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Show . ' I Desert Dust DustI ITLf II I a . IIBy LBy L By Johnston JohnstonI Johnstona - ] I was in a little Colorado town the theother theother theother other day . I met a Mexican fellow on onthe onthe onthe the street He was carrying carrymg a : dead deadCollie deadCollie deadCollie Collie pup and was crying crymg I 1 asked askedthe askedthe askedtho the poor fcllowhat fellow fcllow ' \ what \\hat hat shat the trouble was wasHe wasHe wasHe He informed infonned infornied me that a mule mu1C had kick kick- kicked kicked kicked - ed the pup and killed it He slid s'1id s1id ' that thatthe thatthe thatthe he had hadever hadever hadever the pupas pup " was \as as ' \ the smartest pup ever saw But he seemed to think thmk that thatall thatall thatall all smart dogs soon met death in some someviolent someviolent someviolent violent way He said that the pup pupanted pupwanted pupwanted \\anted anted wanted ' \ to work and was trying trymg to todlive todelve todiive dlive delve the mule but when the pup took tookhold tookhold tookhold hold of the mule s heel the mule kIlled kIlledit killedIt killedit it He patted the dead pup on the thehead thehead thehead head and nnd said , 'You You ' You was just lust too toosmart toosmart toosmart smart to live hve " Now that remark car- car carries carries car carries - ries a lot of truth Every time I think thinkof thinkof thinkof of that fellow and his pup , it reminds remindsme remindsme remindsme me of t\\ t two t0 \ 0 dogs my father owned One Oneof Oneof Oneof of them them , , , \ was \ as an old dog , the other was wasonly wasonly wasonly only six SLX months old Father bought boughta a few hundred sheepsand sheep land r.md rmd sand . naturally me mebemg mebeing mebeing bemg being just lust a boy it fell fen . to t.o me to held herd heldthem herdthem heldthem them I was having havmg a little loss but butfather butfather butfather father thought some of the loss was wasfrom wasfrom wasfrom from the corral We corralled them themevery themevery themevery every night , . He had an idea that thatsome thatsome thatsome some one"IMS one \ " wlas \"IMS "IMS IMS Was getting a mutton now nowand nowand and * . ' hen 'hen So he ordered the sheep sheepco sheepco co 'rtcd rtcd Irtcd 'recd recd ' ' out of the corral every morn- morn morni morns mom-i-5 mom i 5 - : s- s sThe i - " : ; The corral gate was on hmges hinges hmgesand hingesand hingesand and tied shut " with ith a small piece ot of otrope ofrope ofrope rope We always counted the sheep sheepout sheepout sheepout out at sunisc sunISe The dogs was ahV'oays ahVoays always ahV'oaysthere alwaysthere alwaysthere ' there waiting waitmg Father would ould open the thegate thegate thegate gate a couple of feet and count them themthrough themthrough themthrough through When he would count to toone toone toone one hundred , he would shout hundred hundredand , and I would make a mark in the sand sandOne sandOne sandOne One morning we Was about ten min min- minutes minutes minutes - utes late getting to the corral When Whenv Whenwe Whenwe v . we e got there the dogs v . was as just finish finish- finishing finishing finishing - ing the count , they had chewed the therope therope therope rope off the gate The old dog had hadcounted hadcounted hadcounted counted them out and the young dog doghad doghad doghad had kept tally The old dog would wouldcount wouldcount wouldcount count to one hundred , then bark ; then thenthe thenthe thenthe the young dog would make a miark mark in inthe inthe inthe the sand with his front foot T The Tie e old olddog olddog olddog dog took my father by the hand and andled andled andled led him down ito rto to where the young dog doghad doghad doghad had kept the tally Now father v.ould vould would v.ouldnot wouldnot . wouldnot not have thought of parting ' with withthose withthose withthose those two dogs But they both died diedVIolent diedviolent diedviolent VIolent deaths . One of our neighbors neighborsput neighborsput neighborsput put the old dog- dog dogbefore - before the firing firmg squad squadfor squadfor squadfor for killing sheep My mother had the theyoung theyoung theyoung young dog hanged by the neck until untilhe untilhe untilhe he heIRS \ was \\IRS IRS pronounced dead for suckmg sucking suckmgeggs suckingeggs suckingeggs eggs Like the Mexican s pup they was wasJust wasoust wasjust Just oust too smart to liveThis liveThis live liveThis This old Indian , Jackson Barnett Barnettthat , that the newspapers are all commenting commentingon on , is not as dumb as you might nught think thinkNow thinkNow thinkNow Now don't dont ' ' get me wrong I am not notcIalming notclaiming notclaiming cIalming claiming any relation to old Jackson JacksonI , ' I have plenty of breed relation but butthey butthey butthey they are all aU poor people They are arethe arethe arethe the kind kmd of Indians that think they theyare theyare theyare theyI I are smart and are always broke But Butold Butold Butold old Jackson Barnett was always sup- sup supposed sup supposed - SUPIposed posed to be dumb When old Jack Jack- Jackson Jackson Jackson SUP-I SUP I - son dame ciune come into oil , the government ap- ap appomted appointed ap appointed - - pointed pomted l him m a trustee This fellow of ofcourse ofcourse ofcourse course worked on a per cent , but when whenAnna whenAnna I Anna Lowe proved to him that she sheI she"as shewas shewas I "as as was " capable of handling his 1us business businessthe businessthey businessthey the they ' got married and divorced divoroPd the thetrustee thetrustee I trustee , and don't dont ' think thmk this trustee trusteewas trusteewas trusteewas was not a broken hearted he'arted ' man He Hetried Hetried I ItrIed trIed to piove plOve prove the marriage illegal but butI butfaIled butfailed I ' faIled Then they thought they would wouldlet wouldlet wouldlet let it drift along until Anna Lowe Lowefleeced Lowefleeced Lowefleeced fleeced old Jackson and left him , then thenthey thenthey thenthey they would let him wed another anothertrustee anothertrustee anothertrustee trustee But Anna and JTackson J1ackson Jackson fooled fooledthem fooledthem fooledthem them They have been just as happy happyand happyand happyand and busy as they can be trying trymg to tospend tospend tospend spend old Jackson's Jacksons ' money as fast as asthe asthe asthe the government gave it to him hun Now NowIf Nowif Nowif If the government don dont t get him hm hun divorced di- di diVOl di-voiced di voiced - ! VOl vorced ced from Anna Ann31 and married to a agovernment agovernment agovernment government trustee before he dies it itwill itwill itwill will just oust be too bad Oldi Old Jackson JacksonBarnet JacksonBarnett JacksonBarnetfc Barnet Barnett is J5 somewhere sOmC\\hele sOmC hele \ between bet\\een bet een \ \ 96 and and100 100 years of ageI ageIf age ageIf I If these eggs of technocracy haven't havent haven'thatched haven'thatched haven'thatched haventhatched ' hatched a flock of cuckoos , well , then thenits , I it s someone else that has gone nutsLaw nuts nutsLaw . Law leaveth little for the litigant hhgant If IfI Ifthou Ifthou I thou gameth gatneth thy cause , the c cost coi > t mayI maybe maybe may maygreater I be greater than thanjt it is worth "orth orth " |