Desert reclamation -- California -- Fiction; Love stories; Western stories
While Mr. Worth and the boy prepared a hasty meal, Texas fed his team
and the Irishman, going back a short distance, made still another grave
beside the road already marked by so many. The child--still in the
engineer's arms--ate hungrily, and when the meal was over he took her
to the wagon, while the others, with a lantern, returned to the still
form by the dry water hole. At the banker's suggestion, a thorough
examination of the woman's clothing was made for some clue to her
identity, but no mark was found. With careful hands they reverently
wrapped the body in a blanket and laid it away in its rude, sandy bed.
When the grave was filled and protected as best it could be, a short
consultation was held. Mr. Worth wished to return to the half buried
outfit to make another effort to learn the identity of the Desert's
victim, but Texas refused. "'Tain't that I ain't willin' to do what's
right," he said, "but you see how that sand acted. Why, Mr. Worth, you
couldn't move that there drift in a year, an' you know it. I jest gave
the mules the last water they'll get an' we're goin' to have all we can
do to make it through as it is. If we wait to go back there ain't one
chance in a hundred that we-all 'll ever see Rubio City again. It ain't
sense to risk killin' the kid when we've got a chance to save her--jest
on a slim chance o' findin' out who she is."
Returning to the outfit they very quietly--so as not to awaken the
sleeping child--hitched the team to the wagon and took their places. As
the mules started the baby stirred uneasily in the Seer's arms and
murmured sleepily: "Mamma." But the low, soothing tones of the big man
calmed her and she slept.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account