The Press., 1898-06-16

Uncle Curro took a rope and went again into the field to hang himself. This time he persisted in his purpose of hanging himself, and the dwarf persist ed in his that he should not. At last the little friar ended the discussion by giving Uncle Curro a cudgel, telling him that with that i'll his hands he need never be troubled by any one again, and that all he had to do was to say, "Cudgel, lay about you," for every one to run away from him and leave him in peace and quiet.
 Uncle Curro took the road home with his cudgel, as proud as an alcalde with his wand of office, and the moment he saw his children coming toward him, asking him for something to eat with insulting and abusive words, as they were accustomed to see their mother do, he said to his cudgel, 'Cudgel lay about you!'' No sooner had he pronounced the words than the cudgel began to shower blows to right and left among the chill dren until they had scarcely 8 whole bone left in their bodies. His wife ran to her children's assistance. "At her, cudgel," said Uncle Curro; "at her, and with a willI' And the cudgel be. | labored the wife so unmercifully that she died of her injuries.
 The authorities being notified, the | alcalde, accompanied by his officers, presented himself upon the scene. | "Cudgel, lay about youl" said Uncle | Curro, as soon as they appeared, and the cudgel proceeded to deal such lusty blows among them that every blow was | worth dollar, so that the alcalde was | killed and the officers took to their heels and were out of sight in trice. A messenger was sent to the king tC inform him of what was going on, and l the king sent regiment of grenadiers 1 to seize Uncle Curro and his cudgel. l No sooner did Uncle Curro see them | approach than, throwing the cudgel among their ranks, he cried, "Cudgel, lay about you'' And the cudgel straight | way began to dance upon the ribs oi the grenadiers, making 8 noise like the olapper of a mill. One it left lame, another with a disabled arm, and the captain it left blind of an eye. To make an end of the business the grenadiers all threw their guns and knapsacks on the ground and ran off, helter skelter, as if they thought the devil had broken loose and was running after them. | With his mind at rest, Uncle Curro lay down to take a nap, hiding his cudgel in his breast lest it should be stolen from him during his sleep. When he awoke, he found himself bound hand and foot and on his way to prison, where, on his arrival, he was sentenced to the ignominious death of the gar rote.
 On the following morning he wal taken from his cell and led out to exc oution. On the scaffold his hands were unbound, whereupon he took out hi oudgel, and saying. "Cudgel, lay abou you," he threw it at the executioner who was quickly beaten by it to death
 "Set that man free," said the king Cor he will not leave me a subjec alive Tell him that I will give him province in America on condition tha he shall leave the country" And thu it was done. The king gave him prov ince in the island of Cuba, where h. built a city, and there he killed so man, people with his cudgel that from tha day to this it has been called Matanza (the Spanish for slaughter). .-Buffal Express.