Gilpin observer., 1904-02-18

ds himself perforce practiced half
dozen crafts. and. suffered therefrom
neither In his own esteem nor that of
those about him. The specialists of
trade, Of artisanship, Of art, were not
yet demanded. in this environment
where each man In truth took care Of
himself" and had small dependence
upon others.
In all the arts of making ones self
comfortable in womanless and hence
a homeless land both franklin ana
Battersleigh. experienced campaigncrs
as they were, found themselves much
aided by the counsel of Curly, the sell
reliant native of the soil who was
Franklin's first acquaintance in that
land. It was Curly who helped them
with their houses and in their house
hold supplies. 1t was he told them
now .and then of new region where
the crop of bones was not yet fully
gathered. 1t was he who showed them
how to care for the little number OF
animals which they had begun to gath.
er about them; and who, in shors
gave to them full knowledge of the
best ways Of exacting subsistence
form the laid which they had invaded.
One morning Franklin, thinking to
have an additional buffalo robe for tho
coming winter. and knowing no man
ner in which he could get the hide
tanned except through his own efforts,
set about to do this work for him.
self, ignorant of the extent of his
task, and relying upon Curly for ad-
vice as to the procedure.
"You might git Juan to tan you all
one or two." said Curly. He kin tan
ez good ez ary Injun ever was"
But, by the way, Curly" said
Franklin, how is Juan this morning?
|. We haven't heard from him for a day
or two"
"Oh. him?" said Curly. "why. he's
all right. He's just been layin' round
. little, like dog that's been cut up
some in a wolf fight, but he's all right
now. Shoulders about well, an fer
the knife-cut, it never did amount to
nothin' much. You can't. hurt a
Greascr much, not noways such a big
one as Juan. But didn't he git action
in that little difficulty O. his'n? You
could a-broke the whole Cheyenne
tribe. If you could a-got a-bettin' with
'em before that fight"
odds was a hundred to one against
US, shure," said Battersleigh, seating
himself in the doorway of the shack.
'Ye may call the big boy loco, or what
iver ye like. but it's grateful we may
be to him. An tell me, If ye can, why
didn't the haythins pile in an polish
US all on. after their chief lost his
NUMBER"
Them Cheyennes was plenty hot at
us fer comm in on their huntin'
grounds" said Curly, IAN they shore
had it in fer us. don't think it was
what their chief said to them that
KEEP them back from 5umpin' us, ater
the fight was over. It's a blame sight
more likely that they got sort o.
notion in their heads that Juan was
bad medicine. If they get it in their
minds that man is loco, an per-
tected by spirits. an that sort o. thing,
they won't fight him. fer fear o. get
tin the worst of it. That's about why
we got out of there, l reckin."
I'm sorry for them" said Franklin.
thoughtfully. "Just think, we are TAX
ing away from these people everything
in the world they had. They were
happy as we are-happier, perhaps
and they had their little ambitions,
the same as we have ours. We are
irving them away from their old
country. all over the West, until it is
hard to see where they can get a foot
hold to call their own. We drive them
and fight them and kill them, and
then-well. then we forget them"
You're funny sort O. feller. Cap"
said Curly. but If you're goin' to tan
that hide you'd better finish peggin' it
out, an git to work on it,"
ITO be cOntinued,)