Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-09-08
The Belle Of San Miguel.
By FORBES HEERMANs,

1t was down On the Pecos that Capt. Dick
Mosier first INST and adopted him. Can't,
Oick was riding over from the X Bar X
ranch to the BARGE, of which he was the
general manager, one pleasant morning in |
-eses'ober, and had just reached the ford by |
the Laberde grant, intending to cross the |
river, when upon the opposite bank he spied |
q stranger. A citizen of New Mexico ap-
proaches his fellow man with caution. Al |
most the first thing an acquaintance with the
best society in that country teaches him is
narrowly to inspect chance comrade, and
TO loosen his pistol in its holster when coming
within range And so, before starting his
horse into the water, Capt. Dick had look
at the man across the stream.
The two were not very far apart-fifty
yards or So for the Pecos was not wide there
and at that distance Dick saw that the
other was tall, gaunt man of about So His
face was partly hidden behind a thin, scraggy
beard that grew randomly out of a dark, sun
burnt skin; tangled forest of hair hung
from his chin while his cheeks were like the
open prairie with only an occasional sage
brush spear to break the monotony The
narrowness Of his face was accumulated by
two small eyes, set in close to either side of a
thin, pointed nose and his head covering still
further exaggerated this effect, for in place
of the CUSTOMARY sombrero he wore a small,
knit skull cap that fitted tight to his head
This cap had once been black, but the sun
and the rain had faded it untilit had become
rusty brown, and so near the color of his
clayey hair that at glance he appeared to
be bartheaded. Altogether the first impress
sion he created was his resemblance to a
straight lne-lenCth without breadth or
thickness But he seemed harmless enough
and Can't Dick started to cross the river
giving his bronco needless touch with the
steel to hasten him When he reached the
bank, and halted there a moment, the
stranger gravely saluted him, and said slowly:
"Mornin' cap-its bout 'leven o'clock,
amt itF'
nearer view disclosed several things that
Dick had not noticed before-his dress for
one thing A ragged, faded velveteen Jacket
Intellectually covered the upper part of his per-
son, while his lower limbs were cased in a
pair of heavy leather ''shapps.n They had
evidently been made for a much shorter man
than their present owner, for there was a
yawning gap between the lower ends and the
deer skin mcccasinS that covered his feet.
He was armed cap-a-pe, with Winchester
carbine over his shoulder, a heavy Colts
forty-five revolver and a knife at his waist,
and enormous rusty spurs, with jingling
chains on his feet His saddle had once been
gorgeous affair of stamped leather, with
silver trimmings one grandee might have
used; but now it was battered and torn, hope.
leSsly beyond respectabiity. The leather
was worn away in huge patches and the naked
wood of the tree appeared unblushingly in
sight The horse matched the saddle and the
rider Altogether the stranger looked like 8
bandit who had been unfortunate in business
vet his smile was cherubic in its sweetness
''If you're goin' TO Sanity Rosy, we might
ride long together he said in a mild voice
and, although Dick much preferred to e
alone he asSented and they rode on.
II heard tell down to the Cross Circle Dia
mond ranch that they was wantin' a cook W
to the Barzee,n the stranger said, slowly, -
Just pulled my freight TO strike the job
\ Know II its SOL"
A eyes, it is so" Dick answered: ''Tm from
he Barre myself Can you cookln
Yes" be said, slowly; Il kin cook, if yol
amt too perticler 1 amt fond of cookin
Tut l kin do it. l kin fry beef, make
Iol able sallyratus biscuit, an a middlin' fai
= PIE outen most anythin' But | amt en- joye,
-cooaf' much since | reformed used to b
as bad as any of en-, he continued, leavin,
Dick III some doubt as TO whether he re
ferred to his cooking or his morals, but
seen tn error of my way an stopped on I'll
brink. got religion2-he spoke of it as if i
were an article he had purchased-"I got re
ligion with Teller was herdin' sheep witt
down on the Gallinas four year ago. He lie
me into the WAYS of the righteous an In