Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1901-06-29
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CELEBRATION y
AT TWO-OWE-EE.
-RE MlR6Dx4M%-
asst TO ur th Of
July the weather
came on cool and
beautiful in our

81 . mountains. ttut
there were three people ut Black Rock
Horse ranch who were anything but
cool. In fact, Ferd, Florence and /
were as 'hot" as we could well become
hot with Impotence and disgust.
For more than four weeks we had
been preparing for q celebration, a
picnic Mt our cottonwood grove, with
all the family and all our neighbors
along Black Rock creek to join in maxi
ing great day. Ferd, who had bor-
rowed some volumes of the Congress
sional Record from some local poll
tician, had written q short address,
and Florence had practiced diligently
some patriotic songs. Moreover, we
had expended SIS for fireworks, of
magnitude worthy of the largest at
tainable crowd.
Our discontinue may be imagined
when say that father, mother and
the younger children had failed in n
promised return from their visit at
Green River, and that, just two days
before the Fourth, report had reached
Black Rock Valley of monster cele-
bration" which was to be held at
Lander, and to which every mothers
son and daughter in our neighborhood
had stampeded.
We were left alone, we three; so far
as we knew, there was not soul left
within IS miles of us.
We were, of course, still looking for
the return of our family from Green
River, but as the morning slipped
away and IL o'clock came, with no
sign of them, Ferd and gave ourselves
up to sulliing. We were lying upon our
backs in the shade of some cotton
woods near horse corral, when Flor
-ence, who was still on the lookout,
shouted to u.s.
They're coming!" she cried, rum
ming toward us and clapping her hands
joyfully. 81 can see the dust of their
wagon down the valley, Splendid!
splendid! Wen have a celebration all
to ourselves!" AS there are eight of
US altogether, the prospect was not
quite so disheartening.
Ferd and sprang to our feet and
climbed the corral fence to look. What
we saw was a flying trail of dust rising
above a point about a mile distant.
A glance, however, showed our more
practiced eyes that the dust cloud was
altogether too great to be kicked up
by span of mules and a spring wagon.
"That's not them," declared Ferd, in
disgust. Its a stampede of horses or
cattle" A faint roar of trampling
hoofs soon bore to our ears the proof
-of his assertion. The dust cloud in
creased in volume, and the mutter of
pounding hoofs Jared like distant
rumble of thunder.
Our suspicious were quickly reused.
We craned our necks and watched in
silence. We had only minute to wait
hbefore n big bunch of horses, going at
"a swift trot, broke cover of the point.
"A few seconds later, we discovered, on
1.-THE outskirts of the herd, which doubt
Hess numbered many horses of our
own, two pony riders turning the lead
ers across the valley.
We did not have to guess that these
men were "rustlers," and that there
were more of them in the rear push
ing the horses forward. Every move
ment OF herd and men proclaimed the
fact. A gang of our mountain free
hooters had taken advantage of the
ustocimen's stampede" to Lander to
make another stampede, which should
Doe vastly to.their own advantage.
The men were steering their catch
ncross Black Rock valley up to the
mouth of Two-owe-tee pass. Once
through that difficult gap, they would
hustle the herd into the Businesses of
Owl Creek mountains, break it up into
small punches and get away with the
horses at their leisure.
Ferd and did not say this. to each
>other-we did not need to do so. We
slipped off the fence presently, and
looked at each other in grim kind of
way.
'WeIl," said Ferd, we've got to head
off that herd, stampede and scatter
,em, somehow"
''sure thing!" i assented.
When Florence understood the case,
she set up frantic wall. "You shan't
.go!" she almost screamed. "Those
men will shoot you dead! Anyway, If
you do, I'll go along and be shot, tool"
''You will stay at home, Florry," said
Ferd, kindly, but in his masterful way.
'-'WeTl take good care of ourselves,
never fear.'%
Thereupon she ran to the house,
crying. We could not stop to comfort
her. While Ferd went for our guns,
4rappings and a snack to eat, ran to
the creek pasture, got out two of our
best riding ponies and saddled them.
Wien had finished Ferd came out,
wearing his hunting jacket and carry
dng my jacket and our guns.
The big side pockets of the coats