Show www THE AT A L F W A I 11 II I S E 1 I 1 A S O 0 R Y O 0 S 1 H E P L A I 1 N S I 1 BY E HOUGH AUTHOR OF TUB STORY OF THE COWBOY by D Aff lefan con tans new york CHAPTER IX continued well you see another town coln up below here about twenty mile old man plum s town plum centre I 1 run the mall an carry folk accost from ellisville Ellis ville to that place this here Is just about half way accost ellisville Ellis ville s about twenty or twenty five mile north of here the tall man on the wagon sear turned his face slowly back toward the interior of the wagon what do iou think lizzie he asked dear me william came reply from the darkness in a somewhat corn pla ining voice how can I 1 tell it all seems alike to me you can ludge better than I 1 what do you sa nieces the person last addressed rested a hand upon the questioner s shoulder and lightly cllia bed out upon the seat by his side stooping as she passed under the low bow of the cover frame her presence caused sam to instinct ively straighten up and tug at his open coat he took off his hat with a memory of other days and said his good mornin as the schoolboy does to his teacher superior revered and awesome yet this new character upon this f bare little scene was not of a sort to terrify tall she was and shapely comely with all the grace of youth and health not yet tanned too bronn by the searing prairie winds and show ing still the faint purity of the corn dexion of the south to sam it was instantaneously evident that here was a new species 0 being one of which he had but the vaguest notions through any experiences of his own his chief impression was that he was at once grown small dusty and much unshaven he flushed as he shifted and twisted on the buckboard seat the girl looked about her for a mo ment in silence shading her eyes still her curved hand it is much alike all this country I 1 should think but what she would have thought was broken into by a sudden uon from farther back in the wagon A large black tace appeared at the apera ture under the front wagon bow and the owner of it spoke with a tain oracular vigor io bawd mass william less jess stop right yer I 1 dare I 1 se jess wore to a plum frazzle at an a travella travel ln E we gwine settle why less settle athass all I 1 say the driver of the wagon sat silent for a moment then quietly and with no comment be unbuckled the reins and threw them out and down upon the ground on either side of the wagon whoa boys he called to the borses which were too weary to note that they were no longer asked to go farther on then the driver got de down we 11 turn out here he said ing his heel upon the ground with significant gesture as was an anoon custom among the men who chose out land for themselves in a new region well stop here for a bite to eat and I 1 reckon we won t go any farther west how la this country around here for oh that said sam why say you coulden couldn t very well hit it much bet ter less n a mile farther down this trail to the south you come to the sinks of the white woman creek they s bobi always some water in that creek and you can git it there any place by diggin ten or twenty feet that s good said the stranger chats mighty good he turned to ane wagon side and called out to his wife come lizzie he said get out dear and take a rest we 11 have a bite to eat and then we 11 talk this all oer the woman to whom he epcke next appeared at the wagon front and was aided to the ground tall slender black clad with thin pale face she seemed even more unsuited than her husband to the prospect which lay before them immediately behind her there clambered down from the wag on with many groenings groan ings and corn plaints the goodly bulk of the black woman who had earlier given her ad vice set down yer mis lizzie in the shade she said spreading a rug upon the ground upon the side of the wagon farthest from the sun set down an git a ress bawd knows we all needs it this yer fosaaen ken try tain good as mizzoura Mizz oury let lone er ole ginny no inam there was thus now established by the chance of small things the loca alon of a home it was done it was decided there was a relief at once upon every countenance now these persons were become citizens of this band unwittingly or at least tacitly this was admitted when the leader of this little party advanced to the side of the buckboard and offered his hand my name is buford he said slow ly and with grave courtesy this is my wife my niece miss beauchamp your name sir I 1 don t know but we are very glad to meet you my names poston said sam as he also now climbed down from his seat seeing that the matter wa clinched and that he had gained a fam ily for his county sam poston run the livery barn do you allow you 11 move up to and live well ive started out to get some land said buford and I 1 presume that the first thing Is to find that and get the entry made then we 11 have to live on it till we can commute it I 1 don t know that it would suit us at just yet it must be a ratnee hard town from all I 1 can learn and hardly fit for ladies that s so said sam it ain t just the qu detest place in the world for women folks still he added apolo getic ally folks soon gets used to he noise I 1 don t mind it no more at all buford smiled as he glanced quiz at the faces of his women folks at this moment sam broke out with a loud exclamation now you listen to me tell ou what you see this here place where are now is just about a mile from the vv h te woman S aks and that is as I 1 was sayin just about half nay beewen and plum cen tre now look here this country s goin to boom they s goin to be a plenty of people come in here right a ong there 11 be a regular travel from ellis down to plum centre ana it s too long a trip to make between meals you just go down to the white woman and drive your stake there take up a quarter tor each of ou put you up a sod house as quick as you can git ou help for that now if you can git anything to cook and can give meals to m biage outfit when I 1 carry passengers he kicked aside a bleached buffalo skull through here why I 1 can promise you you 11 git b illness and you 11 git a plenty too unconsciously buford s eye wander ed over to the portly form of the who sat fanning herself a little apart from the others he smiled again with the quizzical loo oa his face how about that aunt lucya he asked do hit mass william replied the colored woman at once with conic tion and extending an energetic fore finger you dess do this yer man says ef they s any money to be made a cookin I 1 kan do all the cool in ever you wants ef you all kin git an thing to cook yas suh you ain t makin no mistake re fumed sam you go in and git our land filed on and put you up a sod or dugout tor the first season because lumbers awful high out here its pretty late to do anything with a crop this year even if ou bad any breakie done but ou can take our team and gether bones this fall and winter and that 11 make you a good livin too but me have yo i ever farmed it mucha well sir said buford slowly I 1 used to plant corn and cotton back in kentucky bafo the war sam looked at him puzzled I 1 allow ed you d never ranched it much he said vaguely how d you happen to come out herec the quizzical mile again crossed buford a face I 1 think I 1 shall have to give that up on my honor he said we just seem to have started est and to have kept going until we got here from kentucky eha said sam slowly and meditatively well it don t mal e no difference where you come from we want good men in herp and aull find this a good COUE try gamble that now I 1 must be gittin along over toward plum cen tre see you again it you stop in here on white Wo mansee you sev eral times a w eek like enough yo i must come up to ellis soon as you git straightened out say and he drew buford to one side as he whispered to him say they s a mighty fine girl orl s in the depot hotel nory s her name you 11 see her if you ever come up to town I 1 m awful gone on that girl and it you git any chanat it you capen to be up there you just put in a good word for me won t youa I 1 d do as much tor ou buford listened with grave polite ness though with a twinkle in his eye and promised to do what he could encouraged at this sam stepped up and shook hands with mrs buford and with the girl not forgetting aunt lucy an act which singularly am pressed that late inhabitant of a dif ferent land and made him her fast friend tor life well so long he said to them all in general as he turned away and good luck to you T ou ain t makin no mistake in here goodbye till I 1 see you all again he stepped into the buckboard and bucl ed to his little team the dust again rising from under the wheels the eyes of those remaining followed him already yearn angly As buford turned he stumbled and kicked aside a bleached barlo ull lay aalf h aie u e aed grass at his feet CHAPTER X the chase the summer flamed up into sudden heat and seared all the grasses and rut down the timid flowers then gradually there came the time of horter days and cooler nights obal basly all the earth was preparing for the winter time it become not less needful for man kind to take thought for the morrow winter on the plains was a season of evenly for the early settlers whose le sources alike in fuel and food were not too extensive franklin s fore thought had provided the houses of himself and Batter sleigh with proper fuel and he was quite ready to listen to curly when the latter suggested that it might be a good thing tor them to follow the usual custom and go out on a hunt tor the buffalo herd in order to supply themselves with their winter s meat franklin Batter sleigh and curly set it these three had a wagon and riding horses and they were accod named by a second wagon owned bv barn the liveryman who took with curly mozo the giant mexican juan the latter drove the team a ask which curly scornfully refused ahen it was offered him his cowboy reed rating any conveyance othel tian the saddle as tar beneath his station at night they slept beneath the s ars uncovered by any tent and constantly by the whining coy ofes whose vocalization was betimes broken by the hoarser roaring note of the great rray r ray buffalo wolf af morn they awoke to an air surcharged with some keen elixir which gave de ight in sene of living all around lay a new world a wild world a virgin phere not yet acquaint witt man early on the morning of the fourth day of their journey the travelers noted that the plain began to rise and sink in longer waves presently aney found themselves approaching a series of rude and wild looking hills sand for many miles they travel cd through this difficult and cheerless eglon the horses soon showing signs of distress and all the party feeling need of ater of which tha been exhausted they F in silence intent upon what might be ahead so that when there came an exclamation from the half witted mexican stolid silence under frost birc im stances had become a proverb among them each face was at once turned toward him eh that juana said curly ba boys he says w e re about out 03 the sand hills prairie pretty u now he davs to be continued |