Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1895-01-25
A PLAINS ROMANCE.

business, a couple Of years ago, as we
sat in the shade Of the ~ranchhouse one
afternoon.
why Teddy don't drink and like
wise swears quite fewY'' he asked in re-
Spouse to a query Of mine. ''Thatl Sho'
g hain't tux nothin f'r most 10 r 10
year, count o. his kid. Marricd?' Oh,
no, none whatever. They hain't no
heifer gifts Teddy, not much. 'WhyY'
Give it up. Mebbe you On tell me2
Ted was rjdin along one day-'tis
Is year ago-ridin clost by tn railroad
track one evenin, foelin kind O. sore an
Disguised like, when, all Of a Student,
Q sees somethin funny trottin along tn
track. Ted stops an wipes is eyes an
gazes a hull lot more, cause what %
seen want nothin like what we finds
round this yero patch O. bresh. None
whatever. Moreoyermore, Ted ID ben
tankin up quito plenty that day, o
had, an was dead leary o. what might
be tn matter Of is peeps. But e rubs
'em quite a lot moro, an l hope l may
straddle tn ghost bronze Of there want
tn p%urtiest little maverick 20 e see
little girl bout 5 year old-browsin
along tn track, lookin lost.
Course Ted rides up an asts who she
is an what she's doin there, all alone,
with 'er purity face IN hams an elegant
clo'es, but she couldn't tell i'm. Jes'
bust out cryin an KEEP q cryin, an
'twa'n'tf'r a day r so We cd even guess
at 'er bein there, cause she was tongue
tied r somethin an couldn't say but o
few words, pore little thing. But we
gifts at it th't 'er names Norah, we does,
an th't she draps Off a train jes' b'fore
she sights Ted Or i'm, hcr).
'"That little Eeifer was a beaut', she
sho' was, an want more'n two days
fore we all was ready e d most any
thing FIR her-me an Ted an ole lady
Parry 9TH boss wife) an all tn rest,
an dam eff l don't b'lieve we want
real glad stead O. sorry when we fms
out they don't seem G be no one lookin
FIR such q maverick-'cause we adver-
tised, o. course, { git 'er folks But we
gifts no word, not a bloomin shout, so
Ted jes' bran's tn kid FIR his'n an pr
ceeds t. raise 'er think O. Ted, which
tn same never raised nothin but hell
b'fore, raisin that little, tender gyurlD,
Mrs. Parry takin care of 'er FIR awhile.
"Well Ted was jes' tn funniest COW
hand ever bucks up ag'in. Ye wouldn't
"a knowed i'm. Ted was a howlin
VOLTA regular ole hyena b'fore that
but after tn kid comes g braces right
up IN gifts good, none o. tn gang object
in, cause they savvies why e does it.
"After tn kid was bout 0 r 10 years
old we all don't get e. see much of 'er,
cause Ted, havin laid up some dough,
sends 'er of e school. She's q sho'
'nough hor'ughbred, she is, says Ted
dy, an she gifts no scrub traiRin. Sabe?'
"That goes, o. course, an tn kid
likewise gees e school, comm back onco
a year lookin sweeter an purifier AN ever
an we all, mostly Ted, willin t. lay
right down an let 'er tromp ON our
measly ole flea bit frames. Oh, she was
jes' like Ted ~prognosticates On tn jump
"A sho' 'nough thoroughbred.
Tell ye what she does one time
bout two years ago. They was livin
t tn station, her'n Ted an Mrs. Bell,
tn woman th't give tn gyurl lessons,
an one day some eastern folks gifts of tn
train lookin FIR Mr.. McLennan, which
is Ted sence q gifts intuh business
for ITSELF. They was a real nice lookin,
fat ole girl, with spectacles with handles
to EN-, an a dood with one O. these yere
foolish little caps ye sees through tn
winduhs o. tn sleepin cars.
Tied an Norah was at tn deepo look
in fhr some school frien'so the gyurl's,
when these folks gifts off. AN some one
points Ted out, an tn dood braces i'm.
Jaw, me good man, says e, tokin
sight ut Ted over tn end of is nose,
Jaw, are you Mister McLennan?'
'Ted's a good man-no discount on
that-but g does sho' hate e. DO called
one, moreover by a dood, which critter
is quite rousin T. Ted's KILN instincts
but e gives it out th't his brand is
sech, an tn dood springs lis game on
i'm, which Is th't e an ole lady is look
in f'r Norah Somethin T other, which is
tn name o. tn kid th't falls off a train
one day 10 yeurs r so b'fore-our
Norah, sho' 'nough.
''They was a surprise all round, they
was. Then Norah Skes q hand an flies
Z tn ole girl an Asts why she didn't
find 'er then, an they gives it out th't
they never saw Ted's advertisement, an
all that, an never learns where she is
ontell they lately runs ontu Mrs. Parry
somewheres ont west. They likewise
makes a play th't Ted had stole tn kid.
TIL ole lady was goin T. fall ON Norah's
neck an weep a lot, but Norah don't like
that style o. play, so h gives 'er a
chill, an, moreover, gives it ont cold th't
she don't move a step-th't she stays
with Ted, THIS ben a regular dad to 'er.
IAN she staid, you bet, On Ted was
tn tickledest ole stir in tn country
e think she'd rather flock with him thin
e. train wi them howlin swells. They
makes no further play, thinkin, mebbe,
th't Norah's temper's pretty high up.
"Ev'rything's real lovely ontell a lit
tie while ago-last year II was. Things
got a little eyoitin round yere-roal ex-
cidn fr some folks, / may say They
was a few gents in these parts was get
tin quite frisky with brandin irons, an