The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1900-04-12

aud reason, the rains should nave set
in weeks before, but they had not.
The glasss that had sprungup with the
first early showers had scared and died
shafare taaane rain came to kept
The saa low, sluggish Ii tie
streams Of brackish water that crawled
along the cotton Of their beds, which
the year before had been swollen, be-
! yond their hanks, finally gave cut Ut
teriy. In every direction the white
alkali pains glis:enel away to the
meeting line OF the sky in an attitude
If isolation. The oldest inhabitant IN
oil the country could not recall VIII
Ter that equaled this in aryness.
Howbeit, Nevada was then a new
state, and the population migratory.
Wilson, the boss OF the outfit, had
hoped to get ont of the sagebrush
country and strike the California line
somewhere abo . Bodie by the ead of
first month ont, but there was no
mein, no water, and the plains lay in
PSpen cracks: Day after day the sun
arose, smiled down upon the parched
little bunch Of men and cattle II long
hours as be sailed across cioud!ess
sky, serenely unconscious OF the male
ii tons hurled against MIN. while the
bare, burning prairie stared back IN
rrbliukiug defiance. There were gor-
geoussuusets every evenirg-monents
when the great fiery hall seemed al
mos. to stand still to give long back
ward glance before dropping ont OF
sight, and with Midas touch turn ali
the world to molten gold. But to the
played out cow -puncher sunset means
nothing but bedtime-be ltine after q
hard, parched, hopeless day. There
Nv re clear, chaste moonlight nights +
wondrous radiance, toe, but the moon
was seen only in the ea.ly morning.
when they rose to another day. more
hard, more parcbed, more hopeless.
q The cattle-mere anatomical charts by
this sime-weut staggering about IN
crazy circles, too weak 70 need watch
ing, the three KS on their tanks re-
duce to half the original size by the
shriveling Of the hide, or fe hea'ily
to the earth to rise again, af>er many
seasons OF sun and shower, as prairie
Howers and salt grass. TIER below.
ing was reduced to q moan aim st
human in it< mise =. for the one voice
common to all created things, animal
or human, is the vol Of suffering.
The Missou-ian, a great, hulking
young fellow, was first of the men to
show signs of weakening. That is the
most terrible moment in alike expert
ences, when the men who ha held on
8 im2 = aud endured together see ne
of their number losing his grip. This
had been an il!-assorted outfit when
they started ont with the cattle across
the plains, hut standing together,
Z. noulder to shoulder, defving death
against fearful odds %nits man deep
" into the life Of his fellow. Among
III Sc men there was no spoken sy'n-
pathy, no overt act Of kindness, but
in their very sulIeun IS was that g"im-
me>t Of all sacrifices, each man erdur'
ing in stole silence in order tha. he
might not intru 'e his own suherings
upon bis already overcrowded neigh
Dor. The clipching of the lips to sun
press a groan when one is thirst-mad-
dened may require more heroism than
faring cannon with flags fyi"g aud
drums heating, inasmuch as he that
rul th his own spirit is greater than
be that taketh a ci.v."
y At last one day the Missoarian gave
: out utterly. He was not of the COW
boy build in the, st place.. but his
splendid .horsemansh;p and enthusl-
ssm had induced Wilson, the boss, or
s.Yankee BILL az he was called, to
take him o.. n hisHde. raun be lay
and cried fo- water. day and night.
Re hfNahsred and begged foc water.