The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-05-18


Followed King T'isser. the Leader of
! the Band Proves HIMSELF Very suave
GesslemRn.
Save in lhe wilGsst parts of she now
samo west the trailer, or traokU, is no
more He was never very plen1iful, be-
ing, like the crack shot, work of God. i
have knueSn bot two. One was IN Amer
ican naiped Smith. It was sad Of him
that he would swing from his saddle in
the blackest of moonloSs nights, and by
feeiinga bush sell within "a half mile of
where he stooG in all the wide stretch
of country between Bar c canch in bhe
Paphand and Holy -Mgry of the Salt
Marshes just above Brownsville. OF
course Smith did not fcel'any bushes. lie
had the sensU Of place, as.any wild animal
has il, and he found his way by sixth
sense, just Us the birds do.
NV other trailer Was Pedro. Pedro 8
mother wac a woman of Tamaulipas. His
father wasa Kickapoa. The Tamaulipan
IS "a mixtIre of the original Aztec, the
runaway save and the -dominecring Span
lard The result Is about what you would
get from an emulsion of Medford rum,
nitroglyrcrin, arsenic and VOLTS blood
1 came upon Pedro in this way:
Shannonhouse, the North Carolinian-
long limbed, loose jointed, awkward, pow
erfll ana brave eShannonhouse-and i left
Laredoof an afternoon, and, riding north
ward "a miles, by sunset camped upon the
Arroyo Blanca, where there was a little
sheep tainted water and less grass. At 10
o'clock next morning we reached the Saos
ranch an estate of go, 900 acres, which
grew only bropchos, longhorns, cactus,
mesquite, Mexican babies and thorns.
We turned in coward the ranchhOuse for
q cup Of coffee and the little light cakes
which the yellow bakers call by 90 pet
names. Plainly something had happened
The open space in front of the adobe house
was filed with excited men. Among
them stood Sanchez, the owner, giving
rapid commands Between soft Spanish
oaths, ripped out as violently as if they
meant something, he explained. One of
his men had been sent ont that morning
20 drive upa herd of thirty odd "stock
horses" or those used in working cattle.
He had gone To their range. They were
not there, but in their stead was broad
trail leading away from the Saos neigh
borhood. Sanchez was then making up
his party Of pursuit. He would take 10
men, since there could not be less than a
half dozen driving the stolen stock. They
would net make any speed with less.
Would we yoiny Surely we would Where
was PeSlroy
He came up well mounted-more than 6
feet tsil: meaeer almost 10 ghastliness;
his naturally dark skin burned almost 10
African biackness; his eyes small, deep set
and ciose together; hts nose aquiline; his
lips thin and compressed; his snaky black
IN n II
had the repressed gmvity Of his Indian
,ace Around him, whore IL clung in some
mysterious manner, was gaudy blanket.
IT had no fastening that could see. Un-
der his right knee nestled the usual win
chester, evidently a capable and danger
Gus man "All ready" asked Sanchez.
"Come on" Ii was as wild a troop as
ever swept over q Tartar steppe. The
swarthy faces were st, and the eyes gilt
tered sngrily. A whisper ran from
man 10 man as they olattered on" King
Feeshr' Fisher was n noted desperado
who lived on the Nueces river. He had
killed some of them and robbed them
more than once. They were satisfied that
the last theft was his work. Moreover,
tho horses, 32 in all, were the best on the
ranch. especially broken and trained.
Full 80 miles To the northward ran that
trail, but when they struck IL they struck
ii as the eagle strikes homeward 10 her
nest upon the crag when the way is far
and the sun Is low and talons are heavy.
Ii was as broad and plain as a country
road. Moro than 100 hoofs had made it so.
''They were going fast" said Pedro.
We were riding at the sharp, steady trot
that the ranch horse develops. Mile after
mile was put behind us. 1--WE can't afford
10 go more slowly" said Sanchez in cour-
teous explanation. "They have had more
than 12 hours start" III you como up
with them, what them" asked. "Ahr'
he said. We had ridden so miles, and the
dark was coming down when thc broad
trnil disappeared. 1t was wiped out as n
boy swabs "A wet sponge across "a slate.
1--WE will eat,' said Sanchez. 1.-The moon
will be up soon" One of the men had
shot peccary. Another had n small pack
age of salt in a pocket Of his saddle. We
roasted and ato the wild hog without bread.
"Tbe trail L. gone" said Pedro, because
they have scattered the horses. No mat
ter"
Once more in the saddle, with the white
moon streaming over all the wide country,
Pedro rode, now leaning far over his
horses shoulders He was following a
single track. The gait was fast walk.
The character of the country had changed.
1t had become rocky and hilly, but was
still bare. So we rode and rode. Sud-
denly before us again stretched the wide
road made by the fugitives. A sibilant
hiss Of satisfaction greeted IL. Now trot,
up hill and down. while loose pebbles clat-
tered from under tho horses hoof,. Once
n startled herd OF antelope bounded almost
from beneath our feet and scurried away.
Dawn found us steadily riding. A cup Of
coffee and two hours sodden sleep, then
the relentless pursuit. Again the trail
vanished, and again Pedro, casting about
hke hound, signaled Sanchez TO como
on. Three miles farther and the single
truck disappeared. Instead, crossing It
almost at right angles, was q trail wider
even than that which left the ranch. Pedro
was at fault herca half hour, hunting like
o sleuth for his Sign" "Thcy have run
wild cattle across the trail" explained
Sanchez.
Late that afternoon q heavy cloud Of
emoke rose on the far horizon. Pedro
smiled for the first time. THAT is their
Last trick" he said in his patois. They
are burning the grass behind them in tho