The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-12-27
A Honey Man S
Romance
BY CORA HATtloRN SYKES

was fifty-fve years old and as unro
mantle q person as could be imagined
He had been a stage driver all his life
and now that the railroads had elbowet
the stagecoach of the main lines Of
travel Mart was handling the reins IL
the Yellowstone park, driving parties
of visitors there. One day some youns
ladies' were occupying the next sea
back of the driver, one pretty miss Of
eighteen sitting beside him. She wa:
trying to get Mart's experiences of wild
western life out Of him.
Are there any romances among tines,
episodes Of yours, Mr.. KrebbsT she
asked.
81 don't know what episodes is n,
replied, "but II by romances you NEAR
love there's one love story, but that's
the only one so far as ! knows"
"Do tell It," came from all the girls
at once. Mart began by sundry instruc
tons to his horses, eased the coach oil
a down grade by putting his foot OF
the brake, hemmed several times ant
told his story:
This park when was yOunker was
a part of the western wilderness, bul
they called 1t what they call II now
and onct In awhile there was II party
visitin' IT. I'd been driyin IA coach be
tween Denver and Georgetown, but
had gravitated over yere. The Ute In
dams was yere In them days, and they
was friendly TO the whites. but the
friendship of redskins means nothin
dom between them as tribe and
the whites. 1t don't take In small al
fairs.
"Waal, one day ! was siouchin
around lookin' for good place where
there was water TO stay awhile wher
| heered the crack of rifle. ] was
in a boiler, and l couldn't see nothin
and / didn't know which direction II
was comm from, but AS there was q
road just beyond the rise OH my right
l kind o. thort there was somepin go!n
on In that direction | elm up part
o. the way and crawled up the rest til
stuck this ugly mug o mlne-l was
almost as ugly then as am now-over
the ridge.
What l saw was this: A party OF
visitors was ridin' ia three seated
wagon-three on seat-and three Utes
was maxim road agents of themselves
calculatin' TO do little civilized plum
derin'. They had stopped the Wagon
by the shot had heard, and the party
In the wagon was handln' out theli
valuables. There wasn't one OF EN-
armed, and they hadn't no business
drivin' there without perfection. They
had been told there wasn't no danger
and mostly there want
II was only one man with one rife
though had plenty OF ammunition.
didn't feel like lnterferln' so long al
the redskins acted Christlan-like and
didn't do nothin' more'n rob But when
they'd got all the cash there was 10
the party and found there wasn't
much OF 1t after all one OF 'em saw a
mighty purity young gal. and | heard
him ask her TO be his squaw. ! know'd
Just enough OF their lingo to under
stand what he meant, but none o. them
IN the wagon did. The red devil took
hold O. the gal and pulled her ont o
the wagon. She was skeered purity
nigh to death. When they got her In
the road they was takin' her of into
the forest when calc'lated II was time
to interfere. | was layin' ON my stom.
lex with my rifle before me, havin' u
perfect aim with a rest. | sent bah
into the skull OF the red man that was
plnin' for matrimony and dropped him
His two pals in about one second
had got their eyes on a bit o. smoke
sailin' or from where was and know'd
where the shot come from. but they
didn't know who had fred It or how
many there was OF me. didn't give
'em time to make plans let fy an
other lump O. lead. though by this time
the two live Indians was maxim for
trees, and l only winged one o. 'em.
The other took the wounded man and
helped him away. | sent another ball
after 'em SOS to discourage em from
comm back. waited awhile. reckon.
In they might, but hearin' nothin o.
'em l went down and joined the party
The raskil killed had most o. the
plumber on him, and that was saved.
But the principal thing saved was the
gal. When she got II through her
head what I'D done she jist wabbled
up to me and throwed her arms abou,
my neck and collapsed"
How Interestingly exclaimed the
girl beside the narrator IL thought
we'd get to the love part after awhile"
said another. 40 60 on cried a
third. Lets have your proposalr'
chlrped little girl not quite fourteen
years old.
They want no proposal" Krebbs
continued. do you reckon a young
Teller with red hair and freckles would
have the gall to propose to young
lady like thaty jist handed her over
TO her mother. and her father, who'd
got his money back from the Indian
I'D shot. handed me a twenty dollar
gold piece. told him | didn't have
NJ use for It. Twin Wild Ike I was
and he put Il hack into his pocket
They all wanted 10 10 sompin for me.
but | wouldn't let 'em. But got into
the wagon with 'em aud sor 'em TO o
house.
But the romsnce- exclaimed sev-
eral OF the girls.
"0h. that's been with me ever siHcr
The gal hadn't nOthin' TO do with ~
And you never married herr
'No. nor any one else"