The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1920-06-25

with stampede.
jeff is lined up down to the end
near the door waitin' to name his
pizen. Slim Bursby, the barkeep, is
takin' the orders, and Slim is sure
some buster than cat on a hot
Arizona day huntin' shade, settin' out
glasses and bottles and passin' re
marks with everybody. Slim is the
most popular bartender between San
Antoine and Albuquerque, and he's
known as a square guy all over the
COW country.
Slim gifts down the line at last and
asks jeff what his is goin' to be,
and jeff don't answer for a minute
and looks like he's goin' to run out
the door. The boys amt payin' no
attention, though, and don't notice it
nobody but Slim. Slim is smilin
his regular old smile which don't fade
none, but he is lookin mighty close
Lat jeff.
You're stranger, amt your" he
bsays friendly. Guess you're with the
Lonesome L bunch. Seen you come in
with them. Glad to know you. Wei
come to our city. What's it goin' to
| be, friend?"
| He is still smilin', and jeff kind Of
perks up and smiles back, and Slim
jest kind of leans over the bar with
a towel like he's goin' after a wet
place down to the end, but he Amt
after no wet place at ALL He leans
lover close to Jeff away from the
others and whispers something to him
low.
/ "Whiskey," says jeff
| Well, we had a real pleasant time,
and got back to the ranch about mid
might Jeff had limbered up a power
full lot, and had got to be almost
human. He actually sets into little
game of draw and loses $40 hwitout
battin' eye.
After that JEFF gets to be a plumb
good puncher, and old Tom raises him
to $35, which he has plum run into
a fortune thataway. There's some
signs of meat stickin' to them bones
of his again, and he's plumb entirely
quit lookin' behind him when there
amt nobody there and shyin' to one
side when you come up on him easy.
He gets to be a regular visitor down
to Bedding, too, and that's how he
happens to get to SEEM that here
biscuit-shooter down to the Empire
restaurant. She amt bad-lookiu
heifer at that, havin' a unusual guam
tity of black hair and white tinted
leyes and things. She shore is a real
attractive specimen of feminine allure
ments thataway.
| There was several weeks passed by
durin' which Jeff rides around after
cows and digs post holes and fixes
windmills like he was in sort Of
daze, and every chance he gets he
dolls himself up in a new silk law
ender shirt he's bought up to tho
Ranchman's Favorite Drygood store,
and bivouacs down to the Empire res
taurant. Annette, that's the biscuit
shooters name, gets to be knowed as
his girl, and there's pleasantries
| in, h0 L.
the corral with illusions to the kind
of ass he's maxim of himself.
It wouldn't have made no difference.
of course, all men, includin' cow
punchers, being made with a weakness
for clothin' not cut for pants that
Always, only it begins to tell in Jeffs
work He amt satisfied with goir'
over to Bedding on Saturdays, and be
gins to ride over there in the middle
of the week, gettin' back to the ranch
along about daylight and not bein'
worth a cuss the next day.
Old Tom don't like that a heap. So
Tom was patient, but in about week
after supper one night, he calls him
down about his work, and jeff is surly
and impolite. So old Tom tells him
he can get along without him after the
next payday, which comes the next
Saturday.
| There's one thing l amt told you
about, and that's a letter that JEFF
writes up to the Mountaineer's Hotel
couple of weeks before. He writes
that letter right after talk he's had
with Annette. She's gettin' tired of
Bedding. There's other places in the
world where she's been, and she al
lows her looks is plumb wasted in
them desert parts. So she informs
jeff she's gettin' ready to blow, and
it's about all over between them un
less he's prepared to come along and