The Redwood gazette., 1894-01-11

/ pool. and here the troop aidresa6d u
Bland presently Joined him.
Where was it You enlisted, Blard r.
was the younger soldiers first cues
tion. II understand you are familiar
/ with all this country.
AT Tucson, sir, six months AGO. aft
er the stage company discharged me. 4
II remember" was the answer as
the lieutenant gently drew rein to lift
his horses head. II think you were SO
frank as to give the reason Of your
quitting their employment. .
| ''Well, there was no sense trying to
conceal it or anything else man may
do out here, lieutenant. They fired me
for drinking too much at the wrong
time. The section boss said he couldn' t
| help himself. and ! don't suppose he
could =
''As l remember, said Drummond
presently, and with hesitation. for he
hated to pry into the past of a man who
spoke SO frankly and who made no
effort to conceal his weakness, "you
were driver Of the blackboard the Mo-
near the Catarinas.
Yes; that's the time got drunk,
sir. It's all that saved me from being
killed, and between keeping sober and
losing my life or getting drunk and
losing a job preferred the latter
''Yet you were in measure respon-
sib2e for the safety of your passengers
and mail, were you not?''
well, no, sir; not after the warming
gave the company. l told them
Ramon Morales was in Tucson the night
before we had to pull out, and wherever
he was that Internal cutthroat of a
brother of his wasn't far away. told
them it was taking chances to let Judge
Gillette and that infantry quartermas-
ter try to go through without escort. l
begged to throw up the job that very
night, but they held me to my contract,
and had to go. We were jumped not
10 miles out of town, and before any
one could draw a derringer every man
of us was covered. The judge might
have known they'd shoot him on sight
ever since that greaser from Hermosillo
was lynched. But they never harmed
the quartermaster.'
Huh! The devil they didn 't!''
laughed the lieutenant. ''They took
his watch and his money and every
thing he had on except his undercloth-
ing. How long had you been driving
when that happened:"
Just eight months, sir, between
Tucson and Grant
And did you never serve with the
cavalry before? You ride as though
you had
Most men hereabouts served on one
side or other, said Bland calmly, as
his horse finished his long pull at the
water.
And your side was''-
Confederate, was the brief reply.
II was born in Texas. Here comes the
troop, sir. -
Come on, then. l want to ask you
about that trail to Crittenden as we
ride. We make first for the Picacho
pass from here.''
why, that's south of west, sir, an
swered Bland. II had thought perhaps
the lieutenant would want to go north
ward toward the Gila to head off any
parties of the Apaches that might be
striving to get away eastward with
their booty. They must have picked
up something over at the Bend
They're more likely to go south
ward, Bland, for they know where
we've been scouting all the week. No,
I'll march straight to the signal. There
they must know where the Indians
have gone.
AYE, aye, sir, but then You can only
pursue, and stern chase is long
one."
Drummond turned in his saddle as
they rode forth upon the dark falda and
gazed long and fxedly at the trooper by
his side. Imperturbably Bland con-
tinued to look straight ahead. Queer
stories had been afloat regarding this
new acquisition. He mingled but lit
tie with the men. He affected rather
the society of the better class of nom
commissioned officers. an offense not
likely to be condoned in a recruit. He
was already distinguished for his easy
mastery Of every detail of a cavalry
mans duty, and for his readiness to 60
at any or all times on scout, escort or
patrol, and the more hazardous or lonely
the task the better he seemed to like it.
Then he was helpful about the offices
in garrison, wrote neat hand, was Of
ten pressed into service to aid with the
quartermaster or commissary papers,
and had been offered permanent daily
duty as company clerk, but begged off,
saying he loved horse and cavalry
work too well to be immured in an Office.
He was silence and reticence itself on
matters affecting other people, but the
soul of frankness apparently where
he was personally concerned. Any
body was welcome to know his past, he
said. He was raised in Texas; had
lived for years on the frontier; had
been through Arizona with bull team
in the fifties and had listed under the
banner of the Lone Star when Texas
went the way of all the sisterhood of
southern mot border) states, and then,