Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-08-14

fear as l urged the sure footed beast
to pick her way down to the bed of
the gully and up the other side.
AS l kept my seat on her comfort
able back, with the baggage strapped
fore and aft of me, Pepita became less
terrified and bore me up to the top of
the slope with a splendid rush, leav.
ing Pope painting in the rear.
NO sooner did Pepita plant her hoofs
on level ground than out of the
shadows came a hoarse challenging
cry:
ALTO" (halD.
As though he had sprung up out of
the earth. there at Pepita's head stood
rufIian brandishing q glinting knife
In the same hreathless instant L felt
something hard pressing into my
spine. / twisted around. 1t was 4
rifle barrel.
At the other end of the firearm-
one of the antique long -barrcled REM
ington type-Was the leering visage of
the man with the scar.
"Bien. amigo mio." / said, bothered
more by the proximity of the knife
than by the gun barrel. And now?"
The fellows tongue was not so
quick as his temper. Before he could
utter ore syllable of all he had to say
10 me. Pope appeared out of the gully.
The gun barrel was instantly re-
moved from my back and directed
against my servant. while the greasy
rascal at the mules head came hor-
ribly close to me with his murderous
knife. He made a playful dig at my
leg. which jerked aside.
Here's pretty fix to be inv'
thought, while my animal instinct of
ton was all alert for q
way out. There seemed to be no pos
sible exit without the loss of every.
thing, and l should be lucky if
escaped with my life.
Picture me stuck on the back of a
baggage mule between two drunken
ruftians, one with his finger on the
trigger of a miniature cannon, the
other amusing himself with a carving
knife.
The man with the knife made an.
other jab at my leg. Either Pepita
felt the knife point or she got an.
noyed with the scoundrel engaged in
holding up Pepe, who was standing
too near her sensitive tail.
Suddenly down went her head,
jerking the bride from the grasp of
the first robber, up went her hoofs,
flinging me forward on to her neck.
velocity. | heard "a terrible thud, ac-
comnaned by a shrek of agony from
Scar-face, who was shot bodily into
the ravine.
Away went the Infatuated Pepta,
with me frantcally embracing her
neck-away into the night, pursued
only by the triumphant cry Of Pepe,
following at his best pace, but left
far behind.
Pepita alone knows how I kept my
perch on her back while she sent the
stones flying under her feet in her
made rush. Through the Struggling
village we flashed. past the huddle OF
sleeping houses. where we overlook
one other solitary traveller. jogging
along on his beast and startled out
of his life as we dashed by.
l struggled 10 recover better seat
on the mule in order to control her
and wait for Pope. Helped by the
baggage, l finally managed to hook
myself off Pepita's neck into a more
suitable position.
For one triumphant moment I saw
the lights of the city of Toluca
twinll!ing ahead. Then a strap gave
way and the blanket l chung to slipped
around, bearing me with it under the
mules belly. The bare second chung
blindly to the slipping girth was like
an eternity. while the bewitched ami
male, plunging and kicking, broke
from the road into the cactus-ridden
country.
nAZED, i detached myself from the
spiky plant into which Pepita had
shot me, and linped back to the road.