Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1900-12-13
B The Garment of Iron B
BY GwendOlen OvertOn. 3

rattleSnake ana ldrdutuld' nc tai
antula scuttled off, he killed the rattle
snake. and the tumble weed and sand
he emptied out. Then he had the ar
Nor done up in a shelter tent and put
upon a pack mule. After which, the
column moved on. 1t should not have
hated at all, for II was in pursuit of
band of Indians. But there were bands
of Indians every day, and the finding
of a full suit of armor lying under
MESQUITE bush beside their trail was
rare.
When he got back to his two-com-
pany post on the banks Of the ella, he
found the interest in life, which had
been lacking for him up to then, IN
charging that knowledge. He sent
east for books and histories and trea'
tiscs concerning coats of mail and the
men who have worn them, and he even
went so. far as to write to the Smith
sonian institution, at the risk OF having
a government commission sent out al
once to seize his treasure. And IN the
interval of two months which elapsed
before he received q reply-for the
railroad was only to Kansas In those
dhvs-he set about cleaning the armor
himself, and with his own hands join
ing it together.
He was so occupied. what with that
and the histories and the other BOOKS
that he forgot to have ella bottom ma
laria and had no time 70 worry ABOUT
the flies. Then, when the steel was
once more bright as the azure shield OF
Achilles, and he had proved to his own
and to sveryons's satisfaction that II
must have once protected the body OIL
one Of Coronado's men, and must date
from the middle of the sixteenth cen
turv. or thsrNabout, he hung 1t up IN
his one-room adobe quarters, along
with the Indian trophies that were as
nothing now and the bottled reptiles
of many sorts; and the fame OF 1t
spread through the land. An Enghsh
lord, in q pith helmet and gray hnen'
who was going about the country, traV-
eled miles out of hia way to look upon
it; and a scientific party from Boston
did the same. Hartpols was beginning
to be very proud, when, one day, he had
a visitor of another kind.
It was a man he had seen sometimes
hanging around the agency and the
post-a small, 1.-THE fellow, part Coy
otero Apache, part Mexican, possibly a
very small part white, who had some
reputation as a medicine man with the
tribes. but not much as anything else.
Hartpole was sitting under his
ramada on a late summer afternoon,
reading a book whose covers curled up
with the heat, when something came
between him and his light, and, looking
up. he saw the medicine man peering
in the opening. He said: "Hullo'
Ciego," and added: What DO you
want, eh7"
Ciego spoke excellent Spanish, and
as Hartpole did, too, he had no trouble
about making himself understood he
explained that he would like to see the
suit of iron clothes which he had been
told that the lieutenant possessed
The lieutenant was so pleased to think
that it had been spoken of even in the
Businesses of the Sierra Blanca and OF
the Tonic Basin that he forgot no"
dirty Ciego was, and straightway rose
and invited him into the one room.
The medicine-man stood looking al
/ Inf
dent appreciation that touched Hart
mole very much. After the manner OF
his kind, he said no word, but pres
emily he went nearer and felt OF the
plates and chains with his fnger-tips
and put his good eye close and looked
inside. Then he turned to Hartpole
where did you find it?" he asked
The lieutenant explained at some
length.
as it very old?'
Hartpole said it was at least three
hundred and thirty odd years old, ant
went into a little history.
Ciego nodded his head. II know,
he said. But that was so manifestlJ
absurd that Hartpole did not pay any
attention to it. at is very fine" said
Ciego. "For how much will you sci
it to me2" Naturally, Hartpole only
laughed, but the Apache was in earnest
nevertheless. mo" he insisted, look
ing him sharply in the face. "No, d.
veras, wish to buy it from you"
"Well, I don't wish to SELL" answered
the lieutenant, rather veXed at tn
mere idea
81 have $780," said the Indian.
eff you had thousand you coul(
not have It,"
"I have a thousand"
Hartpole laughed again, little i'm
patiently.
"You do not believe me--look here.
Cie9o drew a buckskin bag from TIT
, folds of his sash. 1t was full of gold
"There are $500 here. In three days
can bring you $500 more"
Hartpole guessed how he come by it
and his temper rose. THAT is stoleT
money" he said, angrily; put it up
You can't have the armor. Ukashee"
"You let me have it," begged Ciego
81 wish it very much. 1 will do many
.. things for you"
Hartpole swore this time-mean
; Spanish oaths. NO." he said, "yol
can't have it. Go to the devil-get out.
Even though Ciego was only dirt!
Indian, the White-Eye should hav,
remembered that he probably had feel
ines which could be hurt. 1t is well
however, for those who have the di
rection Of children and savages il
their hands to remember that thos'
simple folk have sometimes reasons fo
the things they do and say, good ant
, sufficient unto themselves. But i
never occurred to Hartpole what thi
= half blind Indians reasons might be
They did not transpire until som
weeks later.
Yet in Cego's tribe there was
legend of a great white chief who ha
once married one of their women, an
Ind ruled over them. and who ha