San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1893-10-21

one Salu LOT n6f SAKE, emu, OF perhaps
wouldn't dare ask it Of ye."
Father" she said atfect!onately, then
laying her head upon his shoulder wept
quietly, willie he, holding her hand,
spoke soothiDgly as if to a troubled
child.
Presently the wife of Chickasaw John
came in and greeted the parson in a
weak, discouraged way. Burl Yates
and her husband were absent from the
camp The poor woman seemed much
divided between sympathy for ArizUny
and desire to impress upon Parson Til
ney due sense of the hardships of a
! boomers life. Her own especial woes
she could only account for under her
| general belief that the world was
! a-growin wickeder and wickeder, 'spesh-
| ly in the nation" The parson, however,
opined that the good and the bad were
pretty well mixed everywhere" an idea
to which Mrs. Chickasaw John would
by no means agree.
Its wuss here than it used to be in
Illinoy," she averred. Il often wish we
was back there. but John, he won't give
up. He's terrible hand to stick and
hang, John is, and right here we're helt
ourselves till we've nothin left to stick
with 'cept four hands and pair of emp
ty stomachs The Robin and the MUIR
derin as is done out here-well, it's ack-
chilly unknown, sir. Here was the stage
over beyont Kickapoo stopped t'other
night. Burl Yates says they hardly left
EN- the clothes to kiver their nakedness,
and now here is Arizony in trouble, and
you too. I'm sure I'm sorry for you BOTH
but that stage Rowland alive! was you
along, parson|
The parson acknowledged that he was
along" whereat Mrs. Chickasaw John
looked him over curiously as if endeav-
oring to find that statement verified in
some way by the absence of clothes.
They didn't tech our Clothes" con-
tinued the minister, nor our shoes nei-
Their; consistently they didn't git but
little of my money. had it down my
sock leg, though if the rest had "a done
likewise they might "a made us all strip.
But they didn't seem to s'pishion me-"
And so you was really there" Chick
asaw Johns wife grew sympathetic at
once Dear Lord! And they rounded
We up rough, reckon. Well, well.
Keep your seat. Arizony. I'll get the
parson a bite. You must be hungry at
ter goin through all that. We hain't got
nuthin much to eat, but sech as it
Isl
She turned away with a melancholy
nod, as If regretting the necessity of
such explanations, or that nothing better
was at hand for hungry man, and he
a preacher too.
"Arizony," pleaded the parson, regard
ing her solicitously as she sat gazing out
absentmindedly over the struggling
camp to where the reddish brown undula-
ton of distant prairie melted into gray
horizon; "Arizony," said he, Il wish you
would tell me more about this man you
are goin to marry. Has he got any kin
back i'll Virginny?"
Il don't know for certain. l rather
think he has, but out west here we gen.
orally don't care as much where a man
comes from as the way he pans out after
we get to know him see? Burr is all
right. But-tell me, was my poor moth
er sick leng?"
Il think she'd been ailin a good while,
but she wouldn't let on till she had to,
and when she was finally took down she
went fast. Doctor said twas pneumony,
and that, with her material weakness and
her many discouragelnents, sent her into
gallopin consumption. She talked
about You to the last, and she wanted
you to leave the nation and go back
there. You've got property in Virginny
now, Arizony."
Il wish Burl would let me go, but he
won't, | know"
There was some Yates over on Smoky
run, near Ooltenah," said the parson
ruminatively They and the Eakins
fell out years and years ago. Did you
know your own mothers father was shot
down by Yates when you were baby?
That Yates Teller was nuthin bat lad
then. and he ran away and hain't been
heerd of since"
Seems to me did hear mother speak
of it, but what have we got to do with
these old quarrels?"
That there Yates boy" here the par
sons hand closed gently over Arizony's,
The was called Burl, think. Yes. I'm
most sure he was. Didn't you never
hear that?'
Arizouy pushed herself away from the
parsons side. An indignant fire CLEANED
through the tears that yet fingered in
her eyes.
Have you come way here from my
dead mothers grave-offering your love,
asking me to call you father-only to tell
ma thaSa thinns2 And of Rurl tnn2 Oh