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.

LITTLE SAID - "We hope NEBRASKAland publishes more articles on water and soil pollution. Most farmers seem to be going all out for all types of fertilizers and chemicals.

"The farm magazines are filled with advertising for these products but we read very little about their hazards." — Glenn Preston, Lyons

HARD WORKER-"I was very much interested in Head Them Up in the January NEBRASKAland.

The map did not show a trail crossing at Niobrara, but about 1874 or 75 my grandfather, Henry Grimm was hired to help drive Texas cattle over into South Dakota. One ox, unable to cross the river, was given to him in part pay for his work. That ox later broke the first land on his homestead, and the farm I now own." — Mrs. H. J. LeMasters, Orchard

MARKEL FAMILY-"For some time I have been a reader of NEBRASKAland, and I was especially interested in the Blizzard of '88 story in your February issue, because I attended school in District 29. Minnie (Markel) Moyer's oldest boy was a school pal of mine and in the same grade. This incident of the Markel children reaching home safely by stumbling into Rock Creek surprises me. Where is Rock Creek? As a youngster, I lived halfway between the Markel home and District 29, from 1902 to 1916, and the only thing I ever saw was a small stream." -Albert C. Walch, Burr.

The Rock Creek incident was in the late Fred Marke's account as told to his daughter, Mrs. Earl Markel of Lincoln. It may have been a name which the Markel family alone attributed to the small stream you mention. — Editor

HELP —"I would like and I am sure many other readers of NEBRASKAland would, too, to have directions for making a fish smoker out of an old refrigerator. Also, I would like directions on how to prepare fish for smoking and pickling carp and other fish.

"It would be nice to have a small corner of a page to share ideas and recipes for fine tasty treats." —Ira Clinkenbeard, Plattsmouth.

The August 1966 NEBRASKAland carried a recipe for preparing carp for smoking in the Speak Up department. A copy will be sent to Mr. Clinkenbeard. Can any of our readers help out on the building of a smoker from an old refrigerator? — Editor

JUNE, 1967 3

COLORFUL 1967 NEBRASKAland Days

Lincoln erupts with a thrill-filled, jam-packed week offun and excitement, when NEBRASKAland DAYS 1967 takes over, June 18 through 24. It will be the greatest western blowout ever, to make Nebraska's Centennial year truly one to remember. From the time the cannon blast announces the opening Sunday until the final bugle sounds taps on Saturday, every day will spill over with fun and excitement for the entire family. Spectacular parades, free Wild West shows, the pageantry of the Miss NEBRASKAland beauty contest, shoot-outs, and a rip-roaring four-day rodeo are only a few of the top-notch attractions. Get set for the "Best of the West", NEBRASKAland DAYS. Bring the entire family, and spend an exciting, fun-filled week in Lincoln.

THE BEST OF THE WEST JUNE 18-24 IN LINCOLN 6 NEBRASKAland

OVER PROMOTION-"I was very interested in the letter by James C. Pafford of Sand Springs, Okla., and by the editor's comment in February NEBRASKAland. Mr. Pafford's sentiments were the same as several other out-of-state hunters who were lured to the Panhandle by advertisements in the national sporting magazines and by over promotion by certain Chambers of Commerce in larger nearby towns.

"They were by no means the first arrivals when the season opened.

"This over promotion has resulted in ill feeling between the out-of-state hunters and we landowners, and it is the fault of neither.

"I sincerely hope that in the future, a little moderation and judgement can be used in the promotion field." —Milo Housh, Hay Springs.

ETTA SHATTUCK-T would like so much to know how you got the story on Etta Shattuck, Blizzard of '88 because she was found by my father, Bowman Adams, on his farm. If the person who gave you the story is someone I could talk or write to, I would be very pleased. I am the last of my father's family and will be 80 in May. You have the story the same as my father told it, and I would like to know where you got it." — Mrs. S. C. Barnett, Amelia.

The Nebraska Historical Society has letters, newspaper accounts, and other published material. Also Mrs. Earl Markel of Lincoln, a daughter of Fred Market, and secretary to the Blizzard of 88 Club, was most helpful to the author. — Editor

BONERS —"How would it be to exchange 'expatiate' for 'expiate' on page 98 in your Centennial issue? Also, how about 'imminence' for 'eminence' on page 33 in the same issue?" —S. M. Artaleck, Lincoln

Sharp-eyed reader Artaleck is right and the editor will take his 40 lashes for letting the boners slip by. By the way, S. M., the name is SCHAFFER, not SHAFER. — Editor

HORSE THIEF HANGOUT?-"Just read the article by Bob Snow, about the notorious "Doc" Middleton, and that reminded me about a place west of Haigler, Nebraska, called The Devils Canyon. It is in the southwest corner of Nebraska, very close to the Kansas line.

"The story was, that in Devils Canyon, there were huge caves, that were used by horse thieves to hide their horses when moving them from one part of the country to another.

"My home was almost due west of St. Francis, Kansas, just over the line in Colorado. A number of times we would pack a picnic lunch and drive down to the Devils Canyon, to see if we could find any signs that the story was true. I believe the last time I was there was about 1912 or 1913. At that time most of the caves had caved in. They hadn't caved off like a ditch bank, but huge pieces on the west side of the canyon had just dropped. The caves must have been huge, judging by the pieces that had fallen.

"Since reading the article, I wonder if those caves could have been used by Doc Middleton?"-Mrs. Winnie Evans, Holyoke, Colo.

It is possible but not probable — Editor

GREAT PLACE —"I am enclosing a picture of early Ericson, Nebraska. It was a wonderful place to go and fish before a flood ruined the falls. We often spent a weekend there, and my father, H. G. Westberg, who was an early photographer, always took his camera.

"In the picture are Mr. Busby, an Ord marshal and his sons, Ernest and Maynard who may still live in Lincoln. My mother and Mrs. Busby are in the background.

"On the opposite side of the pond, we children caught lots of sunfish. I showed my catch to a lady who came to get her cow one day and said.

" 'See my sunfish.'

"She replied. 'Kid, the sun was down a long time ago.'

"We would take our food with us, bread, butter, jelly, pie, and of course, there were chicken and fish. When corn was in season, my father would build a fire and put the corn with the husks on it in the fire. When they started to sear, the corn was ready. We had an old coffee pot for these trips and coffee elsewhere has never been so good as that made in the open air.

"It seemed a long trip with a team and wagon. We kids, Hazel and I and her brothers, often had a quiet war before it was over, kicking and pinching each other.

"Now the trip is made on good roads in a car and cottages and boats line the shore but they do not hold half the magic of the old trips when someone would yell, 'See the falls!'"-Winnie N. Meyers, North Loup.

JUNE, 1967 7

NEBRASKAland HOSTESS OF THE MONTH Jolene Kay Malone

The whole range of June activities entices NEBRASKAland's hostess of the month, Jolene Kay Malone, to rein in on the fun, especially during NEBRASKAland Days, June 18 through 24. A senior in elementary education at Wayne State, the lovely blonde coed is practice teaching at West Elementary School in Wayne. Queen of the Green her freshman year, in 1966, Jolene was the College Track Queen and a finalist for Homecoming honors. She was also a dorm officer and on the student union board. The talented lass is a student cartoonist for the Wayne Stater and is a member of Kappa Pi, honorary art fraternity. Jolene is married to Michael Malone. Her parents are Mr. and Mrs. Jerome Pearson of Wakefield.

JUNE Roundup

From rough-and-tumble action of NEBRASKAland DAYS to old-time sing, there's pleasure for everyone

THOSE LAZY days of summer will prove to be only fiction as June events prod Nebraskans and visitors to a breathtaking pace of activity.

The Capital City of Lincoln lets loose a week of rough-and-tumble action with the third annual NEBRASKAland DAYS, June 18 through 24. Downtown Lincoln will turn into a Wild West trail as NEBRASKAland on Parade winds through the streets June 21. The televised spectacle features bands, floats, horsemen, and marching units boosting the state's attractions. Following the parade, the NEBRASKAland Championship Rodeo erupts at Pershing Auditorium for a four-day run. And, top cowboys will compete for heavy purses and RCA points.

Beginning NEBRASKAland Days, beauties from throughout the state will vie for the Miss NEBRASKAland title. Colleges and universities will send their picks to the "queen of queens" pageant, and the winner will reign over all NEBRASKAland Days activities.

A major highlight of the week will be the presentation of the "Buffalo Bill" Cody Award to a television or motion picture personality for outstanding contributions to quality family entertainment in the Cody tradition.

Old-Time Camp Meetings will kick off Religious Heritage Sunday, June 18, at Pine wood Bowl. Worshipers can stop at the pancake feed for a hearty pioneer breakfast before or after services.

A carnival, Wild West shows, muzzleloading rifle and fast-draw championships, barbeques, and much more excitement round out the week-long extravaganza.

Western entertainment spills over to Beatrice for the annual Homesteader Days June 18 through 25. A grand parade in downtown Beatrice, climaxed by the coronation of a king and queen, kicks off the affair. A musical shindig, featuring combos, fiddlers, and folk singers, will be staged Friday and Saturday evenings. Other entertainment includes a whiskers contest, carnival, tennis tournament, and canoe races.

North Platte, permanent home of NEBRASKAland DAYS beginning in 1968, hosts plenty of action this month. A marksmanship exhibition on June 1 starts the list. On the same day the World War II Canteen opens. The big Buffalo Bill Blow-Out Rodeo will attract the top cowboys of the nation. William F. Cody started rodeo in North Platte, and the annual Blow-Out continues the Cody tradition. This year it cuts loose June 22 through 25. Centennial QSL "Ham Fest" keeps up the pace June 24 and 25. Amateur radio operators will jam a bevy of activities into the two days. Water sport entertainment, a barbeque, and a tour of Scouts Rest Ranch, former home of Buffalo Bill, make up the light side of their agenda. On the serious side are the Inauguration Ceremony for the "Radio Hall of Fame", an equipment auction, displays, door prizes, and trophies.

June easily rates as the month of queens. Lovely lasses compete at York June 12 through 17 in the Miss Nebraska Pageant and Parade. Miss Majorette of Nebraska will be chosen June 23 and 24 at Duchesne College in Omaha. Another title will be awarded at Ord June 9 and 10, when dairy princesses from throughout the state vie to be Nebraska Dairy Princess.

The Centennial observance takes a stately tone June 14. Nebraska's magnificent State Capitol will be rededicated, with Governor NorbertT. Tiemann and Centennial Commission Tri-Chairman Gerald J. McGinley leading the ceremonies. Hymns by a military band and massing of colors will solemnize the occasion.

The second annual Niobrara River Canoe Races will bring paddling enthusiasts to Valentine June 11 for trophies and cash prizes.

"Century of Stars" skyshow re-enacts 100 years of astronomical drama on the Plains. The show, beginning May 29, continues at Ralph Mueller Planetarium in Lincoln through August 27.

Lancaster County Centennial Music Program comprises nearly a week of variety in music and groups at Pinewood Bowl June 25 through 29. The Lincoln Music Teachers Association opens the show Sunday with a combination of music and dancing. The Barbershop Quartet Association takes over Monday evening, and Old Time Fiddlers offer a country-western program Tuesday evening. Wednesday is teenagers' night with combos and folk singing. An Old-Fashioned Sing, with the audience joining in, winds up the program Thursday evening.

Parades, rodeos, pretty girls, and festivals add up to a rollicking month of fun in Nebraska this June.

THE END WHAT TO DO 1 —Polk County Old Times Day, Osceola 1—World War II Canteen open, North Platte 1 — Marksmanship Exhibition featuring Colonel Larson, North Platte 1-3 — Firemen's Picnic, Parade, and Carnival, Wymore 1-30 — "Ak-Sar-Ben Horse Races, Omaha 1-30 —"Oscar Howe — Retrospective", Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha 1-30-"The Bostwick Collection: Early Omaha", Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha 1-30 — "Ribbons and Laces and Frontier Town Graces", Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha 1-September 4-Centennial Museum open, Lexington 2-3 - Centennial Celebration, Rising City 2-4-NEBRASKAland Centennial Gun, Coin, Cars, and Antique Show, Columbus 2-4-Centennial Pioneer Memorial Tea, Barbeque, and Pageant, Nelson 2-4 - University of Nebraska Alumni Reunions, Lincoln (Continued on page 48) JUNE, 1967 9   For the Best Vacation of Your Life Discover NEBRASKAland by spending your fun-filled vacation at one of these fine ranch or farm resorts. Write for further information to: Trail rides-Stagecoach, Wagon, Buggy Rides Cookouts- Fishing- Skiing- Boating RIVERVIEW VACATION RANCH Comstock, Nebr.-628-2501 THE GOLDEN HORSESHOE GUEST RANCH Ainsworth, Nebr. A Retreat for Adults Horses-Fishing-Modern Cabins-Meals Children of Family NEWMANS GUEST RANCH Stuart, Nebr.-Phone 924-3292 Year around farm vacations and hunting LAWRENCE & RUTH KENTFIELD Wilsonville, Nebr. 69046 Boys & Girls-12 to 18 Riding-Fishing-Boating-Swimming Ranch Living BARTON'S BUFFALO SPRINGS RANCH Lewellen, Nebr. Horses-Fishing-Hunting-Year around Family Vacation-River Ranch-Cottages DEAN BRESLEY Ord, Nebr.-Phone 728-5269 Vacation-Sandhills ranch near Merrit Dam DEAR LAWN RANCH Box 427-Valentine, Nebr. Enjoy every day living on a working ranch MC DOWELL CATTLE CO. Arnold, Nebraska 69120 For other Farm and Ranch Vacations not listed Write to Deloris Conner-Ord, Nebr. NEBRASKAland Ranch and Farm Vacation Inc. CAMPER COMPARTMENT STORAGE Locked, Weatherproof, Rugged Steel Part of Truck, Not Attached to Camper Bolts to Fenderside Pickup in 4 Hours WRITE FOR FREE LITERATURE Pience box 616, appleton, wis. 54911 NEBRASKAland DAYS JUNE 18-24 LINCOLN

OUT OF THE WASHING MACHINE, INTO THE SKILLET

by Lou Ell

THE EARLY morning air at Chadron State Park campground was dew-damp and pleasantly cool. A faint blue haze, tangy with pine scent, drifted lazily over the fireplace where Don Dobson crouched over a skillet large enough to cause even the Jolly Green Giant to go popeyed. In only a few minutes, Don's family would come flocking out of the trailer camper, and they would expect breakfast. Don had made the skillet himself for just such times when it was necessary to feed a group of people in a hurry. Intrigued, I examined this unique piece of equipment at close range and gathered the details on how to make one.

Pay a visit to your local junk yard, and obtain a square, cast aluminum lid from an old Maytag washer. There may be others that will work, but this particular type is tried and true. Be sure the hinge ears are not broken off, and there are no cracks in the metal. At the same time, pick up two pieces of 1/4-inch strap iron, 40 inches long, and 1 inch wide.

The strap iron will become the long, folding handle of the skillet. To form it, lay one piece of strap on top of the other and drill a 5/16-inch hole through both, one inch from the ends. Slip a 1/4-inch bolt through the holes, and run on the nut. Twelve inches farther down, drill similar holes and install another bolt. Put a third one in the approximate center of the strips. These bolts bind the grip section of the handle into a solid piece. Three inches from the opposite 10 NEBRASKAland end, drill a 1/2-inch hole, and spread this end of the handle so the pieces form a "Y". Attach the Y to the ears (hinges) of the washing machine lid with 1/2-inch bolts. The 3-inch extensions go on the under side of the lid as supports. Leave the hinge-bolts somewhat loose, so the handle will fold down over the pan when it is to be packed or stored.

Remove the handle, and go to work on the lid with a brass stove brush and a good cleaning powder. Follow up with soap-filled steel wool pads. The cooking surface need not be absolutely polished, but it should be reasonably smooth. If the lid is very rough, grind it with an emery wheel before you attack it with the brass brush.

When the lid is properly cleaned and polished, heat up the charcoal brazier in the backyard. Swab the cooking surface of the lid generously with good cooking fat, and place it over the charcoal. Make sure the coal bed is hot, so the grease will cook into the pores of the metal. Swab the lid with the smoking fat occasionally, and leave the skillet on the charcoal until the fire burns out. This slow cooling will insure a well-seasoned griddle, so food will not readily stick.

When you begin using the frying pan, spread the coal bed out so every part of the pan heats evenly. Vary the lid's height above the coals to control the amount of heat you need. Now you are all set to cook flapjacks, bacon, ham, eggs, fried potatoes, sizzling chicken, hamburger, or steaks. The skillet is large enough to accommodate several different foods at once without mixing flavors.

Let the griddle cool slowly after each use. During cooling, avoid rapid changes of temperature or the metal is apt to warp badly. Dunking the skillet in cold water right after removing it from the fire is particularly disastrous.

To clean the skillet, scrape off the food particles, and wipe its surface with a paper towel. After many uses, food may begin to stick badly. When this happens, polish the cooking surface with a piece of soapstone, which is available at restaurant supply houses.

To store the giant frying pan, fold down the handle and slip a cloth bag over the pan. Hang it in the garage next to the lawn mower until you are ready to use it again. A quick dust off and it's ready to go.

When passersby do double takes at seeing this monstrosity on your next cookout, let them taste the food prepared on it. They'll soon know you are perfectly sane.

THE END J.M. Mcdonald planetarium AIR CONDITIONED EDUCATIONAL ENTERTAINING INSTRUCTIVE 28,000 items—Many rare and historic pieces—Three floors of exhibition space—World's largest collection of the rare whooping crane —Hundreds of early Nebraska household articles. September-June, Week days, 8 AM-5 PM, July-August, Week days, 8 AM-8 PM, Sundays 1 PM-5 PM ' Holidays 2 PM-5 PM - Closed December 25 House Yesterday For schools may be arranged by advance reservation. Hastings, Nebraska "Beyond the Call. One of the unsung heroes of your own community is your local independent insurance agent. He probably doesn't have the Congressional Medal of Honor, but he surely does deserve the heartfelt thanks of the people of your city. He offers service "beyond the call of duty" — service represented by the extra things he does for you without payment. Being a local man, he is the first one you look for to do work on the school board, hospital drive, or public-safety campaign. He is a local unsung hero, a member of— If - your Independent Insurance agent SERVES YOU FIRST SERVES YOU FIRST The Nebraska Association of Insurance Agents MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS NOW! Vacation at Nebraska's Parks Chadron Fort Robinson Ponca Niobrara Write park superintendents for reservations. Furnished cabins in beautiful vacation retreats, home base for a raft of outdoor fun activities JUNE, 1967 11

CELESTIAL ZOO

No cages for this array of heavenly "beasts" that highlight the infinite skies over NEBRASKAland

STAR-GAZING is now both an outdoor and indoor diversion. Outside, a star-watcher can hear the crickets chirp and see a million stars drift by. Inside, at the J. M. McDonald Planetarium at Hastings, soft music, a lecture, and outlines of constellations give the viewer a close-up look at those twinkling friends of night.

Once a planetarium was too expensive for a small museum, such as the Hastings House of Yesterday, but in recent years, Armand Spitz of Delaware has developed an inexpensive Model A-2 Projector. This unit uses pinholes for lenses and casts an accurate picture of the skies on a 12-sided hemispherical dome.

Among the various programs given at the Hastings planetarium, one of the most popular has been the "Celestial Zoo", with its month-by-month emphasis on the signs of the Zodiac. Outlines, descriptions, and the Greek fables that gave them name and fame are offered on animal, bird, and fish constellations. In this sparkling heavenly zoo, there are 20 imaginary animals and fish, including 7 of the Zodiac: Aries, the ram; Taurus, the bull; Cancer, the crab; Leo, the lion; Scorpio, the scorpion; Capricorn, the sea goat, and Pisces, the fish.

After a visit to the planetarium to see animals among the stars, Nebraskans will find in their June skies to the north, Ursa Major, the Greater Bear, and Ursa Minor, the Small Bear. Principal stars of these groups form the Big Dipper. Nearby Draco, the dragon, is a twisting line of stars, that reaches out its head, which is a quadrilateral group of stars that almost touches Hercules. Not far from the head of Draco, to the northeast, is Cygnus, the swan, and its principal stars form the Northern Cross. Farther toward the eastern horizon is the small constellation, Aquila, the eagle.

Scorpio with its red jewel star, Antares, can best be seen in the southern sky about 10 p.m. on June 21, the longest day of the year.

Hydra, the snake, takes up a full fourth of the southwestern sky. It bypasses Leo, the lion, which is higher in the heaven and destined to fade in July. Cancer, the crab, is present in the northwest, but difficult to find for it is the most inconspicuous figure in the Zodiac. A star chart will help locate it.

Summer skies, therefore, hold new knowledge and joy for Nebraskans who visit the J. M. McDonald Planetarium. It is a pleasure to wander in the pathless woods, but exploring the infinite meadows of the sky is even more delightful.

THE END 12 NEBRASKAland MINDEN, NEBRASKA 12 Miles South of A CENTENNIAL MUST FOR EVERY NEHRASKAN--YOUNG AND OLD OVER 30,000 HISTORIC ITEMS ALTOGETHER IN 22 BUILDINGS FOR YOUR ENJOYMENT Everything Americans have used since 1830 — at work, at play, in the home. Antique autos; tractors; locomotives; airplanes; fine china; home furnishings; paintings; sculpture; much, much more. Buildings include Indian Stockade, Pony Express Station, Pioneer Church, Sod House, People's Store, Land Office, Pioneer Railroad Depot. See it all in chronological order by walking less than a mile. ONE OF TOP 20 U. S. ATTRACTIONS Open 7 a.m. to sundown every day restaurant, 66-unit motel, picnic and campgrounds adjoining Adults only $1.35; minors 6-16 50v; little tots free SEMI COUPON TODAY FOR FREE FOLDER FREE FOLDER COUPON Harold Warp PIONEER VILLAGE, Dept. O Minden, Nebr. 68959 Name Address. City State JUNE, 1967 13

THE STAGECOACHES ARE BACK

by Glenda Peterson Transportation trail has a new look now that horse-drawn "wheels" return 14 NEBRASKAland

THEY TRAVELED the length and breadth of Nebraska for almost three-quarters of a century carrying passengers and mail from the Missouri River to the west and north. Then the Great Iron Horse came along with more speed and efficiency to boot the six-mile-an-hour stagecoaches off much of the transportation trail. One by one the magnificent stages went into retirement. Some like the Sidney-Deadwood line were slower JUNE, 1967   to give in to progress than others, as they went where the railroads didn't. But soon all were doomed to someone's forgotten shed, or rolled away to a museum.

But today, the stagecoaches are back. Not in their former hundreds to gallop over Nebraska's wind-swept prairies, but to bring a taste of the Old West to the state's tourism frontier. No longer are the stages drawn by three or more teams as in the days of the Overland Stage run between Atchison and Denver. No longer do they run the gamut of owlhoots out for a fast buck from well-heeled passengers or a big killing on a gold-laden coach from the mines. Today's stagecoaches are driven by a few Nebraskans who hitch up a couple of teams during the summer months to give excited passengers a historic ride.

Visitors to Fort Robinson, deep in the heart of the beautiful Pine Ridge country, can climb aboard the Crawford stage anytime between June 1 and September 1 for a thrilling ride around the old fort and nearby campsites. Last summer, 3,650 persons stopped at the stage station to pay the coach fare: $1 for Big Podners, 12 and up; 75 cents for Little Podners, 3 and up; and Lap Podners, 0 and up, free.

The Deadwood Stage at North Platte is used for community parades and may be chartered for special rides. Front Street at Ogallala has one in service as a tourist attraction. An original but presently unused stagecoach is on display at Arbor Lodge in Nebraska City.

These in-use stagecoaches are exact but recently-built replicas of the ones which pounded the dusty Oregon Trail in the late 1850's and early '60's. Most of these were Concord overland stagecoaches, named after the New Hampshire town in which they were built. Abbot, Downing and Company made these beauties to weigh over a ton. They stood 8 feet high and left a track 5% feet wide. Bodies were handmade of the finest wood, then painted with bold colors in vermilion, yellow, red, and black. Handsome gilt scrolls decorated the sides, and the name of the company ordering the coach, such as U.S. Mail, was painted above the doors. The stagecoach's highly varnished body belied its toughness, as coaches were built to withstand the roughest pioneer roads. Two to three teams pulled the coaches and the horses were often paired for color and size, the smallest team in the lead, the largest and darkest hitched as wheelers. A Concord coach cost from $1,200 to $1,500 on delivery. Modern replicas run from $3,000 to $6,000, depending on size and authentic detail.

Standard nine-passenger coaches were often equipped to carry eight more persons topside— three in the dickey seat, facing backward, three in the deck seat, and two squeezed beside the driver in the messenger seat. Sometimes passengers were rocked to sleep atop a layer of hay and blankets which softened the jolts. But they had to tie themselves down to keep from rolling off as leather brace slings under the coach body gave it a swinging motion.

Riders on the Front Street Boot Hill Stage in Ogallala don't have to worry about rolling off their coach, as the ride to Boot Hill is a short one. The stagecoach stops just long enough at the corral on Front Street to load kids for a 50-cent ride up to the famed cemetery. Boot Hill was the last stop for the town's slower guns during its rowdy days-the place where the bad guys of the West came to rest with their boots on.

In 1860, it was a 6-day trip of 653 miles from Atchison to Denver, and the fare was $75. Not too 16 NEBRASKAland many people rode the stages in these early days, as $75 was a lot of money.

The first coaches, under contract with the U.S. Government, carried more mail than passengers. A coach left Independence, Missouri once a month in 1850 and followed the Oregon Trail for 1,200 miles to Salt Lake City, Utah. The trip took two to three weeks, depending on how many stops the driver made to let his horses graze and catch a catnap for himself.

This was faster than the crawling snail's pace of the freight wagons, but not fast enough. The stage- coach company hit upon an idea. Why not establish relay stations along the route and equip them with fresh horses and drivers so that no time would be lost en route? Travel time could be cut in half.

The company set up two types of stations: swing stations and home stations. Swing stations, placed every 10 or 12 miles, were nothing more than a gran- ary, stable, and a room for housing one or two stock tenders. Here the driver got fresh horses and made a quick return to the trail. Home stations, at 50-mile intervals, were larger and equipped with an office, storehouse, barn, stable, and eating house. Here the driver's route ended. Each driver had his regular run and when he reached his home station, he rested until his turn came for the return trip.

Some home stations lacked a woman's touch. During the hot summer months, the boys did their washing the easy way. In the morning they spread their lice-infected underclothing and blankets over anthills and got their clothing again in late afternoon, minus the last grayback. Ants were about as pesky as the lice, but ants could be spotted. For a few weeks, the boys could sleep in peace, until it was time to do their "washing" again.

When women lived at home stations, they usually served meals to drivers and passengers. Meals between Atchison and Kearney brought grumbles from some of the passengers. Mark Twain, traveling overland in 1861, compared the bread he was served to Nicholson pavement and the bacon as condemned Army bacon that the U.S. wouldn't feed to soldiers in the forts.

But west of Fort Kearny, the food was supposedly a little better. Frank Root, an overland stage driver in the 1860's, said he "seldom ate a meal between Fort Kearny and old Julesburg that was not made up in part of choice, juicy steaks or superb roasts cut from the wild crooked-back oxen (buffalo)."

Heavy Concord stages carrying overland mail and passengers rolled in daily to Fort Kearny from Atchison, Omaha, Nebraska City, and California. The Western Stage Company operated from Omaha and Nebraska City to its terminus at Fort Kearny. Here passengers desiring to go to Denver had to change to Ben Holladay's Overland Stage from Atchison.

There was considerable rivalry between the two companies, and the Overland Stage wasted no sympathy on the passengers of the Western line when travel was heavy. Through passengers from Atchison were always given preference over those from the Western Stage Company, so that Omaha and Nebraska City travelers often waited several days for a seat on a west-bound stage. Some through passengers made a fast buck by selling their tickets for a $50 bonus and then waited for a later stage.

It was mighty expensive, too, for those who carried too much baggage. Each passenger was allowed 25 pounds and every pound over his limit cost him $1. It wasn't unusual to see a man climb aboard wearing two pairs of trousers, two (Continued on page 50)

JUNE, 1967 17

EASTER SUNDAY SCUFFLE

by Bill Bailey as told to Lowell Johnson Almost-deserted inlet turns into battleground as I take on two Johnson Lake giants in a holiday hassle

ALL THE ODDS were in the favor of the fish, and he knew it. Jagged rocks on the bottom of the canal had claimed thousands of lures, and my opponent was doing his best to sever my thin monofilament on them. Failing to cut the line, he bulled, trying to strain it beyond the breaking point.

The walleye was a fighter and was using all his tricks. Once he flashed into the shallows near shore and I caught my first glimpse of him. He was big— seven pounds or better. I dared not try to horse him in, for the four-pound-test line wouldn't take the strain. I could feel the thin thread stretch as the walleye put it to the test, heading out into the rushing current of the inlet at Johnson Lake. As the fish made his play, I reflected that he was putting the line manufacturer's claim "on the line", and I soon would know just how good a product I was selling in my sporting-goods shop in Lexington.

I had planned on spending a quiet, relaxing day at home on that Easter Sunday in 1966. My wife and I had company for dinner that day, and the weather was mediocre, which probably helped my decision to enjoy a lazy afternoon.

Shortly after dinner, though, the weather took a turn for the better. When Ron Myers stopped by to suggest a fishing trip, I wavered, but still decided to stay home. We hadn't had much company yet, as we had only been married a few weeks.

"They will really be biting today, Bill," Ron argued.

"The weather is definitely getting nicer, and the exercise and fresh air will certainly do me good," I reasoned to myself.

So, I gathered my tackle and headed for Johnson Lake, a dozen or so miles south of Lexington in south-central Nebraska. On the way, we decided to try the inlet. Water there cascades down a concrete drop from Gallagher Canyon on its way through Johnson Lake, through Phillips Lake, and into an irrigation canal of the Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District.

Probably the inlet is the most popular fishing spot on the lake. The water comes gushing down a long canal, and it is a favorite spot for the anglers because it is a favorite spot of the fish. It is not unusual during certain times of the year for the banks to be jammed with poles, lines, and people. But on that Easter Sunday only a handful of people were fishing along the canal, most of them for white bass. When Ron and I arrived, we pitched right in and started giving the fish what for. Small white doll flies were getting the best reception from the bass, so we stuck with them. I wasn't expecting the walleye when he hit, but fortunately I set the hook in time.

Now, I was in serious combat with one of the toughest walleye in the lake with little chance of landing him. But if I could keep him from the rocks, and keep him from making too many runs I might have a chance. The sheer bulk of the water rushing down the canal made my task seem hopeless, but I was going to give it the college try.

Brief glimpses of the fish renewed my desire to land him and at the same time increased my fears of losing him. He would come into the shallows and then thinking better of it, surge back into the torrent. The fish was tiring, though, and his runs were not as long, and his back-peddling not quite so resolute. Gradually I coaxed my prize into shore, so I yelled for a net. Ron moved out into the water, stepping carefully over the slippery rocks. As he was about to scoop the fish up, he slipped. The splash that followed got him a boot full of water and scared the fish. My walleye threw the lure and darted away.

Several seconds of complete silence followed his escape. A few colorful phrases helped clear the air, and Ron and I, somewhat disappointed, returned to our bass fishing. The lost fish would have been the biggest walleye of my fishing career.

While Ron went squishing away to drain his boot, I snugged up my waders and returned to fishing. We each caught six or eight white bass in short order and since the small white doll flies continued to get the best reception, I stuck with them.

This trip hadn't been a waste of time. Already we had taken a few bass, and my tangle with that walleye had been a lot of fun. The fact that he got away wasn't really very important, I told myself. A lot of good fish are released after they are caught anyway—I could just figure that I had released him with no harm done, even if it had been by accident.

Catching white bass didn't take much skill, for they'll bite on a scrap of cloth when they are in the mood. But white bass are real scrappers, and fun to catch, and as good to eat as to catch. My first cast was uneventful, though I expected a bass to snap up the lure at any moment. Maybe after the tussle with the walleye I had lost my touch. Maybe I was retrieving too fast, or slow, or too smooth, or too jerky.

I cast way out, trying to land just short of the opposite bank. The lure dropped in pretty good and I began cranking the handle, snapping the bail shut. One turn, another, and another, tightening up the line; then something hit. But it was no white bass.

The doll fly was moving downstream when the fish grabbed it, and I knew he was a big one. He might be another walleye, or maybe a cat. I eased the drag to protect the line and played him with a steady, gentle pressure.

In the rushing water, the fish could break the line by standing still, but he was either smart or lazy. He moved downstream and over the lip of a dropoff. Now, I had to try and get him working back or go down after him. He made the (Continued on page 54)

18 NEBRASKAland JUNE, 1967 19

SAND HILLS DOUBLE

by Bob Snow These women are only a jinx to the deer when they head out for Dismal River foray

OUR TWO-TRUCK caravan braked to a sudden stop. Betty Rodewald, a 5-foot, 5-inch brunette, bailed out and planted her feet on the sandy soiL Carefully she glassed the choppy skyline, but the 7X picked up only grass rippling in a 20-mile-an-hour south wind. The buck she had spotted from the bouncing truck had vanished.

We were hunting in the untamed part of Nebraska called the Sand Hills. Here, mule and an occasional white-tailed deer, coyotes, and rabbits share the rolling, almost treeless hills with thousands of beeves. This is a land where a 300-yard shot is as common as a 50 to 100-yard chance in the wooded white-tailed deer country of the east.

Betty, clad in a homemade elkskin outfit, called for a strategy meeting, and her father-in-law, Ed Rodewald, her sister-in-law, Betsy Rodewald Broeder, and Betsy's husband Ken, gathered to hear her plans and offer suggestions. This was the moment they had been waiting for and talking about since long before the opening of the deer season.

As the party mapped out their plans I kept my ears open and my mouth shut, since all the Rodewalds are experienced deer hunters. Besides, I was along to watch the girls hunt. I didn't have a permit, but when the family issued an invitation to spend opening weekend on their ranch I couldn't pass up the opportunity As an associate editor of Outdoor NEBRASKAland I smelled a story.

As we started up a ravine in pursuit of the buck, I thought of the night before when I found myself following a sandy trail north of Ringgold to Ed's ranch near the Dismal River. It was cold and the sky promised snow, but a cup of coffee and a warm conversation soon 20 NEBRASKAland erased the fatigue of my long drive from my home in Lincoln.

After meeting my hunting companions and discussing the prospects for the next day, I looked on as Betsy hauled out her .250 Savage for examination. The lever-action rifle had been through several hunts with her dad and now she was carrying it. Not to be out done by her sister-in-law, Betty brought out her auto-loading .284. It was relatively new and zeroed in, but she wasn't completely familiar with it.

Ed claimed the deer population on the ranch was down from the year before, but his advance scouting expeditions had revealed several good bucks. He assured me we would find plenty of action. As we talked, doily-like snowflakes drifted toward the rolling hills and I anticipated snow cover for opening day.

The stars were fading as our party, shivering and sleepy-eyed, drove out of the ranch yard. Even so, we were starting late. My expected snow sparkled like a million diamonds as the sun peeped over the eastern choppies. A valley, east of the house, was our first stop. A light fog caught between two hills, created a lake-like mirage. In this quiet land of rolling hills we saw a dawn beauty that is only native to Nebraska.

Our trucks wound through the valley and soon the lake of fog was behind us. A rifle crack to the south shattered the brooding silence as we turned in time to see three men scurry down a steep incline. After a short time one man ran back up the hill. A short time later he returned in a pickup. The party had scored.

The hills were losing their sunrise gold as we glassed the terrain. A flock of grouse and a coyote held out attention momentarily. As for deer, our early-bird hunters had evidently taken the only buck in the valley, so Ed led us to another valley to the north and west where Betty saw the buck. The rest of us hadn't seen the deer, but we were ready to go after him.

We left the vehicles atop a choppy and trudged westward in an effort to get downwind of the buck. Ed picked up a handful of dirt, threw it in the air, and watched it drift to the north. Choppies, ravines, and draws often play tricks on wind currents in the Sand Hills, so throughout the stalk Ed continued to throw grass or dirt in the air to check wind direction.

Betty's buck had us in a real pickle. We knew the general vicinity he was in, but finding a deer in the vast expanse of blowouts and ravines is like looking for an oasis in the middle of the Sahara Desert. Betty said the buck was at least a four-pointer and that meant he had grown old because he was more than average leery of hunters. We were coming in from the south with the wind at our backs. To get downwind we would have to circle to the west, then north, then come back south to where we thought the buck was located.

Ed was the first to spot the buck after our long circle. The mule deer was in a blowout, taking it easy after his early morning browse. He was playing it smart. His head was pointed north, so he could see danger downwind and was using his senses of hearing and smell to detect intruders from upwind.

The Sand Hills rancher surveyed the terrain. The deer had picked his resting place well, for it was difficult for a hunter to get position for a decent shot. Soap weeds above the deer offered the only available cover and Ed figured Betty could crawl to the left of the yucca and get a shot. If she went to the right, the deer was bound to spot her and spook.

Ed gave Betty the wave and the two of them half crawled and half squat ran into a position below the soap weeds. Betty started her belly-crawl to the yucca, but a miscue in directions sent her to the right. Ed made a wild grab for her trouser cuff in an effort to pull her back down the hill, but his warning was too late, the sharp-eyed buck was on his feet and leaping away.

If the mule deer held true to form he would stiff-leg it up the hill, and then stop for a last look. Betty lifted her .284. She would be ready for him. He followed the predictable mule deer pattern and Betty's sights JUNE, 1967 21   found the deer's shoulder, but her slow sure squeeze of the trigger didn't bring the expected explosion. Before Betty could check out the trouble, the deer, his curiosity satisfied, scampered over the hill and was gone. Betty examined the rifle and discovered that the bolt wasn't locked into the receiver slot.

Mule deer have learned to be deceptive in the wide open spaces of the Sand Hills and Ed and his companions knew it. A mule deer will seldom run at full tilt, conserving his strength and energy for a long run that will put distance between him and danger. Ed has hunted and lived in the Sand Hills a good share of his life and from past experience he figured the buck would run a half-mile to a mile then find another place to resume his interrupted rest.

Disappointed but not crushed by her misfortune, Betty worked the rifle's bolt a few times to get the feel of it and make sure it would go all the way home. She gave us an "I'm sorry" look, and then let us know that a deer wasn't going to get the best of her. Again we were hunting blind, but this time we had the wind in our favor.

We knew the deer could be lying over the crest of any hill, so we decided to use a point man to scout the terrain. Ed and Betty took turns searching the area and after glassing a few thousand pockets and blowouts were about ready to give up when a glint of antlers gave the buck away. He was lying in the shadows of a small blowout, his mousey coat blending into the background.

An Indian's ability to crawl into a settler's camp, steal food, and sneak out again undetected, didn't have anything on Betty as she crawled into position above the deer. Carefully she checked the bolt. It was O.K. A deep breath, a slow, steady squeeze of the trigger, an echoing crack of the rifle, and Betty's hunt for the elusive buck was over.

Her shot was a good one —right in the boiler room, and the buck never moved after he was hit. It was past noon by the time we loaded the 140-pound four-pointer into the pickup and headed back to the ranchhouse to rest up for the next day's hunt.

Betsy would get her chance the next morning. She has been around guns all her life, so she wasn't worried about hitting a buck if she saw one that suited her. As a little girl she started with a .22 and moved up through the heavier calibers. Her first high-power rifle kill was a coyote. From dog hunting she graduated into deer hunting and has several to her credit. She also lists antelope and one elk among her rifle accomplishments.

At daybreak of the second day, our party started out to add another deer to Betsy's list. In a coffee klatch the night before, we had made plans to hit the same valley the next morning. The snow was about gone, but it was damp cold with a chilling haze over the distant hills.

A windmill for water, a series of thickets lacing the edges of the valley, and ravines leading into the hills made it a likely deer hangout. We were topping a small hill when Betsy pointed to what she thought was a buck. Automatically Ken cut the motor and coasted the truck to a stop below the knoll.

Grabbing the field glasses, he and Betsy crawled up a small slope. From their vantage point the entire valley was in view. Off in the distance the windmill, its vanes pushed by a 10-mile wind, creaked as it pumped away. Several deer were grazing around a clump of plum brush at the far end of the valley. After a long study, Ken and Betsy slipped down the hill.

"We would go for the two bucks in the herd, but chances are we would lose out. So let's take a crack at the biggest one," Ken told us.

A four-pointer, no more than 600 yards away, would be our target. The terrain was flat and void of cover, so it was decided that Ken, Betsy, and I would circle through the hills in an attempt to come up above and behind the buck. Betty and Ed would stay with the 22 NEBRASKAland trucks and watch the deer. We hoped they would be able to direct us to the buck with hand signals. There was only one piece of open ground we would have to cover, a short stretch from the edge of the wash where the trucks were parked to the steep sandy hills.

Climbing through the hills on a leisurely hike is enough to tire the strongest of men, but when you have to run, crawl, and belly through the rough terrain it is an exhausting experience. Ken is 6-foot, 6, and covers a lot of ground in one step, but Betsy is 5-foot, 4, and has to take two long strides to his one. I'm 6-foot, 1, but between the long-legged Ken and energetic Betsy I got mighty weary as we wound through the hills. We were getting winded, but the prospect of another big buck kept us moving. A coyote spooked 50 yards in front of us. I saw Ken's rifle jerk and I thought he was going to pull down on the dog, but it was more of a hunter's reflex than a deliberate move.

Working downwind we reached a slight depression and Ken called a halt to let us settle down. We were close to the buck, but we couldn't pinpoint his exact location. Ken trained his field glasses on our spotters. From their hand-telegraphed messages, we gathered the buck was moving and was going to bed down.

From here on in, the stalk would be slow with each move planned in advance. One boner move and the whole effort would go for naught. We would be traveling on hands and knees and our bellies among mean cactus and sandburs, but crawl we had to, so with Ken in the lead we puffed up one hill and down another.

From the wild hand signals of our spotters it seemed we were almost directly above and to the east of the deer. He had entered a thicket and was evidently lying down.

I stayed on top of a small knoll behind some yucca to act as observer and keep out of the way as the hunters inched into position. When closing in on a deer the old adage of two is company and three is a trampling herd of humanity is more than apropos. Ken and Betsy scooted on down the hill and stopped just above the thicket.

They were in position as far as our distant spotters could tell, but the deer was out of sight. Still, to move any closer might catch Betsy in a position where she might not be able to squeeze off a shot. The huntress eased into a sitting position and trained her .250 on an imaginary target in the thicket.

The buck was bound to become suspicious and stand up for a look around. A minute seemed like hours before the deer, sensing danger, bounded up and looked in our direction. Betsy swung the rifle to the left and zeroed in between his eyes. The rifle barked, and Betsy automatically threw another 100-grain silvertip into the chamber before jumping to her feet.

Her shout of, "Hey Ken! I got him, I got him," rattled the surrounding hills.

One shot was all it took, the four-point buck was down in the brush less than five yards from his bed. The shot had been an instant stopper, but it had broken the deer's rack.

"Next year I'm not going for a head shot," she smiled. "Last year I broke a five-point rack, this year a four-pointer."

When Ed and Betty rolled to a stop in the pickup, Betsy was the first to give them due credit for their part in the long and arduous stalk. Traditionally deer hunting is a sport of the loner, but for the Rodewald clan it's teamwork and certainly their approach pays dividends.

THE END JUNE, 1967 23

THE THIRD HILL

by Warren Spencer Years of work and plenty of capital go poof when Nebraska City's huge steam wagon throws crank

TRAVEL WAS slow in the 1860's. The railroad wasn't through to Nebraska yet, and the people of Nebraska City were beginning to wonder if it would ever arrive. A king pin in the freighting business, the Missouri River town was putting out more tonnage in one day than many of its competitors did in a week. Still, the time element kept Nebraska City from growing. Bull trains were-the only means to ship freight, and on a good clear day it was all a bullwhacker could do to get two miles an hour out of his teams. The railroad promised speed and greater load capacity, but it wasn't doing Nebraskans much good when it wasn't there.

At the same time, Major Joseph R. Brown, Sioux Indian agent at New Ulm, Minnesota, was having the same problem. All of his supplies had to be transported overland to the reservation, it was only a 20-mile trek, it took too long.

Being somewhat of an inventor at heart, thrown set out to solve his dilemma. Steam power seemed to be the coming thing so he began experimenting with different types of steam-powered vehicles. Late in 1860, he hit on one that worked.

His invention was a monster. It stood almost 15 feet high, looked like a railless locomotive, and managed to scoot across Minnesota's choppy terrain at almost three miles an hour. It consisted mainly of wheels. Two rear-drive wheels, almost 10 feet in diameter, and a smaller one in front, made it resemble a gigantic tricycle. An engineer and fireman ran it.

Brown was proud of his brainstorm. It gave him an edge over traditional wagons in speed and outdid oxen for pulling power. And it was a novelty.

New Ulm residents weren't so happy, however. Brown's contraption was so noisy that the hens stopped laying, horses headed for the hills when he stoked her up, and no one could hear themselves think. To remedy this situation the townspeople told the major what he could do with his steam wagon —take it outside town limits. Furthermore, he couldn't run the engine during the daytime. So, Brown started the nocturnal life.

Late at night he would stoke up the wagon, hitch up a couple of wagons, and head for the freight depot on the edge of town. Now, he had the pulling power and speed he needed. There was only one thing he lacked — sleep.

While Major Brown had designed the wagon for his own use, he began to wonder if it might not make a profit in a larger scale operation. Nebraska City looked like a good spot to try big-time freighting, so Brown gathered up his plans and set out.

In Nebraska City he became friends with J. Sterling Morton, one of the town's leading citizens, and the two put the idea of using steam wagons for freighting before the town council. The proposition was that Brown would supply the wagon if Nebraska City would build a road for it. Morton and Brown assured the people that one steam wagon could do everything a bull team could, only twice as well. The contraption was faster, it could haul more tonnage, and with use, it could be refined and improved. After all, an ox was an ox, no matter how you used him.

Nebraska City's part in the deal seemed simple enough. The rudiments for the road Brown needed were already there. Freighters had been sticking to the Platte Valley for years and they had cut a pretty 24 NEBRASKAland good path through the terrain. So the townspeople voted $2,500 to finish the road. They figured the job would take quite a while to complete, but by the time Brown delivered the first steam wagon, they would have enough good road for a substantial test run. So things were set. Nebraska Citians got things rolling on their road and Brown headed back for Minnesota to start on his new wagon.

Plans for the new engine were simple. They were just a take off on the idea he had used two years earlier. But finding someone to build it was something else again. Finally, Brown contacted a New York firm who offered to do the job for $12,000. The contract went East and 18 months later the Major had his wagon. In a way, this was a miracle since the Civil War was gobbling up men and metal at a fiercesome rate.

Brown's new engine was a thing of beauty. While his first effort had three wheels, the latest model had four for added stability. The rear wheels stood 10 feet high and were 20 inches wide. Springs were built into the spokes to soften the ride. The front wheels were now much smaller, and were only 16 inches wide for easier handling. Painted a brilliant crimson, the machine was trimmed with polished brass. It consisted of a boiler fitted with independent water pumps for each of the engine's four 10-horsepower motors. A cab in front of the boiler sheltered engineer and fireman.

The engine was hauled out of New York and taken overland to the Mississippi River where it was loaded onto a steamer for the trip to Saint Louis. From there it was transferred to another steamer and taken up the Missouri River to Nebraska City.

Brown and his machine arrived at their destination on July 14, 1862. While they had contracted for the thing, Nebraska Citians couldn't help laughing in their beards. Something that large couldn't possibly be practical. But they had ordered a steam engine that would do five miles per hour and maybe this was what they were looking lor.

Brown moved his engine to the Morton farm at the edge of town and began making last-minute adjustments. By July 21, he was ready. So were the ladyfolk of Nebraska City who wanted a test ride. More than happy to show off his engine, the major hooked 12 wagons behind it and offered rides to all comers.

Chugging through the narrow streets, the over-the-road locomotive sent horses, chickens, and some people streaking for cover. Finally, presumably at the reqtlpst of Nebraska City's heirarchy, Brown put his toy away and settled down to wait for morning.

On July 22, 1862, the "Prairie Motor", as the Indian agent had dubbed his contraption, was polished up and driven to the edge of town. Before him lay a hard-packed road that reached all the way to Fort Kearny, a distance of some 200 miles. Streams along the way would, provide water for the boiler and stacks of wood were in place along the road to fill the tender and stoke the engine.

Brown proposed to pull three wagons on the engine's maiden voyage. One was for wood, another was for freight, and the third was for passengers. The starting line looked like a reenactment of Independence Day. Bands blared, kids screamed, and some of the pistol-toting characters in town filled the air with lead. And amid all the commotion the Prairie Motor chugged into immortality.

The first stretch of road took Brown and his passengers across Morton land, over hills that would slow down a mountain goat. The first hill leveled out under the engine's wheels like it wasn't even there. The second was a little more trouble but there was nothing to worry about. It was the third that threw a wrench in things. No sooner had the engine crested the last hill than a crank let go. The incident wouldn't have been so bad, but as Brown sat amid the hissing carnage he found he didn't have a replacement part. So it was back to New York for a part.

Things weren't working out for the major, though. He just got to Chicago when he found out that his family had been kidnapped by Indians in Minnesota. Apparently he forgot all about the freighting business after that because he cabled two helpers to do what they could for the engine and he took off for home.

While Brown was chasing Indians around Minnesota his helpers were chasing prospective steam engine buyers around Nebraska. But they couldn't unload one slightly used steam engine; there just wasn't much of a market. So the Prairie Motor stayed where she was, on top of the third hill west of Nebraska City.

When the major had quieted the Indian population in Minnesota and the North had put down a rather discomforting rebellion (Continued on page 51)

JUNE, 1967 25

THE LEATHER-SLAPPERS

26 NEBRASKAland Fast draw once meant life or death. Today's prize, equally important, isn't as permanent by Elizabeth Huff

WHO WAS THE fastest gun in the Old West? Wyatt Earp? Wild Bill Hickok? Billy the Kid? There were plenty of contenders for the title, and frontier Nebraska had its share of gun hawks. But, just who was the fastest is an argument that has been raging for many a year, and it probably never will be settled. One school of thought holds the fastest to be those gunfighters who were plugged in the back or who lived to a ripe old age. The idea behind the theory is logical. They were too fast to be faced head-on, hence they got it from behind or lived out their span.

Be that as it may, there is a new breed of gunswift around today. They do not depend on their guns for survival, but they do make quite a bit of noise about just who is the fastest. This debate, too, rages on and on. With the various types of timing devices, the time from holster to bang is measured in split seconds. Some timers clock only the time from leather to shot, while others take into consideration reaction time of the shooter, for he must wait for a signal before beginning the draw. Still others require reaction time and a recorded "hit" on target. This latter is perhaps the closest facsimile to the old-time gunfight.

From the time angle, however, there would probably not even be a contest between some of today's fast guns and those of yesteryear. Today's "rigs" are far superior, since holsters are now specially designed for rapid draws. On the other hand, the current gunswifts would probably bite the dust anyway, for their predecessors were experts on the "kill" and made darn sure their opponents got no second chance.

NEBRASKAland, too, has its fast-draw champ in the person of Ed Eldridge of Fremont. Ed bagged his crown during the First Annual NEBRASKAland Fast Draw Championship last year during NEBRASKAland DAYS. His official time was .30 of a second. The title will go up for grabs again this year during NEBRASKAland DAYS, June 18 through 24.

While Ed's been at the fast-draw business for a few years (he "laid down a cap pistol and picked up a .45"), anyone with a little knowhow can get into the act. Neophyte gun hawks should not be afraid to enter competitions, for even the most experienced hand gets nervous and can flub the dub when contest time rolls around. And, those "vets" had to start somewhere. Ed entered his first competitive shoot in 1957 at Lexington and won it. He has since walked off with a number of honors.

Of course, he may have a slight hereditary edge. He is distantly related to Will Rogers, and can lay claim to another oldtimer or two. He first got serious about fast draw while still in high school at Grand Island, and entered quite a number of shoots in 1957 and 1958. Although he is still an avid advocate for fast draw, he does not spend as much time on it as he once did.

"I goofed," Ed says. "I started reading up on guns and found out what was rare. I started collecting guns, and became as interested in that as in shooting, since I enjoy working on them to put them into shape. And, I do a lot more hunting than I used to. That's another thing, forget the fast draw when you go out handgun hunting. It's too dangerous when the gun is loaded with live ammo."

Ed has no idea how many shoots he has entered, but he figures he has won about 100 of them. His prizes include everything from lighters to a matched set of Colts.

Fast draw is now a sport—or at least it better be, or the men in the badges will get into the act. A half-second to draw and fire is considered good time.

To get started, all any would-be gunswift needs is a single-action six-gun, an inexpensive holster (you can get one for $5 to $10), and determination. You DON'T need any shells. After you get the gear, it's simply a question of practice, practice, practice. But, leave the ammunition out of the gun. Fast draw can be a perfectly safe and sane sport, so long as the buff remembers the elementary rules of gun safety. When Eldridge first took up the sport, he practiced an hour or more a day.

"The key," Ed says, "is to get to know the gun like it's a part of you."

Only the single-action revolver is allowed in sanctioned competition, and here, again, there is a reason. The simplicity of the weapon means that it can be cocked and fired faster than the trigger can be squeezed on a double-action gun. Also, the double-action does not permit fanning.

There are two generally accepted methods of drawing—thumbing (draw and fire with one hand) and fanning (draw and fire with two hands).

In the one-handed or thumbing draw, the first joint of the thumb should rest at the top of the hammer, and the gun should be cocked in a squeezing motion as it is drawn.

When using both hands (fanning draw), the gun is drawn with one hand while the other cocks the hammer. The index finger should be kept away from the trigger when drawing. The trigger finger goes into position only after the gun is clear of the holster, aimed, and ready to fire.

JUNE, 1967 27   28 NEBRASKAland

With either draw, the hands should be kept about six inches away from the gun. The revolver can be fired either from the hip or out in front of the body. However, shooting from the hip is generally preferred.

For anyone who hopes to become a two-gun expert, Eldridge recommends starting with the off hand. That is, anyone who is right-handed should learn fast draw with his left hand. That's the way he did it, and he doesn't regret it.

"Once you've mastered the off hand, it's easy to pick it up with your other hand," Ed says. "If you do it the other way around, chances are pretty good you will never bother to learn with the offhand."

Fancy draws and holsters are something else.

"It's all for show," according to NEBRASKAland's resident top gun. "The swivel, the cross-draw, and the back-handed draw are for effect. Someone needed a gimmick, so along came a special swivel holster."

But, that's not sour grapes, it's part of the game. Fancy shenanigans with a gun are part of the show business aspect associated with fast draw. And, some of those Hollywood gunhawks are pretty good with that shooting iron. Glenn Ford and John Derek, for example, are experts at fast draw.

After learning the basics of fast draw, a buff can learn some of the fancy tricks, such as the "border shift". In this stunt, the gunman switches his weapons from one hand to the other. Supposedly, this play was necessary for the swiftie whose right-hand gun was out of bullets. Of course, this is unnecessary if he can shoot equally well with both hands. Still, it's all for fun, and it does make for a good show.

If a swiftie wants to win some bets with a buddy, there's another good trick he can pull. Get lined up, and tell him to clap his hands together as soon as he sees you start to draw. The bet is that you can draw and pull the trigger before he can slap his hands together. Of course, the deck is stacked against the clapper. He must react to the hand moving toward the holster, and this takes time — too much time!

After a shooter learns the basics of fast draw, equipment becomes very important, if he wants to improve his time and for some of the fancy tricks. The rig or holster should be designed for the type of draw the gun hawk prefers. Often, specialists will have several holsters and guns for various types of draws and tricks, and many times will make the holsters themselves. Generally, the rig is re-enforced leather to make it stand out to allow ease in drawing. Tie-down thongs are used for shooting, but don't try to sit with the holster strapped down — at least, not for any length of time. Anyone who tries will find the position most uncomfortable. An exception to this general rule is a rider on horseback since his legs are usually relatively straight.

The best bet for an amateur who wants to take up fast draw as a hobby is to study the sport. Read about it, practice, and get in touch with a fast-draw club. Nebraska has such a club, with members in a number of towns across the state, and Ed would be happy to give hopeful gunswifts the lowdown on both fast draw and the Nebraska club. Most states have such clubs, and there are numerous sanctioned shoots held throughout the nation each year. In these shoots, modern fast guns get a chance to strut their stuff and to determine (for a day or so anyway) just who is the quickest man alive. Nebraska swifties will get their chance on Sunday, June 18, in Lincoln during the second annual NEBRASKAland Fast Draw Championship. Think you're fast? Give it a try.

THE END JUNE, 1967 29

LOOPING THE LOUP

This scenic land of "little wolves" is rich in history and vivid in beauty. Its charms know no season Photography by Steve Katula and Lou Ell

IN THE MID-1800's, a branch of the Pawnee Indian tribe freely wandered up and down the three branches of the Loup River, hunting and trapping. These were the Skidis, or Loups, (meaning "wolf") for whom the river was named. Today, tourists are rediscovering these same routes to new and exciting vacations in the heart of NEBRASKAland.

The Loup River and its tributaries meander through more than 970 miles of rolling Sand Hills and fertile valleys —a country rich in history and natural beauty.

Splendid in any season, the three branches of the Loup River form a huge, three-tined fork across the center of the state. The main segment, or handle, joins with the tines at St. Paul and angles eastward towards the Platte River at Columbus. From St. Paul, two tines extend northwest into Cherry County, and a third reaches into Logan County, near Stapleton.

The longest tine is the Middle Loup River, said to have the most even flow of any river in the world. The sandy hills surrounding much of the river form a near-perfect watershed, with virtually no run-off after a rain, so that the river fluctuates no more than four or five inches from season to season. Moisture seeps slowly into the sand and travels underground to the river.

Sherman Reservoir, five miles northeast of Loup City on State Highway 92, is man's ingenious way of catching some of this water for his own use. The reservoir is nestled in rolling hills in a land which has a mean annual precipitation just above the minimum for profitable farming. That's why the United States Bureau of Reclamation built the dam and reservoir in 1962, to irrigate 52,530 acres of land and turn them into a summer splendor of corn, wheat, grain, and forage sorghums.

30 NEBRASKAland JUNE, 1967 31   32 NEBRASKAland Towns along the North Loup are small and few in number, but each has its own individual charm and claim to fame

The man-made lake has become a recreation hotspot too, serving Nebraskans all the way from North Platte to Lincoln for a week or weekend of boating, picnicking, and overnight camping. Here, kids can roam to their hearts' content while papa and mama can try their angling skills on willing largemouth bass, northern pike, crappie, walleye, channel catfish, and bullhead. The lake is a state game refuge for waterfowl migration, but upland-game hunting is permitted on 3,030 acres of the surrounding area. Access roads are graveled and good. Overnight camping sites are available.

Sherman Dam, 98 feet high and 4,450 feet long, has a total water capacity of 68,200 acre feet, but normally the pool covers less than 3,000 acres. When filled, the reservoir backs water upstream approximately 5 miles above the dam, and has a 65-mile shoreline.

Between Sherman Reservoir and St. Paul, the land is a cross between range country and farm country. Nebraska Highway 11 gets chummy with the North Loup River and follows it northwest to Burwell for a picturesque drive. Ash, box elder, elm, and some cedar trees foretell the approaching river before the traveler can see it.

Tie North Loup River is a lazy, creeping snake, slithering southeast between choppy ridges with glimpses of rolling hills in the background. A drive along the river is breathtaking, as miles of picturesque scenery sprawl away to the horizons. This route is a photographer's paradise. Towns are small and few in number but each has its own individual charm and claim to fame.

Along this road is the old Chalk Mine under Happy Jack's Peak, named after Jack Swearengen, an early trapper who lived along the bluffs overlooking the Loup River. According to Gene Reed, state geologist, the mine does not contain true chalk, but a lime-rich material used for local building in the late 1800's.

Although now abandoned, the mine has been reopened several times. Porous rock-like material from this mine, mixed with sand, cement, and coarse gravel, forms a mixture known as grout, which was used to build Fort Hartsuff in 1874. Then, in 1890, a Scotia resident worked the mine from dawn to dusk to build what he thought would be the prettiest, gleaming-white building in the western frontier, a building made out of chalk. His finished creation attracted people from miles around, and they still come to see it today.

Later, dynamite was used to blast the rock which was then hauled away by teams of horses. In 1907, a cave-in killed Edmund Van Horn. His son, Ernest, tried making bricks from the chalk but it proved unsuccessful so the mine was closed.

Shortly after 1930 the mine was reopened by an Omaha paint manufacturer, who used the chalk for paint, white wash, and other products. But he found out that pure chalk could be shipped cheaper from England, so he abandoned his operation. The mine has not been worked since.

Tourists enter the mine by half-sliding down an embankment to a low, oblong entrance at the south end of the hill. The main tunnel originally ran through the hill to a north entrance but this was closed several years ago.

Near the entrance, a number of small, room-like drifts, only 3 to 5 feet high, are off the main tunnel, but farther back the ceiling rises to 6% feet.

Light from the cave's entrance is sufficient to see the ceiling near the opening, which is covered with frost during the winter months, but farther inside, a flashlight is needed. The mine maintains a 50° temperature summer and winter, but winter's colder outside air causes a fog-like mist to hang under the ceiling.

Old Chalk Mine, located in a seven-foot thick layer of an impure form of calcium carbonate, is an interesting spot to see although hard to find. One small sign on the highway advertises the mine, but in time, it will be developed into a State Wayside area by the Nebraska Game, Forestation, and Parks Commission.

Ten miles northwest of Ord is Fort Hartsuff, one of the only two abandoned Nebraska forts with any original buildings. Most of the original 14 structures erected immediately after the fort was established as a military reservation in 1874 are still standing. There is an eerie quality about the old abandoned buildings, which whisper historic messages from every crevice.

A visit to the fort takes one back to 1871, when the first settlers came into the North Loup Valley, the same year that Greeley, Howard, and Valley counties were authorized by legislative enactment. Here is the fertile valley where wandering bands of Pawnee Indians, including the Loups, hunted and trapped for JUNe, 1967 33 years before the settlers came. Even though the Loup Indians resented the pioneers, they were a peaceful tribe and more inclined to beggary than brigandage.

Settlers fought Indians, locust scourges, prairie fires, torrential rains, winds to gain control of this land

But then there were the hostile Sioux. They had come into the Loup Valley in 1869, before the white man. Now, the whites were trying to run them out of this fertile valley and they were determined to do something about it.

Tie Sioux raiders stole horses and burned pioneer homes. The Loups joined the cause, starting prairie fires which destroyed crops, homes, and spirit. Some pioneers became so discouraged that they abandoned attempts to settle in the Loup Valley. Others courageously fought to gain control of the land, and they won—with help from Washington.

They asked for military protection from the War Department and Congress responded by appropriating $50,000, later increased to $110,000, to establish a military reservation and post on the North Loup River. President Grant approved the site, chosen by General E. O. C. Ord, in January and construction began that fall.

Fort Hartsuff came at a time when the people of the North Loup Valley were nearly desperate, and not just from Indian attacks. Scourges of locusts in 1873 and 1874 combined with prairie fires, hot winds, and torrential rains to wipe out money and food. Building the post probably saved the valley from starvation and desertion as it gave work to men and boys for miles around. Timber was cut and hauled from Cedar, Oak, and Jones canyons, sand and gravel were dug and hauled from nearby North Loup River, and a "very poor quality" lime was quarried and brought in from Chalk Mine, 35 miles from the fort. Finished lumber and cement were brought from Grand Island, 80 miles away. The durable walls of the build- ings were constructed 12 to 18 inches thick, as ample protection against Indians, weather, and time.

The buildings are arranged around a parade ground and include officers' quarters, mess hall and kitchen, guard house, barracks for privates, hospital, post office, and stables. Located on a hill and surrounded by a stockade were the water works, connected to the officers' quarters by an underground passage.

Fort Hartsuff was the center of social activity up and down the valley. Both officers and men considered the post the prettiest and most desirable station in the Department of the Platte. It was an exciting place in a sparsely settled land. The fort was a hubbub of activity, with the garrison doing precision drills on the parade ground or dashing off on scouting trips in the fertile valley.

By 1881, there were enough settlers in the Loup Valley to protect themselves from the diminishing Indians, and Fort Hartsuffs garrison was no longer needed, so it pulled out that same year. The fort was sold to the Union Pacific Railroad and later to local farmers. Finally, Dr. Glen Auble of Ord became the new owner in 1943, and in 1960 he and Mrs. Auble gave the historic buildings and site, totaling 14 acres, to the state for restoration as a State Historical Park.

The grounds have been fenced and new roofs have been completed on the officers' quarters and post office. Other work will be completed soon.

Ten miles southeast of Fort Hartsuff is Ord. The Valley County seat has one of the finest city parks in Nebraska, complete with 100 picnic tables. But the city's southern neighbor, North Loup, has its own claim to fame as it is one of the largest popcorn centers in the world. This popping town has a population of 453.

Of national interest is Nebraska's big rodeo at Burwell. Each summer the best hands in the business ride into the rodeo ring there to challenge rangy, hand-picked stock. The program includes bronc busting, steer roping, bull riding, bareback riding, and much more. Each summer Burwell's Big Rodeo attracts thousands.

The rodeo grounds are highlighted by hills in the background. Nestled in the hills behind the rodeo arena is Jones Canyon, two miles northeast of the town and just off Highway 11.

This 3 1/2-mile-long canyon supplied timber for building Fort Hartsuff, and it's easy to see why. Ash, cottonwood, boxelder, American elm, oak, wild plum, sumac, and cedar overshadow a snarled tangle of undergrowth harboring deer and a few turkeys. The area is a bird-watcher's paradise, as scarlet tanager, goldfinch, house wren, thrush, mockingbird, robin, cuckoo, bluejay, and Baltimore oriole fill the air with song. Bobwhite and pheasant are legal game.

Less than a mile north of Burwell is the North Loup Dam, just below the confluence of the North Loup and Calamus rivers. The dam, built in 1938, is one of three in the North Loup Public Power and Irrigation District. Similar dams at Ord and Taylor form a triangular-shaped project with 100 miles of main canal and 88 miles of lateral. More than 480 water users grow alfalfa, corn, potatoes, and sorghums on approximately 22,000 acres.

34 NEBRASKAland JUNE, 1967 35   36 NEBRASKAland JUNE, 1967 37   Milburn Diversion Dam on Middle Loup River is a recreation hotspot. Its unique lake comes and goes

Nebraska Highway 91, west of Burwell, follows the North Loup River through 45 miles of fertile river bottom to Brewster. This Blaine County seat has only 44 residents, but it boasts a newspaper, the only one published in the county; a garage, a post office, a general store, and a saloon. Tiny Brewster is a vital link in the lives of the Sand Hills residents in the area.

Highway 91 leaves the North Loup River at Brewster and angles south toward the confluence of the Middle Loup and Dismal rivers. Here, State Highway 2 runs west toward the tragedy of the Bessey Division of the Nebraska National Forest, popularly known as Halsey Forest. At 11:35 a.m. on May 5, 1965, a lightning bolt exploded into tinder-dry grass, 11 miles southwest of the Bessey District office, starting a fire that destroyed thousands of trees.

More than 2,000 fire fighters came from a 100-mile radius but they fought against overwhelming odds. Winds up to 50 miles per hour whipped the flames into an inferno that burned for two days, destroying 10,920 acres of trees, 7,820 acres of range land, and 8 cabins of the Nebraska 4-H camp. But the courageous work of these men saved residences, nursery buildings, the 4-H lodge and several cabins, and thousands of acres of trees and range land.

Many of the same volunteers who fought the fire returned to help replant. Within a month after the fire nearly half a million trees were in the ground. Another one-half million were planted in the spring of 1966. Regeneration is also helping to restore the scorched land.

Pie Bessey Division of the Nebraska National Forest is the realization of a dream of Dr. Charles Bessey, eminent University of Nebraska botanist. Austrian pine, ponderosa pine, jack pine, Scotch pine, and red cedar are some of the species planted in what is probably the world's largest made-made forest.

Scott lookout tower, named for C. A. Scott, first supervisor of the Nebraska National Forest, was erected for fire detection. Tourists can climb to the top when a guard is on duty, and each summer approximately 15,000 visitors attain the height to get an eagle's view of the National Forest, which covers 90,350 acres in Blaine and Thomas counties. Approximately 22,000 of these acres are forested, the rest is grassland leased to grazing. Deer, wild turkey, grouse, and other small game animals make Halsey Forest their home, and occasionally come out for a look-see at the tourists.

A camping and picnic area equipped with recreational facilities, rest rooms, and a shelter house and supervised swimming pool round out fun possibilities here.

Twenty miles north of Broken Bow is Milburn Diverson Dam on the Middle Loup River. This recreation hotspot has a unique lake that comes and goes. The lake covers 320 acres throughout the irrigation season but in the fall, the lake goes back into the river, leaving a sandy marsh over much of the area.

Anglers working below the small irrigation dam's tailwaters find plenty of excitement almost year-round, as carp and channel catfish offer prime sport. Grouse, ducks, and pheasants settle in the sandy marsh and tempt the hunters. In summer the lake's sunny beaches are alive with picnickers and swimmers.

Custer County boasts 17 sites of early Indian battles. Lucky gleaners may find arrowheads, spearpoints, pottery, and beads. An old ranch house, built as a fortress for protection during range wars, still stands and is occupied by a farm family. The only two-story sod house still standing in the United States is 11 miles northeast of Broken Bow.

The Sand Hills gradually surrender to farming country at Anselmo. Sitting on the borderline of the two areas is Victoria Springs State Recreation Area. This area's recorded history dates back to the early 1870's when Judge Mathews of Virginia settled here and established the first post office in Custer County, which he named New Helena, after his old home in Virginia. Judge Mathews' two cabins are standing today, and may be seen at Victoria Springs.

Today, this same area attracts families for picnicking, camping, fishing, and boating. A horseshoe-shaped lake on the 70-acre area is stocked with black crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, black bullhead, and largemouth bass. Two air-conditioned cabins are also available.

Another convenient place to stop on State Highway 2 is Beaver Creek State Wayside Area, five miles southwest of Litchfield. Camping is limited to two nights in this 13-acre area and a small lake provides carp, catfish, and bullhead fishing.

Ten miles from Litchfield is the Ravenna Recreation Area on the South Loup River. Its 51 acres of land and 16 acres of water are popular with picnickers and campers.

Here, State Highway 2 leaves the Loup Valley and heads for Grand Island. It leaves a country that gets its charm from the friendly people who live there and the exciting things to see and do.

It's a country worth considering for your next NEBRASKAland vacation.

THE END JUNE, 1967 39

THE SMOKE GUN CRAZE

by Fred A. Schenbeck Weeping eyes of operators told them the stove-pipe contraption was working. But someone forgot to tell the varments

THERE WAS no difficulty in recognizing the contraption for what it was. Sports magazines of 40 years ago nearly all carried descriptions and pictures of various types of "smoke guns", devices to rout furbearing animals from their dens. The question in this case was which wild creature was to fall victim to its use. The gun lay in its mail-order wrappings on the kitchen table of Ernie Hansen's small house on a winter evening in the 1920's.

"Coyotes," declared Ernie, in answer to my query. "The country is full of them. We never ride over the hills without seeing a half dozen. They're getting out of hand—eating birds, destroying their nests, spoiling the hunting. I intend to put a stop to it." The edict was delivered in a grand manner.

Ernie was young and Scandinavian. His nature was what it was, and the nature of the smoke gun being what it was, it was inevitable that the two should get together. The device was constructed mainly of a length of four-inch stove pipe with a handle and piston for pumping air on one end and a compartment for burning sulphur-impregnated rags on the other. Smoke thus produced was led into the depths of a burrow by a length of garden hose fastened to the funnel-like snout on the smoke-producing end. Once into the heart of the den (so the advertisements stated) the smoke created much discomfort for the animals lodged there, causing them to emerge hurriedly into the open where they could easily be captured and subsequently relieved of their skins. It was the mechanical version of the green brush fire.

Matching Ernie in age and spirit, if not in optimism, I looked at him questioningly.

"The coyotes know about this, of course?" I asked.

"They will," he prophesied direly. "Early tomorrow morning, get on your horse, and we'll ride out to the 40 NEBRASKAland South Hills and smoke out a flock of them. They have holes everywhere."

Ernie's "South Hills" were the Wildcat Hills, a range of small bluffs extending along the North Platte River in western Nebraska. The following morning found us in the canyons at their base, busily starting to build Ernie's fortune via the fur route. Poison and modern methods of extermination were not in use at the time, so coyotes were numerous.

"The instructions say to surround the hole with a ring of traps," he said, making preparations around a likely looking hole. The chosen burrow was in a clay wall of a small canyon which led upward into the hills whose cedar-covered slopes rose to high sandstone bluffs. A small stream ran along the base of the canyon. Overhead was the clear winter sky. From where they were tied to scrub cedar 50 feet away, our two horses watched curiously.

"So?" I asked, seeing no signs of traps.

"We'll shoot them when they come out," replied Ernie, indicating the .25/30 carbine some distance away. "The coyotes will be groggy and slow from the smoke and won't move fast. It'll be easy."

By this time Ernie had succeeded in igniting a folded piece of burlap, liberally sprinkled with sulphur, which he hurriedly placed in the proper compartment of the smoke gun. Then he began furiously pumping the handle. From all (Continued on page 55)

JUNE, 1967 41

"Land of Big Reservoirs" produces for novice and experts alike. Here's where you can expect the unexpected

TIE UNEXPECTED makes fishing an enthralling sport. Take for example, Cletus Jacobsen who landed a 27 1/2-pound state-record northern pike on a six-pound-test line, or the man who got so tired catching fish, that he quit because it was such hard work. In the same vein, how about the angler who was ready to call it quits after a fruitless day of fishing, and caught a lunker largemouth as he made the final reel in?

These yarns sound like the fishy stories you usually pick up at a sports club meeting, but they actually happened in the 19-county area called District Four by the Nebraska Game Commission. With 71,000 surface acres of reservoirs, several state lakes, two 42 NEBRASKAland sizeable rivers, and a vast canal system, the area is a fisherman's Promised Land.

Only July 14,1962, Cletus Jacobsen of Big Springs was ready to call it quits. The fish just weren't co-operating at Nebraska's biggest impoundment, Lake McConaughy. As Cletus started to pull away, another angler brought news that the walleye were hitting on the north shore near the dam. Stringing a battle-scarred rod with six-pound-test line, Cletus decided to give Big Mac another try.

When the rod twitched the first time, Cletus thought a pesky carp was mouthing the nightcrawlers on the snelled hooks. As the reel screamed, the catch headed for deep water and the Big Springs man forgot his guess of a carp. Why the line didn't break on that first run or during the 30-minute battle that followed is a story of luck and skill. When the northern was finally banked the angler had a state record.

But record fish are not unique at McConaughy. Not even the Missouri River with five state records to its credit can match Mac in the honor book. Besides the northern record, the impoundment holds the smallmouth bass, crappie, walleye, brown and rainbow trout records.

Although Lake McConaughy monopolizes the district's state records, it is by no means the only reservoir in the area with lunker-size fish. In the Game Commission's master angler program the big reservoirs claimed a high percentage of the lunker takes. For instance, the area accounted for 81 out of 83 walleye awards last year. Lake Maloney led the list with 28, Harlan County Reservoir with 24, and Big Mac was third with 18. In channel catfish awards, Harlan County Reservoir dominated with 14 out of 30, but Lake Maloney and Lake Mac came in second with 3 each. Harlan may have the most awards, but Red Willow Reservoir had the biggest cat with a 38-pounder.

A boat isn't a real necessity on the district's 11 big reservoirs, but it will add more fish to the stringer. As one bait shop owner put it when talking about McConaughy:

"You don't need a boat I suppose, but without one, it is kind of like trying to round up cattle without a saddle horse. Of course, it depends on what species you are going after."

If you don't own a boat or are traveling light, most of the big reservoirs have concessions that rent boats. The only exceptions are Jeffrey, Sutherland, and Enders reservoirs. Launching facilities are available at all the lakes. For those who want to spend a weekend, each impoundment has a camping area and bait shops are either lakeside or not far away.

District Four is the place to go if you are after variety, with species running the gamut from rainbow trout to white bass to bluegill. Lake Mac is again at the top of the list in this category and is the only reservoir offering rainbows.

Trout at McConaughy average anywhere from five to six pounds, but many are much bigger. The lake holds the state record with a 12-pound, 4-ounce rainbow. Last year's biggest trout reported to the Game Commission went 10 pounds, 9 ounces.

Rainbows are more than finicky and bank fishermen are just about out of luck. Trolling a pearl or white flatfish along the rocky dam face puts trout on the stringer. These lures resemble gizzard shad, the trout's favorite dish. Rainbows are hard to figure out. Depending on lake conditions, water temperatures, and weather, the trout may be near the surface or deep, so anglers would be wise to troll with and without a weight. Since trout are spooky fish, fishermen should put 50 to 75 yards of line between the boat and their lures.

In the late fall. Lake McConaughy trout run up the North Platte River to tributaries like Nine Mile Creek. This is prime time to try for rainbows in the upper reaches of the lake and in the river itself. Otter Creek, running into the lake on the northwest side of the impoundment, offers brown trout fishing in the upper reaches almost all year round. And in late winter, a few rainbows can be tricked from the waters where the stream empties into the lake. Another trout fishery in the district is Whitetail Creek where browns will hit worms, minnows, and in the summer, grasshoppers.

Big Mac offers good smallmouth bass fishing. Most of the other reservoirs have some smallmouths, but only at McConaughy can anglers expect to take fish with any regularity. The bass can either be caught from shore or boat.

Best areas for smallmouth are west from the Sports Service boat ramp in the small coves and bays on the south side of the lake. Spring and fall are headliner months and regular McConaughy bass fishermen recommend small spinners or lead heads in combination with worms, pork rind, or crawdad tails.

High on the most wanted list when fishing Lake Mac or the other reservoirs in the district are ready-to-fight walleye. The big impoundment holds the state record with a 16-pound, 1-ounce walleye, but last year the top master angler walleye, a 12-pound, 5-ounce beaut, came from Harlan County Reservoir.

Walleye are taken in good numbers in April, May, and June by trolling or bank fishing along the dams and rocky shorelines and along drop off areas. When water temperatures near 50°, walleye start their spring spawning run. During the spring run and in the fall bank anglers use big minnows and nightcrawlers. Both shoreline fishermen and trollers use various lures, but flatfish, balsa minnows, spinners, JUNE, 1967 43   and jigs are the most common. At night, a black jig fished along the shoals seems to attract the fish, while in the daytime a white or yellow jig is the best. A worm or pork rind used with the lure is worth a try, although it cuts down its action.

Many trollers use a small weight, but this depends on the speed of the boat. If the craft is moving fairly slowly or drifting the lure will go deep enough to reach the feeding fish, but if the boat is moving from two to four miles an hour, a weight should be used. The lure is usually trolled 35 yards or so behind the boat.

Doyle Illian, a Republican City bait shop owner, claims that walleye fishing at 13,400-acre Harlan County Reservoir is often best when the water is a little choppy, especially for trolling. A walleye hotspot at Harlan is above the old site of Republican City.

Harlan walleye like those in other reservoirs move away from the dam as summer moves in. Old marble eye is picky in hot weather and seems to prefer small minnows and lures. During the day, troll deep with a long line and a weight a few feet in front of the lure. When the day cools off, troll the shallows with a short line and no weight and keep the lure near the surface. Bank fishermen may have some luck if they can find deep holes, but in the summer, boat anglers will collect the best catches.

Lake Maloney and Johnson Lake are right up there with the district's two biggest reservoirs when it comes to walleye populations. At both Maloney and Johnson, walleye can be taken in the inlets by bank fishermen. At Swanson Reservoir, walleye fishing is good during the spawning run along the north end of the dam and along its rocky shoreline.

White bass are the real bread and butter fish in the big waters. The only impoundments without these gamy fighters are Red Willow and Sherman reservoirs. If you can cast and reel in the line, you're in business. One 13-year-old at Harlan caught more fish in a three-hour spree than he had caught in his entire lifetime.

Lake McConaughy bass are the biggest, averaging nearly 2 pounds, while bass in other reservoirs average between 1 and 1% pounds. According to Joe Gray, assistant area fisheries manager, the catch rate on most reservoirs would drop drastically in July and August if it weren't for white bass and catfish. In a field survey from June through September, 75 per cent of the fishermen's take was white bass.

From the sound of it, catching bass is just about as easy as eating them. But don't put the fish in the frying pan before you catch them. There are a few tricks you have to know. First, white bass are spring spawners and by late April, the bass are on the move from their deep water winter hangouts to the spawning grounds. Search out these spawning sites and you are in business.

The bass, willing to hit anything that resembles food, run up the inlets in Maloney and Jeffrey, while at Johnson they head for both the inlet and the outlet. At Harlan the bass run up the Republican River while at McConaughy they head up the North Platte River. For the bank fishermen this is the prime time.

White bass fishing at McConaughy is usually pretty good from mid-April to the first of October. Yellow or white jigs, silver or pearl flatfish, spinners, or plugs that imitate shad tempt these fish. Boat fishing works best in the summer. Minnows are excellent baits.

NO. NAME Otter Creek Lake McConaughy Whitetail Creek Lake Ogallala North Platte River 8 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Enders Res. Rock Creek Lake Swanson Res. Hayes Center Lake Red Willow Res. Red Willow Creek WeiIfleet lake Sutherland Res. Maloney Res. Platte Valley Canal Jeffery Canyon Res. Medicine Creek Midway Canyon Res. Gallagher Canyon Res. SPECIES, BEST TIME, AREA, METHOD, AND BAIT Brown trout the year round and some Rainbows in iate winter Walleye, Spring, fall. Dam, shoreline, casting. Jigs and spoons. White bass, spring, summer, fall. Bays, west end of lake. Shoreline, casting. Jigs and spinners. S. M. bass, May, June, September, October. Bays, south and east ends of lake. Jigs, spoons, and minnows. Channel catfish, April to September. West end of lake. Boats and shoreline. Minnows, shad, and worms. Rainbow Trout, June to October. Dam and east end of lake. Boats and trolling. Pike, Crappie, Carp, Yellow Perch, Bullhead are present Brown trout Rainbow Trout, Walleye, White bass, S. M. bass, Channel catfish, Crappie, Yellow perch, and Northern pike Excellent above Lake McConaughy for L. M. bass, Channel catfish, and White bass in early spring and summer. Trout can be taken below the Keystone Diversion Dam Walleye, April, May, June, and October. Dam and entire lake. Shoreline and casting. Jigs, spinners, worms, minnows, and artificials depending upon month. Local inquiry is advised. Channel catfish, April to September. Entire lake. Shoreline and casting. Shad, minnows, worms. Crappie, April to June. Bays, west end, and dam. Shoreline, boat, casting. Jigs, spoons, and minnows. Yellow perch, September and October. Dam and bays. Shoreline and boats. Worms and minnows Bluegill, L. M. bass, Rock bass, S. M. bass, Bullhead, Rainbow trout, Channel catfish, and Walleye Walleye, April to June. Dam, outlet. Shoreline and casting. Jigs, spoons, spinners. Crappie, April to June. Bays and dam. Jigs, minnows, spoons, and spinners. Channel catfish, April to October. Entire lake and west end. Shoreline and casting. Worms, shad, and minnows. White bass, May to October. West end, inlet. Shoreline, boat, trolling, casting. Jigs, spinners, spoons, and minnows L. M. bass, Catfish, Crappie, Bluegill, and Northern pike. This 60-acre lake is rated as an excellent fishery Walleye, April to October, slack in August. East end of lake, dam, and inlet. Shoreline, boats, casting, trolling. Jigs, spinners, worms, and flatfish. L. M. bass, April to October slack in July and August. Shoreline, boats, casting. Bays. N. Pike, April, May. Entire lake, bays. Shoreline, boats, trolling, casting. Jigs, spinners, spoons, and minnows. Bluegill, January and February, ice fishing at north end and in bays. May, June, and August, entire lake, bays. Shoreline, boats, and casting. Channel catfish, April to October. Inlet and entire lake depending upon month. Local inquiry advised. Shoreline, boats, casting, shad, minnows, worms, and spinners. Crappie, April to June. Bays. Shoreline, boats and casting. Jigs, minnows, spinners, and spoons Excellent channel catfishing throughout its length. Species present in Hugh Butler Lake are also present in stream. Local inquiry advised L. M. bass, Bluegill, Channel catfish, Bullhead, Green sunfish. Lake was stocked in 1962 White bass, April to June, inlet and outlet. Shoreline and casting. Jigs, minnows, spinners, and spoons. Channel catfish, April to October. Inlet, bays, and entire lake depending upon month. Local inquiry advised. Shoreline and boats. Shad, minnows, and worms. Yellow perch, January and February. Ice fishing, south end, bays, outlet. Jigs, minnows, worms. Crappie, January and February, April to June. Inlet and bays. Shoreline and boats. Jigs, minnows, and spinners Walleye, April to October. Outlet, inlet, entire lake depending on month. Local inquiry advised. Shoreline, boat casting and trolling. Jigs, worms, spinners, flatfish. Channel catfish, May to October. Inlet, entire lake. Shoreline and boats. Shad, worms, minnows. Crappie, April to June. Inlet, bays, entire lake. Shoreline, boats, casting. Jigs, minnows, and spinners. Yellow perch, January to March, ice fishing. Dam, south end of lake. Jigs, minnows, and worms. White bass, April to June. Inlet, bays, entire lake. Shoreline, boats, trolling, and casting. Jigs, minnows, spinners, and spoons. Drum, May to September, nlet, entire lake, outlet. Shoreline, boats, and casting. Jigs, worms, minnows, spinners Rainbow trout, Walleye, and White bass. Yellow perch and Channel catfiish angling is good to fair Walleye, April to October, slack in August and September. Dam, outlet, entire lake, inlet. Shoreline, casting, boats, trolling. Jigs, spinners, worms, minnows, and flatfish. Crappie, April to July. Bays, outlet, inlet. Shoreline, boats, casting. Jigs, minnows, spinners. L. M. bass, May and June. Bays, outlet, inlet. Shoreline, boats, casting. Jigs, minnows, spinners, spoons, worms, plugs. White bass, May and June. Bays and inlet. Shoreline, boats, and casting. Jigs, minnows, spinners, small flatfish. Channel catfish, April to October. Entire lake. Shoreline and boats. Shad, worms, and minnows. Drum, May to October. Entire lake, bays, inlet, outlet, depending on month. Local inquiry advised. Shoreline, boat, casting. Jigs, worms, minnows, and spinners Channel catfish and other species found in Medicine Creek Reservoir are found in this stream. Catfishing is rated as best in the southwest White bass, Crappie, Channel catfish, Yellow perch, Drum, Bluegill, Northern pike, Walleye, L. M. bass Crappie, Drum, Channel catfish, Drum, White bass, Yellow perch, Walleye, Bluegill, Northern pike, and L. M.

One trick for finding a white-bass school is to watch the sea gulls dipping and diving for shad. A shad and sea gull combination means white bass. The fish chase the shad to the surface and the sea gulls take over from there. When you spot a school of shad, drift into the area. Cast out and let the bait settle on the bottom, then raise it a few feet and start jigging. Jack Armstrong, an Ogallala bait dealer uses the gull technique.

44 NEBRASKAland NO. 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 NAME Medicine Cr. Res. Republican River Johnson Res. South Loup River Sherman Res. Ravenna Lake Interstate 80 Chain-O-Lakes Harlan County Res* SPECIES, BEST TIME, AREA, METHOD, AND BAIT Walleye, April to October, slack in August. South end of lake, dam, entire lake depending upon month. Shoreline, casting, boats, trolling. Jigs, spinners. Crappie, April to July, bays and dam. Shoreline, boats, and casting. Jigs, minnows, and spinners. Channel catfish, April to October. Inlet, north end of lake, and entire lake depending upon month. Shad, worms, minnows. Local inquiry advised White bass and Channel catfish upstream from Harlan Reservoir Walleye. April to October. Inlet, outlet, dam, entire lake. Shoreline, boat, casting, trolling. Place and method varies with month. Local inquiry advised. Jigs, minnows, spinners, and flatfish. Crappie, April to June. Dam, bays, inlet, outlet. Shoreline, boats, casting. Jigs, minnows, and spinners. Flatfish at times. Channel catfish, April to October. Inlet, outlet, bays, entire lake depending on month. Local inquiry advised. Shoreline and boats. Shad, minnows, and worms. White bass, April to September. Inlet, outlet, entire lake. Shoreline, boat, casting, trolling. Jigs, minnows, spinners, small flatfish Channel catfish. L. M. bass tn backwater areas Walleye, April to October, slack in July and August. Dam, bays, entire lake. Shoreline, casting, boats, trolling. Jigs, minows, spinners. Crappie, May, June, and October. Dam, north end of lake, bays. Shoreline and boats. Jigs, minnows, spinners. Channel catfish, May to September. North end of lake, inlet, entire lake. Shoreline and boats. Shad, minnows, and worms. Bullhead, April to October. Inlet, north end of lake, bays, entire lake. Shoreline, boats. Shad, minnows, and worms. L. M. bass, May and June. Bays. Shoreline, boats, casting. Minnows, spinners, plugs. Northern pike, April and May. Shoreline, boats, and casting. Minnows, spinners and flatfish Green sunfish, Channel catfish, Bullhead, Bluegill, and L. M. bass, Along Interstate 80 from Grand Island to Hershey. Approximately 50 lakes open to public fishing. Stocked with Bluegill, S. M. bass, Channel catfish. Fish will not be large due to recent stocking Walleye, April to October, slack in August. East end of lake and dam. Shoreline, boating, and casting. Jigs, spinners, flatfish. White bass, April to September, west end of lake, bays, and entire lake during summer months. Shoreline, boats, trolling and casting. Jigs, minnows, spoons, spinners. Crappie, April to June. Bays and dam, shoreline, boating, casting, jigs, minnows, spinners. Channel catfish, April to October. Inlet, west end of lake, and entire lake, depending upon month. Shoreline and boats. Shad, minnows, worms. Local inquiry advised

"Several times I've followed the gulls and had to quit fishing because I was too tired to catch any more. When fishing starts being work then it is time to quit," he said.

Another summertime, as well as year-around favorites are channel catfish. A 38-pound Swanson catfish taken with a worm at Red Willow tops the 1966 Master Anglers' category for catfish. Swanson came in second in the big fish race. Prime time to take channel cats in the reservoirs, the rivers, and in the canals leading into the reservoirs is just before and during their spring spawning period, but cats will bite as soon as the ice goes out.

Jack Armstrong and three other Ogallala fishermen hit Lake Mac this year as soon as the weather was tolerable and between them they caught 40 catfish and a 21/2-pound rainbow in 3 hours.

The upper reaches of all the reservoirs are best in the spring with frozen shad or crawdad tails, the preferred baits. In late spring, strip shad is used and as the weather warms up nightcrawlers get a real work out. In the dead heat of summer many prefer prepared catfish baits.

During a catfish spawning run from Lake Mac up the North Platte River or (Continued on page 49)

JUNE, 1967 45

LARGEMOUTH BASS

NOTES ON NEBRASKA FAUNA... Fight is as big as bite for old-timer on stqte's angling scene. Running to lunker size, he is any angler's worthy opponent 46 NEBRASKAland by Ralph Langemeier District Fisherman Supervisor

FOOD AND SPORTING qualities, predaceous behavior, and ability to live in a wide variety of environmental conditions, make the largemouth bass one of the most outstanding sport fish in the United States.

Largemouths are members of the sunfish family and are scientifically tagged as Micropterus salmoides, lLacepede). The largest member of the sunfish family, the bass is a close relative to the smallmouth bass, green sunfish, bluegill, and crappie. He is commonly called the black bass. Other colloquial names are Oswego bass, green bass, slough bass, and lake bass.

Originally, the largemouth was found east of the Rocky Mountains through the Great Lakes drainage and the Mississippi Valley to Florida and northeast Mexico. Today, he is one of the major game fish in every state thanks to fishery management programs. Early records show that he was first reported in Nebraska in Papillion Creek, west of Omaha in 1872.

He is most often confused with a close relative, the smallmouth bass, but he has several distinguishing characteristics that are helpful for correct identification. The most common is the size of the mouth. On the largemouth bass, the upper jaw extends well beyond the posterior margin of the eye, whereas the jaw of the smallmouth ends below or in front of the eye. The fin on the back of a largemouth is nearly completely divided into two parts, while in the smallmouth, fin division is not as deep. Other distinguishing characteristics are the cheek scales. There are 9 to 10 rows of large and easily distinguishable cheek scales on the largemouth. On the smallmouth, the cheek scales are small and arranged in 14 to 16 rows. Also, smallmouth typically have 11 horizontal rows of scales between the lateral line and the base of the dorsal fin, while largemouth never has more than 8. Color markings are generally not good distinguishing characteristics because of the great variations, but a largemouth is generally dark green on the back, shading to lighter on the sides. There is usually a dark band of irregular patches along the side of the body. The smallmouth bass is typically brownish-green on the sides and back with dark vertical markings on the sides, which are irregular in size.

Favorite foods of the largemouth are insects, frogs, crayfish, and fish. Newly-hatched bass feed upon tiny water animals called zooplankton. As the bass grow, they add insects and snails to their diet. Crayfish and fish are probably the two most important foods to adults. Because of this predatory behavior towards other fish, largemouths are important in fisheries management. They, along with bluegill and channel catfish are widely stocked in farm ponds and lakes throughout the United States. Aquarium tests show that the largemouth bass can readily swallow forage fish with a depth of body equal to the mouth width of the bass. Generally speaking, a bass can swallow another bass half his own length.

Spawning in Nebraska begins in late May or June when the water temperatures reach 63° to 68°. Usually they deposit their eggs on submerged aquatic vegetation or in nests on the bottom in shallow water. The male forms the nest by fanning his tail and fins. The female is then enticed into the nest where she may deposit from 2,000 to 26,000 eggs depending on the size of the fish. The eggs are fertilized by ejection of milt sperm from the male, and depending upon water temperature, they will hatch in three to six days. In Nebraska, the young reach three to five inches by the first winter. At the end of the second growing season they are frequently 10 to 12 inches long if the water is productive. The present heavyweight champion in Nebraska is 10 pounds, 11 ounces.

Because largemouth bass feed throughout the day, they may take bait at any time. However, their periods of most active feeding appear to be early mornings and evenings. Time of day does not seem to be as important on cool, cloudy days as it does on quiet, hot days. On hot and sultry days, large bass can be lured in from their hiding places among logs and water plants by surface lures of the splashing and popping variety.

Bass can be effectively harvested from the shore or boat. Shore fishermen prefer to cast laterally along the shoreline in rocky and weedy areas or in open spaces near weed beds. Boat fishermen seek out similar habitats to do their plugging. Weed beds, stumps, brush piles, and submerged logs are effective fishing areas. If largemouths won't take surface lures, a switch to underwater lures or live baits often pays off.

Although every bass fisherman has his favorite lure, laboratory experiments have shown that untrained largemouth bass, before conditioning had started, have a strong preference for red over all other colors. Yellow is in second place, but favorite colors or not, the final results still depend largely upon locating the hungry bass and presenting the bait or lure properly.

THE END

JUNE, 1967 47

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 Trailer house with cooking facilities SPORTS SERVICE Kingsley Dam Ogallala, Nebraska For Rest and Recreation MOTEL NEW TOWN One Mile from Harlan County Dam One Block Off Highway 136 Phone: 799-2292 - Area 308 Republican City, Nebraska 68971 GATEWAY MOTEL and WASSON'S TAVERN 14 Modern Air Conditioned Units TV, On-Off Sale Liquor and Beer Located on Highway 136 Phone 799-2815 Area 308 Republican City, Nebr. ED'S SPORTING AND LEATHER GOODS "Your Fun Is My Business" Guns-Archery-Saddles-Western Wear Fishing Tackle-Boats-Evinrude Motors LEXINGTON, NEBRASKA 1/2 Mile North of Interstate-Lexington Interchange MAGNIFICENT SCENERY COLORFUL EVENTS ON THE OLD WEST TRAIL ... Our Business Is Selling NEBRASKAland

WHAT TO DO

(Continued from page 9) 3 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 8 8 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10 lO ll 11 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 12 12 13 14 14 14 14 15 15 15 15 15 16 16 16 16 17 17 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 19 19 20 20 20 21 21 22 22 22 22 23 23 48 -4 —Centennial Celebration, Bennet — Centennial Celebration and Barbeque, Tryon — Markmanship Exhibition featuring Colonel Larson, Grand Island — Green Thumb Garden Show, York -4 —Centennial Celebration, Cambridge -5 —Antique Show, Holbrook — Centennial Rose Show, Lincoln — Black Powder Shoot and Parade, Holbrook -R.A.D. Trail Ride, Pressey Park, Broken Bow — Saddle Club Open Horse Show, Dodge — Centennial Celebration, Dannebrog -7 — Centennial Carnival, Albion -12 —Cadette Scouts Heritage Carvan Tours, Lincoln -9-Old Settler's Picnic, Palmyra -10 —Farm and Home Show, Ord -10 —Centennial Picnic, Shickley -11 — Centennial Celebration and Carnival, Dodge -11-Rodeo, O'Neill -10 —Dairy Princess Contest and Parade, Ord -10 —Centennial Celebration, Wilcox — Ogallala Trail Drive, Ogallala — Centennial Old Times Day, Springview — Firemen's Day, Battle Creek -11 —Centennial Celebration, Picnic, and Parade, Elk Creek 16-Cornhusker Boys State, Nebraska Center, Lincoln — Pony-Pulling Contest and Horseshoe Tournament, Brownvi lie -Saddle Club Playday, Carroll — Niobrara River Canoe Races, Valentine -Trail Rides Horse Show, York — Centennial Religious Observance, Superior — Midwest AAU Championship 5-mile Road Run, Grand Island — Woodmen of the World Convention, North Platte — Fish Feed, Ainsworth -13 —Homecoming Celebration, Barbeque, and Program, Scotia -16 —College World Series, Omaha -17 —Miss Nebraska Pageant and Parade, York -14 —Centennial Celebration and Carnival, Hildreth — Veterans of World War I Statewide Picnic, Stromsburg — Western Music Show, Red Willow County — Centennial Celebration, Shelby — Rededication of the State Capitol, Lincoln -17 —Centennial Horse Show and Military Pageant, Scottsbluff -17-Vetch Days, Elgin -17-"Plum Creek Days" Centennial Celebration and Carnival, Lexington -17 —Centennial Celebration, Lynch -22 - Centennial Opening of Stuhr Museum of the Praire Pioneer, Grand Island -17 —Centennial Picnic, Day kin -18-Centennial Festival "House of Yesterday", Newman Grove -18-Buffalo County Centennial Celebration -19-Quarter Horse Show, Oshkosh — Dodge County Alumni Dance, Hooper -18-Midwest Pet and Animal Show, Civic Auditorium, Omaha — Seward Hamfest, Seward -Centennial Czech Festival, Schuyler -Horse Show, Howells — Stock Car Races, Stuart -Rough Riders Annual Horse Show, Palmyra -24 - NEBRASKAland DAYS, Lincoln -25-Homesteader Days, Beatrice -20-Girl Scouts of America Centennial Trip, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln -21-Diamond Jubliee Celebration, Crofton — JoAnn Castle Performance, Crofton — Charter Day Observance, Peru College, Peru -21-Annual Sidewalk Bazaar and Carnival Days, Scottsbluff -Centennial Concert by the Omaha Symphony Orchestra, Bellevue -24-Jaycees NEBRASKAland DAYS Championship Rodeo, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln — Gun Shoot, Seward -25-Buffalo Bill Blow-Out Rodeo, North Platte -25 - Dakota County Centennial Pageant, South Sioux City -25-Nebraska High School Championship Rodeo, Harrison — Centennial Midsummer Picnic, Axtell -24-Swedish Festival, Stromsburg NEBRASKAland 48 NEBRASKAland 23-24 —Miss Majorette of Nebraska Contest, Duchesne College, Omaha 23-28 —Prairie Pioneer Days, Grand Island 24 — Free Centennial and Trail Dance, Civic Auditorium, Omaha 24-25 —Centennial Rodeo, Winside 24-25 — Centennial Celebration, Ulysses 24-25 — Centennial Trail Days, Hooper 24-25 —35th Anniversary Stamp Show, Hotel Lincoln, Lincoln 24-25 — Family Fun Days and Dedication of the Weigand Scenic Route, Crofton 24-25-Centennial QSL "Ham Fest", North Platte 25 — Centennial Parade, Imperial 25 — Pilger Pioneer Picnic, Pilger 25 —Midwest AAU Championship 10-mile Road Run, Grand Island 25 — Centennial Celebration and Barbeque, Creighton 25-26 —Seven Valley Rodeo, Callaway 25-29 — Lancaster County Centennial Music Program, Pinewood Bowl, Lincoln 26 — Old Fashioned Wheat Binding, Shocking, and Threshing Bee, Syracuse 26-August 9 — Summer Theatre, Chadron State College, Chadron 27-28 —Centennial Observance, St. Edward 27-28-Old Timers' Picnic, Callaway, Nebraska 30 —All-State Chorus and Orchestra Festival, Pershing Auditorium, Lincoln 30-July 1 — Western Melodrama, "Deadwood Dick", presented by the Community Playhouse, North Platte 30-July 2 —Czech Festival, Clarkson 30-July 4 — Centennial Celebration, Superior THE END

NEBRASKAland FISHING

(Continued from page 45)

from Harlan up the Republican River, anglers should fish near fallen logs or cut banks. Cats like obscure, still places to deposit their eggs. To present your bait move upriver from the hole, and let the bait drift naturally into the likely looking hotspots. You can expect to lose tackle because these cut banks have hidden snags, but where there are snags there are fish.

Joe Gray, an experienced catfisherman, claims many anglers make the mistake of using too much weight. A light sinker, preferably a slip weight, will do the job much more effectively.

At Lake McConaughy catfishing is pretty good below the dam with catches averaging between 3 and 8 pounds, with occasional tackle busters running 12 to 15 pounds. A 15-pound-test line and a No. 1 to 4 hook are sufficient, both in the lake and below the dam. At Harlan, cats can be taken below the dam, but the bigger bays in the lake are also excellent. Cats at Harlan average 2 to 3 pounds, but Doyle Illian has weighed in some that hit 30 pounds. At Red Willow Reservoir cats average three to six pounds. Fishing is excellent in late summer and in the fall at Red Willow Creek below the impoundment. At Maloney and Sutherland cat fishing is good in the inlets all summer.

In all impoundments the bank angler can bring home just about as many catfish as the boater. If you like to fish for old iron-belly, you'll want to grab your rod and head for the nearest inlet after a rain. The cats will be after the washed-in food. Old Whiskers will be yours if you get there in time.

When a sportsman talks about largemouth bass in District Four, chances are he talks about Red Willow or Medicine Creek Reservoirs. A few years ago, Red Willow Creek was loaded with rough fish. In September of 1961 after the dam was closed, it was treated and stocked with game fish. Today, it is one of the better largemouth and northern pike fisheries in the area. Medicine Creek Reservoir is another angling goody. In both reservoirs, largemouth action starts in April and peaks in May and June. Bushy areas, trees, and bays are top-notch areas. Surface lures, poppers, and rubber or plastic worms are spring favorites.

Northern pike fishing at Red Willow rates as tops in the district with some tackle busters hitting almost 18 pounds. Bluegill at the Red Willow aren't small with many running from 1/2 to 3.4-pound. Worms, minnows, and jigs are the more common fish takers. Ice fishing for the slabsides is a favorite winter activity. January and February are the best months.

Red Willow has a fair population of crappie, but Medicine Creek is probably the best impoundment in the area for these fish. Enders has a good crappie population as does Swanson, but neither will top Medicine Creek in overall size of the fish. At Swanson, one hotspot is the bay that runs under the highway and along the rocks. Sutherland, Maloney, Jeffrey, Johnson, and Sherman offer fair crappie fishing. At Maloney the place to go is the inlet. In all reservoirs jigs, minnows, and small spoons are preferred come ons. Crappie experts hit the brushy areas in May and June.

Several smaller impoundments add their bit to the angling opportunity in District Four. Rock Creek Lake, 8 miles north of Parks, is a 50-acre lake that offers excellent bluegill fishing, and fairly good largemouth bass and lunker catfish angling.

Hayes Center Lake, a 60-acre impoundment, northeast of Hayes Center has the same species as Red Willow Reservoir. The lake also shares Red Willow's reputation for largemouth bass, bluegill, and northern pike.

The Interstate 80 chain of lakes between Grand Island and Hershey consists of 50 lakes with a total of 920 acres. They may in the future produce some of the finest smallmouth bass fishing in Nebraska. These lakes, intended to be quality fisheries instead of quantity fisheries, are producing some nice catches now. Those waters from Grand Island to, and including the 299 mileage marker, are stocked primarily with largemouth bass, bluegill, and channel catfish. All the other 1-80 lakes are stocked with smallmouth, rock bass, and channel catfish with exception of lakes MM207 and 210.5N that have Kentucky spotted bass instead of smallmouth. Some of these lakes are presently closed so check your regulations.

Another unique fishing water in the district is the Central Nebraska and Platte Valley Public Power and Irrigation District Canal. Almost every species of fish found in the reservoirs can be caught in this canal system. Concentration points for fish are in still water near check dams and on the slack-water bends. Stream fishing methods work well here. Artificial lures can be used if the water is fairly clear, but during the JUNE, 1967 49   summer irrigation period the water is often turbid and live baits work best.

Rainbow trout are taken regularly from a stretch between Keystone and Paxton. Some rainbow, walleye, and white bass are caught from Paxton to Sutherland Reservoir. Below Sutherland to Maloney, walleye, white bass, yellow perch, and channel cat fishing is rated as fair to good and from Maloney to Johnson Lake fishing for all species is considered good.

The district is a fisherman's paradise. This is an area where fish stories are made, and where you'll liable to catch a lunker wherever there is water with the possible exception of in your bathtub. That brings to mind a tale about District Four fishing. You see, this lady was running water in her...Oh well, you'd never believe it.

THE END

STAGECOACHES ARE BACK

(Continued from page 17

shirts with pockets bulging with socks, woolen scarves in the winter, a bar of soap, toilet articles, and ample ammunition for his Sharps carbine.

There were plenty of reasons to carry the weapon after August 1864, when the Cheyenne, Sioux, Kiowas, and Arapahoes made their stand against the white man. The uprising blazed through the Platte Valley, and the stagecoaches felt plenty of the fire. The Indians burned and ran off the stock from every stage station between Big Sandy and Thirty-two Mile Creek, except for Fort Kearny. Fort Kearny was safe because 400 soldiers were camped at its back door.

During the Indian siege, the stage company had to abandon 500 miles of line. Overland Mail, which had been running on a daily schedule for three years, stopped altogether. No stages ran for six weeks. Then one brave driver tried the run again, and made it. Traffic continued irregularly for three months but on January 20, 1865, the Cheyenne and Sioux made another raid, burning a large number of partially rebuilt stations, destroying hay and grain, and running off all the horses.

Again, no west-bound stages left Atchison for several weeks. Mail piled up for Fort Kearny, Cottonwood Springs, Laramie, and Denver. Then on February 1, the stage authorities decided to try to get another stage through, and Frank Root was chosen for the job. He was up against overwhelming odds, as the Indians had complete charge of the stage-line for several hundred miles, but Root was a determined and adventure-minded man.

Armed with a brace of revolvers and a breech-loading rifle, Root headed out for Fort Kearny with a ton of mail. He traveled 100 miles to Cottonwood Springs without incident. He found the trail deserted. Formerly swarming with white-covered prairie schooners, it was now barren as a desert. Even ranches were deserted as the owners had scuttled to Fort Kearny for safety from the rampaging Indians.

While Root was in Cottonwood Springs, the government decided to help out the stageline. The following order passed over the telegraph wire to Omaha from the commanding officer at Fort Leavenworth:

"Headquarters, Department of Missouri, Fort Leavenworth, February 11, 1865. Brigadier General Mitchell, Omaha: I have just informed the Overland Mail Company that I am prepared to protect their mail through the department. See that the proper protection is given it from Fort Kearny west to insure its safety. (Signed) Grenville M. Dodge, Major General."

Root and his company were delighted. And so were the wagons tied up along the Platte —they got ready to move at once. Following General Dodge's order, each stage was attended by a guard of cavalry from Fort Kearny.

Root and a crew of veteran drivers left Cottonwood Springs February 16, with three Concord coaches loaded with a vast amount of mail for Colorado, Utah, Montana, and the Pacific Coast. He made his run to Julesburg and Denver and returned to Atchison on March 10 with a large amount of mail, and seven passengers.

Mail moved regularly again, although stagecoach drivers were hard to come by during the summer of 1865. The Indian scare had cut down their willingness to 50 NEBRASKAland make the journey even though highest wages were offered.

Danger of Indian attack was not completely gone even when the Pacific Railroad largely pushed the overland stagecoaches out of the transportation picture. On October 5, 1866, the Union Pacific Railroad was completed to the Hundredth Parallel, 50 miles west of Fort Kearny, to sound the death knell for large-scale overland staging in the Platte Valley. Stages were still used throughout the state, especially in the Capital City, the Republican Valley, and on the Deadwood Trail, but their fate was inevitable in face of faster transportation. Stages rolled into near oblivion, that is, until the Twentieth Century. Now they ride again.

THE END

THE THIRD HILL

(Continued from page 25)

in the South, the old man's thoughts lightly turned to his engine again. But with the railroad already well on its way to the coast there wasn't much point in reviving a five-mile-per-hour crimson elephant. Besides, his image in Nebraska City wasn't too shining.

In 1871, Morton was still wondering what to do with the delapidated beast of burden. That year he wrote an epitaph to the engine in his diary.

"The steam wagon belonging to the late J. R. Brown still stands here, upon my farm where he left it in 1861 or '2. Never have been offered more than $200 for it and therefore never sold it. It is badly eaten by rust and is worth nothing except for old iron."

Evidently even old iron merchants wouldn't touch the thing because Major Brown's engine, or what is left of it, is still at Nebraska City. Today, it is a heap of rust decorating one corner of the carriage barn at Arbor Lodge.

But just because Brown's version didn't make the grade it was no sign that others wouldn't try. In 1962, Lyman Knapp of Blackwell, Oklahoma, brought the engine's great grandson to Nebraska to recreate the ill-fated run. Six tons of belching metal towed three wagons over hill and dale for the event. And even though it was a century late, a steam wagon finally made it over the third hill west of Nebraska City.

THE END NEXT MONTH Outdoor NEBRASKAland visits southeastern Nebraska and explores the fishing opportunities there. Fifth and last in the current series, this article will offer where-to, when-to, and how-to information on fishing this area of small impoundments, rivers, and farm ponds. Nebraska's Big Centennial BURWELL RODEO AUG. 9-10-11-12 FOR TICKETS OR INFORMATION WRITE BOX 711, BURWELL, NEBR. SEE NEBRASEAland The Lincoln Tour and Travel Way Sit back in the comfort of a private motorcoach and see Pioneer Village, Buffalo Bill Land, Chimney Rock, Scotts Bluff Monument, Fort Robinson, Snake Falls, Lewis and Clark Lake, and Indian cere- mony in a gala six-day tour of NEBRASKAland. Chartered tours leave June 12, June 26, July 10, July 24, August 7, August 21, and Septem- ber 4. Transportation, admission fees, and lodging included in the initial fee. You pay for meals and personal expenses. Make your reservation now for a relaxed vacation you'll long remember. Cost per person $99 1221 N Street 27 Gateway Center 432-7531 Phone For reservations contact: Lincoln Tour And Travel 434-5902 You Meet The World's Friendliest People On Lincoln Tours BIG Savings the year around Nebraska's Largest Display of Fishing Tackles & Lures Harold Ensley's Lures Ve Oz. Tiny Tots All colors $1.50 dozen Va Oz. Reepers All colors 40c each 8 Hog Callers 79c each 8 TV Witches 79c each Bargains on hunting supplies 8 Gun Cleaning Kits $ 2.39 8 Game Carries 39c 8 4X Pacific Scopes $21.95 8 7x50 Jana Binoculars $21.95 the year around • Hunting and fishing permits Stop and see us for bargains on ail your sporting equipment You haven't seen Fishing Tackle until you've seen BUD and NICK'S GUN AND TACKLE SHOP 402 South Street McCook, Nebraska 69001 JUNE, 1967  

OUTDOOR ELSEWHERE

Ruble Trouble. Tourists caught carrying rubles into Soviet territory may find themselves in serious trouble. Travel agents are cautioning Russia-bound clients against buying rubles at reduced rates in New York currency exchange houses. — Travel Weekly

Permanent Campers. Alaska has recently established a 15-day camping limit in her parks. The reason —too many people are using the recreational campgrounds for living sites while working nearby. — Wyoming

New Arrival. A doe crashed through a side window of a car driven by a Michigan man. The deer was wedged so tightly that he drove to a garage for help in dislodging her. When he arrived at the garage, he found a new-born whitetail fawn in the back seat of his auto.— Michigan

Smelly Situation. A Pennsylvania deer hunter blocked a farm lane with his car. The irate farmer, who was working in the field at the time, determined to get even, backed his manure spreader up to the offending car and dumped the entire load, covering the roof and the driver's side of the auto. —Pennsylvania

Big Payoff. Littering in the Lake Erie area reached a dangerous stage and drastic measures were taken, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Fines were set at not less than $500 with a maximum penalty of $2,500. Possible jail sentences ranged from 30 days to 1 year. A person reporting a litterbug can collect half the fine. -Michigan

Backfire. While inspecting predator traps, a Pennsylvania game warden and his deputy found they had caught a skunk.

"Don't shoot it! Flip it, and you won't get any stink," the deputy yelled. In the process of showing how to do it, he was hit between the eyes with a flowery spray. —Pennsylvania

Sole Mate. Recently a mouthless 16-inch carp was caught by a Missouri fisherman near St. Charles. Biologists speculated that the carp must have received a supply of small food particles through gill openings.-Missouri

Trapped. Just 40 minutes before the state's small game legal hunting hours an eager hunter banged away at a squirrel. Some 200 yards away, much to the hunter's surprise, a group was busy 52 NEBRASKAland working on turkey pens. The group consisted on some Game Division Supervisors, the Law Enforcement Assistant, a PR Area Leader, a Land Manager, 5 District Game Protectors, about 7 Deputies, and food and cover workers. — Pennsylvania

To Tell the Tooth. An archery hunter has confessed that he was the only one in a group of three who even got off a shot during a recent deer hunt. But he missed his target. He forgot to remove his long-stemmed pipe from his mouth when he shot. When he let go of the bowstring, the arrow went in one direction, the deer in another, the pipe crashed against a tree, and his false teeth disappeared into the brush. —Pennsylvania

Dove Data. In 11 eastern states where mourning doves are not hunted, populations were down 12.22 per cent in 1965; in the 16 states where they are hunted, the dove drop was only 0.4 per cent, the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service reports. "While the statistics do not prove that hunting is actually beneficial to dove populations, they do lend strong support to the belief that properly regulated hunting is not detrimental," the report emphasized.— National Wildlife

Tourist Money. Visitors to Miami Beach last summer spent an average of $18.46 per day, approximately $3 more per day than that of other vacation areas in the state, but slightly less than the $18.95 average in Miami. — Travel Weekly

Brave Buck. A fawn being chased down by two dogs was saved when a buck came to the rescue. The deer attacked the dogs, killing one with its antlers and severely injuring the other with a flying hoof. The buck then led the little deer back into the woods. — Washington

Instant Forest. Foresters report 1,255 acres were seeded with pine cones in six hours by helicopter. The burned-out area was first scarified with a bull-dozer pulling heavy anchor chains, then 22 million jack pine seeds were dropped. — Ontario

Heavy Users. In ancient times, total daily water requirements per person for all purposes — including drinking, food preparation, bathing, and washing clothes, averaged no more than 3 to 5 gallons. Today each person in urban areas of the United States uses as much as 60 to 70 gallons per day for household and lawn-watering purposes.— National Wildlife Federation

Curiosity Kills. A Pennsylvania conservation officer made a note as to the sex of trapped animals. After a month, he found that 86 per cent of these were females. So the officer concluded curiosity is the downfall of fairer sex. The wife of the officer however, doesn't believe a word of it. -Pennsylvania

Spell Down. In Haverhill, Massachusetts a housewife found out what a problem spelling was to her husband. She wanted to know why he had written the word hair, on a package of meat in the freezer. His reply..."I wasn't certain on how to spell rabbit."-Massachusetts

Lose Licenses. In 1965, the Game Commission revoked the hunting licenses of 172 persons. The reason: flagrant violations of the game laws. -Pennsylvania

No Sell Feathers. The owner of an Indian trading post went to jail for six months for selling feathers of protected birds. Authorities found more than 50 pairs of eagle wings and more than 15 pounds of feathers of protected species. Customers buying such feathers are also breaking the law, the government warned.— Michigan

Fair Trade. Requests for information regarding tourism, fishing, hunting, camp-ing, and hiking are reaching all-time highs this year all across the land. Some of the letters have unusual requests. Here's one with an unusual offer from the country of Ghana:

"Send me esteemed Sir, some maps and books on your country which is my favourite because I can spell it better than all the others. If you do, I will send you my sister free of charge." — British Columbia

Snake Trapper. A Rotan, Texas, house-wife, finding that rattlesnakes were gaining access to her house thrc lgh an air vent in the foundation, narrowed the entrance with a rock and buried a No. 3 coyote trap where the reptiles would have to crawl over it. In one year, she caught 18 rattlers. - Texas

Mischievous Moose. Anchorage's appropriately named Moose Run Golf Course is having problems - with moose. Seems the moose are attracted to the flagsticks at the various holes, and are rather hard on the carefully cultivated greens. -Alaska

JUNE, 1967 53   COLLINS oHcAo/it on Beautiful Johnson Lake . . . Lakefront cabins Fishing tackle Boats & motors Free boat ramp Fishing Modern trailer court Swimming Cate and ice Boating & skiing Gas and oil 9 hole golf course just around the corner Live and frozen bait. WRITE FOR FREE BROCHURE or phone reservations 785-2298 Elwood, Nebraska STOP at Neil Stuhmer Enclosed Fishing Dock Fishing Boats, Motors Free Boat Ramp Trailer Park Cafe Bait Tackle Beer Patterson Harbor and Marina Harlan Reservoir Republican City, Nebraska CUDY's BAIT SHOP 'S & MOTEL Harlan County Reservoir Full Line of Bait and Fishing Supplies Off-sale Beer, Groceries, Trailer Court East Alma on Highway 136 Phone 928-2533 Alma, Nebraska HAHLES 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 54 NEBRASKAland

EASTER SUNDAY SHUFFLE

(Continued from page 18)

run back, zigazgging and twisting, and breaking water.

"Look at him go," I yelled at Ron, watching the walleye roll over. He looked like a big log.

"This is a big fish," I told myself, "bigger than the one that got away." It didn't seem possible that the mere thread of line could hold. My walleye made a short sweep, stopped, then weaved back. It felt like he was tiring, but before his spunk was gone he was running again. A short rush, a quick turn, and he was coming straight in.

Ron came stumbling down the bank with the net, ready for action. This time he slipped the net neatly under the fat walleye. The threshing fish was lifted from the water, and just then the doll fly, looking awfully small in his lip, flipped out. As the fish settled into the net the bottom let go. The old relic had finally given out.

We were still standing in the water, and the fish was tumbling away to freedom. I could just see both of my biggest fish getting away in one day, just minutes apart. I grabbed the net by the rim, as Ron dropped down and held his arms under the mesh, catching the walleye as he was dropping into the water. Ignoring the bristling spines, he grabbed the fish and tossed him high up on the bank.

He was a beaut. I examined my catch and discovered that he was a she. If my other one would run 7 pounds, this one would go 10. A pocket scale settled the matter for the time being, and I was happy when it read 9 pounds, 4 ounces. I started to think of all the people I could stop and casually show my latest catch. A couple of guys volunteered (with only slight nagging) to take a picture of us before we went home. We weighed the walleye on a market scale at home and the pointer spun around to the 11-pound, 4-ounce mark. She was 291/2 inches long and 18 1/2 inches around the girth. I put her in the freezer, and about a month later took her out for shipment to a taxidermist.

Since then that walleye has been mounted and now adorns the wall of my shop in Lexington. Alongside her is a Master Angler Award from the Nebraska Game Commission, which is my first fishing award, but hopefully, not my last. There are still a lot of big fish in the Lexington area, and I hope to latch onto some of them.

Probably I am luckier than most fishing, as I spend about three mornings and two evenings a week whipping the waters around home. My wife who was only an occasional angler before we were married, has changed. She has outfished me on several occasions, and has also become an avid hunter. On our honeymoon, which was just a few weeks before meeting those two walleye, we went deep-sea fishing. I hope she will be applying for a Master Angler Award one of these days, too.

THE END 54 NEBRASKAland

THE SMOKE GUN CRAZE

(Continued from page 41)

parts of the machine, sulphur fumes raised a fog. Being close to it, I averted my head and blinked my eyes. Smoke funneled into the sky in clouds, but from the business end of the hose, the deal supposed to carry the smoke in the den, there came only a slight trickle.

"What's the matter with it?" I asked, stretching for a breath of fresh air. "So help me, I would rather be the coyote in this deal. It's leaking everywhere." Desperately, I thrust the hose into the hole.

Ernie tightened connections on the gun and increased his pumping. Burlap sacks were placed over the entrance of the burrow and gradually the air cleared as smoke began pouring into the den. The horses, getting a whiff of the unaccustomed odor, pulled back and snorted. Ernie motioned me toward the carbine.

I shook my head and took over the smoke gun.

"I wouldn't think of shooting a groggy coyote," I declared. "All slow and befuddled. You handle the carbine."

Ernie took the gun and crouched down, the rifle pointed in the direction he judged the soon-to-emerge coyote might take followed perhaps by the other fuzzy-minded coyotes. At such a busy time as this, it was best that Ernie do his own shooting.

From small nearby holes connected to the den tiny wisps of smoke rose into the air. More crowded from around the sacks at the den's entrance. However, no coyotes, groggy or otherwise, came rushing out.

After several minutes of steady pumping, I looked up at Ernie questioningly.

"Keep pumping," he directed. "They're in there. They'll be coming out soon."

I wasn't so sure. If, indeed, any suffering coyotes were down in the hole, they certainly were being nonchalant about it. After several minutes more of pumping, I again looked at Ernie, but again he motioned me to continue.

After a time, the idea of making and pumping volumes of smoke into a hole in the ground in broad daylight began to appear ludicrous. I glanced around to see if any strangers were secretly watching. It was a relief to see no one in sight. Sweating at the handle of the gun, it was easy to to imagine dozens of coyotes, safely out of the den by the back door or never in it in the first place, slyly peeking around the rocks and ridges and grinning at our efforts. The horses looked in our direction and then glanced at each other with knowing looks.

I stopped pumping.

"Something is wrong," I declared. "Maybe at this time of day the coyotes are all outside hunting something to eat or sunning themselves somewhere. Coyotes are smart animals."

"In a dumb sort of way," admitted Ernie, rising at last. "We'll try another hole. Nothing alive could stand that smoke and stay inside. It must be empty. And don't worry about the habits of coyotes. They howl all night, so they must be worn out by morning. That's all I need to know about their habits."

* Lakefront Trailer. Housekeeping Units. Modern Trailer Park. Cafe. Bait. Jack & Bill's Marina Free Boat Ramp. Fishing Boats, Motors. Harlan Reservoir, Phone 799-2315 Republican City, Nebraska Hank & Aggs Cabins PATTERSON HARBOR RESORT AREA Housekeeping Units $15 daily, $75 weekly Sleeping Units $6 daily, $30 weekly WRITE FOR RESERVATIONS Road No. 3 South of Harlan County Dam Republican City, Nebr. JUST RELAX AT... RANCH MOTEL AND CAFE COMFORT AT LOW PRICES E. Highway 6 & 34 McCOOK, NEBRASKA ALMA 928-2155 Ed Kauk, Mgr. POW WOW ROOM for Parties Conventions Sales Meetings Banquets Receptions HWYS. 183 A 383 ALMA, NEBR Live Bait Our Specialty Full Line of Bait and Fishing Supplies On-Off sale Liquor and Beer Crushed, Blocked, Cubed Ice Pink Top Motel DEAK'S BAIT SHOP 799-2705 799-2163 Republican City, Nebr. In NORTH PLATTE Park Motel Air Conditioning Tubs and Showers Television Room Phones 1302 N. Jeffers-No. Hwy, 83 Phone 532-6834 JUNE, 1967 55  

be worn out by morning. That's all I need to know about their habits."

He began gathering together the equipment.

The next den was farther up the canyon and showed abounding evidence of use. Coyote tracks were profuse about the entrance, and coyote hair was scattered over the floor. Branch tunnels ran from the main wide entrance, all showing telltale evidence of occupancy. Ernie examined it with satisfaction.

"Fix up a piece of burlap with sulphur," he directed, bringing out the smoke gun. "Don't wrap the burlap too tightly; it burns better if it is loose."

Soon the smoke gun was producing volumes of smoke, all carefully directed into the den. Ernie placed sacks and coats over the entrance, so the fog couldn't escape. An occasional glance under the coverings showed the den swirling with a thick heavy vapor.

Not one coyote came sneezing and coughing from the den in a desperate search for fresh air. Neither was there rumbling or disorder in the earth. It was as if nature was in no way disrupted, even minutely, by the product of the smoke gun. Coyotes, if there were any in the den, were pleasantly unaware or peacefully indifferent to the feverish activity at their door. For all the difference it made, the smoke could just as well have been pumped down a well.

After a time the piece of burlap burned out. Ernie dumped it out, not bothering to prepare another one. The den was saturated in smoke. He stood in thought.

"What kind of coyotes are they?" he demanded presently. "Nothing could have stood smoke like that."

He began preparations to move on.

But there was nothing also in the half dozen that we subsequently tried. I began to have doubts about the claims made for the smoke gun. Advertisers have a way of becoming overly enthusiastic about the product they are selling, or perhaps the coyotes had some secret method for outwitting the smoke. Ernie relucantly called a halt.

"We'll try again tomorrow," he announced, disengaging the hose and dumping the still-smouldering burlap on the ground. "And we'll pick the dens more carefully. There have to be coyotes in some of them."

On the ride home, nostrils and eyes inflamed by sulphur smoke and my clothes and coat impregnated with it, I was quite content to let the coyotes go their accustomed ways, fulfilling their place in nature as a check on the rabbit and bird populations and wailing at the moon. Not Ernie.

"Be ready again in the morning," he said as we parted. "I'll think about this business tonight. No coyote is going to outsmart me."

By noon the following day he was not sure. The morning had been a repetition of the day before. Nor did the days following prove to be any different. Our gainful work went neglected as Ernie and I, manning the smoke gun, rode over the hills. Dozens and scores of coyote dens were chosen and subjected to a fumigation of sulphur and without exception, all the inhabitants remained indoors.

Ernie finally admitted defeat.

"We'll try skunks," he decided at last, reluctantly resigning himself to accumulating his prospective fortune in a slower and less glamorous fashion. "Skunks shouldn't give us any trouble. We'll go down to the river bottoms and try it."

Skunks frequented the river areas rather than the hills. Low bluffs facing the river were 20 to 30 feet high, broken by canyons that led from the swampy low land upward and inland through prairie pasture land. In the walls of the canyons were dozens of skunk dens. The 25/30 gave way to a .22 automatic rifle.

"No need for a big hole in their skins," declard Ernie, busy at a burrow on the following day. "One quick shot in the head is enough. I don't like to fool around much with skunks."

Here at last was agreement. My own education and experience with skunks had led to the conviction that they were very delicate animals as regards their emotional stability, especially when disturbed.

There really was no need for concern. There was nothing in the hole, or if there was, it refused to come out, preferring to patiently endure the unusually foul air contaminating its burrow and calmly awaiting better atmospheric conditions. After sufficient time had elapsed to give the entrenched animal an opportunity to change his mind, Ernie doggedly gathered up the equipment and moved to another hole.

"I've had better luck smoking dens with brush," he declared with a mixture of puzzlement and disgust. "You would think the gun was jinxed. Just once I would like to see something come up."

Several dens later Ernie got his wish. The particular burrow was small, located on almost level prairie. There was enough skunk evidence about it, so Ernie decided it was worth a try with the smoke gun. While I worked the handle, Ernie patted the sacks and canvas into place over the den's entrance, and was first to notice, after a time, a flurry of activity beneath them. Something underneath the sacks was definitely seeking an opening and the fresh air on the outside. Results were finally arriving. Instructions and orders came from him in a rush.

"Keep pumping the gun," he directed. "When I say ready, jerk off the sacks. Don't get in the line of shooting. Remember, this is a skunk we're fooling with!"

The threshings under the sacks reached a crescendo, and I pulled away a corner of the coverings. Smoke poured out in a rush. Then, in a flurry of dust, smoke, and bustle, the first of nature's creatures to fall victim to the smoke gun burst from his lair.

Through the upheavel I caught a glimpse of the prey, gasped, started to grin, then glanced at Ernie and thought better of it. Standing a few yards away, where he had stopped after his hurried run, was a small burrowing owl, very angry and very disgusted. Gravely he turned his head, long eyelids blinking at the top of a very infuriated head. Slowly he drew himself up and reshuffled his feathers, ragged and displaced from his hurried exit. Ernie let a long breath of disgust and frustration.

"An owl," he spat out the words. "A darned owl. We scour the country for a week and finally come up with an owl. And a pint-size one at that. The next thing that will be coming out of the hole is a rattlesnake. Rattlesnakes and owls. Good Lord!"

"Or maybe a rabbit," I suggested helpfully and unwisely. After the tempest had subsided there was no futher mention of rabbits. By unspoken consent the smoking out was finished for the day.

"I've had enough of skunks," Ernie declared on the ride home. "It wasn't a good idea anyway. Over the other side of the river there are dens and burrows on the high bluffs that could be badger or raccoon. We'll give them a try tomorrow, although they are harder to budge than either coyotes or skunks. But we'll try it."

Ernie's fears as to the stubborness of the latter animals was well-founded. After a period of useless effort at the dens, Ernie silently acknowledged, deep within himself, that the smoke gun was scarcely what it was claimed to be. His thinking about it took a new turn. He looked at it carefully as he dismantled it preparatory to returning home. Then he looked at me.

"It's for sale. Cheap," he announced. "Do you want to buy it?"

"No thanks," I declined. "Not today. Why not try an ad in the newspaper?"

Ernie was hardly ready for this. Crossing the river towards home he was much preoccupied. "There ought to be some use for it," he said, breaking his silence. "Maybe we could use it to smoke bees. Lots of old houses and granaries have stores of honey. Let's give it a try."

The smoke gun worked admirably for this. In conjunction with the cold air, it quickly reduced the bees to non-combat status. Bee warriors, warmed by the sun, were quickly subdued by a few whiffs of smoke. Soon honey filled all of Ernie's available pots and pails. This was quite gratifying to him until he discovered that there was little sale for it. Spring was on the way anyway, and soon bee hunting lost its appeal. The gun was stored in his shop along with old kerosene lanterns, overshoes, and leather mittens. It was scarcely used after that.

The smoke gun craze lasted for several years over the county. Probably a great many were sold and used, possibly in some cases with good results. Had Ernie been more familiar with the habits of the animals he was pursuing, or had he been willing to familiarize himself with them, his luck might have been better. Other technics or different periods of daylight or darkness, or a different time of year might have helped. All this he refused to do, and by the time another fur season rolled around he was absorbed in other interests. For him the appeal of the smoke gun was over. In myself, it never had burned very brightly. In fact, I heaved a sigh of relief that it was Past.

THE END 56 NEBRASKAland

NEBRASKAland TRADING POST

Classified Ads: IS cents a ward, minimum order $3.00. September, 67 closing date, July 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. DECOYS SOLID PLASTIC DECOYS. Original Do-It-Yourself Decoy Making Kit. All Species Available. Catalog 25c. Decoys Unlimited, Box 69E, Clinton, Iowa 52732. DOGS HUNTING DOGS: German Shorthairs, English Pointers. Weimaraners, 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. GERMAN SHORTHAIRED POINTER PUPPIES. Whelped January 24, 1967. Sire—Champion Bruha's Mission Flying Wheel—BOB Westminster 1965 (Madison Square Garden). Dam-Ch. Doc's Duchess Grosshoax. J. H. Dunlap, M. D., 814 South 9th Street, Norfolk Nebraska. Phone 371-2175. MINIATURE long-haired Dachshund puppies: Norwegian Elkhound stud service and puppies; David Bartlett, Barqua Breeding and Boarding Kennels, Dewitt, 68341. GERMAN Shorthair pups for sale, out of very good stock—excellent markings—price $25 and $30. Bob Berner, Randolph, Nebraska. Phone 12. WEIMARANER PUPS. Whelped March 19. Fout females; four males. Field dog stock. Excellent pets. $50 each. Dick Wentland, Sheridan County Star, Box 385, Rushville, Nebraska 69360. 327-2313 or 327-2601. FISH BAIT HIBRED Brown Nose, red trout worms mixed. 150, $1; 500, $3; 1,000, $5. Postpaid. Mink Ranch, Paxton, Nebraska 69155. RED WIGGLERS Bait Size, Postpaid. 1,000, $4; 5,000, $17.50. Craigs Worms, 3424 North 67th, Lincoln, Nebraska 68507. 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 V4 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. JO-JO trolling weight release. Tests prove you catch more trout with this device. $2.50 each, postpaid. Joe Kirkpatrick, 503 West 4th Street, Ogallala, Nebraska 69153. 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. JUNE, 1967 STONEGROUND CORNMEAL. Most complete line Health Foods. Many processed daily. Come see us or write. BrownviDe Mills, Brownville, Nebraska. COLLAPSIBLE Farm-Pond Fish Traps; Animal Traps, postpaid. Free information, pictures, Shawnee, 3934-AX Buena Vista, Dallas 4, Texas. NEW RIDING CAMP. Girls 8-16. Other sports included. $42.50 a week. Write for a free brochure. Myers Albino Acres, Stuart, 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. FOR RENT to families or groups vacationing in the beautiful Pine Ridge: Newly remodeled, completely equipped, fully modern log house on cattle ranch. Spectacular scenery. Points of interest within easy driving distance. Horseback riding and meals available. For information write, Richardson Hereford Ranch, Crawford, Nebraska 69339. Telephone 111M1. BLUE FRONT CAFE welcomes you to spend your fishing or hunting trips at Lake McConaughv. Cabins with cooking facilities by day or week. Fishing tackle, licenses, trailer spaces. Phone or write for reservations, 284-4504 Ogallala. Grace Burnham. ZIP CODE DIRECTORY, will never go out of date. Over 35,000 listings. All 50 states. $2, Postpaid. "STANDARD", Dept. 93, Box 16213, Phoenix, Arizona 85011. FOR RENT: Large, modem, fully equipped cabin. Ideal family vacation spot. You'll enjoy fishing, hiking, outdoor fun on our ranch in the Pine Ridge. Write, Bob and Sharon Goff, Route 1, Box 89, Chadron, Nebraska. FOR those who want western hospitality, wild life, rocks, fossils, rooms, good food and in a setting of scenic beauty, the Pine Ridge of northwest Nebraska is the place. For ranch vacation rates, write: Mrs. G. L. Hamm, Whitney, Nebraska. PERMITS sold—Hunting and Fishing at Merritt Dam office. Kenneth M. Hurlbert, Valentine, Nebraska 69201. ADVENTURER, vacationer, dieter. The tired and retired—enjoy a spell in "Living Marlboro Country". Golden Horseshoe Guest Ranch, Ainsworth, Nebraska. BEAUTIFUL pheasant feathers corsages. $1 plus 5c postage. George L. Hohnstein, 137 East 4th, Hastings, Nebraska 68901. RAZOR REPAIR—Parts for all electric shavers. Will do tune-ups and major repairs. Fast and efficient. Free estimates. 1007 Miller Street, Holdrege, Nebraska 68949. 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: Freeway, Caveman 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. OUTDOOR NEBRASKAland of the air SUNDAY KGFW, Kearney (1340 kc) 7:05 a.m. KRGl, 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) 11:15a.m. KVSH, Valentine (940 kc) 12:00 Noon KOGA, Ogallala (930 kc) 12:30 p.m. KICX, McCook (1000 kc) 12:40 p.m. KFOR, Lincoln (1240 kc) 12:45 p.m. KCNI, Broken Bow (1280 kc) 1:15 p.m. KUVR, 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 WJAG, Norfolk (780 kc) 4:15 p.m. WNAX Yankton, S. Dak.(570kc) 4:35p.m. KHUB, Fremont (1340 kc) 5:15 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. KBRX, O'Neill (1350 kc) 4:30 p.m. KMNS, Sioux City, la. (620 kc) 6:10 p.m. DIVISION CHIEFS Willard R. Barbee, assistant director Glen R. Foster, fisheries Dick H. Schaffer, information and tourism Richard I. 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 Fur ley, 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 Creighfon 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 Sa»ak, 384-0582 Hastings Bruce Wiebe, 462-8317 Hay Springs Larry D. Elston, 638-4051 Kearney Ed Greving, 237-5753 Kimball Marvin Busstnger, 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 JUNE, 1967 57  

WHERE-TO-GO

Homestead National Monument, Fairview

OVER A HUNDRED years ago, Daniel Freeman filed a homestead claim on a parcel of Nebraska land, getting the jump on hordes of eager settlers to become the first homesteader in the nation. Today visitors can see the results of this historic "first" by touring Homestead National Monument located on land claimed and tamed by Freeman's plow. The national shrine is just four miles west of Beatrice on State Highway 4.

Freeman's claim blazed the way for over 100,000 homesteaders that were to eventually settle in Nebraska as a result of the Homestead Act.

A native of Ohio, Freeman was a soldier in the Union Army when the Free Homestead Bill was signed by President Lincoln in 1862. The soldier took a furlough several months later to visit the Territory and look for his future home. When he arrived in Brownville New Year's Eve to file his claim, Freeman found the little river town overflowing with settlers waiting for the land office to open on January 2. That evening as the anxious "homesteaders-to-be" partied, Freeman told his fellow revelers of his desire to be the first homesteader. They agreed he should have first chance and persuaded a land office clerk to open the office for a few minutes on New Year's Day for Daniel Freeman alone.

Finishing his service in 1865, Freeman promptly brought his bride to his Nebraska homestead. It was here their seven children were born and grew to adulthood.

The T-shaped quarter section of prairie and woodland that Freeman homesteaded became a National Monument in 1936 to honor those hardy pioneers who braved the hardships of the windswept prairies to build a home, a state, and a nation.

Anyone can relive those fascinating yesterdays simply by spending a day at the shrine. The visitor center is open daily from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. On exhibit are historic objects of pioneer days and graphic accounts of life during settlement of the public domain. The PalmerEpard homestead cabin, erected in 1867 in a neighboring township and later moved to the national monument, is also on display. Its furnishings and tools, used by pioneers in eastern Nebraska, reflect the pattern of life followed by homesteaders on the tall-grass prairie.

A one-mile, self-guiding trail begins at the visitor center and leads to the homestead cabin exhibit, the original Freeman cabin site, and the locations of later Freeman buildings, including their brick house built in 1876.

In Lincoln, the visitor is greeted by an elegant shrine sharply contrasting the simplicity of the Homestead National Monument.

For 15 years, home to the William Jennings Bryan family meant Fairview, an 11-room brick house at what is now 4900 Sumner in Lincoln. There, the same stone lions that greeted Woodrow Wilson and other world-famous visitors to the country house now welcome the public to the National Historic Landmark.

The building, constructed 1900-1902, was turned over to the Lincoln Methodist Hospital in 1922 by the three-time presidential candidate with the stipulation that it "could not be torn down or altered in size." After a long-term stint as a nurse's dormitory, the house was taken over by several groups for restoration to its original decor.

Most unique of the five downstairs rooms is the curio room, which contains among other items, a life-size Samurai warrior doll, a hand-carved teakwood table, priceless Satsuma ware from Japan, and a Zulu chieftain's spear.

A decorated ostrich egg hanging from the chandelier breaks up the otherwise sedate appearance of the parlor, where the world-famous and the obscure were equally welcome to sit and chat with "The Great Commoner".

"Fairview" is open from 7-9 p.m. Wednesday and 1-4 p.m. daily, except on Monday, April 1 to October 1. A Junior League volunteer is on hand to take visitors through the showplace. Admission is 25 cents for adults and 10 cents for children, which goes for further restoration of the silver-tongued orator's home.

THE END

58 NEBRASKAland

North Platte

wild as the west The Wild West lives again, and it's a summer-long celebration at North Platte. From the Buffalo Bill Rodeo to famous Scouts Rest Ranch, history is deeply ingrained in this modern 20th century city. North Platte is noted for its warm western hospitality. Why not sample it in 1967, and see for yourself?