Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1892-06-17
A WHOLE MAN.


ter, Lord help him when he gets into a
mining camp. If he wear his heart
upon his sleeve, let him steer clear Of
the Mexican towns and their pretty sen.
oritas. If he would know any peace.
let him keep away from the cattle
range, for the cowboys jests arc as 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 q whole decade he would not
find them all out.
"What the boy wants is toughening,"
said Mart Selby.
Mart was big and tough, and he saw
no good reason why anybody but a child
or woman should DO tender.
"He's young colt that wants % Mex
ican bit showed into his mouth, and then
to be ridden through the cactus"
At Lucins ranch the boys iolod and
irritated Robbins, but 10 did not seem to
toughen him. They cared nothing for
whisky that didn't scratch as it went
down, and when ho put water in his
they called him a perfect lady and
laughed loudly.
"Stand their joshius," said Mart 20
Robbins, "and youll get along better.
They'll always mako it hot for n man
that don't josh back"
"Oh, don't mind IT," said Robbins.
badly OVERRIDING his effort TO look un-
concerned.
IL had been tho famc everywhere he
had been in the west. lie was one Of
those men who arc never anything but
tenderfeet. lie simply would not take
men as he found them, though they
wero perfectly willing 20 take him so.
And the absurd ideas that had lodgmcnt
in his head Chief among these were
that he must have u fricnd-a chum-
who should be a man after his own
heart. He had been looking for such
man for two years. Ho picked him out
occasionally, but he never found him TO
suit. This one was not truthful, that
one was not temperate and the other
was not nice in his speech. There was
something lacking in each one.
"What l want is whole man." he
sighed. II never could take up with
these half made follows. But il is not
80 easy. Even when ] find man that
is temperate and intellectual he turns
out to be selfish. What would / not
give for n whole man for a friend and
companion-a whole manr'
He would not take up with Mart Sell
by, though Mart saw "the young fell
low" sorely needed q friend and helper,
particularly ono who would toughon
him. He kept on looking for his made
to-order man, but ho never seemed TO
hit upon him. Few such mon as he was
looking for arc TO be found within a
thousand miles of Lucius. In fact at
Lucin's you would be mt n loss TO dis
cover single man who did not like 90
take observations at Old Ashby's cloth
and paper ceiling through tho bottom of
whisky glass, and if you heard n voice
i will give you my word Of honor it was
no cherubs.
One day the boys outdid all their
little meannesses TO Robbins by getting
him hopelessly drunk. OF course it
was no killing matter, but he had never
been drunk before, and ho took it very
seriously and resolved TO leave camp
next day.
Mart did not like this Lis heart had
warmed toward "the young fellow"
and he hated to see HIM leave the place.
Finally he resolved to go with him.
They agreed between them that thoy
would not go on the range again. They
would go prospecting for gold.
And thus it was that they came to
make the journey over the desert to-
ward Dead Horse gulch. Now, as every
body in that country knows, the wealth
of Dead Horse gulch is great, but it is
very hard TO reach. Miners, who have
lived out the awful heat of the alkali
plain that lies all around tie buttes
wherein the gulch makes its cash, have
come back with full bolts, but none Of
them has ever gone q second time.
In suggesting this journey Mart Selby
had double object. First, he wanted
TO tougher "the young follow" and
next, he wanted 10 enrich them both.
Mart knew that Robbins had come out
west to make enough money 70 marry a
nice girl who lived In Delaware, and he
knew, too, that 1.-THE young follow" had
found money making very slow work.
From Lucin's TO tho great alkai plain
that lay before the buttc5 ia which the
gold was hidden was a long and toll
some journey. But the zeal work only
began with the crossing Of the alkali
desert.
White and naked lay the dead land
before their aching eyes. The eye Of
heaven shone down with most unreleht-
ing fierceness. No breath of air was
stirring, and the whole world was TO
them as dumb MS death.
Mart had counted on tire iluney be-
ing hard one, but not $50 hard as this
He had not dreamed that he water
would give out so soon, nor that the
horses would sink down and die as they
did.
Still they staggered on, thir forms,
bent under their heavy burdens, stand
ing out sharp and raw above the white
earth, OH which their clearly defined
shadows fell with inky blackness.
In that cloudless. mistless air, distance
seemed set Mt naught, for they travelled
ON and on toward the buttcs, and yet
they seemed TO grow no noaro;.
1t was toward evening hat thcy
reached rocky islet in the of alkali,
and there, after q very bad i ~ Of hard
tack, they fcil allccp, Noblr dreaming
az clerr gt tn. 'H ... frnelir