Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1892-11-24
A WHOLE MAN.

sensitive man has no business on
the desert. He will get proddc,i cy-
erywhere. Ii he takes uirensc a,
rough banter, Lord help him when he
gets into mining camp. If he wears
his heart upon his sleeve, let him stce,
clear of the Mexican towns and their
pretty scnoritas. If he would know
any peace, let him keep away from
the cattle range, for the COW boys tests
are rs keen and cutting as the spurs
at their heels
Frank Robbins was beginning to find
out some of these things. But if you
gave him Il whole decade he would not
find them all ont.
What the boy wants is toughcning,"
said Mart Sclby.
Mart was big and tough. and he saw
no good reason why anybody but a
child or a woman should be tender.
Hes a young colt that wants q
Mexican bit showed into his mouth,
and then be ridden through the cac
lus.'
At Lucin's ranch the boys iokcd and
| i:ri,a,cd Robbins, but it did not seem
to tougher him. They cared nothing
for whisky that didn't scratch as il
went down, and when he put water in
ms hey called him perfect lady and
laughed loudly.
stand their ioshing," said Mart to
Robbins. and you'll get along better.
They'll always make it hot for a man
that don't josh back
oh, don't mind it," replied Rob
bins, badly OVERRIDING his effort to look
uncouccrncd.
IT had been the same everywhere he
had been in the West. He was one of
those men who are never ANYTHING
but tenderfeet. lie simply would not
take men rs he found them. though
they We're perfectly willing to fake
INN 80. And the absurd IDEAS that
had Judgment in his head. Chief
among these were that he must have
Il friend chum who should be n
man after his own heart. He bad been
looking for such a man for two years.
He picked him ont occasionally. but he
never found him TO suit This one
was not truthful, tina, one was not
temperate and the other was not nice
in his speech. There was something
lacking in each one
What want is whole man" he
sighed: Il never could take up with
these halfmadc fellows. But il is not
50 easy. Even when ! find man that
is temperate and intellectual he turns
ont TO be selfish, What would | no,
give for a whole man for friend and
companion whole man.
He would not take up with Mar,
Seiby. though Mart SAW the young"
sorely needed a friend and helper par
ticuiarlv one who would tougher
him. He kept on looking for his
madc-to-ordcr man, but he never
seemed TO hit upon him. Few such
men Is he was looking for are TO be
found within Il thousand miles of
LncinS. In fact. at Lucin's YOU would
be AT 81 loss TO discover Il single man
who did not like to take observations
OF Old Ashby's cloth-and-papcr ceiling
through the bottom of whisky GLASS. |
amt II You heard a voice | will give |
You my word OF honor that ii was no |
chcrubS.
One day the boys ou,diI all their
other little WEAKNESSES to Robt,ins bv
getting him hopele>sly drnnk. or |
course. it was no killing matter: but
he had never been drunk before. and he
took il Very seriously and resolved to
leave camp next day.
Mart did not like this. His heart
had warmed toward the Young fel-
low, and he hated 20 see him leave
The place. Finally he resolved TO 20
With him.
They agreed between them 1ha, they
Wound not 30 on the range again.
They would 90 prospecting for gold.
And thus it WAS that they came to
make he Journey over the desert TO-
ward Dead Horse Gulch. Now. as cy-
Try body in that country knows. the
wealth of Dead Horse Gulch is great.
cut it is very hard to reach. Miners
who have lived out the awful heat of
he alkali plain that lies all around the
1l'tcs wherein the gulch makes its
cash have come back with full belts.
,ut none of .hcm have ever rome
second time.
IN suggesting this journey. Mart
'elhN had !, double object. First. he
wanted to tougher the young fellow
and next, he Wanted TO enrich them
both. Mart knew that Robbins had
'omc out West to make enough money
~ mail a. hicc yin VINO lived III Del
ware. and he knew. too. that "the
'olng fellow had found moncv-mak-
NO very slow work.
From l.ucin's to the great alkali
'laln that lay before the buttes in
which the gold was hidden, was Il long
nd toi'some journey. But the real
YORK only began with the crossing of
hr alkali desert.
White and naked lay The dead land
ctorc their aching eyes. The eye of
caven Shonc down with most unrc-
anting ticrccness. No breath of air
'as stirring and the whole world was
D them as dumb as death r
Mart had counted on the Journey !
,eing hard one, but not so hard as ,
his. He had not dreamed that the i
'atrr would give on, as soon, nor that
he horses would sink down and die as
hey did. /;
Still they staggered on, their forms, ,
ent under their heavy burdens, stand i
~ out sharp and raw above the white ,
arth, on which their clearly defined
ladows fell with inky blackness. /
~ hot al, |