The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1910-06-12


tie were driven up from the pastur"
aud penned in Il corral near the ranctt
house for delivery in the morning
| When night closed down and the
| house was still did Santa Ypu@t'
| throw herself down. eHspiny the
| formal note to her bosom. weppIr
and calling uut uailp that pfdr
| Geithpr III one or he otherr he'd ke'
| from her lips mauy day or did slia
| fle the letter iH her business WY IT.
tanning her roraI balance and strensI i
| Wonder If you will but royalty l.
sacred. and there is veil But thi~
| much you shall learn:
| At midnight Santa slipped softly GU
| OF the ranch house. clothed in sumr-
thing dark and plain. She paused for
a moment under the live oak trees
Santa turned her face to the south
east and threw three kisses thither
ward. for there was none to see.
Then she sped silently to the black
smith shop. fifty yards away. and what
she did there can only be surmised.
But the forge glowed red, and there
was faint hammering such as Cupid
might make when he sharpens his ar
row points.
Later she came forth with a queer
shaped handled thing in one hand and
a portable furnace such as are seen in
| branding camps in the other. To the
corral where the Sussex cattle We're
penned she sped with these things
swiftly in, the moonlight.
She opened the gate and slipped in
side the corral The Sussex cattle
were mostly dark red but among
this bunch was one that was milky
white-notable among the others.
And now Santa shook from her shout
der something that we had not seen
before-a rope lasso She freed the
| loop of it. coiling the length in her left
hand. and plunged into the thick of the
cattle
The white COW wis her object She
swung the lasso. which caught one
horn and slipped off.
Again she made the cast. while the
aroused cattle milled around the Hour
sides of the corral In plunging mass
This throw was fair: the white cow
came to earth again. and before If
could rise Santa had made the lasso
fast around post of the corral with
a swift and simple knot and had leap
ed upon the COW again with the raw
hide hobbies.
In one minute the feet of the animal
were tied. She ran swiftly to her fur
mace at the gate and brought the
branding iron. white hot.
The below of the outraged white
cow as the iron was applied should
have stirred the slumbering auricular
nerves and eonsciences of the nearby
subjects of the Nopalito. but 1t did not
And Ii was amid the deepest nocturnal
silence that Santa ran like a lapwing
back TO the ranch house and there fell
upon cot and sobbed-sobbed as
though queens had hearts as simple
| ranchmen's wives have and as though
she would gladly make kings of prince
consorts should they ride back again
from over the hills and far away.
In the morning the capable. reyolv-
cred youth and his vaqueros set forth
driving the bunch of Sussex cattle
across the prairies to the Rancho Seco.
The beasts arrived at Rancho Spco
one evening at dusk and were received
and counted by the foreman.
The next morning at O'Clock .
horseman loped out of the brush to the
Nopalito ranch house. He dismounted
stifily and STROBE with whizzing spurs
to the house. His horse gave ii great
sigh and swayed foam streaked. with
down dropping head and closed eyes.
But waste@not your pity upon Bel
shuzzar. the flea bitten sorrel Today
in Nopalito horse pasture he survives.
pampered. beloved. unridden. cherish
ed record holder of long distance rides
The horseman stumbled into the
house Two arms fell around his neck.
and some one cried out in the voice OF
woman and queen alike, "Webb-ob.
Webb"
II was skunk" said Webb Yeager.
Hush said Santa. did you see it?,'
Il saw IT," said Webb.
What they meant God knows and
you shall know IL you rightly read the
primer of events.
BE the cattle queen" said Webb.
"and overlook 1t II you can. | was a
NANCY. sheep stealth coyote"
"Hushr' said Santa again. laying her
fingers upon bis mouth. There's no
queen here. Do you know who am
/ am Santa Yeager. frst lady Of the
bedchamber. Come here"
She dragged him from the gallery
into the room to the right. There stood
cradle with an infant in it-a red
ribald. unintelllgible. babbling. beautI.
ful infant suffering at life in an IN
seemly manner.
There's no queen on this ranch
said Santa again. Look at the kim;
He's got your eyes, Webb. Down on
your knees and look at his highness.
But jingling rowels sounded ON tha
gallery. and Bud Turner stumblea
| fhnrp anaiu with the same query thnI