The rolled-earth and chalk-filled dam contains approximately 7 million cubic yards of earth. U.S. Highway 98 runs along the 74-foot high dam.

Guided tours of the powerhouse and dam begin May 30 and continue until Labor Day, seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tours run from 20 to 30 minutes in length and start on the hour.

Greeted by a Corps of Engineers guide, the tourist is shown a display that describes the role of Gavins Point Dam in controlling the Missouri River. The mainworks of the powerhouse and three massive generators are next on the itinerary. Generators whir as the Missouri River rushes through the machines to emit a generating capacity of 33,333 kilowatts per unit. Together, the generators annually produce 600 million kilowatt hours of electrical energy to help meet the growing demands of industry and agriculture in the Missouri River Basin.

Gavins Point Dam and Lewis and Clark Lake are both part of a plan for the development of natural resources in the Basin. Gavins Point is farthest downstream of the six Missouri River main stem dams that reach back to Montana. It is a multi-purpose project designed to provide flood control, power, and regulation of water flow for bank stabilization and improved downstream navigation.

Constructed by the Omaha District of the Missouri River Division of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the project was started in 1952 and completed in 1957 at a cost of nearly $50 million. The resulting 25-mile long Lewis and Clark Lake is a favorite recreational site for midwesterners. The 90 miles of rugged shoreline and numerous inlets offer opportunities for almost all types of outdoor enjoyment. In 1966, nearly 2 million visitor-days were recorded at the dam.

For those in the western part of the state, Kingsley Dam on the North Platte River, eight miles northeast of Ogallala, welcomes visitors anytime. Over twice as long as Gavins Point Dam, Kingsley Dam is 162 feet high and 1,100 feet wide at the base. Twenty-five million cubic yards of material went into its making.

The dam was built in 1941 by driving a solid wall of interlocked sheet steel piling 30 to 160 feet deep, through sand and gravel into impervious Brule clay, across the river bed. The core of the dam was built by pumping soil into position on the steel piling and as the water was drained out, the soil hardened. Highway 61 crosses over the top of the 3 1/2-mile-long dam.

For the history fan, Bellevue is the place to go. Steeped in Nebraska's history and the oldest town in the state, Bellevue got its name, according to legend, when Manuel de Lisa, the first white settler in Nebraska, saw the beautiful scenery of the area and exclaimed "Belle vue."

Approximately 50 years later, in 1856, Bellevue was organized as a city. That same year, Presbyterian missionaries built Bellevue Church, the oldest in the state. The building is still in use, now by the Episcopalian Church. A plaque in the churchyard outlines its history.

Within walking distance from the church is Bellevue's Log Cabin at 1805 Hancock. The cabin was first located on Missouri River bottom land, but its origin and first owners are unknown. The cabin was moved to its present site as a memorial to pioneers who settled in the area in the early 1800's.

THE END 58 NEBRASKAland

REFLECTIONS

by Charles Armstrong A hundred years of history Since this state was born A prairie land for cattle Tall grain and golden corn The spirit of its people Swells to a soaring tide That sweeps beyond horizons Five hundred miles wide. Its riches are awaiting The harvest yet to come A treasure of the golden West Gleams in the noonday sun We*re children of the pioneers Who tamed the savage West We know the happiness and tears With which this land is blessed. Nebraskaland, Nebraskaland Your golden years will come The future lies within our hands Until our days are done.

The Beauty of NEBRASKAland FULL-COLOR PRINTS

Capture the beauty of NEBRASKAland with this wide assortment of photographic masterpieces. Select the scenes that match your decor from the 16" x 20" "G" series and the 20" x 24" "P" series prints in breath-taking color.

"G" series at 75 cents each or set of 4 for $2.50, and "P" series at $1 each or set of 4 for $3.50 postpaid. Clip out attached order blank and send for your prints-TODAYH

NEBRASKAland State Capitol Lincoln, Nebraska 68509 Enclosed is $ Quantity 16" x 20" Prints Price G-l "Snake Falls" 75c ea. G-2 "The Tall Pines" 75c ea. G-3 "Down in the Valley" 75c ea. G-4 "Smith Falls" 75c ea. Complete Set of 4 $2.50 ea. check or money order for the prints I have indicated. Quantity P-3 G-3 20" x 24" Prints Price P-l "The Deer Hunter" $1 ea. P-2 "The Big Country" $lea. P-3 "Platte of Plenty" $lea. P-4 "The Quiet Way" $lea. Complete Set of 4 $3.50 ea. NAME ADDRESS. CITY STATE ZIP (Dealers: ask for special wholesale rates)