Branksome Hall - Slogan Yearbook (Toronto, Ontario Canada)

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THE BRANKSOME SLOGAN. 17 In that locality it is very bluffy, and the little islands of trees obstruct the view. Besides, every other section is company land, not yet sold; and of the homesteading sections, three out of every four quarters were taken up by bachelors. Being the fall and threshing- time, practically all of those men ' s shacks would be deserted, so that I might easily be a mile or two from anyone, and sometimes a mile is a very long way. Dick was a most irritating companion. On his back I had to urge him constantly; walking, I had to drag him. He knew quite well that I didn ' t know where I wanted to go, and he was well pleased with the grass where he was. However, he was better than nothing, and we worked along in what I judged was the right direction, when presently I saw a light — a big, pale light in what, I was sure, was not the right direction. It was a long way off, but I couldn ' t bear to lose sight of it and be in the dark once more. Yet it puzzled me, because it was so big and pale. Suddenly I understood, and turned to go back — but didn ' t. Pough — pough — pough sounded breathily and lazily across the quiet prairie, and a light column of smoke accompanied the giant ' s breath- ing. A threshing outfit it was, and that light came from a caboose or cook-car. The day was a public holiday, and the engine had not been working, yet the men were on hand for an early morning start. At last, after much halting, I m ade my way, leading Dick, up to a knot of men and asked them the way to Mr. G ' s. And here I got the biggest surprise of all. All the group, evidently from a dis- tance, referred me to Jake, who, leaning against a gate-post, told me to follow this trail (I wasn ' t on one) for some indefinite distance, passing all other trails till I came to a wire. fence on the right. This I was to follow (direction not stated) till I came to Mr. G ' s corner. This I was to recognize by intuition. That ' s the only man of his kind I ever met in the west, but I had run across him at an inopportune time for me. One of the other men lighted a lantern and ouided me up the trail, and said that now I would get there all right. After what seemed ages I did come to a fence, but on the left. As a fence encloses a space, I might have spent the night dragging Dick around it. I pulled him a little way round in each direction, but knew it was waste time, so I had to put my pride in my pocket and turn back to the threshing outfit. I could be sure of finding that, for the engine was now whistling frequently. But my troubles were just at an end. I saw a moving light and made for it with frantic haste, shouting as I drew near. The light began to move rapidly towards me, and voices said : Wait, we ' re

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16 THE BRANKSOME SLOGAN. LOST Lost ! Ah, but that word doesn t mean anything at all until you ' ve really been lost, even if it is only six in the evening and a mile or two from your destination. It was all Dick ' s fault that I ever found myself in such a plight, and as Dick is a little bay pony which cannot speak for himself, 1 can tell my story without fear of contradiction. One fall day I started from home immediately after dinner on a sixteen-mile ride to school. 1 forgot, indeed, how short the days were becoming, and how long we had chatted over our noonday meal, and in this happy state of forgetfulness 1 did a very wise thing — took a new trail over which I had been driven once. The first four miles of the way I knew perfectly, and the next two passed like a flash, for an acquaintance was riding out the same road, and little Dick puts forth his swiftest paces when he has equine ( ?) company. But when our paths diverged, and Dick and I settled down for the ten miles straight south, all his enthusiasm evaporated. If I touched him with the whip he would bounce into a half-hearted gallop, shake it out into a trot, and slow down into a walk, all in six times his ow]i length. This was very tiresome for us both, and it was quite a rest for him sometimes to stop altogether and nibble the grass beside the trail. So we proceeded seven or eight miles, until I suddenly noticed the sinking sun and informed Dick that we must hurry. Dick, being a very wise little horse, knew that I meant it, and dropped his dawdling ways. At this rate we would be there in twenty minutes or so — but, behold my trail, without any warning, spread out fan-like before me; it was. a choice of three. When I want an inexhaustible subject on which to talk, I shall choose the in-follow-bility of trails. At present all I can say is that, all positions being relative, and not knowing exactly where I was, I didn ' t know quite where I wanted to go ; neither could I guess whicli of the serpentine trails before me would finally wind up at my destina- tion ; so I chose the middle course and urged Dicky on. The rail dipp-ed into a black-looking hollow behind a bluff. Too dark for me, I ' ll strike south and find my usual trail, ' thought 1. When in doubt, never change trails, would be as possible a proverb as never change horses crossing a stream. Trails just have a way of moving right out of the country as soon as your back is turned. I couldn ' t find my usual route, nor could I find again the one I had deserted. Finally I came to a standstill, knee-deep in rustling brown prairie grass, dusk settling all around me, peeping stars overhead, and nothing to tell me where to go.

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18 THE BRAjSTKSOME SLOGAIS coming for you. They M ere four of the threshermen, who had been on the cook-car when I came up, but they had set out as soon as they heard of the gallant assistance Jake had rendered. We knew you d get lost again, growled young Norwegian Carl, as he tramped ahead with the lantern. No ! IWe never been lost again. Jean Eoss. GIRLS OF ' 09- ' 10 We hope, in the future, to rouse the interest of the present girls — the girls who will shortly swell the numbers of the Alumnae Associa- tion md gradually take their place on the executive of the paper. For this reason it is necessary to have a section set aside for them, and for future numbers we earnestly solicit contributions. List of House Girls, ' 09: Marcia Allen — Toronto. Marjory Busteed — Vancouver. Gladys Blumenthal — Montreal. Gertrude Booth — Pembroke. Grace Cameron — Kiverside, California. Dorothy Code— Perth. Ethel Craig — Toronto. Grace Campbell — Chatham. Kathleen Chipman — Toronto. Agnes C ampbell — Minesing. Dorothy Chaplain — St. Catharines. Keda Eullerton — Brockville. Jean Fleck — Ottawa. Elizabeth Green — Eiverside, California. Florence Graham — Ottawa. Ethel MacKenzie — Japan. Florence McLurg — Sault Ste. Marie. Jessie McClearyi — Thorold. Barbara Munro — Winnipeg. Jean McLeod — Winnipeg. Betty Masson — Ottawa. Marjorie Norris — Ottawa. Bessie Storey — Brockville. Florence Taylor — Gananoque. Lennie Macdonald — Dawson City. Lily Thompson — Dawson City. Shirley Gendon — Bronte. Ethel Trees— Toronto. Audrey Little — Walkerville.