Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1898-11-19
nv friend. Adios !

%s@sMEH'TNNZA o onu 'I K;s. m afe
my friend. Adios!"
A big, honest-eyed Kentuckian
stopped above dying Spaniard. He
touched the paling, bearded lips with
his and found that the darkness and
the cold had indeed come.
A girl who had been holding the
hand of the Spanish captain, Jesu An
tonius, in hers felt the fingers stiffen
and grow chill. She pressed her
olive cheek close to his black-bearded
one. Again she felt the chill. Weep
ing beside him there, it was easy to
note the resemblance of her delicate
profile to his harsher one, and to know
that Captain Jesu Antonius, dead, and
Maxia Antonius, mourning, were
father and daughter.
Lieutenant Luke Terrill himself led
the weeping girl away from the stark,
soldierly figure on the hacienda YER
snda. A wrinkled. yellow duenna
met him at the door and snatched the
girls hand from his arm.
"Accursed Americana. There is
your work. You shall not enter herew
Crossing herself and mumbling, she
hurried the girl away, but not before
Senorita Maxia Antonius had given n
backward glance of grief and graft
tude.
The Spanish physician tolerated
the touch Of the American upon the
body Of Captain Antonius. He saw it
was strong and wise and tender
touch. He allowed him to help to
carry the dead captain within. Then
he dismissed him and Lieutenant
Terrill returned to the detachment of
men that had been stationed on the
hacienda to save Captain Antonius's
property from the revengeful and
ravaging Porto Ricans.
He was a splendid young specimen
of manhood, from that splendid rear
ing ground of men, Kentucky. He
was good six feet in height, and had
fine sweep of shoulders and the free
stride of an Indian. His eyes were
frank and blue. His hair and mus
tache were of the color Of the chest
nuts in the woods at home. He had
written a long letter to his mother
that morning.
81 am in charge OF fifty men, who
are guarding the hacienda Of rich
Spaniard from Barcelona, who is
skirmishing somewhere near Ponce.
The Porto Ricans hate him because
he is rich and Spanish and spends
only month or two here at the
hacienda. Now that he has joined
the army they are more vindictivc
than ever. There are only his daugh-
ter-a young woman, the most beau
tiful I over saw; mother, who casts
the most disdainful glances upon me
and never deigns to speak-and three
or four servants. 1t is rather monot-
onous, this role of unwelcome pro-
tector. 1 wish something would hap
pen to STIR the blood
And something did happen before
the ink was dry upon the paper. A
little procession filed out of the woods
and up the hill. A torn handkerchief
waved from a branch the bearer had
cut in the woods. 1t was q pitiful
flag OF truce, and the Lieutenant Or
dered his men to lower their guns.
As the men came near it could be
seen that the men bore litter. The
Kentuckian and his men went to meet
them.
81 surrender, Americana; it is
hnal," said the man on the litter, with
q grim attempt at joke.
Lieutenant Terrill moistened the
old mans lips from canteen. He
babe his own men relieve the tired
men who carried the litter He
loosened tho coat thai seemed too
tight for the heaving chest of the
Spaniard in his death agony.
'You have protected my home and
my little one? Thanks! Thanks!'
And so they had carried Captain
Antonius to his home. He had
begged that they let him rest upon
the veranda.
81 am too tired. I can go no
further" he said ~ want to die on
the hacienda, but in the sunshine.
Call Maxia."
She had come and kissed his hands
and wept as frightened child. He
had petted and soothed her and then
turned to the big man who wore the
uniform of the enemy.
"You have been II generous foe.
Keep this coat. 1t will remind you of
Spaniard's death wound and his
thanks.
Americana, the darkness and the
cold are come. Kiss me, my friend.
AdiOs."