The Washington herald., 1920-05-24
CONTINUED FROM PAGE ONE.

compelled at the muzzle of a six
shooter. Jimmy had been "'most
generally a COW puncher," he said
he was inexperienced In ranger
methods Of warfare. Therefore
the rangers speculated hapart and
solemnly as to how he would stand
fire. For, let II be known, the
honor and pride of each ranger
company is the individual bravery
of its members.
For two months the border was
quiet. The rangers lolled, listless.
In camp. And then-bringing JOY
to the rusting guardians of the
frontier-Sebastiano Saldar, an
eminent Mexican desperate and
cattle thief, crossed the Rio
Grande with his gang and began
to lay waste the Texas side. There
were indications that Jimmy
Hayes would soon have the op-
portunity to show his mettle. The
rangers patrolled with alacrity.
but Saldar's men were mounted
like Lochinvar. and were hard to
catch.
One evening, about sundown.
the rangers halted for supper af-
ter a long ride. Their horses
stood painting. with their saddles
on. The men were frying bacon
and boiling coffee. Suddenly, out
of the brush. Sebastiano Saldar
and his gang dashed upon them
with blazing six shooters and
high-voiced yells. 1t was a neat
surprise. The rangers swore in
annoyed tones. and got their
Winchesters busy; but the attack
was only a spectacular dash of
the purest Mexican type. After
the fiorid demonstration the
raiders galloped away. yelling
down the river. The rangers
mounted and pursued; but in less
than two miles the tagged ponies
labored so that Lieutenant Man
ming gave the word to abandon
the chase and return to the camp.
Then it was discovered that
Jimmy Hayes was missing. Some
one remembered having seen
him run for his pony when the
attack began, but no one had set
eyes on him since. Morning came.
but no Jimmy. They searched the
country around, on the theory
that he had been killed or
wounded. but without success.
Then they followed Saldar's gang.
but 1t seemed to have disappeared.
Manning concluded that the willy
Mexican had recrossed the river
after his theatric farewell. And.
indeed. no further depredations
from him were reported.
This gave the rangers time to
nurse a soreness they had. AS has
been said. the pride and honor
of the company Is the individual
bravery Of its members. And now
they believed that Jimmy Hayes
had turned coward at the whiz
of Mexican bullets. There was no
other deduction. Buck Davis
pointed out. that not a shot was
fired (. by Saldar's gang after
Jimmy was seen running for his
horse. There was no way for him
to have been shot. No, he had
fed from his first fight. and af-
terward he would not return.
aware that the scorn of his COM
rades would be a worse thing to
face than the muzzles OF many
rifles.
So Manning's detachment of
McLear's company. Frontier Bat
talon, was gloomy. 1t was the
first blot on its escutcheon. Never
before in the history. Of the serv-
ice had a ranger shown, the white
feather. All of them had liked
Jimmy Hayes, and that made it
worse.
Days, weeks. and months went
by, and still that little cloud Of
unforgotten cowardice hung above
the camp.
Nearly year afterward-after
! many camping grounds and many
hundreds Of miles guarded and de-
fended--Lieut, Manning, with al
most the same detachment of men,
was sent to q point only a few
miles below their old camp on the
river to look after some snug
Cling there. One afternoon. while
they were riding through a dense
mesquite fiat. they came upon a
patch of open hog-wallow prairie.
g. There they rode upon the scene OF
an unwritten tragedy.
In big hog-wallow lay the
skeletons Of three Mexicans. Their
clothing alone served to identify
them. The largest Of the figures
fad once been Sebastiano Saldar.
His great. costly sombrero, heavy
with gold ornamentation-a hat
famous all along the Rio Grande
LAY there pierced by three bull
lets: Along the ridge Of the hog
wallow rested the rusting Win
chesters of the Mexicans-all
pointing in the same direction.
The rangers rode in that direc-
ton for fifty yards. There. in a |
little depression of the ground, |
with his rifle still bearing upon
the three, lay another skeleton.