The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-06-30
The Little Fruit
Seller
A Story Of a Mexican Girl
By 2. A. Mitchell

One afternoon Leonard Hartman, a
young man who had gone to Mexico to
assume position as station agent on
railroad, was In his ticket and tele-
graph ONCE when he saw q little Mexi-
can girl on the platform outside sell
ing fruit to persons waiting for trains.
The girl might have been fifteen,
though In the short dress she wore she
looked Hike child Among others she
approached a man who. judged by the
leather whip In his hand, was O driver
Of team. He was talking to another
man, and when the girl nudged him
TO attract his attention ne looked down
at her with a scowl. then gave her a
cut with his whip.
Hartman was a Swapping fellow.
used to lighting his way wherever It
became necessary and with enough hu-
mainly In. him to feel enraged at 30
tnhuman an act. He jumped through
the open window beside him and, tax
ing the teamster by the collar Of his
shirt with one hand. gave him a euft
with the other. The man put his hand
TO his hip, drew a revolver and fred
at Hartman, but the latter grasped
the weapon in time to turn the shot,
wrenched 1t from the man and threw
1t to a distance. Then he pummeled
his adversary with his fist till he cried
for quarter. BY this time others inter
fered, and the two were separated.
The teamster picked up his revolver
and his whip and went away, mutter-
ing.
Hardman when he had rearranged
his disordered apparel returned to his
Office. The first thing that attracted
his attention was the little Mexican
girl standing on the platform before
his window holding out an orange to
him. Taking some coppers from his
vest pocket, he handed them to her
and took the orange, but she refused
pay for the fruit. It was only an
orange, but 1t was token of her graft
tude to her defender.
"Senor Is very good" she said, ex-
pressing emotion with her fringed eyes.
"You mean the other fellow is very
bad" he replied whats your name.
little oner
'Pepita."
well, Pepita, II he troubles you
again call on me-"
'Senor IL very brave, but to be brave
against such a man will do no good:
he viii stab you In the back"
Don't you worry, little GIRL" he re-
turned. ''That kind OF a man Is a
coward, and I'm not afraid OF a cow
ard any day"
The avowai was lost on Pepita. She
said nothing more and showed no con-
Germ. but from that time the teamster
was seldom out of her sight when he
was watching Hartman. She went
about selling fruit as usual, but in her
basket was something besides oranges
and bananas; q bag in which some liv-
ing creature was evidently confined,
for there was a constant wriggling
within.
A few days after the fracas between
Hardman and the teamster Pepitn
was following the latter toward the
station. The man lounged along with.
out any evident purpose, but he did
not deceive Pepita. She fitted after
him, now slipping behind bush. a
fence-any object Of concealment.
When the man stepped up on to the
platform, snatching her bag from the
basket she made dash for him, on
tiptoe so that he might not hear her
coming, and caught him just as he
reached the window Of Hardmans Of.
ice. There she shook the bag bottom
side up, landing a tarantula on the
back Of the enemy's neck. The Villain
uttered a yell and. dropping a revolver
he carried In his hand. grabbed the
viper and flung It away from him.
Meanwhile Pepita had darted back
behind a corner Of the station, where
she was out of sight. Hartman hear
ing the yell looked out through the
window In time to see the teamster
beating a retreat. He recognized the
teamster who had maltreated Pepita,
but was ignorant Of the cause Of his
flight, holding both hands to the back
Of his neck. Presently Hartman saw
Pepita walking away with her basket
On her arm as carelessly as If she had
no object in view but the sale Of her
mutt. he called her to the window
and asked her II she knew what was
the matter with the teamster. For a
reply she pointed to where the taran-
bula was crawling about.
ssWellf" incurred Hartman.
"Senor, he come to kill you. / fol
low him. Just before he come to the
window put the tarantula on his
neck"
Hardman looked grave. He had es-
capped being shot through the window
by such defense as this little Mexican
girl was capable of. It was not a
mans method. but it had suf1ced. A
mere child had sent a strong man
away bowling and saved the life of
another strong man whom he had in
tended to kill This was too much for
Hardman's equipoise of feeling. He
reached out through the window, took
the girl in his arms and drew her close
to him.
Hardman was twenty-seven years
old, and Pepita was fourteen. Had he
not been a stranger to Mexico he
would have realized that a girl Of thir-
teen there was as developed as one Of
twenty in a more northern climate.
He caressed her in a fatherly way,
ana she received his earesses appar-