The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-02-08
SETTLING A CLAIM.

Back in the seventies" said Texas
merchant who was ION east buyirg
Foods, when I was adjuster for big
mercantile house of Galveston, was
rent to investigate a creditor OF theirs
out in the southwestern part of the state,
my instructions being to collect the
claim or run an attachment on the con-
Germ.
Sat the end of 80 hours run on the
train I found myself in -, the nearest
railroad station to P, the town of my
delinquent customer, which upon in
uuirv found to be II miles west on the
Mexican border.
In my prowling about , whom
should l run across but my old friend
Bill Scott, captain of the Texas rangers,
who asked me what was doing out
there. frankly stated my business and
asked if he knew the man was going to
settle with.
50 Know Gringo Perez? Scott repeat
ed. Well, / reckon I do-that is, by
reputation" He's a regular fire eaterl
Why, man alive, Gringo Perez has fine
hairs like you on toast for breakfast.
He is a greaser, you know, whom his
fellow citizens nicknamed sGringo'-
their term of contempt for an American
because he gave up sheep shearing and
horse stealing, and took to the slower
but surer business of merchandise. He's
a holy terror-adds notch to his pistol
butt every six months and two during
election! Pay? Why, he don't pay for
anything, and as for your attachment
you'd as well try to serve attachment
papers on the devil for back bills on
brimstone!
".Say, Rice, think I'd better ride
over with you. We are making this
headquarters while we make roundup
of this seasons crop of horse thieves,
road agents and fence cutters in this part
of the country, and I can leave word
for the boys to join me at P when
they come in this evening. We might
come in handy if you get into any trou-
ble.'
SIT is needless to say that accepted
Ecott's offer with avidity, though gave
him to understand that had not under
taken to adjust that claim under the i'm
preston that was going to q Sunday
school picnic and would need to wear
my billed shirt.
"It was about noon when we set out
for P, riding one of SCOTS extras,
a wiry, nimble footed little broncho. I
had taken the precautionary measure of
getting out my attachment papers before
we started-which l still hoped to use
only as last resort in bringing Mr.. Fire
Eater to terms.
st was close upon o'clock in the
afternoon when we rode into P, a
typical Texo- Mexican border town. Most
of the houses were 1-story adobes.
struggling along either side of the main
street, which was nothing more or less
than the continuation of the wagon road
from one settlement to another.
.sThere were punches of chaparral here
and there about the outskirts of the
town, and dense tllicket Of it lay about
3 mile away to the west. Five of the
nine business houses had Saloon in big
letters over the door, and calmly and
peacefully confronting me when we got
off our horses was the sign, q. Perez,
dealer in dry goods, clothing, hats, caps,
millinery, boots, shoes, notions, gro
ceries, hides, wool, agricultural nipple
ments, etc. which covered the entire
gable end of the implanted, weather
boarded store.
Tiled to the racks on either side of the
public well were s or 10 ponies, their
TANKS weighted down by the big Next
can saddles, which varied their monot-
onous DURANGO by biting and kicking at
each other while their Indifferent riders
loafed on the steps and stoops of the
stores, telling yarns, smoking cigarettes,
playing poker and reading the county
papers, which were handed out regard
less of address by the obliging postmas-
ter.
I'VE found Perez in. He scooped out.
weighed and tied up 81 worth Of sugar
for slab sided girl, while introduced
myself and stated my business. This
professional duty finished and the lid
put back carefully ON the sugar barrel,
he casually INFORMED me Unab my mousse
might go to hill, and that he'd pay when
he got ready and not before.
Naturally this reception did not
tend to increase my amiability, and I
promptly turned on my heel and went
out, intending to put my attachment
papers in the hands of the deputy sheriff
and instruct him to serve them at once.
"But the deputy turned pale at the
mention of serving papers on Gringo
Perez, kindly explaining to me that his
present incumbency of Office was the re-
suit of his never, under any suckum-
stances, meddlin with other folkses' bust
nesses.
"Of course I did not attempt to gain
say so obvious statement and was just
taking mental inventory of my ammu-
milton preliminary to man to man set
Element with Mr.. Gringo, when Scott
overlook me at the door of the deputy's
Office, and hearing the new turn given
to my situation said:
That's all right. I'll serve your pa
per. The captain of the Rangers is viz
tually a sheriff anywhere in the state
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