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Show of which was'attaebed a cinch fitted with ring hiiJ hook. Tbo book end of , the cinch was parsed lo the off-side trooper.and a rope throwu to him across the mule's back, lie uiuilo a loop in tbe i-lick. caught it in llie cinch-book, nnd threw a loop back to t!io Dear Bide. This loop was passed under the Blanching Blanch-ing rope of the lash, Jammed down close to the cinch ring and under the corner! of the aperojo. The off side inau had done trie same with his looo. 'i no nearside near-side man pulled the loop tight, and guided the rope to biud diagoually 1 THE A1IMY MULE. ATTEMPT OF A TENDERFOOT TO LOAD A PACK AN MAL. Staying Toner of The Diamond II!tch Device of a SiiMi Mulrtecr Which No Oue IIub Improved Upou. "Whoal Whoa.there.Balasm! Whoa, j on infernal sou of a wild ass I" The Santa l;itz canyon echoed with the loud cries of a very angry man, who was runuiug down a rocky trail iu pursuit pur-suit of a niniblo and sure footed mule. His cries were unheeded by the auimnl, I ml very likely were unheard, because at every jump a tin-pun or kettle or some other piece of camp-furniture fell out of the pack, rattled down about the millers heels, and rolled clattering down the steep side of the cauyou lo the rocky bed of tbo streamlet at tho bottom. At every successive clatter of hardwaro the mub increased his speed, and the pursuing pursu-ing man increased tbevolumo aud iuu piety of his remarks. THU COMIM.ETKO MASTKltPIRCB. ncross the rear cud of the pack, when I the off-side man took up the slack and mado his rear loop, drawing through tho standing rope on top. Loops wero thrown over the front ends in the same way, and tho front loop patse 1 under the corners of tbe nperojo. The loose end was passed around the pack, follow- , ing tbo loops under the anddle.und when tho two troopers had taken tip all tho I slack and cinched tho mule tischtly the cud was mado fast to the standing rope. It took them about two minutes to do tho whole tBiug.aud it looked as easy as lying, as the stranger remarked; but when it was finished it was t lint despair of the tenderfoot and pride of the woolly west the diamond hitch. Centuries ago, siiys ihe San Francisco L'taminei; when the mulo nnd the uss wero the freight cars of old Spain, a muleteer with some genius of invention devised the diamond hitch for fastening the cargo upon an animal's back, and no modern packer has been ahlo to improve im-prove that hitch. The Spaniards, who conquered Mexico and looted the treas-uro treas-uro bouses of the Montezumas, piled their sacked plunder upon tbo backs of horses nud mules, and made it fast with the diamond hitch, and it is not recorded in history that any of it ever worked loo and fell off by tbe wayside. The hitch was as secure aud tenacious ns the grip of the conquistador's good right hand upon his swordhilt, or the closiug of his loyal left tlst upon tho beaten gold of a broken crown. It never waa known to let go. nr.Aor foh tiie tack. "Hi, there! (There's that blanked flour sack busted. C'arsjo!) Wboa.yon broncho son of a zebra! (D -n ft man that can't pack better than that. There goes tho Dutch ovcu hellitywhooo!) Whoa, II i Warn! Uijo de uua. (Oh, you're a jim-dandy packer; you couldu' lash a blanket on a rail fence. There') the last of the potatoes gone to sbeol. Beans, b'gosh, all along the trail.) Whoa, you long-eared child of the devil. (I'll be good goldnngcd, banged, bSnged, keel-hauled, aud blooming well mauled it I'll chase that d mule another foot.') ltnn.you mud-colored sepulcher of seven devils! Ui'yi! Go it, old limber lim-ber heels." The man stopped in an opening in the brush and swung his bat aud popped with his six-shooter at the galloping mula. Run! (Bang!) That frying-pan will catch you and est you up if you don't hurry. (Pop!) That's tho style! Run, dum you, run! (B iue!) Keep a-run-ning! Hun down a steep place into the tea! (Pop! Pop! Pop!) Go to the devil."' Finsr thiiow of the lasii nora. "What's the trouble?" asked the lieutenant in command. "We heard shots. Indians?" "No," replied the owner of the mule; "just me aud the mule. That mule's the biggest jackass in Arizona except me." Two of the soldiers caught tbe mule, and exaniiuing tbe knots ono of tbem snid: "Lieutenant, I know what's tho matter." "What is it?" "Tenderfoot hitch." "Correct," promptly interposed the owner of the outfit. "That's the only kind I know, and 1 can't throw that twice alike," "Well, gather up your cargo, and some of my men will see if they can't lash it for you," said the officer. "Oh, that settles it," and in a few moments the debris of tbe pack had been gathered up, put into barley sackt, and handed over to two troopers, who had dismounted. Upon tbe mule's back was a rectangular saddle of leather attached at-tached to a wido leather breeching. It was in the shape of a bag. and it was distended by springy willow sticks, and stuffed with hay. It was held in place by wide cinch and ladigo straps, aud undor it was a blanket several times folded to protect the animal's back and ides. The name of the contrivance) is GUIDINO THE norB FOB, OFF-SIDE TDLL. aperojo, nud it is used in preference to tbe sawbuck pack-saddle whenever it can be procured. Army packers will use no other form of pack-saddle. Oue of tbe troopers threw the bight of a quarter-inch rope across tho nperojo, the loop hanging on tbe off side nud the two free ends on the near side. Two eacks were then hoisted upon the mule's back, and laid lengthwise. The loop of tbo sling rope was brought up over the off sack, the bead end of the rope passed downward through the loop, and then tied in a square knot, with ltd) tail end over the near sack. Tho sacks were evenly balanced, and the sling rope merely held them together nnd in position. posi-tion. The stranger's ax nnd other hardwaro hard-waro were out ou tCD of the side packs, TtQ UTENINO TQS HITCH. and his blankets folded up and placed over all. The trooper on the near side then picked up the lash rope, to.one cud |