ich blazed on the earth, we saw a shack in
the distance, the reflection of the sun on yellow boards. It was farther
away than it appeared to be with the bright light against it.

This new home was larger than the regulation shack, and it had a
gable--a low-pitched roof--which in itself was a symbol of permanence in
contrast to the temporary huts that dotted the plains. It was made of
tongue-and-groove drop-siding, which did away with the need of tar
paper, and in the homestead country marked a man's prestige and
solidity.

We were met at the open door by a pretty, plump young woman. A little
girl of seven stood quietly at one side, and a little boy, perhaps five,
at the other. As we stood there with the jug she broke into a pleasant
laugh. "You've come for water! We have no well, but Huey hauled two
barrels this morning from Crooks's, several miles away."

We were led into a large room, clean and cool. After one has been in a
low, slant-roofed, tar-papered shack that becomes an oven when the sun
shines on it, entering a house with a gable is almost like going into a
refrigerator. There wasn't much in the room except beds and a sewing
machine. The floor, on which a smaller child was playing, was bare
except for a few rag rugs, but shining. An opening led into a small
lean-to kitchen with a range in one corner; in the other a large square
table spread with a checked tablecloth was set ready for the next meal,
and covered with a mosquito bar. The home, the family, gave one a
feeling of coming to anchor in a sea of grass and sky.

We learned that the name was Dunn and that they were dirt farmers from
Iowa, but they had not come in time to do much farming that season. They
had thrown up a makeshift barn as a temporary shelter for the horses and
one cow until they could build a real barn--after they found out what
the soil would do, Mrs. Dunn explained.

She hurried out to the kitchen, talking as she moved about, and came in
with coffee and a plate of oatmeal cookies.

"I am so glad you are going to live here," she told us. "Neighbors
within a mile and a half! I won't feel so much alone with neighbors
close by to chat with."

We hadn't the courage to tell her that we weren't going to stay.

"You must have found the shack dirty," she said, with a glance at her
spotless house. "A bachelor homesteader had it and they are always the
worst. They wait until the floor is thick with dirt and grease and then
spread newspapers