The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1936-06-27

| I'VE lived on the ranch at first"
Hope said. "The Guadalupe Ranch.
because it's in the Guadalupe noun
tains, this side Of the Rio Grande.
Here they are, the mountains. Ell
Paso's little to the west of you.
Roddie and I were born on the
ranch. We loved it. Life was wonder
full there. But Mother never got used
to it, never liked it.
Shed met Father one winter in
Ell Paso. He was a cowboy. He must
have been f1ne-looking. I haven't
any picture Of him then, but Mother
says that he was.
"After Father became a preacher
You smile at that, but it wasn't
such a far cry for him. He had al
ways wanted to preach, and after
one brother had gone to Congress.
and another become a district-at-
torney, he made up his mind.
HE used to study at night, with
Mother helping him. And after
awhile they went away together,
leaving Roddie and me at the ranch.
When they came back we moved in
to Ell Paso, and Father had his own
church. People love him. He's
good preacher. But strict. Strict in
his own family, that is. Strict with
Roddie and me.
IT was something of an opportun.
ist. did what he said. Sometimes
l only pretended to do it. and it
served just as we'll. But Roddie
couldn't do either. Roddie was
rebel,
1--WE don't look alike, do WEI"
She showed Dirk a little picture of
her and Roddie as children. Black
head, yellow head.
Il was the oldest the oldest
twin. The strongest I didn't want to
be. | hated for people to say, Your
little brother was glad when old
Pablo began to teach us to ride,
when Roddie began to get stronger
and stronger. Pretty soon he was
as brown as old Pablo, and grew
and grew. He could ride anything.
" 4 ND then Pablo got Bowie for
\ us. Bowie was the horse you
saw us ride in Merritt's d. the black
horse. He was a Spanish pony, a
blue blood. He was just a little colt
when Pablo got him in trade. He
grew up with US. He knew every.
thing E. understood eve~y move
we made to a split second.
"But Of course we had to go to
school. We had to learn things.
Mother had taught us, whenever she
could catch us. Bowie and Pablo
taught us considerably oftener. Fa-
Their hadn't begun to take a hand.
"Roddie hated leaving the ranch.
Hated it as badly as Bowie did. 1
didn't mind so much, so long as ]
had Roddie. never loved my father
or my mother as l loved Roddie,
right from the start. I was always
robbing him, though. never meant
to. But things were given to me.
things were done for me, and not
for Roddie.
my mothers sister, for instance,
She sent me to school in Washing
ton. When I went away to school
1t was the first time I had left Rod
die and Bowie.
-Four years, and I saw them only
in the summer when I went home.
Each time / saw that things were
different. Roddie wasn't home much.
he wouldn't study, and he was going
with a bad crowd. And then pretty
soon he didn't write to me at all.
That was last spring, just before I
went home for good.
"Roddie wasn't there. Roddie had
had a last quarrel with Father, and
had gone, no one knew where. I
could see that Roddie had been ter
rible, drinking and gambling, and
disgracing US generally.
81 felt had to find him. and bring
him back. Father said no. Father
had said some pretty hard things to
Roddie. But Mother said l should
go. She reminded Father Of how
Roddie had always listened to me:
said that If anybody could make him
see the light it would be Lasca.
Friends had seen him, by now. We
knew he was somewhere along the
Border.
I'm the end they gave me money
to go-money they had saved-and
made me promise that when I found
him I would come back quickly,
either with Roddie or alone. Mother
was crying when left.
81 went on Bowie because I wanted
to save the money. I knew wher-
ever Roddie was, he needed 1t. This
was no time to look for work.
st found him, too. over in Mexico,
in o little town on the river. That
was the first time I saw Torrobin.
"Torrobin had been selling liquor
into Texas. Repeal had come, and
he wasn't doing so well. hated Tor
robin for what he had done to Rod.
die"
| (cotyiszt. 1855 Margaret Ben RosssosJ
| Hone continues Mondav hAR