Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-06
CHAPTER II.
Lord Balshannon.

With all the signs and the signal smokes
pointing for war, I reckoned / could dis
pense with that ocean and stay round to
see the play. Moreover, there was this
British lord, lost in the desert, wounded
some, helpless as baby, game as a grizzly
bear, rnged round with dead horses and
dead Apaches, and his troubles appealed to
me plentiful. 1 secuted around until 1 hit
live trail, then streaked away to find peo-
pie. I was doubtful If 1 had done right in
case that lord got massacred, me being abb
sent, so I rode hard, and at noon saw the
smoke of a camp against the Tres Her
manos mountains. 1t proved to be COW
camp, with all the boys at dinner
They had heard nothing of Apaches out
on the war trail, but when 1 told what I
knew, they came glad, on the dead run,
their wagons and pony herd following.
We found the Britisher digging graves for
three dead men, and looking apt to require
a fourth for his own use.
"Er-good evening" says he, and / be-
gan to wonder why I'd sweated myself so
hot to rescue an iceberg.
Gentlemen" says he to the boys, you
find some er-coffee ready beside the fire,
and afterward, If you please, we will bury
my dead"
The boys leaned over their saddles, won
derng at him, but the lords cool eye
looked from face to face and we had to do
what he said. He was surely great chief,
that Lord Balshannon.
The who had fallen a prey to the
Apaches were two teamsters and a MeXi-
can, all known to these Bar riders, and
they were sure sorry. But more than that
they enjoyed this shorthorn, this tender
foot from the east who could stand off an
outfit of hostile Indians with his lone rifle.
They saw he was wounded, yet he dug
graves for his dead, made coffee for tho
living, and thought of everything except
himself. After coffee we lined up by the
graves to watch the bluff he made at flu
neral honors. Lord Balshannon was COL
onel in the British army, and he stood like
an officer on parade reading from book.
His black hair was touched silver, his face
was strong, hard, manful, and his voice
| Guivered while he read from the little
| book
''For a stranger with Thee
And q sojourner as all my fathers were:
spare me a little that may recover my strength
Before go hence, and am no more seen"
1 reckon that there were some of us
shifting as though we had just caught a
| cold, while we listened to that mans voice,
and saw the loneliness of him. Afterward
Dick Bryant. the Bar foreman, walked
straight up TO Balshannon.
"Britisher," said he, you may be q So
| journer. and we hopes you are. whole
lot, but there's no need to be stranger.
Shake"
beginning of big friendship. Then Bal
| shannon turned to the crowd, and looked
slowly from face to face of us.
Gentlemen, he said, kind of feeble, and
we saw his face go gray while he spoke
I'm much obliged TO you all for err
for coming. 1t seems, indeed. ah-that
my little son Jim and / have made friends
and er-neighbors. I'm sorry that you
| should find my camp in such aw--in such
| a beastly mess, but there's some fairly de-
cent whisky in this nearest wagon. and
err" the man was reeling. and his eyes
seemed blind, when we get to my new
ranch at Holy Cross IL hone you'll
| friends-aw-and--''
And he dropped in dead faint.
SO long as l stay alive ! shall remember
that night, the smell OF the dead horses,