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Show s; . jni7!rrjL ZZZZ WHEN LOYE IS DONE hars (Cnpyrlsht, 1901, by Dallr Story I'ubllihlni Co ) i (lie looked across a shimmering watte of barren tsnd snd wlthored bnWo trass, from which Ihe host, warts rsdisted until the distance was hat? with thera. A few distorted cactus cac-tus plants reared their weird forms In the heat, snd here snd there a dead and parched niesiinltu bush helped to break the monnluny of tho scenery, Afsr off, to tho southwest, tho tops of the mountains In Old Mexico could be teen faintly, miles and mllea away She Hked to speculate on how pleasant pleas-ant It wti beneath the trees on their slopes where the cool walera flowed, the wild flowers blossomed and the birds sang. She wai tired and utterly weaty of the whole business. Four long yenra she bad lived here she married John Hswklni bark in the stales, and rnme out to the El Dnradn ranch, where he was going to make his fortune raising cattle. He waa only foreman and she was cook for the cowboys. Tho worst of It wns, she was retarded by him ss icsrcoly more then a cook. Ho would some home late at night, gulp down an enormous supper, tumblo In bed and snort like a grampus until daylight, day-light, wtten he would bolt his break-fast break-fast and start out on the range again. Not a word of sympathy, of fellowship; fellow-ship; not a bit of tenderness, no sen-Unient, sen-Unient, only work, work left to herself, her-self, her lonely thoughts and the gloomy contemplation of the dreary waste without. Sometimes he was away at night and she had heard him Joking with some of the cowboys abmit Itlta and thei ne would watch her covertly out ot tbt corner of his eyes to see If she heanl, or understood. Hut she did aot ey'rur heraell, and they wet.t on talklat 0 ' where thm oincsI and us music and pulque, and women drovemen mad. That was where lilts slsyej. Itlta was, perhaps protty and dainty. Well, maybe Itlta did not ban to cook cook, all the time for a lot ot men, and wash dishes and iwmp up and prepare for another mill when one was finished. That would take tha good looks away from anybody. And when John hid talked of coming com-ing west, she had dreamed of cool adobt houses with splashing fountains In ths patio of oranga and lemon t rises In blossom of great acarlet gersnlnm trees and vlnea and flowers flow-ers tn Indolent, easy "manana' sort of silitence. Hut this. Instead. 8he looked about tha rough plank bouae In utter disgust and weariness. What was Ihe use of It all? What did It amount to? What waa there to look forward to, except a continuation ot the drudgoryt And day by day her youth, her good looks were slip-pins' slip-pins' from her, ground Into nothingness nothing-ness by toll of an unremitting sort What was thera loft for ber, now that ihe had found out tha baaa clay of her John now that lova wai daadT She remembered a little verse sha bad read somewhere, In her more Impressionable Im-pressionable daya, and there was a refrain ruining through It at tha and of each slants: "and tha light of a whole Ufa dies, When love Is dune." It kept ringing la her ears, Just that much of it Sha eould not .-ecall the rest of tha lines. . . "Senora!" She turned about from tha pile of dirty, greasy dishes, and wiped the Looked aeroa, lh ,nmm,rinB wliU perspiraiioa fr()m ner red (Me nd frowsy brow. "Oh, itDS you, nafaelt Bit down." "Yes. 8enoora R Beaor kins, a ten me to tell yo' ba goner rronteras oB er business he not eoroe back fur day or so." ""-'m'"' Rafel- Make yourself eomforUbli , yo CRn; knowl it's mighty hot here." She liked tha Mexican. Ho was always the quintessence quint-essence of politeness to her anticipating antici-pating her every wish, and trentlng her with the deference of a princess. He was Ihe only one of all the men who seemed lo remember that she was a woman, and was hungry for sytn-psthy sytn-psthy and attention that sho was more than a cook. Something Impelled Impell-ed her to turn and look at him. He was fanning himself with his sombrero, som-brero, snd looking al her with a glance that was unmistakable. He sprang to his foot and took one of her hand!, wel with tho greasy dish water "Benora Helen I Info yo dam my aoul. but I Info yo", ah, so much. Yo' so good, en so kind, en sweet, en so hard worked, en yo' Honor 'Awklns, he loan' lofo yo no mo' he lofo del fiimlnngo senorlla down at Frontons." Fronto-ns." "Rafael , stop, you mustn't talk that way." Her head apun a little. It was the best. "Honors, I lofo yo'. 1 lofe yo' free year. I not make yo' cook, en rook, dam de cookln', come en go vamos, wl' me, I'll mok de pwaxis do de rook-In'. rook-In'. I gut blr? 'dobe h"Ve way rown In Durnngo, cool, nice 'dobe bowse wit what you call him squirt water up In the pntlo or do ferns. Kn de orange, en do feeg, en do rose trees all 'bout do house it so cool, en shady. I gnt land, heap land, en rattle. I only stay 'roun' hyar 'cause I lofo yo'. Yo' come en I get de padre to marry us de padre 'way down In Durangn he know no deoference If Honor 'Awklns I be live. Kf yo' say so I gu keel Ben-I Ben-I or 'AwklnsT" He had his arm about "snara, I lefa ya'." her now, and with tha other hand ha smoothed tha damp hair back from ber forehead tenderly, "No no, Rafael, that would never do. But are you aura that yon would lova ma always, and sot maka ma cook and not be mean to ma, and not maka me stay at home all tha tlma and work and you would not lova any fandango glrlst" "No no I hope da good Oawd sen' ma to hell w'en 1 do not lofe yo'. I lofa yo' always always, an' I treat yo' ai bei' 1 kin. Coma on I eaten a pony for yo' an wa get way, way down In Durango to my boma, en 'Awklns ha never find us. Wa get der In week. Coma Helen coma les' go now, now, down dero da mountains ara ao cool en I lofa yo' so!" Sha listened to him. Al ha ipoka she thought of the purple mountain! In tha distance of the shimmering blue Pacific waters of a lifetime's dreams unsttalned. Sha waa not old and when she bad a rest and some new clothes see would ba better look-Ing. look-Ing. Insensibly, she knew that ber heart bad already turned during the toil marked months to this "Qreaser" this Mexican gentleman. At last sha bowed her head. She thought of all sha had lacked, and from the withered wastes of a heart from which love had faded, thera blossomed blossom-ed anew the flower ot hope. "I will go with you, Rafael," iba said, simply. As the sun went down that evening Its ruddy raya gilded a man and a woman on horseback loping steadily, swiftly, toward the mountains tn the purple distance. There was a llgnt on each one's face brighter than that of tha sun the light of a great love. ..see "Well, I reckon sbe'i vamoied for the states. It wss protty tough on a gal ter keep hor out here In this domed shack, cookln' all the lima. Oh well, sha can have ber Ding, and soma of these days I'll go back after her and dress her up tine and be nice to her to make up for It all. Then she'll furg:i all about h-r troubles. jf Cmne on you fellers, we vo got ter t go ter Kronterns lor git some supper 'insldci. my little (Ireaser gal Is f nnxhius ter see me. I'll set up tho i drinks tlrst I'm dry as thla damned sand. Where's the old woman? Oh, , , ' damflno. (lone bark to tbe states. I reckon. Come on." , . ' |