The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1880-10-21

The OddneSS OF the expression 'BlDle-
men, / remember, struck me at the time,
but Hamilton made some explanatory
reply, for the quiet force of the soft
voice had certain persuasiveness about
it without the aid of his gesture, altho'
the smoke was so thick that we could not
see whether he carried the instruments
of his country or not.
Standing by the aft wheel-house, 1
found the Texan the next morning throw
ing biscuits to the gulls and gazing wist-
fully seaward.
"Your first visit to Europe2" I said,
steadying myself by the rail.
"'Yes, but would give all last year 8
herd if 1 had never come, for Kitty is i'll.
I have travelled night and day since the
telegram reached me, but La Junta is SO
far away am afraid 1 shall be too late.
"I wish l could give you an idea OF
his manner; it was more like that of a
person who had just learned the language
and was afraid of making mistakes, SO
hesitated before each word, giving every
syllable its full value. He explained
this simply enough afterward-that Kit
ty had broken him of swearing by max
ing him think before he spoke"
"But you haven't told Us who Kitty
was, interrupted the blue parasol. "Was
she light or dark2"-'his wife2"-
"wouldn't have dared!"-''a Texah wife2"
and Mrs. Brogden looked very grave at
the possibilities the flying questions
aroused.
"No, she wasn't his wife; only the
Yankee schoolmistress of La Junta. I
never saw her. She must have been an
angel, though from his description; SO I
will leave the details for your acquain-
tance hereafter. Miss Brogden;" which
outrageous fa.tery was received with
contemptuous silence.
"She lived at Junta, and would canter
over on Saturdays to Trocalara, the Tex
ans rancho, to teach his herdmen's fam
lilies. His partner, Parker, and he had
large cattle rancho not far from the
Mexican frontier, and Kitty could not
have lived OH bed of roses, I fancy
Raids, stampedes and other border pleas
antries were constantly occurring. 1 re-
member we thought him too gentle at
first to have really hailed from the plains;
but one night, when Hamilton remon-
strated with a man who, believe, had
allowed himself to get in that state de-
scribed by the sailors as three sheets in
the wind. and the fourth futtering,' and
was met with rather an uncivil reply, the
Texan shut the offender up like jack
knife with his heavy grip and the intima-
ton that he proposed to settle the bible
man S scores.
"He grew quite intimate with Hamil-
ton and me, and proved delightful
companion. He would quote readily
from many of the later poets, and knew
whole pages of Milton and Shakespeare
by heart. Kitty had taught him these,
he said, after she married Parker and
came to live with him.
"She made us read history books first, F"
he said-'many, many volumes-but we
soon got to like them better than any
thing else. The poetry she read to us;
and so we never went to the shows in
Junta after she came. Kitty has good
| bucbopJ 90 Epa fo1Ioxy oe aror 1o,,oo1
a steer, but she is too pure for Junta.-
Parker loves her, and love her too, but
both of us 10 not make up for her east
ern comforts, and so last year, as we made
good herd, and as there were no raid ;
to speak of, came to New York to get q
few luxuries for her. She wrote to me
then to go to Paris and see the exposi-
ton; SO I went because thought she
knew best, and that if 1 had seen the
world a little | should be nearer to her,
and it would not be quite so hard for her
out there. And now she is ill, and-I
am herep
"He turned impatiently away 70 ask
the quartermaster what we were doing by
the last log. The speed appeared to sat
isfy him, for he sat quickly down again
and told us how it was that Kitty had
come to live with them.
"'For two years, you Notwithstanding
that we did know-'she spent Saturdays
at Trocalara, teaching our people how to
read and write. They were very rough
at first, we are all out there-and did not
care much; bat she interested them, and
brough. picture books for the little ones,
and by and by she said she would come
ont on Sunday and we should have
churchl' with triumphant look at Ham
ilton and his Pan Anglican attendance
Yes, we had priest there before. but
he was shot in row at Bowler's Para.
disc. and no one cared to apply for
new one.
kitty came up to the rancho the
first Sunday, and asked us to come with
her. We refused at first, but, after
while. when We heard the singing, we
went down to the quarters, and found
her sitting under one of the trees with
all the young ones clustered round her;
aud we waited there and listened until
We began to feel very sorry that we had
played so late at Bowler's the night be.
| fore.
"'But Parker had been in luck, and
he swore he would get her as fine piano
as could be brought from the states (he
was half Mexican by hirth,l if she
would sing like that for Us at the rancho.
"'She stood mp then, with all the
young ones looking on in amazement,
the light and dark shade playing over
her thro' the cool, dark leaves, and,
tnrnino her LARGE urav ayac fill ~, Darl-