Bennington semi-weekly banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 1894-1902, 1894-08-03

It, meaning lasso, he had not seen such
thing until he came to Mexico and be-
| held with the awe of ignorant wonder the
marvels which Ditas' friends wrought with
1t. 1t did not astonish him, he told him
self, that she despised him.
Another thing he had not seen until
this day-a prairie fire. 1t came upon him
with sense Of an uneasy holiness in the
air, q certain restlessness which he caught
from his horse, who knew far more about
1 ~ UlI,.I 40 huCw. Anon 40 WOhuefod,
while these slight signs grew more en-
| phatic. A few minutes and birds began
! to pass him; a coyote galloped across his
path; wild turkey soudded by at hard
trot. Even the Englishman, ignorant as
he was of the live things of the country,
| began to marvel. A sort of low humming
sounded from windward. His horse began
to snort and grew unmanageable, SEEM
ing to be infected by the down wind race
Of all live things, edging away from his
northeasterly track and making more di-
rectly eastward. He was Indifferent, the
bronohos were as likely to be eastward as
northward, and let the horse go.
Presently it broke into a canter, then
into gallop. Moths, bats nocturnal in
sects, creatures of all kinds, began to fly
past him through the bright sunlight as
in nightmare, and after them dashed all
the smaller kind of predatory birds, the
cousins german of Ditas' little hawk. The
air grew more and more sultry and laden
with sulphurous breath. Looking be-
hind him, over the launches of his now
racing horse, he saw dense thickness, as
of fog. Above the density rose a whitish
cloud line. Through the density flashed
tongues of light. At last sense of what
was upon him dawned He was flying
from prairie fire.
AS he realized the fact the instinct of
the fleeing animals grew infectious for him
too He was all in accord now with his
horses terror, and the rider urged on the
pace which he had endeavored to restrain
before. The wind from the west blew with
steady strength. The humming sound
increased until it became a roar, louder
| and louder with each mile that he gallop-
ed, while still the stream of living things
went before 1t. The smoke grew dark
over the face of the sky; the flames and
the density came nearer and nearer Still
he galloped on. He bethought him of all
he had read in the pages of Wayne Reid
| and the other writers who had been the
delight Of his youth. To kindle fire Of
his own before him, and shelter himself
ON the burned patch thus left barren for
the hunger of the pursuing flames was
scheme which occurred to him, but he
dreaded the delay which it would occasion.
He knew vaguely that the river was
somewhere eastward, and the influence of
the terror of the live things who shared
his flight was too powerful. He galloped
on. Now he saw the broken line of the
steep bank of the river, and with the sight
new danger presented ITSELF for the
banks as he knew, were precipitous, of
crumbling earth. How could his horse
descend them, or how could he check his
horse in order to dismount and climb
down? A patch of ebony trees was to the
south, and there he knew the land sloped
gently to the river, where it lay in placid
cool green peace, with the turtles floating
on it's stream, but there, too, the fringe Of
prairie grass grew higher, the fire found
better fodder, and already there was a
wall of flying smoke and flame to shut off
that place of refuge. Still he galloped on,
and now the smoke and the lurid heat
were but some quarter of mile in his rear.
His horses TANKS were heaving with it's
race, but not q mile before him was the
flames and smoke were thick around him,
and he and the horse almost on the river
brink. He tugged desperately at the reins,
but the horse paid no heed, blind and
senseless with terror.
They were on the edge of the cliff now.
Below was the calm, blissful water. He
shut his eyes and gripped firmly with his
knees expecting the fatal fall, when to his
surprise he felt slipping, gentle descent;
a struggling of his horse as the pace slack
ened, and then before he realized what
had befallen the yielding bank had given
way beneath their weight, and horse and
rider were struggling in the water. The
next instant he was thrown off into the
stream. He disengaged himself from his
horse and found himself standing, sink
ing swimming in the river, as the water
washed away masses of the earth which
they had brought down with them. The
horse swan away from him down the
stream, and he was left, now standing,
now swimming, while the smoke went
curling over his head, and the baked
flames stopped and died away harmless,
save for few fiery missile brands which
they shot at him out in the stream.
And SO the peril was over. He had but
to sit In the cooling waters until the fire
had burned away, and he could safely climb
back to land. There were no crocodiles so
far up the river. He was safe. AS he real
lied his safety the reaction nearly over
came him, and he had need to summon all
his fortitude to save him from permitting
himself to be Carried helplessly down the
stream. And then through the afternoon
and all through the still night over the
blackened prairie he walked sadly and
steadily homeward to the hacienda, which
he reached with boots charred and sooty
as the vacqueros were just setting out on
their mornings work.
He slept in room off the central court
yard of the hacienda. 1t was not bright
room, for 1t had no windows. Its occu-
pants went to bed by the light of the stars
peeping through the open door. In each
corner Of the room slept man-Manuelo
in one, the Englishman in another and
Ditas two brothers in the other two.
Mosquito netting over each bed lent an
air of decency, and there were washing
basins. Into this plain apartment the Eng
lishman stole as the dawn crept up over
the prairie.
YOU'RE late home" Manuelo observed
dryly.
Slightly" the Englishman said. Then
he threw himself on his bed and slept the
sleep of the wearied until hard ON the hour