o'y
By FRANK H. SPEARMAN ? Frank H. Spearman WNU Service
CHAPTER XVI?Continued
?18?
"But Monica, our faithful nurse,
has told me that four days after
the burning of the rancho and the
murders my sister and I were
brought back to the rancho by three
white men with heavy beards. They
could speak no Spanish; she could
not understand a word they said,
and they were not going to leave
us with her until our old Padre
Pasqual happened along, walking
down from San Gabriel. The men,
or at least one of them, talked by
signs with the padre, and he as
sured them it would be all right to
turn us over to Monica."
"Senorita," said her companion
gently, "this is too hard on you. You
are suffering. Don't tell any more
now. 1 feel it myself." He drew a
breath of relief. "Thank God, you
did escape."
Carmen gave no heed to his plea.
"Who were these men?those three
men who saved my sister and me
from?what shall I say?" She put
her face into her hands, shudder
ing.
"Don't say, don't try to say, se
norita!"
"From worse than death. For
months we two lay ill, our lives
were given up. Terecita died from
brain fever. I, poor I, could not
die. My aunt, Dona Maria, took me
for her own. She and dear Don
Ramon adopted me. For years aft
erward. senor, I would start out of
a sound sleep screaming and sob
bing. At other times horrible dreams
assailed me.
"it was Dr. Doane and, most of
all, the help of my religion and the
ministrations of blessed Padre Mar
tinez that brought me through those
terrible years. Dear Padre Marti
nez! When everybody else despaired
of my recovery he, almost alone,
supported me and told me I must
and should get well.
"For that reason?all my illness?
when I became the foster daughter
of Guadalupe it was strictly forbid
den for anyone ever to mention the
tragedy or the fact that I was not
their very own child . . . This is a
very long story?"
"I can't tell you how deeply I
feel it, senorita."
"You asked me why I was afraid
of being carried away. I have told
you. And I had a reason much more
grave for recounting all this, Senor
Bowie. And a confession to make.
Monica, my Indian nurse, is still liv
ing. She lives with my brother near
San Diego. Once in a long, long
time Monica comes away up here to
see me.
"Do you remember, Senor Bowie,
that among the portraits at Guada
lupe there is one of you?"
"I remember."
"Monica, the instant she saw your
picture, screamed. When I quieted
her these were the words she spoke:
'That is the man who brought you
back to me at Los Alamos!' "
Her voice broke. She hid her face
in her hands.
He spoke quietly. "Don't let that
upset you. It might easily be a
mistake. She could hardly remem
ber after so many years, senorita."
"I argued with her. 'You told
me ihose men were heavily beard
ed,' I said. 'This man is smooth
faced.' She only shook her head.
'That,' she said over and over, 'is
the man who laid you in my arms
at Los Alamos!'
"I was shaken almost to death
by her story, senor. Shouldn't you
be? Senor Bowie, were you that
man? Try to recollect."
He stared at tne grass oy his
side. At length he shook his head
slowly. "She must have been mis
taken." Plucking at the grass, he
added with a slight tremor, "I wish
it were true."
But Carmen had not done: she
only pressed her victim more close
ly. "Knowing you as well as I now
de. senor, perhaps better than you
think," she continued, "I felt it
would be well to talk first to Senor
Pardaloe, because I knew he came
with you to California and might ex
plain it. I did talk with him. He
confirmed the story absolutely, even
to the beard. Senor Bowie, you are
the man."
Struggling no longer with pent-up
emotion, she burst into tears.
"Why, why, should this upset you
so senorita?" he pleaded. "It may
only possib'.y be true. And if it
were . .
Her eyes, as she raised them to
his, flashed through the tears. "And
if it were?" she echoed slowly and
gravely. "It has been the dream of
my life sometime, somewhere, to
meet that man. In my heart I have
said. 'If I can ever find that man I
will wipe his feet with my hair. I
will serve him at table. I will be
his handmaiden for life.' "
"Henry," she exclaimed, holding
out her hand for him to help her
up. "how do you think I have stood
it since Monica told me it was you?"
"Could it indeed have been I?
Could that sobbing little brown-eyed
girl I carried that day on my shoul
der be this magnificent woman who
stands before me now? Carmen!"
His voice threw more into the words
than she had ever heard from hu
man lips. "I love you. I have
loved you from the first mo;nent I
ever saw you. Carmen. That is the
reason I had to leave Guadalupe.
That is the reason I never could
stand it to come back to Guada
lupe and yet stay apart from you.
Now you know everything!"
Her composure, as she stood,
astounded him. It was now he who
must work to control his voice and
words.
"Henry," she said. His name on
her hps maddened him. He caught
her hands. "Do you know every
thing?" she asked. "Wot quite?not
how shamefully silly I once was. I
don't know whether you can ever
forgive me. But since you have told
me what you have just now told
_ me, Henry?what more must I tell
you?"
CHAPTER XVII
Dona Maria may or may not have
| guessed things when the young mis
tress of the rancho appeared at the
dinner table. Carmen was a bit too
animated to seem natural. And
Bowie laughed at times, Dona Ma
ria thought, without adequate rea
son.
"You made a long ride of it,"
she suggested as a leading remark.
Carmen responded composedly.
"But not a fruitless one. I went
out to capture a very wild horse and
managed at last to coax him into
the corral."
Dry old Don Ramon interposed
an impudent question. "What did
your wild horse coax you into?"
Carmen met the attack without a
tremor. "Nothing to speak of. The
important thing is, California can
count one more caballero. Don Hen
ry Bowie is coming back to Guada
lupe."
Dona Maria rose to her feet, clap
ping her hands. "Glorious!"
"He has promised to stay."
"Better and better."
"But, of course," continued Car
men blandly, "you never can tell
about teally wild horses."
"They are serviceable only when
actually brought to bit," observed
Don Ramon dispassionately. "Fe
lipe," he said to the houseboy, "here
is a key to the wine cellar. Bring
three bottles of the 1830 champagne
. . It was a good vintage," he
observed, addressing Bowie.
The Tejano left in the morning for
the fort to break away from Sutter.
It was difficult to make his peace,
but the captain was not wholly un
reasonable. Bowie took him into
his confidence, and in the end the
veteran promised to come and
dance at the wedding.
A week went before Bowie, very
impatient, could get back to Guad
alupe. Fortunately, in the circum
stances, he reached the rancho in
the evening. The night was clear.
A full moon was rising over the
mountains, and just within the patio
a slender girlish figure, wearing the
very highest of her combs and
draped in her most elaborate Chi
nese shawl, waited to greet him.
"Three nights," she whispered
when she could catch breath to
speak, "three nights I have waited
here long, long for you. Wicked
Tejano, to keep a poor, poor girl
shivering out here in the cold. You
need not make excuses. 1 know
you just forgot me. How are you,
querido? And now that you have?
what you call it?a job, you muat
ask Don Ramon in the morning for
his daughter's hand?if you think her
worth it. I, myself, don't. But I
have heard it raid that there is no
accounting for tastes."
Don Ramon made the asking easy
for Bowie. "If Carmen had done
as I wished she would have been
yours long ago. You are welcome
my household. Senor Bowie. I
trust you two may be happy to
gether and may provide for Guad
alupe 'he descendants for which
my wife and I have vainly longed."
The betrothal was made an occa
sion of festivity at the rancho, cul
minating in a formal dinner to which
Tadre Martinez and his assistant
and Aunt Ysabel from Monterey
were summoned. The household and
the guests sat at table late and had
gathered in the living room with a
fire in the huge fireplace.
While the talk went on Felipe
came in to whisper a message to
Bowie. He excused himself and was
gone only a few minutes. When he
returned Carmen looked at him
qui-stioningly, but he ignored all
curiosity concerning his absence
from the roonr. and no one asked
further.
It was only when he and Carmen
were alone after the gues'.s had left
and he was bidding her good night
that he answered her question.
"It was a messenger from Dr.
Doane. Felipe will put him up for
the night."
"but what did he want?"
"He brought a message from the
doctor to let me know that Blood
is out again. He broke jail to
night at Monterey."
Bowie was in Monterey next day
cn business. His business was with
Ben Pardaloe. When they had fin
ished their conference Ben had en
gaged to return to Guadalupe. A
fortnight later Bowie was riding
along the river with Carmen. She
had asked to visit the quarter ot
the rancho threatened by the squat
ters?three of their shacks were vis
ible from where Bowie and Carmen
had halted. As they rode away a
rifle shot echoed across the Melena,
and Bowie heard the sing of the
bullet as it passed.
"Run for it. Carmen!" he ex
claimed, striking her pony and spur
ring his own. Not until they were
well out of range did he slow up.
"What was that shot, Henry?"
asked Carmen.
Bowie was thoroughly enraged but
he spoke quietly. "Just another mes
senger from Blood?to make sure I
know he's out of jail." Then he ex
ploded, unable to restrain himself
longer. "A man who'd do that in
Texas would be shamed out of the
country. It's all right to take a pot
shot at me; I don't object to that.
But to take one when it endangers
the life of a woman! It only shows,"
he added after an ominous silence,
"what a dog this fellow is. One of
us will have to get out of this coun
try."
On the morning following Parda
loe rode out to Guadalupe. He was
welcomed noisily by the vaqueros
and, having brought a goodly sup
ply of poor tobacco, made the cow
boys happy by passing it around.
"Ben is to be your boss, boys,"
explained Bowie. "And you are all
to carry pistols now, along with
your lariats and knives. Within
three months I'll have six-shooters
for all of you?they're ordered and
paid for. We've got a bunch of
pesky squatters on the other side
of the river above the Melena. They
expect to gobble up Guadalupe.
They're mistaken, but they don't
know it yet. We've got to set 'em
right on that point?that's why I
sent for your old foreman, Ben Par
daloe.
"Now don't misunderstand me.
Don't start a fight with this scum
yourselves?let them start it. But
if you see one of them riding any
where on the rancho, order him off.
If he puts up a fight and you think
you can handle him, well and good
?go after him. If you think you
can't, whistle for help. If you catch
one of them running off so much as
a sick calf, go after him fast with
your lariat and gun and don't give
him a chance to shoot first. Pow
der ?nd lead are cheap. It's better
"I remember."
to shoot half a second too soon than
on? hundredth part of a second too
late?remember that. This rancho
belongs to your master, Don Ra
mon. and these squatters must b?
taught that it does."
"These boys," explained Bown
afterward to Pardaloe and Simmie,
"have been cowed by Blood and
his bunch, who have been doing
about as they please. We're going
to call Blood's blufT, and you boy*
know how to do it. I'm going to
get him for killing Sanchez, if for
nothing else. What's the talk in
Monterey. Ben?"
"Well, they say Blood's friends
let him loose. I saw Deaf Peterson
there one night, and he acted mean.
He's squatting over there with
Blood. The talk?and I guess it'i
so?is that Blood has got together
twenty or thirty guerillas, and he
claims he's going to clean the coun
try up. They're tough birds, and
blood's got a special spite against
Guadalupe."
"And Guadalupe's got a special
spite against Blood," remarked
Bowie. "But if the cuss does get
a bunch of guerillas together they
can do mischief. No matter. We'll
just have tc look alive till I can
get my hands on him again."
"He claims he's aimin' to get
his hands on you," grinned Parda
loe.
"I'm easier to find than he is,
Ben. But we'll get together some
day."
Pardaloe and Simmie went to
Monterey next day after powder
and lead and extra pistols and to
pick up what they could concerning
Blood's whereabouts. Bowie intend
ed to raid the squatters the day
following the return of the two
scouts. He himself, on the day they
left, took his vaqueros into the foot
hills to round up the herd from
which steers were being run off by
squatters and raiders.
That day Carmen took Felipe with
her to go over to the mission on a
joyous crrrjid. She wanted to talk
over with Padre Martinez arrange
ments for a wedding.
She found the padre a little thin
ner?each visit marked him as soon
er to become a walking skeleton.
But happily, he told her, he had
not been molested by raids for some
time and prayed and hoped for a
long relief from depredation. His
guard? Yes, he had his dozen Mexi
can soldiers; they were good fel
lows but were eating him out of
house and home. Today they had
gone down, likewise, his administra
tor, to San Jose for a fiesta; he
was afraid some ot them would
come back drunk. And his poor In
dians?they had mostly turned hunt
ers and trappers to keep from starv
ing. But, Deo gracias, they were
firm in their faith. He wished that
his soldiers behaved as well.
The scene that afternoon was as
peaceful as the message from tlia
other world which the mission had
brought to men. The few girls and
women remaining were busy with
their varied tasks.
Carmen visited with them and
asked questions and distributed
largess, asking at the same time for
their prayers.
She took supper with the pad
re and his assistant, and with Fe
lipe started for home in the cool of
the evening. They had not ridden
far when the Indian signified Car
men to stop. He scanned the ala
meda ahead.
"Men, senorita," he said, "horse
men. Half a dozen or more. They
are not our kind. I don't like to
meet them with you."
"What shall we do, Felipe?"
"Turn back at once."
Hardly had the two faced about
when the clatter of hoofs behind
them indicated they were being fol
lowed. They broke the ponies into
a swift lope; their pursuers rod?
faster. Fortunately, the distance
was but short, and, as dusk fell,
Felipe and Carmen dashed safely
through the opened doors into the
mission compound and Felipe, leap
ing from his horse, closed the clum
sy gates behind them.
The clattering horsemen pulled up
in front of the church and with
many shouts and oaths scattered
over the plaza, demanding admis
sion.
Felipe, though mild, was game in
a pinch. He caught up a blunder
buss from the guards' quarters and
coaxed two neophytes to arm and
appear with him in the church tow
er. The raiders yelled at them
and one of them, a renegade mis
sion Indian, shouted insolently to
Felipe to open the gates or they
would break them open. Felipe,
equally defiant, declared he would
shoot the first man that attempted
it.
There were hesitation and wran
gling threats among the horsemen.
They milled around the plaza, while
within the church Padre Martinez
and all in the mission enclosure
were on their knees before the
Blessed Sacrament, beseeching
heaven for aid in the extremity. An
hour or more passed, with the raid
ers churning about the plaza but
shy about testing Felipe's mark* j
manship from the tower.
'TO BE CONTINUED)
Flying by Ear
It !? not true thtt bats are blind
But scientists have often wondered
how bats can fly in the pitch dark
of caves and other haunts without
bumping into things. Recently two
Harvard scientists. Dr. Rober*. Ga
lambos and Donald R. Griflin, pro.
vided the answer. Bats fly by ear.
With a special sound device, the
scientists found that flying bats ut
ter supersonic cries when flying,
well above the human car's ranee
of 20,000 vibrations a second.
These high-pitched beeps are re
flected by any obstacles in their
path. In a dark room criss-crossed
with strung wires, the bats (low
perfectly, even when blindfolded.
But as soon as the scientists cov
ered their mouths and ears, the
bats floundered helplessly about.
For Only 10/Now
Less thin
Cultivation of Gtinius
The richest genius, like the most
fertile soil, when uncultivated,
shoots up into the rankest weeds;
and instead of vines and olives for
the pleasure and use of man, pro
duces to its slothful owner the
most abundant crop of poisons.?
Hume.
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Kindness Reconciles
Harshness will alienate a bosom
friend, and kindness reconcile a
deadly foe.
Wit and Wisdom
A proverb is the wit of one and
the wisdom of many.
Fumigator
Paradichlorobenzene is a fumigat
ing material used to treat blue mold
disease in tobacco plant beds.
Clean Silverware
Save your old powder puffs to
clean silverware. They are splen
did for this, after washing.
We Can All Be
EXPERT
BUYERS
? In bringing m buying Information, as
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what wo Intend to boy, and a? to the
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