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+Project Gutenberg's The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories, by W. H. H. Murray
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories
+
+Author: W. H. H. Murray
+
+Release Date: April 5, 2009 [EBook #28502]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by David Edwards, Woodie4 and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber notes:
+For the benefit of certain readers, explanatory names have been added to
+some illustration tags and these have been identified with an asterisk.
+
+A list of contents was not in the original book and has been added.
+
+
+
+THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN
+AND OTHER STORIES
+
+BY
+
+W. H. H. MURRAY
+
+[Illustration: Cover]*
+
+[Illustration: W. H. H. Murray]
+
+
+
+THE
+
+BUSTED EX-TEXAN
+
+AND
+
+OTHER STORIES
+
+BY
+
+W. H. H. MURRAY
+
+
+AUTHOR OF "DAYLIGHT LAND," "THE STORY THE KEG TOLD ME,"
+"ADIRONDACK ADVENTURES," ETC.
+
+PHOTOGRAVURE PORTRAIT AND EIGHT FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+BY THOS. WORTH.
+
+
+BOSTON
+DE WOLFE, FISKE & CO., PUBLISHERS
+1890
+
+COPYRIGHT 1889 BY W. H. H. MURRAY.
+
+ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+The Busted Ex-Texan
+
+How Deacon Tubman And Parson Whitney Celebrated New Year's.
+
+The Leaf Of Red Rose
+
+
+
+            ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+   I. "I AM A BUSTED EX-TEXAN."
+
+  II. "PRACTICALLY INSIDE THE PAIL."
+
+ III. "AND WHEN I CAME DOWN."
+
+  IV. "LAY ABOARD OF THE OLD CUSS."
+
+   V. "LUFF HER UP--LUFF HER UP."
+
+  VI. THE DEACON AND PARSON.
+
+ VII. THE RACE.
+
+VIII. THE FIRST PRIZE FOR THE _Wickedest Cow_.
+
+
+
+THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN.
+
+
+
+
+THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN.
+
+
+We were camped amid the foot-hills on the trail which led up to the
+Kicking Horse Pass. The sun had already passed from sight, beyond the
+white summits above us, and the shadow of the monstrous mountain range
+darkened the prairie to the east, to the horizon's rim. Our bivouac was
+made in a grove of lofty firs, six or eight in number; and a little
+rivulet, trickling from the upper slopes, fell, with soft, lapsing
+sound, within a few feet of our camp-fire. We did not even pitch a tent,
+for the sky was mild, and above us the monstrous trees lifted their
+protecting canopy of stems. The hammocks were swung for the ladies, and
+each gentleman "preëmpted" the claim that suited him best, by depositing
+his blanket and rifle upon it. The entire party were in the best of
+spirits, and nature responded to our happiness in its kindest mood.
+Laughter sounded pleasantly at intervals from the busy groups, each
+working at some self-appointed industry. The hum of cheerful
+conversation mingled with the murmurs of the brook; and now and then the
+snatch of some sweet song would break from tuneful lips, brief,
+spirited, melodious as a bobolink's, dashing upward from the
+clover-heads. And before the mighty shadow lying gloomily on the great
+prairie plain, which stretched eastward for a thousand miles, had grown
+to darkness, the active, happy workers had given to the bivouac that
+look of designed orderliness which a trained party always give to any
+spot they select in which to make a camp or pass a night. An hour
+before, there was nothing to distinguish that grove of trees, or the
+ground beneath them, from any other spot or hill within the reach of
+eye. But now it commanded the landscape; and, had you been trailing
+over the vast plain, the bright firelight, the group of men and women
+moving to and fro, the picketed horses, the fluttering bits of color
+here and there, would have caught your gaze ten miles away; and were you
+tired or hungry, or even lonesome, you would have naturally turned your
+horse's head toward that camp as toward a cheerful reception and a home;
+for wherever is happy human life, to it all lonely life is drawn as by a
+magnet.
+
+And this was demonstrated by our experience then and there. For,
+scarcely had we done with supper,--and by this time the gloom had grown
+to darkness, and the half-light of evening held the landscape,--when out
+of the semi-gloom there came a call,--the call of a man hailing a camp.
+Indeed, we were not sure he had not hailed several times before we heard
+him; for, to tell the truth, we were a very merry crowd, and as light of
+heart as if there was not a worry or care in all the world,--at least
+for us,--and the smallest spark of a joke exploded us like a battery.
+Indeed, so rollicking was our mood that our laughter was nearly
+continuous, and it is quite possible that the stranger may have hailed
+us more than once without our hearing him. And this was the more likely
+because the man's voice was not of the loudest, nor was it positive in
+the energy of its appeal.
+
+Indeed, there was a certain feebleness or timidity in the stranger's
+hail, as if he was mistrustful that any good fortune could respond to
+him, and, hence, deprecated the necessity of the resort. But hear him we
+did at last, and he was greeted with a chorus of voices to "Come in!
+Come in! You're welcome!" And partly because we had finished our repast,
+and partly from courtesy and the natural promptings of gentlefolk to
+give a visitor courteous greeting, we all arose and received him
+standing. And, certainly, had the kindly act been unusual with us, not
+one of our group would have regretted the extra condescension bestowed
+upon him at his coming, after he had entered the circle of our
+firelight, and we saw the expression of his features.
+
+What a mirror the human face is! Looking into it, how we behold the
+soul, the accidents that have befallen it and the disappointments it has
+borne! Are not the faces of men as carved tablets on which we read the
+records of their lives? The face of childhood is smoothly beautiful,
+like a white page on which neither with ink of red or black has any pen
+drawn character. But, as the years go on, the pen begins to move and the
+fatal tracery to grow,--that tracery which means and tells so much. And
+the face of this man,--this waif, so to speak,--this waif that had come
+to us from the stretch of the prairie, whose southern line is the
+southern gulf; this stranger, who had come so suddenly to the circle of
+our light, and so plaintively sought admission to its comfort and its
+cheer, was a face which one might read at a glance. Not one in our
+circle that did not instantly feel that he embodied some overwhelming
+calamity. A look of sadness, of a mild, continuous sorrow, overspread
+his face. There was a pitiful expression about the mouth, as if brave
+determination had withdrawn its lines from it forever. From his eyes a
+certain mistrustfulness looked forth,--not mistrustfulness of others,
+but of himself,--as if confidence in his own powers had received an
+overwhelming shock. The man's appearance made an instant and
+unmistakable impression upon the entire company. The ladies--God bless
+their sweet and sympathetic natures!--were profoundly moved at the
+pitiful aspect of our guest. Their bosoms thrilled with sympathy for one
+upon whose devoted head evil fortune had so evidently emptied its
+quiver. Nor were our less sensitive masculine natures untouched by his
+forlorn appearance.
+
+"A target for evil fortune," whispered Dick to the major.
+
+"A regular bull's-eye!" was the solemn response. "A bull's-eye, by gad!
+at the end of the score."
+
+It was not a poetic expression. I wish the reader to note that I do not
+record it as such. I only preserve it as evidence of the major's
+humanity, and of the unaffected sympathy for the stranger, which at that
+moment filled all hearts.
+
+Naturally, as it can well be imagined, the gayety of our company had
+been utterly checked by the coming of our sad guest. In the presence of
+such a wreck of human happiness, perhaps of human hope, what person of
+any sensibility could maintain a lightsome mood? Had it not been for one
+peculiarity,--a peculiarity, I am confident, all of us observed,--the
+depression of our spirits would have been as profound as it was
+universal. This peculiarity was the stranger's appetite. This,
+fortunately, had remained unimpaired,--an oasis in the Sahara of his
+life.
+
+"The one remnant left him from the wreck of his fortunes," whispered
+Dick.
+
+"A perfect remnant!" returned the major, sententiously.
+
+For myself, acting as host to this appetite, and being naturally of a
+philosophic turn, I watched its development with the keenest interest,
+not to say with a growing curiosity. "Here is something," I said to
+myself, "that is unique. That fine law of recompense which is kindly
+distributed through the universe finds here," I reflected, "a most
+instructive and conclusive demonstration. Robbed, by an adverse fate, of
+all that made life agreeable, this man, this pilgrim of time, this
+wayfarer to eternity, this companion of mine on the road of life, has
+had bestowed upon him an extraordinary solace, has been permitted to
+retain a commensurate satisfaction. Surely, life cannot have lost its
+attractions for one whose stomach still preserves such aspirations."
+And, prompted by the benevolence of my mood, and the anticipations of a
+wise forecast, I collected in front of me whatever edibles remained on
+the table, that, if the supply of our hospitality should prove
+insufficient, the exhibition of its spirit should at least be
+conclusive.
+
+But, if the countenance of the stranger was of a most melancholy cast,
+there were not lacking hints that by nature he had been endowed with
+vivacity of spirit; for, as he continued, with an industry which was
+remarkable, to refresh himself, there were appearances, which came to
+the eye and the corners of his mouth, which made the observer conclude
+that he was not lacking the sense of humor; and, if his experience had
+been most unfortunate, there was in him an ability to appreciate the
+ludicrousness of its changeful situations. Indeed, one could but
+conclude that originally he must have been of a buoyant, not to say
+sanguine disposition; and, if one could but prevail upon him to narrate
+the incidents of his life, they would be found to be most entertaining.
+
+It was something like an hour before our melancholy-looking guest had
+fully improved the opportunity with which a benignant Providence had
+supplied him,--a freak in which, one might conclude, she seldom
+indulged. He ceased to eat, and sat for a moment gazing pensively at the
+dishes. It seemed to me--but in this I may possibly be mistaken--that a
+darker shade of sadness possessed his face at the conclusion than the
+one that shadowed it so heavily at the beginning of the repast. "The
+pleasures of hope," I said to myself, "are evidently greater to my
+species than are those of recollection. Now that there is nothing left
+for my guest to anticipate, it is evident that memory ceases to excite."
+And I could but feel that, had our provisions been more abundant, the
+stranger's appetite would not have been so easily appeased. With
+something of regret in my voice, I sought to divert his mind from that
+sense of disappointment which I judged from his countenance threatened
+to oppress his spirits.
+
+"Friend," I said, "I doubt not that you have trailed a goodly distance,
+and your fasting has been long?"
+
+"I have not eaten a meal in two days," was the response.
+
+"Heavens!" exclaimed Dick in an aside to the major. "Is it credible that
+that man ate two days ago!"
+
+"Gad!" exclaimed the major, "the man's stomach is nothing but a pocket."
+
+"A pocket! I should call it an unexplored cavern!" retorted Dick.
+
+"The direction and reason of your long trail would be interesting," I
+resumed. "And, if not impertinent, friend, may I ask you whence you have
+come?"
+
+"I have journeyed from Texas," replied the man, and his voice nearly
+broke as he said it.
+
+"_Oh!_" exclaimed the ladies, and they sympathetically grouped
+themselves, anticipating, with true feminine sensitiveness, some
+terrible dénouement.
+
+"_Texas!_" I ejaculated.
+
+"_Gad!_" said the major.
+
+"The _Devil!_" said Dick.
+
+"Yes, _Texas!_" repeated the man, and he groaned.
+
+By this time, as any intelligent reader will easily divine, our whole
+group was in a condition of mild excitement. Several of us had resided
+in Texas, and we felt that we stood at the threshold of a history,--a
+history with infinite possibilities in it. For myself, I knew not how to
+proceed. My position as a host forbade me to interrogate. The sorrows of
+life are sacred, and my sensitiveness withheld me from thrusting myself
+within the enclosure of my guest's recollections. That his experiences,
+could we but be favored with a narration of them, would be
+entertaining,--painfully entertaining,--I keenly realized; but how to
+proceed I saw not. I remained silent.
+
+"Yes,"--it was the stranger who broke the silence,--"I am a busted
+ex-Texan!"
+
+[Illustration: I AM A BUSTED EX-TEXAN.]
+
+The relief that came to me at the instant was indescribable. The path
+was made plain. We all felt that we were not only on the threshold of a
+history, but of a narration of that history. The ladies fluttered into
+position for listening. I could but see it, and so I am bound to record
+that I saw Dick irreverently punch the major. It was a punch which
+carried with it the significance of an exclamation. The major received
+it with the face of a Spartan, but with the grunt of a Chinook chief.
+
+"Friend," I said, "we are accustomed to beguile the evening hours with
+entertaining descriptions of travels, often of personal incidents of the
+haps and hazards of life; and, if it would not be disagreeable to you,
+we would be vastly entertained, beyond doubt, by any narration with
+which you might favor us of your Texan experiences and of the fortunes
+which befell you there."
+
+For a few moments, the silence remained unbroken, save by the crackle of
+the fire and the soft movement in the great firs overhead,--a movement
+which is to sound what dawn is to the day; not so much a sound as a
+feathery suggestion that sound might come. It was a genial hour, and the
+mood of the hour began to be felt in our own. The warmth of it evidently
+penetrated the bosom of our guest. He had eaten. He was
+filled,--appreciably so at least, and that happy feeling, that
+comfortable sense of fulness, which characterizes the after-dinner hour,
+pervaded him with its genial glow. He loosened his belt,--another
+tremendous nudge from Dick,--and a look of contentment softened his
+features. Whatever storm had wrecked his life, he had now passed beyond
+its billows, and from the sure haven into which he had been blown he
+could gaze with complacent resignation, if not with happiness, at the
+dangers through which he had passed. I am sure that we were all
+delighted at the brightening appearance of our guest, and felt that, if
+the story he was to tell us was one which included disasters, it would
+at least be lightened by traces of humor and the calm acceptance of a
+philosophic mind.
+
+"I was born in the State of Connecticut," so our guest began his
+narration. "I came from a venturesome stock, and the instinct of
+commercial enterprise may be regarded as hereditary in my family. My
+grandfather was the first one to discover the tropical attributes of the
+beech-wood tree. He first perceived that it contained within its fibres
+the pungency of the nutmeg. With a celerity which we remember with pride
+in our family, he availed himself of the commercial value of his
+discovery, and for years did a prosperous trade on the credulity of
+mankind. He was a man of humor,--a sense which has been to some extent
+transmitted to myself,--he was a man of humor, and I have no doubt he
+enjoyed the joke he was practising on people, fully as much as the
+profits which the practical embodiment of his humor brought to his
+pocket. My father was a deacon, a man of true piety and eminently
+respectable. He was engaged in the retail-grocery business,--a business
+which offers opportunities to a person of wit and of an inventive turn
+of mind. The butter that he sold was salted invariably by one rule--a
+rule which he discovered and applied in the cellar of the store himself;
+and the sugar which he sold, if it was sanded, was always sanded by a
+method which improved rather than detracted from its appearance."
+
+Here our guest paused a moment, as if enjoying the recollections of the
+virtues of his ancestors. His face was as sober as ever, but his look
+was one of contentment; and I could but note the suggestion of
+merriment--the merriment of a happy memory--in his eye. How happy it is
+for an offspring to be able to recall the character of his forefathers
+with such liveliness of mind!
+
+"The motive which impelled me towards Texas," he resumed, "was one which
+was natural for me to feel, thus ancestrally connected. I had heired my
+father's business,--the deacon, who had died full of honors, ripe in
+years, and in perfect peace. But the business did not prosper in my
+hands; perhaps, I had not heired, with the business, the deacon's
+ability,--that accuracy of eye, that gravity of appearance, that
+deftness of touch, so to speak, which underlay his success. Be that as
+it may, the business did not pay, and without hesitation I sold it; and,
+with a comfortable sum for investment, I journeyed to Texas.
+
+"It is proper for me to remark that the welcome I received was most
+cordial. I chose a populous centre for a temporary residence, and
+proceeded to look around me. I found the Texans to be a warm-hearted
+people, much given to hospitality, and willing, with a charming
+disinterestedness, to admit all new-comers, with capital, to the
+enormous profits of their various enterprises.
+
+"For the first time in my life, I found myself among a people who were
+successful in everything they undertook. Their profits were simply
+enormous. No speculation could possibly fail. However I invested my
+money, I was assured that I would speedily become a millionnaire. Cotton
+was a certain crop. Corn was never known to fail. The Texan tobacco was
+rapidly driving the Cuban out of the market. The aboriginal grapes of
+the State, of which there were millions of acres waiting for the
+presses, yielded, as Europe confessed, a wine superior to Champagne. If
+I preferred herding, all I had to do was to purchase a few sheep and
+simply sit down. There was no section of the globe where sheep were so
+prolific, fleeces so thick, or the demands of market so clamorous. And,
+as for horses, I was assured that no one in Texas who knew the facts of
+the case would spend any time in raising them. The prairies were full of
+them, hundreds of thousands of them, all blooded stock, 'true
+descendants, sir, from the Moorish Barb, distributed through the whole
+country at the Spanish invasion.' I need do nothing but purchase fifty
+thousand acres, fence the territory in, and the enclosed herds would
+continue to propagate indefinitely. Such were the delightful pictures
+which my entertainers presented to me. Captivated by the charming
+manners of my hosts, my sanguine temperament kindled into heat at the
+touch of their enthusiasm. Where every venture was sure of successful
+issue, there was no need for deliberation or selection. I invested
+indiscriminately in all, and waited buoyantly for the results."
+
+Here the stranger paused, compelled, perhaps, by a slight interruption.
+Dick had retired, closely followed by the major. Our guest certainly was
+not devoid of humor, and I was convinced, as I watched the play of his
+features, that he apprehended and appreciated the reason for their
+retirement. He lifted a plate from the table, inspected it closely,
+turned it over, gazed contemplatively at its reversed side, and,
+poising it deftly upon the point of three fingers, quietly remarked:--
+
+"The gentlemen, I judge, have been in Texas?"
+
+"They have," I replied: "we three were there together."
+
+"Ah!"
+
+It was all he said. I might add, it was all that could be said.
+
+At this point, Dick and the major rejoined us. Their eyes showed traces
+of recent tears. They were still wiping their faces with their
+handkerchiefs. With that refinement which is characteristic of true
+gentlemen, and which seeks concealment of any extraordinary emotion,
+they had considerately retired to indulge their laughter.
+
+"I am delighted," continued our guest, after Dick and the major had
+resumed their seats, "I am delighted to find myself in company with men
+of experience. I feel that you will not question the veracity of my
+story, or fail to appreciate the outcome of my enterprises. At the end
+of two years, my property was distributed promiscuously throughout the
+State, and I was reduced to the necessity of making one final venture to
+recoup myself for the losses which, to the astonishment of the entire
+Texan community, I assured them I had met. I was the only man, as they
+asserted, 'that had ever failed to make a magnificent success in Texas.'
+
+"You can readily conceive, gentlemen, that I was determined to make no
+mistake in my final venture. There were other reasons, beside the one of
+caution, which persuaded me to begin with a moderate investment; so I
+bought one cow. It was impossible for me to make a mistake from such a
+beginning. Every person in Texas that had rapidly risen to financial
+eminence had started with one cow. Many a time had a Texan ranchman
+swept his hand with a royal gesture over a landscape of flowers and
+Mesquite brush, dotted with thousands of cattle, and exclaimed,
+'Stranger, I started this yer ranch with one cow.' And then he would
+take out a piece of chalk and figure out to me on his saddle how that
+one cow had multiplied herself into seven thousand five hundred and
+twenty-three other cows, which had proceeded to promptly multiply
+themselves, 'regular as the seasons come round, sir,' in the same
+reckless manner, until it was evident that the number of her progeny was
+actually curtailed by the size of the saddle and the lack of chalk. Now,
+I was eager to possess a cow with such a multiplication-table
+attachment, and, being unable to wait even ten years before I could
+tingle with the sensation of being a millionnaire ranchman. I decided to
+shorten the probationary stage by half, and so I purchased two cows."
+
+At this point, Dick rolled over upon the grass, and the major was
+doubled up as with sudden pain. As for myself, I confess I could not
+restrain my emotions. I had been through the same experience as had
+fallen to my guest, and I appreciated the sanguine characteristics of
+his temperament, which prompted him to the investment, and the humor of
+the situation. I laughed till my eyes flowed with tears, and the
+stillness of the foot-hills resounded with the unrestrained merriment of
+the entire camp.
+
+The humor of our guest was truly American, the humor of suggestive
+restraint and exaggeration both. He narrated his experiences, which had
+resulted in the loss of his fortune and the collapse of his hopes, with
+a face like a deacon's, and with a quaint and most charming sense of the
+ludicrousness of the position--a position of which he himself was the
+cause and central object. He fairly represented that type of men who
+combine in their composition that which is most practical and
+imaginative alike; whose energy can subdue a continent, and whose
+boastfulness would awaken contempt if it were not palliated by the
+magnitude of their achievements. A humor that is often barbed, but which
+is most willingly directed against one's self; but, whether directed
+against the humorist or his neighbor, carries no poison upon its point
+and leaves no wound to rankle.
+
+"My financial condition," said our guest, resuming, "my financial
+condition at the time I made this final investment contributed to the
+hopefulness of my mood, and made me feel the excitement of a reckless
+speculation, for, though my two cows only cost me seventeen dollars and
+fifty cents each, nevertheless, when the purchase was concluded, and the
+goods delivered, and I had made a careful inventory of my remaining
+assets,--a business proceeding which the average Texan found it
+necessary to go through about once in two weeks, in order that he might
+know what his financial standing was, or whether he had any standing at
+all,--when, I say, the purchase was consummated, and an inventory of my
+remaining assets made, I discovered that the two cows had swallowed up
+nearly my entire estate, and that a few dollars of farther expenditure
+would plunge me into bottomless insolvency. I must confess that this
+disclosure of my financial condition added zest to the undertaking, and
+filled me with that fine excitement which accompanies a desperate
+speculation. I have always felt that another cow would have made a
+financier of me, and that I could have taken my place among my brethren
+in Wall Street without a tremor of the muscles or the least sense of
+inferiority.
+
+"The cows were both black in color; so black that they would make a spot
+in the darkness of the blackest night that ever gloomed under the
+cypresses of the Guadaloupe. 'If those cows,' I said to myself as I
+looked them over, 'if those cows ever do bring forth calves at the rate
+that the Texan of whom I purchased them figured out on his saddle,
+they'll put the whole State under an eclipse.'
+
+"I cannot say,--speaking with that restraint which I have always
+cultivated,--I cannot say, ladies and gentlemen, that I regarded either
+cow with any great affection. There were peculiarities about them, which
+checked the outgoing of my emotional nature. They had a way of looking
+at me through the wire fence, that made me feel grateful to the inventor
+of barbed wire. I cannot describe the look exactly. It was a direct,
+earnest, steady, intense inspection of my person, that made me feel out
+of place, as it were, and caused me to remember that I had duties at
+home, which required me to get there as rapidly as possible.
+
+"One morning, seeing that the basis of my speculation was near the
+centre of the field, and busily feeding on the bountiful growths of
+nature, I crept softly through the wires of the fence that I might
+gather some pecan nuts under a big tree that stood some twenty rods
+away. I reached the tree in safety, and proceeded to pick up the nuts. I
+had filled one pocket only when I heard a noise behind me, and, looking
+up, I saw that all the profits of my stock speculation, and all my stock
+itself, were coming toward me on a jump. I was never more collected in
+my life. My mind instantly reached the conclusion that the pecan crop
+that year was so large in Texas that it would not pay to pick up another
+nut under that tree; that the whole thing should stand over, as it were,
+until another fall, and that, the sooner I retired from that field, the
+better it would be for me and the few pecans I had about me.
+
+"Acting in harmony with this conclusion,--which to my mind carried with
+it the force of a demonstration,--I started for the wire fence. I have
+no doubt but that the line of my movement was absolutely straight. I
+assure you, gentlemen, that if cows had multiplied in my business
+connection as rapidly as they did in my imagination during the next
+sixty seconds of time, I should have been in Texas to this day. The
+whole field was actually alive with cows. I reached the fence just one
+jump ahead of the oldest cow, and, seeing no reason why I should take
+time to crawl through between the wires, I lifted myself over the airy
+obstruction in a manner that must have convinced that old animated bit
+of blackness that I had absolute ownership in every nut about me. This
+little episode supplied me with material for reflection for at least a
+week, and made me realize that any northern man that enters into a
+speculation with Texas cows as a basis must keep his eyes open, and not
+allow his thoughts to be diverted by any side issues, like pecan nuts,
+while the business is developing.
+
+"The sixth morning after my speculation had arrived at the ranch, my
+profits began to roll in upon me,--or, to state it more practically, and
+in a business-like manner, the oldest cow produced a calf. This raised
+my spirits, and made me feel that my business was fairly started. I went
+to my stock-book and promptly made an entry as follows: 7523-1. This
+meant that there were only seven thousand five hundred and twenty-_two_
+yet to realize on; that is, if seven thousand five hundred and
+twenty-two calves should promptly come to time, seeing that one calf had
+already actually come to time, my herd would be complete. I think,
+gentlemen, you can readily understand my feelings as I stood
+contemplating the first fruition of my hopes from behind a tree. The cow
+was securely tied, but still from habit I took my usual position when
+inspecting my stock. My mood was very hopeful. I felt as every Texan
+felt, in those days, when by some accident he found himself in
+possession of actual property. 'There is a calf,' I said; 'I've only had
+to wait six days for that calf to materialize. Suppose another calf
+should materialize in six days.' I extracted a pencil from my pocket and
+began to figure. I multiplied that calf by six--I mean that at the end
+of six days I multiplied that calf by another calf. Every time I put
+down a new multiplier I took a look at the calf, and every time I looked
+at the calf it multiplied itself, as it were, until I felt the full
+force of the Texan's statement, save that, the more I multiplied, the
+more I felt that seven thousand five hundred and twenty-three did not
+fairly represent the certainties of the speculation. That cow would
+surely make a millionnaire of me yet--if nothing happened.
+
+"But, gentleman, something did happen, and it happened in this wise: You
+have doubtless, by this, concluded that the cow was a wild cow. The man
+who sold her to me had not put it precisely that way. He had represented
+her to me as a cow of mild manners, thoroughly domesticated, of the
+sweetest possible temper, used to the women folks, playful with
+children,--in short, a creature of such amiability that she actually
+longed to be petted. But I had already discovered that her manners were
+somewhat abrupt, and that either the man did not understand the nature
+of the cow or I did not understand the man. I was convinced that, if she
+had ever been domesticated, it had been done by some family every member
+of which had died in the process, or had suddenly moved out of the
+country only a short distance ahead of her, and that she had utterly
+forgotten her early training. Still, I had no doubt but that her
+amiability was there, although temporarily somewhat latent, and that the
+influences of a gentle spirit would revive the dormant sensibilities of
+her nature. 'The sight of a milk-pail,' I said to myself, 'will surely
+awaken the reminiscences of her early days, and of that sweet home-life
+which was hers when she yielded at morn and at night her glad
+contribution to the nourishment of a Christian family.'
+
+"There was on my ranch a servitor of foreign extraction who did my
+cooking for what he could eat,--Chin Foo by name,--and to him I called
+to bring me the large tin pail, which served the household--which, like
+most Texan households in the Tertiary period, so to speak, of their
+fortunes, was conducted on economic principles--as a washtub, a
+chip-basket, a water-bucket, and a dinner-gong. It also occurred to me,
+as I stood looking at the cow and caught the spirit of her expression,
+so to speak, that, as she had come to stay, was a permanent fixture of
+the establishment, as it were, Chin Foo might as well do the milking
+first as last. Moreover, as the Texan from whom I purchased her had
+assured me that she was a kind of household pet, the children's friend,
+and took to women folks naturally, the case was a very clear one. For,
+as Chin Foo had long hair, wore no hat, and dressed in flowing drapery,
+the cow, unless she was more of a physiologist than I gave her credit
+for, would be in doubt somewhat as to the sex of the Chinaman; and
+before she had time to ruminate upon it and reach a dead-sure
+conclusion, the milking would be over; and I would have scored the first
+point in the game, if she was a cow of ability, had any trumps, and was
+up to any tricks, as it were. So I told Chin Foo, as he approached with
+the pail in his hand, that the cow was a splendid milker, thoroughly
+domesticated, accustomed to Chinamen, and that he might have the honor
+of milking her first. I remarked, furthermore, that, as everything
+about the place was new to her, and she was a little nervous, I would
+gently attract her attention in front, while he proceeded to extract the
+delicious fluid. I charged him, in addition, to remember that it was
+always the best policy to approach a cow of her temperament in a bold
+and indifferent manner, as if he had milked her all his life, and get
+down to business at once; and that any hesitation or show of nervousness
+on his part would tend to make her more nervous.
+
+"I must say that Chin Foo acted in a highly creditable manner,
+considering he was in a strange land, and, to my certain knowledge, had
+no money laid by for funeral expenses; for, while I was stirring the
+dust and flourishing my stick in a desultory manner in front of the cow,
+to divert her mind, and keep her thoughts from wandering backward too
+directly, he fluttered boldly up to her, and laid firmly hold of two
+teats, with the familiarity of an old acquaintance."
+
+At this point of his narration the stranger paused a moment. There was a
+sort of plaintive look on his face, and he gazed at the plates with an
+expression in his eyes of sorrowful recollection.
+
+"I cannot say," he resumed, as one who speaks oppressed with a sense of
+uncertainty, "exactly what did happen, for I never saw the Chinaman
+again until he alighted. I only know that when he came down he was
+practically inside the pail, and that he sat in it a moment with a kind
+of dreamy eastern look on his face, as if he lived on the isle of Patmos
+and had seen a vision. And when he had crawled out of the pail he went
+directly into the house, saying, 'The Melican man is dam foolee to try
+to milkee that cussee!' or words to that effect.
+
+[Illustration: PRACTICALLY INSIDE THE PAIL.]
+
+"But I did not agree with him. I reflected that the Chinese are only an
+imitative race, and wholly lacking in original perception. 'They never
+invent anything,' I said; 'never study into causes, never get down to
+principles, as it were. It requires a purely occidental intellect to
+master the problem before me. This cow has a strong disinclination to be
+milked. Why? What is the motive of her conduct? If I could only answer
+that!' All at once it came to me,--came like a flash. The reason was
+plain. 'This cow is a mother. The maternal instinct in her case is
+beautifully developed. Her reasoning faculties less so. She has a calf.
+To her mind, we are trying to rob her beloved offspring of its
+nourishment. She naturally resents this injustice on our part. Beautiful
+development of maternity,' I apostrophized, as I looked at the cow in
+the light of this new revelation. 'Thy instincts are those that sweeten
+the world, and remind us of the benignity that planned the universe. I
+will bring thy calf to thee. I will show thee that I am not devoid of
+the spirit of equity; that I am ready to go shares and play fair, as it
+were. Thy calf shall take one side of thee. I will take the other, and
+thy soul will come forth to me in gratitude!'
+
+"I was delighted. I went directly to the pen, and gazed benevolently at
+the calf. The little imp was blacker, if possible, than its mother.
+There was that same peculiar look also in its eyes. 'You're all hers!' I
+joyfully cried, 'you are your mother's own child!' I seized hold of the
+neck-rope. I opened the pen-door and I went out through that door
+quicker than a vagrant cat ever got round a corner of a house where a
+Scotch terrier boards. The calf went under the cow and I struck her,
+head on. But I had come to stay. I grabbed the pail with one hand and a
+teat with the other. I tugged it, pulled it, twisted it. Not a drop
+could I start. A suction pump of twenty horse-power would have found it
+drier than Sahara, and all the while the calf's mouth, on the other
+side, was actually running over with milk! In two minutes he looked like
+a black watermelon. Then the cow, with a kind of back action,
+suddenly reached out one foot, and when I came to I found myself
+facing a mulberry tree, with one leg on each side of it.
+
+[Illustration: "AND WHEN I CAME DOWN."]
+
+"By this time I had reached a decision, and I had the courage of my
+convictions. I felt it to be my duty to milk that cow. I reminded her in
+plain, straightforward language that I was the son of a deacon, and that
+she'd find it out before she got through with me. I assured her that I
+understood the beauty of righteousness, and that I held a strong hand--a
+straight flush, as it were. I was well aware that the metaphor was
+somewhat mixed; but it expressed my sentiments and relieved my feelings,
+and so I fired it at her point-blank. She snorted and pawed and
+bellowed, and swore at me in cow-language, but I didn't care for that.
+So I shook the old, battered milk-pail in her face, and told her I was
+born in Connecticut, and did business on spot-cash principle; and that
+she would know more of the commandments than any cow of her color in
+Texas, before we said our long farewell.
+
+"By this time the matter had attracted a good deal of attention, for I
+had carried on my conversation with the cow in the voice of a tragedian
+when the chief villain of the play has stolen his girl, and my next
+neighbor, an old sea-captain from Mattagorda Bay, and his hired men had
+come over to assist me. They were of the nature of a reënforcement,
+which consisted of the captain, a Mexican, a Michigan man that
+stuttered, and two negroes--Napoleon Bonaparte de Neville Smith, and
+George Washington Marlborough Johnsing, by name. Hence we were six in
+all, and I decided to take the offensive at once. The captain was
+advanced in years and rheumatic, but a clearheaded man, used to command,
+and had 'boarded,' as he expressed it, 'several of the----crafts in his
+own waters.' So I put him in charge of the marines, namely, ourselves,
+and told him to fight the ship for all she was worth. He caught on to
+the thing at once, and swore he would 'sweep the old black hulk fore
+and aft, and send every mother's son to the bottom, or make her strike
+her colors.' The vigor of the gallant old gentleman's language, and the
+noble manner in which he shook his cane at the old pirate, put us all in
+good spirits, and I verily believe that, if he had at that fortunate
+moment given the word 'board!' we would, niggers and all, have gone over
+the bulwarks of that old cow with a rush.
+
+"The captain's plan of action was proof of his courage, and in harmony
+with my own ideas of the matter. He said that our force was ample, every
+gun shotted, and the ports open: that we had the windward gauge of her,
+and that the proper course was to send a boat in to cut her cable, and,
+when she drifted down with the current, we would ware ship, lay up
+alongside, grapple, pass lashings aboard, and send the whole crew on to
+her deck with a rush. Assaulted in such a man-of-war style, he was
+confident she would become confused, be intimidated, and strike her
+colors without firing a gun. The brave and sonorous language with which
+our commander set forth his plan of assault captured our imaginations,
+and we all longed for the moment when the word of command should permit
+us to swarm up the sides and over the rail of the old bovine.
+
+"Not only was the general plan thus agreed upon, but each man had his
+post of duty assigned to him. When the 'cable was cut,' that is, when
+the cow should find herself at liberty and bolt, as she would be sure to
+do, the Mexican was to lasso her and hang on; Napoleon Bonaparte de
+Neville and George Washington Marlborough were to lay hold of her horns
+to 'port and starboard,' as the captain insisted, while the Michigan
+man--who was over six feet tall, and leggy--was to fasten with a good
+grip on to her tail, that he might serve not only as a 'drag,' as our
+commander phrased it, but as a pilot as well, 'if she should get to
+yawing or be suddenly taken aback, and be unable to come up into the
+wind promptly,' while I was held in reserve to guard against
+emergencies. I did not quite like the position assigned to me, and so
+intimated to the captain, but he said no one could tell how it might go
+when we once got out of the harbor, and, if any of the braces should
+part, or the sea get high, that he would have to send an additional man
+to the wheel, 'for,' he added, in a whisper, 'God knows, that
+long-legged Michigan land-lubber could never keep her to a straight
+course if she should once get running with the wind over her quarter,
+and everything drawing, through that cornfield.' I saw the force of his
+reasoning, and felt easier.
+
+"So, without farther delay, we went into action. The old captain stood,
+knife in hand, ready to cut the lariat which held the cow to the tree,
+but, before he did so, he hailed, '_All ready to cut cables!_'
+
+"'Fo' de lawd, cap'in!' yelled Napoleon de Neville, 'what is dis yere
+nigger gwine to do if de udder nigger lets go?'
+
+"'Go way dar, nigger!' retorted George Washington Marlborough; 'what you
+takes dis nigger for if you tinks I's gwine to let go dis ole black
+cow?'
+
+"'I'll give a silver dollar to the nigger that holds on the longest,' I
+yelled.
+
+"'Well answered, mate,' sang out the old captain. '_All ready to cut
+cables. Cut she is!_'
+
+"The cow gave a bellow like the roar of a lion, and made a rush with
+lowered horns at the captain. Now, this was not the course laid down on
+his chart for her to take; and he and the rest of us were struck all
+aback, as he afterwards expressed it; but he met the emergency with
+spirit. He broke his big, Spanish-oak stick on the nose of the brute,
+and then the old mariner rolled in the dust.
+
+"'Lay aboard of her, men!' shouted the old hero, in a voice like a
+fog-horn, flourishing the fragments of his stick. 'Lay aboard of the old
+cuss, I say! Cast your grapplings, Greaser! Seize her helm, some of
+ye, and throw it hard over to port!'
+
+[Illustration: "LAY ABOARD OF THE OLD CUSS!"]
+
+"These orders were obeyed with alacrity. Not a man flinched. The loop of
+the lasso settled over the polished horns to the roots, and Don Juan San
+Diego set it tight with a twang. Napoleon Bonaparte and George
+Washington rushed headlong upon her and hung to horns and ears; while
+the man from Michigan fastened a grip on her lifted tail, as she tore
+past him, which straightened him out like a lathe. As to myself, I could
+only stand and gaze with solicitude upon the terrific contest, on the
+issue of which depended not only the chances of my speculation, but even
+the preservation of my self-esteem.
+
+"The combat deepened and enlarged itself, as it were. A bull-dog, who
+was wandering along the road in search of adventure, and two foxhounds
+joined in the fight. The calf, the only one of the seven thousand five
+hundred and twenty-three I was ever destined to behold, broke from its
+pen and ran bellowing to its mother. The dogs bayed, the niggers yelled,
+the Mexican swore in his delightful tongue; and the stuttering
+Michigander remained silent, simply from his inability to pronounce the
+profanity of his feelings.
+
+"Suddenly the cow, which had been slowly working her way, with her
+several attachments clinging to her, toward the road which ran along the
+front of the field, turned and started pell-mell toward the river, which
+flowed wide and deep, through the rushes, at the rear of it. She left
+the path and took to the corn, and through the mass of growing stalks
+she swept like a whirlwind. Onward she came. I anticipated the awful
+catastrophe, and stood riveted to the spot. The old captain still sat in
+the gravel, where the cow had bowled him, his hand grasping the
+shattered cane, and his game leg extended. He too foresaw the
+inevitable. Through the corn came the cow, like a black Saturn attended
+by her satellites. But her career was too terrific for these to hold to
+their connection. The laws of the universe forbade it. Napoleon
+Bonaparte de Neville lost his hold as she crashed into the sorghum
+patch. George Washington Marlborough tripped over an irrigation ditch,
+and soared away at a tangent, like a sputtering remnant of a burnt-out
+world. Don Juan San Diego went the wrong side of a mulberry tree, and
+the lasso parted with a snap. He never stopped until his momentum
+carried him through the slats of the neighboring cow-pen. Only the
+long-legged Michigander kept his hold, and he looked like a pair of
+extended scissors. I stood aghast at the impending ruin of my hopes,
+with my lower jaw dropped. The captain alone retained his presence of
+mind. As the black unit of my last Texan speculation shot by him, with
+Michigan, elongated like a peninsula, fastened to her tail, he rolled up
+to his knees and roared:--
+
+"'_Starboard your helm, boy!_ _Luff her up! Luff her up, for the love
+of God, or the colonel is busted!_'
+
+"It is doubtful if the Michigan man ever heard the stentorian call of
+the captain, for sound travels only thirteen hundred feet to the second,
+and the cow was certainly going considerably faster than that; and,
+besides, he was himself engaged, with a terrific earnestness, in a vain
+effort to extricate a word out of his throat, which stuck like a wad in
+a smutty gun--a word of undoubted Saxon origin and of expressive force,
+and which has saved more blood-vessels from bursting than the lancet of
+the phlebotomist, for as he streamed past there was left floating upon
+the air a long string of d's, thus: d----d----d--d--d--d-d-d...!
+
+"No one who did not hear them could ever conceive of the awful
+sputtering, hissing sound that they caused in the atmosphere as they
+came out of the mouth of the mad and stuttering Michigander; and as he
+and the cow bored a hole through the reeds on the bank of the river,
+and, hitting a cypress stump, ricochetted into the water, that fiery
+string of d's, still hot and sputtering, reached half across the field.
+
+[Illustration: "LUFF HER UP! LUFF HER UP!"]
+
+"The splash of the two as they struck the water brought the old captain
+to his feet, and, in spite of his rheumatic leg, he rushed toward the
+river, crying:--
+
+"'_Man overboard! Man overboard! Gone clean over the forechains!
+Life-floats to port and starboard!_'
+
+"With such a frightful catastrophe, gentlemen, the remembrance of which
+actually makes me nervous, my last speculation in Texas ended. Going
+over the whole matter with the captain that evening,--a process which
+took us well into the night,--it was our united opinion that the
+speculation was a failure. This conviction was mutual and profound. The
+cow was not only gone, but she had shown such disinclination to be
+domesticated, and such a misapprehension of the true purpose of life,
+that the prospect was truly disheartening.
+
+"'Why, damn it, colonel,' said the captain, 'we've no evidence that the
+old cow wanted to be milked!'
+
+"To this discouraging conclusion of the captain's I was compelled to
+give a sorrowful assent. I recognized that my speculation was in
+arrears, as it were, and that it would never figure up a profit.
+
+"Therefore, next day I divided my few personal effects between the
+captain and the noble men who had risked their lives for an idea; who
+had seen the tragedy played out and the curtain rung down to my last
+appearance, as it were. And, with the few dollars which alone remained
+of the fortune which I took with me to Texas, I mounted my horse and
+started northward, to join that noble army of martyrs, that brotherhood
+of sufferers, that fraternity of the busted, whose members are legion,
+and who are known as '_Ex-Texans_.'"
+
+The hilarity of the camp that evening under the foot-hills will never be
+forgotten by those of us who composed the happy number, and who
+listened with streaming eyes and aching sides to the narrative of our
+unfortunate guest. He told his story with a directness and simplicity of
+narrative, with a gravity of countenance and plaintiveness of voice,
+which heightened the humor of the substance. Never did the stars, which
+have seen so much of human happiness, which have listened to so much of
+the rollicking humor of those who were fashioned for laughter, looked
+down upon a jollier camp. Long after our guest had ended his narrative
+and was apparently sleeping in happy forgetfulness of his Texas
+speculation, succeeding pauses of silence would come roars of laughter.
+The remembrance of the humorous tale banished sleep, and, even after
+slumber had fallen on us all, fun still held possession of our dreams.
+For Dick, starting from sleep in a nightmare of hilarity, roared out:
+"_Luff her up, luff her up, or the colonel is busted!_"
+
+Ay, ay, thank God for laughter. Thank him heartily and ever, dear
+friend, blow the winds, run the tides as they may. The sorrows of life
+may be many, and its griefs may be keen, and we who are frosted with
+years and you who are blooming have felt and will feel the sting of
+false friends and the burden of losses; but, lose what we may, or be
+pained as we have been and shall be, we are happy in this,--we who know
+how to laugh,--that we find wings for each burden, solace for pains, and
+return for all losses, in our sweet sense of humor, thank Heaven! So,
+whether rich men or poor, healthy or sick, brown-headed or gray, we will
+go on like children, with eyes for all beauty and hearts for all fun.
+Let lilies teach us, and of the birds of the air let us learn. The day
+that is not shall not make us anxious, for of each day is the evil
+enough, and the morrow shall take care of itself.
+
+[Illustration: THE WICKEDEST COW.]*
+
+
+
+
+HOW DEACON TUBMAN
+
+and PARSON WHITNEY
+
+CELEBRATED NEW YEARS.
+
+
+
+
+HOW DEACON TUBMAN AND PARSON WHITNEY CELEBRATED NEW YEAR'S.
+
+
+"Mirandy, I'm going up to see the parson," exclaimed the deacon, when
+the morning devotions were over, "and see if I can thaw him out a
+little. I've heard that there used to be a lot in him in his younger
+days, but he's sort of frozen all up latterly, and I can see that the
+young folks are afraid of him and the church too, but that won't do--no,
+it won't do," repeated the good man emphatically, "for the minister
+ought to be loved by young and old, rich and poor, and everybody; and a
+church without young folks in it is, why, it is like a family with no
+children in it. Yes, I'll go up and wish him a Happy New Year anyway.
+Perhaps I can get him out for a ride to make some calls on the people,
+and see the young folks at their fun. It'll do him good, and them good,
+and me good, and everybody good." Saying which, the deacon got inside
+his warm fur coat, and started toward the barn to harness Jack into the
+worn, old-fashioned sleigh, which sleigh was built high in the back, and
+had a curved dasher of monstrous proportions, ornamented with a prancing
+horse in an impossible attitude, done in bright vermilion on a blue
+background!
+
+"Happy New Year to you, Parson Whitney! Happy New Year to you," cried
+the deacon, as he stood in the doorway of the parsonage and shook the
+parson by the hand enthusiastically, "and may you live to enjoy a
+hundred."
+
+"Come in, come in," cried Parson Whitney, in response. "I'm glad you've
+come; I'm glad you've come. I've been wanting to see you all the
+morning," and in the cordiality of his greeting he literally pulled the
+little man through the doorway into the hall, and hurried him up the
+stairway to his study in the chamber overhead.
+
+"Thinking of me! Well, now, I never!" exclaimed the deacon, as, assisted
+by the parson, he twisted and wriggled himself out of his coat, that he
+filled, a little too snugly for an easy exit. "Thinking of me, and among
+all these books too--Bibles, catechisms, tracts, theologies, sermons.
+Well, well, that is funny. What made you think of me?"
+
+"Deacon Tubman," responded the parson, as he seated himself in his
+armchair, "I want to talk with you about the church."
+
+"The church!" ejaculated the deacon in response. "Nothing going wrong, I
+hope?"
+
+"Yes, things are going wrong, deacon," responded the parson. "The
+congregation is growing smaller and smaller, and yet I preach good,
+strong, biblical, soul-satisfying sermons, I trust."
+
+"Good ones! good ones!" answered the deacon promptly, "never
+better--never better in the world."
+
+"And yet the people are deserting the sanctuary," rejoined the parson
+solemnly, "and the young people won't come to the sociables, and the
+little children seem actually afraid of me. What shall I do, deacon?"
+and the good man put the question with pathetic emphasis.
+
+"You've hit the nail on the head, square as a hatchet, parson,"
+responded the deacon. "The congregation is thinning. The young people
+don't come to the meetings, and the little children are afraid of you."
+
+"What's the matter, deacon?" cried the parson in return. "What is it?"
+he repeated earnestly. "Speak it right out; don't try to spare my
+feelings. I will listen to--I will do anything to win back my people's
+love," and the strong, old-fashioned Calvinistic preacher said it in a
+voice that actually trembled.
+
+"You can do it--you can do it in a week!" exclaimed the deacon
+encouragingly. "Don't worry about it, parson; it'll be all right, it'll
+be all right. Your books are the trouble."
+
+"Books?" ejaculated the parson. "What have they to do with it?"
+
+"Everything," replied the deacon stoutly. "You pore over them day in and
+day out; they keep you in this room here when you should be out among
+the people,--not making pastoral visits,--I don't mean that,--but going
+around among them, chatting and joking and having a good time. They
+would like it, and you would like it, and as for the young folks--how
+old are you, parson?"
+
+"Sixty next month," answered the parson; "sixty next month," he repeated
+solemnly.
+
+"Thirty! thirty! that's all you are, parson, or all you ought to be,"
+cried the deacon. "Thirty, twenty, sixteen!--let the figures slide down
+and up, according to circumstances, but never let them go higher than
+thirty when you are dealing with young folks. I'm sixty myself, counting
+years; but I'm only sixteen, sixteen this morning, that's all, parson,"
+and he rubbed his little round plump hands together, looked at the
+parson, and winked.
+
+"Bless my soul, Deacon Tubman, I don't know but that you are right!"
+answered the parson. "Sixty? I don't know as I am sixty," and he began
+to rub his own hands, and came within an ace of executing a wink at the
+deacon, himself.
+
+"Not a day over twenty, if I am any judge of age," responded the deacon
+deliberately, as he looked the white-headed old minister over with a
+most comic imitation of seriousness. "Not a day over twenty, on my
+honor," and the deacon leaned forward toward the parson, and gave him a
+punch with his thumb, as one boy might deliver a punch at another, and
+then he lay back in his chair and laughed so heartily that the parson
+caught the infectious mirth and roared away as heartily as himself.
+
+Yes, it was impossible to sit hobnobbing with the little, jolly deacon
+on that bright New Year's morning and not be affected by the happiness
+of his mood, for he was actually bubbling over with fun, and as full of
+frolic as if the finger on the dial had, in truth, gone back forty-odd
+years, and he was "only sixteen. Only sixteen, parson, on my honor."
+
+"But what can I do?" queried the good man, sobering down. "I make my
+pastoral visits."
+
+"Pastoral visits!" responded Deacon Tubman. "Oh, yes, and they are all
+well enough for the old folks, but they ar'n't the kind of biscuit the
+young folks like--too heavy in the centre, and over-hard in the crust
+for young teeth, eh, parson?"
+
+"But what shall I do? what shall I do?" reiterated the parson, somewhat
+despondently.
+
+"Oh! put on your hat, and gloves, and warmest coat, and come along with
+me. We will see what the young folks are doing, and will make a day of
+it. Come! come! let the old books, and catechisms, and sermons, and
+tracts have a respite for once, and we'll spend the day out-of-doors,
+with the boys and girls and the people."
+
+"I'll do it!" exclaimed the parson. "Deacon Tubman, you are right. I do
+keep to my study too closely. I don't see enough of the world and what's
+going on in it. I was reading the Testament this morning, and I was
+impressed with the Master's manner of living and teaching. It is not
+certain that he ever preached more than twice in a church during all his
+ministry on the earth. And the children! how much he loved the children,
+and how the little ones loved him! And why shouldn't they love me, too?
+Why shouldn't they? I'll make them do it! yes, I'll make them do it! The
+lambs of my flock shall love me." And with these brave words Parson
+Whitney bundled himself up in his warmest garments, and followed the
+deacon downstairs.
+
+"Tell the folks that you won't be back till night," called the deacon
+from the sleigh; "for this is New Year, and we're going to make a day of
+it," and he laughed away as heartily as might be--so heartily that the
+parson joined in the laughter himself as he came shuffling down the icy
+path toward him. "Bless me! how much younger I feel already!" said the
+good man as he stood up in the sleigh, and with a long, strong breath
+breathed the cool, pure air into his lungs. "Bless me! how much younger
+I feel already!" he repeated, as he settled down into the roomy seat of
+the old sleigh. "Only sixteen to-day,--eh, deacon?" and he nudged him
+with his elbow.
+
+"That's all, that's all, parson," answered the deacon gayly, as he
+nudged him vigorously back; "that's all we are, either of us," and,
+laughing as merrily as two boys, the two glided away in the sleigh.
+
+Well, perhaps they didn't have fun that day, these two old boys that had
+started out with the feeling that they were "only sixteen," and bound to
+make "a day of it!" And they did make a day of it, in fact, and such a
+day as neither had had for forty years; for, first, they went to
+Bartlett's Hill, where the boys and girls were coasting, and coasted
+with them for a full hour,--and then it was discovered by the younger
+portion of his flock that the parson was not an old, stiff, solemn,
+surly poke, as they had thought, but a pleasant, good-natured, kindly
+soul, who could take and give a joke, and steer a sled as well as the
+smartest boy in the crowd; and when it came to snow-balling, he could
+send a ball further than Bill Sykes himself, who could out-throw any boy
+in town, and roll up a bigger block to the new snow fort they were
+building than any three boys among them. And how the parson enjoyed
+being a boy again! How exhilarating the slide down the steep hill; how
+invigorating the pure, cool air; how pleasant the noise of the chatting
+and joking going on around him; how bright and sweet the boys and girls
+looked, with their rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes; and how the old
+parson's heart thrilled as they crowded around him when he would go, and
+urged him to stay,--and little Alice Dorchester begged him, with her
+little arms around his neck, to "jes' stay and gib me one more slide,
+please!"
+
+"You never made such a pastoral call as that, parson," said the deacon,
+as they drove away amid the cheers of the boys and the "good-bys" of the
+girls, while the former fired off a volley of snow-balls in his honor,
+and the latter waved their muffs and handkerchiefs after them.
+
+"God bless them! God bless them!" said the parson. "They have lifted a
+load from my heart, and taught me the sweetness of life, of youth, and
+the wisdom of Him who took the little ones in His arms, and blessed
+them. Ah, deacon," he added, "I've been a great fool, but I'll be so,
+thank God! no more."
+
+Now, old Jack was a horse of a great deal of character, and had a great
+history; but of this none in that section, save the little deacon, knew
+a word. Dick Tubman, the deacon's youngest, wildest, and, we might add,
+favorite son, had purchased him of an impecunious jockey, at the close
+of a disastrous campaign, that cleaned him completely out, and left him
+in a strange city a thousand miles from home, with nothing but the
+horse, harness, and sulky, and a list of unpaid bills that must be met
+before he could leave the scene of his disastrous fortunes. Under such
+circumstances it was that Dick Tubman ran across the horse, and partly
+out of pity for its owner, and partly out of admiration of the horse,
+whose failure to win at the races was due more to his lack of condition
+and the bad management of his jockey than lack of speed, bought him
+off-hand, and, having no use for him himself, shipped him as a present
+to the deacon, with whom he had now been four years, with no harder work
+than ploughing out the good old man's corn in the summer, and jogging
+along the country roads on the deacon's errands. Having said thus much
+of the horse, perhaps we should more particularly describe him.
+
+He was, in sooth, an animal of most unique and extraordinary appearance;
+for, in the first place, he was quite seventeen hands in height, and
+long in proportion. He was also the reverse of shapely in the fashion of
+his build: for his head was long and bony, and his hip bones sharp and
+protuberant; his tail was what is known among horsemen as a rat-tail,
+being but scantily covered with hair, and his neck was even more
+scantily supplied with a mane, while in color he could easily have taken
+any premium put up for homeliness, being an ashen roan, mottled with
+flecks and patches of divers hues; but his legs were flat and corded
+like a racer's, his neck long and thin as a thoroughbred's, his nostrils
+large, his ears sharply pointed and lively, while the white rings around
+his eyes hinted at a cross, somewhere in his pedigree, with Arabian
+blood. A huge, bony, homely-looking horse he was, who drew the deacon
+and Miranda into the village on market days and Sundays, with a loose,
+shambling gait, making altogether an appearance so homely and peculiar
+that the smart village chaps riding along in their jaunty turn-outs used
+to chaff the good deacon on the character of his steed, and satirically
+challenge him to a brush. The deacon always took their badinage in good
+part, although he inwardly said more than once, "If I ever get a good
+chance, when there ar'n't too many around, I'll go up to the turn of the
+road beyond the church, and let Jack out on them;" for Dick had given
+him a hint of the horse's history, and told him "he could knock the
+spots out of thirty," and wickedly urged the deacon to take the starch
+out of them airy chaps some of these days. Such was the horse, then,
+that the deacon had ahead of him, and the old-fashioned sleigh, when,
+with the parson alongside, he struck into the principal street of the
+village.
+
+Now, New Year's Day is a lively day in many country villages, and on
+this bright one especially, as the sleighing was perfect, everybody was
+out. Indeed, it had got noised abroad that certain trotters of local
+fame were to be on the street that afternoon, and, as the boys worded
+it, "there would be heaps of fun going on." And so it happened that
+everybody in town, and many who lived out of it, were on this particular
+street, and just at the hour, too, when the deacon came to the foot of
+it, so that the walk on either side was lined darkly with lookers-on,
+and the smooth snow-path between the two lines looked like a veritable
+homestretch on a race-day.
+
+Now, when the deacon had reached the corner of the main street and
+turned into it, it was at that point where the course terminated and the
+"brushes" were ended, and at the precise moment when the dozen or twenty
+horses that had just come flying down were being pulled up preparatory
+to returning at a slow gait to the customary starting-point at the head
+of the street, a half-mile away, so that the old-fashioned sleigh was
+surrounded by the light, fancy cutters of the rival racers, and old
+Jack was shambling awkwardly along in the midst of the high-spirited and
+smoking nags that had just come flying down the stretch.
+
+"Hellow, deacon," shouted one of the boys, who was driving a
+trim-looking bay, and who had crossed the line at the ending of the
+course second only to a pacer that could "speed like a streak of
+lightning," as the boys said,--"Hellow, deacon; ain't you going to shake
+out old shamble-heels, and show us fellows what speed is to-day?" And
+the merry-hearted chap, son of the principal lawyer of the place,
+laughed heartily at his challenge, while the other drivers looked at the
+great angular horse that, without any check, was walking carelessly
+along, with his head held down, ahead of the old sleigh and its churchly
+occupants.
+
+"I don't know but what I will," answered the deacon, good-naturedly;
+"don't know but what I will, if the parson don't object, and you won't
+start off too quick to begin with; for this is New Year's, and a
+little extra fun won't hurt any of us, I reckon."
+
+[Illustration: THE DEACON AND PARSON.]
+
+"Do it, do it; we'll hold up for you," answered a dozen merry voices.
+"Do it, deacon: it'll do old shamble-heels good to go a ten-mile-an-hour
+gait for once in his life, and the parson needn't fear of being
+scandalized by any speed you'll get out of him, either;" and the merry
+chaps haw-hawed as men and boys will, when every one is jolly and fun
+flows fast.
+
+And so, with any amount of good-natured chaffing from the drivers of the
+"fast 'uns," and from many that lined the road too,--for the day gave
+greater liberty than usual to bantering speech,--the speedy ones paced
+slowly up to the head of the street, with old Jack shambling demurely in
+the midst of them.
+
+But the horse was a knowing old fellow, and had "scored" at too many
+races not to know that the "return" was to be leisurely taken, and,
+indeed, he was a horse of independence, and of too even, perhaps of too
+sluggish, a temperament, to waste himself in needless action; but he
+had the right stuff in him, and hadn't forgotten his early training
+either, for when he came to the "turn," his head and tail came up, his
+eye brightened, and, with a playful movement of his huge body, and
+without the least hint from the deacon, he swung himself and the
+cumbrous old sleigh into line, and began to straighten himself for the
+coming brush.
+
+Now, Jack was, as we have said, a horse of huge proportions, and needed
+"steadying" at the start, but the good deacon had no experience with the
+"ribbons," and was therefore utterly unskilled in the matter of driving;
+and so it came about that old Jack was so confused at the start that he
+made a most awkward and wretched appearance in his effort to get off,
+being all "mixed up," as the saying is,--so much so that the crowd
+roared at his ungainly efforts, and his flying rivals were twenty rods
+away before he even got started. But at last he got his huge body in a
+straight line, and, leaving his miserable shuffle, squared away to his
+work, and, with head and tail up, went off at so slashing a gait that it
+fairly took the deacon's breath away, and caused the crowd that had been
+hooting him to roar their applause, while the parson grabbed the edge of
+the old sleigh with one hand and the rim of his tall black hat with the
+other.
+
+What a pity, Mr. Longface, that God made horses as they are, and gave
+them such grandeur of appearance when in action, and put such an
+eagle-like spirit between their ribs, so that, quitting the plodding
+motions of the ox, they can fly like that noble bird, and come sweeping
+down the course as on wings of the wind!
+
+It was not my fault, nor the deacon's, nor the parson's either, please
+remember, then, that awkward, shuffling, homely-looking old Jack was
+thus suddenly transformed, by the royalty of blood, of pride, and of
+speed given him by his Creator, from what he ordinarily was, into a
+magnificent spectacle of energetic velocity.
+
+With muzzle lifted well up, tail erect, the few hairs in it streaming
+straight behind, one ear pricked forward and the other turned sharply
+back, the great horse swept grandly along at a pace that was rapidly
+bringing him even with the rear line of the flying group. And yet so
+little was the pace to him that he fairly gambolled in playfulness as he
+went slashing along, until the deacon verily began to fear that the
+honest old chap would break through all the bounds of propriety and send
+his heels antically through his treasured dashboard. Indeed, the
+spectacle that the huge horse presented was so magnificent, his action
+so free, spirited, and playful, as he came sweeping onward, that cheers
+and exclamations, such as, "Good heavens! see the deacon's old horse!"
+"Look at him! look at him!" "What a stride!" etc., ran ahead of him, and
+old Bill Sykes, a trainer in his day, but now a hanger-on at the
+village tavern, or that section of it known as the bar, wiped his
+watery eyes with his tremulous fist, as he saw Jack come swinging down,
+and, as he swept past with his open gait, powerful stroke, and stiffles
+playing well out, brought his hand with a mighty slap against his thigh,
+and said, "I'll be blowed if he isn't a regular old timer!"
+
+It was fortunate for the deacon and the parson that the noise and
+cheering of the crowd drew the attention of the drivers ahead, or there
+would surely have been more than one collision, for the old sleigh was
+of such size and strength, the good deacon so unskilled at the reins,
+and Jack, who was adding to his momentum with every stride, was going at
+so determined a pace, that, had he struck the rear line, with no gap for
+him to go through, something serious would surely have happened. But, as
+it was, the drivers saw the huge horse, with the cumbrous old sleigh
+behind him, bearing down on them at such a gait as made their own speed,
+sharp as it was, seem slow, and "pulled out" in time to save
+themselves; and so without any mishap the big horse and heavy sleigh
+swept through the rear row of racers like an autumn gust through a
+cluster of leaves.
+
+By this time the deacon had become somewhat alarmed, for Jack was going
+nigh to a thirty clip,--a frightful pace for an inexperienced man to
+ride,--and began to put a good strong pressure upon the bit, not
+doubting that old Jack--ordinarily the easiest horse in the world to
+manage--would take the hint and immediately slow up. But though the huge
+horse took the hint, it was exactly in the opposite manner that the
+deacon intended he should, for he interpreted the little man's steady
+pull as an intimation that his inexperienced driver was getting over his
+flurry and beginning to treat him as a big horse ought to be treated in
+a race, and that he could now, having got settled to his work, go ahead.
+And go ahead he did. The more the deacon pulled, the more the great
+horse felt himself steadied and assisted. And so, the harder the good
+man tugged at the reins, the more powerfully the machinery of the big
+animal ahead of him worked, until the deacon got alarmed, and began to
+call upon the horse to stop, crying, "Whoa, Jack! whoa, old boy, I say!
+Whoa, will you now, that's a good fellow!" and many other coaxing calls,
+while he pulled away steadily at the reins.
+
+But the horse misunderstood the deacon's calls, as he had his pressure
+on the reins, for the crowd on either side were now yelling, and
+hooting, and swinging their caps, so that the deacon's voice came
+indistinctly to his ears at the best, and he interpreted his calls for
+him to stop as only so many encouragements and signals for him to go
+ahead; and so, with the memory of a hundred races stirring his blood,
+the crowd cheering him to the echo, the steadying pull and encouraging
+cries of his driver in his ears, and his only rival, the pacer, whirling
+along only a few rods ahead of him, the monstrous animal, with a
+desperate plunge that half lifted the old sleigh from the snow, let out
+another link, and, with such a burst of speed as was never seen in the
+village before, tore along after the pacer at such a terrific pace that,
+within the distance of a dozen lengths, he lay lapped upon him, and the
+two were going it nose and nose.
+
+What is that feeling in human hearts which makes us sympathetic with man
+or animal who has unexpectedly developed courage and capacity when
+engaged in a struggle in which the odds are against him? And why do we
+enter so spiritedly into the contest, and lose ourselves in the
+excitement of the moment? Is it pride? Is it the comradeship of courage?
+Or is it the rising of the indomitable in us, that loves nothing so much
+as victory, and hates nothing so much as defeat? Be that as it may, no
+sooner was old Jack fairly lapped on the pacer, whose driver was urging
+him along with reins and voice alike, and the contest seemed
+doubtful, than the spirit of old Adam himself entered into the deacon
+and the parson both, so that, carried away by the excitement of the
+race, they fairly forgot themselves, and entered as wildly into the
+contest as two ungodly jockeys.
+
+[Illustration: THE RACE.]
+
+"Deacon Tubman!" said the parson, as he clutched the rim of his tall
+hat, against which, as the horse tore along, the snow chips were pelting
+in showers, more stoutly, "Deacon Tubman! do you think the pacer will
+beat us?"
+
+"Not if I can help it! not if I can help it!" yelled the deacon in
+reply, as, with something like a reinsman's skill, he instinctively
+lifted Jack to another spurt. "Go it, old boy!" he shouted
+encouragingly. "Go along with you, I say!" and the parson, also carried
+away by the whirl of the moment, cried, "Go along, old boy! Go along
+with you, I say!"
+
+This was the very thing, and the only thing, that huge horse, whose
+blood was now fairly aflame, wanted to rally him for the final effort;
+and, in response to the encouraging cries of the two behind him, he
+gathered himself together for another burst of speed, and put forth his
+collected strength with such tremendous energy and suddenness of
+movement that the little deacon, who had risen, and was standing erect
+in the sleigh, fell back into the arms of the parson, while the great
+horse rushed over the line a winner by a clear length, amid such cheers
+and roars of laughter as were never heard in that village before.
+
+Nor was the horse any more the object of public interest and remark--we
+may say favoring remark--than the parson, who suddenly found himself the
+centre of a crowd of his own parishioners, many of whom would scarcely
+be expected as participants of such a scene, but who, thawed out of
+their iciness by the genial temper of the day, and vastly excited over
+Jack's contest, thronged upon the good man, laughing as heartily as any
+jolly sinner in the crowd.
+
+So everybody shook hands with the parson and wished him a Happy New
+Year, and the parson shook hands with everybody and wished them all many
+happy returns; and everybody praised old Jack, and rallied the deacon on
+his driving; and then everybody went home good-natured and happy,
+laughing and talking about the wonderful race, and the change that had
+come over Parson Whitney.
+
+And as for Parson Whitney himself, the day and its fun had taken twenty
+years from his age, and nothing would answer but the deacon must go home
+and eat the New Year's pudding at the parsonage; and he did. And at the
+table they laughed and talked over the funny incidents of the day, and
+joked each other as merrily as two boys. Then Parson Whitney told some
+reminiscences of his college days, and the scrapes he got into, and a
+riot between town and gown, when he carried the "Bully's Club;" and the
+deacon responded by narrating his experiences with a certain Deacon
+Jones's watermelon patch when he was a boy, and over their tales and
+their mulled cider they laughed till they cried, and roared so lustily
+at the remembered frolics of their youthful days that the old parsonage
+rang, the books on the library shelves rattled, and several of the
+theological volumes actually gaped with horror.
+
+But at last the stories were all told, the jokes all cracked, and the
+laughter all laughed, and the little deacon wished the parson good-by,
+and jogged happily homeward; but more than once he laughed to himself,
+and said, "Bless my soul! I didn't know the parson had so much fun in
+him." And long the parson sat by the glowing grate after the deacon had
+left him, musing of other days, and the happy, pleasant things that were
+in them; and many times he smiled, and once he laughed outright at some
+remembered folly, for he said, "What a wild boy I was, and yet I meant
+no wrong; and the dear old days were very happy."
+
+Ay, ay! Parson Whitney, the dear old days were very happy, not only to
+thee, but to all of us, who, following our sun, have fared westward so
+long that the light of the morning shows dull through the dim haze of
+memory. But happier than even the old days will be the young ones, I
+ween, when, following still westward, we suddenly come to the gates of
+the new east and the morning once more; and there, in the dawn of a day
+which is cloudless and endless, we find our lost youth and its loves, to
+lose them and it no more forever, thank God!
+
+
+
+
+                   THE LEAF OF RED ROSE.
+
+
+
+
+                   THE LEAF OF RED ROSE:
+
+                 THE OLD TRAPPER'S STORY.
+
+    A story? Why, yes. If Henry, there, will translate it
+    And put it in verse and print as he promised
+    To do when it happened. Will he do it? I doubt.
+    He dislikes to dabble with rhyme and with measure.
+    Says that good honest prose is the best and the sweetest
+    If the words be well chosen, short, Saxon, and pithy.
+    And that making of verse is the business of women,
+    Of green boys at school, and of lovers when spooning.
+    But try him. It may be he will. For a lesson
+    Is in it, and that makes it worth telling.
+    The woods have their secrets and sorrows and struggles
+    As well as the cities. You can find in the woods
+    Many things, if you look, beside trees, rocks, and mountains.
+
+    Jack Whitcomb he said his name was, though I doubted.
+    For the name on his bosom, tattooed in purple,
+    Didn't point quite that way. But that doesn't matter.
+    One name in the woods is as good as another
+    If a man answers to it and it's easily spoken.
+    So we called him Jack Whitcomb and asked nothing further.
+    Brave? Why, of course he was brave. Men are not cowards.
+    Cowards don't come to the woods. They stay in the cities,
+    Where policemen are thick and the streets are all lighted.
+    In the woods men trail with their ears and eyes open,
+    And sleep when they sleep with their hands on their rifles.
+    Why? Well, panthers are plenty and cunning and quiet,
+    And a man is a fool that goes carelessly stumbling
+    Under trees where they crouch, under crags where they gather.
+    Furthermore, with the saints, now and then there are sinners
+    That live in the woods; and some half-breeds are wicked,
+    And know nothing of law unless taught by a bullet.
+    I've done what I could to teach knaves the commandments.
+    Yes. Jack Whitcomb was brave. Brave as the bravest.
+    His glance was as keen and his mouth was as silent
+    As a trailer's should be who looks and who listens
+    By day and by night, having no one to talk to.
+    His finger was quick when it handled the trigger,
+    And his eye loved the sights as lightning loves rivers.
+    I've seen him stand up when the odds were against him.
+    Stand up like a man who takes coolly the chances.
+    That proves he was brave as I understand it.
+
+    One day we were boating on far Mistassinni.
+    We were fetching the portage above the great rapids,
+    Where they whirled, roaring down, freshet full, at their whitest,
+    When we saw from a rock that stretched outward and over
+    The wild hissing water as it swept on in thunder,
+    A canoe coming down, rolling over and over,
+    With a little papoose clinging tight to the lashings;
+    And as it lanced by Jack went in like an otter.
+    How he did it God knows, but at the foot of the rapids,
+    Half a mile farther down racing onward, I found him
+    High and dry on the beach in a faint like a woman,
+    With the little papoose pulling away at his jacket.
+    And when he came to, he put child to his shoulder,
+    Nor stopped till it lay in the arms of its mother.
+
+    We were trailing, Henry and I, trailing and trapping
+    In the land to the north, where fur was the thickest,
+    And knaves were as plenty as mink or as otter.
+    We took turns at sleeping, and trailed our line double
+    To keep our own skins, if we didn't get others.
+    It was folly to stay where we were, and we knew it,
+    For the knaves they got thicker, and soon there was shooting
+    Going on pretty lively. But we held to the business
+    And scouted the line once a week like true trappers.
+    And no accident happened save some holes in our jackets,
+    And my powder-horn emptied by a vagabond's bullet.
+    So we mended our clothing and felt pretty lively.
+    But the signs pointed one way. Our enemies thickened
+    Around us each day, and we weren't quite decided
+    To stand in for a fight and settle the matter,
+    Or pull up our traps and get out of the country,
+    When it settled itself. And in this way it happened.
+
+    We were scouting the lake on the west shore one morning,
+    To find the knaves' camp and how many were in it,
+    When a short space ahead there came of a sudden
+    A crash as of thunder, and we knew that a dozen
+    Or twenty placed rifles had burst an ambushment.
+    And then in an instant there sounded another.
+    Two sharp, twin reports and the death yells that followed
+    Told us as we listened where the lead had been driven.
+    Knew who he was? Of course. The man was Jack Whitcomb.
+    Do you think men who live by trapping and shooting
+    Don't learn to distinguish the voice of their rifles?
+    Jack was trailing the lake to find our encampment,
+    For far away in the south there had come to his cabin
+    A rumor that we in the north land were holding
+    Our line and our furs with a good deal of shooting.
+    So he left his own traps and came by swift trailing
+    To give us the help of another good rifle.
+    That was just like Jack Whitcomb. If you were in trouble
+    He was there by your side. You could always count on him,
+    With finger on trigger and both barrels loaded.
+
+    So Henry and I both took to our covers
+    Right and left of the trail Jack must take in retreating.
+    We didn't wait long, for the boy knew his business,
+    And soon he came backward, loading and running,
+    Like a man who was busy but wouldn't be hurried
+    Beyond his own gait, if he stopped there forever.
+    As he passed our two covers I piped him a whistle;
+    And he stopped in his tracks, and with low, pleasant laughter,
+    Stood there in full view coolly capping the nipples.
+    I have shot on each Gulf, both Southern and Northern.
+    I have trailed the long trail between either ocean.
+    Brave men I have seen, both in good and in evil,
+    But never a braver than the man called Jack Whitcomb.
+    Well, why describe it? Call it scrimmage or battle,
+    It was done in a minute, or it may be a dozen.
+    It came like a whirlwind, and we three were in it
+    As men are in whirlwinds. It came like the thunder,
+    With a crash and a roar and a long running rumble
+    Dying down into silence. There were dead and some wounded,
+    And a few lucky knaves that fled wildly backward;
+    And Henry and I, when it passed, were left standing
+    By the body of him whose name was Jack Whitcomb,
+    Who lay as he fell, when headlong he tumbled,
+    His rifle still clinched and both barrels smoking.
+    I have seen in my life many wounds made by bullets,
+    And a good many gashes by spear-points and arrows.
+    I have learned in my trailing a good many simples
+    Which have power to keep men from crossing the river
+    Before the Lord calls with voice that is certain.
+    And the wound that we found on Jack Whitcomb's body,
+    Though ugly and deep, was not beyond curing.
+
+    We cleansed and we stanched it and fought a brave battle
+    With death, for his life, and we won. For Jack mended.
+    We made a canoe and we bore him far southward.
+    A hundred good miles down the river we boated,
+    Till we came to his house of huge logs, strongly builded,
+    Beneath the big pines on the bank of a rapid,
+    Which under it flowed its soft rush of brown water.
+    'Twas a place to bring peace to a heart that was troubled,
+    If peace might be found this side of the silence
+    Which brings peace to all that know sorrow in living.
+
+    Yes, we boated him down to his home by the rapids.
+    His home? No, rather his house let us call it.
+    For how can a house be a home with naught in it?
+    In house that is home must be love, warm and human,
+    A voice that is sweet, a heart that is gentle,
+    A soul that is true, and beside these a cradle
+    That prattles and coos; and the quick-falling patter
+    Of little white feet that run hither and thither.
+    To his house, and not to his home, then, we brought him,
+    For certainly nothing and no one was in it,
+    Save himself and a dog, a bed and a table,
+    Some chairs, a few books, and a--Picture.
+    And this was the story that he told us in dying.
+    The man might have lived, beyond doubt, had he cared to.
+    But he didn't. No motive, he said. And he had none,
+    As we felt later on, when he told us his story.
+    So he died without word or sign. And in silence
+    We stood and saw him go forth on his journey
+    Without speaking a word, without a hand lifted
+    To hold or to stop him, for we did not feel certain
+    What was wisdom for one who went forth in such fashion.
+    Perhaps it was best he should go and be over
+    With pain, loss and trouble for ever and ever.
+    Henry says, it were well we should all of us go
+    When life has no aim and no hope; and no doing
+    Remains to be done; and days are but eating
+    And drinking and breathing, only these and no more.
+
+    But before he went forth he gave me a message.
+    "I loved her," so his story began. Henry,
+    You remember the look on his face as he said it,
+    As he lay with his eyes fixed fast on the Picture?
+    "She was strong, and she drew me as life draws the young
+    And as death draws the old. I could not resist her.
+    She was vital with force, to attract and to hold.
+    She raced me a race for my life, and she won it.
+    I was man, not a boy, and I loved as man loves
+    When the forces of life are in him full-flooded
+    As rivers in meadows, when they flow to the sedges.
+    Did she love me? Perhaps. Who can tell? She was woman,
+    And hence she was dark as the night, and as hidden!
+    Who could find her? Who the depth of her nature
+    Might measure? I tried but could not. Then boldly
+    I spake--spake as man speaks but once unto woman.
+    True and straight did I say it man fashion.
+    But she drew back offended; she shrank from my praying,
+    And with coldness of tone and suspicion dismissed me.
+    Had a man shown a tithe of that look in his eye,
+    On his face, he or I would have died on the instant.
+    But what can a man do, when scorned by a woman?
+    So I left her.
+
+    I need not say more. My life it was ended.
+    It wasn't worth living;--I am made in that fashion.
+    So I came to the woods. Where else when in trouble
+    Can man go and find what he needs, consolation?
+    Go you down to her house, in the city, John Norton,
+    To the house where she lives, and give her this message.
+    Word for word let her hear it,--say where you left me.
+    There's gold in that box to pay your expenses.
+    Word for word as I tell you, nor say a word further."
+    Then he bade us good-by, and marched away bravely,
+    As a man on a trail that is somewhat uncertain.
+    And under the pines on the bank of the rapids
+    We buried the man whom the woods called--Jack Whitcomb,
+    And the picture he loved we placed on his bosom.
+
+           *       *       *       *       *
+
+    I went down to her house in the city. A cabin
+    Of stone, brown as tamarack bark, trimmed with olive.
+    It was high as a pine that stands on a mountain.
+    The door was as wide as the mouth of a cavern.
+    At the door stood a man rigged up like a soldier;
+    His face was as solemn as judgment to sinners;
+    He looked at me some, and I looked him all over,
+    Then he suddenly bowed like a half-breed with manners,
+    And told me to enter, and he would call Madame.
+    The room was as large as a town house where settlers
+    Hold meetings to vote themselves office and wages.
+    The walls were like caves in far Arizona.
+    All covered with pictures of houses and battles;
+    Of ships blown onward by gales in mid-ocean;
+    Of children with wings, pretty queer-looking creatures;
+    Of men and of women, and some were half-naked.
+    But the floor was of oak, which gleamed like a polish;
+    And with mats thick as moss, and with skins it was covered,
+    So I felt quite at home, as there I stood looking,
+    And noting the size and signs of the cabin.
+
+    Then, all of a sudden, there came a soft rustle,
+    Like the rustle of leaves when the wind blows in autumn.
+    And down the wide stairway across the great hall,
+    To the door of the room in which I was standing,
+    Stately and swift, came a woman and entered.
+    Tall as the tallest. Made firmly, knit firmly
+    Both in form and in limb, but full and well rounded;
+    Dark of eye, dark of face, with hair like a raven,
+    Like the girls of Nevada, where live the old races,
+    Whose blood is as fire, and whose skin is of olive,
+    Whose mouths are as sweet as a fig when it ripens.
+    Arms bare to the shoulders. Neck and bosom uncovered.
+    Her gown of white satin gleamed and flowed downward
+    And round her in folds of soft, creamy whiteness.
+    No ring on her hand, nor in ear. Not a circle
+    Of gold round her throat. One armlet of silver,
+    And one at her wrist loosely clasped, small and slender.
+    So she entered and stood, and looked me all over.
+
+    Then slowly she spake. "Your name, sir, and business?"
+    "Madame," I said, "in the woods men call me John Norton;
+    John Norton, the Trapper." Then I stopped mighty sudden,
+    For her face it grew white to the lips and the chin,
+    And she swayed as a tree to the stroke of the chopper
+    When he sinks his axe in to the heart and it totters
+    And quivers. So I stopped, stopped quick and stood looking.
+
+    Then her dark face it lighted, and she said, speaking quickly:
+    "John Norton, I know you. I know you are honest.
+    You live in the woods. You are good. I can trust you.
+    All men, I have heard, come to you in their trouble.
+    Have you seen in the North, have you met in the woods,
+    Has there come to your cabin a man, tall as you,
+    Brave as you and as tender? A man like to this?"
+    And out of her gown, from the folds on her bosom,
+    She lifted a locket of pearl-colored velvet,
+    Touched a spring, and I saw, as the lid of it opened,
+    The face of the man I and Henry had buried!
+
+    "John Norton," she cried, and her eyes burned like fever.
+    Her hand shook and trembled, her face was as marble,
+    "Have you seen in the woods man like to this picture?
+    Speak quick and speak true as to woman in trouble.
+    For I did him great wrong, I thought he held lightly
+    My fair name and fame; held lightly my honor.
+    I thought he meant evil, and my heart, filled with anger,
+    Dismissed him in scorn; but I learned, I learned later,
+    He was true, and spake truth and loved me as heaven."
+
+    Then I stood and I looked and held my face steady,
+    So it gave her no sign of what I was thinking.
+    I saw she was honest, and I wished then to spare her,
+    But my word it was pledged, pledged to him in dying,
+    To stand as I stood, face to face with this woman,
+    In her house, in that room, and give her his message.
+    Beside, not to know is far worse than the knowing
+    At times. So I rallied and told her the message,
+    Word for word, as he charged, the night he lay dying
+    In his house on the bank above the swift rapids.
+
+    "Madame," I said, "I have seen man like that picture,
+    Face and form. He was brave as you say. He was tender.
+    He was true unto death, and he loved you as heaven.
+    And these are the words that he sent you in dying.
+    I, a man of the woods, bring you this as last message,
+    From one who now sleeps on the bank of the rapids
+    Of that northern river which pours its brown water
+    To the Lake of St. John from far Mistassinni.
+    'Tell her, John Norton, I loved her. Loved her in living,
+    With a love that was true, and with same love in dying.
+    Loved her like a man, like a saint, like a sinner,
+    For time now and time ever. That the one picture
+    She gave me I kept;--living, dying, and after.
+    That it lies on the breast of the man that you buried;
+    On the breast of the man who living did love her,
+    And that there it will lie until it shall crumble,
+    With heart underneath it, to dust. So tell her.
+    And in proof that I tell her the truth, and did tell it
+    The night when we met, and I told her I loved her,
+    Give her this, the watch that I wore on the evening
+    We met, and the evening we parted. Let her open
+    And see. With her eyes let her see that I loved her.
+    So say and no more."
+
+    Thus I spake. Word for word as he told me I spake.
+    I gave her the watch, and I said no word further.
+    I had done as I pledged, I had said as he charged me,
+    So I stopped and stood waiting for word of dismissal.
+    But she said not a word, nor made she a sign.
+    The watch she took from me, touched the spring and it opened,
+    And there, 'twixt the glass and the gold, withered and faded,
+    Lay a leaf of Red Rose. One leaf, and--no more.
+
+    For a moment she stood; stood, and gazed at the leaf,
+    Her face grew as white as her gown, and she trembled
+    And shook like a white swan in dying, then she cried,
+    "My God, I have killed him, my lover!"
+    And down on the floor, on the skins at her feet
+    She dropped as one stricken by bullet or lightning.
+
+    It was only last month that we two, in trailing,
+    Trailed a hundred good miles across to the rapids.
+    For we wanted to see before going northward
+    If evil had come to the grave of our comrade.
+    But the grave lay untouched, by beast or by human.
+    The grass on the mound was well rooted and growthful.
+    At the foot of the grave the rose-tree I planted
+    Was as high as my head. And the leaves of the roses
+    Lay as thick as red snow-flakes on the mound that was under.
+    And we knew that on breast, as he slept, was her picture.
+    So we felt, as we gazed, it was well with Jack Whitcomb.
+
+    But often at night, when alone in my cabin,
+    I hear the low murmur of far northern rapids.
+    And often I see the great house and its splendor,
+    And wonder if death has helped the proud woman
+    To lay off her grief and escape from her sorrow.
+    And blazed a line through the dark Valley of Shadow,
+    And brought her in peace to the edge of the clearing,
+    Where I know she would see Jack Whitcomb stand, waiting.
+
+    So I say it again, and I say it with knowledge,
+    That the woods have their sorrows as well as the cities.
+    And he knows but little of this great northern forest
+    Who thinks there's naught in it save trees, lakes, and mountains.
+
+
+
+SELECT LIST
+OF
+Standard and Popular
+BOOKS
+
+PUBLISHED BY
+
+DEWOLFE, FISKE & CO.,
+_361-365 WASHINGTON STREET,
+BOSTON, MASS._
+
+Any book on this list will be sent, postpaid, on receipt of price.
+
+_In addition to the works mentioned in this list, we will furnish any
+books in the market at lowest possible prices, and would respectfully
+solicit correspondence in regard to prices or any desired information._
+
+_DeWOLFE, FISKE & CO., Boston, Mass._
+
+_P.S.--Catalogue of books at special reductions mailed free to any
+address._
+
+
+_Standard and Popular Books_
+
+PUBLISHED BY
+
+DEWOLFE, FISKE & CO.,
+
+PUBLISHERS, GENERAL BOOKSELLERS, AND LIBRARY AGENTS,
+
+_Boston, Mass._
+
+* *
+ *_In order to insure the correct delivery
+of the actual works, or particular Editions specified in this List, the
+name of the Publishers should be distinctly given. These books can be
+had from any local bookseller; but should any difficulty be experienced
+in procuring them, Messrs. DeWolfe, Fiske & Co., will be happy to
+forward them direct, postage paid, on receipt of cheque, stamps or
+Postal order for the amount, with a copy of their complete catalogue._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+NEW EDITIONS OF W. H. H. MURRAY'S FAMOUS BOOKS.
+
+=DAYLIGHT LAND.= The experiences, incidents, and adventures, humorous and
+otherwise, which befell Judge John Doe, Tourist, of San Francisco; Mr.
+Cephas Pepperell, Capitalist, of Boston; Colonel Goffe, the man from New
+Hampshire, and divers others, in their Parlor-Car Excursion over Prairie
+and Mountain; as recorded and set forth by W. H. H. MURRAY. Superbly
+illustrated with 150 cuts in various colors by the best artists. 8vo,
+350 pages. Unique paper covers, $2.50; cloth, $3.50; cloth, extra gilt,
+$4.00.
+
+_The New York Herald_; says,
+
+Impossible to find a handsomer book on outdoor life than this. The
+author's peculiar faculty for describing days in the woods and rambles
+with good company has long been known. "Daylight Land" is longer than
+the book in which the same author made the Adirondacks seem some other
+place to men whose eyes were not as wide-open as his own, and the style
+is even breezier, if that is possible. Seldom does a book appear which
+is so entirely creditable to author, artist, and publisher.
+
+=HOW DEACON TUBMAN AND PARSON WHITNEY KEPT NEW YEAR'S, and Other Stories.=
+By W. H. H. MURRAY, author of "Adirondack Tales," etc. 12mo.
+Illustrated. $1.25.
+
+Deacon Tubman, a jolly, fat, good-natured man, is presented with a
+woollen night-cap on New Year's morning by his housekeeper, "a typical
+spinster not overburdened with fat." This so rejoices the Deacon that he
+is possessed to make others happy, goes to call upon his pastor, and
+makes him leave his books and spend the day skating, sleighing, and
+driving with his parishioners.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+=STORY THE KEG TOLD ME, AND THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO DIDN'T KNOW MUCH.= By
+W. H. H. MURRAY, author of "Daylight Land," "Adirondack Adventures,"
+etc. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
+
+"Two admirable stories by W. H. H. Murray, in both which appears John
+Norton, the trapper, a character that promises to become as much of a
+favorite as is the hero of the Leather Stocking novels. These stories
+have a bracing outdoor freshness and a delightfully crisp realism: are
+vigorous in tone, and strong and picturesque in the relation. Taken
+altogether, they may be pronounced in the most artistic of Mr. Murray's
+excursions into the realms of fiction, and fascinating generally."
+--_Saturday Evening Gazette._
+
+
+=DEACONS.= By W. H. H. MURRAY. 16mo. Paper, 50 cts. Cloth, 75 cts.
+
+"Mr. Murray is an expert in the art of character drawing; he can
+manipulate humor and pathos with equal facility. No one will gainsay
+their freshness and individuality."--_N. Y. Commercial Advertiser._
+
+
+=ADIRONDACK ADVENTURES.= "In the Wilderness; or, Camp Life in the
+Adirondacks." By W. H. H. MURRAY, 12mo. Illustrated. Paper, 50 cts.
+Cloth, $1.25.
+
+"In the 'Adventures in the Wilderness' W. H. H. Murray strikes the happy
+hunting ground, which long ago earned for him the popular title,
+'Adirondack Murray,' and here, as in his other books, he fairly revels
+in stirring incident, lively and faithful conception of character, and
+the powerful but delightful description of natural scenery which have
+already given his work an enviable and lasting place in American
+literature."--_Nashville American._
+
+
+=THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN, AND OTHER STORIES.= By W. H. H. MURRAY. With
+photogravure portrait of Mr. Murray, and eight full-page illustrations
+by Thos. Worth. Square 12mo. Cloth, $1.00.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+=CIVILIZATION IN THE UNITED STATES, AND OTHER ESSAYS CONCERNING AMERICA.=
+By MATTHEW ARNOLD. 16mo. Unique paper boards, 50 cts. Cloth, uncut,
+$1.25. The cloth binding matches the uniform edition of his collected
+works. Comprises the critical essays, which created so much discussion,
+namely, "General Grant, an Estimate," "A Word About America," "A Word
+More About America," and "Civilization in the United States." The
+collection gathers in the great critic's last contribution to
+literature.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+BULFINCH'S MYTHOLOGY.
+
+=THE AGE OF CHIVALRY; Or Legends of King Arthur.= "Stories of the Round
+Table," "The Crusades," "Robin Hood," etc. By THOMAS BULFINCH. A new and
+enlarged edition. Revised by Rev. E. E. HALE. Large 12mo. Illustrated.
+$2.50.
+
+In "The Age of Fable," Mr. Bulfinch endeavored to impart the pleasure of
+classical learning to the English reader by presenting the stories of
+Pagan mythology in a form adapted to modern taste. In this volume the
+attempt has been made to treat in the same way the stories of the second
+"age of fable"--the age which witnessed the dawn of the several states
+of modern Europe.
+
+
+=THE AGE OF FABLE; Or, Beauties of Mythology.= By THOMAS BULFINCH. A new
+and enlarged edition, containing over 100 illustrations from ancient
+paintings and statuary. Revised by Rev. E. E. HALE. Large 12mo. $2.50.
+
+Young readers will find this book a source of entertainment; those more
+advanced, a useful companion in their reading; those who travel and
+visit museums and galleries of art, an interpreter of paintings and
+sculptures.
+
+
+=LEGENDS OF CHARLEMAGNE; Or, Romance of the Middle Ages.= Stories of
+Paladin and Saracen. By THOMAS BULFINCH. 12mo. Illustrated. $2.50.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+PROF. CLARK MURRAY'S WORKS.
+
+=SOLOMON MAIMON=: An Autobiography. Translated from the German, with
+Additions and Notes, by Prof. J. CLARK MURRAY. Cr. 8vo. Cloth. 307
+pages. $2.00.
+
+The London _Spectator_ says: "Dr. Clark Murray has had the rare good
+fortune of first presenting this singularly vivid book in an English
+translation as pure and lively as if it were an original, and an
+original by a classic English writer."
+
+George Eliot, in "Daniel Deronda," mentions it as "that wonderful bit of
+autobiography--the life of the Polish Jew, Solomon Maimon:" and Milman,
+in his "History of the Jews," refers to it as a curious and rare book.
+
+
+=HANDBOOK OF PSYCHOLOGY.= By Prof. J. CLARK MURRAY, LL.D., Professor of
+Mental and Moral Philosophy, M'Gill College, Montreal. Cr. 8vo. 2d
+edition, enlarged and improved. $1.75.
+
+Clearly and simply written, with illustrations so well chosen that the
+dullest student can scarcely fail to take an interest in the subject.
+
+Adopted for use in colleges in Scotland, England, Canada, and the United
+States.
+
+Prof. Murray's good fortune in bringing to light the "Maimon Memoirs,"
+together with the increasing popularity of his "Handbook of Psychology,"
+has attracted the attention of the intellectual world, giving him a
+position with the leaders of thought of the present age. His writings
+are at once original and suggestive.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+_Standard and Popular Books._
+
+THE POPULAR WORKS OF SALLY PRATT MCLEAN.
+
+=CAPE COD FOLKS.= A Novel. Twenty-third edition. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth,
+$1.25. Paper, 50 cents.
+
+=TOWHEAD: THE STORY OF A GIRL.= Fifth Thousand. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25. Paper,
+50 cents.
+
+Since the production of Miss McLean's first effort "Cape Cod Folks," she
+has steadily advanced in intellectual development; the same genius is at
+work in a larger and more artistic manner, until she has at length
+produced what must be truly considered as her masterpiece, and which we
+have the pleasure to announce for immediate publication.
+
+=SOME OTHER FOLKS.= A Book in Four Stories. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25. Paper, 50
+cents.
+
+These books are so well known that further comment seems superfluous.
+Suffice it to say that the entire press of the country has unanimously
+spoken of them in terms of high praise, dwelling not only on their
+delicious humor, their literary workmanship, their genuine pathos, and
+their real power and eloquence, but what has been described as their
+deep, true _humanness_, and the inimitable manner in which the mirror is
+held up to nature that all may see reflected therein some familiar
+trait, some description or character which is at once recognized.
+
+=LASTCHANCE JUNCTION: HUMAN NATURE IN THE FAR WEST.= A Novel. By SALLY
+PRATT MCLEAN. 1 vol. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25.
+
+"Terse, incisive descriptions of men and scenery, drawn with so vivid a
+pen that one can see the characters and their setting, delicious bits of
+humor, passages full of infinite pathos, make this book absolutely hold
+the reader from the title to the last word, and as, when finished, one
+sighs for the pity of it, the feeling rises that such a work has not
+been written in vain, and will have its place among those which tend to
+elevate our race."
+
+=MISS FRANCES MERLEY.= A Novel. By JOHN ELLIOT CURRAN. 420 pages. Square
+16mo. Paper covers, 50 cents. Cloth, $1.00.
+
+The first important work of an author familiar to American readers by
+his remarkable sketches to _Scribner's_ and other magazines.
+
+=AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A NEW ENGLAND FARM HOUSE=: A Romance of the Cape Cod
+Lands. By N. H. CHAMBERLAIN. 380 pages. Square 16mo. Paper covers, 50
+cents. Cloth, $1.00.
+
+A novel of singular power and beauty, great originality and rugged
+force. Born and bred on Cape Cod, the author, at the winter firesides of
+country people, very conservative of ancient English customs now gone,
+heard curious talk of kings, Puritan ministers, the war and precedent
+struggle of our Revolution, and touched a race of men and women now
+passed away. He also heard, chiefly from ancient women, the traditions
+of ghosts, witches and Indians, as they are preserved, and to a degree
+believed, by honest Christian folk, in the very teeth of modern
+progress.
+
+
+                              _Publishers_,
+_DeWolfe, Fiske & Co._            _Booksellers_,               _BOSTON._
+                                       _Library Agents_.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories, by 
+W. H. H. Murray
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+  <head>
+    <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" />
+    <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" />
+    <title>
+      The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Busted Ex-Texan, by W. H. H. Murray.
+    </title>
+    <style type="text/css">
+
+body {
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+  </head>
+<body>
+
+
+<pre>
+
+Project Gutenberg's The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories, by W. H. H. Murray
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories
+
+Author: W. H. H. Murray
+
+Release Date: April 5, 2009 [EBook #28502]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by David Edwards, Woodie4 and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+<p>Transcriber note: <br />
+A list of contents was not in the original book and has been added.</p>
+
+
+
+<h1>THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN
+AND OTHER STORIES</h1>
+
+<h3>BY</h3>
+
+<h2>W. H. H. MURRAY</h2>
+
+
+<div class="figcenter border2" style="width: 470px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/cover.png" width="470" height="600" alt="Cover" title="Cover" />
+<br /></div>
+
+<p><br /><br /><br /></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border2" style="width: 470px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/front.png" width="470" height="600" alt="W.H.H. Murray" title="W.H.H. Murray" />
+<span class="caption">W.H.H. Murray</span><br /><br />
+</div>
+
+<p><br /><br /></p>
+
+<h3>THE</h3>
+
+<h2>BUSTED EX-TEXAN</h2>
+
+<h4>AND</h4>
+
+<h2>OTHER STORIES</h2>
+
+<h5>BY</h5>
+
+<h3>W. H. H. MURRAY</h3>
+
+<h6>AUTHOR OF "DAYLIGHT LAND," "THE STORY THE KEG TOLD ME,"<br />
+"ADIRONDACK ADVENTURES," ETC.</h6>
+
+<h5>PHOTOGRAVURE PORTRAIT AND EIGHT FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS<br />
+BY THOS. WORTH.</h5>
+
+<h3>BOSTON<br />
+
+DE WOLFE, FISKE &amp; CO., PUBLISHERS</h3>
+
+<h6>1890<br /></h6>
+
+<h4><span class="smcap">Copyright 1889 by W. H. H. Murray.</span></h4>
+
+<h6>ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.<br /><br /><br /></h6>
+
+<div class="center">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="Contents">
+
+<tr><td align="left">
+</td><td align="right">Page</td></tr>
+
+<tr><td align="left">The Busted Ex-Texan</td>
+<td align="right"><a href="#Page_5">5</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td align="left">How Deacon Tubman And Parson Whitney Celebrated New Year's.</td>
+<td align="right"><a href="#Page_55">55</a></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td align="left">The Leaf Of Red Rose</td>
+<td align="right"><a href="#Page_85">85</a></td></tr>
+
+</table><br /><br /></div>
+
+<h3>ILLUSTRATIONS.</h3>
+
+<div class="center">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="Illustrations">
+
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#I">I.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">"I am a Busted ex-Texan."</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#II">II.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">"Practically Inside the Pail."</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#III">III.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">"And when I Came Down."</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#IV">IV.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">"Lay Aboard of the Old Cuss."</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#V">V.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">"Luff Her Up&mdash;Luff Her Up."</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#VI">VI.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">The Deacon and Parson.</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#VII">VII.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">The Race.</span></td></tr>
+<tr><td align="right"><a href="#VIII">VIII.</a></td>
+<td align="left"><span class="smcap">The First Prize for the</span> <i>Wickedest Cow</i>.</td></tr>
+</table><br /><br /></div>
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN.</h2>
+
+<p>
+<span class="dropcap"><img src="images/w.jpg" alt="We" title="drop capital" /></span>
+ were camped amid the foot-hills on the trail which led up to the
+Kicking Horse Pass. The sun had already passed from sight, beyond the
+white summits above us, and the shadow of the monstrous mountain range
+darkened the prairie to the east, to the horizon's rim. Our bivouac was
+made in a grove of lofty firs, six or eight in number; and a little
+rivulet, trickling from the upper slopes, fell, with soft, lapsing
+sound, within a few feet of our camp-fire. We did not even pitch a tent,
+for the sky was mild, and above us the monstrous trees lifted their
+protecting canopy of stems. The hammocks were swung for the ladies, and
+each gentleman "preëmpted" the claim that suited him best, by depositing
+his<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span> blanket and rifle upon it. The entire party were in the best of
+spirits, and nature responded to our happiness in its kindest mood.
+Laughter sounded pleasantly at intervals from the busy groups, each
+working at some self-appointed industry. The hum of cheerful
+conversation mingled with the murmurs of the brook; and now and then the
+snatch of some sweet song would break from tuneful lips, brief,
+spirited, melodious as a bobolink's, dashing upward from the
+clover-heads. And before the mighty shadow lying gloomily on the great
+prairie plain, which stretched eastward for a thousand miles, had grown
+to darkness, the active, happy workers had given to the bivouac that
+look of designed orderliness which a trained party always give to any
+spot they select in which to make a camp or pass a night. An hour
+before, there was nothing to distinguish that grove of trees, or the
+ground beneath them, from any other spot or hill within the reach of
+eye. But now it commanded the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span> landscape; and, had you been trailing
+over the vast plain, the bright firelight, the group of men and women
+moving to and fro, the picketed horses, the fluttering bits of color
+here and there, would have caught your gaze ten miles away; and were you
+tired or hungry, or even lonesome, you would have naturally turned your
+horse's head toward that camp as toward a cheerful reception and a home;
+for wherever is happy human life, to it all lonely life is drawn as by a
+magnet.</p>
+
+<p>And this was demonstrated by our experience then and there. For,
+scarcely had we done with supper,&mdash;and by this time the gloom had grown
+to darkness, and the half-light of evening held the landscape,&mdash;when out
+of the semi-gloom there came a call,&mdash;the call of a man hailing a camp.
+Indeed, we were not sure he had not hailed several times before we heard
+him; for, to tell the truth, we were a very merry crowd, and as light of
+heart as if there was not a worry or care in all the world,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span>&mdash;at least
+for us,&mdash;and the smallest spark of a joke exploded us like a battery.
+Indeed, so rollicking was our mood that our laughter was nearly
+continuous, and it is quite possible that the stranger may have hailed
+us more than once without our hearing him. And this was the more likely
+because the man's voice was not of the loudest, nor was it positive in
+the energy of its appeal.</p>
+
+<p>Indeed, there was a certain feebleness or timidity in the stranger's
+hail, as if he was mistrustful that any good fortune could respond to
+him, and, hence, deprecated the necessity of the resort. But hear him we
+did at last, and he was greeted with a chorus of voices to "Come in!
+Come in! You're welcome!" And partly because we had finished our repast,
+and partly from courtesy and the natural promptings of gentlefolk to
+give a visitor courteous greeting, we all arose and received him
+standing. And, certainly, had the kindly act been unusual with us, not
+one of our group<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span> would have regretted the extra condescension bestowed
+upon him at his coming, after he had entered the circle of our
+firelight, and we saw the expression of his features.</p>
+
+<p>What a mirror the human face is! Looking into it, how we behold the
+soul, the accidents that have befallen it and the disappointments it has
+borne! Are not the faces of men as carved tablets on which we read the
+records of their lives? The face of childhood is smoothly beautiful,
+like a white page on which neither with ink of red or black has any pen
+drawn character. But, as the years go on, the pen begins to move and the
+fatal tracery to grow,&mdash;that tracery which means and tells so much. And
+the face of this man,&mdash;this waif, so to speak,&mdash;this waif that had come
+to us from the stretch of the prairie, whose southern line is the
+southern gulf; this stranger, who had come so suddenly to the circle of
+our light, and so plaintively sought admission to its comfort and its
+cheer, was a face which one might read<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span> at a glance. Not one in our
+circle that did not instantly feel that he embodied some overwhelming
+calamity. A look of sadness, of a mild, continuous sorrow, overspread
+his face. There was a pitiful expression about the mouth, as if brave
+determination had withdrawn its lines from it forever. From his eyes a
+certain mistrustfulness looked forth,&mdash;not mistrustfulness of others,
+but of himself,&mdash;as if confidence in his own powers had received an
+overwhelming shock. The man's appearance made an instant and
+unmistakable impression upon the entire company. The ladies&mdash;God bless
+their sweet and sympathetic natures!&mdash;were profoundly moved at the
+pitiful aspect of our guest. Their bosoms thrilled with sympathy for one
+upon whose devoted head evil fortune had so evidently emptied its
+quiver. Nor were our less sensitive masculine natures untouched by his
+forlorn appearance.</p>
+
+<p>"A target for evil fortune," whispered Dick to the major.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"A regular bull's-eye!" was the solemn response. "A bull's-eye, by gad!
+at the end of the score."</p>
+
+<p>It was not a poetic expression. I wish the reader to note that I do not
+record it as such. I only preserve it as evidence of the major's
+humanity, and of the unaffected sympathy for the stranger, which at that
+moment filled all hearts.</p>
+
+<p>Naturally, as it can well be imagined, the gayety of our company had
+been utterly checked by the coming of our sad guest. In the presence of
+such a wreck of human happiness, perhaps of human hope, what person of
+any sensibility could maintain a lightsome mood? Had it not been for one
+peculiarity,&mdash;a peculiarity, I am confident, all of us observed,&mdash;the
+depression of our spirits would have been as profound as it was
+universal. This peculiarity was the stranger's appetite. This,
+fortunately, had remained unimpaired,&mdash;an oasis in the Sahara of his
+life.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"The one remnant left him from the wreck of his fortunes," whispered
+Dick.</p>
+
+<p>"A perfect remnant!" returned the major, sententiously.</p>
+
+<p>For myself, acting as host to this appetite, and being naturally of a
+philosophic turn, I watched its development with the keenest interest,
+not to say with a growing curiosity. "Here is something," I said to
+myself, "that is unique. That fine law of recompense which is kindly
+distributed through the universe finds here," I reflected, "a most
+instructive and conclusive demonstration. Robbed, by an adverse fate, of
+all that made life agreeable, this man, this pilgrim of time, this
+wayfarer to eternity, this companion of mine on the road of life, has
+had bestowed upon him an extraordinary solace, has been permitted to
+retain a commensurate satisfaction. Surely, life cannot have lost its
+attractions for one whose stomach still preserves such aspirations."
+And, prompted by the benevolence of my mood, and the antici<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span>pations of a
+wise forecast, I collected in front of me whatever edibles remained on
+the table, that, if the supply of our hospitality should prove
+insufficient, the exhibition of its spirit should at least be
+conclusive.</p>
+
+<p>But, if the countenance of the stranger was of a most melancholy cast,
+there were not lacking hints that by nature he had been endowed with
+vivacity of spirit; for, as he continued, with an industry which was
+remarkable, to refresh himself, there were appearances, which came to
+the eye and the corners of his mouth, which made the observer conclude
+that he was not lacking the sense of humor; and, if his experience had
+been most unfortunate, there was in him an ability to appreciate the
+ludicrousness of its changeful situations. Indeed, one could but
+conclude that originally he must have been of a buoyant, not to say
+sanguine disposition; and, if one could but prevail upon him to narrate
+the incidents of his life, they would be found to be most entertaining.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>It was something like an hour before our melancholy-looking guest had
+fully improved the opportunity with which a benignant Providence had
+supplied him,&mdash;a freak in which, one might conclude, she seldom
+indulged. He ceased to eat, and sat for a moment gazing pensively at the
+dishes. It seemed to me&mdash;but in this I may possibly be mistaken&mdash;that a
+darker shade of sadness possessed his face at the conclusion than the
+one that shadowed it so heavily at the beginning of the repast. "The
+pleasures of hope," I said to myself, "are evidently greater to my
+species than are those of recollection. Now that there is nothing left
+for my guest to anticipate, it is evident that memory ceases to excite."
+And I could but feel that, had our provisions been more abundant, the
+stranger's appetite would not have been so easily appeased. With
+something of regret in my voice, I sought to divert his mind from that
+sense of disappointment which I judged from his countenance threatened
+to oppress his spirits.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Friend," I said, "I doubt not that you have trailed a goodly distance,
+and your fasting has been long?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have not eaten a meal in two days," was the response.</p>
+
+<p>"Heavens!" exclaimed Dick in an aside to the major. "Is it credible that
+that man ate two days ago!"</p>
+
+<p>"Gad!" exclaimed the major, "the man's stomach is nothing but a pocket."</p>
+
+<p>"A pocket! I should call it an unexplored cavern!" retorted Dick.</p>
+
+<p>"The direction and reason of your long trail would be interesting," I
+resumed. "And, if not impertinent, friend, may I ask you whence you have
+come?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have journeyed from Texas," replied the man, and his voice nearly
+broke as he said it.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Oh!</i>" exclaimed the ladies, and they sympathetically grouped
+themselves, anticipating, with true feminine sensitiveness, some
+terrible dénouement.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"<i>Texas!</i>" I ejaculated.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Gad!</i>" said the major.</p>
+
+<p>"The <i>Devil!</i>" said Dick.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, <i>Texas!</i>" repeated the man, and he groaned.</p>
+
+<p>By this time, as any intelligent reader will easily divine, our whole
+group was in a condition of mild excitement. Several of us had resided
+in Texas, and we felt that we stood at the threshold of a history,&mdash;a
+history with infinite possibilities in it. For myself, I knew not how to
+proceed. My position as a host forbade me to interrogate. The sorrows of
+life are sacred, and my sensitiveness withheld me from thrusting myself
+within the enclosure of my guest's recollections. That his experiences,
+could we but be favored with a narration of them, would be
+entertaining,&mdash;painfully entertaining,&mdash;I keenly realized; but how to
+proceed I saw not. I remained silent.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes,"&mdash;it was the stranger who broke the silence,&mdash;"I am a busted
+ex-Texan!"<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span></p>
+
+<p><a name="I" id="I"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 412px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/page17.png" width="412" height="600" alt="I am a Busted ex-Texan." title="I am a Busted ex-Texan." />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">I am a Busted ex-Texan.</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>The relief that came to me at the instant was indescribable. The path
+was made plain. We all felt that we were not only on the threshold of a
+history, but of a narration of that history. The ladies fluttered into
+position for listening. I could but see it, and so I am bound to record
+that I saw Dick irreverently punch the major. It was a punch which
+carried with it the significance of an exclamation. The major received
+it with the face of a Spartan, but with the grunt of a Chinook chief.</p>
+
+<p>"Friend," I said, "we are accustomed to beguile the evening hours with
+entertaining descriptions of travels, often of personal incidents of the
+haps and hazards of life; and, if it would not be disagreeable to you,
+we would be vastly entertained, beyond doubt, by any narration with
+which you might favor us of your Texan experiences and of the fortunes
+which befell you there."</p>
+
+<p>For a few moments, the silence remained unbroken, save by the crackle of
+the fire and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span> the soft movement in the great firs overhead,&mdash;a movement
+which is to sound what dawn is to the day; not so much a sound as a
+feathery suggestion that sound might come. It was a genial hour, and the
+mood of the hour began to be felt in our own. The warmth of it evidently
+penetrated the bosom of our guest. He had eaten. He was
+filled,&mdash;appreciably so at least, and that happy feeling, that
+comfortable sense of fulness, which characterizes the after-dinner hour,
+pervaded him with its genial glow. He loosened his belt,&mdash;another
+tremendous nudge from Dick,&mdash;and a look of contentment softened his
+features. Whatever storm had wrecked his life, he had now passed beyond
+its billows, and from the sure haven into which he had been blown he
+could gaze with complacent resignation, if not with happiness, at the
+dangers through which he had passed. I am sure that we were all
+delighted at the brightening appearance of our guest, and felt that, if
+the story he was to tell us was one which included<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span> disasters, it would
+at least be lightened by traces of humor and the calm acceptance of a
+philosophic mind.</p>
+
+<p>"I was born in the State of Connecticut," so our guest began his
+narration. "I came from a venturesome stock, and the instinct of
+commercial enterprise may be regarded as hereditary in my family. My
+grandfather was the first one to discover the tropical attributes of the
+beech-wood tree. He first perceived that it contained within its fibres
+the pungency of the nutmeg. With a celerity which we remember with pride
+in our family, he availed himself of the commercial value of his
+discovery, and for years did a prosperous trade on the credulity of
+mankind. He was a man of humor,&mdash;a sense which has been to some extent
+transmitted to myself,&mdash;he was a man of humor, and I have no doubt he
+enjoyed the joke he was practising on people, fully as much as the
+profits which the practical embodiment of his humor brought to his
+pocket. My father<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span> was a deacon, a man of true piety and eminently
+respectable. He was engaged in the retail-grocery business,&mdash;a business
+which offers opportunities to a person of wit and of an inventive turn
+of mind. The butter that he sold was salted invariably by one rule&mdash;a
+rule which he discovered and applied in the cellar of the store himself;
+and the sugar which he sold, if it was sanded, was always sanded by a
+method which improved rather than detracted from its appearance."</p>
+
+<p>Here our guest paused a moment, as if enjoying the recollections of the
+virtues of his ancestors. His face was as sober as ever, but his look
+was one of contentment; and I could but note the suggestion of
+merriment&mdash;the merriment of a happy memory&mdash;in his eye. How happy it is
+for an offspring to be able to recall the character of his forefathers
+with such liveliness of mind!</p>
+
+<p>"The motive which impelled me towards Texas," he resumed, "was one which
+was<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span> natural for me to feel, thus ancestrally connected. I had heired my
+father's business,&mdash;the deacon, who had died full of honors, ripe in
+years, and in perfect peace. But the business did not prosper in my
+hands; perhaps, I had not heired, with the business, the deacon's
+ability,&mdash;that accuracy of eye, that gravity of appearance, that
+deftness of touch, so to speak, which underlay his success. Be that as
+it may, the business did not pay, and without hesitation I sold it; and,
+with a comfortable sum for investment, I journeyed to Texas.</p>
+
+<p>"It is proper for me to remark that the welcome I received was most
+cordial. I chose a populous centre for a temporary residence, and
+proceeded to look around me. I found the Texans to be a warm-hearted
+people, much given to hospitality, and willing, with a charming
+disinterestedness, to admit all new-comers, with capital, to the
+enormous profits of their various enterprises.</p>
+
+<p>"For the first time in my life, I found myself<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span> among a people who were
+successful in everything they undertook. Their profits were simply
+enormous. No speculation could possibly fail. However I invested my
+money, I was assured that I would speedily become a millionnaire. Cotton
+was a certain crop. Corn was never known to fail. The Texan tobacco was
+rapidly driving the Cuban out of the market. The aboriginal grapes of
+the State, of which there were millions of acres waiting for the
+presses, yielded, as Europe confessed, a wine superior to Champagne. If
+I preferred herding, all I had to do was to purchase a few sheep and
+simply sit down. There was no section of the globe where sheep were so
+prolific, fleeces so thick, or the demands of market so clamorous. And,
+as for horses, I was assured that no one in Texas who knew the facts of
+the case would spend any time in raising them. The prairies were full of
+them, hundreds of thousands of them, all blooded stock, 'true
+descendants, sir, from the Moorish Barb, distributed<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span> through the whole
+country at the Spanish invasion.' I need do nothing but purchase fifty
+thousand acres, fence the territory in, and the enclosed herds would
+continue to propagate indefinitely. Such were the delightful pictures
+which my entertainers presented to me. Captivated by the charming
+manners of my hosts, my sanguine temperament kindled into heat at the
+touch of their enthusiasm. Where every venture was sure of successful
+issue, there was no need for deliberation or selection. I invested
+indiscriminately in all, and waited buoyantly for the results."</p>
+
+<p>Here the stranger paused, compelled, perhaps, by a slight interruption.
+Dick had retired, closely followed by the major. Our guest certainly was
+not devoid of humor, and I was convinced, as I watched the play of his
+features, that he apprehended and appreciated the reason for their
+retirement. He lifted a plate from the table, inspected it closely,
+turned it over, gazed contemplatively at its reversed side, and,
+pois<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>ing it deftly upon the point of three fingers, quietly remarked:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"The gentlemen, I judge, have been in Texas?"</p>
+
+<p>"They have," I replied: "we three were there together."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!"</p>
+
+<p>It was all he said. I might add, it was all that could be said.</p>
+
+<p>At this point, Dick and the major rejoined us. Their eyes showed traces
+of recent tears. They were still wiping their faces with their
+handkerchiefs. With that refinement which is characteristic of true
+gentlemen, and which seeks concealment of any extraordinary emotion,
+they had considerately retired to indulge their laughter.</p>
+
+<p>"I am delighted," continued our guest, after Dick and the major had
+resumed their seats, "I am delighted to find myself in company with men
+of experience. I feel that you will not question the veracity of my
+story, or fail to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span> appreciate the outcome of my enterprises. At the end
+of two years, my property was distributed promiscuously throughout the
+State, and I was reduced to the necessity of making one final venture to
+recoup myself for the losses which, to the astonishment of the entire
+Texan community, I assured them I had met. I was the only man, as they
+asserted, 'that had ever failed to make a magnificent success in Texas.'</p>
+
+<p>"You can readily conceive, gentlemen, that I was determined to make no
+mistake in my final venture. There were other reasons, beside the one of
+caution, which persuaded me to begin with a moderate investment; so I
+bought one cow. It was impossible for me to make a mistake from such a
+beginning. Every person in Texas that had rapidly risen to financial
+eminence had started with one cow. Many a time had a Texan ranchman
+swept his hand with a royal gesture over a landscape of flowers and
+Mesquite brush, dotted with thousands of cattle, and exclaimed,
+'Stranger, I started this yer<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> ranch with one cow.' And then he would
+take out a piece of chalk and figure out to me on his saddle how that
+one cow had multiplied herself into seven thousand five hundred and
+twenty-three other cows, which had proceeded to promptly multiply
+themselves, 'regular as the seasons come round, sir,' in the same
+reckless manner, until it was evident that the number of her progeny was
+actually curtailed by the size of the saddle and the lack of chalk. Now,
+I was eager to possess a cow with such a multiplication-table
+attachment, and, being unable to wait even ten years before I could
+tingle with the sensation of being a millionnaire ranchman. I decided to
+shorten the probationary stage by half, and so I purchased two cows."</p>
+
+<p>At this point, Dick rolled over upon the grass, and the major was
+doubled up as with sudden pain. As for myself, I confess I could not
+restrain my emotions. I had been through the same experience as had
+fallen to my guest, and I appreciated the sanguine characteristics<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span> of
+his temperament, which prompted him to the investment, and the humor of
+the situation. I laughed till my eyes flowed with tears, and the
+stillness of the foot-hills resounded with the unrestrained merriment of
+the entire camp.</p>
+
+<p>The humor of our guest was truly American, the humor of suggestive
+restraint and exaggeration both. He narrated his experiences, which had
+resulted in the loss of his fortune and the collapse of his hopes, with
+a face like a deacon's, and with a quaint and most charming sense of the
+ludicrousness of the position&mdash;a position of which he himself was the
+cause and central object. He fairly represented that type of men who
+combine in their composition that which is most practical and
+imaginative alike; whose energy can subdue a continent, and whose
+boastfulness would awaken contempt if it were not palliated by the
+magnitude of their achievements. A humor that is often barbed, but which
+is most willingly directed against one's self; but, whether directed
+against the humorist<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span> or his neighbor, carries no poison upon its point
+and leaves no wound to rankle.</p>
+
+<p>"My financial condition," said our guest, resuming, "my financial
+condition at the time I made this final investment contributed to the
+hopefulness of my mood, and made me feel the excitement of a reckless
+speculation, for, though my two cows only cost me seventeen dollars and
+fifty cents each, nevertheless, when the purchase was concluded, and the
+goods delivered, and I had made a careful inventory of my remaining
+assets,&mdash;a business proceeding which the average Texan found it
+necessary to go through about once in two weeks, in order that he might
+know what his financial standing was, or whether he had any standing at
+all,&mdash;when, I say, the purchase was consummated, and an inventory of my
+remaining assets made, I discovered that the two cows had swallowed up
+nearly my entire estate, and that a few dollars of farther expenditure
+would plunge me into bottomless insolvency. I must confess that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span> this
+disclosure of my financial condition added zest to the undertaking, and
+filled me with that fine excitement which accompanies a desperate
+speculation. I have always felt that another cow would have made a
+financier of me, and that I could have taken my place among my brethren
+in Wall Street without a tremor of the muscles or the least sense of
+inferiority.</p>
+
+<p>"The cows were both black in color; so black that they would make a spot
+in the darkness of the blackest night that ever gloomed under the
+cypresses of the Guadaloupe. 'If those cows,' I said to myself as I
+looked them over, 'if those cows ever do bring forth calves at the rate
+that the Texan of whom I purchased them figured out on his saddle,
+they'll put the whole State under an eclipse.'</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot say,&mdash;speaking with that restraint which I have always
+cultivated,&mdash;I cannot say, ladies and gentlemen, that I regarded either
+cow with any great affection. There were peculiarities about them, which
+checked the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span> outgoing of my emotional nature. They had a way of looking
+at me through the wire fence, that made me feel grateful to the inventor
+of barbed wire. I cannot describe the look exactly. It was a direct,
+earnest, steady, intense inspection of my person, that made me feel out
+of place, as it were, and caused me to remember that I had duties at
+home, which required me to get there as rapidly as possible.</p>
+
+<p>"One morning, seeing that the basis of my speculation was near the
+centre of the field, and busily feeding on the bountiful growths of
+nature, I crept softly through the wires of the fence that I might
+gather some pecan nuts under a big tree that stood some twenty rods
+away. I reached the tree in safety, and proceeded to pick up the nuts. I
+had filled one pocket only when I heard a noise behind me, and, looking
+up, I saw that all the profits of my stock speculation, and all my stock
+itself, were coming toward me on a jump. I was never more collected in
+my life. My mind instantly<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span> reached the conclusion that the pecan crop
+that year was so large in Texas that it would not pay to pick up another
+nut under that tree; that the whole thing should stand over, as it were,
+until another fall, and that, the sooner I retired from that field, the
+better it would be for me and the few pecans I had about me.</p>
+
+<p>"Acting in harmony with this conclusion,&mdash;which to my mind carried with
+it the force of a demonstration,&mdash;I started for the wire fence. I have
+no doubt but that the line of my movement was absolutely straight. I
+assure you, gentlemen, that if cows had multiplied in my business
+connection as rapidly as they did in my imagination during the next
+sixty seconds of time, I should have been in Texas to this day. The
+whole field was actually alive with cows. I reached the fence just one
+jump ahead of the oldest cow, and, seeing no reason why I should take
+time to crawl through between the wires, I lifted myself over the airy
+obstruction in a manner that must have convinced that old<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span> animated bit
+of blackness that I had absolute ownership in every nut about me. This
+little episode supplied me with material for reflection for at least a
+week, and made me realize that any northern man that enters into a
+speculation with Texas cows as a basis must keep his eyes open, and not
+allow his thoughts to be diverted by any side issues, like pecan nuts,
+while the business is developing.</p>
+
+<p>"The sixth morning after my speculation had arrived at the ranch, my
+profits began to roll in upon me,&mdash;or, to state it more practically, and
+in a business-like manner, the oldest cow produced a calf. This raised
+my spirits, and made me feel that my business was fairly started. I went
+to my stock-book and promptly made an entry as follows: 7523-1. This
+meant that there were only seven thousand five hundred and twenty-<i>two</i>
+yet to realize on; that is, if seven thousand five hundred and
+twenty-two calves should promptly come to time, seeing that one calf had
+already actually come to time, my herd<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span> would be complete. I think,
+gentlemen, you can readily understand my feelings as I stood
+contemplating the first fruition of my hopes from behind a tree. The cow
+was securely tied, but still from habit I took my usual position when
+inspecting my stock. My mood was very hopeful. I felt as every Texan
+felt, in those days, when by some accident he found himself in
+possession of actual property. 'There is a calf,' I said; 'I've only had
+to wait six days for that calf to materialize. Suppose another calf
+should materialize in six days.' I extracted a pencil from my pocket and
+began to figure. I multiplied that calf by six&mdash;I mean that at the end
+of six days I multiplied that calf by another calf. Every time I put
+down a new multiplier I took a look at the calf, and every time I looked
+at the calf it multiplied itself, as it were, until I felt the full
+force of the Texan's statement, save that, the more I multiplied, the
+more I felt that seven thousand five hundred and twenty-three did not
+fairly represent the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span> certainties of the speculation. That cow would
+surely make a millionnaire of me yet&mdash;if nothing happened.</p>
+
+<p>"But, gentleman, something did happen, and it happened in this wise: You
+have doubtless, by this, concluded that the cow was a wild cow. The man
+who sold her to me had not put it precisely that way. He had represented
+her to me as a cow of mild manners, thoroughly domesticated, of the
+sweetest possible temper, used to the women folks, playful with
+children,&mdash;in short, a creature of such amiability that she actually
+longed to be petted. But I had already discovered that her manners were
+somewhat abrupt, and that either the man did not understand the nature
+of the cow or I did not understand the man. I was convinced that, if she
+had ever been domesticated, it had been done by some family every member
+of which had died in the process, or had suddenly moved out of the
+country only a short distance ahead of her, and that she had utterly
+forgotten her early<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span> training. Still, I had no doubt but that her
+amiability was there, although temporarily somewhat latent, and that the
+influences of a gentle spirit would revive the dormant sensibilities of
+her nature. 'The sight of a milk-pail,' I said to myself, 'will surely
+awaken the reminiscences of her early days, and of that sweet home-life
+which was hers when she yielded at morn and at night her glad
+contribution to the nourishment of a Christian family.'</p>
+
+<p>"There was on my ranch a servitor of foreign extraction who did my
+cooking for what he could eat,&mdash;Chin Foo by name,&mdash;and to him I called
+to bring me the large tin pail, which served the household&mdash;which, like
+most Texan households in the Tertiary period, so to speak, of their
+fortunes, was conducted on economic principles&mdash;as a washtub, a
+chip-basket, a water-bucket, and a dinner-gong. It also occurred to me,
+as I stood looking at the cow and caught the spirit of her expression,
+so to speak, that, as she had come to stay, was a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span> permanent fixture of
+the establishment, as it were, Chin Foo might as well do the milking
+first as last. Moreover, as the Texan from whom I purchased her had
+assured me that she was a kind of household pet, the children's friend,
+and took to women folks naturally, the case was a very clear one. For,
+as Chin Foo had long hair, wore no hat, and dressed in flowing drapery,
+the cow, unless she was more of a physiologist than I gave her credit
+for, would be in doubt somewhat as to the sex of the Chinaman; and
+before she had time to ruminate upon it and reach a dead-sure
+conclusion, the milking would be over; and I would have scored the first
+point in the game, if she was a cow of ability, had any trumps, and was
+up to any tricks, as it were. So I told Chin Foo, as he approached with
+the pail in his hand, that the cow was a splendid milker, thoroughly
+domesticated, accustomed to Chinamen, and that he might have the honor
+of milking her first. I remarked, furthermore, that,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> as everything
+about the place was new to her, and she was a little nervous, I would
+gently attract her attention in front, while he proceeded to extract the
+delicious fluid. I charged him, in addition, to remember that it was
+always the best policy to approach a cow of her temperament in a bold
+and indifferent manner, as if he had milked her all his life, and get
+down to business at once; and that any hesitation or show of nervousness
+on his part would tend to make her more nervous.</p>
+
+<p>"I must say that Chin Foo acted in a highly creditable manner,
+considering he was in a strange land, and, to my certain knowledge, had
+no money laid by for funeral expenses; for, while I was stirring the
+dust and flourishing my stick in a desultory manner in front of the cow,
+to divert her mind, and keep her thoughts from wandering backward too
+directly, he fluttered boldly up to her, and laid firmly hold of two
+teats, with the familiarity of an old acquaintance."<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>At this point of his narration the stranger paused a moment. There was a
+sort of plaintive look on his face, and he gazed at the plates with an
+expression in his eyes of sorrowful recollection.</p>
+
+<p>"I cannot say," he resumed, as one who speaks oppressed with a sense of
+uncertainty, "exactly what did happen, for I never saw the Chinaman
+again until he alighted. I only know that when he came down he was
+practically inside the pail, and that he sat in it a moment with a kind
+of dreamy eastern look on his face, as if he lived on the isle of Patmos
+and had seen a vision. And when he had crawled out of the pail he went
+directly into the house, saying, 'The Melican man is dam foolee to try
+to milkee that cussee!' or words to that effect.<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="II" id="II"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 412px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/page38.png" width="412" height="600" alt="Practically Inside the Pail." title="Practically Inside the Pail." />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">Practically Inside the Pail.</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>"But I did not agree with him. I reflected that the Chinese are only an
+imitative race, and wholly lacking in original perception. 'They never
+invent anything,' I said; 'never study<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> into causes, never get down to
+principles, as it were. It requires a purely occidental intellect to
+master the problem before me. This cow has a strong disinclination to be
+milked. Why? What is the motive of her conduct? If I could only answer
+that!' All at once it came to me,&mdash;came like a flash. The reason was
+plain. 'This cow is a mother. The maternal instinct in her case is
+beautifully developed. Her reasoning faculties less so. She has a calf.
+To her mind, we are trying to rob her beloved offspring of its
+nourishment. She naturally resents this injustice on our part. Beautiful
+development of maternity,' I apostrophized, as I looked at the cow in
+the light of this new revelation. 'Thy instincts are those that sweeten
+the world, and remind us of the benignity that planned the universe. I
+will bring thy calf to thee. I will show thee that I am not devoid of
+the spirit of equity; that I am ready to go shares and play fair, as it
+were. Thy calf shall take one side of thee. I<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span> will take the other, and
+thy soul will come forth to me in gratitude!'</p>
+
+<p>"I was delighted. I went directly to the pen, and gazed benevolently at
+the calf. The little imp was blacker, if possible, than its mother.
+There was that same peculiar look also in its eyes. 'You're all hers!' I
+joyfully cried, 'you are your mother's own child!' I seized hold of the
+neck-rope. I opened the pen-door and I went out through that door
+quicker than a vagrant cat ever got round a corner of a house where a
+Scotch terrier boards. The calf went under the cow and I struck her,
+head on. But I had come to stay. I grabbed the pail with one hand and a
+teat with the other. I tugged it, pulled it, twisted it. Not a drop
+could I start. A suction pump of twenty horse-power would have found it
+drier than Sahara, and all the while the calf's mouth, on the other
+side, was actually running over with milk! In two minutes he looked like
+a black watermelon. Then the cow, with a kind of back action,
+suddenly<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span> reached out one foot, and when I came to I found myself
+facing a mulberry tree, with one leg on each side of it.<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="III" id="III"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 412px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/page40.png" width="412" height="600" alt="&quot;And When I Came Down.&quot;" title="&quot;And When I Came Down.&quot;" />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">&quot;And When I Came Down.&quot;</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>"By this time I had reached a decision, and I had the courage of my
+convictions. I felt it to be my duty to milk that cow. I reminded her in
+plain, straightforward language that I was the son of a deacon, and that
+she'd find it out before she got through with me. I assured her that I
+understood the beauty of righteousness, and that I held a strong hand&mdash;a
+straight flush, as it were. I was well aware that the metaphor was
+somewhat mixed; but it expressed my sentiments and relieved my feelings,
+and so I fired it at her point-blank. She snorted and pawed and
+bellowed, and swore at me in cow-language, but I didn't care for that.
+So I shook the old, battered milk-pail in her face, and told her I was
+born in Connecticut, and did business on spot-cash principle; and that
+she would know more of the commandments than any cow of her color in
+Texas, before we said our long farewell.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"By this time the matter had attracted a good deal of attention, for I
+had carried on my conversation with the cow in the voice of a tragedian
+when the chief villain of the play has stolen his girl, and my next
+neighbor, an old sea-captain from Mattagorda Bay, and his hired men had
+come over to assist me. They were of the nature of a reënforcement,
+which consisted of the captain, a Mexican, a Michigan man that
+stuttered, and two negroes&mdash;Napoleon Bonaparte de Neville Smith, and
+George Washington Marlborough Johnsing, by name. Hence we were six in
+all, and I decided to take the offensive at once. The captain was
+advanced in years and rheumatic, but a clearheaded man, used to command,
+and had 'boarded,' as he expressed it, 'several of the&mdash;&mdash;crafts in his
+own waters.' So I put him in charge of the marines, namely, ourselves,
+and told him to fight the ship for all she was worth. He caught on to
+the thing at once, and swore he would 'sweep the old black hulk fore
+and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span> aft, and send every mother's son to the bottom, or make her strike
+her colors.' The vigor of the gallant old gentleman's language, and the
+noble manner in which he shook his cane at the old pirate, put us all in
+good spirits, and I verily believe that, if he had at that fortunate
+moment given the word 'board!' we would, niggers and all, have gone over
+the bulwarks of that old cow with a rush.</p>
+
+<p>"The captain's plan of action was proof of his courage, and in harmony
+with my own ideas of the matter. He said that our force was ample, every
+gun shotted, and the ports open: that we had the windward gauge of her,
+and that the proper course was to send a boat in to cut her cable, and,
+when she drifted down with the current, we would ware ship, lay up
+alongside, grapple, pass lashings aboard, and send the whole crew on to
+her deck with a rush. Assaulted in such a man-of-war style, he was
+confident she would become confused, be intimidated, and strike her
+colors without firing<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> a gun. The brave and sonorous language with which
+our commander set forth his plan of assault captured our imaginations,
+and we all longed for the moment when the word of command should permit
+us to swarm up the sides and over the rail of the old bovine.</p>
+
+<p>"Not only was the general plan thus agreed upon, but each man had his
+post of duty assigned to him. When the 'cable was cut,' that is, when
+the cow should find herself at liberty and bolt, as she would be sure to
+do, the Mexican was to lasso her and hang on; Napoleon Bonaparte de
+Neville and George Washington Marlborough were to lay hold of her horns
+to 'port and starboard,' as the captain insisted, while the Michigan
+man&mdash;who was over six feet tall, and leggy&mdash;was to fasten with a good
+grip on to her tail, that he might serve not only as a 'drag,' as our
+commander phrased it, but as a pilot as well, 'if she should get to
+yawing or be suddenly taken aback, and be unable to come up into the
+wind promptly,'<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span> while I was held in reserve to guard against
+emergencies. I did not quite like the position assigned to me, and so
+intimated to the captain, but he said no one could tell how it might go
+when we once got out of the harbor, and, if any of the braces should
+part, or the sea get high, that he would have to send an additional man
+to the wheel, 'for,' he added, in a whisper, 'God knows, that
+long-legged Michigan land-lubber could never keep her to a straight
+course if she should once get running with the wind over her quarter,
+and everything drawing, through that cornfield.' I saw the force of his
+reasoning, and felt easier.</p>
+
+<p>"So, without farther delay, we went into action. The old captain stood,
+knife in hand, ready to cut the lariat which held the cow to the tree,
+but, before he did so, he hailed, '<i>All ready to cut cables!</i>'</p>
+
+<p>"'Fo' de lawd, cap'in!' yelled Napoleon de Neville, 'what is dis yere
+nigger gwine to do if de udder nigger lets go?'<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"'Go way dar, nigger!' retorted George Washington Marlborough; 'what you
+takes dis nigger for if you tinks I's gwine to let go dis ole black
+cow?'</p>
+
+<p>"'I'll give a silver dollar to the nigger that holds on the longest,' I
+yelled.</p>
+
+<p>"'Well answered, mate,' sang out the old captain. '<i>All ready to cut
+cables. Cut she is!</i>'</p>
+
+<p>"The cow gave a bellow like the roar of a lion, and made a rush with
+lowered horns at the captain. Now, this was not the course laid down on
+his chart for her to take; and he and the rest of us were struck all
+aback, as he afterwards expressed it; but he met the emergency with
+spirit. He broke his big, Spanish-oak stick on the nose of the brute,
+and then the old mariner rolled in the dust.</p>
+
+<p>"'Lay aboard of her, men!' shouted the old hero, in a voice like a
+fog-horn, flourishing the fragments of his stick. 'Lay aboard of the old
+cuss, I say! Cast your grapplings,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span> Greaser! Seize her helm, some of
+ye, and throw it hard over to port!'<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="IV"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 412px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/page46.png" width="412" height="600" alt="&quot;Lay Aboard of the Old Cuss!&quot;" title="&quot;Lay Aboard of the Old Cuss!&quot;" />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">&quot;Lay Aboard of the Old Cuss!&quot;</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>"These orders were obeyed with alacrity. Not a man flinched. The loop of
+the lasso settled over the polished horns to the roots, and Don Juan San
+Diego set it tight with a twang. Napoleon Bonaparte and George
+Washington rushed headlong upon her and hung to horns and ears; while
+the man from Michigan fastened a grip on her lifted tail, as she tore
+past him, which straightened him out like a lathe. As to myself, I could
+only stand and gaze with solicitude upon the terrific contest, on the
+issue of which depended not only the chances of my speculation, but even
+the preservation of my self-esteem.</p>
+
+<p>"The combat deepened and enlarged itself, as it were. A bull-dog, who
+was wandering along the road in search of adventure, and two foxhounds
+joined in the fight. The calf, the only one of the seven thousand five
+hundred and twenty-three I was ever destined to behold,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span> broke from its
+pen and ran bellowing to its mother. The dogs bayed, the niggers yelled,
+the Mexican swore in his delightful tongue; and the stuttering
+Michigander remained silent, simply from his inability to pronounce the
+profanity of his feelings.</p>
+
+<p>"Suddenly the cow, which had been slowly working her way, with her
+several attachments clinging to her, toward the road which ran along the
+front of the field, turned and started pell-mell toward the river, which
+flowed wide and deep, through the rushes, at the rear of it. She left
+the path and took to the corn, and through the mass of growing stalks
+she swept like a whirlwind. Onward she came. I anticipated the awful
+catastrophe, and stood riveted to the spot. The old captain still sat in
+the gravel, where the cow had bowled him, his hand grasping the
+shattered cane, and his game leg extended. He too foresaw the
+inevitable. Through the corn came the cow, like a black Saturn attended
+by her satellites. But her<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span> career was too terrific for these to hold to
+their connection. The laws of the universe forbade it. Napoleon
+Bonaparte de Neville lost his hold as she crashed into the sorghum
+patch. George Washington Marlborough tripped over an irrigation ditch,
+and soared away at a tangent, like a sputtering remnant of a burnt-out
+world. Don Juan San Diego went the wrong side of a mulberry tree, and
+the lasso parted with a snap. He never stopped until his momentum
+carried him through the slats of the neighboring cow-pen. Only the
+long-legged Michigander kept his hold, and he looked like a pair of
+extended scissors. I stood aghast at the impending ruin of my hopes,
+with my lower jaw dropped. The captain alone retained his presence of
+mind. As the black unit of my last Texan speculation shot by him, with
+Michigan, elongated like a peninsula, fastened to her tail, he rolled up
+to his knees and roared:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"'<i>Starboard your helm, boy!</i> <i>Luff her up! Luff her up, for the love
+of God, or the colonel is busted!</i>'</p>
+
+<p>"It is doubtful if the Michigan man ever heard the stentorian call of
+the captain, for sound travels only thirteen hundred feet to the second,
+and the cow was certainly going considerably faster than that; and,
+besides, he was himself engaged, with a terrific earnestness, in a vain
+effort to extricate a word out of his throat, which stuck like a wad in
+a smutty gun&mdash;a word of undoubted Saxon origin and of expressive force,
+and which has saved more blood-vessels from bursting than the lancet of
+the phlebotomist, for as he streamed past there was left floating upon
+the air a long string of d's, thus: d&mdash;&mdash;d&mdash;&mdash;d&mdash;d&mdash;d&mdash;d-d-d...!</p>
+
+<p>"No one who did not hear them could ever conceive of the awful
+sputtering, hissing sound that they caused in the atmosphere as they
+came out of the mouth of the mad and stuttering Michigander; and as he
+and the cow bored a hole through the reeds on the bank of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span> river,
+and, hitting a cypress stump, ricochetted into the water, that fiery
+string of d's, still hot and sputtering, reached half across the field.<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="V"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 412px; height: 600px;">
+<img src="images/page50.png" width="412" height="600" alt="&quot;Luff Her Up! Luff Her Up!&quot;" title="&quot;Luff Her Up! Luff Her Up!&quot;" />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">&quot;Luff Her Up! Luff Her Up!&quot;</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>"The splash of the two as they struck the water brought the old captain
+to his feet, and, in spite of his rheumatic leg, he rushed toward the
+river, crying:&mdash;</p>
+
+<p>"'<i>Man overboard! Man overboard! Gone clean over the forechains!
+Life-floats to port and starboard!</i>'</p>
+
+<p>"With such a frightful catastrophe, gentlemen, the remembrance of which
+actually makes me nervous, my last speculation in Texas ended. Going
+over the whole matter with the captain that evening,&mdash;a process which
+took us well into the night,&mdash;it was our united opinion that the
+speculation was a failure. This conviction was mutual and profound. The
+cow was not only gone, but she had shown such disinclination to be
+domesticated, and such a misapprehension of the true purpose of life,
+that the prospect was truly disheartening.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"'Why, damn it, colonel,' said the captain, 'we've no evidence that the
+old cow wanted to be milked!'</p>
+
+<p>"To this discouraging conclusion of the captain's I was compelled to
+give a sorrowful assent. I recognized that my speculation was in
+arrears, as it were, and that it would never figure up a profit.</p>
+
+<p>"Therefore, next day I divided my few personal effects between the
+captain and the noble men who had risked their lives for an idea; who
+had seen the tragedy played out and the curtain rung down to my last
+appearance, as it were. And, with the few dollars which alone remained
+of the fortune which I took with me to Texas, I mounted my horse and
+started northward, to join that noble army of martyrs, that brotherhood
+of sufferers, that fraternity of the busted, whose members are legion,
+and who are known as '<i>Ex-Texans</i>.'"</p>
+
+<p>The hilarity of the camp that evening under the foot-hills will never be
+forgotten by those of us who composed the happy number, and who<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span>
+listened with streaming eyes and aching sides to the narrative of our
+unfortunate guest. He told his story with a directness and simplicity of
+narrative, with a gravity of countenance and plaintiveness of voice,
+which heightened the humor of the substance. Never did the stars, which
+have seen so much of human happiness, which have listened to so much of
+the rollicking humor of those who were fashioned for laughter, looked
+down upon a jollier camp. Long after our guest had ended his narrative
+and was apparently sleeping in happy forgetfulness of his Texas
+speculation, succeeding pauses of silence would come roars of laughter.
+The remembrance of the humorous tale banished sleep, and, even after
+slumber had fallen on us all, fun still held possession of our dreams.
+For Dick, starting from sleep in a nightmare of hilarity, roared out:
+"<i>Luff her up, luff her up, or the colonel is busted!</i>"</p>
+
+<p>Ay, ay, thank God for laughter. Thank him heartily and ever, dear
+friend, blow the winds, run the tides as they may. The sorrows<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span> of life
+may be many, and its griefs may be keen, and we who are frosted with
+years and you who are blooming have felt and will feel the sting of
+false friends and the burden of losses; but, lose what we may, or be
+pained as we have been and shall be, we are happy in this,&mdash;we who know
+how to laugh,&mdash;that we find wings for each burden, solace for pains, and
+return for all losses, in our sweet sense of humor, thank Heaven! So,
+whether rich men or poor, healthy or sick, brown-headed or gray, we will
+go on like children, with eyes for all beauty and hearts for all fun.
+Let lilies teach us, and of the birds of the air let us learn. The day
+that is not shall not make us anxious, for of each day is the evil
+enough, and the morrow shall take care of itself.<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="VIII"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 600px; height: 281px;">
+<img src="images/page54.png" width="600" height="281" alt="The wickedest cow." title="The wickedest cow." />
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span></p>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<h2>HOW DEACON TUBMAN AND PARSON WHITNEY CELEBRATED NEW YEAR'S.</h2>
+
+
+<p>"Mirandy, I'm going up to see the parson," exclaimed the deacon, when
+the morning devotions were over, "and see if I can thaw him out a
+little. I've heard that there used to be a lot in him in his younger
+days, but he's sort of frozen all up latterly, and I can see that the
+young folks are afraid of him and the church too, but that won't do&mdash;no,
+it won't do," repeated the good man emphatically, "for the minister
+ought to be loved by young and old, rich and poor, and everybody; and a
+church without young folks in it is, why, it is like a family with no
+children in it. Yes, I'll go up and wish him a Happy New Year anyway.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span>
+Perhaps I can get him out for a ride to make some calls on the people,
+and see the young folks at their fun. It'll do him good, and them good,
+and me good, and everybody good." Saying which, the deacon got inside
+his warm fur coat, and started toward the barn to harness Jack into the
+worn, old-fashioned sleigh, which sleigh was built high in the back, and
+had a curved dasher of monstrous proportions, ornamented with a prancing
+horse in an impossible attitude, done in bright vermilion on a blue
+background!</p>
+
+<p>"Happy New Year to you, Parson Whitney! Happy New Year to you," cried
+the deacon, as he stood in the doorway of the parsonage and shook the
+parson by the hand enthusiastically, "and may you live to enjoy a
+hundred."</p>
+
+<p>"Come in, come in," cried Parson Whitney, in response. "I'm glad you've
+come; I'm glad you've come. I've been wanting to see you all the
+morning," and in the cordiality of his greeting he literally pulled the
+little man through the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span> doorway into the hall, and hurried him up the
+stairway to his study in the chamber overhead.</p>
+
+<p>"Thinking of me! Well, now, I never!" exclaimed the deacon, as, assisted
+by the parson, he twisted and wriggled himself out of his coat, that he
+filled, a little too snugly for an easy exit. "Thinking of me, and among
+all these books too&mdash;Bibles, catechisms, tracts, theologies, sermons.
+Well, well, that is funny. What made you think of me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Deacon Tubman," responded the parson, as he seated himself in his
+armchair, "I want to talk with you about the church."</p>
+
+<p>"The church!" ejaculated the deacon in response. "Nothing going wrong, I
+hope?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, things are going wrong, deacon," responded the parson. "The
+congregation is growing smaller and smaller, and yet I preach good,
+strong, biblical, soul-satisfying sermons, I trust."</p>
+
+<p>"Good ones! good ones!" answered the deacon promptly, "never
+better&mdash;never better in the world."<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"And yet the people are deserting the sanctuary," rejoined the parson
+solemnly, "and the young people won't come to the sociables, and the
+little children seem actually afraid of me. What shall I do, deacon?"
+and the good man put the question with pathetic emphasis.</p>
+
+<p>"You've hit the nail on the head, square as a hatchet, parson,"
+responded the deacon. "The congregation is thinning. The young people
+don't come to the meetings, and the little children are afraid of you."</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter, deacon?" cried the parson in return. "What is it?"
+he repeated earnestly. "Speak it right out; don't try to spare my
+feelings. I will listen to&mdash;I will do anything to win back my people's
+love," and the strong, old-fashioned Calvinistic preacher said it in a
+voice that actually trembled.</p>
+
+<p>"You can do it&mdash;you can do it in a week!" exclaimed the deacon
+encouragingly. "Don't worry about it, parson; it'll be all right, it'll
+be all right. Your books are the trouble."<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Books?" ejaculated the parson. "What have they to do with it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Everything," replied the deacon stoutly. "You pore over them day in and
+day out; they keep you in this room here when you should be out among
+the people,&mdash;not making pastoral visits,&mdash;I don't mean that,&mdash;but going
+around among them, chatting and joking and having a good time. They
+would like it, and you would like it, and as for the young folks&mdash;how
+old are you, parson?"</p>
+
+<p>"Sixty next month," answered the parson; "sixty next month," he repeated
+solemnly.</p>
+
+<p>"Thirty! thirty! that's all you are, parson, or all you ought to be,"
+cried the deacon. "Thirty, twenty, sixteen!&mdash;let the figures slide down
+and up, according to circumstances, but never let them go higher than
+thirty when you are dealing with young folks. I'm sixty myself, counting
+years; but I'm only sixteen, sixteen this morning, that's all, parson,"
+and he rubbed his little round plump hands together, looked at the
+parson, and winked.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Bless my soul, Deacon Tubman, I don't know but that you are right!"
+answered the parson. "Sixty? I don't know as I am sixty," and he began
+to rub his own hands, and came within an ace of executing a wink at the
+deacon, himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Not a day over twenty, if I am any judge of age," responded the deacon
+deliberately, as he looked the white-headed old minister over with a
+most comic imitation of seriousness. "Not a day over twenty, on my
+honor," and the deacon leaned forward toward the parson, and gave him a
+punch with his thumb, as one boy might deliver a punch at another, and
+then he lay back in his chair and laughed so heartily that the parson
+caught the infectious mirth and roared away as heartily as himself.</p>
+
+<p>Yes, it was impossible to sit hobnobbing with the little, jolly deacon
+on that bright New Year's morning and not be affected by the happiness
+of his mood, for he was actually bubbling over with fun, and as full of
+frolic as if the finger<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span> on the dial had, in truth, gone back forty-odd
+years, and he was "only sixteen. Only sixteen, parson, on my honor."</p>
+
+<p>"But what can I do?" queried the good man, sobering down. "I make my
+pastoral visits."</p>
+
+<p>"Pastoral visits!" responded Deacon Tubman. "Oh, yes, and they are all
+well enough for the old folks, but they ar'n't the kind of biscuit the
+young folks like&mdash;too heavy in the centre, and over-hard in the crust
+for young teeth, eh, parson?"</p>
+
+<p>"But what shall I do? what shall I do?" reiterated the parson, somewhat
+despondently.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh! put on your hat, and gloves, and warmest coat, and come along with
+me. We will see what the young folks are doing, and will make a day of
+it. Come! come! let the old books, and catechisms, and sermons, and
+tracts have a respite for once, and we'll spend the day out-of-doors,
+with the boys and girls and the people."<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"I'll do it!" exclaimed the parson. "Deacon Tubman, you are right. I do
+keep to my study too closely. I don't see enough of the world and what's
+going on in it. I was reading the Testament this morning, and I was
+impressed with the Master's manner of living and teaching. It is not
+certain that he ever preached more than twice in a church during all his
+ministry on the earth. And the children! how much he loved the children,
+and how the little ones loved him! And why shouldn't they love me, too?
+Why shouldn't they? I'll make them do it! yes, I'll make them do it! The
+lambs of my flock shall love me." And with these brave words Parson
+Whitney bundled himself up in his warmest garments, and followed the
+deacon downstairs.</p>
+
+<p>"Tell the folks that you won't be back till night," called the deacon
+from the sleigh; "for this is New Year, and we're going to make a day of
+it," and he laughed away as heartily as might be&mdash;so heartily that the
+par<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span>son joined in the laughter himself as he came shuffling down the icy
+path toward him. "Bless me! how much younger I feel already!" said the
+good man as he stood up in the sleigh, and with a long, strong breath
+breathed the cool, pure air into his lungs. "Bless me! how much younger
+I feel already!" he repeated, as he settled down into the roomy seat of
+the old sleigh. "Only sixteen to-day,&mdash;eh, deacon?" and he nudged him
+with his elbow.</p>
+
+<p>"That's all, that's all, parson," answered the deacon gayly, as he
+nudged him vigorously back; "that's all we are, either of us," and,
+laughing as merrily as two boys, the two glided away in the sleigh.</p>
+
+<p>Well, perhaps they didn't have fun that day, these two old boys that had
+started out with the feeling that they were "only sixteen," and bound to
+make "a day of it!" And they did make a day of it, in fact, and such a
+day as neither had had for forty years; for, first, they went to
+Bartlett's Hill, where the boys and<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span> girls were coasting, and coasted
+with them for a full hour,&mdash;and then it was discovered by the younger
+portion of his flock that the parson was not an old, stiff, solemn,
+surly poke, as they had thought, but a pleasant, good-natured, kindly
+soul, who could take and give a joke, and steer a sled as well as the
+smartest boy in the crowd; and when it came to snow-balling, he could
+send a ball further than Bill Sykes himself, who could out-throw any boy
+in town, and roll up a bigger block to the new snow fort they were
+building than any three boys among them. And how the parson enjoyed
+being a boy again! How exhilarating the slide down the steep hill; how
+invigorating the pure, cool air; how pleasant the noise of the chatting
+and joking going on around him; how bright and sweet the boys and girls
+looked, with their rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes; and how the old
+parson's heart thrilled as they crowded around him when he would go, and
+urged him to stay,&mdash;and little Alice Dor<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span>chester begged him, with her
+little arms around his neck, to "jes' stay and gib me one more slide,
+please!"</p>
+
+<p>"You never made such a pastoral call as that, parson," said the deacon,
+as they drove away amid the cheers of the boys and the "good-bys" of the
+girls, while the former fired off a volley of snow-balls in his honor,
+and the latter waved their muffs and handkerchiefs after them.</p>
+
+<p>"God bless them! God bless them!" said the parson. "They have lifted a
+load from my heart, and taught me the sweetness of life, of youth, and
+the wisdom of Him who took the little ones in His arms, and blessed
+them. Ah, deacon," he added, "I've been a great fool, but I'll be so,
+thank God! no more."</p>
+
+<p>Now, old Jack was a horse of a great deal of character, and had a great
+history; but of this none in that section, save the little deacon, knew
+a word. Dick Tubman, the deacon's youngest, wildest, and, we might add,
+favorite<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span> son, had purchased him of an impecunious jockey, at the close
+of a disastrous campaign, that cleaned him completely out, and left him
+in a strange city a thousand miles from home, with nothing but the
+horse, harness, and sulky, and a list of unpaid bills that must be met
+before he could leave the scene of his disastrous fortunes. Under such
+circumstances it was that Dick Tubman ran across the horse, and partly
+out of pity for its owner, and partly out of admiration of the horse,
+whose failure to win at the races was due more to his lack of condition
+and the bad management of his jockey than lack of speed, bought him
+off-hand, and, having no use for him himself, shipped him as a present
+to the deacon, with whom he had now been four years, with no harder work
+than ploughing out the good old man's corn in the summer, and jogging
+along the country roads on the deacon's errands. Having said thus much
+of the horse, perhaps we should more particularly describe him.<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>He was, in sooth, an animal of most unique and extraordinary appearance;
+for, in the first place, he was quite seventeen hands in height, and
+long in proportion. He was also the reverse of shapely in the fashion of
+his build: for his head was long and bony, and his hip bones sharp and
+protuberant; his tail was what is known among horsemen as a rat-tail,
+being but scantily covered with hair, and his neck was even more
+scantily supplied with a mane, while in color he could easily have taken
+any premium put up for homeliness, being an ashen roan, mottled with
+flecks and patches of divers hues; but his legs were flat and corded
+like a racer's, his neck long and thin as a thoroughbred's, his nostrils
+large, his ears sharply pointed and lively, while the white rings around
+his eyes hinted at a cross, somewhere in his pedigree, with Arabian
+blood. A huge, bony, homely-looking horse he was, who drew the deacon
+and Miranda into the village on market days and Sundays, with a loose,
+shambling gait, making<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span> altogether an appearance so homely and peculiar
+that the smart village chaps riding along in their jaunty turn-outs used
+to chaff the good deacon on the character of his steed, and satirically
+challenge him to a brush. The deacon always took their badinage in good
+part, although he inwardly said more than once, "If I ever get a good
+chance, when there ar'n't too many around, I'll go up to the turn of the
+road beyond the church, and let Jack out on them;" for Dick had given
+him a hint of the horse's history, and told him "he could knock the
+spots out of thirty," and wickedly urged the deacon to take the starch
+out of them airy chaps some of these days. Such was the horse, then,
+that the deacon had ahead of him, and the old-fashioned sleigh, when,
+with the parson alongside, he struck into the principal street of the
+village.</p>
+
+<p>Now, New Year's Day is a lively day in many country villages, and on
+this bright one especially, as the sleighing was perfect, everybody<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span> was
+out. Indeed, it had got noised abroad that certain trotters of local
+fame were to be on the street that afternoon, and, as the boys worded
+it, "there would be heaps of fun going on." And so it happened that
+everybody in town, and many who lived out of it, were on this particular
+street, and just at the hour, too, when the deacon came to the foot of
+it, so that the walk on either side was lined darkly with lookers-on,
+and the smooth snow-path between the two lines looked like a veritable
+homestretch on a race-day.</p>
+
+<p>Now, when the deacon had reached the corner of the main street and
+turned into it, it was at that point where the course terminated and the
+"brushes" were ended, and at the precise moment when the dozen or twenty
+horses that had just come flying down were being pulled up preparatory
+to returning at a slow gait to the customary starting-point at the head
+of the street, a half-mile away, so that the old-fashioned sleigh was
+surrounded by the<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span> light, fancy cutters of the rival racers, and old
+Jack was shambling awkwardly along in the midst of the high-spirited and
+smoking nags that had just come flying down the stretch.</p>
+
+<p>"Hellow, deacon," shouted one of the boys, who was driving a
+trim-looking bay, and who had crossed the line at the ending of the
+course second only to a pacer that could "speed like a streak of
+lightning," as the boys said,&mdash;"Hellow, deacon; ain't you going to shake
+out old shamble-heels, and show us fellows what speed is to-day?" And
+the merry-hearted chap, son of the principal lawyer of the place,
+laughed heartily at his challenge, while the other drivers looked at the
+great angular horse that, without any check, was walking carelessly
+along, with his head held down, ahead of the old sleigh and its churchly
+occupants.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know but what I will," answered the deacon, good-naturedly;
+"don't know but what I will, if the parson don't object, and you won't
+start off too quick to begin with; for this is<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span> New Year's, and a
+little extra fun won't hurt any of us, I reckon."<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="VI"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 600px; height: 329px;">
+<img src="images/page70.png" width="600" height="329" alt="The Deacon and Parson." title="The Deacon and Parson." />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">The Deacon and Parson.</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>"Do it, do it; we'll hold up for you," answered a dozen merry voices.
+"Do it, deacon: it'll do old shamble-heels good to go a ten-mile-an-hour
+gait for once in his life, and the parson needn't fear of being
+scandalized by any speed you'll get out of him, either;" and the merry
+chaps haw-hawed as men and boys will, when every one is jolly and fun
+flows fast.</p>
+
+<p>And so, with any amount of good-natured chaffing from the drivers of the
+"fast 'uns," and from many that lined the road too,&mdash;for the day gave
+greater liberty than usual to bantering speech,&mdash;the speedy ones paced
+slowly up to the head of the street, with old Jack shambling demurely in
+the midst of them.</p>
+
+<p>But the horse was a knowing old fellow, and had "scored" at too many
+races not to know that the "return" was to be leisurely taken, and,
+indeed, he was a horse of independence, and of too even, perhaps of too
+sluggish, a<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span> temperament, to waste himself in needless action; but he
+had the right stuff in him, and hadn't forgotten his early training
+either, for when he came to the "turn," his head and tail came up, his
+eye brightened, and, with a playful movement of his huge body, and
+without the least hint from the deacon, he swung himself and the
+cumbrous old sleigh into line, and began to straighten himself for the
+coming brush.</p>
+
+<p>Now, Jack was, as we have said, a horse of huge proportions, and needed
+"steadying" at the start, but the good deacon had no experience with the
+"ribbons," and was therefore utterly unskilled in the matter of driving;
+and so it came about that old Jack was so confused at the start that he
+made a most awkward and wretched appearance in his effort to get off,
+being all "mixed up," as the saying is,&mdash;so much so that the crowd
+roared at his ungainly efforts, and his flying rivals were twenty rods
+away before he even got started. But at last<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span> he got his huge body in a
+straight line, and, leaving his miserable shuffle, squared away to his
+work, and, with head and tail up, went off at so slashing a gait that it
+fairly took the deacon's breath away, and caused the crowd that had been
+hooting him to roar their applause, while the parson grabbed the edge of
+the old sleigh with one hand and the rim of his tall black hat with the
+other.</p>
+
+<p>What a pity, Mr. Longface, that God made horses as they are, and gave
+them such grandeur of appearance when in action, and put such an
+eagle-like spirit between their ribs, so that, quitting the plodding
+motions of the ox, they can fly like that noble bird, and come sweeping
+down the course as on wings of the wind!</p>
+
+<p>It was not my fault, nor the deacon's, nor the parson's either, please
+remember, then, that awkward, shuffling, homely-looking old Jack was
+thus suddenly transformed, by the royalty of blood, of pride, and of
+speed given him by<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span> his Creator, from what he ordinarily was, into a
+magnificent spectacle of energetic velocity.</p>
+
+<p>With muzzle lifted well up, tail erect, the few hairs in it streaming
+straight behind, one ear pricked forward and the other turned sharply
+back, the great horse swept grandly along at a pace that was rapidly
+bringing him even with the rear line of the flying group. And yet so
+little was the pace to him that he fairly gambolled in playfulness as he
+went slashing along, until the deacon verily began to fear that the
+honest old chap would break through all the bounds of propriety and send
+his heels antically through his treasured dashboard. Indeed, the
+spectacle that the huge horse presented was so magnificent, his action
+so free, spirited, and playful, as he came sweeping onward, that cheers
+and exclamations, such as, "Good heavens! see the deacon's old horse!"
+"Look at him! look at him!" "What a stride!" etc., ran ahead of him, and
+old Bill Sykes, a trainer in his day, but now a hanger-on at the
+village<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span> tavern, or that section of it known as the bar, wiped his
+watery eyes with his tremulous fist, as he saw Jack come swinging down,
+and, as he swept past with his open gait, powerful stroke, and stiffles
+playing well out, brought his hand with a mighty slap against his thigh,
+and said, "I'll be blowed if he isn't a regular old timer!"</p>
+
+<p>It was fortunate for the deacon and the parson that the noise and
+cheering of the crowd drew the attention of the drivers ahead, or there
+would surely have been more than one collision, for the old sleigh was
+of such size and strength, the good deacon so unskilled at the reins,
+and Jack, who was adding to his momentum with every stride, was going at
+so determined a pace, that, had he struck the rear line, with no gap for
+him to go through, something serious would surely have happened. But, as
+it was, the drivers saw the huge horse, with the cumbrous old sleigh
+behind him, bearing down on them at such a gait as made their own speed,
+sharp as it was, seem slow, and "pulled out" in time<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span> to save
+themselves; and so without any mishap the big horse and heavy sleigh
+swept through the rear row of racers like an autumn gust through a
+cluster of leaves.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the deacon had become somewhat alarmed, for Jack was going
+nigh to a thirty clip,&mdash;a frightful pace for an inexperienced man to
+ride,&mdash;and began to put a good strong pressure upon the bit, not
+doubting that old Jack&mdash;ordinarily the easiest horse in the world to
+manage&mdash;would take the hint and immediately slow up. But though the huge
+horse took the hint, it was exactly in the opposite manner that the
+deacon intended he should, for he interpreted the little man's steady
+pull as an intimation that his inexperienced driver was getting over his
+flurry and beginning to treat him as a big horse ought to be treated in
+a race, and that he could now, having got settled to his work, go ahead.
+And go ahead he did. The more the deacon pulled, the more the great
+horse felt himself steadied<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span> and assisted. And so, the harder the good
+man tugged at the reins, the more powerfully the machinery of the big
+animal ahead of him worked, until the deacon got alarmed, and began to
+call upon the horse to stop, crying, "Whoa, Jack! whoa, old boy, I say!
+Whoa, will you now, that's a good fellow!" and many other coaxing calls,
+while he pulled away steadily at the reins.</p>
+
+<p>But the horse misunderstood the deacon's calls, as he had his pressure
+on the reins, for the crowd on either side were now yelling, and
+hooting, and swinging their caps, so that the deacon's voice came
+indistinctly to his ears at the best, and he interpreted his calls for
+him to stop as only so many encouragements and signals for him to go
+ahead; and so, with the memory of a hundred races stirring his blood,
+the crowd cheering him to the echo, the steadying pull and encouraging
+cries of his driver in his ears, and his only rival, the pacer, whirling
+along only a few rods ahead of him, the mon<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span>strous animal, with a
+desperate plunge that half lifted the old sleigh from the snow, let out
+another link, and, with such a burst of speed as was never seen in the
+village before, tore along after the pacer at such a terrific pace that,
+within the distance of a dozen lengths, he lay lapped upon him, and the
+two were going it nose and nose.</p>
+
+<p>What is that feeling in human hearts which makes us sympathetic with man
+or animal who has unexpectedly developed courage and capacity when
+engaged in a struggle in which the odds are against him? And why do we
+enter so spiritedly into the contest, and lose ourselves in the
+excitement of the moment? Is it pride? Is it the comradeship of courage?
+Or is it the rising of the indomitable in us, that loves nothing so much
+as victory, and hates nothing so much as defeat? Be that as it may, no
+sooner was old Jack fairly lapped on the pacer, whose driver was urging
+him along with reins and voice alike, and the contest seemed
+doubtful,<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span> than the spirit of old Adam himself entered into the deacon
+and the parson both, so that, carried away by the excitement of the
+race, they fairly forgot themselves, and entered as wildly into the
+contest as two ungodly jockeys.<br /><br /></p>
+
+<p><a name="VII"></a></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter border1" style="width: 600px; height: 354px;">
+<img src="images/page78.png" width="600" height="354" alt="The Race." title="The Race." />
+<span class="caption"><span class="smcap">The Race.</span></span>
+</div>
+
+<p><br /></p>
+
+<p>"Deacon Tubman!" said the parson, as he clutched the rim of his tall
+hat, against which, as the horse tore along, the snow chips were pelting
+in showers, more stoutly, "Deacon Tubman! do you think the pacer will
+beat us?"</p>
+
+<p>"Not if I can help it! not if I can help it!" yelled the deacon in
+reply, as, with something like a reinsman's skill, he instinctively
+lifted Jack to another spurt. "Go it, old boy!" he shouted
+encouragingly. "Go along with you, I say!" and the parson, also carried
+away by the whirl of the moment, cried, "Go along, old boy! Go along
+with you, I say!"</p>
+
+<p>This was the very thing, and the only thing, that huge horse, whose
+blood was now fairly aflame, wanted to rally him for the final effort;
+and, in response to the encouraging cries of the two<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span> behind him, he
+gathered himself together for another burst of speed, and put forth his
+collected strength with such tremendous energy and suddenness of
+movement that the little deacon, who had risen, and was standing erect
+in the sleigh, fell back into the arms of the parson, while the great
+horse rushed over the line a winner by a clear length, amid such cheers
+and roars of laughter as were never heard in that village before.</p>
+
+<p>Nor was the horse any more the object of public interest and remark&mdash;we
+may say favoring remark&mdash;than the parson, who suddenly found himself the
+centre of a crowd of his own parishioners, many of whom would scarcely
+be expected as participants of such a scene, but who, thawed out of
+their iciness by the genial temper of the day, and vastly excited over
+Jack's contest, thronged upon the good man, laughing as heartily as any
+jolly sinner in the crowd.</p>
+
+<p>So everybody shook hands with the parson<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span> and wished him a Happy New
+Year, and the parson shook hands with everybody and wished them all many
+happy returns; and everybody praised old Jack, and rallied the deacon on
+his driving; and then everybody went home good-natured and happy,
+laughing and talking about the wonderful race, and the change that had
+come over Parson Whitney.</p>
+
+<p>And as for Parson Whitney himself, the day and its fun had taken twenty
+years from his age, and nothing would answer but the deacon must go home
+and eat the New Year's pudding at the parsonage; and he did. And at the
+table they laughed and talked over the funny incidents of the day, and
+joked each other as merrily as two boys. Then Parson Whitney told some
+reminiscences of his college days, and the scrapes he got into, and a
+riot between town and gown, when he carried the "Bully's Club;" and the
+deacon responded by narrating his experiences with a certain Deacon
+Jones's watermelon patch when he was a boy, and over<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span> their tales and
+their mulled cider they laughed till they cried, and roared so lustily
+at the remembered frolics of their youthful days that the old parsonage
+rang, the books on the library shelves rattled, and several of the
+theological volumes actually gaped with horror.</p>
+
+<p>But at last the stories were all told, the jokes all cracked, and the
+laughter all laughed, and the little deacon wished the parson good-by,
+and jogged happily homeward; but more than once he laughed to himself,
+and said, "Bless my soul! I didn't know the parson had so much fun in
+him." And long the parson sat by the glowing grate after the deacon had
+left him, musing of other days, and the happy, pleasant things that were
+in them; and many times he smiled, and once he laughed outright at some
+remembered folly, for he said, "What a wild boy I was, and yet I meant
+no wrong; and the dear old days were very happy."</p>
+
+<p>Ay, ay! Parson Whitney, the dear old days were very happy, not only to
+thee, but to all of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span> us, who, following our sun, have fared westward so
+long that the light of the morning shows dull through the dim haze of
+memory. But happier than even the old days will be the young ones, I
+ween, when, following still westward, we suddenly come to the gates of
+the new east and the morning once more; and there, in the dawn of a day
+which is cloudless and endless, we find our lost youth and its loves, to
+lose them and it no more forever, thank God!<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span></p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span></p>
+
+<h2>THE LEAF OF RED ROSE:<br /></h2>
+
+<h4>THE OLD TRAPPER'S STORY.</h4>
+
+<p style="margin-left: 32%;">
+A story? Why, yes. If Henry, there, will translate it<br />
+And put it in verse and print as he promised<br />
+To do when it happened. Will he do it? I doubt.<br />
+He dislikes to dabble with rhyme and with measure.<br />
+Says that good honest prose is the best and the sweetest<br />
+If the words be well chosen, short, Saxon, and pithy.<br />
+And that making of verse is the business of women,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span>
+Of green boys at school, and of lovers when spooning.<br />
+But try him. It may be he will. For a lesson<br />
+Is in it, and that makes it worth telling.<br />
+The woods have their secrets and sorrows and struggles<br />
+As well as the cities. You can find in the woods<br />
+Many things, if you look, beside trees, rocks, and mountains.<br />
+<br />
+Jack Whitcomb he said his name was, though I doubted.<br />
+For the name on his bosom, tattooed in purple,<br />
+Didn't point quite that way. But that doesn't matter.<br />
+One name in the woods is as good as another<br />
+If a man answers to it and it's easily spoken.<br />
+So we called him Jack Whitcomb and asked nothing further.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span>
+Brave? Why, of course he was brave. Men are not cowards.<br />
+Cowards don't come to the woods. They stay in the cities,<br />
+Where policemen are thick and the streets are all lighted.<br />
+In the woods men trail with their ears and eyes open,<br />
+And sleep when they sleep with their hands on their rifles.<br />
+Why? Well, panthers are plenty and cunning and quiet,<br />
+And a man is a fool that goes carelessly stumbling<br />
+Under trees where they crouch, under crags where they gather.<br />
+Furthermore, with the saints, now and then there are sinners<br />
+That live in the woods; and some half-breeds are wicked,<br />
+And know nothing of law unless taught by a bullet.<br />
+I've done what I could to teach knaves the commandments.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span>
+Yes. Jack Whitcomb was brave. Brave as the bravest.<br />
+His glance was as keen and his mouth was as silent<br />
+As a trailer's should be who looks and who listens<br />
+By day and by night, having no one to talk to.<br />
+His finger was quick when it handled the trigger,<br />
+And his eye loved the sights as lightning loves rivers.<br />
+I've seen him stand up when the odds were against him.<br />
+Stand up like a man who takes coolly the chances.<br />
+That proves he was brave as I understand it.<br />
+<br />
+One day we were boating on far Mistassinni.<br />
+We were fetching the portage above the great rapids,<br />
+Where they whirled, roaring down, freshet full, at their whitest,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span>
+When we saw from a rock that stretched outward and over<br />
+The wild hissing water as it swept on in thunder,<br />
+A canoe coming down, rolling over and over,<br />
+With a little papoose clinging tight to the lashings;<br />
+And as it lanced by Jack went in like an otter.<br />
+How he did it God knows, but at the foot of the rapids,<br />
+Half a mile farther down racing onward, I found him<br />
+High and dry on the beach in a faint like a woman,<br />
+With the little papoose pulling away at his jacket.<br />
+And when he came to, he put child to his shoulder,<br />
+Nor stopped till it lay in the arms of its mother.<br />
+<br />
+We were trailing, Henry and I, trailing and trapping<br />
+In the land to the north, where fur was the thickest,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span>
+And knaves were as plenty as mink or as otter.<br />
+We took turns at sleeping, and trailed our line double<br />
+To keep our own skins, if we didn't get others.<br />
+It was folly to stay where we were, and we knew it,<br />
+For the knaves they got thicker, and soon there was shooting<br />
+Going on pretty lively. But we held to the business<br />
+And scouted the line once a week like true trappers.<br />
+And no accident happened save some holes in our jackets,<br />
+And my powder-horn emptied by a vagabond's bullet.<br />
+So we mended our clothing and felt pretty lively.<br />
+But the signs pointed one way. Our enemies thickened<br />
+Around us each day, and we weren't quite decided<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span>
+To stand in for a fight and settle the matter,<br />
+Or pull up our traps and get out of the country,<br />
+When it settled itself. And in this way it happened.<br />
+<br />
+We were scouting the lake on the west shore one morning,<br />
+To find the knaves' camp and how many were in it,<br />
+When a short space ahead there came of a sudden<br />
+A crash as of thunder, and we knew that a dozen<br />
+Or twenty placed rifles had burst an ambushment.<br />
+And then in an instant there sounded another.<br />
+Two sharp, twin reports and the death yells that followed<br />
+Told us as we listened where the lead had been driven.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span>
+Knew who he was? Of course. The man was Jack Whitcomb.<br />
+Do you think men who live by trapping and shooting<br />
+Don't learn to distinguish the voice of their rifles?<br />
+Jack was trailing the lake to find our encampment,<br />
+For far away in the south there had come to his cabin<br />
+A rumor that we in the north land were holding<br />
+Our line and our furs with a good deal of shooting.<br />
+So he left his own traps and came by swift trailing<br />
+To give us the help of another good rifle.<br />
+That was just like Jack Whitcomb. If you were in trouble<br />
+He was there by your side. You could always count on him,<br />
+With finger on trigger and both barrels loaded.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span>
+<br />
+So Henry and I both took to our covers<br />
+Right and left of the trail Jack must take in retreating.<br />
+We didn't wait long, for the boy knew his business,<br />
+And soon he came backward, loading and running,<br />
+Like a man who was busy but wouldn't be hurried<br />
+Beyond his own gait, if he stopped there forever.<br />
+As he passed our two covers I piped him a whistle;<br />
+And he stopped in his tracks, and with low, pleasant laughter,<br />
+Stood there in full view coolly capping the nipples.<br />
+I have shot on each Gulf, both Southern and Northern.<br />
+I have trailed the long trail between either ocean.<br />
+Brave men I have seen, both in good and in evil,<br />
+But never a braver than the man called Jack Whitcomb.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span>
+Well, why describe it? Call it scrimmage or battle,<br />
+It was done in a minute, or it may be a dozen.<br />
+It came like a whirlwind, and we three were in it<br />
+As men are in whirlwinds. It came like the thunder,<br />
+With a crash and a roar and a long running rumble<br />
+Dying down into silence. There were dead and some wounded,<br />
+And a few lucky knaves that fled wildly backward;<br />
+And Henry and I, when it passed, were left standing<br />
+By the body of him whose name was Jack Whitcomb,<br />
+Who lay as he fell, when headlong he tumbled,<br />
+His rifle still clinched and both barrels smoking.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span>
+I have seen in my life many wounds made by bullets,<br />
+And a good many gashes by spear-points and arrows.<br />
+I have learned in my trailing a good many simples<br />
+Which have power to keep men from crossing the river<br />
+Before the Lord calls with voice that is certain.<br />
+And the wound that we found on Jack Whitcomb's body,<br />
+Though ugly and deep, was not beyond curing.<br />
+<br />
+We cleansed and we stanched it and fought a brave battle<br />
+With death, for his life, and we won. For Jack mended.<br />
+We made a canoe and we bore him far southward.<br />
+A hundred good miles down the river we boated,<br />
+Till we came to his house of huge logs, strongly builded,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span>
+Beneath the big pines on the bank of a rapid,<br />
+Which under it flowed its soft rush of brown water.<br />
+'Twas a place to bring peace to a heart that was troubled,<br />
+If peace might be found this side of the silence<br />
+Which brings peace to all that know sorrow in living.<br />
+<br />
+Yes, we boated him down to his home by the rapids.<br />
+His home? No, rather his house let us call it.<br />
+For how can a house be a home with naught in it?<br />
+In house that is home must be love, warm and human,<br />
+A voice that is sweet, a heart that is gentle,<br />
+A soul that is true, and beside these a cradle<br />
+That prattles and coos; and the quick-falling patter<br />
+Of little white feet that run hither and thither.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span>
+To his house, and not to his home, then, we brought him,<br />
+For certainly nothing and no one was in it,<br />
+Save himself and a dog, a bed and a table,<br />
+Some chairs, a few books, and a&mdash;Picture.<br />
+And this was the story that he told us in dying.<br />
+The man might have lived, beyond doubt, had he cared to.<br />
+But he didn't. No motive, he said. And he had none,<br />
+As we felt later on, when he told us his story.<br />
+So he died without word or sign. And in silence<br />
+We stood and saw him go forth on his journey<br />
+Without speaking a word, without a hand lifted<br />
+To hold or to stop him, for we did not feel certain<br />
+What was wisdom for one who went forth in such fashion.<br />
+Perhaps it was best he should go and be over<br />
+With pain, loss and trouble for ever and ever.<br />
+Henry says, it were well we should all of us go<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span>
+When life has no aim and no hope; and no doing<br />
+Remains to be done; and days are but eating<br />
+And drinking and breathing, only these and no more.<br />
+<br />
+But before he went forth he gave me a message.<br />
+"I loved her," so his story began. Henry,<br />
+You remember the look on his face as he said it,<br />
+As he lay with his eyes fixed fast on the Picture?<br />
+"She was strong, and she drew me as life draws the young<br />
+And as death draws the old. I could not resist her.<br />
+She was vital with force, to attract and to hold.<br />
+She raced me a race for my life, and she won it.<br />
+I was man, not a boy, and I loved as man loves<br />
+When the forces of life are in him full-flooded<br />
+As rivers in meadows, when they flow to the sedges.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span>
+Did she love me? Perhaps. Who can tell? She was woman,<br />
+And hence she was dark as the night, and as hidden!<br />
+Who could find her? Who the depth of her nature<br />
+Might measure? I tried but could not. Then boldly<br />
+I spake&mdash;spake as man speaks but once unto woman.<br />
+True and straight did I say it man fashion.<br />
+But she drew back offended; she shrank from my praying,<br />
+And with coldness of tone and suspicion dismissed me.<br />
+Had a man shown a tithe of that look in his eye,<br />
+On his face, he or I would have died on the instant.<br />
+But what can a man do, when scorned by a woman?<br />
+So I left her.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span>
+<br />
+I need not say more. My life it was ended.<br />
+It wasn't worth living;&mdash;I am made in that fashion.<br />
+So I came to the woods. Where else when in trouble<br />
+Can man go and find what he needs, consolation?<br />·
+Go you down to her house, in the city, John Norton,<br />
+To the house where she lives, and give her this message.<br />
+Word for word let her hear it,&mdash;say where you left me.<br />
+There's gold in that box to pay your expenses.<br />
+Word for word as I tell you, nor say a word further."<br />
+Then he bade us good-by, and marched away bravely,<br />
+As a man on a trail that is somewhat uncertain.<br />
+And under the pines on the bank of the rapids<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span>
+We buried the man whom the woods called&mdash;Jack Whitcomb,<br />
+And the picture he loved we placed on his bosom.<br />
+</p>
+
+<h2><span style="letter-spacing: 1.3em; padding-left: 1.3em;"><b>···········</b></span></h2>
+
+<p style="margin-left: 32%;">
+I went down to her house in the city. A cabin<br />
+Of stone, brown as tamarack bark, trimmed with olive.<br />
+It was high as a pine that stands on a mountain.<br />
+The door was as wide as the mouth of a cavern.<br />
+At the door stood a man rigged up like a soldier;<br />
+His face was as solemn as judgment to sinners;<br />
+He looked at me some, and I looked him all over,<br />
+Then he suddenly bowed like a half-breed with manners,<br />
+And told me to enter, and he would call Madame.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span>
+The room was as large as a town house where settlers<br />
+Hold meetings to vote themselves office and wages.<br />
+The walls were like caves in far Arizona.<br />
+All covered with pictures of houses and battles;<br />
+Of ships blown onward by gales in mid-ocean;<br />
+Of children with wings, pretty queer-looking creatures;<br />
+Of men and of women, and some were half-naked.<br />
+But the floor was of oak, which gleamed like a polish;<br />
+And with mats thick as moss, and with skins it was covered,<br />
+So I felt quite at home, as there I stood looking,<br />
+And noting the size and signs of the cabin.<br />
+<br />
+Then, all of a sudden, there came a soft rustle,<br />
+Like the rustle of leaves when the wind blows in autumn.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span>
+And down the wide stairway across the great hall,<br />
+To the door of the room in which I was standing,<br />
+Stately and swift, came a woman and entered.<br />
+Tall as the tallest. Made firmly, knit firmly<br />
+Both in form and in limb, but full and well rounded;<br />
+Dark of eye, dark of face, with hair like a raven,<br />
+Like the girls of Nevada, where live the old races,<br />
+Whose blood is as fire, and whose skin is of olive,<br />
+Whose mouths are as sweet as a fig when it ripens.<br />
+Arms bare to the shoulders. Neck and bosom uncovered.<br />
+Her gown of white satin gleamed and flowed downward<br />
+And round her in folds of soft, creamy whiteness.<br />
+No ring on her hand, nor in ear. Not a circle<br />
+Of gold round her throat. One armlet of silver,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span>
+And one at her wrist loosely clasped, small and slender.<br />
+So she entered and stood, and looked me all over.<br />
+<br />
+Then slowly she spake. "Your name, sir, and business?"<br />
+"Madame," I said, "in the woods men call me John Norton;<br />
+John Norton, the Trapper." Then I stopped mighty sudden,<br />
+For her face it grew white to the lips and the chin,<br />
+And she swayed as a tree to the stroke of the chopper<br />
+When he sinks his axe in to the heart and it totters<br />
+And quivers. So I stopped, stopped quick and stood looking.<br />
+<br />
+Then her dark face it lighted, and she said, speaking quickly:<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span>
+"John Norton, I know you. I know you are honest.<br />
+You live in the woods. You are good. I can trust you.<br />
+All men, I have heard, come to you in their trouble.<br />
+Have you seen in the North, have you met in the woods,<br />
+Has there come to your cabin a man, tall as you,<br />
+Brave as you and as tender? A man like to this?"<br />
+And out of her gown, from the folds on her bosom,<br />
+She lifted a locket of pearl-colored velvet,<br />
+Touched a spring, and I saw, as the lid of it opened,<br />
+The face of the man I and Henry had buried!<br />
+<br />
+"John Norton," she cried, and her eyes burned like fever.<br />
+Her hand shook and trembled, her face was as marble,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span>
+"Have you seen in the woods man like to this picture?<br />
+Speak quick and speak true as to woman in trouble.<br />
+For I did him great wrong, I thought he held lightly<br />
+My fair name and fame; held lightly my honor.<br />
+I thought he meant evil, and my heart, filled with anger,<br />
+Dismissed him in scorn; but I learned, I learned later,<br />
+He was true, and spake truth and loved me as heaven."<br />
+<br />
+Then I stood and I looked and held my face steady,<br />
+So it gave her no sign of what I was thinking.<br />
+I saw she was honest, and I wished then to spare her,<br />
+But my word it was pledged, pledged to him in dying,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span>
+To stand as I stood, face to face with this woman,<br />
+In her house, in that room, and give her his message.<br />
+Beside, not to know is far worse than the knowing<br />
+At times. So I rallied and told her the message,<br />
+Word for word, as he charged, the night he lay dying<br />
+In his house on the bank above the swift rapids.<br />
+<br />
+"Madame," I said, "I have seen man like that picture,<br />
+Face and form. He was brave as you say. He was tender.<br />
+He was true unto death, and he loved you as heaven.<br />
+And these are the words that he sent you in dying.<br />
+I, a man of the woods, bring you this as last message,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span>
+From one who now sleeps on the bank of the rapids<br />
+Of that northern river which pours its brown water<br />
+To the Lake of St. John from far Mistassinni.<br />
+'Tell her, John Norton, I loved her. Loved her in living,<br />
+With a love that was true, and with same love in dying.<br />
+Loved her like a man, like a saint, like a sinner,<br />
+For time now and time ever. That the one picture<br />
+She gave me I kept;&mdash;living, dying, and after.<br />
+That it lies on the breast of the man that you buried;<br />
+On the breast of the man who living did love her,<br />
+And that there it will lie until it shall crumble,<br />
+With heart underneath it, to dust. So tell her.<br />
+And in proof that I tell her the truth, and did tell it<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>
+The night when we met, and I told her I loved her,<br />
+Give her this, the watch that I wore on the evening<br />
+We met, and the evening we parted. Let her open<br />
+And see. With her eyes let her see that I loved her.<br />
+So say and no more."<br />
+<br />
+Thus I spake. Word for word as he told me I spake.<br />
+I gave her the watch, and I said no word further.<br />
+I had done as I pledged, I had said as he charged me,<br />
+So I stopped and stood waiting for word of dismissal.<br />
+But she said not a word, nor made she a sign.<br />
+The watch she took from me, touched the spring and it opened,<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span>
+And there, 'twixt the glass and the gold, withered and faded,<br />
+Lay a leaf of Red Rose. One leaf, and&mdash;no more.<br />
+<br />
+For a moment she stood; stood, and gazed at the leaf,<br />
+Her face grew as white as her gown, and she trembled<br />
+And shook like a white swan in dying, then she cried,<br />
+"My God, I have killed him, my lover!"<br />
+And down on the floor, on the skins at her feet<br />
+She dropped as one stricken by bullet or lightning.<br />
+<br />
+It was only last month that we two, in trailing,<br />
+Trailed a hundred good miles across to the rapids.<br />
+For we wanted to see before going northward<br />
+If evil had come to the grave of our comrade.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span>
+But the grave lay untouched, by beast or by human.<br />
+The grass on the mound was well rooted and growthful.<br />
+At the foot of the grave the rose-tree I planted<br />
+Was as high as my head. And the leaves of the roses<br />
+Lay as thick as red snow-flakes on the mound that was under.<br />
+And we knew that on breast, as he slept, was her picture.<br />
+So we felt, as we gazed, it was well with Jack Whitcomb.<br />
+<br />
+But often at night, when alone in my cabin,<br />
+I hear the low murmur of far northern rapids.<br />
+And often I see the great house and its splendor,<br />
+And wonder if death has helped the proud woman<br />
+To lay off her grief and escape from her sorrow.<br />
+<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span>
+And blazed a line through the dark Valley of Shadow,<br />
+And brought her in peace to the edge of the clearing,<br />
+Where I know she would see Jack Whitcomb stand, waiting.<br />
+<br />
+So I say it again, and I say it with knowledge,<br />
+That the woods have their sorrows as well as the cities.<br />
+And he knows but little of this great northern forest<br />
+Who thinks there's naught in it save trees, lakes, and mountains.
+<br /><br /><br /></p>
+
+<h2><u>SELECT LIST</u></h2>
+<h6>OF</h6>
+<h4>Standard and Popular</h4>
+<h1>BOOKS</h1>
+
+<h5>PUBLISHED BY</h5>
+
+<h2><u>DEWOLFE, FISKE &amp; CO.,</u></h2>
+<h4><i>361-365 WASHINGTON STREET,
+BOSTON, MASS.</i></h4>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<h5>Any Book On This List Will Be Sent, Postpaid, On Receipt Of Price.<br /><br /></h5>
+
+<p style="margin-left: 35%;"><i><span class="smcap">IN ADDITION</span> to the works mentioned<br /> in this list, we will furnish any
+books<br /> in the market at lowest possible prices, and<br /> would respectfully
+solicit correspondence in<br /> regard to prices or any desired information.<br /><br /></i>
+
+<i>DEWOLFE, FISKE &amp; CO., Boston, Mass.<br /><br /></i>
+
+<i>P.S.--Catalogue of books at special reductions<br /> mailed free to any
+address.</i><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>
+
+
+<h5><i>Boston, Mass.</i><br /></h5>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;">
+<img src="images/ad_header.png" width="600" height="201" alt="" title="" />
+</div>
+
+<p><span style="font-size: 200%">&#8258;</span><i>In order to insure the correct delivery
+of the actual works, or particular Editions specified in this List, the
+name of the Publishers should be distinctly given. These books can be
+had from any local bookseller; but should any difficulty be experienced
+in procuring them, Messrs. DeWolfe, Fiske &amp; Co., will be happy to
+forward them direct, postage paid, on receipt of cheque, stamps or
+Postal order for the amount, with a copy of their complete catalogue.</i></p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<p><span class="smcap">New Editions of W. H. H. Murray's Famous Books</span>.</p>
+
+<blockquote><p><b>DAYLIGHT LAND.</b> The experiences, incidents, and adventures, humorous and
+otherwise, which befell Judge John Doe, Tourist, of San Francisco; Mr.
+Cephas Pepperell, Capitalist, of Boston; Colonel Goffe, the man from New
+Hampshire, and divers others, in their Parlor-Car Excursion over Prairie
+and Mountain; as recorded and set forth by <span class="smcap">W. H. H. Murray</span>. Superbly
+illustrated with 150 cuts in various colors by the best artists. 8vo,
+350 pages. Unique paper covers, $2.50; cloth, $3.50; cloth, extra gilt,
+$4.00.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p><i>The New York Herald</i>; says,</p>
+
+<p>Impossible to find a handsomer book on outdoor life than this. The
+author's peculiar faculty for describing days in the woods and rambles
+with good company has long been known. "Daylight Land" is longer than
+the book in which the same author made the Adirondacks seem some other
+place to men whose eyes were not as wide-open as his own, and the style
+is even breezier, if that is possible. Seldom does a book appear which
+is so entirely creditable to author, artist, and publisher.</p>
+
+<blockquote><p><b>HOW DEACON TUBMAN AND PARSON WHITNEY KEPT NEW YEAR'S, and Other Stories.</b>
+By <span class="smcap">W. H. H. Murray</span>, author of "Adirondack Tales," etc. 12mo.
+Illustrated. $1.25.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>Deacon Tubman, a jolly, fat, good-natured man, is presented with a
+woollen night-cap on New Year's morning by his housekeeper, "a typical
+spinster not overburdened with fat." This so rejoices the Deacon that he
+is possessed to make others happy, goes to call upon his pastor, and
+makes him leave his books and spend the day skating, sleighing, and
+driving with his parishioners.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>STORY THE KEG TOLD ME, AND THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO DIDN'T KNOW MUCH.</b> By
+<span class="smcap">W. H. H. Murray</span>, author of "Daylight Land," "Adirondack Adventures,"
+etc. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>"Two admirable stories by W. H. H. Murray, in both which appears John
+Norton, the trapper, a character that promises to become as much of a
+favorite as is the hero of the Leather Stocking novels. These stories
+have a bracing outdoor freshness and a delightfully crisp realism: are
+vigorous in tone, and strong and picturesque in the relation. Taken
+altogether, they may be pronounced in the most artistic of Mr. Murray's
+excursions into the realms of fiction, and fascinating generally."
+&mdash;<i>Saturday Evening Gazette.</i></p>
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>DEACONS.</b> By <span class="smcap">W. H. H. Murray</span>. 16mo. Paper, 50 cts. Cloth, 75 cts.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>"Mr. Murray is an expert in the art of character drawing; he can
+manipulate humor and pathos with equal facility. No one will gainsay
+their freshness and individuality."&mdash;<i>N. Y. Commercial Advertiser.</i></p>
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>ADIRONDACK ADVENTURES.</b> "In the Wilderness; or, Camp Life in the
+Adirondacks." By <span class="smcap">W. H. H. Murray</span>, 12mo. Illustrated. Paper, 50 cts.
+Cloth, $1.25.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>"In the 'Adventures in the Wilderness' W. H. H. Murray strikes the happy
+hunting ground, which long ago earned for him the popular title,
+'Adirondack Murray,' and here, as in his other books, he fairly revels
+in stirring incident, lively and faithful conception of character, and
+the powerful but delightful description of natural scenery which have
+already given his work an enviable and lasting place in American
+literature."&mdash;<i>Nashville American.</i></p>
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN, AND OTHER STORIES.</b> By <span class="smcap">W. H. H. Murray</span>. With
+photogravure portrait of Mr. Murray, and eight full-page illustrations
+by Thos. Worth. Square 12mo. Cloth, $1.00.</p></blockquote>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<blockquote><p><b>CIVILIZATION IN THE UNITED STATES, AND OTHER ESSAYS CONCERNING AMERICA.</b>
+By <span class="smcap">Matthew Arnold</span>. 16mo. Unique paper boards, 50 cts. Cloth, uncut,
+$1.25. The cloth binding matches the uniform edition of his collected
+works. Comprises the critical essays, which created so much discussion,
+namely, "General Grant, an Estimate," "A Word About America," "A Word
+More About America," and "Civilization in the United States." The
+collection gathers in the great critic's last contribution to
+literature.</p></blockquote>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<h5><span class="smcap">Bulfinch's Mythology.</span></h5>
+
+<blockquote><p><b>THE AGE OF CHIVALRY; Or Legends of King Arthur.</b> "Stories of the Round
+Table," "The Crusades," "Robin Hood," etc. By <span class="smcap">Thomas Bulfinch</span>. A new and
+enlarged edition. Revised by Rev. <span class="smcap">E. E. Hale</span>. Large 12mo. Illustrated.
+$2.50.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>In "The Age of Fable," Mr. Bulfinch endeavored to impart the pleasure of
+classical learning to the English reader by presenting the stories of
+Pagan mythology in a form adapted to modern taste. In this volume the
+attempt has been made to treat in the same way the stories of the second
+"age of fable"&mdash;the age which witnessed the dawn of the several states
+of modern Europe.</p>
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>THE AGE OF FABLE; Or, Beauties of Mythology.</b> By <span class="smcap">Thomas Bulfinch</span>. A new
+and enlarged edition, containing over 100 illustrations from ancient
+paintings and statuary. Revised by Rev. <span class="smcap">E. E. Hale</span>. Large 12mo. $2.50.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>Young readers will find this book a source of entertainment; those more
+advanced, a useful companion in their reading; those who travel and
+visit museums and galleries of art, an interpreter of paintings and
+sculptures.</p>
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>LEGENDS OF CHARLEMAGNE; Or, Romance of the Middle Ages.</b> Stories of
+Paladin and Saracen. By <span class="smcap">Thomas Bulfinch</span>. 12mo. Illustrated. $2.50.</p></blockquote>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<h5><span class="smcap">Prof. Clark Murray's Works</span>.</h5>
+
+<blockquote><p><b>SOLOMON MAIMON</b>: An Autobiography. Translated from the German, with
+Additions and Notes, by Prof. <span class="smcap">J. Clark Murray</span>. Cr. 8vo. Cloth. 307
+pages. $2.00.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>The London <i>Spectator</i> says: "Dr. Clark Murray has had the rare good
+fortune of first presenting this singularly vivid book in an English
+translation as pure and lively as if it were an original, and an
+original by a classic English writer."</p>
+
+<p>George Eliot, in "Daniel Deronda," mentions it as "that wonderful bit of
+autobiography&mdash;the life of the Polish Jew, Solomon Maimon:" and Milman,
+in his "History of the Jews," refers to it as a curious and rare book.</p>
+
+
+<blockquote><p><b>HANDBOOK OF PSYCHOLOGY.</b> By Prof. <span class="smcap">J. Clark Murray</span>, LL.D., Professor of
+Mental and Moral Philosophy, M'Gill College, Montreal. Cr. 8vo. 2d
+edition, enlarged and improved. $1.75.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>Clearly and simply written, with illustrations so well chosen that the
+dullest student can scarcely fail to take an interest in the subject.</p>
+
+<p>Adopted for use in colleges in Scotland, England, Canada, and the United
+States.</p>
+
+<p>Prof. Murray's good fortune in bringing to light the "Maimon Memoirs,"
+together with the increasing popularity of his "Handbook of Psychology,"
+has attracted the attention of the intellectual world, giving him a
+position with the leaders of thought of the present age. His writings
+are at once original and suggestive.</p>
+
+<hr style="width: 45%;" />
+
+<h5><span class="smcap">The Popular Works of Sally Pratt McLean.</span></h5>
+
+<blockquote><p><b>CAPE COD FOLKS.</b> A Novel. Twenty-third edition. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth,
+$1.25. Paper, 50 cents.</p>
+
+<p><b>TOWHEAD: THE STORY OF A GIRL.</b> Fifth Thousand. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25. Paper,
+50 cents.</p>
+
+<p>Since the production of Miss McLean's first effort "Cape Cod Folks," she
+has steadily advanced in intellectual development; the same genius is at
+work in a larger and more artistic manner, until she has at length
+produced what must be truly considered as her masterpiece, and which we
+have the pleasure to announce for immediate publication.</p>
+
+<p><b>SOME OTHER FOLKS.</b> A Book in Four Stories. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25. Paper, 50
+cents.</p>
+
+<p>These books are so well known that further comment seems superfluous.
+Suffice it to say that the entire press of the country has unanimously
+spoken of them in terms of high praise, dwelling not only on their
+delicious humor, their literary workmanship, their genuine pathos, and
+their real power and eloquence, but what has been described as their
+deep, true <i>humanness</i>, and the inimitable manner in which the mirror is
+held up to nature that all may see reflected therein some familiar
+trait, some description or character which is at once recognized.</p>
+
+<p><b>LASTCHANCE JUNCTION: HUMAN NATURE IN THE FAR WEST.</b> A Novel. By <span class="smcap">Sally
+Pratt McLean</span>. 1 vol. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25.</p>
+
+<p>"Terse, incisive descriptions of men and scenery, drawn with so vivid a
+pen that one can see the characters and their setting, delicious bits of
+humor, passages full of infinite pathos, make this book absolutely hold
+the reader from the title to the last word, and as, when finished, one
+sighs for the pity of it, the feeling rises that such a work has not
+been written in vain, and will have its place among those which tend to
+elevate our race."</p>
+
+<p><b>MISS FRANCES MERLEY.</b> A Novel. By <span class="smcap">John Elliot Curran</span>. 420 pages. Square
+16mo. Paper covers, 50 cents. Cloth, $1.00.</p>
+
+<p>The first important work of an author familiar to American readers by
+his remarkable sketches to <i>Scribner's</i> and other magazines.</p>
+
+<p><b>AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A NEW ENGLAND FARM HOUSE</b>: A Romance of the Cape Cod
+Lands. By <span class="smcap">N. H. Chamberlain</span>. 380 pages. Square 16mo. Paper covers, 50
+cents. Cloth, $1.00.</p>
+
+<p>A novel of singular power and beauty, great originality and rugged
+force. Born and bred on Cape Cod, the author, at the winter firesides of
+country people, very conservative of ancient English customs now gone,
+heard curious talk of kings, Puritan ministers, the war and precedent
+struggle of our Revolution, and touched a race of men and women now
+passed away. He also heard, chiefly from ancient women, the traditions
+of ghosts, witches and Indians, as they are preserved, and to a degree
+believed, by honest Christian folk, in the very teeth of modern
+progress.</p></blockquote>
+
+<div class="center">
+<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="60%" summary="ad">
+
+<tr><td></td>
+<td align="left"><span style="font-size: 90%; margin-left: 1em;"><i>Publishers</i>,</span></td>
+<td></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td align="center"><i>DeWolfe, Fiske &amp; Co.</i></td>
+<td align="left"><span style="font-size: 90%; margin-left: 3em;"><i>Booksellers</i>,</span></td>
+<td><span style="margin-left: 0em;"><i>BOSTON.</i></span></td></tr>
+
+<tr><td></td>
+<td align="left"><span style="font-size: 90%; margin-left: 5em;"><i>Library
+Agents</i>.</span></td></tr>
+
+</table>
+</div>
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories, by 
+W. H. H. Murray
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN ***
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+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
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+Project Gutenberg's The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories, by W. H. H. Murray
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories
+
+Author: W. H. H. Murray
+
+Release Date: April 5, 2009 [EBook #28502]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by David Edwards, Woodie4 and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This
+file was produced from images generously made available
+by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber notes:
+For the benefit of certain readers, explanatory names have been added to
+some illustration tags and these have been identified with an asterisk.
+
+A list of contents was not in the original book and has been added.
+
+
+
+THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN
+AND OTHER STORIES
+
+BY
+
+W. H. H. MURRAY
+
+[Illustration: Cover]*
+
+[Illustration: W. H. H. Murray]
+
+
+
+THE
+
+BUSTED EX-TEXAN
+
+AND
+
+OTHER STORIES
+
+BY
+
+W. H. H. MURRAY
+
+
+AUTHOR OF "DAYLIGHT LAND," "THE STORY THE KEG TOLD ME,"
+"ADIRONDACK ADVENTURES," ETC.
+
+PHOTOGRAVURE PORTRAIT AND EIGHT FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
+BY THOS. WORTH.
+
+
+BOSTON
+DE WOLFE, FISKE & CO., PUBLISHERS
+1890
+
+COPYRIGHT 1889 BY W. H. H. MURRAY.
+
+ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+The Busted Ex-Texan
+
+How Deacon Tubman And Parson Whitney Celebrated New Year's.
+
+The Leaf Of Red Rose
+
+
+
+            ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+   I. "I AM A BUSTED EX-TEXAN."
+
+  II. "PRACTICALLY INSIDE THE PAIL."
+
+ III. "AND WHEN I CAME DOWN."
+
+  IV. "LAY ABOARD OF THE OLD CUSS."
+
+   V. "LUFF HER UP--LUFF HER UP."
+
+  VI. THE DEACON AND PARSON.
+
+ VII. THE RACE.
+
+VIII. THE FIRST PRIZE FOR THE _Wickedest Cow_.
+
+
+
+THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN.
+
+
+
+
+THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN.
+
+
+We were camped amid the foot-hills on the trail which led up to the
+Kicking Horse Pass. The sun had already passed from sight, beyond the
+white summits above us, and the shadow of the monstrous mountain range
+darkened the prairie to the east, to the horizon's rim. Our bivouac was
+made in a grove of lofty firs, six or eight in number; and a little
+rivulet, trickling from the upper slopes, fell, with soft, lapsing
+sound, within a few feet of our camp-fire. We did not even pitch a tent,
+for the sky was mild, and above us the monstrous trees lifted their
+protecting canopy of stems. The hammocks were swung for the ladies, and
+each gentleman "preempted" the claim that suited him best, by depositing
+his blanket and rifle upon it. The entire party were in the best of
+spirits, and nature responded to our happiness in its kindest mood.
+Laughter sounded pleasantly at intervals from the busy groups, each
+working at some self-appointed industry. The hum of cheerful
+conversation mingled with the murmurs of the brook; and now and then the
+snatch of some sweet song would break from tuneful lips, brief,
+spirited, melodious as a bobolink's, dashing upward from the
+clover-heads. And before the mighty shadow lying gloomily on the great
+prairie plain, which stretched eastward for a thousand miles, had grown
+to darkness, the active, happy workers had given to the bivouac that
+look of designed orderliness which a trained party always give to any
+spot they select in which to make a camp or pass a night. An hour
+before, there was nothing to distinguish that grove of trees, or the
+ground beneath them, from any other spot or hill within the reach of
+eye. But now it commanded the landscape; and, had you been trailing
+over the vast plain, the bright firelight, the group of men and women
+moving to and fro, the picketed horses, the fluttering bits of color
+here and there, would have caught your gaze ten miles away; and were you
+tired or hungry, or even lonesome, you would have naturally turned your
+horse's head toward that camp as toward a cheerful reception and a home;
+for wherever is happy human life, to it all lonely life is drawn as by a
+magnet.
+
+And this was demonstrated by our experience then and there. For,
+scarcely had we done with supper,--and by this time the gloom had grown
+to darkness, and the half-light of evening held the landscape,--when out
+of the semi-gloom there came a call,--the call of a man hailing a camp.
+Indeed, we were not sure he had not hailed several times before we heard
+him; for, to tell the truth, we were a very merry crowd, and as light of
+heart as if there was not a worry or care in all the world,--at least
+for us,--and the smallest spark of a joke exploded us like a battery.
+Indeed, so rollicking was our mood that our laughter was nearly
+continuous, and it is quite possible that the stranger may have hailed
+us more than once without our hearing him. And this was the more likely
+because the man's voice was not of the loudest, nor was it positive in
+the energy of its appeal.
+
+Indeed, there was a certain feebleness or timidity in the stranger's
+hail, as if he was mistrustful that any good fortune could respond to
+him, and, hence, deprecated the necessity of the resort. But hear him we
+did at last, and he was greeted with a chorus of voices to "Come in!
+Come in! You're welcome!" And partly because we had finished our repast,
+and partly from courtesy and the natural promptings of gentlefolk to
+give a visitor courteous greeting, we all arose and received him
+standing. And, certainly, had the kindly act been unusual with us, not
+one of our group would have regretted the extra condescension bestowed
+upon him at his coming, after he had entered the circle of our
+firelight, and we saw the expression of his features.
+
+What a mirror the human face is! Looking into it, how we behold the
+soul, the accidents that have befallen it and the disappointments it has
+borne! Are not the faces of men as carved tablets on which we read the
+records of their lives? The face of childhood is smoothly beautiful,
+like a white page on which neither with ink of red or black has any pen
+drawn character. But, as the years go on, the pen begins to move and the
+fatal tracery to grow,--that tracery which means and tells so much. And
+the face of this man,--this waif, so to speak,--this waif that had come
+to us from the stretch of the prairie, whose southern line is the
+southern gulf; this stranger, who had come so suddenly to the circle of
+our light, and so plaintively sought admission to its comfort and its
+cheer, was a face which one might read at a glance. Not one in our
+circle that did not instantly feel that he embodied some overwhelming
+calamity. A look of sadness, of a mild, continuous sorrow, overspread
+his face. There was a pitiful expression about the mouth, as if brave
+determination had withdrawn its lines from it forever. From his eyes a
+certain mistrustfulness looked forth,--not mistrustfulness of others,
+but of himself,--as if confidence in his own powers had received an
+overwhelming shock. The man's appearance made an instant and
+unmistakable impression upon the entire company. The ladies--God bless
+their sweet and sympathetic natures!--were profoundly moved at the
+pitiful aspect of our guest. Their bosoms thrilled with sympathy for one
+upon whose devoted head evil fortune had so evidently emptied its
+quiver. Nor were our less sensitive masculine natures untouched by his
+forlorn appearance.
+
+"A target for evil fortune," whispered Dick to the major.
+
+"A regular bull's-eye!" was the solemn response. "A bull's-eye, by gad!
+at the end of the score."
+
+It was not a poetic expression. I wish the reader to note that I do not
+record it as such. I only preserve it as evidence of the major's
+humanity, and of the unaffected sympathy for the stranger, which at that
+moment filled all hearts.
+
+Naturally, as it can well be imagined, the gayety of our company had
+been utterly checked by the coming of our sad guest. In the presence of
+such a wreck of human happiness, perhaps of human hope, what person of
+any sensibility could maintain a lightsome mood? Had it not been for one
+peculiarity,--a peculiarity, I am confident, all of us observed,--the
+depression of our spirits would have been as profound as it was
+universal. This peculiarity was the stranger's appetite. This,
+fortunately, had remained unimpaired,--an oasis in the Sahara of his
+life.
+
+"The one remnant left him from the wreck of his fortunes," whispered
+Dick.
+
+"A perfect remnant!" returned the major, sententiously.
+
+For myself, acting as host to this appetite, and being naturally of a
+philosophic turn, I watched its development with the keenest interest,
+not to say with a growing curiosity. "Here is something," I said to
+myself, "that is unique. That fine law of recompense which is kindly
+distributed through the universe finds here," I reflected, "a most
+instructive and conclusive demonstration. Robbed, by an adverse fate, of
+all that made life agreeable, this man, this pilgrim of time, this
+wayfarer to eternity, this companion of mine on the road of life, has
+had bestowed upon him an extraordinary solace, has been permitted to
+retain a commensurate satisfaction. Surely, life cannot have lost its
+attractions for one whose stomach still preserves such aspirations."
+And, prompted by the benevolence of my mood, and the anticipations of a
+wise forecast, I collected in front of me whatever edibles remained on
+the table, that, if the supply of our hospitality should prove
+insufficient, the exhibition of its spirit should at least be
+conclusive.
+
+But, if the countenance of the stranger was of a most melancholy cast,
+there were not lacking hints that by nature he had been endowed with
+vivacity of spirit; for, as he continued, with an industry which was
+remarkable, to refresh himself, there were appearances, which came to
+the eye and the corners of his mouth, which made the observer conclude
+that he was not lacking the sense of humor; and, if his experience had
+been most unfortunate, there was in him an ability to appreciate the
+ludicrousness of its changeful situations. Indeed, one could but
+conclude that originally he must have been of a buoyant, not to say
+sanguine disposition; and, if one could but prevail upon him to narrate
+the incidents of his life, they would be found to be most entertaining.
+
+It was something like an hour before our melancholy-looking guest had
+fully improved the opportunity with which a benignant Providence had
+supplied him,--a freak in which, one might conclude, she seldom
+indulged. He ceased to eat, and sat for a moment gazing pensively at the
+dishes. It seemed to me--but in this I may possibly be mistaken--that a
+darker shade of sadness possessed his face at the conclusion than the
+one that shadowed it so heavily at the beginning of the repast. "The
+pleasures of hope," I said to myself, "are evidently greater to my
+species than are those of recollection. Now that there is nothing left
+for my guest to anticipate, it is evident that memory ceases to excite."
+And I could but feel that, had our provisions been more abundant, the
+stranger's appetite would not have been so easily appeased. With
+something of regret in my voice, I sought to divert his mind from that
+sense of disappointment which I judged from his countenance threatened
+to oppress his spirits.
+
+"Friend," I said, "I doubt not that you have trailed a goodly distance,
+and your fasting has been long?"
+
+"I have not eaten a meal in two days," was the response.
+
+"Heavens!" exclaimed Dick in an aside to the major. "Is it credible that
+that man ate two days ago!"
+
+"Gad!" exclaimed the major, "the man's stomach is nothing but a pocket."
+
+"A pocket! I should call it an unexplored cavern!" retorted Dick.
+
+"The direction and reason of your long trail would be interesting," I
+resumed. "And, if not impertinent, friend, may I ask you whence you have
+come?"
+
+"I have journeyed from Texas," replied the man, and his voice nearly
+broke as he said it.
+
+"_Oh!_" exclaimed the ladies, and they sympathetically grouped
+themselves, anticipating, with true feminine sensitiveness, some
+terrible denouement.
+
+"_Texas!_" I ejaculated.
+
+"_Gad!_" said the major.
+
+"The _Devil!_" said Dick.
+
+"Yes, _Texas!_" repeated the man, and he groaned.
+
+By this time, as any intelligent reader will easily divine, our whole
+group was in a condition of mild excitement. Several of us had resided
+in Texas, and we felt that we stood at the threshold of a history,--a
+history with infinite possibilities in it. For myself, I knew not how to
+proceed. My position as a host forbade me to interrogate. The sorrows of
+life are sacred, and my sensitiveness withheld me from thrusting myself
+within the enclosure of my guest's recollections. That his experiences,
+could we but be favored with a narration of them, would be
+entertaining,--painfully entertaining,--I keenly realized; but how to
+proceed I saw not. I remained silent.
+
+"Yes,"--it was the stranger who broke the silence,--"I am a busted
+ex-Texan!"
+
+[Illustration: I AM A BUSTED EX-TEXAN.]
+
+The relief that came to me at the instant was indescribable. The path
+was made plain. We all felt that we were not only on the threshold of a
+history, but of a narration of that history. The ladies fluttered into
+position for listening. I could but see it, and so I am bound to record
+that I saw Dick irreverently punch the major. It was a punch which
+carried with it the significance of an exclamation. The major received
+it with the face of a Spartan, but with the grunt of a Chinook chief.
+
+"Friend," I said, "we are accustomed to beguile the evening hours with
+entertaining descriptions of travels, often of personal incidents of the
+haps and hazards of life; and, if it would not be disagreeable to you,
+we would be vastly entertained, beyond doubt, by any narration with
+which you might favor us of your Texan experiences and of the fortunes
+which befell you there."
+
+For a few moments, the silence remained unbroken, save by the crackle of
+the fire and the soft movement in the great firs overhead,--a movement
+which is to sound what dawn is to the day; not so much a sound as a
+feathery suggestion that sound might come. It was a genial hour, and the
+mood of the hour began to be felt in our own. The warmth of it evidently
+penetrated the bosom of our guest. He had eaten. He was
+filled,--appreciably so at least, and that happy feeling, that
+comfortable sense of fulness, which characterizes the after-dinner hour,
+pervaded him with its genial glow. He loosened his belt,--another
+tremendous nudge from Dick,--and a look of contentment softened his
+features. Whatever storm had wrecked his life, he had now passed beyond
+its billows, and from the sure haven into which he had been blown he
+could gaze with complacent resignation, if not with happiness, at the
+dangers through which he had passed. I am sure that we were all
+delighted at the brightening appearance of our guest, and felt that, if
+the story he was to tell us was one which included disasters, it would
+at least be lightened by traces of humor and the calm acceptance of a
+philosophic mind.
+
+"I was born in the State of Connecticut," so our guest began his
+narration. "I came from a venturesome stock, and the instinct of
+commercial enterprise may be regarded as hereditary in my family. My
+grandfather was the first one to discover the tropical attributes of the
+beech-wood tree. He first perceived that it contained within its fibres
+the pungency of the nutmeg. With a celerity which we remember with pride
+in our family, he availed himself of the commercial value of his
+discovery, and for years did a prosperous trade on the credulity of
+mankind. He was a man of humor,--a sense which has been to some extent
+transmitted to myself,--he was a man of humor, and I have no doubt he
+enjoyed the joke he was practising on people, fully as much as the
+profits which the practical embodiment of his humor brought to his
+pocket. My father was a deacon, a man of true piety and eminently
+respectable. He was engaged in the retail-grocery business,--a business
+which offers opportunities to a person of wit and of an inventive turn
+of mind. The butter that he sold was salted invariably by one rule--a
+rule which he discovered and applied in the cellar of the store himself;
+and the sugar which he sold, if it was sanded, was always sanded by a
+method which improved rather than detracted from its appearance."
+
+Here our guest paused a moment, as if enjoying the recollections of the
+virtues of his ancestors. His face was as sober as ever, but his look
+was one of contentment; and I could but note the suggestion of
+merriment--the merriment of a happy memory--in his eye. How happy it is
+for an offspring to be able to recall the character of his forefathers
+with such liveliness of mind!
+
+"The motive which impelled me towards Texas," he resumed, "was one which
+was natural for me to feel, thus ancestrally connected. I had heired my
+father's business,--the deacon, who had died full of honors, ripe in
+years, and in perfect peace. But the business did not prosper in my
+hands; perhaps, I had not heired, with the business, the deacon's
+ability,--that accuracy of eye, that gravity of appearance, that
+deftness of touch, so to speak, which underlay his success. Be that as
+it may, the business did not pay, and without hesitation I sold it; and,
+with a comfortable sum for investment, I journeyed to Texas.
+
+"It is proper for me to remark that the welcome I received was most
+cordial. I chose a populous centre for a temporary residence, and
+proceeded to look around me. I found the Texans to be a warm-hearted
+people, much given to hospitality, and willing, with a charming
+disinterestedness, to admit all new-comers, with capital, to the
+enormous profits of their various enterprises.
+
+"For the first time in my life, I found myself among a people who were
+successful in everything they undertook. Their profits were simply
+enormous. No speculation could possibly fail. However I invested my
+money, I was assured that I would speedily become a millionnaire. Cotton
+was a certain crop. Corn was never known to fail. The Texan tobacco was
+rapidly driving the Cuban out of the market. The aboriginal grapes of
+the State, of which there were millions of acres waiting for the
+presses, yielded, as Europe confessed, a wine superior to Champagne. If
+I preferred herding, all I had to do was to purchase a few sheep and
+simply sit down. There was no section of the globe where sheep were so
+prolific, fleeces so thick, or the demands of market so clamorous. And,
+as for horses, I was assured that no one in Texas who knew the facts of
+the case would spend any time in raising them. The prairies were full of
+them, hundreds of thousands of them, all blooded stock, 'true
+descendants, sir, from the Moorish Barb, distributed through the whole
+country at the Spanish invasion.' I need do nothing but purchase fifty
+thousand acres, fence the territory in, and the enclosed herds would
+continue to propagate indefinitely. Such were the delightful pictures
+which my entertainers presented to me. Captivated by the charming
+manners of my hosts, my sanguine temperament kindled into heat at the
+touch of their enthusiasm. Where every venture was sure of successful
+issue, there was no need for deliberation or selection. I invested
+indiscriminately in all, and waited buoyantly for the results."
+
+Here the stranger paused, compelled, perhaps, by a slight interruption.
+Dick had retired, closely followed by the major. Our guest certainly was
+not devoid of humor, and I was convinced, as I watched the play of his
+features, that he apprehended and appreciated the reason for their
+retirement. He lifted a plate from the table, inspected it closely,
+turned it over, gazed contemplatively at its reversed side, and,
+poising it deftly upon the point of three fingers, quietly remarked:--
+
+"The gentlemen, I judge, have been in Texas?"
+
+"They have," I replied: "we three were there together."
+
+"Ah!"
+
+It was all he said. I might add, it was all that could be said.
+
+At this point, Dick and the major rejoined us. Their eyes showed traces
+of recent tears. They were still wiping their faces with their
+handkerchiefs. With that refinement which is characteristic of true
+gentlemen, and which seeks concealment of any extraordinary emotion,
+they had considerately retired to indulge their laughter.
+
+"I am delighted," continued our guest, after Dick and the major had
+resumed their seats, "I am delighted to find myself in company with men
+of experience. I feel that you will not question the veracity of my
+story, or fail to appreciate the outcome of my enterprises. At the end
+of two years, my property was distributed promiscuously throughout the
+State, and I was reduced to the necessity of making one final venture to
+recoup myself for the losses which, to the astonishment of the entire
+Texan community, I assured them I had met. I was the only man, as they
+asserted, 'that had ever failed to make a magnificent success in Texas.'
+
+"You can readily conceive, gentlemen, that I was determined to make no
+mistake in my final venture. There were other reasons, beside the one of
+caution, which persuaded me to begin with a moderate investment; so I
+bought one cow. It was impossible for me to make a mistake from such a
+beginning. Every person in Texas that had rapidly risen to financial
+eminence had started with one cow. Many a time had a Texan ranchman
+swept his hand with a royal gesture over a landscape of flowers and
+Mesquite brush, dotted with thousands of cattle, and exclaimed,
+'Stranger, I started this yer ranch with one cow.' And then he would
+take out a piece of chalk and figure out to me on his saddle how that
+one cow had multiplied herself into seven thousand five hundred and
+twenty-three other cows, which had proceeded to promptly multiply
+themselves, 'regular as the seasons come round, sir,' in the same
+reckless manner, until it was evident that the number of her progeny was
+actually curtailed by the size of the saddle and the lack of chalk. Now,
+I was eager to possess a cow with such a multiplication-table
+attachment, and, being unable to wait even ten years before I could
+tingle with the sensation of being a millionnaire ranchman. I decided to
+shorten the probationary stage by half, and so I purchased two cows."
+
+At this point, Dick rolled over upon the grass, and the major was
+doubled up as with sudden pain. As for myself, I confess I could not
+restrain my emotions. I had been through the same experience as had
+fallen to my guest, and I appreciated the sanguine characteristics of
+his temperament, which prompted him to the investment, and the humor of
+the situation. I laughed till my eyes flowed with tears, and the
+stillness of the foot-hills resounded with the unrestrained merriment of
+the entire camp.
+
+The humor of our guest was truly American, the humor of suggestive
+restraint and exaggeration both. He narrated his experiences, which had
+resulted in the loss of his fortune and the collapse of his hopes, with
+a face like a deacon's, and with a quaint and most charming sense of the
+ludicrousness of the position--a position of which he himself was the
+cause and central object. He fairly represented that type of men who
+combine in their composition that which is most practical and
+imaginative alike; whose energy can subdue a continent, and whose
+boastfulness would awaken contempt if it were not palliated by the
+magnitude of their achievements. A humor that is often barbed, but which
+is most willingly directed against one's self; but, whether directed
+against the humorist or his neighbor, carries no poison upon its point
+and leaves no wound to rankle.
+
+"My financial condition," said our guest, resuming, "my financial
+condition at the time I made this final investment contributed to the
+hopefulness of my mood, and made me feel the excitement of a reckless
+speculation, for, though my two cows only cost me seventeen dollars and
+fifty cents each, nevertheless, when the purchase was concluded, and the
+goods delivered, and I had made a careful inventory of my remaining
+assets,--a business proceeding which the average Texan found it
+necessary to go through about once in two weeks, in order that he might
+know what his financial standing was, or whether he had any standing at
+all,--when, I say, the purchase was consummated, and an inventory of my
+remaining assets made, I discovered that the two cows had swallowed up
+nearly my entire estate, and that a few dollars of farther expenditure
+would plunge me into bottomless insolvency. I must confess that this
+disclosure of my financial condition added zest to the undertaking, and
+filled me with that fine excitement which accompanies a desperate
+speculation. I have always felt that another cow would have made a
+financier of me, and that I could have taken my place among my brethren
+in Wall Street without a tremor of the muscles or the least sense of
+inferiority.
+
+"The cows were both black in color; so black that they would make a spot
+in the darkness of the blackest night that ever gloomed under the
+cypresses of the Guadaloupe. 'If those cows,' I said to myself as I
+looked them over, 'if those cows ever do bring forth calves at the rate
+that the Texan of whom I purchased them figured out on his saddle,
+they'll put the whole State under an eclipse.'
+
+"I cannot say,--speaking with that restraint which I have always
+cultivated,--I cannot say, ladies and gentlemen, that I regarded either
+cow with any great affection. There were peculiarities about them, which
+checked the outgoing of my emotional nature. They had a way of looking
+at me through the wire fence, that made me feel grateful to the inventor
+of barbed wire. I cannot describe the look exactly. It was a direct,
+earnest, steady, intense inspection of my person, that made me feel out
+of place, as it were, and caused me to remember that I had duties at
+home, which required me to get there as rapidly as possible.
+
+"One morning, seeing that the basis of my speculation was near the
+centre of the field, and busily feeding on the bountiful growths of
+nature, I crept softly through the wires of the fence that I might
+gather some pecan nuts under a big tree that stood some twenty rods
+away. I reached the tree in safety, and proceeded to pick up the nuts. I
+had filled one pocket only when I heard a noise behind me, and, looking
+up, I saw that all the profits of my stock speculation, and all my stock
+itself, were coming toward me on a jump. I was never more collected in
+my life. My mind instantly reached the conclusion that the pecan crop
+that year was so large in Texas that it would not pay to pick up another
+nut under that tree; that the whole thing should stand over, as it were,
+until another fall, and that, the sooner I retired from that field, the
+better it would be for me and the few pecans I had about me.
+
+"Acting in harmony with this conclusion,--which to my mind carried with
+it the force of a demonstration,--I started for the wire fence. I have
+no doubt but that the line of my movement was absolutely straight. I
+assure you, gentlemen, that if cows had multiplied in my business
+connection as rapidly as they did in my imagination during the next
+sixty seconds of time, I should have been in Texas to this day. The
+whole field was actually alive with cows. I reached the fence just one
+jump ahead of the oldest cow, and, seeing no reason why I should take
+time to crawl through between the wires, I lifted myself over the airy
+obstruction in a manner that must have convinced that old animated bit
+of blackness that I had absolute ownership in every nut about me. This
+little episode supplied me with material for reflection for at least a
+week, and made me realize that any northern man that enters into a
+speculation with Texas cows as a basis must keep his eyes open, and not
+allow his thoughts to be diverted by any side issues, like pecan nuts,
+while the business is developing.
+
+"The sixth morning after my speculation had arrived at the ranch, my
+profits began to roll in upon me,--or, to state it more practically, and
+in a business-like manner, the oldest cow produced a calf. This raised
+my spirits, and made me feel that my business was fairly started. I went
+to my stock-book and promptly made an entry as follows: 7523-1. This
+meant that there were only seven thousand five hundred and twenty-_two_
+yet to realize on; that is, if seven thousand five hundred and
+twenty-two calves should promptly come to time, seeing that one calf had
+already actually come to time, my herd would be complete. I think,
+gentlemen, you can readily understand my feelings as I stood
+contemplating the first fruition of my hopes from behind a tree. The cow
+was securely tied, but still from habit I took my usual position when
+inspecting my stock. My mood was very hopeful. I felt as every Texan
+felt, in those days, when by some accident he found himself in
+possession of actual property. 'There is a calf,' I said; 'I've only had
+to wait six days for that calf to materialize. Suppose another calf
+should materialize in six days.' I extracted a pencil from my pocket and
+began to figure. I multiplied that calf by six--I mean that at the end
+of six days I multiplied that calf by another calf. Every time I put
+down a new multiplier I took a look at the calf, and every time I looked
+at the calf it multiplied itself, as it were, until I felt the full
+force of the Texan's statement, save that, the more I multiplied, the
+more I felt that seven thousand five hundred and twenty-three did not
+fairly represent the certainties of the speculation. That cow would
+surely make a millionnaire of me yet--if nothing happened.
+
+"But, gentleman, something did happen, and it happened in this wise: You
+have doubtless, by this, concluded that the cow was a wild cow. The man
+who sold her to me had not put it precisely that way. He had represented
+her to me as a cow of mild manners, thoroughly domesticated, of the
+sweetest possible temper, used to the women folks, playful with
+children,--in short, a creature of such amiability that she actually
+longed to be petted. But I had already discovered that her manners were
+somewhat abrupt, and that either the man did not understand the nature
+of the cow or I did not understand the man. I was convinced that, if she
+had ever been domesticated, it had been done by some family every member
+of which had died in the process, or had suddenly moved out of the
+country only a short distance ahead of her, and that she had utterly
+forgotten her early training. Still, I had no doubt but that her
+amiability was there, although temporarily somewhat latent, and that the
+influences of a gentle spirit would revive the dormant sensibilities of
+her nature. 'The sight of a milk-pail,' I said to myself, 'will surely
+awaken the reminiscences of her early days, and of that sweet home-life
+which was hers when she yielded at morn and at night her glad
+contribution to the nourishment of a Christian family.'
+
+"There was on my ranch a servitor of foreign extraction who did my
+cooking for what he could eat,--Chin Foo by name,--and to him I called
+to bring me the large tin pail, which served the household--which, like
+most Texan households in the Tertiary period, so to speak, of their
+fortunes, was conducted on economic principles--as a washtub, a
+chip-basket, a water-bucket, and a dinner-gong. It also occurred to me,
+as I stood looking at the cow and caught the spirit of her expression,
+so to speak, that, as she had come to stay, was a permanent fixture of
+the establishment, as it were, Chin Foo might as well do the milking
+first as last. Moreover, as the Texan from whom I purchased her had
+assured me that she was a kind of household pet, the children's friend,
+and took to women folks naturally, the case was a very clear one. For,
+as Chin Foo had long hair, wore no hat, and dressed in flowing drapery,
+the cow, unless she was more of a physiologist than I gave her credit
+for, would be in doubt somewhat as to the sex of the Chinaman; and
+before she had time to ruminate upon it and reach a dead-sure
+conclusion, the milking would be over; and I would have scored the first
+point in the game, if she was a cow of ability, had any trumps, and was
+up to any tricks, as it were. So I told Chin Foo, as he approached with
+the pail in his hand, that the cow was a splendid milker, thoroughly
+domesticated, accustomed to Chinamen, and that he might have the honor
+of milking her first. I remarked, furthermore, that, as everything
+about the place was new to her, and she was a little nervous, I would
+gently attract her attention in front, while he proceeded to extract the
+delicious fluid. I charged him, in addition, to remember that it was
+always the best policy to approach a cow of her temperament in a bold
+and indifferent manner, as if he had milked her all his life, and get
+down to business at once; and that any hesitation or show of nervousness
+on his part would tend to make her more nervous.
+
+"I must say that Chin Foo acted in a highly creditable manner,
+considering he was in a strange land, and, to my certain knowledge, had
+no money laid by for funeral expenses; for, while I was stirring the
+dust and flourishing my stick in a desultory manner in front of the cow,
+to divert her mind, and keep her thoughts from wandering backward too
+directly, he fluttered boldly up to her, and laid firmly hold of two
+teats, with the familiarity of an old acquaintance."
+
+At this point of his narration the stranger paused a moment. There was a
+sort of plaintive look on his face, and he gazed at the plates with an
+expression in his eyes of sorrowful recollection.
+
+"I cannot say," he resumed, as one who speaks oppressed with a sense of
+uncertainty, "exactly what did happen, for I never saw the Chinaman
+again until he alighted. I only know that when he came down he was
+practically inside the pail, and that he sat in it a moment with a kind
+of dreamy eastern look on his face, as if he lived on the isle of Patmos
+and had seen a vision. And when he had crawled out of the pail he went
+directly into the house, saying, 'The Melican man is dam foolee to try
+to milkee that cussee!' or words to that effect.
+
+[Illustration: PRACTICALLY INSIDE THE PAIL.]
+
+"But I did not agree with him. I reflected that the Chinese are only an
+imitative race, and wholly lacking in original perception. 'They never
+invent anything,' I said; 'never study into causes, never get down to
+principles, as it were. It requires a purely occidental intellect to
+master the problem before me. This cow has a strong disinclination to be
+milked. Why? What is the motive of her conduct? If I could only answer
+that!' All at once it came to me,--came like a flash. The reason was
+plain. 'This cow is a mother. The maternal instinct in her case is
+beautifully developed. Her reasoning faculties less so. She has a calf.
+To her mind, we are trying to rob her beloved offspring of its
+nourishment. She naturally resents this injustice on our part. Beautiful
+development of maternity,' I apostrophized, as I looked at the cow in
+the light of this new revelation. 'Thy instincts are those that sweeten
+the world, and remind us of the benignity that planned the universe. I
+will bring thy calf to thee. I will show thee that I am not devoid of
+the spirit of equity; that I am ready to go shares and play fair, as it
+were. Thy calf shall take one side of thee. I will take the other, and
+thy soul will come forth to me in gratitude!'
+
+"I was delighted. I went directly to the pen, and gazed benevolently at
+the calf. The little imp was blacker, if possible, than its mother.
+There was that same peculiar look also in its eyes. 'You're all hers!' I
+joyfully cried, 'you are your mother's own child!' I seized hold of the
+neck-rope. I opened the pen-door and I went out through that door
+quicker than a vagrant cat ever got round a corner of a house where a
+Scotch terrier boards. The calf went under the cow and I struck her,
+head on. But I had come to stay. I grabbed the pail with one hand and a
+teat with the other. I tugged it, pulled it, twisted it. Not a drop
+could I start. A suction pump of twenty horse-power would have found it
+drier than Sahara, and all the while the calf's mouth, on the other
+side, was actually running over with milk! In two minutes he looked like
+a black watermelon. Then the cow, with a kind of back action,
+suddenly reached out one foot, and when I came to I found myself
+facing a mulberry tree, with one leg on each side of it.
+
+[Illustration: "AND WHEN I CAME DOWN."]
+
+"By this time I had reached a decision, and I had the courage of my
+convictions. I felt it to be my duty to milk that cow. I reminded her in
+plain, straightforward language that I was the son of a deacon, and that
+she'd find it out before she got through with me. I assured her that I
+understood the beauty of righteousness, and that I held a strong hand--a
+straight flush, as it were. I was well aware that the metaphor was
+somewhat mixed; but it expressed my sentiments and relieved my feelings,
+and so I fired it at her point-blank. She snorted and pawed and
+bellowed, and swore at me in cow-language, but I didn't care for that.
+So I shook the old, battered milk-pail in her face, and told her I was
+born in Connecticut, and did business on spot-cash principle; and that
+she would know more of the commandments than any cow of her color in
+Texas, before we said our long farewell.
+
+"By this time the matter had attracted a good deal of attention, for I
+had carried on my conversation with the cow in the voice of a tragedian
+when the chief villain of the play has stolen his girl, and my next
+neighbor, an old sea-captain from Mattagorda Bay, and his hired men had
+come over to assist me. They were of the nature of a reenforcement,
+which consisted of the captain, a Mexican, a Michigan man that
+stuttered, and two negroes--Napoleon Bonaparte de Neville Smith, and
+George Washington Marlborough Johnsing, by name. Hence we were six in
+all, and I decided to take the offensive at once. The captain was
+advanced in years and rheumatic, but a clearheaded man, used to command,
+and had 'boarded,' as he expressed it, 'several of the----crafts in his
+own waters.' So I put him in charge of the marines, namely, ourselves,
+and told him to fight the ship for all she was worth. He caught on to
+the thing at once, and swore he would 'sweep the old black hulk fore
+and aft, and send every mother's son to the bottom, or make her strike
+her colors.' The vigor of the gallant old gentleman's language, and the
+noble manner in which he shook his cane at the old pirate, put us all in
+good spirits, and I verily believe that, if he had at that fortunate
+moment given the word 'board!' we would, niggers and all, have gone over
+the bulwarks of that old cow with a rush.
+
+"The captain's plan of action was proof of his courage, and in harmony
+with my own ideas of the matter. He said that our force was ample, every
+gun shotted, and the ports open: that we had the windward gauge of her,
+and that the proper course was to send a boat in to cut her cable, and,
+when she drifted down with the current, we would ware ship, lay up
+alongside, grapple, pass lashings aboard, and send the whole crew on to
+her deck with a rush. Assaulted in such a man-of-war style, he was
+confident she would become confused, be intimidated, and strike her
+colors without firing a gun. The brave and sonorous language with which
+our commander set forth his plan of assault captured our imaginations,
+and we all longed for the moment when the word of command should permit
+us to swarm up the sides and over the rail of the old bovine.
+
+"Not only was the general plan thus agreed upon, but each man had his
+post of duty assigned to him. When the 'cable was cut,' that is, when
+the cow should find herself at liberty and bolt, as she would be sure to
+do, the Mexican was to lasso her and hang on; Napoleon Bonaparte de
+Neville and George Washington Marlborough were to lay hold of her horns
+to 'port and starboard,' as the captain insisted, while the Michigan
+man--who was over six feet tall, and leggy--was to fasten with a good
+grip on to her tail, that he might serve not only as a 'drag,' as our
+commander phrased it, but as a pilot as well, 'if she should get to
+yawing or be suddenly taken aback, and be unable to come up into the
+wind promptly,' while I was held in reserve to guard against
+emergencies. I did not quite like the position assigned to me, and so
+intimated to the captain, but he said no one could tell how it might go
+when we once got out of the harbor, and, if any of the braces should
+part, or the sea get high, that he would have to send an additional man
+to the wheel, 'for,' he added, in a whisper, 'God knows, that
+long-legged Michigan land-lubber could never keep her to a straight
+course if she should once get running with the wind over her quarter,
+and everything drawing, through that cornfield.' I saw the force of his
+reasoning, and felt easier.
+
+"So, without farther delay, we went into action. The old captain stood,
+knife in hand, ready to cut the lariat which held the cow to the tree,
+but, before he did so, he hailed, '_All ready to cut cables!_'
+
+"'Fo' de lawd, cap'in!' yelled Napoleon de Neville, 'what is dis yere
+nigger gwine to do if de udder nigger lets go?'
+
+"'Go way dar, nigger!' retorted George Washington Marlborough; 'what you
+takes dis nigger for if you tinks I's gwine to let go dis ole black
+cow?'
+
+"'I'll give a silver dollar to the nigger that holds on the longest,' I
+yelled.
+
+"'Well answered, mate,' sang out the old captain. '_All ready to cut
+cables. Cut she is!_'
+
+"The cow gave a bellow like the roar of a lion, and made a rush with
+lowered horns at the captain. Now, this was not the course laid down on
+his chart for her to take; and he and the rest of us were struck all
+aback, as he afterwards expressed it; but he met the emergency with
+spirit. He broke his big, Spanish-oak stick on the nose of the brute,
+and then the old mariner rolled in the dust.
+
+"'Lay aboard of her, men!' shouted the old hero, in a voice like a
+fog-horn, flourishing the fragments of his stick. 'Lay aboard of the old
+cuss, I say! Cast your grapplings, Greaser! Seize her helm, some of
+ye, and throw it hard over to port!'
+
+[Illustration: "LAY ABOARD OF THE OLD CUSS!"]
+
+"These orders were obeyed with alacrity. Not a man flinched. The loop of
+the lasso settled over the polished horns to the roots, and Don Juan San
+Diego set it tight with a twang. Napoleon Bonaparte and George
+Washington rushed headlong upon her and hung to horns and ears; while
+the man from Michigan fastened a grip on her lifted tail, as she tore
+past him, which straightened him out like a lathe. As to myself, I could
+only stand and gaze with solicitude upon the terrific contest, on the
+issue of which depended not only the chances of my speculation, but even
+the preservation of my self-esteem.
+
+"The combat deepened and enlarged itself, as it were. A bull-dog, who
+was wandering along the road in search of adventure, and two foxhounds
+joined in the fight. The calf, the only one of the seven thousand five
+hundred and twenty-three I was ever destined to behold, broke from its
+pen and ran bellowing to its mother. The dogs bayed, the niggers yelled,
+the Mexican swore in his delightful tongue; and the stuttering
+Michigander remained silent, simply from his inability to pronounce the
+profanity of his feelings.
+
+"Suddenly the cow, which had been slowly working her way, with her
+several attachments clinging to her, toward the road which ran along the
+front of the field, turned and started pell-mell toward the river, which
+flowed wide and deep, through the rushes, at the rear of it. She left
+the path and took to the corn, and through the mass of growing stalks
+she swept like a whirlwind. Onward she came. I anticipated the awful
+catastrophe, and stood riveted to the spot. The old captain still sat in
+the gravel, where the cow had bowled him, his hand grasping the
+shattered cane, and his game leg extended. He too foresaw the
+inevitable. Through the corn came the cow, like a black Saturn attended
+by her satellites. But her career was too terrific for these to hold to
+their connection. The laws of the universe forbade it. Napoleon
+Bonaparte de Neville lost his hold as she crashed into the sorghum
+patch. George Washington Marlborough tripped over an irrigation ditch,
+and soared away at a tangent, like a sputtering remnant of a burnt-out
+world. Don Juan San Diego went the wrong side of a mulberry tree, and
+the lasso parted with a snap. He never stopped until his momentum
+carried him through the slats of the neighboring cow-pen. Only the
+long-legged Michigander kept his hold, and he looked like a pair of
+extended scissors. I stood aghast at the impending ruin of my hopes,
+with my lower jaw dropped. The captain alone retained his presence of
+mind. As the black unit of my last Texan speculation shot by him, with
+Michigan, elongated like a peninsula, fastened to her tail, he rolled up
+to his knees and roared:--
+
+"'_Starboard your helm, boy!_ _Luff her up! Luff her up, for the love
+of God, or the colonel is busted!_'
+
+"It is doubtful if the Michigan man ever heard the stentorian call of
+the captain, for sound travels only thirteen hundred feet to the second,
+and the cow was certainly going considerably faster than that; and,
+besides, he was himself engaged, with a terrific earnestness, in a vain
+effort to extricate a word out of his throat, which stuck like a wad in
+a smutty gun--a word of undoubted Saxon origin and of expressive force,
+and which has saved more blood-vessels from bursting than the lancet of
+the phlebotomist, for as he streamed past there was left floating upon
+the air a long string of d's, thus: d----d----d--d--d--d-d-d...!
+
+"No one who did not hear them could ever conceive of the awful
+sputtering, hissing sound that they caused in the atmosphere as they
+came out of the mouth of the mad and stuttering Michigander; and as he
+and the cow bored a hole through the reeds on the bank of the river,
+and, hitting a cypress stump, ricochetted into the water, that fiery
+string of d's, still hot and sputtering, reached half across the field.
+
+[Illustration: "LUFF HER UP! LUFF HER UP!"]
+
+"The splash of the two as they struck the water brought the old captain
+to his feet, and, in spite of his rheumatic leg, he rushed toward the
+river, crying:--
+
+"'_Man overboard! Man overboard! Gone clean over the forechains!
+Life-floats to port and starboard!_'
+
+"With such a frightful catastrophe, gentlemen, the remembrance of which
+actually makes me nervous, my last speculation in Texas ended. Going
+over the whole matter with the captain that evening,--a process which
+took us well into the night,--it was our united opinion that the
+speculation was a failure. This conviction was mutual and profound. The
+cow was not only gone, but she had shown such disinclination to be
+domesticated, and such a misapprehension of the true purpose of life,
+that the prospect was truly disheartening.
+
+"'Why, damn it, colonel,' said the captain, 'we've no evidence that the
+old cow wanted to be milked!'
+
+"To this discouraging conclusion of the captain's I was compelled to
+give a sorrowful assent. I recognized that my speculation was in
+arrears, as it were, and that it would never figure up a profit.
+
+"Therefore, next day I divided my few personal effects between the
+captain and the noble men who had risked their lives for an idea; who
+had seen the tragedy played out and the curtain rung down to my last
+appearance, as it were. And, with the few dollars which alone remained
+of the fortune which I took with me to Texas, I mounted my horse and
+started northward, to join that noble army of martyrs, that brotherhood
+of sufferers, that fraternity of the busted, whose members are legion,
+and who are known as '_Ex-Texans_.'"
+
+The hilarity of the camp that evening under the foot-hills will never be
+forgotten by those of us who composed the happy number, and who
+listened with streaming eyes and aching sides to the narrative of our
+unfortunate guest. He told his story with a directness and simplicity of
+narrative, with a gravity of countenance and plaintiveness of voice,
+which heightened the humor of the substance. Never did the stars, which
+have seen so much of human happiness, which have listened to so much of
+the rollicking humor of those who were fashioned for laughter, looked
+down upon a jollier camp. Long after our guest had ended his narrative
+and was apparently sleeping in happy forgetfulness of his Texas
+speculation, succeeding pauses of silence would come roars of laughter.
+The remembrance of the humorous tale banished sleep, and, even after
+slumber had fallen on us all, fun still held possession of our dreams.
+For Dick, starting from sleep in a nightmare of hilarity, roared out:
+"_Luff her up, luff her up, or the colonel is busted!_"
+
+Ay, ay, thank God for laughter. Thank him heartily and ever, dear
+friend, blow the winds, run the tides as they may. The sorrows of life
+may be many, and its griefs may be keen, and we who are frosted with
+years and you who are blooming have felt and will feel the sting of
+false friends and the burden of losses; but, lose what we may, or be
+pained as we have been and shall be, we are happy in this,--we who know
+how to laugh,--that we find wings for each burden, solace for pains, and
+return for all losses, in our sweet sense of humor, thank Heaven! So,
+whether rich men or poor, healthy or sick, brown-headed or gray, we will
+go on like children, with eyes for all beauty and hearts for all fun.
+Let lilies teach us, and of the birds of the air let us learn. The day
+that is not shall not make us anxious, for of each day is the evil
+enough, and the morrow shall take care of itself.
+
+[Illustration: THE WICKEDEST COW.]*
+
+
+
+
+HOW DEACON TUBMAN
+
+and PARSON WHITNEY
+
+CELEBRATED NEW YEARS.
+
+
+
+
+HOW DEACON TUBMAN AND PARSON WHITNEY CELEBRATED NEW YEAR'S.
+
+
+"Mirandy, I'm going up to see the parson," exclaimed the deacon, when
+the morning devotions were over, "and see if I can thaw him out a
+little. I've heard that there used to be a lot in him in his younger
+days, but he's sort of frozen all up latterly, and I can see that the
+young folks are afraid of him and the church too, but that won't do--no,
+it won't do," repeated the good man emphatically, "for the minister
+ought to be loved by young and old, rich and poor, and everybody; and a
+church without young folks in it is, why, it is like a family with no
+children in it. Yes, I'll go up and wish him a Happy New Year anyway.
+Perhaps I can get him out for a ride to make some calls on the people,
+and see the young folks at their fun. It'll do him good, and them good,
+and me good, and everybody good." Saying which, the deacon got inside
+his warm fur coat, and started toward the barn to harness Jack into the
+worn, old-fashioned sleigh, which sleigh was built high in the back, and
+had a curved dasher of monstrous proportions, ornamented with a prancing
+horse in an impossible attitude, done in bright vermilion on a blue
+background!
+
+"Happy New Year to you, Parson Whitney! Happy New Year to you," cried
+the deacon, as he stood in the doorway of the parsonage and shook the
+parson by the hand enthusiastically, "and may you live to enjoy a
+hundred."
+
+"Come in, come in," cried Parson Whitney, in response. "I'm glad you've
+come; I'm glad you've come. I've been wanting to see you all the
+morning," and in the cordiality of his greeting he literally pulled the
+little man through the doorway into the hall, and hurried him up the
+stairway to his study in the chamber overhead.
+
+"Thinking of me! Well, now, I never!" exclaimed the deacon, as, assisted
+by the parson, he twisted and wriggled himself out of his coat, that he
+filled, a little too snugly for an easy exit. "Thinking of me, and among
+all these books too--Bibles, catechisms, tracts, theologies, sermons.
+Well, well, that is funny. What made you think of me?"
+
+"Deacon Tubman," responded the parson, as he seated himself in his
+armchair, "I want to talk with you about the church."
+
+"The church!" ejaculated the deacon in response. "Nothing going wrong, I
+hope?"
+
+"Yes, things are going wrong, deacon," responded the parson. "The
+congregation is growing smaller and smaller, and yet I preach good,
+strong, biblical, soul-satisfying sermons, I trust."
+
+"Good ones! good ones!" answered the deacon promptly, "never
+better--never better in the world."
+
+"And yet the people are deserting the sanctuary," rejoined the parson
+solemnly, "and the young people won't come to the sociables, and the
+little children seem actually afraid of me. What shall I do, deacon?"
+and the good man put the question with pathetic emphasis.
+
+"You've hit the nail on the head, square as a hatchet, parson,"
+responded the deacon. "The congregation is thinning. The young people
+don't come to the meetings, and the little children are afraid of you."
+
+"What's the matter, deacon?" cried the parson in return. "What is it?"
+he repeated earnestly. "Speak it right out; don't try to spare my
+feelings. I will listen to--I will do anything to win back my people's
+love," and the strong, old-fashioned Calvinistic preacher said it in a
+voice that actually trembled.
+
+"You can do it--you can do it in a week!" exclaimed the deacon
+encouragingly. "Don't worry about it, parson; it'll be all right, it'll
+be all right. Your books are the trouble."
+
+"Books?" ejaculated the parson. "What have they to do with it?"
+
+"Everything," replied the deacon stoutly. "You pore over them day in and
+day out; they keep you in this room here when you should be out among
+the people,--not making pastoral visits,--I don't mean that,--but going
+around among them, chatting and joking and having a good time. They
+would like it, and you would like it, and as for the young folks--how
+old are you, parson?"
+
+"Sixty next month," answered the parson; "sixty next month," he repeated
+solemnly.
+
+"Thirty! thirty! that's all you are, parson, or all you ought to be,"
+cried the deacon. "Thirty, twenty, sixteen!--let the figures slide down
+and up, according to circumstances, but never let them go higher than
+thirty when you are dealing with young folks. I'm sixty myself, counting
+years; but I'm only sixteen, sixteen this morning, that's all, parson,"
+and he rubbed his little round plump hands together, looked at the
+parson, and winked.
+
+"Bless my soul, Deacon Tubman, I don't know but that you are right!"
+answered the parson. "Sixty? I don't know as I am sixty," and he began
+to rub his own hands, and came within an ace of executing a wink at the
+deacon, himself.
+
+"Not a day over twenty, if I am any judge of age," responded the deacon
+deliberately, as he looked the white-headed old minister over with a
+most comic imitation of seriousness. "Not a day over twenty, on my
+honor," and the deacon leaned forward toward the parson, and gave him a
+punch with his thumb, as one boy might deliver a punch at another, and
+then he lay back in his chair and laughed so heartily that the parson
+caught the infectious mirth and roared away as heartily as himself.
+
+Yes, it was impossible to sit hobnobbing with the little, jolly deacon
+on that bright New Year's morning and not be affected by the happiness
+of his mood, for he was actually bubbling over with fun, and as full of
+frolic as if the finger on the dial had, in truth, gone back forty-odd
+years, and he was "only sixteen. Only sixteen, parson, on my honor."
+
+"But what can I do?" queried the good man, sobering down. "I make my
+pastoral visits."
+
+"Pastoral visits!" responded Deacon Tubman. "Oh, yes, and they are all
+well enough for the old folks, but they ar'n't the kind of biscuit the
+young folks like--too heavy in the centre, and over-hard in the crust
+for young teeth, eh, parson?"
+
+"But what shall I do? what shall I do?" reiterated the parson, somewhat
+despondently.
+
+"Oh! put on your hat, and gloves, and warmest coat, and come along with
+me. We will see what the young folks are doing, and will make a day of
+it. Come! come! let the old books, and catechisms, and sermons, and
+tracts have a respite for once, and we'll spend the day out-of-doors,
+with the boys and girls and the people."
+
+"I'll do it!" exclaimed the parson. "Deacon Tubman, you are right. I do
+keep to my study too closely. I don't see enough of the world and what's
+going on in it. I was reading the Testament this morning, and I was
+impressed with the Master's manner of living and teaching. It is not
+certain that he ever preached more than twice in a church during all his
+ministry on the earth. And the children! how much he loved the children,
+and how the little ones loved him! And why shouldn't they love me, too?
+Why shouldn't they? I'll make them do it! yes, I'll make them do it! The
+lambs of my flock shall love me." And with these brave words Parson
+Whitney bundled himself up in his warmest garments, and followed the
+deacon downstairs.
+
+"Tell the folks that you won't be back till night," called the deacon
+from the sleigh; "for this is New Year, and we're going to make a day of
+it," and he laughed away as heartily as might be--so heartily that the
+parson joined in the laughter himself as he came shuffling down the icy
+path toward him. "Bless me! how much younger I feel already!" said the
+good man as he stood up in the sleigh, and with a long, strong breath
+breathed the cool, pure air into his lungs. "Bless me! how much younger
+I feel already!" he repeated, as he settled down into the roomy seat of
+the old sleigh. "Only sixteen to-day,--eh, deacon?" and he nudged him
+with his elbow.
+
+"That's all, that's all, parson," answered the deacon gayly, as he
+nudged him vigorously back; "that's all we are, either of us," and,
+laughing as merrily as two boys, the two glided away in the sleigh.
+
+Well, perhaps they didn't have fun that day, these two old boys that had
+started out with the feeling that they were "only sixteen," and bound to
+make "a day of it!" And they did make a day of it, in fact, and such a
+day as neither had had for forty years; for, first, they went to
+Bartlett's Hill, where the boys and girls were coasting, and coasted
+with them for a full hour,--and then it was discovered by the younger
+portion of his flock that the parson was not an old, stiff, solemn,
+surly poke, as they had thought, but a pleasant, good-natured, kindly
+soul, who could take and give a joke, and steer a sled as well as the
+smartest boy in the crowd; and when it came to snow-balling, he could
+send a ball further than Bill Sykes himself, who could out-throw any boy
+in town, and roll up a bigger block to the new snow fort they were
+building than any three boys among them. And how the parson enjoyed
+being a boy again! How exhilarating the slide down the steep hill; how
+invigorating the pure, cool air; how pleasant the noise of the chatting
+and joking going on around him; how bright and sweet the boys and girls
+looked, with their rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes; and how the old
+parson's heart thrilled as they crowded around him when he would go, and
+urged him to stay,--and little Alice Dorchester begged him, with her
+little arms around his neck, to "jes' stay and gib me one more slide,
+please!"
+
+"You never made such a pastoral call as that, parson," said the deacon,
+as they drove away amid the cheers of the boys and the "good-bys" of the
+girls, while the former fired off a volley of snow-balls in his honor,
+and the latter waved their muffs and handkerchiefs after them.
+
+"God bless them! God bless them!" said the parson. "They have lifted a
+load from my heart, and taught me the sweetness of life, of youth, and
+the wisdom of Him who took the little ones in His arms, and blessed
+them. Ah, deacon," he added, "I've been a great fool, but I'll be so,
+thank God! no more."
+
+Now, old Jack was a horse of a great deal of character, and had a great
+history; but of this none in that section, save the little deacon, knew
+a word. Dick Tubman, the deacon's youngest, wildest, and, we might add,
+favorite son, had purchased him of an impecunious jockey, at the close
+of a disastrous campaign, that cleaned him completely out, and left him
+in a strange city a thousand miles from home, with nothing but the
+horse, harness, and sulky, and a list of unpaid bills that must be met
+before he could leave the scene of his disastrous fortunes. Under such
+circumstances it was that Dick Tubman ran across the horse, and partly
+out of pity for its owner, and partly out of admiration of the horse,
+whose failure to win at the races was due more to his lack of condition
+and the bad management of his jockey than lack of speed, bought him
+off-hand, and, having no use for him himself, shipped him as a present
+to the deacon, with whom he had now been four years, with no harder work
+than ploughing out the good old man's corn in the summer, and jogging
+along the country roads on the deacon's errands. Having said thus much
+of the horse, perhaps we should more particularly describe him.
+
+He was, in sooth, an animal of most unique and extraordinary appearance;
+for, in the first place, he was quite seventeen hands in height, and
+long in proportion. He was also the reverse of shapely in the fashion of
+his build: for his head was long and bony, and his hip bones sharp and
+protuberant; his tail was what is known among horsemen as a rat-tail,
+being but scantily covered with hair, and his neck was even more
+scantily supplied with a mane, while in color he could easily have taken
+any premium put up for homeliness, being an ashen roan, mottled with
+flecks and patches of divers hues; but his legs were flat and corded
+like a racer's, his neck long and thin as a thoroughbred's, his nostrils
+large, his ears sharply pointed and lively, while the white rings around
+his eyes hinted at a cross, somewhere in his pedigree, with Arabian
+blood. A huge, bony, homely-looking horse he was, who drew the deacon
+and Miranda into the village on market days and Sundays, with a loose,
+shambling gait, making altogether an appearance so homely and peculiar
+that the smart village chaps riding along in their jaunty turn-outs used
+to chaff the good deacon on the character of his steed, and satirically
+challenge him to a brush. The deacon always took their badinage in good
+part, although he inwardly said more than once, "If I ever get a good
+chance, when there ar'n't too many around, I'll go up to the turn of the
+road beyond the church, and let Jack out on them;" for Dick had given
+him a hint of the horse's history, and told him "he could knock the
+spots out of thirty," and wickedly urged the deacon to take the starch
+out of them airy chaps some of these days. Such was the horse, then,
+that the deacon had ahead of him, and the old-fashioned sleigh, when,
+with the parson alongside, he struck into the principal street of the
+village.
+
+Now, New Year's Day is a lively day in many country villages, and on
+this bright one especially, as the sleighing was perfect, everybody was
+out. Indeed, it had got noised abroad that certain trotters of local
+fame were to be on the street that afternoon, and, as the boys worded
+it, "there would be heaps of fun going on." And so it happened that
+everybody in town, and many who lived out of it, were on this particular
+street, and just at the hour, too, when the deacon came to the foot of
+it, so that the walk on either side was lined darkly with lookers-on,
+and the smooth snow-path between the two lines looked like a veritable
+homestretch on a race-day.
+
+Now, when the deacon had reached the corner of the main street and
+turned into it, it was at that point where the course terminated and the
+"brushes" were ended, and at the precise moment when the dozen or twenty
+horses that had just come flying down were being pulled up preparatory
+to returning at a slow gait to the customary starting-point at the head
+of the street, a half-mile away, so that the old-fashioned sleigh was
+surrounded by the light, fancy cutters of the rival racers, and old
+Jack was shambling awkwardly along in the midst of the high-spirited and
+smoking nags that had just come flying down the stretch.
+
+"Hellow, deacon," shouted one of the boys, who was driving a
+trim-looking bay, and who had crossed the line at the ending of the
+course second only to a pacer that could "speed like a streak of
+lightning," as the boys said,--"Hellow, deacon; ain't you going to shake
+out old shamble-heels, and show us fellows what speed is to-day?" And
+the merry-hearted chap, son of the principal lawyer of the place,
+laughed heartily at his challenge, while the other drivers looked at the
+great angular horse that, without any check, was walking carelessly
+along, with his head held down, ahead of the old sleigh and its churchly
+occupants.
+
+"I don't know but what I will," answered the deacon, good-naturedly;
+"don't know but what I will, if the parson don't object, and you won't
+start off too quick to begin with; for this is New Year's, and a
+little extra fun won't hurt any of us, I reckon."
+
+[Illustration: THE DEACON AND PARSON.]
+
+"Do it, do it; we'll hold up for you," answered a dozen merry voices.
+"Do it, deacon: it'll do old shamble-heels good to go a ten-mile-an-hour
+gait for once in his life, and the parson needn't fear of being
+scandalized by any speed you'll get out of him, either;" and the merry
+chaps haw-hawed as men and boys will, when every one is jolly and fun
+flows fast.
+
+And so, with any amount of good-natured chaffing from the drivers of the
+"fast 'uns," and from many that lined the road too,--for the day gave
+greater liberty than usual to bantering speech,--the speedy ones paced
+slowly up to the head of the street, with old Jack shambling demurely in
+the midst of them.
+
+But the horse was a knowing old fellow, and had "scored" at too many
+races not to know that the "return" was to be leisurely taken, and,
+indeed, he was a horse of independence, and of too even, perhaps of too
+sluggish, a temperament, to waste himself in needless action; but he
+had the right stuff in him, and hadn't forgotten his early training
+either, for when he came to the "turn," his head and tail came up, his
+eye brightened, and, with a playful movement of his huge body, and
+without the least hint from the deacon, he swung himself and the
+cumbrous old sleigh into line, and began to straighten himself for the
+coming brush.
+
+Now, Jack was, as we have said, a horse of huge proportions, and needed
+"steadying" at the start, but the good deacon had no experience with the
+"ribbons," and was therefore utterly unskilled in the matter of driving;
+and so it came about that old Jack was so confused at the start that he
+made a most awkward and wretched appearance in his effort to get off,
+being all "mixed up," as the saying is,--so much so that the crowd
+roared at his ungainly efforts, and his flying rivals were twenty rods
+away before he even got started. But at last he got his huge body in a
+straight line, and, leaving his miserable shuffle, squared away to his
+work, and, with head and tail up, went off at so slashing a gait that it
+fairly took the deacon's breath away, and caused the crowd that had been
+hooting him to roar their applause, while the parson grabbed the edge of
+the old sleigh with one hand and the rim of his tall black hat with the
+other.
+
+What a pity, Mr. Longface, that God made horses as they are, and gave
+them such grandeur of appearance when in action, and put such an
+eagle-like spirit between their ribs, so that, quitting the plodding
+motions of the ox, they can fly like that noble bird, and come sweeping
+down the course as on wings of the wind!
+
+It was not my fault, nor the deacon's, nor the parson's either, please
+remember, then, that awkward, shuffling, homely-looking old Jack was
+thus suddenly transformed, by the royalty of blood, of pride, and of
+speed given him by his Creator, from what he ordinarily was, into a
+magnificent spectacle of energetic velocity.
+
+With muzzle lifted well up, tail erect, the few hairs in it streaming
+straight behind, one ear pricked forward and the other turned sharply
+back, the great horse swept grandly along at a pace that was rapidly
+bringing him even with the rear line of the flying group. And yet so
+little was the pace to him that he fairly gambolled in playfulness as he
+went slashing along, until the deacon verily began to fear that the
+honest old chap would break through all the bounds of propriety and send
+his heels antically through his treasured dashboard. Indeed, the
+spectacle that the huge horse presented was so magnificent, his action
+so free, spirited, and playful, as he came sweeping onward, that cheers
+and exclamations, such as, "Good heavens! see the deacon's old horse!"
+"Look at him! look at him!" "What a stride!" etc., ran ahead of him, and
+old Bill Sykes, a trainer in his day, but now a hanger-on at the
+village tavern, or that section of it known as the bar, wiped his
+watery eyes with his tremulous fist, as he saw Jack come swinging down,
+and, as he swept past with his open gait, powerful stroke, and stiffles
+playing well out, brought his hand with a mighty slap against his thigh,
+and said, "I'll be blowed if he isn't a regular old timer!"
+
+It was fortunate for the deacon and the parson that the noise and
+cheering of the crowd drew the attention of the drivers ahead, or there
+would surely have been more than one collision, for the old sleigh was
+of such size and strength, the good deacon so unskilled at the reins,
+and Jack, who was adding to his momentum with every stride, was going at
+so determined a pace, that, had he struck the rear line, with no gap for
+him to go through, something serious would surely have happened. But, as
+it was, the drivers saw the huge horse, with the cumbrous old sleigh
+behind him, bearing down on them at such a gait as made their own speed,
+sharp as it was, seem slow, and "pulled out" in time to save
+themselves; and so without any mishap the big horse and heavy sleigh
+swept through the rear row of racers like an autumn gust through a
+cluster of leaves.
+
+By this time the deacon had become somewhat alarmed, for Jack was going
+nigh to a thirty clip,--a frightful pace for an inexperienced man to
+ride,--and began to put a good strong pressure upon the bit, not
+doubting that old Jack--ordinarily the easiest horse in the world to
+manage--would take the hint and immediately slow up. But though the huge
+horse took the hint, it was exactly in the opposite manner that the
+deacon intended he should, for he interpreted the little man's steady
+pull as an intimation that his inexperienced driver was getting over his
+flurry and beginning to treat him as a big horse ought to be treated in
+a race, and that he could now, having got settled to his work, go ahead.
+And go ahead he did. The more the deacon pulled, the more the great
+horse felt himself steadied and assisted. And so, the harder the good
+man tugged at the reins, the more powerfully the machinery of the big
+animal ahead of him worked, until the deacon got alarmed, and began to
+call upon the horse to stop, crying, "Whoa, Jack! whoa, old boy, I say!
+Whoa, will you now, that's a good fellow!" and many other coaxing calls,
+while he pulled away steadily at the reins.
+
+But the horse misunderstood the deacon's calls, as he had his pressure
+on the reins, for the crowd on either side were now yelling, and
+hooting, and swinging their caps, so that the deacon's voice came
+indistinctly to his ears at the best, and he interpreted his calls for
+him to stop as only so many encouragements and signals for him to go
+ahead; and so, with the memory of a hundred races stirring his blood,
+the crowd cheering him to the echo, the steadying pull and encouraging
+cries of his driver in his ears, and his only rival, the pacer, whirling
+along only a few rods ahead of him, the monstrous animal, with a
+desperate plunge that half lifted the old sleigh from the snow, let out
+another link, and, with such a burst of speed as was never seen in the
+village before, tore along after the pacer at such a terrific pace that,
+within the distance of a dozen lengths, he lay lapped upon him, and the
+two were going it nose and nose.
+
+What is that feeling in human hearts which makes us sympathetic with man
+or animal who has unexpectedly developed courage and capacity when
+engaged in a struggle in which the odds are against him? And why do we
+enter so spiritedly into the contest, and lose ourselves in the
+excitement of the moment? Is it pride? Is it the comradeship of courage?
+Or is it the rising of the indomitable in us, that loves nothing so much
+as victory, and hates nothing so much as defeat? Be that as it may, no
+sooner was old Jack fairly lapped on the pacer, whose driver was urging
+him along with reins and voice alike, and the contest seemed
+doubtful, than the spirit of old Adam himself entered into the deacon
+and the parson both, so that, carried away by the excitement of the
+race, they fairly forgot themselves, and entered as wildly into the
+contest as two ungodly jockeys.
+
+[Illustration: THE RACE.]
+
+"Deacon Tubman!" said the parson, as he clutched the rim of his tall
+hat, against which, as the horse tore along, the snow chips were pelting
+in showers, more stoutly, "Deacon Tubman! do you think the pacer will
+beat us?"
+
+"Not if I can help it! not if I can help it!" yelled the deacon in
+reply, as, with something like a reinsman's skill, he instinctively
+lifted Jack to another spurt. "Go it, old boy!" he shouted
+encouragingly. "Go along with you, I say!" and the parson, also carried
+away by the whirl of the moment, cried, "Go along, old boy! Go along
+with you, I say!"
+
+This was the very thing, and the only thing, that huge horse, whose
+blood was now fairly aflame, wanted to rally him for the final effort;
+and, in response to the encouraging cries of the two behind him, he
+gathered himself together for another burst of speed, and put forth his
+collected strength with such tremendous energy and suddenness of
+movement that the little deacon, who had risen, and was standing erect
+in the sleigh, fell back into the arms of the parson, while the great
+horse rushed over the line a winner by a clear length, amid such cheers
+and roars of laughter as were never heard in that village before.
+
+Nor was the horse any more the object of public interest and remark--we
+may say favoring remark--than the parson, who suddenly found himself the
+centre of a crowd of his own parishioners, many of whom would scarcely
+be expected as participants of such a scene, but who, thawed out of
+their iciness by the genial temper of the day, and vastly excited over
+Jack's contest, thronged upon the good man, laughing as heartily as any
+jolly sinner in the crowd.
+
+So everybody shook hands with the parson and wished him a Happy New
+Year, and the parson shook hands with everybody and wished them all many
+happy returns; and everybody praised old Jack, and rallied the deacon on
+his driving; and then everybody went home good-natured and happy,
+laughing and talking about the wonderful race, and the change that had
+come over Parson Whitney.
+
+And as for Parson Whitney himself, the day and its fun had taken twenty
+years from his age, and nothing would answer but the deacon must go home
+and eat the New Year's pudding at the parsonage; and he did. And at the
+table they laughed and talked over the funny incidents of the day, and
+joked each other as merrily as two boys. Then Parson Whitney told some
+reminiscences of his college days, and the scrapes he got into, and a
+riot between town and gown, when he carried the "Bully's Club;" and the
+deacon responded by narrating his experiences with a certain Deacon
+Jones's watermelon patch when he was a boy, and over their tales and
+their mulled cider they laughed till they cried, and roared so lustily
+at the remembered frolics of their youthful days that the old parsonage
+rang, the books on the library shelves rattled, and several of the
+theological volumes actually gaped with horror.
+
+But at last the stories were all told, the jokes all cracked, and the
+laughter all laughed, and the little deacon wished the parson good-by,
+and jogged happily homeward; but more than once he laughed to himself,
+and said, "Bless my soul! I didn't know the parson had so much fun in
+him." And long the parson sat by the glowing grate after the deacon had
+left him, musing of other days, and the happy, pleasant things that were
+in them; and many times he smiled, and once he laughed outright at some
+remembered folly, for he said, "What a wild boy I was, and yet I meant
+no wrong; and the dear old days were very happy."
+
+Ay, ay! Parson Whitney, the dear old days were very happy, not only to
+thee, but to all of us, who, following our sun, have fared westward so
+long that the light of the morning shows dull through the dim haze of
+memory. But happier than even the old days will be the young ones, I
+ween, when, following still westward, we suddenly come to the gates of
+the new east and the morning once more; and there, in the dawn of a day
+which is cloudless and endless, we find our lost youth and its loves, to
+lose them and it no more forever, thank God!
+
+
+
+
+                   THE LEAF OF RED ROSE.
+
+
+
+
+                   THE LEAF OF RED ROSE:
+
+                 THE OLD TRAPPER'S STORY.
+
+    A story? Why, yes. If Henry, there, will translate it
+    And put it in verse and print as he promised
+    To do when it happened. Will he do it? I doubt.
+    He dislikes to dabble with rhyme and with measure.
+    Says that good honest prose is the best and the sweetest
+    If the words be well chosen, short, Saxon, and pithy.
+    And that making of verse is the business of women,
+    Of green boys at school, and of lovers when spooning.
+    But try him. It may be he will. For a lesson
+    Is in it, and that makes it worth telling.
+    The woods have their secrets and sorrows and struggles
+    As well as the cities. You can find in the woods
+    Many things, if you look, beside trees, rocks, and mountains.
+
+    Jack Whitcomb he said his name was, though I doubted.
+    For the name on his bosom, tattooed in purple,
+    Didn't point quite that way. But that doesn't matter.
+    One name in the woods is as good as another
+    If a man answers to it and it's easily spoken.
+    So we called him Jack Whitcomb and asked nothing further.
+    Brave? Why, of course he was brave. Men are not cowards.
+    Cowards don't come to the woods. They stay in the cities,
+    Where policemen are thick and the streets are all lighted.
+    In the woods men trail with their ears and eyes open,
+    And sleep when they sleep with their hands on their rifles.
+    Why? Well, panthers are plenty and cunning and quiet,
+    And a man is a fool that goes carelessly stumbling
+    Under trees where they crouch, under crags where they gather.
+    Furthermore, with the saints, now and then there are sinners
+    That live in the woods; and some half-breeds are wicked,
+    And know nothing of law unless taught by a bullet.
+    I've done what I could to teach knaves the commandments.
+    Yes. Jack Whitcomb was brave. Brave as the bravest.
+    His glance was as keen and his mouth was as silent
+    As a trailer's should be who looks and who listens
+    By day and by night, having no one to talk to.
+    His finger was quick when it handled the trigger,
+    And his eye loved the sights as lightning loves rivers.
+    I've seen him stand up when the odds were against him.
+    Stand up like a man who takes coolly the chances.
+    That proves he was brave as I understand it.
+
+    One day we were boating on far Mistassinni.
+    We were fetching the portage above the great rapids,
+    Where they whirled, roaring down, freshet full, at their whitest,
+    When we saw from a rock that stretched outward and over
+    The wild hissing water as it swept on in thunder,
+    A canoe coming down, rolling over and over,
+    With a little papoose clinging tight to the lashings;
+    And as it lanced by Jack went in like an otter.
+    How he did it God knows, but at the foot of the rapids,
+    Half a mile farther down racing onward, I found him
+    High and dry on the beach in a faint like a woman,
+    With the little papoose pulling away at his jacket.
+    And when he came to, he put child to his shoulder,
+    Nor stopped till it lay in the arms of its mother.
+
+    We were trailing, Henry and I, trailing and trapping
+    In the land to the north, where fur was the thickest,
+    And knaves were as plenty as mink or as otter.
+    We took turns at sleeping, and trailed our line double
+    To keep our own skins, if we didn't get others.
+    It was folly to stay where we were, and we knew it,
+    For the knaves they got thicker, and soon there was shooting
+    Going on pretty lively. But we held to the business
+    And scouted the line once a week like true trappers.
+    And no accident happened save some holes in our jackets,
+    And my powder-horn emptied by a vagabond's bullet.
+    So we mended our clothing and felt pretty lively.
+    But the signs pointed one way. Our enemies thickened
+    Around us each day, and we weren't quite decided
+    To stand in for a fight and settle the matter,
+    Or pull up our traps and get out of the country,
+    When it settled itself. And in this way it happened.
+
+    We were scouting the lake on the west shore one morning,
+    To find the knaves' camp and how many were in it,
+    When a short space ahead there came of a sudden
+    A crash as of thunder, and we knew that a dozen
+    Or twenty placed rifles had burst an ambushment.
+    And then in an instant there sounded another.
+    Two sharp, twin reports and the death yells that followed
+    Told us as we listened where the lead had been driven.
+    Knew who he was? Of course. The man was Jack Whitcomb.
+    Do you think men who live by trapping and shooting
+    Don't learn to distinguish the voice of their rifles?
+    Jack was trailing the lake to find our encampment,
+    For far away in the south there had come to his cabin
+    A rumor that we in the north land were holding
+    Our line and our furs with a good deal of shooting.
+    So he left his own traps and came by swift trailing
+    To give us the help of another good rifle.
+    That was just like Jack Whitcomb. If you were in trouble
+    He was there by your side. You could always count on him,
+    With finger on trigger and both barrels loaded.
+
+    So Henry and I both took to our covers
+    Right and left of the trail Jack must take in retreating.
+    We didn't wait long, for the boy knew his business,
+    And soon he came backward, loading and running,
+    Like a man who was busy but wouldn't be hurried
+    Beyond his own gait, if he stopped there forever.
+    As he passed our two covers I piped him a whistle;
+    And he stopped in his tracks, and with low, pleasant laughter,
+    Stood there in full view coolly capping the nipples.
+    I have shot on each Gulf, both Southern and Northern.
+    I have trailed the long trail between either ocean.
+    Brave men I have seen, both in good and in evil,
+    But never a braver than the man called Jack Whitcomb.
+    Well, why describe it? Call it scrimmage or battle,
+    It was done in a minute, or it may be a dozen.
+    It came like a whirlwind, and we three were in it
+    As men are in whirlwinds. It came like the thunder,
+    With a crash and a roar and a long running rumble
+    Dying down into silence. There were dead and some wounded,
+    And a few lucky knaves that fled wildly backward;
+    And Henry and I, when it passed, were left standing
+    By the body of him whose name was Jack Whitcomb,
+    Who lay as he fell, when headlong he tumbled,
+    His rifle still clinched and both barrels smoking.
+    I have seen in my life many wounds made by bullets,
+    And a good many gashes by spear-points and arrows.
+    I have learned in my trailing a good many simples
+    Which have power to keep men from crossing the river
+    Before the Lord calls with voice that is certain.
+    And the wound that we found on Jack Whitcomb's body,
+    Though ugly and deep, was not beyond curing.
+
+    We cleansed and we stanched it and fought a brave battle
+    With death, for his life, and we won. For Jack mended.
+    We made a canoe and we bore him far southward.
+    A hundred good miles down the river we boated,
+    Till we came to his house of huge logs, strongly builded,
+    Beneath the big pines on the bank of a rapid,
+    Which under it flowed its soft rush of brown water.
+    'Twas a place to bring peace to a heart that was troubled,
+    If peace might be found this side of the silence
+    Which brings peace to all that know sorrow in living.
+
+    Yes, we boated him down to his home by the rapids.
+    His home? No, rather his house let us call it.
+    For how can a house be a home with naught in it?
+    In house that is home must be love, warm and human,
+    A voice that is sweet, a heart that is gentle,
+    A soul that is true, and beside these a cradle
+    That prattles and coos; and the quick-falling patter
+    Of little white feet that run hither and thither.
+    To his house, and not to his home, then, we brought him,
+    For certainly nothing and no one was in it,
+    Save himself and a dog, a bed and a table,
+    Some chairs, a few books, and a--Picture.
+    And this was the story that he told us in dying.
+    The man might have lived, beyond doubt, had he cared to.
+    But he didn't. No motive, he said. And he had none,
+    As we felt later on, when he told us his story.
+    So he died without word or sign. And in silence
+    We stood and saw him go forth on his journey
+    Without speaking a word, without a hand lifted
+    To hold or to stop him, for we did not feel certain
+    What was wisdom for one who went forth in such fashion.
+    Perhaps it was best he should go and be over
+    With pain, loss and trouble for ever and ever.
+    Henry says, it were well we should all of us go
+    When life has no aim and no hope; and no doing
+    Remains to be done; and days are but eating
+    And drinking and breathing, only these and no more.
+
+    But before he went forth he gave me a message.
+    "I loved her," so his story began. Henry,
+    You remember the look on his face as he said it,
+    As he lay with his eyes fixed fast on the Picture?
+    "She was strong, and she drew me as life draws the young
+    And as death draws the old. I could not resist her.
+    She was vital with force, to attract and to hold.
+    She raced me a race for my life, and she won it.
+    I was man, not a boy, and I loved as man loves
+    When the forces of life are in him full-flooded
+    As rivers in meadows, when they flow to the sedges.
+    Did she love me? Perhaps. Who can tell? She was woman,
+    And hence she was dark as the night, and as hidden!
+    Who could find her? Who the depth of her nature
+    Might measure? I tried but could not. Then boldly
+    I spake--spake as man speaks but once unto woman.
+    True and straight did I say it man fashion.
+    But she drew back offended; she shrank from my praying,
+    And with coldness of tone and suspicion dismissed me.
+    Had a man shown a tithe of that look in his eye,
+    On his face, he or I would have died on the instant.
+    But what can a man do, when scorned by a woman?
+    So I left her.
+
+    I need not say more. My life it was ended.
+    It wasn't worth living;--I am made in that fashion.
+    So I came to the woods. Where else when in trouble
+    Can man go and find what he needs, consolation?
+    Go you down to her house, in the city, John Norton,
+    To the house where she lives, and give her this message.
+    Word for word let her hear it,--say where you left me.
+    There's gold in that box to pay your expenses.
+    Word for word as I tell you, nor say a word further."
+    Then he bade us good-by, and marched away bravely,
+    As a man on a trail that is somewhat uncertain.
+    And under the pines on the bank of the rapids
+    We buried the man whom the woods called--Jack Whitcomb,
+    And the picture he loved we placed on his bosom.
+
+           *       *       *       *       *
+
+    I went down to her house in the city. A cabin
+    Of stone, brown as tamarack bark, trimmed with olive.
+    It was high as a pine that stands on a mountain.
+    The door was as wide as the mouth of a cavern.
+    At the door stood a man rigged up like a soldier;
+    His face was as solemn as judgment to sinners;
+    He looked at me some, and I looked him all over,
+    Then he suddenly bowed like a half-breed with manners,
+    And told me to enter, and he would call Madame.
+    The room was as large as a town house where settlers
+    Hold meetings to vote themselves office and wages.
+    The walls were like caves in far Arizona.
+    All covered with pictures of houses and battles;
+    Of ships blown onward by gales in mid-ocean;
+    Of children with wings, pretty queer-looking creatures;
+    Of men and of women, and some were half-naked.
+    But the floor was of oak, which gleamed like a polish;
+    And with mats thick as moss, and with skins it was covered,
+    So I felt quite at home, as there I stood looking,
+    And noting the size and signs of the cabin.
+
+    Then, all of a sudden, there came a soft rustle,
+    Like the rustle of leaves when the wind blows in autumn.
+    And down the wide stairway across the great hall,
+    To the door of the room in which I was standing,
+    Stately and swift, came a woman and entered.
+    Tall as the tallest. Made firmly, knit firmly
+    Both in form and in limb, but full and well rounded;
+    Dark of eye, dark of face, with hair like a raven,
+    Like the girls of Nevada, where live the old races,
+    Whose blood is as fire, and whose skin is of olive,
+    Whose mouths are as sweet as a fig when it ripens.
+    Arms bare to the shoulders. Neck and bosom uncovered.
+    Her gown of white satin gleamed and flowed downward
+    And round her in folds of soft, creamy whiteness.
+    No ring on her hand, nor in ear. Not a circle
+    Of gold round her throat. One armlet of silver,
+    And one at her wrist loosely clasped, small and slender.
+    So she entered and stood, and looked me all over.
+
+    Then slowly she spake. "Your name, sir, and business?"
+    "Madame," I said, "in the woods men call me John Norton;
+    John Norton, the Trapper." Then I stopped mighty sudden,
+    For her face it grew white to the lips and the chin,
+    And she swayed as a tree to the stroke of the chopper
+    When he sinks his axe in to the heart and it totters
+    And quivers. So I stopped, stopped quick and stood looking.
+
+    Then her dark face it lighted, and she said, speaking quickly:
+    "John Norton, I know you. I know you are honest.
+    You live in the woods. You are good. I can trust you.
+    All men, I have heard, come to you in their trouble.
+    Have you seen in the North, have you met in the woods,
+    Has there come to your cabin a man, tall as you,
+    Brave as you and as tender? A man like to this?"
+    And out of her gown, from the folds on her bosom,
+    She lifted a locket of pearl-colored velvet,
+    Touched a spring, and I saw, as the lid of it opened,
+    The face of the man I and Henry had buried!
+
+    "John Norton," she cried, and her eyes burned like fever.
+    Her hand shook and trembled, her face was as marble,
+    "Have you seen in the woods man like to this picture?
+    Speak quick and speak true as to woman in trouble.
+    For I did him great wrong, I thought he held lightly
+    My fair name and fame; held lightly my honor.
+    I thought he meant evil, and my heart, filled with anger,
+    Dismissed him in scorn; but I learned, I learned later,
+    He was true, and spake truth and loved me as heaven."
+
+    Then I stood and I looked and held my face steady,
+    So it gave her no sign of what I was thinking.
+    I saw she was honest, and I wished then to spare her,
+    But my word it was pledged, pledged to him in dying,
+    To stand as I stood, face to face with this woman,
+    In her house, in that room, and give her his message.
+    Beside, not to know is far worse than the knowing
+    At times. So I rallied and told her the message,
+    Word for word, as he charged, the night he lay dying
+    In his house on the bank above the swift rapids.
+
+    "Madame," I said, "I have seen man like that picture,
+    Face and form. He was brave as you say. He was tender.
+    He was true unto death, and he loved you as heaven.
+    And these are the words that he sent you in dying.
+    I, a man of the woods, bring you this as last message,
+    From one who now sleeps on the bank of the rapids
+    Of that northern river which pours its brown water
+    To the Lake of St. John from far Mistassinni.
+    'Tell her, John Norton, I loved her. Loved her in living,
+    With a love that was true, and with same love in dying.
+    Loved her like a man, like a saint, like a sinner,
+    For time now and time ever. That the one picture
+    She gave me I kept;--living, dying, and after.
+    That it lies on the breast of the man that you buried;
+    On the breast of the man who living did love her,
+    And that there it will lie until it shall crumble,
+    With heart underneath it, to dust. So tell her.
+    And in proof that I tell her the truth, and did tell it
+    The night when we met, and I told her I loved her,
+    Give her this, the watch that I wore on the evening
+    We met, and the evening we parted. Let her open
+    And see. With her eyes let her see that I loved her.
+    So say and no more."
+
+    Thus I spake. Word for word as he told me I spake.
+    I gave her the watch, and I said no word further.
+    I had done as I pledged, I had said as he charged me,
+    So I stopped and stood waiting for word of dismissal.
+    But she said not a word, nor made she a sign.
+    The watch she took from me, touched the spring and it opened,
+    And there, 'twixt the glass and the gold, withered and faded,
+    Lay a leaf of Red Rose. One leaf, and--no more.
+
+    For a moment she stood; stood, and gazed at the leaf,
+    Her face grew as white as her gown, and she trembled
+    And shook like a white swan in dying, then she cried,
+    "My God, I have killed him, my lover!"
+    And down on the floor, on the skins at her feet
+    She dropped as one stricken by bullet or lightning.
+
+    It was only last month that we two, in trailing,
+    Trailed a hundred good miles across to the rapids.
+    For we wanted to see before going northward
+    If evil had come to the grave of our comrade.
+    But the grave lay untouched, by beast or by human.
+    The grass on the mound was well rooted and growthful.
+    At the foot of the grave the rose-tree I planted
+    Was as high as my head. And the leaves of the roses
+    Lay as thick as red snow-flakes on the mound that was under.
+    And we knew that on breast, as he slept, was her picture.
+    So we felt, as we gazed, it was well with Jack Whitcomb.
+
+    But often at night, when alone in my cabin,
+    I hear the low murmur of far northern rapids.
+    And often I see the great house and its splendor,
+    And wonder if death has helped the proud woman
+    To lay off her grief and escape from her sorrow.
+    And blazed a line through the dark Valley of Shadow,
+    And brought her in peace to the edge of the clearing,
+    Where I know she would see Jack Whitcomb stand, waiting.
+
+    So I say it again, and I say it with knowledge,
+    That the woods have their sorrows as well as the cities.
+    And he knows but little of this great northern forest
+    Who thinks there's naught in it save trees, lakes, and mountains.
+
+
+
+SELECT LIST
+OF
+Standard and Popular
+BOOKS
+
+PUBLISHED BY
+
+DEWOLFE, FISKE & CO.,
+_361-365 WASHINGTON STREET,
+BOSTON, MASS._
+
+Any book on this list will be sent, postpaid, on receipt of price.
+
+_In addition to the works mentioned in this list, we will furnish any
+books in the market at lowest possible prices, and would respectfully
+solicit correspondence in regard to prices or any desired information._
+
+_DeWOLFE, FISKE & CO., Boston, Mass._
+
+_P.S.--Catalogue of books at special reductions mailed free to any
+address._
+
+
+_Standard and Popular Books_
+
+PUBLISHED BY
+
+DEWOLFE, FISKE & CO.,
+
+PUBLISHERS, GENERAL BOOKSELLERS, AND LIBRARY AGENTS,
+
+_Boston, Mass._
+
+* *
+ *_In order to insure the correct delivery
+of the actual works, or particular Editions specified in this List, the
+name of the Publishers should be distinctly given. These books can be
+had from any local bookseller; but should any difficulty be experienced
+in procuring them, Messrs. DeWolfe, Fiske & Co., will be happy to
+forward them direct, postage paid, on receipt of cheque, stamps or
+Postal order for the amount, with a copy of their complete catalogue._
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+NEW EDITIONS OF W. H. H. MURRAY'S FAMOUS BOOKS.
+
+=DAYLIGHT LAND.= The experiences, incidents, and adventures, humorous and
+otherwise, which befell Judge John Doe, Tourist, of San Francisco; Mr.
+Cephas Pepperell, Capitalist, of Boston; Colonel Goffe, the man from New
+Hampshire, and divers others, in their Parlor-Car Excursion over Prairie
+and Mountain; as recorded and set forth by W. H. H. MURRAY. Superbly
+illustrated with 150 cuts in various colors by the best artists. 8vo,
+350 pages. Unique paper covers, $2.50; cloth, $3.50; cloth, extra gilt,
+$4.00.
+
+_The New York Herald_; says,
+
+Impossible to find a handsomer book on outdoor life than this. The
+author's peculiar faculty for describing days in the woods and rambles
+with good company has long been known. "Daylight Land" is longer than
+the book in which the same author made the Adirondacks seem some other
+place to men whose eyes were not as wide-open as his own, and the style
+is even breezier, if that is possible. Seldom does a book appear which
+is so entirely creditable to author, artist, and publisher.
+
+=HOW DEACON TUBMAN AND PARSON WHITNEY KEPT NEW YEAR'S, and Other Stories.=
+By W. H. H. MURRAY, author of "Adirondack Tales," etc. 12mo.
+Illustrated. $1.25.
+
+Deacon Tubman, a jolly, fat, good-natured man, is presented with a
+woollen night-cap on New Year's morning by his housekeeper, "a typical
+spinster not overburdened with fat." This so rejoices the Deacon that he
+is possessed to make others happy, goes to call upon his pastor, and
+makes him leave his books and spend the day skating, sleighing, and
+driving with his parishioners.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+=STORY THE KEG TOLD ME, AND THE STORY OF THE MAN WHO DIDN'T KNOW MUCH.= By
+W. H. H. MURRAY, author of "Daylight Land," "Adirondack Adventures,"
+etc. 12mo. Cloth, $1.50.
+
+"Two admirable stories by W. H. H. Murray, in both which appears John
+Norton, the trapper, a character that promises to become as much of a
+favorite as is the hero of the Leather Stocking novels. These stories
+have a bracing outdoor freshness and a delightfully crisp realism: are
+vigorous in tone, and strong and picturesque in the relation. Taken
+altogether, they may be pronounced in the most artistic of Mr. Murray's
+excursions into the realms of fiction, and fascinating generally."
+--_Saturday Evening Gazette._
+
+
+=DEACONS.= By W. H. H. MURRAY. 16mo. Paper, 50 cts. Cloth, 75 cts.
+
+"Mr. Murray is an expert in the art of character drawing; he can
+manipulate humor and pathos with equal facility. No one will gainsay
+their freshness and individuality."--_N. Y. Commercial Advertiser._
+
+
+=ADIRONDACK ADVENTURES.= "In the Wilderness; or, Camp Life in the
+Adirondacks." By W. H. H. MURRAY, 12mo. Illustrated. Paper, 50 cts.
+Cloth, $1.25.
+
+"In the 'Adventures in the Wilderness' W. H. H. Murray strikes the happy
+hunting ground, which long ago earned for him the popular title,
+'Adirondack Murray,' and here, as in his other books, he fairly revels
+in stirring incident, lively and faithful conception of character, and
+the powerful but delightful description of natural scenery which have
+already given his work an enviable and lasting place in American
+literature."--_Nashville American._
+
+
+=THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN, AND OTHER STORIES.= By W. H. H. MURRAY. With
+photogravure portrait of Mr. Murray, and eight full-page illustrations
+by Thos. Worth. Square 12mo. Cloth, $1.00.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+=CIVILIZATION IN THE UNITED STATES, AND OTHER ESSAYS CONCERNING AMERICA.=
+By MATTHEW ARNOLD. 16mo. Unique paper boards, 50 cts. Cloth, uncut,
+$1.25. The cloth binding matches the uniform edition of his collected
+works. Comprises the critical essays, which created so much discussion,
+namely, "General Grant, an Estimate," "A Word About America," "A Word
+More About America," and "Civilization in the United States." The
+collection gathers in the great critic's last contribution to
+literature.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+BULFINCH'S MYTHOLOGY.
+
+=THE AGE OF CHIVALRY; Or Legends of King Arthur.= "Stories of the Round
+Table," "The Crusades," "Robin Hood," etc. By THOMAS BULFINCH. A new and
+enlarged edition. Revised by Rev. E. E. HALE. Large 12mo. Illustrated.
+$2.50.
+
+In "The Age of Fable," Mr. Bulfinch endeavored to impart the pleasure of
+classical learning to the English reader by presenting the stories of
+Pagan mythology in a form adapted to modern taste. In this volume the
+attempt has been made to treat in the same way the stories of the second
+"age of fable"--the age which witnessed the dawn of the several states
+of modern Europe.
+
+
+=THE AGE OF FABLE; Or, Beauties of Mythology.= By THOMAS BULFINCH. A new
+and enlarged edition, containing over 100 illustrations from ancient
+paintings and statuary. Revised by Rev. E. E. HALE. Large 12mo. $2.50.
+
+Young readers will find this book a source of entertainment; those more
+advanced, a useful companion in their reading; those who travel and
+visit museums and galleries of art, an interpreter of paintings and
+sculptures.
+
+
+=LEGENDS OF CHARLEMAGNE; Or, Romance of the Middle Ages.= Stories of
+Paladin and Saracen. By THOMAS BULFINCH. 12mo. Illustrated. $2.50.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+PROF. CLARK MURRAY'S WORKS.
+
+=SOLOMON MAIMON=: An Autobiography. Translated from the German, with
+Additions and Notes, by Prof. J. CLARK MURRAY. Cr. 8vo. Cloth. 307
+pages. $2.00.
+
+The London _Spectator_ says: "Dr. Clark Murray has had the rare good
+fortune of first presenting this singularly vivid book in an English
+translation as pure and lively as if it were an original, and an
+original by a classic English writer."
+
+George Eliot, in "Daniel Deronda," mentions it as "that wonderful bit of
+autobiography--the life of the Polish Jew, Solomon Maimon:" and Milman,
+in his "History of the Jews," refers to it as a curious and rare book.
+
+
+=HANDBOOK OF PSYCHOLOGY.= By Prof. J. CLARK MURRAY, LL.D., Professor of
+Mental and Moral Philosophy, M'Gill College, Montreal. Cr. 8vo. 2d
+edition, enlarged and improved. $1.75.
+
+Clearly and simply written, with illustrations so well chosen that the
+dullest student can scarcely fail to take an interest in the subject.
+
+Adopted for use in colleges in Scotland, England, Canada, and the United
+States.
+
+Prof. Murray's good fortune in bringing to light the "Maimon Memoirs,"
+together with the increasing popularity of his "Handbook of Psychology,"
+has attracted the attention of the intellectual world, giving him a
+position with the leaders of thought of the present age. His writings
+are at once original and suggestive.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+_Standard and Popular Books._
+
+THE POPULAR WORKS OF SALLY PRATT MCLEAN.
+
+=CAPE COD FOLKS.= A Novel. Twenty-third edition. Illustrated. 12mo. Cloth,
+$1.25. Paper, 50 cents.
+
+=TOWHEAD: THE STORY OF A GIRL.= Fifth Thousand. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25. Paper,
+50 cents.
+
+Since the production of Miss McLean's first effort "Cape Cod Folks," she
+has steadily advanced in intellectual development; the same genius is at
+work in a larger and more artistic manner, until she has at length
+produced what must be truly considered as her masterpiece, and which we
+have the pleasure to announce for immediate publication.
+
+=SOME OTHER FOLKS.= A Book in Four Stories. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25. Paper, 50
+cents.
+
+These books are so well known that further comment seems superfluous.
+Suffice it to say that the entire press of the country has unanimously
+spoken of them in terms of high praise, dwelling not only on their
+delicious humor, their literary workmanship, their genuine pathos, and
+their real power and eloquence, but what has been described as their
+deep, true _humanness_, and the inimitable manner in which the mirror is
+held up to nature that all may see reflected therein some familiar
+trait, some description or character which is at once recognized.
+
+=LASTCHANCE JUNCTION: HUMAN NATURE IN THE FAR WEST.= A Novel. By SALLY
+PRATT MCLEAN. 1 vol. 12mo. Cloth, $1.25.
+
+"Terse, incisive descriptions of men and scenery, drawn with so vivid a
+pen that one can see the characters and their setting, delicious bits of
+humor, passages full of infinite pathos, make this book absolutely hold
+the reader from the title to the last word, and as, when finished, one
+sighs for the pity of it, the feeling rises that such a work has not
+been written in vain, and will have its place among those which tend to
+elevate our race."
+
+=MISS FRANCES MERLEY.= A Novel. By JOHN ELLIOT CURRAN. 420 pages. Square
+16mo. Paper covers, 50 cents. Cloth, $1.00.
+
+The first important work of an author familiar to American readers by
+his remarkable sketches to _Scribner's_ and other magazines.
+
+=AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF A NEW ENGLAND FARM HOUSE=: A Romance of the Cape Cod
+Lands. By N. H. CHAMBERLAIN. 380 pages. Square 16mo. Paper covers, 50
+cents. Cloth, $1.00.
+
+A novel of singular power and beauty, great originality and rugged
+force. Born and bred on Cape Cod, the author, at the winter firesides of
+country people, very conservative of ancient English customs now gone,
+heard curious talk of kings, Puritan ministers, the war and precedent
+struggle of our Revolution, and touched a race of men and women now
+passed away. He also heard, chiefly from ancient women, the traditions
+of ghosts, witches and Indians, as they are preserved, and to a degree
+believed, by honest Christian folk, in the very teeth of modern
+progress.
+
+
+                              _Publishers_,
+_DeWolfe, Fiske & Co._            _Booksellers_,               _BOSTON._
+                                       _Library Agents_.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Busted Ex-Texan and Other Stories, by
+W. H. H. Murray
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BUSTED EX-TEXAN ***
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