Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1897-09-16
The Lie Joe Told.

DOWu In the southern part OF Day
lor County, Texas, you may still hear
old settlers make occasional references
70 the Savages, or the Savage broth
ers, as they sometimes call them. This
does not refer to the time when the
Indians were in the country, although
that time is by no means so far dis
tant as to be beyond the memory OF
living man; nor does it imply any
thing especially wild and ferocious
about the character of the men in
question. 1t merely goes back to the
first half of the sos, when two broth
ers of that name were among the
prominent inhabitants of that sparsely
settled district. In some countries
events of that period would be con-
sidered comparatively modern, but in
Western Texas they are ranked as
strictly ancient history.
Is 1t seems, from careful survey OF
the facts in the case, that neither of
the brothers was really bad man at
heart, Notwithstanding the fact that a
great many people who ought to know
are strongly inclined to think other
wise. It is certain that one of them
was as true q man as ever trod the soil
Of Texas, or any other state for that
matter. All who knew him agree that
the final year of his life, at any rate,
was year of such courage and self
sacrificing heroism as one reads of in
books but seldom looks for in real
life. The people of West Texas are
not much prone to hero worship, and
whenever they agree that man of
their acquaintance is above the aver
age of mortality there is very likely to
be some basis for the belief. Judging
merely from physical appearance one
would have had little trouble in de-
gliding which of the two men would
have been more likely to prove of he
roic mold. Bill, the younger, was q
man of magnificent physique, not un-
duly large, but with muscles of such
strength as perfect health
and the free life OF Western cowboy
are apt to impart. He was light
complexioned, and is said to have pos
Bessed vigorous, manly eountenance,
snch as ought to have made him more
successful in his love affairs than he
really was. Joe, on the other hand,
was as much picture of weakness and
deformity as his brother was of health
and strength. He was not only a
peaked-faced, slender slip of man,
but he was a cripple as we'll. When
he was years old and Bill only 3, a
cyclone had struck the log house in
which the boys and their parents were
living.
The mother and father were killed,
but when the neighbors came to look
through the ruins of the cabin they
found Joe crouched on the bed with
his limbs spread out in such a manner
as to protect his baby brother. A
heavy log had fallen across his right
foot and right wrist, crushing them
both very badly, but Bill was still
sleeping in absolute Inconsistencies
of the existence of any such disturb
ing affairs as cyclones. AS a result of
his injuries at the time Joe was club
footed through the whole of his life,
and his right forearm had big knot
on it, and a crook that made his right
hand turn out when it should have
turned in. 1t is said that Joe was
proud of his deformities rather than
otherwise, presumably because they
had been incurred in the defence of
his baby brother, and that Bill was,
for the most part, tenderly regardful
of the brother who had sacrificed
health and almost life for him.
Naturally enough, Bill was the more
prosperous of the two. Before he was
30 be owned considerable "bunch'
of cattle, and leased quite body OF
land in the eastern part of Baylor
county as ranch. Joe was his line
rider, and in that capacity was enabled
to do great deal of such work as did
not require any great amount of mere
muscular strength. Everything
worked smoothly with them until
May Conley came to live with a mar
ried brother of hers who lived only q
few miles from the Savage ranch. She
was not a highly educated girl, by
any means, and it is doubtful If she
was more than fairly intelligent, but
she was pretty, and she was tickle
and that tells the whole story. In
this case Joe was the first victim. He
met May at one of the big camp meet
ings that are common in that country
in the fall of the year, and after thai
he was very pronounced in his atten
tions to her for several months. Their
his attentions ceased as suddenly ant
abruptly as they had begun. People
noticed this, and they also noticed
that just about that time Bill begar
going to see her.
''Bill took it up just where Joe lait
in down." remarked one cowboy t,
another during one of the intervals il
a dance on one occasion.
''Naw, that amt it, responded hi
friend. ST think Joe laid it dowI
just where Bill took it up"
One day as the two brothers ant
one or two others were engaged il
branding some Of Bills yearlings tn,
subject was brought up.
s''Sure enough, Joe, whatever mad
you quit goin' to see that Conley ga
no suddent?" asked Jim Smith, one o
the helpers, in jocular way.
'T stopped SOS to give Bill
chance" said Joe, with what was evi
IDENTIFY forced attempt at gayety.
''6hucksr calculated his brother