Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1897-10-05

uel WdS IcUuinK tue uulc8 VI tuc CoI-
riage. and Felix and Carmen passed
from the group Of little towheads who
stood listening with unfailing admira-
ton and wonder to the two Handsome
young strangers talking interestedly to
gcther in an unknown tongue.
CHAPTER XII.
They had reached dangerous point
in their conversation. Carmen and Felix,
and no one can tell what the influence
Of the moment might have led my com
rade to say or do had they not been in
terrupted by her fathers call. Her elo-
quent eyes and her musical voice, reveal
ing in melodious Spanish her sentiment
Of interest in him, were perilously capt.
waiting 10 q young man whose year.
were not yet six and twenty. Nothing
of charm was lost by the naive frank.
ness Of her reproof and warnings con-
cerning Felix's conduct with Sangrado,
which might have sounded startling tc
O person Of the supercivilized east Her
sentiments and her manner Of express
ing them were becoming and natural ~
well as thoroughly practical and wise
in this girl of the Santa Cruz valley,
reared among steel blades and firearms
at her fathers hacienda in this Indian
haunted, desperate infested region OF
the southwest To make such words
perfectly fitting and quite the best thing
that could be said by woman Of her
race under such circumstances IL needs
only the condition that she care greatly
for the man TO whom she imparts her
condolences
Whether more intimate condolences
might have been interchanged between
the two had opportunity been given
leave to the inference Of the reader. Be-
yond the fact that they had been To-
gether in stress Of danger where Felix
was her protector IL may be taken as q
principle that the average and properly
constituted man not otherwise engross-
ed, when thrown into association with
a beautiful Spanish girl willing TO
please him, will promptly fall In love
with her And this rule scarcely admits
an exception among the men Of the ro-
mantle, adventurous, far southwest
One who knows that country and its
people will fully understand why Felix
and Carmen, with no preliminary Ian.
guishments or conventional formulas Of
approach, with no introspections or anal
yses of motives. were in SO brief an &c
quaintance, with NO little said between
them. undcniably and greatly taken mp
with each other Already. il appearances
were TO be trusted. they were on the very
verge Of loyemaking and had perhaps
passed the border. Why not? A hand
some young fellow. brave and debonair,
knowing well the country and In lengua
Espanol. their two days acquaintance
had more than once given him chance
to display before the eyes Of Carmen
his address in the time Of danger
In manifesting her interest in him 80
undisguisedly and in speaking her mind
20 promptly and frankly she was simply
the spontaneous, impetuous Juliet that
every one Of her countrywomen is when
By some chance the care Of the duenna
lapses, even il Romeo's bright sword
and silkcn doublet have been replaced
by California jean and revolver at
cartridge belt What most Of all made
me suspect that the flower Of love was
blossoming by the savage prairie trail
was the vehemencc Of Carmen's express
sion Of feeling against Gaspar Sangrado,
whose desperate and assiduous pursuit
Of her may. before she met the hand
some American. secretly have pleased
even though il affrighted her.
Love and hate alike begin and bloom
and ripen all in day in sunny, semi
tropical Arizona, like the riotous growth
Of verdure, flowers and poison vines
that make the valleys Of that region
veins of emerald, decked with festal
color as they wind amid the ground
work Of bare, beetling mountains and
broad arid spaces Whether love would
have burned in ardent words between
the two had Don Ramon's nap lasted
five minutes longer will not venture
to say. But in Carmen's face and man.
ner and impression impaired by her
pervading magnetism / read the un-
spoken thought of Lupita's taunt TO
Sangrado-that the senor's daughter
looked kindly upon the young American
caballero-and these words she knew
Felix must have overheard. Il was this
thought, I was sure, which gave her
the pleased, half bashful look OF self
consciousness she wore rs she paused,
with mantling cheek, after quoting 80
much us she did Of the Mexican actress
words. and in that pause II ever eyes
and smile carried unconsciously mes
sage it was the message Of hers to Fe-
Liz that Lupita's words concerning him
were true.
But we were OH the trail, and now Il
was not sentiment, but boots and sad
dles''-to mount and ride-that was the
order Of the day. We had far to 90, and
| Il was not the time and place for lin
Renng. Ihe mules were soon harnesse0
10 the carriage, our horses were bridled
and saddled ~ quickly, and again we
were of upon our journey. AS we drew
away from the spot the Missourian was
hitching up his team for start, and
we exchanged friendly words with the
maestro, whose cavalcade came up at
about the same time, having made .
short incoming ON the plain mile or
two behind us. Looking back after Q
time we could see TINT the Missourian's
and the maestro's outfits were now trav-
cling together.
| An hour after our start, with Stems
peak to the northward and Gabilan
peak to the southwark behind ua Don
Ramon, sitting ON the front seat Of the
carriage with his rife between his
knees, pointed to buzzard sailing In
great circles high in the air. two OF
three miles ahead Of u& Soon IL was
Joined by another, and several specks In
the distance. growing larger - we look
| ed, showed that others Of the carrion
birds were flying our way.
cts q bad sign, said DON Ramon
Rravely. "It means ApacheG The buz-