Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1895-10-26

boldly forward. There, near the rifle,
down among the stones, is huddled
heap. 1t is the first man have ever
shot I dom quite know what to do
push him with my foot. No response.
He is dead. How strange it seems A
few minutes ago this dead bundle was
as full of life as l. Every muscle and
nerve, every sensation in fullest work
ing order, and now but one little act of
mine, and the whole is thus collapsed.
Only now the moon was looking down
on two human beings approaching each
other over the wide veldt. A moment
later she looks sadly down OIL one stand
ing beside the crumpled remains Of the
other.
The two horses are still grazing peace
fully on opposite sides Of the rocks.
reused myself from my musings and
took up the dead mans rifle. It was
Martini-Henry. After appropriating its
cartridge, knocked out the block axis
pin and threw the block away, so that
it might no longer be Of use to an enc
my. And then thought to replenish my
own ammunition from the enemy's
store and turned again to the corpse.
felt reluctance to touch the poor
limp thing, but his haversack was part
ly underneath him and had to be got
out. That done, drew the cold hands
down to the sides and Strengthened out
the legs, but could not 60 SO far as to
turn the body on its back-I feared to
see the face. In the haversack found
besides the cartridges Bible and some
rusks and "biltong" (sun dried meat)
The cravings Of hunger were reawaken-
ed by the sight of food and was soon
munching away at my newly acquired
supply, while I still stood in kind Of
fascination over the body Of my victim.
How strange to be eating the food pre-
pared for one who had no need for it
To be tasting the flavor, which somehow
! did not altogether like, that possibly
he would have been tasting now had not
all power Of taste suddenly gone out Of
him forever Then his Bible lying there
reminded me that we were both practi-
cally of the same belief Two Christians.
whose religion told them to love one an
other, meeting in the midst Of heather
land-strangers to each other on earth,
but brothers in spirit. We meet-to
greet each other with peace and good
will? No, but without even word Of
anger one to kill the other.
And great remorse comes over me.
What right had to take his life? By
killing him, in what torrent Of grief and
ruin may not have involved wife and
BARNS? Did not fire before there was
need for it? In vain I tell myself that
had not killed him he would have
gathered me.
All feeling Of animosity is drowned
in that Of pity. At any rate if his COM
rades find him they shall know that we
"Rooi- patches" bear no grudge, but
have some good feeling in us. May it
help to dispose them more peaceably to-
ward us
So, after very short meal, I stow
the ammunition and the remainder Of
the food into my pocket. Then I drag
the body from where it lies, leaving
only black, shining blotch among the
stones, into shallow cleft between the
rocks. Here I turn it Oh to it's back and
see the pale, dead face, the paler for the
contrast with its black beard in the
clear moonlight. / close the CLASSY,
staring eyes and compose the limbs in
their narrow bed, and then, with large
powders, I overbridge the grave and
fill up every crevice we'll with stones.
Little now is left to do. On the highest
rock, just above the grave, build a
cairn Of stones, in which firmly plant
the rife upright. I take his Bible,
which has writing in its cover that may
tell his name, and fasten it, inside his
hat, to the muzzle Of the rifle, and to
the cleaning rod tie my handkerchief,
to serve at once as scare to beasts and
an attracting sign to men. And then
! turn and leave the spot.
reached Standerton all safely with
my two horses soon after daybreak and
delivered my dispatches. When emptied
my pockets, daylight showed me that
what was left of the biltong and rusk
was all besmeared with blood Sketch.