Vigilante Days and Ways: The pioneers of the Rockies; the makers and making of Montana and IdahoLangford, Nathaniel Pitt
History
Vigilante Days and Ways: The pioneers of the Rockies; the makers and making of Montana and Idaho
Langford, Nathaniel Pitt
Frontier and pioneer life -- Northwestern States; Northwestern States -- History; Vigilance committees; West (U.S.) -- History
In June, Cherokee Bob, accompanied by Mayfield and Cynthia, left
Lewiston for Florence. Soon after their arrival the jealousy of Mayfield
was aroused by the particular attentions of Bob to his mistress. On his
part Bob made no concealment of his attachment for the woman, and when
charged with harboring an intention of appropriating her affections,
boldly acknowledged the soft impeachment. Cynthia possessed many charms
of person, and considerable intelligence. She had, moreover, an eye to
the main chance, and was ready to bestow her favors where they would
command the most money. Bob was richer than Mayfield, and this fact won
for him many encouraging smiles from the fair object of his pursuit.
Mayfield’s jealousy flamed into anger, and he resolved to bring matters
to a crisis, which should either secure his undisturbed possession of
the woman, or transfer her to the sole care of his rival. He had
confidence enough in Cynthia to believe that when required to choose
between him and Cherokee Bob, her good taste, if nothing else, would
give him the preference. He had not calculated on the strength of her
cupidity. Confronting Bob in her presence, he said, as he laid his hand
on the butt of his revolver,
“Bob, you know me.”
“Yes,” replied Bob with a similar gesture, “and Bill, you know me.”
“Well, now, Bob, the question is whether we shall make fools of
ourselves or not.”
“Just as you say, Bill. I’m al’ys ready for anything that turns up.”
“Bob, if that woman loves you more than me,” said Mayfield, “take her. I
don’t want her. But if she thinks the most of me, no person ought to
come between us. I call that on the square.”
“Well, I do think considerable of Cynthia, and you are not married to
her, you know,” replied Bob.
“That makes no difference. If she loves me, and wishes to live with me,
no one shall interfere to prevent it.”
“Well, what do you propose to do about it?” asked Bob, after a brief
pause.
“Let the woman decide for herself,” replied Mayfield. “What say you,
Cynthia? Is it Bob or me?”
Thus appealed to, greatly to the surprise of Mayfield, Cynthia replied,
“Well, William, Robert is settled in business now, and don’t you think
he is better able to take care of me than you are?”
This reply convinced Mayfield that his influence over the woman was
lost. The quarrel terminated in a graceful surrender to Bob of all his
claim upon her.
“You fall heir,” said he to his successor, “to all the traps and things
there are around here.”
Cherokee Bob insisted upon paying for them; and Cynthia, true to the
course of life she was pursuing, tried to soften the pangs of separation
from her old lover by reiterating the question if he did not “think it
the best thing that could be done under the circumstances.”
Cherokee Bob forced a generous purse upon Mayfield, who left him with
the parting injunction to take good care of the girl.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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