Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1901-12-12

vi 4oSCSg k11O
remnants of the antique in two of the
strangest peoples of the earth, lend
here a magic touch. The annals of
any year of modern Mexico will show
true tales that seem to SAVIOR of cara
bian Nights"
In Yucatan a feuda1 system yet ex-
lists. The fiefs are large. Some of the
nobility are Spaniards and some are
Mexlcans of mingled blood. Many
families are very old. The serfs are
Indians, and in general are mot op-
pressed, but happy. But the system
is not called feudalism, for the Mex
lean constitution never yet denied
that all men are created free and
equal.
Near Uxmal, those mysterious ruins
of a dead race, stretched out the lord
~ domains of a hacienda. BENJAMIN
Oviedo, 80 years of ago., owned 10000
square miles of land. The great fields
of heniquen-that austere plant
stretched away from the low, white
buildings of his castle for leagues and
leagues, and lay shimmering beneath
a tropical sun. The soil was grayish-
brown. The clustered bayonets Of
that sisal hemp, which brought him
fabulous wealth, slept in rows, reced-
ing before the eye, came closer to-
gether in the limitless furnace of the
tropic distance, and Joined and lost
themselves in a MONDAY haze away
against yon mountain.
The buildings, all low, spacious, with
wide tile-roofed verandas, occupied
Savorol nnrnC Tho aa-+ro1 aoe@la -
the lord was formed about a hollow
square wherein high trees cast shade,
and a horse was drinking thirstily at
a fountain.
"Come out, Cousin Soledad!" cried
Benjamin, throwing himself from the
saddle.
She came out, a girl OF a coquettish
eye, sweet lips, and gold hair. She was
fair and slender, and a big hat shaded
her face.
81 don't like to talk to you, stu
pid," said she. "You don't know any
thing but heniquen. Now, Federico
has been to the United States and
studied at the Leland Stanford univer-
sity. Ha! ha!-you big old stupid!"
"Is it stupid to love you?" He
CduRhG dJ HCT nd1us Sh1llluS tACcSu-
ingly, and feeling sure of himself.
She began to act very shy. "You
are a mediaeval brute. Federico says
we are all medieval. You beat In
dians-you know you do. I saw you
hit that old woman's face with a whip,
and it bled. You wicked thing" She
let her eye coquet with him and tossed
her gold hair, which hung down. The
neck of her dress was low.
LET me kiss yours-to make up for
it? Tt will not bleed" said he, auda-
ciously, twirling his mustache with
begemmed fingers.
"Hush, stupid"
He was in truth mediaeval-a big,
fierce animal of a man, but handsome.
He did beat Indians; he was cruel. He
had never been out of Yucatan, and,
unlike others more progressive, was
a thirteenth-century feudalist at
heart.
"Soledadi One-just one!"
"Oh, mol" She pushed him away,
sweetly, with gentle hands, and
blushed, pleased.
"One!"
"Not a half of one, big stupid"
''Then a whole one! There!"
He did kiss her-and the truth of
the thing is that she let him. She
loved him not; but it was sweet to
coquet-just once. She did that thing
which, though reprehensible, is yet
done by many a good m The
hiedous old god glared down. So
long, so long, since he had seen a kiss.
D---s -.ol4o f-s1- 1000
all dead. He was literally emperor
of all he surveyed. She was an or
phan, living in his house temporarily
with some old women cousins, till
they should put her in the convent of
the Sacret Heart in Mexico city in the
fall.
ct have won her Lowell cried Ben
jamin to himself. "No convent for
heri"
Next day Robert de Ia Mora rode
over from his hacienda, 80 miles away.
He came along between two endless
of austere heniquen. But Ben
jamin had gone away to look after
some horses. So Roberto and Soledad
went walking in the shade of the
evening to see the ruins. They tower
up-strange, fascinating. There are
dead temples; curious pyramids, carv-
ings barbaric, a wide imperial avenue
leading to a vast and t%ottering pile.
They sat down, just when the sun
went under the endless world of
heniquen, O red ball. Oddly enough
they were at the feet of another hid
eous god who stood there, his counte-
nance that of some transcendent vii
lain. A breeze blew her gold hair
gently round her bare, white neck.
Roberto, the taciturn, sighed:
"Why, Soledad, do you call US all
mediaeval?"
because, living under the shadow
of these brutal gods, you cannot get
away from medieval brutality. 9th
err hacendados in Yucatan are not
so. Progress and light are very
strong and very bright in Yucatan-
you and Benjamin-ughi"-she
looked so dainty just then-"you are
two stupid tigers. "You, also. beat
Indian women" She admonished him
with a sweetly severe finger, put up
all but into his eye. 81 saw one,s sir"
the finger went up and down slowly,
Swith a seal on her back"
"Pf," said he, with a sneer. In
dams are beasts. Don't I own them?