Year: 1875

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Frank Staples served in the cavalry,
during the rebellion, and went through
the Valley with Sheridan. AT the close
of the war he left the service with an hon.
orable discharge in his pocket-and very
| little else. He had achieved neither fame
nor fortune. He had done q soldier S
duty faithfully and intelligently. There
were no politicians in his family. His
father and uncles were men of strong
convictions. They had kept the flag Of
freedom flying in the unpropitious days
hen it did not pay, but when the change
came, they were thrust aside by the howl
ing dervishes of the eleventh hour. So
Frank was neither promoted nor bre-
veted.


There was Tom. Tidlcr, who had two
brevets thrust on him tor disting guished
services in mastering the troops of the
United States in, and the other for mus
tering them ont There were Others Of
Frank college ehum. who were brevet-
ed for actions in which he was, but they
were not,


1t was imperative that he should do
something for livelihood. Going back
| to the legal studies he had abandoned a
year before he would have been admitted
to the bar, was out of the question Sol
diering had spoiled him for any sedenta
ry occupation lie could not stand the
confinement of office work He felt thai
he must find some pursuit which would
give him plenty of exercise. A horse
must necessarily be one Of the tools of
his new trade He knew nothing of far
ming Joe Hemphill who was in much
the same position as Frank, suggested
that the cattle trade was just the thing
| for them. Frank uncle Asahel gave him
two thousand dollars as starter Joe
put in like amount, and they went into
the cattle business


In the spring of 1856, Frank was on
his way to meet his partner on the lower
Rio Grande. Joe had gone into Texas,
to buy beef cattle, which they intended
to drive to Colorado for a market. Frank
was riding along slowly to cool his horse
before watering him at the next stage sta
ton, where he intended resting for few
| hours and cxpending dolla and half
for what is called dinner in those parts.
He was about two miles from the ranch
when he was joined by a stranger noun
ted on tough looking, glass eyed In
dian pony, The stranger was quite a
good. looking fellow, six feet in his stock
ings, with large fair face, great blue
eyes, profusion Of light hair, which he
allowed to grow long, frontier fashion,
to keep his eyes fro,n freezing in the win
try cold winds of the llanas He had a
magnificent flowing beard Of the same
color as the hair, it reached below his
breast His dress was not studied, but
it certainly was picturesque. He wore a
broad brimmed scmbrero Of gray felt
with band of red ribbon; blue woolen
shirt, faced with red, with large mother
of pearl buttons trousers of buckskin,
with long fringes at the sides and high
boots, armed with immense Mexican
spurs A long lariat of dressed hide was
eurled at his saddle bow. A broad ieath-
or belt, with large silver buckle sup
ported two army revolvers and bowie
knife The pistols hung one at each hip
the left with the stock to the trent, the
right with the stock to the rcar-so as to
be ierked out with the least possible
trouble or delay. The bowie-knife hung
midway between the six shooters, Sus-
pended from his wrist was an Indian whip.
In short, his frontier make up was un
exceptionable


The stranger was evidently Texan.
A finer specimen of physical manhood
could not be found anywhere. He rode
to Franks side, in an off hand, CHEEKY
sort of a way, and bringing his horse to
a walk, said, laughinsly:


y Il tell yer what it is, stranger, yer must