Penny Wise and Pound Foolish

Ranger Bill, warrior of the woodland, struggling against extreme odds, traveling dangerous trails, fighting the many enemies of nature. This is the job of the Guardian of the Forest, Ranger Bill, pouring rain, freezing cold, blistering heat, snow, floods, bears, rattlesnakes, mountain lions.

Yes, all this in exchange for the satisfaction and pride of a job well done. This is a lazy time of year for most of us. Spring is just around the corner, and late winter is still in there punching.

So we haven't much to do because we can't get at it. Henry, Graywolf, Stompy and I, decided to take a ride up to Silver River Dam. Now that the weather's moderating, the construction is going full blast again.

We have no particular reason for going up, but I guess we all like to play sidewalk superintendent. Also a friend of ours, Brick Finch, is chief engineer of the project. We didn't know we'd stumble into the story.

Penny wise and pound foolish. I don't see how they can do it. Do what, pal? Build a dam across his canyon and expect it to hold millions of tons of water? Well, it shouldn't be too much of a mystery to you after studying physics and school.

Yeah, I know, but it seems so fantastic. Why, a guy sits down with a pencil and some paper, and a couple of months later he's got it all figured out. Big piece of concrete and steel weighing so much, and so wide at the bottom and the top, will hold back a certain gigantic amount of water.

And then those construction crews come out here and they start from scratch, and all they've got to go on is a blueprint. Your so-go's buying the dam is done. And it works! Now the way you put it makes it sound fantastic, alright?