Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1895-12-06
che Story Teller.
ON THE HOME RANCH.

The ranch of Senor Diaz was on q
charming slope, overlooking the broad
smooth waters of one of the tributaries
to the Parana, on whose opposite shore
the rank grass grew 10 and - feet
high. The house itself had tropical
character; it was Spanish-American
with cool, shady veranda, Il long, low
front, painted walls and laliced win.
dows, a spacious court, and fiat roof
provided with parapet, which gave
the whole structure the appearance OF
a fort. Many acres Of cultivated land
showed long lines of sugar. cane and
tall trees laden with bananas, in sur,
prising contrast to the dark, impene,
trable mass of wild bush-land which
surrounded the settlement i'll the far
ther distance.
Sonora Diaz was one of the tropical
beauties of whom Murillo dreamed.
81 am going to test your gallantry,' u
she said, coming out on the veranda
where 1 sat, "by asking you to help
me water my flowers, for with my lame
hand it is not easy for me to lift the
heavy watering-pot."
II am at your service; but allow
me-am I wrong?-lo remind you that
you promised me the story of how your
hand was hurt"
"Certainly. As soon as the flowers
are watered, we will have coffee on the
veranda, and you shall hear about it,
Accordingly, l was shortly slipping
coffee, with the little Lolita, my hosts
only daughter and my pet, beside me,
while her mother rolled cigarette,
lighted it and began as follows:
"When we first came here, years ago,
it was very different looking place.
The wild bush.land reached to the
edge of the water, and was such dark
wilderness of thorns, brambles, palms,
wild fig trees, and other tropical vege-
tation, that l did not dare venture to
its depths. But my husband and his
workmen went manfully to work, fell
ed trees, uprooted stumps, made hedges
and bitches all day long, except in The
severest heat, and / often saw them
come home so wearied that they would
fall asleep where they stood, and first
think of food three or four hours later
when they awoke.
"After while they got portion of
the ground under suhjection, hut after
the acres were cleared and we began
to plant, we had throng Of foes TO
combat. The worst were the ants,
which, watched for on account of their
depredations on plantations, have IL
way Of making underground passages,
till they undermine the whole surface
of a field, and it falls in like the crust
of cake. Just north of us is great
gap in the ground, full of bushes and
wild grass, and here and there some
rotten timber, where whole settle
ment sank from the ants undermining
the foundations. From this comes the
saying we have in Paraguay that our
worst enemies are the Indian braves
and the Indian ants.
"Luckily, the only Indians were
friendly ones, who exchanged all kinds
of provisions, especially dried meats,
for knives and brandy. We poisoned
the ants, dug up their nests, flooded
their passageways with boiling water,
and so in a great measure were free
from them, although they now some
times come from the woods to attack
the plantation.
"One morning, just as we were at
break fast, one of our herdsmen brought
the news that our cattle, which grazed
in the tall grass on the other side OF
the river, had been attacked by jag
uar that had killed one of the bulls.
The man who told us escaped with his
life, yet he would have scarcely done
so if he had not misled the beast, or
had there not been a fat OK there.
"a week passed without a new
alarm, and we had come to think less
about it, when suddenly three or four
Indians rushed in to tell us that great
iaguar had broken into their camp and
killed a woman and one of their dogs.
When my husband heard the story, he
concluded that it was the same animal
that had attacked our bull, for the In
dans described it as a creature OF sim
gular color, far lighter than any they
had seen about there. so they named it
the white Death We all thought it
high time to do something, and my
husband called his people together to
20 out and hunt it.
II remember that morning distinct
lily. They went away cheerfully
enough, each man with his gun and
hunting knife, and Moro, the blood
hound, was with them. My husband
turned round just AS he entered the
wood and kissed his hand to me then
he vanished into the forest.
"When 1 found myself with Lolita
alone in the house, and thought of
what might happen if they met that
terrible wild animal. such anxiety seiz
ed me (although 1 never thought |
could be in danger) that could not be
contented till had locked every door
in the house; and then l seated myself
in the great drawing-room, took Lolita
on my lap, and tried to tell her story.
"Suddenly l heard scratching along
the roof, and then dull thud, as if
something had fallen. Anxious and