The Newtown bee. (Newtown, Conn.) 1877-current, 1898-04-22

Maynard stepped forward, extended his
hand, and manfully said
81 beg your pardon, Jack. That was
for giving me lesson. III try to profit
by it,
$50 will we all, " said one and another
of the remaining six teamsters, as each
came up in his turn and heartily shook
hands with the boy who was brave
enough thus to proclaim his principles
in the face Of possible ridicule-that hard
eat of all things for youth to bear.
"Mark my Words" said our old guide,
Dave Ingram, while telling the rest of us
of this episode, which, himself unobserY
ed, be had witnessed, "if, on our long
journey, the time ever comes, as it likely
will, that an act of uncommon daring is
required to save life or property, that act
will be performed by Jack Meredith
and not for show, either, but from a sense
of duty. The boy never loses his temper,
nor ever swears at nor strikes his team ;
yet, of all the eight, 1t is in the best con-
AALN'4 anu 10 JuS AAOSG SCI NICSdO1C9 Willie
his harness, firearms and other traps are
always in perfect order. If that's the
result of his mothers teaching it's an
awful pity that every boy couldn't have
one like her"
And, truly, it is astonishing how great
an influence for good or evil the example
of one person may exert. From
that day there was steady improve
ment in our transport service-less
friction on the road, less pickering in
camp, less profanity, and, consequently,
far greater degree of quiet enjoyment
among all hands. By tscit consent, tho
some of his mates were 10 years older
than he, Jack was made leading team
ster; and it was really wonderful to see
how, when a wagon was stuck in the
sand or mired in the bed of some muddy
arroyo, his skill, patience and address
overcame the difficulty and extricated
team and vehicle uninjured. Every
horse and mule of the 80 we employed
as draft animals seemed to know that it
had friend in the young toss, and I'M
der his kindly system of persuasion each
one did more and better work than could
have been exacted by any amount of the
old-time whipping and cursing.
All this was the result of Jacks moral
courage and self-command; but, as pre-
dicted by the guide, there came time
when the boy was to prove that his
physical courage, also, was of the high
est order. l do not refer to his gallantry
in the numerous Indian fights we were
forced into from time to time, for such
was, as a matter of course, exhibited by
every man of the party, but to an act of
self-forgetting heroism which not one
person in a million would have dared to
attempt.
One morning, in New Mexico, we were
toiling up Tuxedo Canon, a deep, slopipg
defile eight or 10 miles long, bounded on
either side by vertical walls of rock and
not more than so feet wide at the bottom,
along which trickled little thread of
water. The day was hot and sultry :;
not breath of wind was stirring, and,
when we had got about halfway through
the ravine, there suddenly appeared in
the far western sky an ominous looking
bank of yellow.green clouds.
On noticing these portentious signs,
our weather-wise guide, who, with IL of
US who owned saddle-horses, was riding
in advance of the train, exclaimed
Boys, there's big rainstorm brewing
in the mountains, and this canon's liable
TO be fleeded at minutes notice. We |
must get out Of 1t quick az the Lord viii |
let us. You fellows take the crowd with
you and ride on to side gulch that /
leads up to the plain, about two miles /
rom here, and III go back and hurry up
he wagons. Likely as not we'll have /
ocular cloud.burst-they're common in
hese parts--and If the rush Of water
catches the teams and DRYERS in the
'anons nothing in creation can save 'em.''
Tho seeing no immediate danger, each
me OF US took comrade up behind him
the party numbered 80 men in alp and
PRESSED forward at canter, while In
.ram galloped down to the extended line
4 wagons, urging each teamster In turn
Q make the greatest possible haste In
blowing us, and at once, from plod-
ling walk, horses and mules struck into
. lively trot as their loads and the ma
ure OF the ground would permit.
Twenty-Five minutes at this pace would
ave placed even the hindmost wagon in
afety but the storm-god did not walt. II
scarcely bad the guide rejoind Ms On the Il