Los Cerrillos rustler. (Cerrillos, N.M.) 188?-1891, 1890-11-07

re hNAAfht fuAl leads ~ hfNutuus hlt
nobody lives on IL on. yes h l.
Travelled some h addrA In response
- my question. but in caso you have
- leave the team. you know
"All rights IN look ouL but tell the
lady - hurry for the horses aro CON
ing"
TIE landlord vanished. and I pre-
pared Cor the drive. When I had donnea
ny overcoatA turned up the collar Of
tue outer one. pulled down my fur cap
and taken two turns around my neck
with . huge comforter. I caught a
glimpse Of myself In the glass, and
laughed AZ the thought that my intend
ing passenger would not be able 10 tell
whether she had . young man or an old
M Tor q companion-scarcely. indeed.
whether ] was black o. white
Going out 10 the sleigh. I arranged
the robes 10 my liking, and was just be-
ginning 10 get impatient 10 be OF. when
an animated bundle Of clothes with a
suggestion OF femininity about IT,
smcrgcd from the inn-door, followed by
the landlord.
'flere's your passenger, SIR. he cried.
adding: by gracious, but its a cola
night
A munled voice from out Of the bum
die Of clothes said something that did
not quite catch; but ] made no reply TO
either. The lady took her place in the
sleigh. sprang In beside her, the land
lord and the hostler tucked In the robes.
babe US goodnight and we were of
under the shining stars, with much
tinkling OF bells. the slcigh-runners
singing over the frosty snow. IL was
twenty-four miles TO Brcnton, and the
loneliest road in the State.
4 did not feel sufficiently ~reconciled
to having a companion to be much dis
posed to conversation; but, as tho wind
came with more than unusual fiercencss
through an opening In the trees, ] in
quired OF the lady IL she felt cold. She
hesitatcd for almost a minute before re-
plying. when she assured mo by a curt
m~onosTllahle that she was not So
ciablc-yery! thought !. and made no
further effort 20 talk. Tho going was
heavy, but not especially SO, for the
way lay through the forest and was not
drifted. -Four miles brought MS to the
burnt land, 4 long, wind-swept space,
whore there were just enough fallen
trees along the roadway 10 catch the
driven show. II soon appeared that the
road here was a succession Of drifts, not
deep, but solid. and that, II any teams
had been over Il during the day, thcii
tracks had long since been filed In.
Indeed, ! could see In the bright star.
light that fine snow, almost like ice
dust was moving swiftly over the
great white surface spread out before
us. The horses could no longer trot.
! but settled down to u walk. the wine
whistling through the harness and blow
ing their names and tails till they pro
! iected almost horizontally. How colC
IL was! In tho northwest the brigh
disk OF Venus shOne with wonderful
splendor, and the pitiless wind seemed
, TO come straight from the star. There
| seemed to be a merciless glare In tn,
splendid planet and Tlonged for a clouC
| TO cover II from sight shivercd undo
all my clothing and began to feel un
easy for my companion.
"Are you cold?' ! shouted, for tn,
/ wind rendered it useless TO speak in Al
ordinary tone, munled as we were, an,
not facing each other.
She answered thatshe was, whereupoi
0 | told her to get as low down in tn.
r sleigh as possible, which she did, and
' pulled tho robes over her head, sh.
: nesting very close to me. Somcho'
this was not altogether disagrecablo
y and in my Imagination | began to picI
= ure what my companion was like.
n concluded that she was young an
n beautiful, without any reason whateve
;, except that it would be vastly NOR
c pleasant to be taking care OF such
d girl than Of one who was old and IL
r favored.
d The wind-swept stretch OF roao wa
six miles long, and when we had gon
about q third OF the distance the horse
stopped. Looking ahead | found tina
the drifts had deepened and that the
l. were standing In IL up TO their bodiei
| urged them a little, but soo saw tbs
Y IL was OF no use. They only plunge
% in a manner to ~cndanger thomselvC
h aud the sleigh. There was but on
l. thing to do-get out and break a roa,
l. Telling my companion to crouch low
W the sleigh | covered her well with II
1t robes, and going in front Of the hors'
,r began to tramp down the snow. III
r poor animals stood shivering in Il
ID wind, and / worked with all my spec
yet 1t was more than an hour, ! judg
4 before ! had a track made for ther
a When | returned to tho sleigh | vi
n thoroughly heated, and as wet from pc
ot spiration as II / had been plunged in
ID water. knew was running n fearf|
he risk in sitting down in that piercir
II wind. but there seemed TO be no alte
n~nfivp. 50 nrntecfinr mvRnlf rs Mnll