The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1904-05-05
JAKE'S SQUAW


Carmen stood in the door of the cook
house, her head shading her eyes and
gazed intently over the prairie toward
the west. The level rays of the sun cast
rosy glow on heE brown cheeks. and
gave a reddish tinge to the coal-black
hair falling starlight over her shoulders,
after the manner of married women of
her tribe. Carmen was a Spanish-Indian
half-breed, and a beauty She was known
at Star Camp as Jake Ringers sQuaw.
When Jake came back from Mexico, after
the trouble about his knitting Long-haired
Ike had blown over, he brought this wom-
an with him.
Jake was not man TO be lightly ques-
toned He kept his affairs to himself.
and his hand was ever heady to his pistol
when he was pressed beyond his liking;
but it was whispered among the boys that
he had stolen his dusky bride from her
mothers lodge on the night that was to
have consummate1 her nuptiais with Big
Grizzly the young Apache chief. Jake
was kind to her in fashion that de-
cidedly astonished the men best ac-
Quainted with his fierce and gloomy char
acter- As for Carmen, her SOFT brown
eyes followed her rough lord with the
steady faithfulness OF a dog; no white
wife could have been so gentle or so
helpful as this savage girl.
She had been alone for a week now,
while the herders were off on the range.
rounding UP the horses for their yearly
branding. Tonight she looked for them
home. There was a sound of bacon siz-
cling in the big frying-pan, brown-jack-
eted potatoes peeped from their hid
ing-place in the hot ashes. and Carmen
left the door for moment to peek into
the oven at the biscuit coloring delicate
~ inside. Carmen cooked well, and the
boys found her presence a welcome one
FREEING them of irksome stewing over the
stove when they rode home tired and
hungry.
She glanced through the window as she
rose from her biscuit inspection. then
hastily returned to her post in the door
way.
Far off in the edge of the prairie a tiny
moving cloud made its appearance.
creeping snail-like. toward her; gradually
it rolled and swelled and came rushing
over the intervening plain. taking shape
into rounded puffs ever falling and re-
newing.
La cabalanda!" she murmured, in
satisfied tone
At last there came thunder OF quick
hoof-beats, and then the excited herd
dashed after their leader into the big
corral. The heavy gates banged, the
chain ratified over the staple. Five hun
CRY men sprang from their saddles, and,
has mic hot hai
Decline for the cook house.
They greeted Carmen with boisterous
jollity, flung themselves upon their
benches, and without further ado. began
to devour the food set before them.
Hey, this coffee is prime. my Car
men, Some white woman taught yer
ter make biscuits, gaI!' Say. Jake, you
bet it's fine 10 get back to Garments
cookin'"' vOciferated one and another, as,
the edge of their appetites dulled, they
began TO ply their knives more slowly.
Carmen paid no attention to their
rough compliments. She was standing
behind her husbands chair, acting as
waitress when occasion required, at other
times lingering his sombrero, or timidly
touching MS tousled curls. Each man
was duly supplied with cdibles; but the
crispest bacon and brownest biscuit found
their way to Jake Ringers plate, until
finally he looked up and announced: I've |
had enough, Now eat yourself
The men rose from the table and scat
tered to their evening occupations; only /
Jake remained. smoking in the doorway. |
while Carmen sat down TO her meal of !
fragments.
AS the last slouching figure vanished /
toward the cabins, he turned to the /
woman with a slow smile, and asked in
Mexican: HAS it been lonely these days, /
cara mia?''
1t is always night in my heart when .
thou art gone Q my husband"
Then stl in the soft Mexican tongue,
they talked together of such things as |
made up their life-of the range happen
inss. of the moErow's work. of what they
would buy in Alaminto when the herds
were driven in tn be sold.
Lastly. as Jake rose and knocked the
ashes from his pipe he remarked, in
English:
Tomorrow and Fridays the brandin',
bat Saturday III make the boys get out
the pillow en- fix US a fire break. The
grass is uncommon long jest now an it's
dryin' fast IF we don't look out. We'll
have the whole camp goin' up in smoke"
He STROBE through the starlit dusk to-
ward his sleeping shack, and Carmen.
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