THE RALSTON TRIBUNE. RALSTON, OKLAHOMA
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KU,
TheCowPundier
By
Robert J.G. Stead
Author of
"Kitchener and
Other Poems"
Illustrations by
IRWIN MYERS
CopyTtyht by Harper h Brother*
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"■UT I'M 8ICK OF IT ALL."
Bynopals.—David Eldon, non of a
drunken, shiftless ranchman, al-
most a maverick of the foothills,
la breaking bottles with his pistol
from his running cayuse when the
first automobile he has ever seen
arrives and tips over, breaking the
leg of Doctor Hardy but not Injur-
ing his beautiful daughter Irene.
Dave rescues the Injured man and
brings a doctor from 40 miles
away. Irene takes charge of the
housekeeping.
CHAPTER I—Continued.
After breakfast Irene attended to
the wants of her father, and by this
time the visiting doctor was manifest-
ing Impatience to be away. But Dave
declared with prompt finality that the
hones must rest until after noon, and
the doctor, willy-nilly, spent the morn-
ing rambling In the foothills. Mean-
while the girl busied herself with work
about the house. In which she was ef-
fecting a npld transformation.
After the midday dinner Dave har-
nessed the team for the journey to
town, but before leaving Inquired of
Irene If there were any special pur-
chases, either personal or for the use
of the house, which she would recom-
mend. With some diffidence she men-
tioned one that was uppermost In her
thoughts—soap, both laundry and toi-
let. Doctor Hardy had no hesitation
In calling for a box of his favorite
cigars and some new magazines, and
took occasion to press Into the boy’s
hand a bill out of all proportion to the
value of the supplies requested.
The day was Introductory to others
that were to follow. Dave returned
the next afternoon, riding his own
horse and heavily laden with cigars,
magazines and soap.
The following day It was decided
that the automobile, which since the
accident had laid upturned by the road-
way, should be brought to the ranch
buildings. Dave harnessed his team
and. Instead of tiding one of the horses,
walked behind, driving by the reins,
and accompanied by the girl, who had
proclaimed her ability to steer the car.
With the aid of the team and Dave's
lariat the car was soon righted and was
found to be none the worse for Its de-
flection from the beaten track. Irene
presided at the steering-wheel, watch-
ing the road with great Intentness and
turning the wheel too far on each oc-
casion, which gave to her course a
somewhat wavy or undulating order,
such as Is found In bread-knives; or
perhaps a better figure would be to
compare It to that rolling motion af-
fected by fancy skaters. However, the
mean of her direction corresponded
with the mean of the trail and all went
merrily until the stream was ap-
proached. Here was a rather steep
descent and the car showed a sudden
purpose to engage the horses In a con-
test of speed. She determined to use
the foot-brake, a feat which was ac-
complished, under normal conditions,
by pressing one foot firmly ngnlnst a
contraption somewhere beneath the
eteering-post. She shot a quick glance
downward and, to her alarm, discov-
ered not one, but three, contraptions,
all apparently designed to receive the
pressure of a foot—If one could reach
them—and as similar as the steps of a
stair. This Involved a further hesita-
tion, and In nutomobtllng he who hesi-
tates Invites a series of rapid experi-
ences. It was quite evident thut the
car was running away, it was quite
evident that the horses were running
away, too. The situation as-
sumed the qualities of a race, and
the only matter of grave doubt related I
to Its termination.
Then they struck the water. It was
not more than two feet deep, but the
extra resistance It caused and the ex-
tra alarm It excited In the horses re-
sulted In breaking the larlnt. Dave
clung fast to his team and they were
Boon brought to a standstill. Having
pacified them, he tied them to a post
and returned to the stream. The car
sat In the middle; the girl had put her
feet on the sent beside her, and the
swift water flowed by a few Inches be-
low. She was laughing merrily when
Dave, very wet In purts, appeared on
the bank.
"Well, I’m not wet, except for a lit-
tle splashing,” she said, “and you are
Does anything occur to youT”
Without reply ha walked stolidly In
to the cold water, took her In his urms
and carried her ashore. The lariat
was soon repaired and the car hauled
to the ranch buildings without further
mishap.
Later In the day be said to her: "Can
you rider
“Some,” she answered. “I have rld-
don city horses, but don’t know about
these ranch animals. But I would like
to try—If I had a saddle.”
”1 have an extra saddle,” he said.
’’But It’s a man's. . . . They all ride
thnt way here.”
She made no answer and the subject
was dropped for the time. But the
next morning she saw Dave ride away,
leading a horse by his side. He did
not return until evening, but when he
came the Idle horse carried a saddle.
“It’s a strad-legger,” he said when he
drew up beside Irene, “but It’s a girl’s.
I couldn’t find anythin* else In the whole
dlggln’s.”
“I’m sure It will do—splendidly—If I
can Just stick on,” she replied. But
another problem was already In her
mind. It apparently had not occurred
to Dave that women require special
clothing for riding, especially If it’s a
‘‘strad-legger.” She opened her lips to
mention this, then closed them again.
He hud been to enough trouble on her
account. He had already spent a whole
day scouring the country for a saddle.
She would manage some way.
Late that night she was busy with
scissors and needle.
CHAPTER II.
Doctor Hardy recovered from his ln-
urles as rapidly as could be expected
and, while be chafed somewhat over
spending his holidays under such cir-
cumstances, the time passed not un-
happily.
A considerable acquaintanceship had
sprung up between him and the senior
Elden. The rancher bad come from the
selves. His patience was Infinite and,
although there were no silk trappings
to his courtesy. It was a very genuine
and manly deference he paid her. She
was quite sure that he would at any
moment give his life, If needed, to de-
fend her from Injury—and accept the
transaction as a matter of course. His
physical endurance was Inexhaustible
and his knowledge of prairie and foot-
hill seemed to her almost uncanny. He
read every sign of footprint, leaf, wa-
ter and sky with unfailing insight. He
had no knowledge of books, and she
had at first thought him ignorant, but
as the days went by she found In him
a mine of wisdom which shamed her
ready-made education.
After such a ride they one day dis-
mounted tn a grassy opening among the
trees that bordered a mountain canyon.
In a crevice they found *» flat stone that
gave comfortable seating and here
they rested while the horses browsed
their afternoon meal on the grass
above. Both were conscious of a grad-
ually Increasing tension In the at-
mosphere. For days the boy had been
moody. It was evident he was harbor-
ing something that was calling through
bis nature for expression, and Irene
knew that this afternoon he would talk
of more than trees nnd rocks and foot-
prints of the wild things of the forest.
“Your father Is getting along well,”
be said, at length.
“Tea,” she answered. “He has had a
good holiday, even with his broken
leg.”
“You will be goln* away before long,”
he continued.
“Yes,” she answered, and waited.
'Things about here ain’t goln’ to be
“Some. When I was a little kid my
father used to work with me at times.
He learned me to read a little, an*
to write my name, an’ a little more.
But things didn’t go right between him
an’ mother, jm’ he got to drlnkln'
more an’ more, an’ Jus’ making h-
of it We used to have a mighty fine
herd of steers here, but It’s all shot
to pieces. When we sell a bunch the
old man il stay In town for a month
or more, blowln* the coin and leavin'
the debts go. I sneak a couple of
steers away now an’ then, an’ with the
money I keep our grocery bills paid
up an’ have a little to rattle In my
Jeans. My credit’s good at any store
In town,” and Irene thrilled to the note
of pride In his voice as he said this.
The boy had real quality In him. “But
I’m sick of It all,” he continued. “Sick
of It. an’ I wanna get out.”
“You think you are not educated,"
she answered, trying to meet his out-
burst as tactfully as possible. “Per-
haps you are not, the way we think of
it In the city. But I guess you could
show the city boys a good many things
they don’t know, and never will know.”
Irene makes a promise
full of momentous conse-
quences.
A KANSAS WOMAN
Ron-down —Nervous, Weak
Kins.:—“I found Dr.
Reuse's medicines
a wonderful help So
ywR during ynindVl
life. At that time I
became all nut-
iSSSTSSJ
have smothering
and dlssy spells so
bad that I could
not stand up and
my back would
ache terribly all the
time. I took both
. Dr. Pleroe’s Favosw
* lie Prescription and
his ‘Golden Med-
ical Discovery* and these medicines built
me up, save me strength, and brought me
through the change in the best of health. I
am glad to reoommend Dr. Pleroe's medi-
cines, for I kfiow they are rood. V—MBS,
GBOBGE JACOBS. R. Bouts 8.
MOTHERS
Bosboag', Kans.j—“I am the mother el
mend it to prospective mothers as it helps
to alleviate one's suffering. During'my
first expectancy I suffered untold pains, so
tbs second time I was determined that I
Bast forty years^before, but In turning the same after you're gone,” he went
over their memories the two men
found many links of association: third
persons known to them both; places,
even streets and houses, common to
their feet in early manhood; events of
local history which each could recall,
although from different angles. And
Elden’s grizzled head and stooping
frame carried more experiences than
would fill a dozen well-rounded city
lives, and be had the story-teller’s art
which scorns to spoil dramatic effect
by a too strict adherence to fact But
no ray of conversation would be admit
Into the more personal affairs of his
heart, or of the woman who had been
his wife, and even when the talk
turned on the boy he quickly withdrew
It to another topic, as though the sub-
ject were dangerous or distasteful. But
once, after a long silence following such
diversion, had he betrayed himself
Into a whispered remark, an outburst
of feeling rather than a communlca
tlon.
"I’ve been alone so much,” he said.
“It seems I have never been anything
but alone. And—sooner or later—It
gets you—It gets you."
You have the boy," ventured the
doctor.
“No," he answered, almost fiercely.
‘That would be different I could
stand it then. But I haven’t got him,
nnd I can’t get him. He despises me
because—because I take too much at
times.” He paused as though wonder-
ing whether to proceed with this un-
wonted confidence, but the ache In his
heart Insisted on Its right to human
sympathy. "No, it ain’t that," he con-
tinued. 'Tie despises me because be
thinks I wasn’t fair to his mother. He
can't understand. I wanted to be good
to her, to be close to her. Then I took
to booze, ns natural as a steer under
the brundln'-lron roars to drown hla
hurt. But the boy don’t understand.
He despises me." Then, after a long
alienee: "No matter. I despise my-
self."
The doctor placed a hand oo his
shoulder. But Elden was himself
again. The curtains of his life, which
he had drawn apart for a moment, he
whipped together again rudely, almost
viciously, nnd covered his confusion by
plungtug Into a tale of how he had led
a breed suspected of cattle-rustling on
a little canter of ten miles with a rope
about his neck nnd the other end tied
to the saddle. “lie ran well.” said the
old man, chuckling still st the reminis-
cence. “And it was lucky he did. It
was a strong rope.”
The morning after Dave had brought
in the borrowed saddle Irene appeared
In a sort of bloomer suit, somewhat
wonderfully contrived from a spare
skirt, and announced a willingness to
risk life nnd limb on any horse that
Dave might select for that purpose, lie
provided her with a dependable mount
and their first Journey, taken somewhat
gingerly along the principal trail, waa
accomplished without Incident It was
the forerunner of many others, plung-
ing deeper sad deeper Into the fast-
nesses of ths foothills sod even Into
ths pssssa of ths vary mountains them-
on. He wore no coat, and the neck of
his shirt was open, for the day was
warm. Had he caught her sidelong
glances, even his slow, self-deprecating
mind must have read their admiration.
(TO BE CONTINUED.)
FURNISHES JOY FOR KIDDIES
Fountain In New York City Square
Put to Eminently Praetleal Use
In ths Summer.
In New York, Immediately south of
the arch which divides Washington
square, there is s circle of concrete
walk. Inside that circle, like the wa-
termelon riddle, there Is n circle of
green grass, and Inside that circle of
green grass there Is n small dreuter
pool of clear, sparkling water fed by
a thin, geyserlike fountain. From
early morning until nine o’clock st
night In summer you can hardly see
this pool for the ring of noisy, ecstatic
children gathered about It, shutting
off Its view. For the kiddles of the
nearby East side have discovered a
very practical use for the fountain.
They bathe in It.
On a hot day the little pool Is full of
small, sun burned boys, who are not
restrained by the lack ot bathing suits.
Some take the trouble to remove their
coats and outer trousers and leave
them on the edge, but others plunge i
right in regardless of dress. Their
mothers, who often accompany them,
do not seem to (ffiject. As one re-
marked the other day, “It saves ths
wash,” but whether she referred to 1 ir
son’s clothes or to the boy himself was
not made clear.
Occasionally a policeman registers
protest. He orders them out of ths
pool and disperses the crowd of ad-
miring onlookers, but as soon as his
back Is sufficiently distant they are all
at It again, having as mnch fun ns
ever. Stimulated by the shoots of
their delighted audience, the young
swimmers perform the wildest kind of
acrobatic stunts.
carried me throdgh that trying t__________
the derived ease and comfort. Later on,
however, I made s grievous mistake in
believing that I could diepenae with the
‘Favorite Prescription’ during motherhood
and I did ao to my sorrow. Xt will always
be my stand-by hereafter.
“I hops that through this
some other woman may be relieved of ths
dread of motherhood."—^MBS, V. W,
ROWLEY. Route 1.    ___
Dr. Plena’s Favorite Prescription Is S
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artiea of the most prono
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The Precious Apple.
“Every day my favorite pupil used
to bring me a beautiful red apple,”
remarked the woman who used to
teach school.
“Splendid fRstomcommented ths
student of educational systems. “If it
were still In existence, the perquisites
of a teacher might make Increase of
salary appear less urgent"
Without Reply He Walked Stolidly
Into the Cold Water, Took Her In
Hie Arms and Carried Her Ashore.
But he kept bis eyes fixed on the green
water.
“You see," he said, "before you came
it was different. I didn't know what I
was mlssln’, an’ so It didn’t matter.
Not hut what I was dog-sick of It at
times, but still I thought I was livin’—
thought this was life, and, of course,
now I know It ain't. At least, It won'-t
he after you’re gone.”
“That's strange,” she said, not In
direct answer to his remark, but as a
soliloquy on It as she turned It over In
her mind. 'This life, now, seems
empty to you. All my life seems
empty to me. This seems to me ths
real life, out here In the foothills, with
the trees and the mountains, and—and
oar horses, you know
She might have ended the sentence
In a way that would have come much
closer to him, and been much truer.
Not Infallible.
Human Judgment cannot be Infalli-
ble. no matter how broad the mind or
keen the Intellect Appearances are
so deceptive that even the most expe-
rienced judge of character may fall to
reach as good an estimate of n man as
the humble Ignorant scrub woman,
who cleans out his offices daily. Many
successful men realize this great lack
la themselves, and appreciate ths
power that Is in ths hands of a de-
voted wife and real helpmate. They
would not think of entering Into n
partnership or a big business deal
without first arranging to hear ths
opinion formed by her whom they have
learned to look up to and confide In.
And. Indeed, a man can scarcely pay
a higher tribute to a woman than ths
trust he shows tn her Instinct.
112 Milfiest
used last year
to KILL COLDS
CASCARA ‘QUININ
BltOl
Standard cold remedy for tS yaart
^ —ia tablet form—aala, eure, M
opiate*—breaka up a cold h W
‘ hour*—relieweerripln S dan.
k Money back If ft faila. The
genuine bo* baa *
top with Mr. HQl’e
picture.
At Alt Drue
Friction a Necessity.
Progress needs brakes as well as mo-
tors. Progress Is not a matter of lev-
els. but of hills and valleys. Brake-
less progress ts the uncontrolled ma-
chine on the steep downgrade. Yon
——    ...........„ ..... ——  ----- 1 „r<, t),e master who holds the control.
but conventionality had been bred In- [ j^nk# your life keen, thoughtful
to her for generations nnd she did not
find It possible yet freely to speak ths
truth.
“It’s such a wonderful life,” she con-
tinued. "One gets so strong and bath
py In It.'
“You'd soon get sick of It," he said.
"We don’t see nothin'. We don't learn
nothin'. Reenle, I’m eighteen, an’ !
bet you could rend an’ write better’n
me when you wns six."
“Did you never go to school?” she
asked, In genuine surprise. She knew
his speech wns ungrammatical, bat
thought that due to careless training
rather than to no training at all.
"Where’d I go to achool?*’ he de-
manded, bitterly. “There ain't a school
within forty miles. Guess I wouldn't
have went If I could,” he added, as an
afterthought, wishing to be quite hon-
est tn the matter. “School didn't seem
to cut no figure—until Jos’ lately.”
"But you Uv« learned—some?” 1
continued
and
considerate. You will find much In
fellowship that will suggest friction,
but you will also be able to tarn that
friction to account If yoa see things
In the right perspective. Some folks
will growl no matter what happens.
Let them growl. They must have a
safety valve. Yon do your part nnd
yon will learn where to apply the frlfr
tlon that makes life go.—Exchange.
Crocodile's Agility.
The moment that a young crocodile
breaks Its shell It ts to all Intents
and purposes as active as It la at any
time during Its life. It will mako
straight for the water, even If It bo
out of sight and a good distance off,
and It will pursue Its prey with eager-
ness nnd nglllty during ths first week
of Its free existence.
French Eat Chrysanthemums.
Tbs chrysanthemum Is served ns a
In french households.
BAD BREATH
Often Caused by
Acid-Stomach
How can enroll* with a soar. |Mf
■tomech. who to constantly belchtn*. bee
leartburn end suffers from lndl*eatlon have
anythin* but a bed breathT All of th*e#
•tomech disorders mean Juet on* thin#—
Acld-Momarh.    ..    . .
■ATONIC, th* wonderful new stomach
remedy In pleasant tsatin* tablet form that
you eat like a bit of candy, brine* quick
relief from these stomach miseries BATON-
1C sweetens th* breath because it make* the
stomach sweet, cool and comfortable. Try »
for that nasty taste, conseeted throat and
“heady feeiin*" after too much smokies.
If ne* lent ed, A rid-Stomach may cause you
a lot of serious trouble. It leade to ner-
voueneea, headaches, Ineomnla, melancholia,
rheumatism, sciatica, heart trouble, ulcer
and cancer of th* stomach. It makes Its
millions of victims weak and miserable*
■letless, laokln* la enor*y. all tired out. It
often brines about chronic iBVtudlfm, pm*
mature old a**, a ehortenla* of ono’e dam
Tou need the help that BATONIC oaa five
you If you are not feettn# at atron* sad
well ae you should. Tou will be surprised
to see how mueh better you wilt feel Juet as
soon ae you begin takln# this wonderful
e'ninarh remedy. Oet a ol* SC seat be*
from your drueilet today. He will return
your money If you are not satined.
FATONIC
fcpr ran tow acto-AtCha«>
HHliiMM
I
The powerful, heel In# warmth
of Hunt's L.l#htnln* oil *t*«e
laetent end pnaltln relief from.
tkmhbla*. 1--------
of H beume
headache
. nerv* rnofclaepeine 1
intmm. N eu rnl*ln.
etc. Ur and top bottle.
nuNri
IMHVMlira