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138
Although there are miiny other ani-
mals, besides these I have mentioned,
with very peculiar noses, I have given
on a description of some of the most ,
noticeable amen tliein-tliosc that i e .
least known, an whose peculiarities are
generally the most marked and interest-
in .
go far as bulk and size are concerned, l
the nose of the sperm whale, with its
enormous quantities of speriiiiiecti, is the
largest. All the other noses I liavc i
ineiitioiie'd put together ivoiild not bo-
' are in size with the iioso oi’,
this largest of living nianinials
ii I think the most rc-niarkiihle and ,
the niost peculiar nose is that of the aiii-
mal iiaiiied the star-nosed mole.
mm‘
[lick Leslie's life iflexas.
BY FAN-NIE IIIIILLIAMS.
CIIAPTEIE VI.
“A BARGAIN is A IIAIIHAIN."
Dick found that his uncle had sent ,.
him a beautiful, sleek black horse, tull ‘
of spirit and “go,” while Antonio rode a
fine bay, which hecalled “The Ranger." l
“ Captain Loren has a book by that
name,” said he, “and he was reading it
about the time they got this horse, so he ‘
said it would be a good name for him.
I always like to ride the Ranger. lie is
quick and kind, and afraid of nothing.”
“What is this this fe1low’s iiaiiic?"
asked Dick, patting the black horse's
head, and smoothing hisjetty inane.
Antonio answered :
“The captain calls him Nero. Colonel
Vance only bought him a few days ago, ,
and he hasn’t been used much yet: but ‘
he is a fine fellow, and I think thel
colonel intends that you shall have him,
if he suits you."
“I should be hard to suit, iflie didii’t,“
said Dick.
They were riding out of San Antonio, i
on the road to Matagorda Bay; but soon
after leaving the city behind they tiiriied
into another road, or “trail," leading oil‘
to the southwest into the prairie eniiiitry.
As they went on, the broad, ilat, liiiiit- ,
less plain seemed to widen and stretch i
out before them, behind them, and on
either haiid, iokly covered with a ,
short, flue grass-the fainoiis mesqiiit
grass-and foriiiing, probably, the liestl
razing country in a world, Antoiiio,
said, quoting, as usual, from C‘d[ll.tIill
Loren.
So many of Antonio's remarks and ‘
opinions were prefaced with “ Uaptaiu
Loren says,” or “ Captain Iioron kliiiiks,"
that Dick began to feel astrong ourioi-iity
to see this persona re who appox.ir.:il to
figure so prominently in the lil'e at lies
Hoyos Ranch.
“VVhat do s ie do?" llzllilfll Dick.
“ Does he boss the whole busiiicss?"
“Verynearly,”replieilixiitoiiiii. “The 1
colonel is away a ooil deal of the time,
and wlioii lie is there he does not trouble
himself iuueh about iiiiytliiiig, unless
Captain Loren is gone. There are two ,
or tlireo other men who niaiiago the .
hands and take charge of herds; but the ,
captain has ii general oversiglit of tliiiigs ,
at the raiicli, and even the buying and 3
selling goes about as he s: 2'.”
“My uncle must put a gooil deal oil
oontidencc in him," said Die '. i
“So does every one that knows him."
returned Antonio. “ You eaiiiiot look
at him without feeling that he will do to
trust. lie is lirave as H. lion, and yrt.
Kind and gentle as a woiiiaii-kiinli-r ,
than any oi the women at lios lloyos,”
he aildcd.
llero Dick remarked:
“I didn’t know there would be any
women there. My uncle wrote that he
kept a baelielor‘s cstablisliineiit, and had
to take care of himself‘, like the rest ofi
the men, and that [would intro to iliil
the same. lie siippvisevl Iwas llslitl to
being pettcd, and liaviiig evorvtliiiig
done for me by my iiiothi-,r inn .i ore; ‘
but if I came down hero I would liavri tn ,
learn to make inyowii bed and keep my i
own buttons sewed rm l" ,
Dick said this in a lziiigiiiiig way, lint
Antoiiio returned, quite sorioiisly:
“I can cop your izlotln-s in order, if
on don‘t know how to sew. ['in very
handy at all those tliiiigs. Yvs, thoy
are all men at the I"llIl('ilI. l‘ivout‘ l.Il()'
Mexican hands are innrri iiivn, but ,
they live in their own ,).i<:k:ils. ’l'Iieiri
-491.-gGoL1:>E
!
wives do the wasliiiig for the men at the
, ranch; but they
oii‘t know much about
sewing-work, and they ean’t cook worth
a cent-not half so well as old JoseVde ,
Paraliiti , w o does our cooking. Bed
Blao -Nevada Ned they call hiin-has
a wife and ilaugliter, and a house of his
own, about six miles up the trail. Liz
Black knows more than Lotta Perez and
J uaii Corto's wife put together, but she
is almost as wild as an Indian.”
“ IIi)w iiiany men does my uncle eni-
‘ ploy 7" asked Dick.
here ai'e twenty-four at proseiit, if
you count the bosses and me,” answered
Antonio, “and vou will iiiake twenty-
iive. But he often hires extra haiiils to .
go on the drive. There are two or three
men at the ranch now who are going all‘
with a herd next week. Nevada Ned is
oi ng as the boss; they call him it good
332
e, no.
“The boss has to know all about cat-
tle, I siippose?” observed Die ’.
lll - and besides, he has to be
a man whom the owner can ‘list, be-
cause the herd and all the hands are eii-
tirely uiidcr his control, and everything
has to go just as he says, from the time
they stzirt on the trail till they, ,ll out
ll ‘ettlc ii The hands are p id oil'in
Kaiisas when the herd is sold, as a gon-
eral thing, and if they belong here, they
get hiilf-rate wages for the time it takes
to ooine home. But some of them go on
a spree as soon as they get paid, and
spciid all their money before they :ire
done with it. They are a hard set, these
bull-whackers.“
Dick had seen several speciincns of
this cla. in San Antonio and Anstiii’
rougli-loo ' fellow
big spurs. and pistol. in their ll(.‘It.‘l-illl(I
he thought that, to all zlppwll" nee, they
fully justified Antonio‘s remark.
“ But the hands that work at the ranch
generally belong to a steadier cliiss of
en,“ Antonio added. “About half of
the colonel's hands are white iiiou, and
the rest are Mexiraiis and colored lll('ll.l'
“Ni-ggers and greasers,“ would have
s, with slouoli hats,
a?
been the usual expression, as Dick was -‘
already aware.
"'l‘wo or three of the colored follows
are guiiig ml the drive with Ned,” con-
tinued Aiitoiiio, ‘Jaud that will leave us
pretty sliort-li:nided at the ranch, as a
guorl many of the hands will lie 0 '
‘ (I you will liiid plenty
')io '."
ld my iiimle, Iain not
afraid ofhard work," said Dick. “ lluw
iniiiiy hands does it take to drive a
herd ?“
lie was naturally ciirioiis to learn
55$
3:
soiiictliing in adviiiiei-, alioiit tho plain-, to '
which he was gtllllg, and the kind ofoiii-‘
iloyniciit which ll ten iiii in
liked Antonio‘s graphic way of iiipart-
iiig inforination.
The boy seeineil to he a gooil deal in-
estcd in the siibj hiinsi-ll‘, and to
take a real pleasure in '
questions.
“ It dcpeiids on the size of the herd
said he. “ hey generally allow s x
hands to the thousaiid hrad, not i:oiiiit-
ing the boss or the cook. lie drivi-s the
if
wai-iiii with tho provisions and licddiiii; ,
ani caiiip-stull‘, and wlniii they stop at
night, he has to uiihariiess the hoi (N, or
the inules-tlicy have uiulr-s to draw the
wagon generally-and stake them out
and start a. fire, and get tIiiii<,:si-.oiiii'oi-t-
able for the men. I don't know but
(‘iiptaiii Loren might let me m with
him as cook, if I was lint waiite( at the
ranch, but I’d rather drive. I wish
P1
‘ had two good horses. I‘m going to liato,
can save money eiiough to
'l‘licii I can hire as a ro;.;ular
d Aiitonio, with 0 H‘
“and if you te:iuIi me to read and write,
ll)ick, perhaps I shall be a boss soino
i ay."
“Of course you will," sail‘. Dink,
lanivhing; "and when I get rich in tho
cattle lnisiiiess, I'll hire you for inylieiiil
s."
“ Vill you ?" said Aiitonio, with a
grave simplicity that uiado Dirk laugh
again. “ I suppose you Iiioaii that for it
‘nko, but it may (70II1(!tl'llIt)‘(tI."
“ ‘Vell," sa Dick, gziily, “ if I over
do get rich, and you want to hire out
then, I'll stick to my proiiiiso. Anioiiio."
“I will roiiu-,iiihoi' Iliat," rr-.l.iirnniI
Aiituiiio. “A bargain is ii b:ir;.;.'iiii."
1
(IIIAI"I'I‘IIt VII.
(IRA irso.v's ui xvii.
Antonio liiid ')l‘tIVlll('iI no arraiim-.
iniints for caiiipiiig, nor lmiiiglil, :iiiy
[)ruVl.‘&ll)ll.‘4,-(!Xl3l)pt siiiiio broad and wild
iiii.-at, in his saddle-pockets, and when
,t
aiisweriiig l')ick‘s ‘
N DAYSs-m
February 4, 1882.
ilioy liiiliml zit iinoiiiiiiw, to rest and eat
, their lllll('ll0Ull. Dirk said:
‘- “'li:ii are we H >ing to do when it
- night, Aiitoiiio? ‘I was hoping
s ioiilil 9- mp out."
l 'l‘liev had stopped on the bank of a
small -ck which crossed the trail, and
i wound slnggislily away into the prairie,
l its course niarke , athin fringe of
, blislics and live-oak trees.
y Antonio had tied the horses with long
ropes, to let them feed lbr an lioiir,wliile
he and Dick reeliiieil in the c-iinl'oi'table
shade of a tliiuket of young live-oaks.
The vast plain was all arouiid them,
and the only visible sign that human
feet had evei troddeii it was the winding
they could see for miles
ltrail, which
l ahead.
I the earlier part of the day, they
had passed oecasioiial ranches, and now
and then had met sonic liorsoiiian or
Mcxiraii Wagoner; i. now, for many
miles, they had bccii riding througli a
level solitiirle, iii a silence unbroken by
any sound save their own voices and the
tramp of tlieir horses’ feet-a silence and
solitude that seeiiied to Din. ostrange
and mighty, that he woiidercd to see
how little its iniluencc aiilrcted his coin-
paiiioii.
lint the Mexieaii boy had been so [on
llL7(lll.SlZ0lll(,‘(l to the loneliness and love
of the prairie that it was nothing woii-
(lerfiil to him.
“ We shall not be more than two ii ights
on o d, and there are ranchest
stop at,” said lie, in answer to Dick's
uestion. ““'c shall get to Graysoii‘s
b ' suiidown, and to-iiiorrow night we
will stay at Miijor Willa-t’s Casa do Ca-
balleros. Den )0 in a hurry to canip
out," he added, with a smile. “You‘ll
get eiioiigh of that.”
“Shall I?"
“ Oh, yes! You will probably have to
go out gathering cattle before a great
wliih-,"siiidAiitoiii< “ e colonel is
sending herds to Kai as all the time i
now, as fast as they can be got together
and i-oa<l-hi'aiide( ."
“ What is tliat?" asked Dick.
“ Road-braiidiiig? Why, you see,"
explained Antonio, “ when you drive
cattle out of the country, they have to
be niarkeil with your own liraiid; but it
‘ herd will be niailo up mostly of cattle
boiiglit from iliifi,-i'eiit persons, and i
iiiarked with ililferoiit brands. So ever ‘
stock-i.us ins what is called a roar- I
briuiil of his owii--tliat is, an extramark l
which is put oii the cattle before they l
are s rtoil mi the trail. And I can tell
you it s no small job to brand a coiipleof
tlioiisaiid head of cattle. That is what
they are iloiiig at the ranch this wee
‘I’-wo I.lli)lIS‘llIil lniad! That will be
a big drove ol‘ " h 1 observed.
But Antoiiio rviiiriiod:
“ The eoloiiel soinl.-i out liii-gar droves
than that. In fact, this one will be larg-
er than that, for the eiiloiiel bought live j
liuiitlred head ot')laj<ir Willet, thatliave
not been brought in yet. (‘aptain Loren i
has giiiio out West to gzillier thein, and l
‘ and that is why your uncle did not come ,
to lll4‘L‘,l. , liiinself. lle hail to stay ,
and suporiiiteiid the riiail-braiiiliiig, as ‘
lfaptiiiii Iioren was not tliere.“
l Antonio had stwtiilied himself at full-
Iongtli on the grass, after eating his lun-
('ll()Illl, and Dick was glad to do the same.
for he found it more fatiguing than he !
l
, had expected, to reuiain so long in the
saddle.
“’hen they were siiiliuieiitly rested
Antonio prepared to replace the saddles‘,
’IllCIl lie had takeii from the horses‘
bac s while they n ere feeding, and the
two boys were soon inouiited again aii(l
ready to resume their journev.
ii:-k hail iiolicml a lung raw iide lariat
whivli hung in iiiiiiiycoilsfroiii tlie'poni-
lll(‘I oi‘ .tiiloiiio’s 'llIlIlU, and he now
1 tunk hold oi‘ it i-nrioiislv, and said:
; “Aiitoiiio, is ihiita istso? “'liat are
you going to do with it ""
“1lll,lllhl.llill in partiviilar! llut (‘ap-
tain l.oi-on iirlri.-iirs me to carry it with
mo ii lioi'vvoi' I go, lie:-.:iiise, as he savs I
never (‘Jill tell wlimi I iuav want it.
Noiiio of the men use ropes: but I like‘
4 my lariat br-st," . ntoni
“ I shonlil like to see how you use it ”‘
‘ said Dick, with lIlIl(‘.ll iiitcrosi. ’
l “ I wniild sliow you, if there was any.
thing livro to prii<-i.iv4- on," replied An.
tniiin.
“'I‘ry it on nu" iii Iliek ; r ‘
y . Iiu;,,liing.k
I
3
“ I'll gallop oil‘, and , iii lasso me.‘
i Aiiluiiio shook his hi-ail.
“'l'li:it wuulilii‘t do. You would be
'erkwl out oi’ your saddlii, and probably
no hurt."
1 “ Try it on a bush or siiinetliiiig, then.
i I only want to see how you throw it.”
. sky; “but it is always best to be pre-
‘ solutely freeziiig. and though tlic)"i‘e not
“ Oh, I can show you that. I will
throw it over that mesquit-bush out
yonder,“ said Antoiiio.
He caught up the coiled lariat with his
eft hand and fixed the slip-noose in his
right, then lifting his arm with a peculiiir
motion of liglitning-like rapidity, he
sent the lasso whizziiig llirough the air,
uneoiling as it flew, and the noose fell l
over the topmost twig of a niesqiiit-bush ‘
some thirty feet away.
“ That was a good aim !" cried Dick.
But Antonio rejoined:
“ It was iiothiiig at all. Any child
could do that.” ,
“ I couldn't,” laughed Dick; “ and l
I am no child.”
“Oh, voii will soon learn," said An-
tonio. It is all in the turn of your i
wrist. I'll teach you how to do it.” i
He gathered up his lasso, riding for-
ward to take the noose from oil‘ the
bush; and as he did so, a iiiiiilile liltle ,
ray creature sprang up aliiiost under
iis liorse‘s feet, and darted away to hide
itself in the tall grass along the creek.
‘ “Wliat was tliat?” cried Dick.
“ Only a mule-cared ralibit,” replied
E
l
io. ‘
“A rabbit? VVhy didn't you shoot ‘
him ‘?” asked Dick, who had the liiintcr's i
instinct pretty strongly developed, and
was anxious to see some use made of the
fine “six-sliooter” which Antonio car- i
ried in his sash.
“ Why, we don‘t want him," said An- i
tonic. “They are not bad to eat, tlioiigli, i
when you are hungry and ean‘t get aiiy- l
thing better. Butif you like sliootiiig, i
Dick, we will go out some day when .
Captain Lereii gets ck, and take II i
hunt in the Busada. The captain is fond
of hunting, hilt they have no time for
that when they are gathering and driv-
inglcattle.” ‘
eturning to the trail, the bovs eon-
tiiiued their journey. It “ s til warm i
day for April, even in Texas and I)i(:k,
not knowing the eculiai tics of the
climate, woiidei'cd what Antonio could
have been t‘-.inking of when he pro- i
vided the blue army ovorcoats which
they carried strapped on boliind their
saddles.
“Antonio."said he, “we shall in
no use for these things to-day."
“Perhaps not," Antonio iniswored, l
looking up -at the (lazzling, oloiidlinss ‘
‘O l
“ For what?" said Dick.
“ For a iiortlier. They conic up virv
suddenly, and blow, souietinies, for two
or three days."
“ What is a norther?" asked Die
“ A cold wind from the uortli," r
Antonio. “ In the winter thev ire ah.
pared. " l
i
l
so bad this tiiue of year, it is cold elI0ll,‘L'lI
for an overcoat while they last. Vory
0&0"; may end up with a raiii-storin.
You cannot tell when there's going to
e one, so we al 'ays carrv a lioavv coal
when we go far from the rancli. I
It was not long before Dick ad re son
to ackiiowledge the wisdom of this pi
oaiition.
In the middle of the afternoon.as they
‘Vcm .l"f=’E-ll," ' 31071:: lhroiigh the suniiy,
reen pi'airielaiid, neither of them " v
lllgdllllllll, [or they both felt rather tired
of riding, they heard a roaring sound he-
hind tlioin, and looking back, they saw
a black cloud rolling up the sky, while a
cloud ol dust was rushing down tho
<3
E
“ ‘: It is a iiorther I" exclaimed Antoni -.
I utton your overcoat, Iii:-k; voii ii ill
need it." ‘
lie began putting on his own -is ill‘
Spoke, and Dick followed his e. llllbll’, ‘
none too soon, for the norther was upon
them Iiia pioiiient, and the cold wind
;I;1.liI0 him shiver, in spite of his thick
“ It blow, to use Dick's own expression,
H"0i!l- GUNS-” The horses needed no
Slilnriiig to induce them to qiiiekmi
‘he!’ l’?I0e>bef‘orc that chilling blast, and
“'9” .V"1“ll;F1ders felt quite as ii ling
to lllltk-0 haste. They settled tlieiiiselves
in their saddles, and drew their blue
ic><r1‘fltS.M'ell around them, and Aiitonio
“ Come on, Dick! the horses fool like
going now. and we will find out wliicll i
one of them is the best by the time we
K01 "7 ”l'")‘soii‘s Ranch."
And away they went the horses ap-
5‘,’0"'lY (iutcring into the spiritof tlio
iin aiu so ' . , 4,.
mmg’-‘E M spC0‘f(lll.lIg don n to .i vigiiroils
At iirst the Ranger took the load but
as iiiilo alter inilc was loll, behind‘ the
ll,l”‘3k horse rained on him, and t'orsi)n1e
‘mm “WY 83 Ioped neck and neck.