Williams news., 1914-09-24
CHAPTER VII.

There are doubtless many philan- thropists in the Back Bay regions of Boston who would consider the whip saving of Cruz Mendez very repre- hensible act And one hundred dol lars Mex was certainly very small reward for the service that he was to perform
 But Bud and Phil were not travelling for any particular uplift society, and one hundred pesos was a lot of money to Cruz Mendez More than that, if they had offered him thousand dol lars for the same service he would have got avaricious and demanded ten thousand. T
 He came to the hotel very early the next morning and fingered around an hour or so, waiting for the American gentleman to arise and tell him his fate. A hundred dollars would buy everything that he could think of. in- cluding quantity of mescal. His throat dried at the thought of it.
 Then the gentlemen appeared and asked him many questions whether he was married according to law. whether his wife would sign the pa pers with him, and if he believed in a hereafter for those who played false with Americans. Having answered all these in the affirmative, he was taken to the agente mineral. and, after sign ing his name-his one feat in penman- ship-to several imposing documents. he was given the precious permit
 Then there was another trip to the grounds with a surveyor, to make re- port that the claim was actually va cant, and Mendez went back to his normal duties as 8 packer.
 In return for this service as dunn my locator, and to keep him under their eye, the Americans engaged Ell Tuerto, the one-eyed. to pack out g few tools and supplies for them; and then, to keep him busy. they employed him further to build a stone house. All these activities were, of course. not lost on Don Cipriano Aragon y Tres Palacios, since, by a crafty ar rangement of fences, he had made 1t impossible for anyone to reach the lower country without passing through the crooked street of Old Fortuna During the first and the second trip of the strange Americans he kept within his dignity, hoping perhaps that they would stop at his store, where they could be engaged in con versation; but upon their return from a third trip, after Crux Mendez had gone through with their supplies, he cast his proud Spanish reserve to the winds and waylaid them on the street "Buenas tardes, senores," |" he salut- ed, as they rode past his store, and then, seeing that they did not break their gait, he held up his hand for them to stop.
 Excuse me, gentlemen" he said, speaking genially but with an affected Spanish lisp, T have seen you ride past several times-are you working for the big company up at New For tunaT
 "No, senor," answered De Lancey courteously, i've are working for our selves"
 "Good!" responded Aragon with fa- therly approval; it is better so. And are you looking at mines ?" Yes" said De Lancey non-commit- tally; i've are looking at mines" That is good, too," observed Ara gon; "and wish you well, but since you are strangers to this country and perhaps do not know the people as we'll as some. desire to warn you against that one-eyed man, Cruz Men, deg, with whom have seen you rid ing. He is a worthless fellow-a very pela'o Mexican, one who has nothing l and yet he Is always seeking to i'm pose upon strangers by selling them old mines which have no value.
 S"I have no desire to speak i'll of my neighbors, but since he has moved l into the brush house up the river l have lost several fine little pigs; and his eye, as I know, was torn from his head as he was chasing another mans COW. I have not suffered him on my ranch for years, for he is such a thief, {, and yet he has the effrontery to repre- sent himself to strangers as poor but honest man. I hope that he has not imposed upon you in any way?"
 No; not at all, thank you" respond ed De Lancey, as Bud raised his bridle reins to go. We hired him | CO pacA out our IOOlS ana supplies and he has done it very reasonably. But many thanks, sir. for your warning. Adios!"
 He touched his hat and waved his hand in parting. and Bud grinned as he settled down to trot
 You can't help palavering 'em, can you, Phil?" he said. NO matter what you think about 'em, you got to be polite, haven't you? Well, that's the way you get drawn in-next time you go by now the old man will pump you dry-you see. No, sir, the only way to get along with these Mexicans is not to have thing to do with 'em
 No savvy-that's my motto!"
 Il Well. 'muchas gracaas' is mine," ab