The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1941-01-30

faith in the Taylors. They hao
wanted to rush the sale of the
ranch and, probably, get half oil
the cost of the land back by sell
ing a right of way.
Blue eyes focused on the gray
cornerstone of the courthouse.
Michael Mahoney had laid that.
She was a throwback. The Judge
had been telling her about "the
old pirate" Michael had played
fair with his friends. He had out
witted his enemies before they
were aware of it.
Then why did she feel like this?
AS though half the joy in posses
sing Ell Cabrillo had gone?
"Sick. Micha e II" asked the
judge anxiously. You look pale"
"Not exactly" she managed,
with a thin smile. at was just that
l thought the Taylors were plan
ming something constructive ..
not planning to double-cgoss US"
But dear child they are plan
ming something constructive" Of
fered the Judge, quickly. This
spur running through Ell Cabrillo
makes it possible.
Michael" he leaned across and
took her young hand in his old
one. lei Cabrillo. without the
spur, isn't worth fifty thousand to
anyone but a Cabrillo.
Il want you to hear me
through, and maybe from your
own family's history you can I'M
derstand how we must adjust our
selves to change.
Lets go back to the Don Ca
brillo we know the most about.
He came of the leather age. He
raised cattle, like his father before
him, for their hides; lean, tough
steers that grazed on thousands
of acres and needed only his
poems to herd them to market.
Michael's Vision
LIE had top markets in Russia,
4 the Orient and Europe. Then
other countries began negotiating
for that trade and prices dropped.
He had saved no money. he had
thought he had no need of it, and
his children, deSpising ranch life,
spent all of their time, and his
money, in New York. Vienna. and
Paris.
About this time Michael Ma
honey came over from Ireland;
came steerage, to cross the plains
looking for gold. He finally landed
in San Francisco with the need
of a beefsteak under his belt; but
beefsteak was only for men who
struck gold. There was no beef in
this cattle country that a man
could put his teeth into.
$50 Michael went prospecting
for gold to buy his beefsteak. He
hired out on wagon train going
to Oregon, and when the train
broke up before it even reached
the line, he cut over to the noun
tains to prospect.
"He came upon Ell Cabrillo, run
down, the old Don defeated.
Michael looked at the steers
and had vision. He saw them re-
placed with fat, sleek beef cattle
:. tender meat.
Michael bargained. He offered
to buy the forty-five thousand
acres of ranch land and cattle.
the ranch proper was not includ-
ed, for thirty-five hundred dol
lars gold"
"But how could he?" asked
"if he couldn't even
buy steak"
"You don't know your great
grandfather" opined the judge.
Michael came up to Beachport, a
it was then. He bargained
a barber into giving him a shave
and hair cut, and then he met
Simon. He bargained Simon into
giving him a suit of clothes
and five hundred dollars gold. And
who dealt in human in
tegrity, looked into the eyes of
Michael Mahoney and gave him
the gold"
Constance was thinking, have
no gold. When | reach home I'll
be nearly broke until my next
commission. But if Michael could
| will!
what did he do them" she
asked eagerly.
There were pirates in those
days, They sought the coves of FL
Cabrillo for shelter and trade.
Michael now owned the coveS and
he wasn't afraid of the devil him.
self, so he went down and forced
them to pay for their shelter.
He bargained with them. he
traded steer for beef cattle, sleek,
fat kline from Europe. Once the
ranch was stocked. he sold these
beefSteaks on the hoof at top
prices. TO cafes in Frisco, and
made the pirate ships deliver
them.
Within three years he had paid
off Don Cabrillo. and paid Simon.
who reveled more in the gold he
found in Michaers character than
he reveled in the increase in his
investment.
Now we come to the present
another change.
First. climate, Somehow we've
swung into the wet belt and with
the decrease in grazing. young
trees, too valuable to the future
10 be sacrificed. are Springing up
Next the grazing land is re-
duced by boundaries. and there
are 90 nearby State reservations
And then, the present highly
competitive m arket commands
only the best beef az decent prices
The Taylors recognized this
change but they we're helpless 70
cope with il, They had to own the
land before they could borrow
m0ney for the next step, namely.
turning El cabrillo into a mod
SrN. we'll having Dairy Ranch