The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1917-03-20
The
Ranchnnan
True Loves Course Did Not
Run Smooth With Him.
By F. A. Mitchell

ed means to go west and start ranch
Arnold Tucker. after being graduated
at one Of the principal eastern univer-
sites. finding himself in possession of
fortune, concluded to follow ranch
ing as an occupation and proceeded
westward to carry out his purpose. He
found ranch for sale without any
trouble. The business was not prov
ing profitable, and those who had put
money into il were anxious to get il
out. However. they did not communi-
cate this to Tucker. and he bought one
of the best ranches we'll stocked. for
what he considered a low price
Young men have Il good deal Ia learn.
and Tucker was no exception lie was
an energetic man. fun of pluck and de-
termination. attended faithfully Ia all
his stock required and had it not been
for one stumbling block in his way
might have succeeded That stumbling
block was Il woman.
One day while lac was riding over
his broad acres he suddenly felt his
horse sinking down under him. Real
izing at once that he had struck II
quicksand he made an effort to en-
tricate himself but his horse struggled
so that he did not succeed Then he
saw woman. mounted, galloping to-
ward him \ laSso whirlcd. and Il
moose fell oil his shoulders. This he
fixed under his arms and the woman.
tying the other end OF the rope to the
pommel of her saddle. spurred her
horse away from the quicksand and
pulled him out.
Madge Ilar,lesty was the woman
who kept Tucker from being swallow
ed up with his horse, the natural con
sequence of which was that he should
be swallowed up by the woman. espe-
cially as she was young and in her
wild western way fascinating. She
was certainly beloved by the men Of
the region in which she lived and
would have been by the women had
there been enough women of her class
for her to associate with instead of
men She had gained the respect Of
all by running a ranch her father had
ltft lltT, dlltl iuIlHlilS u
There was not II man within fifty miles
to whom she was not known and not
one of them. from the most unfortu
nate ranchman to the toughest cow
puncher. who would not have risked
| his life to serve her.
Tucker WAS far above them all Ia re-
| iincmcnt and education. There was
an affair of the heart between him ami
his prcserver. and 1t would doubtless
have ended in The usual way between
lovers had not Tucker left a sweet
| heart in the east Several months
passed after his being dragged from
! the quicksand. and ii was recognized
! by all that Madgc was in love with the
swell ranchmaIL as he was called
when he suddenly departed for the
east
Why he left. when he was Ia return.
| whether or not he had Tilted Madgc.
| no one knew unless II was Madge. and
, she would not tell But what her
! tongue refused To speak was evident
(, from her appearance and her bearing
At first she gave vent To fits of assumed
| .ayety that were followed 10y spells of
real depression This was followed hy
an uninterrupted languor Everybody
| knew 10y this time that all had not
/ gone well with her in the matter of
fuckers attentions. aud the feeling
against him was hostile
The truth is that Tucker had been
! caught in an entanglcmcni with
! MaGgr liardcStv as he had been
caught in the quick>and. lie had been
engulfrd IN each before he realized
that he was in danger As soon as he
came Ia such realization concerning
Mdtige he took himself Off lie was
bound in honor to the girl in the east.
and. being am honorable man. he re
turned To her
Let a man drink lemonade then
wine and then return TO lemonade aud
the taste of the weaker beverage is i'm.
sipid. Tucker had gone west feeling
that he had left IA dream" When he
returned the dream had faded and he
found a girl like other girls. no more
no less attractive There was NO ia
vor in her The result was that he
was a different man TO her from what
he had been She was not greatly dis
pleased at this for she saw in him a
western manner that she considered
by no means an Improvement ON his
former self The result was that they
agreed to disagree.
One day herder who had driftcd
into a little town NOT "A hundred mile,
from Madgc IIardesty's ranch report
ed that he had seen Tucker there
Hcrdcrs are not models of diplomacy
or common sense \ dozen or so oi
Them banded themselves together fol
purpose They rode to the tow
where Tucker had been seen and fore
ed him IA 80 with them 10 Mads,
Har,lestyS ranch. The first Mads,
knew Of What they were doing wa,
being called out on the veranda of he