From My Saddle
Working for a Living

July 1, 2004

Working for a Living

In the spirit of the working horse issue I’d like to introduce you to a boy and his horse. The picture and story are from days gone by but I thought you’d find the story interesting. My brother, David Bell, had an ordinary job as a kid, but performed it in an extraordinary way. He delivered the Seattle Times on horseback! He and his horse “Dum Dum” were local celebrities. Here is an excerpt from the Sunday, March 23, 1958 issue of the Seattle Times:

How These Two Do: Dum Dum and David Deliver The Times

A modern match for Paul Revere in dispatching the news is David Bell, 14, A Seattle Times newspaper boy. Like his illustrious predecessor, David, a ninth-grader at Bothell Junior High, delivers the news on horseback.

A year ago, David, son of the Rev. and Mrs. Wayne Bell, 7255 NE 170^th St., Bothell, decided to invest the earnings from his newspaper route in a horse. He acquired Dum Dum, a 10-year-old bay gelding.

Since then, Dum Dum, with news bags swung over each side of his broad back, and David, in the saddle, have become a familiar sight loping leisurely along the country lanes in the Moorlands district near Kenmore, Washington.

David’s one-horsepowered doorstep delivery may lack the speed and dispatch of an automobile or bicycle. But there’s one consolation: No worries about flat tires or running out of “gas” for Dave and Dum Dum.

Many believe that the days of working horses are over. However, from police horses to race horses, carriage horses to ranch horses, there are still many horses that produce an income for their owners. If fuel prices keep climbing, who knows, there may be more horses on the road!

This month we pay tribute to the working horse with a feature story on ranch horses. This working ranch in Idaho gives us a window into what life may have been like 100 years ago, and what it is like today. Heather Smith-Thomas and her family have worked cattle with horses on their ranch for years and are now in the process of passing the ranch to the next generation. Learn about why horses still remain a vital contributor in today’s economy in this issue.

We’re proud of our newly designed Equine Marketplace online. Many of you have visited to see the great features including free online classifieds, new search functions and easy online ordering. Check for specials and get your horse in the magazine and online. We take you to the Northwest in the magazine, but we can take you to the world online.

July is significant for many reasons. One is the occurrence of our country’s birthday. Take a moment to stop and think about over 800 individuals that sacrificed their lives in “Iraqi Freedom”. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the loved ones who have family in this far away place.

Celebrate our country, celebrate our freedom and take time to ride!