Hess Martha Page Four Galloping Goose The sailor took off his white hat, scratched his thick red hair, did some other stunts to let me know he was thinking, and then replied, "That's a Gismo." By Rose W. Jorgenson "What is that thing running, jumping, bouncing and swaying through yonder field?" I asked this question of several people. One sailor gave me this answer, "Why, that's a Gismo." "What is a Gismo?" I inquired, as this word was new to me. The sailor took off his white hat, scratched his thick red hair, did some other stunts to let me know he was thinking and then replied, "Well, a Gismo is a name for something that we don't know the name for. No! it's a thing that you know what it's used for, but you don't know what it is. No! You know what it is but you can't explain it. No! You don't know what it is used for. Oh, please, lady! A Gismo is a Gismo and that thing is what I would call a Gismo." With this he put on his very wrinkled white headpiece and looked at me as if to say, "Please don't make me explain; I have made it very clear." I wondered why all the sailors I saw seemed to like their hats to look like someone had sat on the rims, but that didn't tell me what I wanted to know. I started to wander around to ask someone else what it was when I saw this thing or "Gismo," to quote the sailor, stop at a funny little house without any front on it. I dashed over to this house as fast as I could go only to see the Gismo leap four feet, bounce two more and go running wildly north toward Ogden. Was I disappointed! I saw an old lady trying to collect herself. Thinking something had happened and I might be able to help, I walked quickly and carefully, as I had on my high heels, and offered my assistance. "Young lady," she said, quite indignantly, "it's plain to see you've never rode on that contraption." "No, I haven't," I replied. "What is it?" "Its real name is Bamberger," she answered with a look of disgust. "Is that a Bamberger?" I said in amazement. "I thought it was a Gismo." "A Gismo indeed!" she exclaimed as though I had traded her hats, which I couldn't do because I liked mine better. "If you ask me, and you did ask me, it is a thing-a-ma-jig, a contraption, a doo-flinky," and her words trailed off in the distance as she hurried away. Her hat was cute, but I still liked mine better. "Corn!" I thought. I didn't know how true that statement could be. There was only one other man waiting at this little house called Roy when I arrived. I wondered if he could tell me something new about this thing, and since he looked like a gentleman, I decided to ask him. "Kind Sir," I said to get his attention because I didn't know his name. "Could you tell me what this is we are waiting for?" "This," he said, "is a Galloping Goose." Why do you call it that?" I questioned. "It isn't a goose, is it?" "No, it isn't," he answered, "but it sure gallops." Upon the horizon appeared a huge light. "This must surely be it," I thought to myself. My spine began to feel alive, as though a column of ants were using it for a parade ground, as the Galloping Goose came galloping to a stop. I didn't even get a fair chance to get a seat. Before I could even get my little self through the door, the darn thing had started. I tried to grab hold of something as it passed, but there just wasn't anything I could reach when I could reach it. It started off with a bound, then a leap, and started to run. Although the train was almost empty, I slid past the first five rows of empty seats on the first bound, past the next three on the leap and I had made up my mind to continue going forward when the Gismo started to run. Here I fell, you might say, for the floor. As I tried to sit still and think what a lady would do in a situation like this, I saw a peculiar looking object rolling down the isle in much the same manner as I had come down it. I hoped I hadn't looked quite as silly going from side to side as it did. "Hey! That's my beautiful hat!" I cried and started after it. I prefer not to say how I caught up with it, but I know I hit every seat in the car or at least I thought I did. I was almost up to it when the train gave an extra ambitious leap and I lit square on the hat. I tenderly picked up what remained of it and fell into the nearest seat. My new hat was a mess. The beautiful new green feather was broken in three different places, and the little green bow looked a little crushed. After my traveling around the seat for what seemed to be an eternity, we finally pulled into the station. After I had been lifted down from the Gismo by the conductor I guess he thought I wasn't strong enough to get down by myself I stood there staring at it. The conductor came up and asked me if anything was wrong. "No," I replied, "nothing that a new green feather, a little green bow and the cleaner can't fix." Page Five