The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1911-05-06

Va years he gets the burro
habit, and, like drinking
NJ fkg or smoking, SO they say,
it's hard to break off, 1t
was pretty well fixed on
49, Jim Upton when first he
10Y ~ came to the Sierra Madres
1AI along with Badly and three
| or four other pack-mules;
sssDnt Sadly was his intimate friend, and
kae others didn't count.
was when Holcomb Valley, away
SHup To the tops Of the hills, was real
where every one was busy get
tlflg gold, or sure he was going to get
and 1t was nobody's business who
nyhody else was or where he came
from. Curiosity starts lots of Gene
SsReries, SO 1t didn't pay to want to
know too much. Ali that any one
ever really cared about was whether
the other fellow was on the square,
and Jim Upton was all of that, So
was Badly. When jim gave his word
H was a certainty, whether he was
only to bring In sack of -four or take
81 mule-load Of gold out, it would be
done on time And there isn't much
OF anything finer than always keeping
your word and making good.
Jim had been a civilian teamster
and packer with the army when
things were lively along the desert, at
time In which man didn't make
any heavy bets, when he rolled In his
blankets, that he would get up In the
morning with his scalp. When the
noble red man, as a reward for hav-
Ing tortured and murdered all he
could, was finally pensioned into fat
pnd lazy peace, Jim naturally drifted
nto packing, and the drifting and the
aacking brought him to Holcomb.
That's all any one knew OF him, and
more than anybody cared. But be-
fore long every one was glad he was
there because packing wasn't thing
i that most men tackled, particularly
when the trail ran away off into the
high-back hills, through passes, along
shelves by waterfalls, and over places
where the ledge tried to lose itself in
the face of the cliffs. It was no pyg-
my's job.
Even for packer, Jim wasn't hand
some, being that kind OF man that
the desert makes, or makes the des-
ert-tall, lean, and leathery. sunburn-
ed to a red, and with little wrinkles
around his eyes from much peering
ever hot sands. He was more liberal
with everything than talk, Of which
he was misery, perhaps through lack
Of practise But the Lord Almighty's
too busy to measure men by words.
It's what they do. Be sure Of that!
So most men believe Jim stood pretty
well with him. and others don't mat
ter.
Badly was a wise old chap, who had
lived with Jim a long time. In fact,
they must have become acquainted
somewhere out on the desert before
they came to the new camp. Badly
was rather benevolent-looking burro,
having a white face and whiskers and
d pair Of phiianthropic ears much big
ger around than any of his trim little
legs. which a hand could girdle. He
seemed to think he had right to go
into any cabin where Jim was welcom-
ed, and, come to think Of it, most
everybody else thought SO. He was
s,1st like q good-natured dog that's al
ways hanging around table or a
campfire and looking SO longingly for
Il little attention or a scrap OF some
thing to eat that no one can refuse
out Of mere politeness. Badly was
real polite, too, because he never
took anything without asking Tor It in
his way. Jim said Badly got his hon
esty from q preacher who raised him.
! nut the boys thought it was really
from associating with Jim himself.
life with them was just about the
same one day as another. Break
eamp in the morning, swing the pack
trees on, get the loads up and throw
the bitches and plod away over the
trail Baldy's bell calling Ttnk-tank;
+inktank" as he led the way Soft
snots In the trail would stop the ring
Inc until Jim came front and fixed 1t
,,n III was the same way with
bridge. Badly would go up on It and
tan It with his feet before putting his
weight down until he got clear across,
while the whole train would watch
MIN 70 over, feeling sure of his 5udg-
nent. And 50 every day they did the
same. life beginning and ending with
the trail. Always the trail.
Along about the time when the
ann had settled into an everyday
hasis and was used to Jim and Badly,
/ nil pane came into the valley with
III little girl He wasn't strong
ssnnuah to work in the hills, SO made
ma ~, Of the first land entries in that
country. 1T was almost the last thing
s,,y one else would have thought OF,
mi the place was pretty enough, be-
st,,g little valley through which
IN raam rambled along until it came to
: : : edge where It fell OF into a canon
- made its bed out to the sage
& h ss. fats. many miles below Bili
h,,ilt him cabin from the big logs
! Z rso,,,,,d the valleys edge, and went
s II i sort OF farming business, sell
- - vegetables to the miners over st
I saI e,con1hI for camp prices. He never
I "a very well acquainted because re