Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1904-08-04
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|HerLess0n,
, BY c. B. LEWIS
, COPYRIGHT. 1901. By C.. u. Lewis
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS,
By c. B. LEWIS
Copyright. 1901. By C. u. Lewts

| Pacif1c road, and IN the cattle and In
dian country. and that was Miss Bessie
Vaughn OF Chicago Her schoolmate,
Nettie Long, whose father owned and
managed the big Long ranch and who
was now living with him out in the
| wilds, had written that a person would
meet Bessie at Snow I'LL with buck
board and bring her safely to the
| ranch. The person" proved to be a
| young man of twenty-five, dressed as
cowboy, but having rather dstin-
guished look about him. While he
| was fastening along the platform and
yet thirty feet away the girl acknowl-
| edged to herself that his features were
good and that his face showed charac-
ter and ambition. Perhaps it was for
| these reasons that, while he was COW
ering the other thirty feet, Miss Bessie
suddenly decided that he ought to be
| snubbed.
This Is Miss Vaughn of Chicago,
presumed" he said as he lifted his hat
| and smiled a welcome.
What right had he to presume? By
| what right did be smile welcome and
seem ready to shake hands? The girl
ded her head, and that was snub No. l..
The young man took 1t so; but, though
lie colored up, he did not lose his smile.
"You will give me your checks,
please, and l will put your trunks
aboard and we will be Off
There was n touch Of authority in his
tones that nettled the girl, and she
turned away and delivered up the
checks with her own hand, She would
| also have loaded the trunks on the
vehicle if she had been strong enough.
Snub No. had followed fast on the
heels of snub No. l.
I'VE have fifteen miles to drive, and
the road is rather rough" observed the
young man as they got seated.
No reply. Snub No. 3.
Il take it that you have never visit
ed this section before?' was remarked
after the silence had lasted for a mile.
NO"
"But | trust you will find novelty
and pleasure"
Miss Bessie looked straight ahead
and shut her teeth hard. What was
! 1t to one of Colonel Longs hired men
| whether she enjoyed the west or not?
| The man was presumptuous, and she
| meant her silence to be another snub.
| Whether 1t was SO taken or not, it was
not more than five minutes before IN
voice which had touch Of the paternal
In 1t remarked:
"You don't look overwell, and a cou-
| pie of months of this bracing atmos
| phere will do you a world of good"
"Sr, are you II practicing physcian"
| asked Miss Bessie as she turned to
look the young man square in the eyes.
well, no. he slowly replied.
"Then you need not bother to take
charge of my health
| That was what the boys would have
called settler. and it hung the young
man up for the next ten minutes.
When he spoke again, however, it was
as if nothing had happened.
| at was on that hill over there" he
quietly said, as he pointed with his
| whip. that four of our men were sur
rounded by fifty Indian warriors two
years ago"
Miss Bessie deliberately turned to
look in the opposite direction, and she
| felt that he was smiling as he con-
tinued:
| zone of the boys was killed, but they
| killed twelve Indians and held their
ground all day"
| What was it TO her whether one or
the whole four cowboys We're killed?
Indeed she found herself almost wish
ing that all had been wiped out She
hadn't the slightest interest in the
affair-not that day.
"And over there in that valley is
| where a drove of steers ran over and
trampled the life out of to of our
men last spring We didn't even find
their boots"
Miss Bessie looked straight ahead
and made no reply
| "And you wouldn't believe, would
you, that this insignificant creek we
are crossing was a mile wide ard ten
| feet deep last Mayf We lost a thou
sand head of stock in that flood"
Still no reply. 1t was snub after
| snub, and she meant to tire him out
This time the silence lasted for fifteen
| minutes and she it was who broke it
at last. The horses had SHE'D at a
| coyote lodging for cover and started
away on tearing gallop, The young
man kept them on the trail, but made
not the slightest effort TO check the
| pace. On the contrary, he hummed a
| popular air as they laid down to their
work. The visitor stood it as long as
she could and then turned and ex-
| claimed:
cant you see that the horses are
running away
Il have seen 1t for some time past"
he quietly replied.
| 'Then why don't you stop themf'
II will if you so wish, but a run OF
| few miles won't hurt them any"
She did wish it from the bottom OF
| her heart, for the vehicle was jumping
! like a goat and il took both hands TO
! hold her hat on her head but she grit
ted her teeth and decided to be smash
! eG into jam before she would prefer
| the request The horses ran for three