Smyrna times., 1885-10-28
Good as a Dime Novel.
A BOSTON COLLEGE Boys ROMANCE IN
THE SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS.


The movements of a real cowboy on
Kearney street, says the San Francisco
alta OF recent date, attracted attention
recently. lie stood nearly six feet in his
6oots, and his regular features and
6roOplng blonde mOustache gave his
face an aspect Ofbeauty fully in keeping
with his handsome proportions. His
attire is that of the vaquero, consisting
otbuckskin trousers, a woolen shirt fas2
tened to the throat with a carelesslv
knotted silk handkerchief, a coOrse
chinchilla sack coat and brOad-brimmed
felt hat of the sombrero pattern. An
Alta reporter learned his name and his
tory. His name was Edward n. Will
let's, and some six wears ago he was at
college, when he received peremDtOrv
orders from his father. a wealthy Bos-
ton merchant, to enter the tbeOlopical
class and tit himself for the ministry.
The command came like a thunderbOIt
to the happy-gO-lucky fellow who had
always believed himself destined to
follow his father in business when the
latter should be ready to retire. A
quarrel with his pere was the result
and the young fellow suddenly left for
the West.
AT Cheyenne he laid over for a short
hunt on the plains. The wild life of
the cowboys caught his fancy. Salary
proved little object, and he had little
difficulty in attaching himself to a big
ranch until he had mastered his new
vocation. Finally he drifted through
| portions of Montana, Nebraska, Dako-
ta' Idaho, Nevada, and finally into
Oregon and California. The opening
OF the Summer found him engaged with
three or four comrades in driving a
small band of steers over the Santa Cruz
mountains. Cattle in the mountains
are not pleasant objects to deal with.
Every unruly steer that broke from
the band required an hours chasing up
and down steep slopes, over rocks and
fallen trees, and through the spitef1l
brush
Towards the end of the drive the
steep bluffs that line the road on either
hand kept the steers in fairly GOOD
order, and only occasionally did an un-
usually juicy bunch of grass tempt
some hungry one to bolt up the slobe
or into the canon below. 1t was an
occasion of this sort that sent Willetts
careerlng among the brakes and ferns
on the slope above. A chase of half a
mile has seen the truant return to the
road, and Willetts was skirting the edge
OF the bank some distance in
advance of the drove in search of a
safe place to descend, when in the
middle of the narrow road he saw a
lovely girl. The drove was thunder
ing down on her and promised to soon
crush her young life out beneath their
ponderOus weight. Escape for the
girl seemed impossible. From the
road to where Willetts horse stood was
a wall of rock full twenty feet in
height, and below to the bed of the
stream was a sheer descent of double |
that distance. For only a second was |
the horseeman inactive. Then, with |
the speed born of long practice, he |
lltted his trusty raw-hide RATA from |
the horn OF his saddle and threw it.
Put that under your arms, miss" |
was Willett's hastY injunction. 1t was
obeyed, and not moment too soon |
the girl was lifted above the heads and !
horns of the Oncoming cattle.
When they were well by, Willetts
slowly Stacked down until his catch -
dropped softly to the earth. Five min
utes later, when he managed to find a
pathway down and reached the subject
OF his daring bit of horsemanship. she
was lying in the dust in faint. When
she recovered, he learned that she. too.
was from Boston, and with her father
and mother was spending the Summer
amid Calitornia's most favored spots
The old gentleman, her father. was
highly delighted when he learned of
Willett's identity, as he soon did.
His daughter fOolishly placed high
value on my little service" explained
Willets, blushing, "and when l saw
how she had Over-estimated it, I mean
ly demanded the largest reward I could
think Of The details were settled
and | came up by the evening train
to fit myself for her society. She
swears that 1 look like an angel in nv
woolen shirt and buckskin trousers.
but ! will try to get her used to me in
civilized garb, for a vaqueros dress is
hardly the thing for esthetic Boston,"
Are you going back ?"
Yes, in September. We shall tour
Yosemite as man and wife, and then
go back home. My father-in-law saws
that my father has long been anxious
to have me come home, and that he
will set me up if the old gentleman
doesn't, so | think had better 60"
nnf Of f1o