The Kendrick gazette. [volume] (Kendrick, Idaho) 1892-1968, 1922-01-06

II.
Of common decency I interfered and
won sweeping victory, but to my
amazement the prospective corpse TOOK
to his heels and advised me to do the
Ricardo Ruey sprang for Joh1
Stuart Webster. by George" he said
in English. I'm going to hug you, too.
really ought to kiss you, because I'm
that man you saved from assassina-
ton, but-too long in the U. S. A,
suppose; I've lost the customs of my
country"
Get out" yelled Webster, Tending
him off. "By the way. Ricardo-I'm
going to call you Rick for short-do
you happen to have any relatives in
this conntry?"
"Yes, number of second and third
cousins"
Coming down on the steamer, !
didn't like to appear curious, but all
Question"
ASK it now"
"Are you Sobrantean"
~ was born in this country and
raised here until was fourteen"
But you're-why, hang it, You're
not a Latin?"
"NO, I'm mixture, with Latin pre-
dominating. My forebears were pure
Castilians from Madrid, and crossed
the Western ocean in caravels. It's
been matter of pride with the house
of Ruey to keep the breed pure. but
despite all precautions, the family tree
has been grated once with a Scotch
thistle. twice with the lily of France,
and once with the shamrock of Ire
land. My mother was an Irish woman"
You alibi yourself perfectly, Ricar-
do, and my curiosity is appeased. Per-
NIT me to continue my tale,' he added
in Spanish. and forthwith he related
with humorous detail his adventure at
the gangplank of the steamer that had
borne him and Ricardo Ruey south.
Ricardo interrupted him. 1--WE know
all about that, friend Webster, and we
knew the two delightful gentlemen had
been told off to get you-unotficially.
has headquarters in New Orleans. 1t
is composed of political eXiles, for
Sarros, the present dictator of So
brante, rules with an iron hand, and
has a cute little habit of railroadinS
his enemies to the cemetery via the
treason charge and the firing squad
He killed my father, who was the
best president this benighted country
ever had, and consider it my Chris
tian duty to avenge my father and a
patriotic duty to take up the task he
left usfniShed--the task of making
over my country.
'In Sobrante, as in most of the coun-
tries in Central America, there are
two distinct classes of peOple-the
aristocrats and peons-and the aristo-
crat fattens on the peon, as he has
had a habit of doing since Adam. We
haven't any middle class to stand as
a buffer between the two-which
makes it sad proposition. My father
was an idealst and dreamer and he
dreamed of reform in government and
a solution of the agrarian problem
which confronts all Latin-America. He
trusted one Pablo SarrOs, an educated
peon, who had commanded the gov
eminent forces under the regime my
father overthrow. My tender-hearted
parent discovered that Sarros was
plotting to overthrow him; but instead
of having him shot, he merely removed
him from command. Sarros gathered
a handful of bandits. joined the old
government forces my father had con-
quered, hired a couple dozen Yankee
artillerymel and-he won out My
father was captured and executed: the
palace was burned, and my sister per-
ished in the flames. I'm here to pay
off the score"
"A worthy ambition! So you organ.
lied the revolutionary junta in New
Orleans. eh?
Ricardo nodded. "Word of it reached
Sarros. and he sent his brother Raoul
chief of the intelligence bureau, to in
vestigate and report. AS fast as he
reported, Colonel Caraveo reported tC
me. My fathers sol possesses name
to conjure with. Consequently it was
| to the interest of the Sarros admins
tration that | be eliminated. They
watched every boat; hence my scheme
| for eluding their vigilance-which
thanks to you, worked like charm.
But" Webster complained. ''Im moi
sitting in the game at all. and yet Tn
caught between the upper and neither
millStOneS."
! THAT is easy to explain. You inter
fered that morning in Jackson square
then Raoul SarrOs met you goin.
aboard the steamer for Buenaventur;
and you manhandled him, and natural
~, putting two and two together, HI
has concluded that you are not onl.
his personal enemy but also a frienC
and protector of mine and consequent
" an enemy of the state"
"And as consequence I'm marked
for slaughter?"
st would be well. my friend" Doc
tor Pacheco suggested, ito return t
the United States until after Ricard
and his friends have eliminated you
| Nemesis"