The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-01-07
CHAPTER !.


that trimmed the desert with purple
and gold. Out on the barren hard
baked fiat in front of the corral lust
where it had been unhitchod when tie
paymaster and his safe were dumped
soon after dawn, Il wcatherbcaten ann
bulance was throwing rnhrol;on mile
long shadow toward the distant Chris
tobal. The gateway TO the east through
the Santa Maria sharply notched i'll the
cleaning range, stood days march
away-a days march now only made
by night, for this was Arizona and
from the rising of the sun to the going
down of the same anywhere south of
that curdlng mud bath, the ella, the
only human beings impervious to the
fierceness of its rays We're the Apachcs.
And they" growled the paymaster
as he petulantly snapped the lock of
his little safe, they no more human
than SO many hyenas.
big man physically was the Gus.
todian and dsburscr of government
greenbacks-so big that, as ne stepped
forth through the aperture in the hot
adobe wall, he duckcd his head TO
avert unwilling contact with its upper
edge. Green glass goggles. Il broad
brimmed straw hat, Il pongee shirt,
loose trousers of brown linen and dust
colored canvas shoes made UP the outer
man of personality as distinctly I'M
military as it was ponderous. Slow and
labored in movement, the major was
correspondingly sluggish in speech.
He sauntered ont into the glare of the
evening sunshine and becamc SLOWLY
conscious of IL desire to swear mt what
he saw; that, though III Il minute or two
the day god would "Gouse his glim"
behind the black horizon. no prepare
ton whatever had been made for Il
start. There stood the ambulance. cv-
cry bolt ana link and tire hot us Il stove.
lid, but not Il mule in sight.
Turning to his left, he strollcd along
toward Il gap iii the adobe wall ana
entered the dusty interior of the corral
One of the four quadrupeds browsing
under the brush shelter languidlv turned
an lnquiring eye and interrogative ear
In his direction and conveyed, after
the manner OF the mule, IL suggestion
as to supper. A Mexican boy, sprawl
Ing In the shade of Il bale of govern
ment hay and clad in cotton shirt and
trousers we'll nigh as brown as the skin
that peeped through occasional gaps,
glanced up at him with languid inter
est an instant, and then resumed the
more agreeable contemplation of the
writings of an impalcd tar;lntula.
Under another section of the shed two
placid little burros were dreamilv
blinking at vacancy, their grizzed fronts
expressive Of that inetfablc peace found
only i'll the faces of saints and donkcys.
In the middle of the Enclosure IL rude
wlndlass coiled with rope stood stretch
Ing forth decrepid lever arm. The
whlppletrcc, dangling from the end
over the beaten circular track seemed
cracked with heat and age. The stout
rope that stretched faulty from the coil
passed over a wooden wheel and dis
appeared through broad framed apcr-
ture into the bowels of the earth.
Close at hand in the shade of n brush
covered "leanto" hung three or four
huge ollas, carthcn water Jars swathcd
i'll gunnysack and blanket Beyond
them, warped out of all possibility of
future usefulness, stood what had once
been the running gear of California
blackboard Behind it dangled from
dusty pegs portions of leather harness,
which all tho ncats!oot oil of the mil
itary piarmacopmia could never again
restore TO softncss or pliability. A
newer edition of the same class of We
hlclc was covered by canvas "paulin.
A huge stack of barley bags was piled
at the far end of the corral, guarded
from depreciation qnadrupedaD by Il
barrier OF wooden Stats mostly down,
ana 10y tatterod biped, very sound
asleep
Where s the scrgcant:" oucricd the
paymastcr slowly, addressing 10 one
In particular, but looking plaintivelv
around him.
Still leaning IA brown chin on a near
ly black hand, and stirring mn his
spider with tho iorkcd stick he held
IN tue other paw, the boy simply tilted
ms head toward the dark opening I'M
der tho farther end of tho shed, an
aperture that seemed TO lead to moth
ing but blackness beyond.
What's he doingf"
mo sa-a-abe," drawled tho boy.
never lifting his handsome eyes from
the joys before him.
Why hasn't he harnessed up?"
shrug of the shoulders was the only
reply.
"Hey?"
- No sa-a-abe, slowly as before.
What's your name?"
Jose"
We'll, here, Jose. you go and tell
him want him"
The boy slowly pulled himself to-
gether and found his feet; started re-
luctantly to obev. olancod b,cl ~ b;s