The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-11

 with all the devils down heart breaking stretch for the river. T turned abo out in the saddle. Half the sky had turned into an open fur nace Above me a great stormy ocean of blood rolled on into the twilight of tho eastl Blood!-a seething, billowy cat tongues tapping 1t greedily; Gaudy giant fowers-purple, yellow red. green-bloomed for a moment in strange garden of dreams and nodded in the wind and fell and bloomed again and fell! The internal beauty of the thing fascinated me for mo- ment. Then l heard the rumbling- the unceasing thunder. It was louder than before. I thought of the 10000 sharp hoofs gaining, gaining, with whips of fire flashing them in the rear. And then l thought of the Kid back there. ahc.
 My heart sickened. The hot wind , that scorohed my face accused me; the oh oking air accused me. l could see him lying on his face even then with the mad hoofs beating him into a pulp; I could see the writhing of his body as the heat increa sed; l could smell the stench of his sizzling flesh!
 q reeled in the saddle, yet the mad wish to live dashed my hands to the pommel- But this was only for mo- ment. The meanest worm that ever wriggled in a dunghll holds fast to it's life. I forgot the Kid again; l remem nd fbat I ride to win. I pulled the horse down and held him steady. Never did l throw a leg across a. better horse than the Kids honest, rangy, clean lmbed and deep in the chest My heart leaped with joy when I heard his long, even breathing. I had a great delirious love for the big hearted brute as I felt his long, even reach, the tireless rhythmic stride that throws the miles behind. The drifting red Sea, of smoke above cast the wild glare down upon the prairie and made the footing sure. I threw my guns away; I stripped of my coat and gave 1t to the wind. I knew what an extra pound might mean.
 An elk forged slowly past, his wide antlers tipped with light An antelope sprang up and bounded away into the twilight ahead. A coyote leaped from a shoestring clump; he covered and whined like whipped dog, with his tall between his legs, then raced away down the wind snorting shadows began to move to right and left in the further gloom and disappeared in the smoke drift I was now a part of the ragged edge of the fiotsam tossed up by the approaching lip of the flood. I gave my horse an- other inch of rein and held him steady The thunder in the rear grew louder; l could hear dimly the wild confusion of animal cries. I was the fox hearing the yelp of the hounds and racing for cover
 "Years and years of flight with the breath of an oven to breathel Years and years of raising and falling, rais- ing and falling, and my throat was tight with the driving smoke. The good brute began to wheeze and cough. l felt the tremor of his weary ing muscles, the slight unsteadiness of the knees. I prayed for the river prayed like kid at his mothers knee. I begged the brute to keep his legs; I cursed him when he tottered; called him baby names and cursed him In a breath
 And after years the day began-a sneaking shadow of a day, shamed out by the bowling western dawn that met if on the run A storm of sound was all about me. Neck and neck l raced with a buffalo bull that led the herd; his swollen tongue hung from his foaminsr mouth; his breath rumbled in his throat. Wheezing steers toiled up about me. Deer and elk raced side by side. slowly forging into the van. Gray wolves bounded past, whining and yelp- ing And my good brute beat away bravely at the few remaining miles. l felt the dry rasp of his lungs and tho breaking of his big strong heart He stumbl ed--I gave him the spur to the heel: he gave no sign of pain. He was dying on his feet.
 And the cheap, dirty day crept in through the smoke-and Thought of the Kid, and lost heart and cared no I saw the river ahead and we plunged ina h howling, painting flood of beasts. struggling for the further shore.
 "The sky and the river whirled about me I felt my horse totter up sand bank and fall. Then the day went out and I forgot
 "Oh. Godl I wish I'd never wakened up! Why didn't the buffalo and the steers beat me into the sand? Why did wake up?"
 Frenchy covered his face with his hands and the tears trickled through his fingers.