The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1942-06-25

told me a lip bit about you. You
must've seen plenty!"
Con waited for him to lower the
whisky. He drank it as if it had
been coffee, faded eyes a little
brighter, weathered face softening
slightly. There was something about
him that compelled respect. Not
only had he been a good man, Con
thought, but-he was now a good
man!
''I'll be sixty-five if hang on till
beef roundup's over" Step said, in
meditative tone. Lies see you
draw that cutter"
He put Con through his PAGES,
made suggestions that instantly in
creased his smoothness and speed
of movement, then got from his col
chon, a bed roll with mattress, a
pair of white-handled Colts that
cleaned duly from constant care.
For half-hour he showed Con gum
play, what he called 'limbering
stunts" designed for nothing but de-
veloping dexterity, and "hideouts"
of dozen kinds. ...
"You won't never be fast as I
am" he said in answer to Cons
marveling remark. "No reason to
be! You was EASTERN nineteen out
of twenty cowboys. I'd say you're
EASTERN ninety-nine out of a hun
dred, with just the three-four
changes you made in the movement.
Now, there's some awful big li'P
things about killing a man, when
you know you have got to kill a
man: First place, if you 60 into
gunplay wondering whether to kill
him or just hurt him, you'll wind up
biting the daisies from the bottom.
Make up your mind about that be-
fore you start. Then you'll get down
whatever you aimed to do-fast and
slick" ..... ... ....
"My old uncle told me something
like that, and my experience has
proved it. He told me never to
make a motion to draw until
| was dead-certain I had to draw,
because an uncertain motion is a
| ragged, slow motion. He said, if
you draw, do it fast and shoot at the
end of it,
''He had the gunslick idee! An
other thing: Don't think one second
about what the other mans going
to do to you! Keep your mind on
what you're going to do to him.
There was much more of the same
grim, expert advice, with a wealth
of examples drawn from nameless
battles of unnamed men over a
half-century. When the bell-like
changing of the cooks triangle sig
nailed supper, Con stood and
stretched.
ST certainly do thank you for a
college education! And I'd like to
get lot more of the same. Eating
with us?"
| "Nah. I like Mex cooking. One
of the Martinez women fixes me UP
with everything I want. See you
some more. I kind of cottoned to
you from the day you roped the
colts. Not many I do. Topeka's the
only one on this place I call amigo
and I've known him thirty years.
But as he passed the kitchen door
of the big house, Mrs. Tension called
him and he went that way with the
carefully blank face he was learn
ing to turn upon the world.
"Come in and eat with Janet anc
me, when you've washed" she or
dered him. mo arguments! I neee
a man at the table"
So he splashed and combed ane
surveyed his battered face in the
mirror, then went resignedly to ST
down opposite Janet. Mrs. Tenisol
did most of the talking, while the,
ate at the big, handmade Spanish
table.
''That poor woman was conscious
for few minutes, awhile ago." sh,
told Con. "She says she didn't know
the men who killed her husband
She's asleep again. I think shell
do, now. The boy will be out to
morrow. He thinks he's going t
ride with you."
Janet looked everywhere but di
rectly at Con and he followed he
example. Mrs. Tension seemed no
to notice.
81 hope you don't feel put on
about staying here. I hope yov
stay with us from now on. I'm,
boy had grown up with us, to b.
about your kind of boy, would hav
been proud of him. He was a
brave little boy, at four
ITO BE CONTTNUED)