Mexico Missouri message., 1916-03-23
CHAPTER xx-continued.

The veranda at Lieber's was like
that of Fazenda Flores only much big
ger. 1t looked out upon a wide stretch
of desert but away at the rim of the
desert one could feel the river. The
roar Of the falls mumbled in the ear
1t came from so far away that one
had to strain ones ears to actually
define it. After supper they gathered
on the veranda. They sat in rude, raw
hide chairs which were comfortably
istrong and tilted them back to the
national angle. Lieber and Gerry
ismoked corn-husk cigarettes but Kemp
stuck to his yellow papers. Gerry did
mot want to talk. he sat where he
could watch the strange pair whose
companion he was for a night Into
the souls of Lleber and Kemp the long
Fsilences of solitude had entered and
become at home. They were patient
of silence. Speech had its restricted
uses. They still had their hats on.
Lieber's was pushed back, Kemp's
was drawn forward. Kemp was whit
Ting. Kemp's words of farewell came
back to Gerry, "It's a long trail from
the Alamo to New York, but the whole
country's under one fence" Texan,
Pennsylvania Dutchman and New
Yorker might be social poles but to-
might they seemed strangely near to
each other.
The next morning Gerry was up ear
;ly, nervous after his first nights abb
sence from Fazenda Flores. Kemp
watched him saddle his horse. "That
amt one Of the FIVE" he remarked.
"No," said Gerry. 81 traded the
,roan for the iron-gray. Do you think
I was doneT
81 amt sayin'," said Kemp cautious
ly. 81 don't want you should think l
was teachin' you, Mr.. Lansing, but
that boss amt no iron-gray. There
amt no such color for boss as ever
heern tell on. That boss is blue an
he's a true blue"
"All right, Kemp" said Gerry, smil-
ing. you've named him true blue and
True Blue he is from this day."
Lieber came out in pyjamas and
called them for coffee. When they
were seated he proposed to Kemp that
he make his headquarters at the ranch
for a while. The advantages were evi-
dent. 1t was a congregatlng point for
the natives from miles round. Goat
skins came into Lieber's from hun
dreds of miles up country. They came
singly, in donkey loads or in whole
packtrains. Sometimes they passed
directly into his hands from the pro-
'ducer; sometimes they ran through O
chain OF transfers, from hand to hand.
All news centered at and radiated
from Lleber's. The same men that
brought in goatsilns would be glad to
add orchids to their stock in trade.
Kemp grunted his thanks. He had
waited two years for this offer The
realization of the obligation Lieber
was putting him under embarrassed
him. He began to talk. "These greas-
ers," he said, take a lot o. teachin'
sometimes, an sometimes they don't.
FIR instance, you can tell 'em that Cat
tleyas are wo'th money and that the
rest o. their parasites amt md after
they seen you throw Bu'lin'tonias an
Oncidiums an Mlltonias into the dis
card TO- three ponths steady, they be-
gin to sober down to jest Cattleyas md
realize that it's no use holdin' four
dnsh against workin' pair"
At the scientific names dropping so
anonymously from Kemp's lips, Ger
~ stopped eating ana looked up. Lie
beF's face wore the smile OF one who
had heard 1t before but is quite will
ing to hear it all over again.
"But," continued Kemp, 'yo' en-
pull t.ll you're blln' an you can't head