San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-06-14


prevails chiefly among the poor Indian
population of charcoal burners on the
way TO the desolate Barranca of Cimar-
ron. They believe some ancient deity
appears in that gorge under the form of
a serpent and brings bad luck to who
ever sets eyes upon him."
SenOrita Luz crossed herself, her New
York education not yet having changed
her simple ways TO any great extent.
Il suppose it is only vestige of the
worship of the god Quetzalcoatl," Wal
ter continued. lone of his titles was
The Shining Snake He is the god in
whose day the cotton used to grow ready
dyed with gorgeous hues, and single
ear Of corn wGs provision enough for
large family"
Those people are half idolaters yet"
said the general, in Il fatigued way,
though they ought to have been Chris
tians these last three hundred years"
To be sure the are. They have
caves with affairs i'll them that divide
their worship with the churches; and
how often idols are found in the maguey
fields, to which the furtively pay their
devOtionS."
"Dios mio!" murmured the sonora,
piously.
The secret of l. eeping up the tradi-
ton 50 long is probably that scarcely
any one has ever been down there to test
it, for the place is IL but inaccessible"
said Walter Arroyo.
The mOZO Trinidad Jose, who had
worked as near as possible to hear the
conversation, upon this touched his hat
respectfully, and vcntured-
Il have been there and know it is
unlucky"
You have been there-you, Trinidad
JOSEF they exclaimed
Il Numbered into it once on hunting
trip, when | was Young man, from the
other end, near the lake."
And what happened to YOU"
Nothing happened to me, but the day
after my return the English governess
and many of the animals were killed by
lightning"
WAS She governes5 of your family"
NO; she was educating the children
at the hacienda-you know it very well,
general returned the mOzo. reproach-
fully; but she died under tree near
my corral.
The family told a my about this young
Enslishwoman. She had arrived to be-
gin her labors but few weeks before
her death, and she was buried under the
SEINE tree where she had met her fate.
After that Amy would hear more
about the nun &" half nun, Beatriz,
whose sweet fac" Interested her.
You know, OF C. .,,., that all the con-
vents were abol.I, Il u.Yc:' began Sonora
del prldo.
no, l am ,oTTy t. say did not know
it"
Not even the Sisters Of Charity were
exempted. Our odious, so called Laws
Of Reform -
"Lucetta" expostulated her husband.
We'll, they permit no more than three
Of the eX-nuns to live together even in
secular life" she continued, more tenn
perately. "DOna Beatriz, only novice
just beginning her religious life when
this cruel edict was enforced, was one of
those thrown out into the heartless
world Two others live with her at
Campo FlOrido. We do all we can for
the poor things" signing, and but for
our husbands, who make the laws
Well, amor de DiOs!"
Don Walter Arroyo, after leaving the
party, had ridden to his own home in the
quiet plazuela of San Ysidro. The two
eX-nuns, having breakfasted there, were
just coming out as he entered the great
green door leading to an inner court
yard.
All, if | had only known what COM
pany was here, should not have been
50 late" he said, applying even to them
the tone Of courteous compliment that
was natural to him with women.
Dona PraXediS was no doubt beyond
the reach Of all such Establishments, but
the younger, Dona Beatriz, gave him a
smile Of much favor, and even colored
little.
We can hardly expect you to arrive
at fixed hour after 50 long a journey,
my dear Walter said Miss Conception,
the eldest Of the three Arroyo sisters,
land you shall still have your break
fast"
II have already breakfasted, so as not
to put you out"
He went to his chamber, which the
kind care Of the spinsters had made per-
haps the pleasantest in the house, and
passed some hours there nervously ar
ranging the notes of his survey and other
T,,,, h., l,