Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1891-12-11
CLEAR GRIT.
An Incident on the Famous Call
ente Trail.

In their weary journey across the
the barren mesa the travellers had sud-
denly come to halt. What they had
dreaded from the time they had left the
stage road station and set out on the
trail had come to pass and they were
sore distressed. Bad water and the
ipsufferable heat of the desert had
stretched Big Bunster out on his blank
cts, and he was talking abouthis moth
er and asking the others to break the
sews to her gently.
Bunster had not felt we'll when he
left Flagstaff, but like the well-mean-
ing young idiot that he was, he per-
sisted in facing the dangers of the trail
with the others. So, as he grew less
steady on his burro, and the fever took
. firmer hold upon his big, lazy body,
his head dropped lower over the pom
mel, and jim Yost the guide and the
only man of the whole six of them who
really knew what danger the big fell
low was in, determined to call halt
II don't want TO see him die in his
saddle" Jim said in whisper to Zach
Rawlins, land unless we kin git him
inter more comfortable shape, he'll
croak afore shutdown"
So they paused in the shade Of mass
of rocks, piled up in the fashion the
Titans had of doing things in the days
when the Grand canyon of the Colorado
was young And they were nightly
glad to rest there, for to be stared out
of contenance all day long by such q
sun as only the great desert knows, is
enough to drive man long way to-
ward shady spot.
Big Bunster felt easier, but he knew
he would die, he said, unless he could
get a sip of decent water He saw
clearly enough that that was impossi-
BILE, and so, In his lazy way, he was
letting go Of the strings Of life.
Don't wait for me to die, boys" he
said; keep along on your way, or you
will all drop down as I have done.
always was rather slow, and l want to
take my own time dying. Don't stop
for me-" Then he looked up into Zach
Rawlins face and smiled one of the
queerest, ghastliest smiles Zach had
ever seen. And then Zach, who was
the best and truest friend Big Bunster
had ever had, stuck his heels in the
sand, and said it w as beastly shame
that such a good fellow should come to
such an end. He wanted to know why
their miserable guide had led them SO
far out Of the way, why they were
here, forty miles from nowhere, and
why the guide had promised to find a
spring when he had known nothing OF
its existence, and why, in the name OF
all that was holy, something could moi
be done.
"Wal, yer needn't git so cursed
riled," rasped out the grim Yost
"Nuthin' kin be did now. We can't
GO no further, or your man'll drop dead
as that snake-skin thar. AS 1t is, .he
stands some show. Well strike Ca.
liente trail afore dusk, when its gifts
cooler It's right over thar" and the
rugged Yost pointed knotty fore6n'
ger across white expanse, over which
lines of heat were quivering as If the
very air writhed under the pitiless fire
from on high.
"What good will it do Bunster, if we
do get thereP" whispered some one.
"Good9" returned the guide; ''why
thar's water four mile from that all
trail-ef we kin git down to it."
"Git down TO I'll OF course we will,
spoke up Rawlins. Cheer up, ole
man." said he, soothingly, to the
parched Bunster, whose tongue wa,
out and whose eyes were staring
across the train toward Caliente trail
"there's water over there, and yor
shall have good drink, my boy"
"Water-yes, l see it; it's sort o.
gray-blue, isn't it? Why, there's {
great lake-what a sightr and the
thirst-plagued man stared at the pic
ture his disorted vision had conjuret
up; and, drawing in his tongue, hi
pressed his cracked lips together, as il
gluing them to the brim of glass full
of the sparkling liquid, for which h,
wouAd have given anything he pos
sessed for one soul-satisfying swallow
His torture, and that of the friend who
watched over him while he lay tossing
on his blankets, was allayed to a de
gree few hours later, when the fierce