The Huttig news., 1914-07-11

cant, and Mendez went back to his normal duties as a packer.
 In return for this service as a dunn my locator. and to keep him under their eye. the Americans engaged Fl Tuerto, the one-eyed, to pack out a few tools and supplies for them; and then. to keep him busy. they employed him further to build stone house.
 All these activities were, Of course, not lost on Don eipriano Aragon Tres Palae;os, 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 i 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 Cruz 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 i then, seeing that they did not break their gait he held up his hand for them to stop.
 i Excuse me. gentlemen" he said, speaking genially but with an affected Spanish lisp, T have seen you ride l past several times-are you working for the big company up at New For tuna ?"
 No. seror," answered De Tancey eourteGusly. we are working for our selves
 "Good!' responded Aragon with fa- therly approval; eit is better so. And are you looking at mines?'
 Yes said De Laneey nen=commit- tally we are looking at mines
 That is good, too observed Ara gon; and I wish you well, but since you are strangers to this country and perhaps do not know the people as well as some, I desire to warn you against that one-eyed man. Cruz Men, deZ, with whom 1 have seen you rid ing. He is a worthless fellow--a very 1 pela'o Mexican, one who has nothing and yet he is always seeking to iln- pose Upon strangers by selling them old mines which have no value.
 "I have no desire to speak i'll of my neiehbors, but since he has moved into the brush. house ID tl1e river I have lost several fine little pigs: and his eye, as l know, was torn from lis head as he was chasing another mans COW l have not suffered him on my ranch for years, for he is such thief, and yet he has the effrontery to repre- sent himself to strangers as q poor but honest man. l 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 10 pack out our tools and 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 se settled down to a trot.
 You can't l.s4p I.-... svlIng era, 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 yeu dry--you see. No, sir. the only way to get along with these Mexicans B not to have thing to do with enl. No savvy'-that's my mottoi9
 Well, 'muchas graeias Is mine" ab- served De Lancey. Ut doesn't cost anything. and it buys q whole lot
 Sure" agreed Bud but we ain't buying nothing from him-he's the one particular hombre we want to steer clear of, and keep him guessing as long as we can. That's my view of 1t, pardner."
 "Oh, that's all right" laughed Do Lancey, he won't get anything out of me-that is. nothing but bunch of hot air. Say, he's a shrewd-looking old guinea. isn't he? Did you notice that game eye? He kept 1t kind of dropped. almost shut. until he came to the point-aEd then he opened it up real fierce Reminds me of a big fighting owl waking up in the day i llHle. But you Just WdtCD Iie him, and if I don't fool the old boy at every turn it'll be because l run out of bull"
 Well. you can hand him the bull if you want to, grumbled Bud but the first time you give anything away I'm going to pick such row with the old euss that we'll have to make a new trail to get by. So leave i'm alone, if you ever expect to see that grill"
 A close association with Phil De 14ancey had left Bud not unaware of his special weaknesses, and Phil was undoubtedly romantic. Given a barred and silent house, shut off from the street by whtened walls and ve- randa screened with flowers, and the aueseng eyes of Mir. De Lancey would turned to those barred windows as cer- tainly as the needle seeks the pole.
 CONTINUED IN NEXT ISSUE.