The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-03-08
A tWoMAN's NERVE.

ueRrAutu lailnI WIN tun hna periocb
knowledge Of the vices of two continents
and an utter Willingness to be ignorant Of
all otherNhings. Americans In New Mex
leo tolerate him as necessary evil, Just as
they tolerate Cinnamon In California or
negroes in the southern states. He is
cheap, even II he is nasty, and he makes
farming possible by his exceedingly low
self valuation.
Sometimes he shuffles off his servility
and becomes Spaniard. Then 1t re-
quires nerve to deal with him and also a
quick hand on the trigger. I became
aware Of that fact few months ago,
when was staying with Jack Henderson.
Jack went out to New Mexico five years
ago with bride and dream and IS 900.
When / saw him, the bride had become
mother to the extent of Jack, Jr., aged 8,
the dream was on the verge Of eyanescence,
and the $4,000 had gone
Jack had settled on what purported
eventually to become o fruit farm, when
company had worried out an impossible
Irrigation scheme, 80 miles from Santa Fe
and miles from white man. There
were far mountains to the east, with white
tops that purpled at shutdown. All round
him was the dreary prairie, monotonous
as the sea-mile beyond mile of brown
parched grass, with here and there bunch
Of crawling bushes.
Roads, in the English sense Of the term,
there were none We rode to the place
over the baked mud tracks, seemingly
without end or object, past the greasers'
"dobies," as they call their little homely
mud huts, past myriads of prairie dogs,
scampering into their holes as we ap-
preached. And then at last we reached
long, low farmhouse of planks, sitting in
the midst Of vegetable patch that had
literally fallen into the scar and yellow
leaf That was Jacks home, and present.
ly came Mrs. Jack, with Jack, Jr., cling
ing shyly to her shirts, to give me well
come.
1t was broiling next day. hot after
fashion that we in a kindlier cline COM
prehend not whit, No white man could
lift his hand to his head without weari-
ness resulting therefrom. Only the olive
hued greaser was available, and indeed
Jose seemed, from the short period Of my
observation, to be more on the qui yive
than any other living thing
Jose was Jacks cook, moist, uncom-
Portable looking greaser, with quivering
paunch and long limbs that seemed made
quate to support the superstructure.'
ventured remark upon his unprepossess-
ing countenance, but Jack became elo-
quent upon his culinary virtues. Even
Mrs. Jack had something to say on the
subject and felt at once that l was inter
fering with a family idol.
When, therefore, Jack told me later in
the day that he had been obliged to dis
charge Jose, with instant orders to depart,
1t was matter of no small establishment
to me. ] felt, however, that it was deli
cate subject, and to this day have no idea
what was Jose's cause of offensc I con-
lecture that Mrs. Jack was concerned, and
that the insult was deep, for Jose's accom-
plishments were unparalleled, and no slight
matter could have caused his deposition.
In the evening the temperature grew en-
durable not that 1t was cool or pleasant or
anything like an English version of sum-
mer evening, but there was an Intellectual
breeze, and the "dobies" cast long shadows
as the sun died.
Jack and 1 decided upon ride We set
OuU upOh Jul way, Ohihih6 d. val hoooAy Va
I know not what that we barely noticed
Jose as he mounted his pony at the back
door Of the house.
When we were 30 feet farther on, there
was whirring noise with a sort of muffled
thud Jack was delivered Of sound that
appeared to have begun life as an oath and
turned aside to be a gurgle; also his horse
jerked itself on its launches and seemed
to stagger helplessly.
By the time could turn my head Jack
was half way out Of his saddle. A leather
thong was grit around his elbows, pinion-
ing his arms to his sides. Its other end
was fastened to the pommel Of Jose's sad
die, and Jose was bending over his horses
neck with devilish sheen beneath his
heavy eyebrows.
Jack had his fingers on his revolver in
an instant, but crippled as he was by the
thong that cut deep into his flesh he was
as helpless as though his arms had been
broken.
looked at him, frozen to my saddle, as
Useless to move to his rescue as though the
lariat was bound about me.
Then there was crack that startled me,
and the whole fascination dissolved Jacks
arms were free, and Jose was tangled up
in confused mass of pony, harness and
man.
As the pony fell there appeared behind
its body the figure of Mrs. Jack, pale and
quivering, with the lips set and sort of
horror In the eyes that was revelation to
me in my study of expressions. In her
hand was revolver, with thread of
smoke trickling from the barrel as it hung
from her limp grasp. She swooned after
ward, and lifted her from the ground.
Before that time, however, Jack had re-
leased himself, and when l looked round
he was standing over the PROSTATE greas-
er, with his watch in one hand and his re-
volver in the other.
"Jose," he remarked as placidly as
though he had been ordering dinner, "in
Just three minutes am going to kill you.
l shall tell you as the minutes pass"
1t was an unpleasant scene to look at.
Tho fellow howled like hurt beast. He
chung to Jacks knees and prayed for mer"
cy In the name Of all his saints.
sits no use, jose I'm going to-two
minutes-kill you. have no use for such
as you, and don't see how anybody else
can have"
We buried him a little later, and then
Jack collapsed also. had my hands full
for awhile bringing the couple to rea-
sonable condition Of nerves
did not understand until day or two
afterward when Jack was willing to talk
about it, the full extent of Mrs. jack 8 her.
oism. In the instant granted her to ap-
preciate the situation she had seen that to
kill jose would be useless, for the pony
would inevitably tear away at full speed,
and the pony controlled the lariat. She
had aimed at the pony's head, and by a
God sent chance the ball had entered his
eye
Lucky the little madam knew how to
hold gun straight, wasn't itf' said Jack.
"Pity, though. Never knew anybody who
could fry chicken like Jose. Exchange.
ra,naIa Motormen aa Fipanclers.