The Savannah morning news., 1902-08-10
NORTH-BOUND TRAINS.
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HE SLEPT OVER THREE MONTHS.
Long Nap Which Came From Doing
on Car Seats.
Walter Morris

Long Nap Which Came From DOING
on Car Seats.
Many years ago in Huerfano county,
in South Colorado, says the Chicago
Inter Ocean, there lived a Mexican
whom we will call, for the purposes of
this tale, Juan Andreas Uacheaco. He
was a man of some consequence in his
community, owning d goodly number
of sheep and fertile little rancho in a
sheltered mountain valley. A man of
about 80 years of age, contrary to the
general custom of his people he had
never married.
One year he was elected justice of
the peace for his precinct, and this
precinct was almost entirely inhabited
by people of his race. Juan AndreaS
was somewhat superior to the major
lty of his neighbors in intellect as we'll
as personal possessions, and entered on
the duties of his office with a keen APP
probation of the dignity conferred up
on him thereby. He was thoroughly i'm
pressed with the Importance of the po-
sition, and was honest in the belief
that he possessed all the powers con-
ferred upon any court.
He heard the various petty eases
which originated in his neighborhood
that came before him in his judicial
capacity, and, so far as l have been
able to learn, decided them in a man
ner which was highly satisfactory to
himself and the people of the precinct.
One beautiful spring morning there
came to the casa" of Juan Andreas a
bridal party. 1t came for the
purpose of securing his services
in his judicial capacity. Now, weddings
before a justice of the peace are quite
a rarity in Mexican circles Unless the
parties belong to the 'penitents," or to
that still more meager following of
Presbyterians, they are Catholics; not
the best Catholics, perhaps, but at any
rate nominally so, and in matters of
this kind they always go to the padre.
The groom strong but not over
bright young fellow of %. had gone
down on the Trinchera, and by some
means, never satisfactorily explained,
had brought back with him from that
settlement a comely and attractive
maiden of IS years as a prospective
bride. Gaudeloupe Lobato, the groom,
had the day previous journeyed to the
county seat and procured the necessary
license which authorized all ministers
of the gospel, judges of courts, and
justices of the peace to whom said
presents might come to unite in the
holy bonds of mAtrimony the aforesaid
Gaudaloupe Lobato and Maria Man
uella Inez Valencia.
The payment of the clerks fee of
So so for the license exhausted the
limited funds of Gaudaloupe, but this
fact he carefully concealed from the
BRIDE and also from the knowledge of
Juan Andreas Pacheco, the justice of
the peace.
Armed with proper credentials and
accompanied by few friends the we'd
ding party arrived in great glee. Sen
orita Valencia, as l said before, was a
comedy creature, and Juan Andreas en-
We'd Gaudaloupe his good fortune in
securing such a matrimonial prize The
license was produced and carefully ex-
amined by him for any possible defect
as already the idea had entered his
head that he would do most anything
to win her from Gaudaloupe
But the license seemed to be in
proper form, and there was nothing for
Juan Andreas to do but line the par
ties up in front of him and perform
the unusual ceremony. This done, he
demanded his fees, and the improvi-
dent and impecunious Gaudaloupe was
forced TO confess that ne was not only
financially embarrassed, but actually
strapped.
He made many specious promises.