The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1898-03-02
IN THE PLAGU L.

The tife plague erept along slowly.
but surely. First it took poor old Pepe,
tho blind begRar who lived all alone
i'll his little jacal down near the Plaza
Mayor He died Then 1t made its way
straight up tho Gale Alfonso All the
"unwashed' got it and even the better
people, and finally the governors fami-
ly, in their villa close to the Presa, and
after that-well, il became impossible
to keep track of the spread Of the dis
ease. Gu Tuesday perhaps six families
had tha foyer. The next Sunday the
whole great town was stricken, and
every house i'll the place, from the low
est little peon hut up to the great mar
bic fronted house of the jefe poltioo,
wns in mourning
Tho medicos did their best. Working
day and night, with no rest, no sleep,
doing the doetoring and the nursing,
too, they hattled To stamp ont the fever.
OF course many Of the people could
leave and did The governor and his
family fled 10 their hacienda home over
near Dolores lIidalga The jefe polilicu
also departed in hastc and some of the
foreigners Many of the latter, however,
had gone away tn the states or the TERRA
fra at the approach ot the warm wealth.
or and the threatening plague. \ few
white mtn3 IN the hank and out ut
the mines had Ia remain III the city
and did 81 with good grace, thanking
Providence that the wives and children
were ut home and out of the aeeurse
hole
hastings WAS one of the few mon wht
stuck To it, for two reasons to begil
with, he WAS not a coward, and he knew
that if ho left tho business of the Cll
Mincra Uuida de Londres to take ear,
Of itself the deuce would be To pay fol
another thing there was his pretty,
silly, helpless wife III England She
had gone home III March. just when the
weather was getting sultry and suggcs-
tive of what WAS % follow, with many
expressions ef grief nj leaving larry be-
hind to work alone during the hot sum
nor. But th,n, as she put it, they
eouldn both afford 10 GO
hastings never thought of her rs he
ing selfish It was u miserable hole for
woman ta 1--we IN anyway. even nj the
best and she could not be- blamed So
he loyalty defended her III his thoughts
and sent every cent of his pay to her
outside 81 the d'tuai eastos, or expenses.
The latter did not amount tn much, for
nihe loed Is simple and inexpensive.
tut 1t Is clean anyway, without super
hni'Y ot germs such rs You get during
plague times III Mexico, and If he could
nave always got mine food 1t might
nave neth All llSht.
But the CuCE-old .Iuana-fell i'll In
TWO uaNS sh'- WAS dead. Next the MeXi-
can foreman died. several Of the arrieros
followed, few of the miners and IA
dozen or So III the harreteroS, ut which.
III very bad state OF fright, the re-
manning mine men struck and departed
III hasle 10 ifoNldtneia, little pueblo
higher up wh.re the disease might not
Hollow
Lett alone, hastings shrugged his
shoulders and said naughty word.
Then he eahltd to London, explaining
matters and adding that he would hold
ON, that the plague would have to run
its course. after which he hoped to get
the mill geing again. But they mieht
prepare fer its stoprage ut least during
three weeks more.
After which there was nothing to do.
lie could not go out To tho adjacent
mines for fear Of carrying the infection
with HIM In town James Of the Banco
dc nglaterra and Hardy of the cable
company bad died during the time Of
his own struggle with the Cha Upida
employees 50 he was the only white
man left
In the town there remained only one
small unclean meson operated nv an in.
different Chinaman. Here Hastings had
his meals, coming down town fer them
through the deserted. silent streets.
where few starving dogs Law in the
sunshine. gazing wistfully at the white
man as he passed and bowling miserably
for food. There were u few ragged look
ing burrcs and some meagcr pigs that
ran wild i'll the middle of the streets,
and old Pepe's green parrot tluttered
about III the little space in front of his