Taloga Times-Advocate (Taloga, Okla.), Vol. 30, No. 6, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 19, 1923 Page: 2 of 8
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TALOOA TIMES-ADVOCATE
iiktiAtlUOitt
GIFT OF THE "DESEUT
By Randall Parrish
K A. C. McCUfi A Cm.
nil wn^n^m
iDaddyv livening
afclciiry Likt*
Bfew. ^
MARY* GRft>HAMuB<
IN THC TOILS
"You—you in tha Jkitln from
NmrnlraT'' aha ukrit doubtfully.
"That's whil I am; Juitica Cor-
nellua Oarrtty, ma'am, at your
Nrvlcr"
"And you were axkrd to coma
out hi>r > to marry tna to Bob
Mo Knrr
'Maybe so. If you ar* the curl.'
"I am tVhorali Meredith. I
want to appeal to you, Judge
(Jarrity, a n offlo^r of the law.
to ro/uaa to perform thin mar-
riage—"
"Rpfuaal I reftiae Bob? Why,
It'a all straight enough; I've got
the llcenee here all made out
regular with your nam* on It."
"That la Just the point. That
license wna procured without my
eonaent or knowledge. I repu-
diate It; I refuse to assent to It
In any way. I have never agreed
to marry Bob Meager, i am here
now under threat, and I appeal
to you for protection."
Doea Ju<1ere Oarrity protect
her? Hardly. He marrlea her
forthwith to Bob Meager. She
striken down with a pistol-butt the
hated bridegroom and steals out
Into the night to get a horse and
dare the perils of the desert.
She meets "Frisco Kid." an out-
law with a pries on his head.
And deliberately she chooses to
trust him and rides off with him
into the desert.
So the possibilities of all sorts
of excitement are found In this
stirring story by Randall Par-
rish. Many a thrilling tale has
this author written. And this la
one of his most thrilling
CHAPTER I
The Choice.
It was a wonderful thing to be
twenty-three, full of hope and ambi-
tion. and In the wide out-of-doors;
more wonderful still to possess the
glorious memory of nearly two years
In the hospitals of France, six months
of that time Just behind the American
fighting line. Yet the girl was not
thinking of this then as she sat there
•lone at the edge of the ravine, gaz-
ing silently off across the dull leagues
of desert to where a distant blue
range of mountains cut off the view
with their ragged summits, while
arching over all hung the clear Ari-
zona sky. slowly turning to purple.
She compared that sun-kissed vista
with other sunsets in France and Ger-
many. when the ground was yet red
with the blood of sacrificed manhood.
Her heart ached still with the sad
memory that would not die—hours of
toll, scenes of suffering. But this
mood had also passed away, and now.
although her eyes were still upon that
outspread picture below, her thought
had centered upon the present In a
dull wonderment at the strange situa-
tion surrounding her. Why had she
ever listened to the plea of old Tom
Meager, back there In Chicago, and
finally, partially from pity, partially
from that new love of adventure en-
gendered within her by service across
the water, agreed to come west with
him? Of course, she never had
dreamed what it really would be like—
life on this vast Isolated ranch along
the southern border, with the drear
desert stretching away on every side
from this little oasis of water and
grass. Tom Meager had never told
the whole story; he had dwelt on the
loneliness of his sick wife, the chance
she had of regaining health, with
proper nursing and care; the rare
beauty of the sunsets, the wonderful
glow of the cool desert nights, the
wild. free existence of the range, filled
With excitement and a dash of danger.
It all had appealed to her atrangely—
the service, the complete change In en-
vironment. the escape from the hum-
drum life of the Marine hospital. The
pay was good, the opportunity excel-
lent, and she had said "yea" without
half realizing then what It all meant.
' But she realized now. Those first
few weeks had been glorious Indeed.
She found everything new, attractive,
tinged with romance and color. She
liked Mrs. Meager, and discovered
her task to be an easy one. her time
largely at her own disposal. But it
was lonely, terribly lonely; and, after
those first few weeka, nothing seemed
to occur to break the dull monotony.
It was sixty miles over a half-oblit-
erated desert trail to the nearest town,
and that little more than a general
store and a cattle corral. The only
link between there and the civilization
ahe had left to the eastward were the
glistening rails of the railroad.
Day by day. week following week,
ahe saw the same fbces. heard the
same voices. Itiders from the outer
range came in with their reports.
Urin^ing the tales of Mexican raiders,
•or" Of little strayed into the desert
"Whenever she could she rode about
"with old Tom Meager. In and oat the
ravines, and occasionally far beyond
Into the vast sand plains, listening to
his quaint tales of adventures, and
helping him round up bunches of
strayed stock. She became expert in
the saddle, learnel to use a gun skill-
fully. and even picked up some knowl
edge of the lariat. Thus. little by
little, she bad adapted herself to ti*
rough life, determined to keep her
word, but nevertheless growing coo
Stantty more and more heartsick
Then Tun Meager rata* to his
dentil. Hiding home alone from No-
gales at night. In the dark of Sliver
canyon, his horse slipped and fell, anil
Meager lay there on the rock motion-
less. A packer found hla body the
next day. and brought It on to the
ranch. In some way the message of
the old mtfn's passing crossed the bor-
der line down far Into old Mexico,
until It reached the ears of hla son.
Clod alone knows where. Three days
after the burial tills wanderer of many
years returned, drove his saddle horse
Into the corral, and assumed control.
Whatevet might be his legal right,
there was none to oppose his bold as
sumption of authority or management.
The widow lay helpless on her bed;
she was not the boy's mother, and he
never so much as crossed the thresh-
old of her room. If there had been a
will, no one searched for It, or made
Inquiries. By sheer force and au-
dacity Bob Meager took command,
asking permission of no one.
For some daya after his arrival the
girl did not even epcounter this new
master. From dawn to dark he wa's
in the saddle, familiarizing himself
with every detail of his new posses-
sions. She had no desire to meet him,
for long ago his story had been told
to her—not by old Tom, who never
spoke his son's name, or the patient,
Invalid wife, but by others, long In
the Meager service, glad now of an
opportunity to gossip with a stranger.
It was a story of brutal shame; of
base Ingratitude, verging on crime; of
sudden disappearance; of vague ru-
mors floating back from here and
there, bearing the tale of a wild, dis-
reputable life. To her Bob Meager
had become the synonym of all that
was evil In this borderland. Yet now,
through some strange play of fate, he
was .here and she was left helplessly
In his power, under his orders, wholly
dependent on him for employment.
The thought was almost maddening.
They finally met the morning of the
fifth day, unexpectedly, when, without
even knocking, the fellow strode Into
the widow's room unceremoniously.
The girl, in her nurse's uniform, arose
hastily to her feet, and confronted the
rude Intruder indignantly, her eyes
blazing with sudden antagonism.
"Who are you?" he asked gruffly,
announced finally, "and I di n't believe
I'll fire you—not yet. anyhow."
"It will not beat all necessary," she
said quietly. "I shall attend to that
for myself."
"You mean jrou will quit?"
"I certainly shall."
"Oh, h—I! Spunky little tigress,
ain't you? I reckon I'll have some-
thing to say about that."
"You mean you will compel me to
remain whether I wish to or not?" ahe
asked In surprise. "Why. that cannot
be done; I am not a slave."
"It can't hey? Do you know where
you are?"
"Certainly I do."
"By G—d. I doubt It. This la the
Meager ranch In Arlzonn. There ain't
another outfit within fifty miles, and
nothing else round us hut desert;
there ain't no water, and no grass.
I'm a-runnin' things here, and you bet
I know how to run them. You get
me? I'm the boss; before another
week's out every white man on this
ranch will be hunting a Job, and
there'll be Mex In their places. I
know how to handle Mex; they'll do
what I say—you bet they will. S<#
Miss Deborah Meredith, how is It
you're going to quit before ever I say
you can? Aim to hoof It across the
alkali to Nogales? Ten miles o' that
tuff would break your heart. You
better think It over."
She saw him clearly In the light of
the window, and, in spite of her nat-
ural courage, the girl's heart sank.
Was there any act of brutality the
man would be incapable of? He was
big, burly, with broad shoulders and
a deep chest, almost a giant of a man.
but It was the face which bespoke
his character. Brute was written
plainly all over It, seemingly lm-
thls. but for her own personal suspi-
cion. Old Tom Meager would never
employ a Mexican on the place, nor
trust them; but now, one by one, tlie
old hands disappeared, while swarthy-
skinned riders appeured mysteriously
to take their places. Within six
days the transformation wus practi-
cally complete, and Boh Meager wag
surrounded by those of his own kind.
Creatures of his will, denizens of that
world he knew best. This change was,
to Deborah's mind, ominous of evil j
It Increased her fear, and rendered
more difficult any possibility of escape.
'J'he walls closed her more tightly In.
What did this man plan to do with
her? The question could not be an-
swered; she could only wait fearfully
for hla actions to make reply. Yet It
must be evil; she could conceive
nothing else In Bob Meager's heart.
Her thought was not with the wild
desert scene outstretched before her,
or the beauty of that red sunset be-
hind those far-off peaks. She was not
even conscious of her more immediate
surroundings, remaining totally obliv-
ious to the solitary horseman, ap-
proaching along the barely discernible
trail skirting the edge of the mesa.
The horse was moving slowly, with
wearily drooping head, and on the
hard-beaten sand the hoofs made no
noise sufficient to disturb her. It was
on the farther edge of the chaparral
that the horseman suddenly perceived
the girl, her white skirt showing con-
spicuous in the purple light, and
quickly held up his pony. She had
evidently neither seen nor heard his
approach, and he swung silently over
the animal's head, before advancing
toward her on foot. It was not until
he had reached within a very few
yards of her position that Deborah
OLD FAT HIPPO
"1 am a fat old creature and 1 don't
mind," auid the Hippopotamus In the
loo.
A sparrow had had a bath In the
Hippo's pool and now was sitting on
a bar of the hlppo'a Indoor zoo room.
"I'm Interesting for I belong to an
old, old family. They can't think back
to a time when there weren't aouie of
our family about.
"At least none of them can I know,
and I've heard theiu even sny that
their grandmothers and great-great-
great-great-great-grandmothers can't
remember the time when there weren't
some of us to be seen somewhere—
either in Africa or In a zoo.
"For the members of our family
lived a very, very long time ngo. Our
name of Hippopotamus coines from
two words—two Greek words, I'm told.
I don't speak (Jreek myself. Never did
and never shall. At least, I don't ever
expect to learn the language.
"Fancy seeing Old Fat Hippo with a
Greek dictionary before him! In the
first place I'm too lazy to study It,
In the second place, It would all be so
foolish.
"Hippopotamus talk Is the same ev-
erywhere. We don't change our
speech from African to American for
example. In that way animals are far
more sensible than people, I think. In
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printed on every feature, yet at the | became aware of some presence near,
moment she did not fear him; In-
y
stlnctlvely she felt the coward skulk
Ing back of his brutlshness.
"I prefer," she said quietly, "not to
discuss the matter now. Surely this
was not why you came In here?"
"I sure like yotir nerve, little girl,"
he admitted admiringly. "No, I didn't
come exactly for that, but whatever
brought me I've changed my mind.
We'll let things go on Just as they are
at present, I reckon. But don't you
and arose Instantly to her feet, facing
him In sudden alarm. It was too late
then to flee; the man blocked the only
path available.
"Frightened you, didn't I?" he asked
carelessly, flipping a weed with his
quirt, but with searching eyes on her
face. "You must have been In some
daydream, I'll say."
"I—I was thinking," she answered,
a little catch In the voice, but as in-
stantly determining to telf the truth.
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ever imagine I am playing with you; land thus learn. If possible, his pur-
law don't rnnnt fr r mtiph nnt hnm I
"Who Are You?" He Asked Gruffly.
yet with a measure of doubt in the
tone. "Some poor relative?"
"Not quite as bad as that," she an-
swered, resenting bis manner, yet en-
deavoring to control her speech. "I
am Mrs. Meager's nurse."
"Nurse!" he sneered sarcastically.
"Good Lord, so the old man stood for
that, did he? Well, you can hardly
expect me to; It Is more than my
mother ever had- Do you know who
I am?"
"I presume you must be Robert
Meager."
"You guessed right, and I've come
back here to run this ranch; you get
me?"
"Quite clearly—yes."
"Oh. you do, hey? Then PI! en-
lighten you further. You're Mrs.
Meager's nurse, you said? Pretty sort
Job, isn't it? I don't believe there will
be any necessity for ber having a
nurse very long. What's your name?"
"Deborah Meredith."
He laughed, showing a row of cruel
white teeth.
"Sounds like a story book; wbere
did the old man pick you up?"
"My bome Is In Chicago."
"Well, be certainly showed good
taste. I'll say that for him. You are
some g«iod-looker. Deborah Meredith
I'm d-d If I d«in't rather like your
style."
He stared at her Insolently, his
glance appraising form and feature*
much as he might take In the points
of some animal be contemplated pur
'haelng The glrTs face flashed In
dlgnsntly, hut her eyee never fell.
"You sure do look good to me." be
law don't count for much out here,
sister, an' what I say goes."
She watched him km he turned and
went out the door, her hands clenched,
a wave of intense hatred surging over
her. Yet in another moment she had
conquered herself, and moved quietly
back to the side of the bed on which
her patient lay sobbing. She. bent
above the distressed woman.
"He is worse even than I thought."
she said, unable wholly to hide her
distress. "What caused him to come
In here, do you suppose?"
"He came to send me away," an-
swered the other clasping the girl's
hands. "I knew it would not be long;
he has disliked me always."
"Send you away! Why, you were
his father's wife. Even if there was
no will you must hftve dower rights
in the estate. Surely, that is the law."
"I—I do not know," wearily. "Tom
never explained anything to me, but—
but I am afraid of Bob Meager. Don't
cross him; don't anger him. He is
dangerous, and I am afraid of him, for
your sake as well as my own."
"What do you want me to do?" the
girl questioned. Influenced by the
timidity of the other. "Let that beast
have his own way wltli me?"
"No—no. not that. But—but treat
him fairly. Miss Meredith. He will
not always be as he la today. As he
said, you cannot light or run away.
All depends on winning his favor.
Then sometime there will be a chance.
We must wait and watch, until he Is
in s mood to let ns both go. But
even If there was a way for you to
escape alone, you could not leave me
here In his power."
"You fear him like that?"
"If I stand between the man and
this fortune his father left, my life
Is worth nothing—I know that."
And Deborah Meredith, looking
down Into the white face lying on the
pillow, made ber choice.
CHAPTER II
Meager States His Plan.
It was the memory of this scene—
her promise to Mrs Meager, and ber
dislike of Bob Meager—which left the
girt unobservant of the desert view
outspread below, and thoughtless of
the descending night. She had sought
this spot to be alone, to escape any
possibility of encountering Bob. at.d
to turn over once more in ber mind
the conditions which had made ber
virtually a prisoner. There had been
an expression In the man's eyes that
had frightened her more than she
would e en confess to herself-«n In-
solent boldness, a sneering dominance
which, haunted her memory with Its
sinister threat. He *a* playing with
her as a cat playa with a mouse, hid
Ing the proper time to strike, lie
knew he r>ould afford to welt; that rtie
was otterty la hla power. Hla very
silence and aloofness Increased her
alarm ber dread of the morrow
*of a day passed without wifaes#
leg a > Lange in the p*ra <u>ei of t*e
rsaeb. She might not have observed
pose, "of what you Intend to do with
me. I—I cannot continue to bear
things as they are."
"Why, they are not so bad, are
they?" he asked provoklngly, but
making no effort to advance. "This is
the same ranch to which you came
voluntarily; I have not cut down your
wages, and the food, and all that. Is
Just as good. Do you mean you don't
like It here any longer?"
"I certainly do not tinder the cir-
cumstances. I am no longer here of
my own free will."
"Oh, Is that it? Well, perhaps we
can remedy that trouble. Sit down
there again while we talk It over."
"I prefer to stnnd."
"All right then, only it ain't going
to do you no good to be offish about
It. I'll tell you that at the start. You
ought to know by this time that I
ain't the playing sort. Found any way
to leave yet? I reckon not. or you
wouldn't be here. Well, that lesson
ought to mean something to you. I've
left you alone for three days now. Just
to let It sink In."
"That I could not escape from here
without assistance?"
"Sure; there ain't no way for
woman—a tenderfoot—to get across
that desert without help of some kind,
and a horse. I reckon you are smart
enough to know that It was mostly
on your account I sent them old
punchers away, aa' got a lot o' Mex
In to ride herd, an* do whatever odd
Jobs were needed. There ain't no-
body round who cares a whoop In h—I
what happens. You better let that
soak In. too, first of all. Then It will
be easier for us to come to an under-
standing."
"An understanding?" she asked In
surprise. "You desire to explain, then?
Yet first you threaten me?*
He laughed.
"Threaten, h—I! I don't have to
threaten; I'm holding all the cards."
He took a step forward, and, as the
girl drew slightly back from his ap-
proach. his face quickly darkened
with anger. "You don't want me to
touch yt*i. hey? or come near you?
All right, HI wait, but Just the same
you'll do Just what I tell you to. Sit
down there on that log. You hear me?
Sit down r
She took the place designated, real-
izing the utter uselessness of refusal,
while he remained standing, with one
foot Insolently planted on the1 log be-
side her.
"You're sura a wildcat, but
I'll tame you!"
(TO BB CONTINt KIX)
Trouble Ahead for Pussy.
Msttie <ame running Into the hona*
excitedly exclaiming. "My puaay has
homed Ave kittens' I don't know how
she'll manage to take rare of Ave chil-
dren when It keeps me ai.d you busy
every minute with nothing bet Ibe
twine, siumn "
one part of the country people speak
In one language, and In another, quite
a different language. Now, animals
have the same language. Lions speak
lion talk wherever they are I We
speak Hippopotamus talk wherever we
are.
"But people! No, they're always
thinking of bow" to give themselves
extra trouble. But as I started to say
our name comes from two Greek-
words. We are given our name by peo-
ple, you see. I can't tell you the Greek
words, and as I said before. I'm not
going to study Greek.
"Why, Just to. show you how hard j
Greek Is, people often sny, 'Why, that
would be Greek to me,' when they are
talking about something which they
couldn't possibly understand. Yes.
that .is Just an expression, so it goes
to show you how hard Greek Is, that
even an expression or saying of that
sort has been made up about it.
"The two Greek words though, mean
river horse. That Is what hippopot-
amus means. And It's not a bad name,
though It could be better. Still It
might be worse! I eat enormous quan-
tities of grass every day. I've a good
hippopotamus appetite and my keeper
says I do not need a tonic.
"In fact, I'm almost growing too fat
I weigh several thousand pounds, I
believe. It Is all because I eat a lot
and don't exercise. But I don't cars
about exercising. I like to swim and
they say that my relatives when free
can climb up banks which are ever so
high and can swim magnificently. But
I don't care about exercising.
"I'd never care to do calisthenics ev-
ery morning and evening, nor would I
care to walk around my yard several
times a day as quickly as I could. No,
I wouldn't care for exercise
"I would rather be fat Oh yes, I'd
much rather be fat How dreadful It
would be to be a thin hippopotamus
and not have lots of weight I'd hsts
to be called 'skinny' snd I make sure
there will never be sny danger of
that. Oh, I must have a nap now and
I shall lie In my pool and take it
Later I may have a little splash and
then a good meal and another rest.
"Oh, It Is fun to rest snd eat and
dream hippopotamus dreams. They
are dreams of more resting and more
food by the way."
And the little sparrow flew out then,
while the hippopotamus did Just ss be
had aald he would. He had a nap and
he was In his pool. Then he h^| a
little splaah. Then a good meal and
another rest. And If you had looked
at him yoo would have been pretty
sure thst be was dreaming of more
rest snd more food. He had that look
on bis hippopotamus face!
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Taloga Times-Advocate (Taloga, Okla.), Vol. 30, No. 6, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 19, 1923, newspaper, July 19, 1923; Taloga, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc281700/m1/2/: accessed April 24, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.