River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1908-06-11


circus boss just returned
from England, and before
the cab had landed us at
IL the Broadway office we had
consented to engineer a brand-new
deal tWofold in it's incentive. First,
We were to escort a slap-bang an
imal show around the southwestern
circuit, penetrating the home of
the frijoles and tortillas, aud wrench
from the childish grasp of the
Aztecs enough crude silver to pay ex-
penses We were to go to Chihua-
hua, and possibly farther. Secondly,
we were to pick up troupe of bull
fighters and Mazeppa-like dons for a
big midwest show. The latter was
the real object, only we wished to in
wade the firesides Of the Montezumas
in an off-handed manner. with our
mission slightly disguised.
We'll, everything went along in the
rut of dull routine until after we left
Eel Paso. Then the curiosity of the
mestizos, who form one-half Of the
population of old Mexico, and who, by
slightly removed from the conditions
after the Spanish Mayfower tripped
into the coast, began to furnish us
with annoyance.
However, we had been chamber
maids too long to such outfits as our
show to be bothered extensively, and
although pestered we retained our
health and several colonies of fleas,
and had exhausted Chihuahua, and
were about to close with tempting
offer to show for the winter in MeXi-
co City, when a Sun-kissed peon, with
large quantity of aguardiente con-
cealed about his person, came to our
showtent and tried to bite his way by
the rotund Vermont man without
crossing our palms with silver That's
largely metaphor, as we let them in
for what they had, except the alcalde,
who entered deadhead. Take what
you can, was our motto; but the half
breed fOrestalled a shake-down by eX-
planning, in badly-fractured English,
that he had message for Don Hidal-
go Tiberio. which he would only de-
liver in return for a front seat 1t
was written by an Americana, he said,
who was in Quelta, an adjacent town
I'VE yanked him within the portals
and placed him perilously near the
hyena's cage, and then received the
note. | could see lib was worked up
over the contents, for his round face
was drawn down in four curves as he
digested it.
Too bad, Billy he said. in a
whisper And one of them worked in
Vermont once
Poor devil l sighed; for I knew
my irrelevant remark would make him
mad.
Certainly it's poor devil when a
white man fresh from that blessed
state is in this plight he snapped, his
brown eyes becoming two points.
Here, read
1T seems there were four poor
devils, all Americans. They were to
Quelta. the letter said. waiting to be
sent to the salt mines for life. Now
a man who knows Mexico would rent
the salt mines out to his dearest enc
my and live in Hades-if he owned
both. The letter was a brief one, the
writer merely stating his prospects,
and saying he had heard from his
guards of Smiths presence in Chihua-
hua He begged Tiberius to rescue
him if he had any love for the children
of the Star-Spangled Banner.
lib knew Spanish more or less,
chiefly less, but he carried a gilt
headed cane that would make up the
difference in effect on the average al
calde and a quick trot to the halls of
justice gave him an insight to the
situation. 1t seems Murphy, the
writer, and his friends had been fool
ISL enough to hire out as train crew