The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1904-01-29
JIM drew his gay. sea

L EtfAJhh JIM -uFeW his gay, scar
L let and yellow blanket close
about his athletic person and stepped
from the glare of yellow sunlight int
the cool shade of the catalpa tree b!
the gate. His black eyes roved rest
lesSly over the silent yard. Keno rose
stretched himself lazily and wagged {
languid greeting Generally speaking
Keno hated Indians even worse thar
he did the gaunt, gray coyotes which
Sneaked through the sage-brush bach
OF the chicken yard; but he and Pep
PAIGE were old friends.
Peppajee stopped and rested grimy
hand upon the sleek, black head OF
the dog.
"Yo' Keno, wano dog. Heap wano,"
1t was the highest praise known to his
tribe. Their scale of appreciation is
simple. 1t is this: wano, good; heap
wano, very good, indeed. On the other
hand, ka wano is bad, while heap ka
Wano is the worst possible. A more
elaborate classification of ones good
or bad qualities they consider super
fiuous
Peppajee assembled and stood upon
the porch. Finding the door open
for the day was hottie advanced and
stood in the doorway, darkening the
room with his siN-foot stature.
Huh. Where yo' ketchum, Will?"
VIII looked up from the new boots
he was admiring. Their high, slender
heels and shiny, red tops seemed to
him the acme of perfection.
Hello, Peppajee. Come on in. You
like 'em boots? Wano?"
Peppajee came closer, eying the
boots generously the while. He ran a
long forefnger critically over the red
tops. The leather was soft and pleas
ing to the Notwithstanding to the
eye. His blanket slipped UNDECIDED
from one shoulder and trailed upon the
carpet
Huh. Mebbyso wano, mebbyso ka
wano,' he replied, guardedly ''Meb-
byso holes come heap quick Mebbyso
hurt feet-ouch!' His bronzed fea-
lures mimicked the agony of uncom-
Portable foot-gear, While his gaze lin
gered upon the red tops. Red" he
admitted, reluctantly, him heap wano
Where yo' ketchum?"
"Oh, | ketchum heap long way Off
San Francisco. l pay So, So" Will
held up corresponding number of
fingers. mo hurt feet-wano. No
holes come, mebbyso one year" Will,
when conversing with the Indians who
came often to the ranch, adopted as
far as possible, their mode of speech
Peppajee seated himself gingerly
upon the edge of chair, his blanket
wrapped jealousy around him. He
would have preferred to squat COM
fortably upon the floor but for the fact
that he prided himself upon his white
man ways. His beady eyes returned
hungrily to the boots.
Huh. Holes come, bimeby, yo'
gimme red?"
Yes. I'll give you red when holes
come. It'll be long time, though
mebbyso one year"
PeppaJee grunted and relapsed into
stolid silence. Secretly, Will wondered
what had brought the fellow to the
ranch. Two years ago he had been a
frequent visitor, until Will, who was
more facetious and less discreet. had
concocted horrible mixture of cold
tea, red pepper, salts, vinegar and
ipecac and presented Peppajee with
generous flask. 1t was April Fools
day, but Peppajee knew nothing of
the significance of the season. All
days were alike to him. He carried
the flask joyfully home to his wickiup,
and if he found the "wano whisk'" be-
low the standard, he made no COM
plant. The only sign of displeasure
had been sudden break in his visits. |
Until to-day he had not deigned so |
much as a glance in Wills direction. /
so that his friendliness now was rather
puzzling.
''Yo' eat dinner plenty quick, meb-
byso?" asked Peppajee, insinuatinely.
as certain savory odors fioated out to |
his uostrils from the kitchen.
= $50 -,yfs-