The Van Buren press. [volume] (Van Buren, Ark.) 1859-1914, 1898-02-12
The Downfall Of San BenitO.
BY GWENDOLEN OvERTON.
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IN THE early nineties there arose in
| the town of Tularosa prophet who
had honor among his own people. He
was only Benito Morales at first but he
came to be San Benito, and this was
the manner of it:
Benito was the only son of one Sonora
Morales. She had wandered into Tu-
larosa one day with her baby in her
arms. To wander in Tularosa afoot is
no small achievement. The surround
ing country is greasewood plain, bar
rem knobs and alkali patches as far
as the eye can reach. AT Three Rivers,
seven miles to the west, there is creek
which runs almost dry in summer, but
north, east and south, for many, many
leagues, there is neither water nor
shelter. That the woman, with her child
in her arms, had lived through the des-
ert journey was marvel which was
not explained at the time, but which
was in after years attributed to divine
guidance.
Sonora Morales was very young, her
baby was but two months old, and its
father, she said, was a white man. He
was her husband, and he would come
by and by, But he never came. The
priest found her shelter in crumbling
adobe hut, and in return she swept the
church and renewed the paper roses
in the white-and-gilt vases upon the
altar She lived mostly on charity.
Benito grew to manhood and early gave
proof that his mother had spoken the
truth in saying that his father had been
Americana by the extraordinary aetiv-
ity of his mind. But that he was also
half Mexican was evinced in his quite
ordinary Incidence of body. The priest
saw in him a promising padre, and un-
dertook his education. The progress
of young Morales was astonishing. His
reputation spread. Advice was asked
of him as frequently as of the priest,
and those who followed it did we'll,
for his inspiration was keen common
sense and an eye to the main chance.
1t dawned slowly upon the padre that
his pupil was coming to be of unduly
great repute, that his own prestige was
menaced; and when Benito was in his
twentieth year, the good father thus
addressed him:
"My son." said he, 'you are now
man, and you should play mans part.
You should go out into the world and
work for the mother who has so long
supported YOU"
The word work" was a terrible stab
to the heart of Benito. But am | not
to be priest?" he asked.
NO." said the father, piously, you
have not the spirit of the priest. You
love the things of this world"
"Where shall go?" he asked.
"To the railroad, to Socorro, to Santa
Fe, to Tucson, perhaps even to Los
Angeles" the priest answered, vaguely
"You can grow rich-ah! very rich
In Socorro or Santa Fe; you need not
go farther. For some day you might
wish to come back to your mother, and
you could not do it, maybe, if you were
so far away as Tucson"
"But l must have money to go with, "
suggested Benito.
The priest looked at him reproach-
fully. Your mother did not need
money when she came from the north
and carried you in her arms" Benito
was silent "But perhaps we can get
one dollar or even two. l will 90 to-
day and try to gather it for you. Have
you no money of your own?'
mo" lied Benito, glibly.
"And yet said the good father, per-
picked, you have often been paid when
you have given advice"
81 gave the money to NV mother. Did
she not deserve that l should?" asked
Morales, righteously
The padre doubted, but he held his
peace. He. gathered two dollars and
twenty cents from his grateful flock,
and Benito Morales, taking that and
the ten dollars he had been all his life
in saving, started forth to seek his
fortune. His mother wept placidly for
days as she smoked her cigarettes on
the shady side of the house or knelt in
church and prayed and said her beads
while the swallows flew back and forth
and twitted among the rafters. In time
she ceased to weep, but she talked in
cessantly of her only son.
Two years passed before Benito came
back to his own. He had gone in the
summer, and in the summer he re-
turned. A drought was upon the land.
In those two years there had been no
rain. The priest prayed and the peo-
pie supplicated and the figure of 81.
Joseph was carried in procession. 1t
was q wooden figure painted in many
colors, and had been carved originally
to represent Napoleon. 1t wore the ia
miliar cooked hat and high boots and
tight breeches, but it drove span of
wooden oxen by green ribbon reins,
and it had brought water from the skies
before this. Yet now its influence was
of no avail, and the crops-eyen the
crop of frijoles-seemed doomed to
fail. Then Benito Morales returned.
The people, remembering his advice
had proved good of yore, asked him now
what they should do. Benito did not
commit himself. but he said that he
would pray, and that perchance the an
ger of Heaven might be withdrawn. If
so, he would expect to be paid. The
people promised. Then Benito went
into the church and bowed his pictur-
esque head and prayed for rain. There
was some faith in his heart and much
slepticism. On the following day it
rained Benito was well paid, and his
reputation far outshone that of the