Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T L Y M O N T A N A M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 1 98 Barney Barnum was the owner of the general store in Butte, MT. His store was very prosperous since it was the only one in the town. Every year, Barney would host a fair. Bar- ney, one year, decided to have a great search and find contest. He took a great pile of hay and threw ten sewing needles into it. Nine were painted silver and the last one was painted gold. Whoever found a silver needle would get fifty cents and whoever found the gold needle would get a whole dollar. Nearly the whole town went to the search and find con- test. Barney did this to see who was the best finder. He was looking for his wife's golden wedding ring, that he lost. He had lost the ring in the very same pile of hay that he was hosting the search and find contest. His wife had gone to visit her sister who had not gotten married yet, and she didn't want to make her jealous, so she gave the ring to Barney for safe keeping. Barney had lost the ring when he had been sleeping on the pile of hay with the ring in his pocket. He was sick of his bed because there were too many fleas. When a boy startled him and made him jump, the ring flew out of his pocket and disappeared into the hay. So, he had decided to host the search and find contest, to find it. Everyone in the town showed up. Most of the adults sat and watched as their kids searched for needles. The younger boys threw hay everywhere. Older boys carefully searched by the edges. All the girls were at one side care- fully searching. One of the younger boys threw the golden needle and it hit an older boy in the head. After the needle fell in the pile all the children rushed to where the older boy was and began searching carefully. One boy, named Eric, hung back from the rest who were looking for the golden needle, to find the silver needles. Af- ter a while he saw something golden and picked it up, when he saw it iwa a ring. He asked Barney why there was a ring in the pile. Barney exclaimed, "That is my wife's ring!" and gave Eric three dollars. When Barney's wife got home, one naughty boy who had not got anything from the search and find contest, told her about the lost ring. Barney's wife was so mad at Barney, she boxed his ears. Even so, it was customary to host a search and find contest every year afterwards. by ERIC JUHL D I S T I NC T L Y M O N T A N A M O N T A N A M E M O R Y P R O J E C T F LY F I S H E R M A N C O N S E R VAT I O N I S T Fiction Contest D I S T I NC T LY M O N T A N A M O N T A N A M E M O R Y P R O J E C T F LY F I S H E R M A N C O N S E R VAT I O N I S T First Place 3 R D – 6 T H G R A D E Search and Find Contest

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