Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1894-02-22
THE EARLY WORM.
He Found an Early Bird to Catch
Him.

| nt ulu every tnlnR ne OuBHt' Jus' hs
his friends and advisers would have
wished, and some unexpected circum-
stance deprived him Of his reward. So
proverbial did the excellence OF his
deserts and the poorness of his luck be-
come that some cowboy philosopher
finally accounted for in this way:
at amt in what Mort Willis does"
said the oracle; 'it Jest hain't down on
the cards for i'm TO win. Ye see, the
books say thet it's the early bird Z
gifts tn FIRST worm but In thet game
two can't win. an take IL he's the
early worm"
This explanation appealed to the
whimsical side of cowboy nature, and,
as that side is well developed, the name
and reputation stuck TO Mort even atter
he had, by strength and perseverance,
wrenchcd few crumbs Of success from
the clenched hand OF fate.
He was managing the Half Moon
ranch, 10 get capital to stock one of his
own, when the niece of his next neigh
Dor on the south, Floyd Pendleton, at
the Bar o, came out to visit her uncle.
Miss Eula Pendleton had the unique,
and, as she found later, rather uncom.
Portable position of the only girl in
Ilarter county. Its ten eligible bache-
lors were signing for her and dying for
her before she crossed the state line.
As none of the enterprising swains saw
any individual profit in standing back
to See the others making the running,
the Pendleton parlor OF an evening soon
came TO look like jury room with an
obstinately hung jury-Miss Eula serv-
ing as the sheriff who, apparently, held
the recalcitrants in durance vile
When the young woman was pleased
to attend n roundup, or to ride to any
gathering, she never went with less than
u corporaPs guard. A crowd more like
a sheriffs posse usually surrounded her
while there, and accompanied her home.
Such being the state of things, It Is
no wonder that the report that the
Early Worm, otherwise Mort Willis,
had been seen all alone, except for the
presence of the two ponies and steer,
at the south of Bar o corral, giving
Miss Eula lessons in roping, awakening
scornful mirth.
That's just IL" said the storeleeper
at Prairie City, who was bald, fat and
|
years, but who was one of Miss Pendle-
toms most devoted and obtuse visitors.
That's just Mort Whilst Runnin' over
there because he lives near, and tryin'
to keep the young lady all to himself.
Posters her to death, of course, and
hasn't sense enough to take friend or
two along TO take the cuss off the situa-
tion when he gets left They talk
about Mort Willis luck; but ] tell you
that there's more in his lack OF COM
mon, ordinary horse sense than there Is
in his luck. Look at i'm now, fxin' to
git left again by settin' up to court girl
that hez her pick of Harter county, n
girl that can have the pick an choice
of men of means. with ranches, an
an stores, an sichr'
As no more of these lessons were heard
of, after the hrst, and as Mort never
presented himself in the Pendleton par
lor of evenings when the solemn gath
erings were held, nor attempted to Join
Miss Eula's little court at any of the
round.ups or excursions, 1t came to be
an accepted opinion that, with his
usual luck, he had got his ''vamose"
even sooner than might have been
looked for.
Miss Pendleton carried herself rs one
used TO homage, and made use merci-
lessly of her swains. Pret Somers, sur
named Pretty" because he was ugly
enough to scare a team of Texas ponies
into running away, spent week up in
the breaks of the Canadian hunting,
letting all the boys get ahead of him
| ooh Ia. he. ha IA l.
ized when he came home with the
mountain lions skin she had expressed
u wish for.
The storekeeper had his eye out to
buy her an old rosary, such as she
funcied, from some of his Mexican Gus
toners. The boys brought her so many
polished steer horns, deer's hoof ink
stands and such like, that she might
have set up a store for the sale OF Texas
curiosities, when she went home, had
she felt SO disposed.
Prairie City, the county seat of Har-
ter county, consisted at this time of a
name and three buildings The main
one, a modest adobe structure with q
frame porch, contained the store, post
office, and in the back room, which
was also the storekeepers bedroom,
liquors were dispensed with the primi-
tive aid of q tin cup.
This store was the gathering place
for the gay and gallant element Of
Harter county. One evening, about
three months after Miss Eula Pendle-
toms arrival, its circle of loungers was
electrified by an announcement from
the storekeeper. lie had felt of late
that he was falling behind the younger
men in the race, and he spoke in per-
sonally aggrieved tone, as though the
entire matter might have been ar
ranged to compass his defeat
DO you know, gentlemen" he said,
that Miss Eula's goin' to leave us?
She's agoin' home next week"
WELL" said tall, thin man who
claimed to hail from Indiana, and was
suspected of having been Il lawyer back
in the east, ~ say that is the fault of
this crowd, all and severally"
Don't sec how you make that CO."
growled Pret Somers, from where he
lay on the counter "Shos had her
pick OF llarter county, and none of
llarter county don't suit her That's
all | see in it."
Now, really" said the Indiana man,
nrgumentatively ''do you think she
has had her pick? I'm not a marrying
man myself Gt was believed that he
had left wife east somewherel, but
it really seems to me that you gentle
men fell over each other, pnd stepped
ou each other, and natula'ly stood in
eacn others light in trying to please
| tho laIy Condillv hovn nnV af vtu