Back in Vegas.
They no sooner got back to Vegas when Fannie called Vernon and clued
him on to what she could about the ZCMI building in Provo. She faxed
him some paperwork to apply for the building to be donated for a
museum. Told him there was a very good chance it could be done.
Linc had talked to Axel about him going into the mine with the right
people and to be sure to check on the rock-fall history of the mine.
Axel Called some of the agents in his office and got things setup to
do that the first thing Monday morning. Then he called some FBI
friends and told them all about the problems Jane and Lewis were
having with the Chinese. They got things started right away.
Fannie had never made kiwi jam, but had eaten some at a company
luncheon and liked it, but kiwis were a bit pricey to try before but
now she had a bunch of them. She got on the computer to find a recipe.
She found one, and told Linc, next time she saw him she would have
some for him.
Before he left, Linc gave Fannie an envelope with four of the French
bank notes in it, and his banking info.
Linc got in his truck and started for home. He had put a John Denver
disc in the deck and was rolling along singing with John, when a big
dog went out in the road in front of him and just stood there barking
at him. Linc stopped, and pulled off the road. The dog just stood
there beside the truck and barked, then ran off into some bushes. It
looked back and barked at him again. Linc figured it wanted him to
follow, so he pulled off the road farther, got out and followed the
dog.
It led him through the rocks, bushes and trees. Linc could hear
someone yelling, "Grandpa, Help me," then crying. He came upon a
little girl, sitting on the ground, crying her eyes out. The dog went
over to her and stood close to her. Linc watched the dog, then went
over to the little girl and asked her what was wrong, "I think I
broke my leg, and I can't walk on it", she cried. Linc knelt down
beside her and said, "Lets have a look at it". He pulled up her pant
leg and couldn't see anything wrong with it. He asked her to wiggle
her foot, and she did, He asked her if she could wiggle her toes, and
she said she could, so Linc figured her leg was just fractured. He
told the girl he would fix it the best he could until he could get her
home. Told her to just sit still until he went back to his truck to
get something to fix her leg with. Back at the truck he got a roll of
duct tape and ran back to her. He found two good straight sticks and
pulled her pant leg back down and put the sticks on each side of her
leg and told her to hold them while he tore off a couple of strips of
tape. After securing the sticks, he then wrapped tape all around her
leg, foot and sticks until he had her leg completely immobilized.
"Are you a doctor," the girl asked. "No Linc said, my Mom is." "My
name is Linc, what's your name." Linc asked. " Oh! I'm Jenny, and
this is Bessie" she said as she patted the dog. " Well Jenny, I'm
going to have to carry you over to the truck to get you home, Ok!".
Linc said as he scooped her up and started off to the truck. He stood
her down by the truck as he opened the back door and Bessie jumped in,
then he put Jenny up in the front seat. He asked Jenny where she
lived, and she told him, "down the road a mile or so". It was really
only about a quarter mile when she told him where to turn off on a
road to the right. As he drove into the yard, he could see and old
man chopping wood.
The old man held onto the axe as he started toward the truck. Linc
got out and the old man yelled, " what the hell is going on here, why
is my Grand Daughter in your truck ? " Jenny yelled out of the
window, " I broke my leg Grandpa, and he helped me home. Don't be
mad at him." Linc went around the truck to get Jenny out. Linc told
the old man, "I'll get her out so you can take her to the doctor to
get her leg put in a cast." "Good Lord man , I can't take her to
town now, my old truck wouldn't start so Jake the mechanic towed it
into town this morning. Said it might be the alternator." "Well in
that case, climb in and I'll take you into town." Linc informed him.
He opened the back door, the dog jumped out and the old man climbed
in, and the drove out of the yard.
" Much obliged. My name is Ben Carter. Who are you if I may ask.,
"said the old man. " My name is Lincoln Hanks", answered Linc. "
Well, I'll be darned. My late wife Becky was a Hanks. Claimed one
of her old ancestors that came from England, was an inventor.
Claimed he invented a water powered loom to weave silk fabrics. Said
her ancient family had a silk mill."
Linc recalled reading about that family in family papers.
Hanks Silk Mill Before 1800, most of the silk made in America was
exported as thick cocoons spun by silkworms, in its raw state. Two
innovative brothers, Rodney and Horace Hanks of Mansfield,
Connecticut, built this tiny water-powered silk mill in 1810 and were
the first to began processing silk fiber from cocoons.
The cocoons were produced by silk worms, a caterpillar, fed from the
adjoining mulberry grove. One cocoon contains a single strand of silk
up to 1,000 yards long.
This mill is believed to be the first water-powered silk mill in the
United States. The silk thread produced at this mill was sold across
the country. Soon other American silk producers followed this trend.
The Hanks later moved into a larger mill, where they continued to make
thread until the 1920's. He told Ben and Jenny about this.
"How in the world do they get silk from a worm, that sound's silly"
said Jenny.
Linc explained to her and Ben about how this happens..
"Silkworms are the larva of a moth (Bombyx mori) native to Asia that
spins a cocoon of fine, strong, lustrous fiber that is the source of
commercial silk. The culture of silkworms is called sericulture. The
various species raised today are distinguished by the quality of the
silk they produce. Silkworms feed on the leaves of the mulberries
(genus Morus) and sometimes on the Osage orange (Maclura pomifera).
Silkworms are soft-bodied, slow moving and can grow to 3 inches in
length. They are also relatively fast growing, reaching about 3 inches
in length and ready to cocoon in as little as 25 - 28 days.
Silkworm and Cocoon Silkworms go through four stages of development,
as do most insects: egg, larva, pupa and adult. The adult (imago)
stage is the silkworm moth. The larva is the caterpillar (not really a
"worm" at all). The pupa is what the silkworm changes into after
spinning its cocoon before emerging as a moth.
Silkworm moths emerge from their cocoons after spending about two to
three weeks metamorphosing. As moths, they do not eat or fly. They
will usually mate, lay eggs and die within a week. Fertile eggs turn
from yellow to gray or purple in a week or so. If the eggs don't hatch
within 3 weeks, they usually will not hatch until the following year."
"Wow! I never knew that said Ben. Learn something new today.
Anyway, Becky was awful proud of her Hanks family, and now I can see
why," "I'm proud too, even though I hardly knew Grandma before she
died. I was too little." Claimed Jenny.
When they got into town, Ben directed Linc to the clinic where the
doctor had only good comments about how Linc had splinted Jenny's
leg. After x-ray's and a cast, two furry booties, a wrap-a-round
plastic boot and a pair of crutches, Linc was able to take them back
home.
At the farm, Bessie bounded out to greet them as they drove into the
yard. Linc carried Jenny over and sat her on the edge of the porch
next to big box. Bessie stayed right next to Jenny's side. Linc
reached over and patted Bessie and told Jenny what a great dog Bessie
was. Jenny asked Linc if he had a dog, and Linc confessed he didn't.
Jenny reached into the box and pulled out a chubby, wiggly puppy. It
was a cutie that had white markings on it's face. Jenny handed the
pup to Linc, and said, " This is Angel She has an angel on her face.
She is two months old, and even though she is the runt of the pack,
she is the smartest. She will make you a very special dog. I want
you to have her." Linc was astounded. " I don't know what to say,
except thank you."
He hugged Jenny, shook Ben's hand , and with the pup, he got into the
truck and left for home.
To be continued.
