Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-03
CURLY
A TALE OF THE ARIZONA DESERT
BY ROGER POCOCK,
o ETC..
Browns CO
BY ROGER POCOCK,
ALE OF THE ARIZONA DESERT.
Author OF "A Frontiersmsn." etc.
Copyright. 1908, by Little. Brown & Coz

side, and apt to bear TO the left when We
con take note how we run Anyway,
hyah. instead OF circ ing south. had circicd
sio the len and lost d. ssclf. then. when lie
found he was hunt ii. " mt OF his head
compete lie was back in the yard new,
close beside the house wh re- Mc,'alrpnf,t
headed him on with shot from thA door,
Willie TIE robbers spye7 u out half circIihg
| They laughed and shouted
MY turn first!' says crazy uoss
Take off his ear. CAM
The shot took Ryan right ear: ~ en-
Spotty fred, looping of tho left The or
brute tried TO bolt hut a bullet swung him
around. He lifted his lands ter mercy, hut
the next shot smashed his wrist. lie
| screamed. and huiet caught his teeth.
Curly was yelling now. but nobody noticed,
for Ryan was down on his knees and lis
face was being ripped to pieces. Then 1
saw McCalmont fire. and one of his dogs
dropped dead He fired again and killed
the other hound. lie had saved me from
being tracked
quit firing," he shouted. and the rob
bers threatened him. Now" he We led at
them. 'Who wants to tax war agn my
! friend Davies aud me?'
Come away" says Curly; and I crpps
after her
A mans legs are naturally fOrked 10 Ht
onto a horse and mine have never been
broke 70 walking atoot. Fact is, my legs
act rcscnt>ul when walk. making me wsi-
die all the same as duck. which IL hurn-
bles me 10 think Of. because that Curly
person loaded a sack on my withers. AID
heTded me along like n pack mule until l
felt no better than a spawned grooming
wreck. We must have gone afoot more
than two who'e miles h"fore we came out
at last on the edge of the Grand canyon.
At this place, right in front of the rim
rock there was hidden cavern-a fine. big
place when you got down there. but
scsry climb to reach Halfway down The
rock ladder I grabbed a root which turned
out to be NO;Iug TattcS1akc, and was
so surprised that l pretty near took flight.
Curly saved me hat time from being an
aagel-wfich leads me to remark That
there's lots OF people better adap.ed 20 that
holy vocation than me.
II was dark when got to the cavern.
but next morning | saw that IL was sure
fine hiding place the floor being covered
with whole village of cd stone houses
There are thousands OF elm villages ! he
this in the canyon country, made by some
breed of Indians long gone dead. but th,s
one had special convcuiences. because YOU
could spit from the outer wall INTO sheer
eternity. Seeing how the robbers were
warped in their judgments of me, aud the
authorities likewise prejuciced, my health
required plenty seclusion then. We stayed
in that hole for a week.
Curly was FESTIVE. quitting me at night
to range the woods and visit the ranch,
collecting everything useful which was
small enough and loose enough To pull She
got four horses into a hidden pasture, with
saddles for the same, and chuck 20 feed AS
when we should hit the trail. The plumber
was good but the news she brought Smeit
bad of coming trouble for the robbers
stayed to quarrel over their shares of past
th:evings When they broke to scatter the
trails were all blocked with troops, and
then they were herded back into the ranch
On the fourth day / had to make Curly
prisoner, while from noon to dusk tn" blt-
lie ragged at the stronghold. and she wanted
to go and die at her fathers side All th1t
night and the day that followed | kept the
poor girl quiet with my gun. then when
the darkness came ] let her free.
I don't Ike to think of what happen d
next because l reckon that if ! wash my
outside ! ought likewise to keep my INSIDE
clean and tidy with nice thoughts. Get
ting our horses, Curly and i rode back 20
Robbers Roost. pulling up at the edge OF
the clearing Just the new moon htted
above the pines. The stencil of death,
black ruins. white ashes, dark patches
where blood had dried upon the dust, every
where broken corpses-coyotes creeping 10
cover eagles tapping heavily away my
soul felt small and humble in that place.
Black It was and silver under the moon,
with something moving slow from c"rpse
TO corpse in search-a live man counting
the dead. Something in the way he moved
rem inded me j must have known that man,
but the little partner called to him al at
once
Jim Her voice went low and Gear
across the silence JIM
CTo be concluded tomorrow