Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-03-10

was carried OUT, tnOOgn perhaps not DIS L
had hoped.
1T was evening when | reached the
city, with its narrow streets and low. leaf
thatched houses, rudely and weakly built,
but having some show Of neatness On the
inside. All the buildings seemed alike,
and there were no stores or big signs Of
hotels or restaurants. The dusky, half
savage people stared coldly at me, and
made me feel more alone than ever. |
wandered along, hoping TO see a familiar
sign of some sort, at least some show of a
decent nights lodging and good square
meal. The tough looking guides on the
other side of the mountains had robbed me
of most Of my money, put | had little
left. Yet it was growing dusk and did
not know what to do, for | could not speak
the ordinary patois Of the people to make
any inquiries.
SAT last, however, my happy eyes saw
the Spanish word for restaurant printed
on a slip OF white paper with lead pencil
ard stuck IN glass window. Without
ceremony | entered. There was a large
room Of rough, plain boards, and in the
middle os it one long table covered with a
white cloth. At first | thought that there
was no one present, but as | grew used to
the faint light made out the form Of a
girl sitting at the further end of the table
with her head buried in her arms. gave
a loud g1unt TO attract her attention, and
she quietly raised her head. AS well as
could see thought she was good looking
and a a young woman. | vaguely felt
happy and wondered what language she
spoke. AS | resolved in my mind the
possible methods Of finding this out and
was about to begin with English and try
all knew, l. picked up an ea-then plate,
and as | toyed with it On the table in my
youthful embarrassment, accidentally let
II fall to the floor, where it broke in
several pieces, much to my establishment.
At this the girl started quickly to her feet
in little alright, exclaiming very dis
tinctly-
"Gracious!"
so she Was English. In my delight
at the discovery I forgot all about the
plate, but stepped quickly forward and
took her hand, not quite without en-
barasment, and explained, as briefly as |
could who was and what | wanted. You
may be sure she was as delighted to see
me as | to see her For whole year the
only kindred face she had seen was her
father and that she remarked. was cover
ed with shaggy beard She confessed that
when | came In she was shedding a few
tears CT inconsistencies herself, and wond.
ering if no friend would come to her, or if
her father could not be persuaded to take
her back TO Cuba, where her home had
been.
Il think | was never happier in my life
than | was that night. We two seemed
to have come to each other at just the
moment that each was most welcome, and
we found our thoughts so alike and our
tastes SO congeniai that we sat and talked
a full hour before my hungry stomach
even had chance TO assert Itself. You
may be sure | was well served with good
supper, as hot and steaming and dainty as
an English girl could make it. Then
when we had spent another hour in eating
and chatting over it, and | had helped
clear the dishes away and wash them, and
my friend had decided to let the sweeping
go Until the morning, because | must start
early, the old father, a bluff, taciturn man,
came in and joined the conversation with
US, aud | quite forgot my WEAKNESS until
it WAS very late.
my new found friend, the old gentle
man, was person Of some authority ia
the place and offered to provide me with
an escort Of twelve mounted men TO
Buenos Ayres, which was some nine
hundred miles across open plains where
two hostile tribes were at war. Each
tribe bad a cockaGe as d badge, one of red.
the others of white BY having both
of these sorts Of cockades in our pockets
and dexterously pulling out the right
one when company Of armed men ap-
preached US, we hoped to pass all lines
safely and the event proved happy,
though we bad some narrow escapes.
when | was ready to START in the
morning, | suddenly, half jokingly asked
the Young women to whom | had become
much attached in q single evening, to &C
company tae as far as her cid home in
Cuba, and | promised her father to take
good care of her. Somewhat to the aston
ishment Of us all, that Of the young woman
not the least, she took the notion of heg-
ging her father to let her accept my offer,
and he finally consented.
eve were just IN the nick of time at
Buenos Ayers to head off the runaway
ship. The captain had taken out his pa
pers already when we arrived and was
planning to sail the next morning. But
he and all his mates were quietly arrested
while still on shore and | myself took COM
mand of the vessel, shipped new crew
and with the newly discovered treasure
from the heart OF the desert, sailed for the
West Indies, where spent happy month
at the young lady's home in Cuba.
cit is needless to say that she became
Mrs. Farlow and you are quite we'll
enough acquainted with her to excuse noe
from expatiating further upon her beauty
and other attractive qualities. boston