Sunday, April 1, 2012

Chicken Dinner: Horse Thieves, Bedbugs, and Charity

by Jacquie Rogers

There's no fooling today on this April 1! Everything on Chicken Dinner is genuinely legit. No, I don't have my fingers crossed behind my back--you're safe. Back in the Old West, danger lurked everywhere be folks watched out for one another, and so did the press.

Newspapers weren't afraid to make comments about a person's guilt in the olden days, and no one had any sympathy for a horse thief. This is from The Owyhee Avalanche, Nov. 19, 1870:
A young man named John Germaine, stole Hank Townsend's horse, saddle and bridle from a shed near Springers stable last Sunday night, and started on the road to Elko. Rightly surmising the direction taken by the thief, Hank started after him the next morning and found the horse, minus saddle and bridle, tied in the bush about two miles beyond Walbridge's sawmill on Boulder Creek. Supposing that the fellow would come to Fairview after something to eat, Hank went up there the next night and found his man in a high old state of intoxication.

By means of threats he was induced to bring in the saddle and bridle, which he had concealed in the bush near where the horse was found. As Hank had recovered all the stolen property he did not have the scamp arrested, not wishing to put the county to unnecessary expense.

People should be aware of the thieving scoundrel, as he intimated that this was not the first horse he had stolen, nor would it be the last. If caught making off with another horse that does not belong to him, a dose of gun shot would probably cause him to have a better regard for the rights of property.
Got bedbugs? The newspapers were helpful in many ways, and here The Owyhee Avalanche tells how to get ride of unwanted sleeping guests.
REMEDY FOR BEDBUGS: We have pretty good authority for saying that the boughs and leaves of teh common Juniper trees that grow in abundance in this country, constitute a thorough rememdy for teh vile pest, the Bedbug. The plan is to decorate your apartments with the green boughs, renewing them when they become dry. Instead of straw ticks, fill a tick with Juniper leaves and small twigs and place it under your mattress, and gnerally about and through the bed between blankets etc. This is a cheap rememdy, and we are assured very effective.
In 2012, we aren't much farther along curing some disorders and diseases than we were back in the Old West. One of those is a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis.

I'm donating six books to commenters in the Charity Hopping Around The World Blog Hop, so please check out my author blog, and also try the links at the bottom of the page to read about other charities and enter to win stuff. Don't worry, we're not hitting anyone up for donations. We just want to inform. And give away a few books.


Contest: Winner's Choice!
This week's guest, Sarah McNeal, gave away a pdf copy of the winner's choice of Harmonica Joe’s Reluctant Bride or the revised edition of The Violin.  So who is the lucky winner?
Linda Swift
Congratulations, Linda!

See you at next Sunday's Chicken Dinner.

Hearts of Owyhee
Coming May 15: Much Ado About Mavericks

3 comments:

  1. Interesting post, Jacquie. I can just see us all going out and filling rooms with juniper...:-)

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  2. Jacquie, what a fun psot. for those of us who are greatly allergic to juniper, I'm not sure whether the bed bugs or the cure is worse. LOL

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  3. Thanks, Andrea and Caroline. I see my keyboard is having trouble again. LOL. Sorry about the typos.

    Not sure if the juniper would be all that effective, and certainly not comfortable, even if you aren't allergic!

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