Lincoln County leader., January 21, 1898, Image 2

: THE LIE JOE
LD settlers In the
southern part of
Hay lor County,
.Texns, still make
occasional refer
ence to the Sav
vies, or the Sav
age brothers, ns
they sometimes
call them. This
does not refer to
the time when the Indians were In the
country, although that time Is by no
means so far distant as to bo beyond
the liiciuui,) uf liting man; nor does It
imply anything especially wild and fe-
rocious about the character of the men
In question. It merely goes back to the
lirst half of the '80s, when two brothers
of that name were among the promi
nent Inhabitants of that spnrsely set
tled district. In some countries events
of that period would be considered
comparatively modern, but In Western
Texns they are ranked as strictly nn-
cient history.
It seems, from n careful survey of the
facts In the case, that neither of the
brothers was really a bad man at heart,
notwithstanding the fact that a great
many people who ought to know are
strongly Inclined to think otherwise.
It is certain that one of them Is as true
n man as ever trod the soil of Texas, or
liny other State, for that matter. All
who knew him agree that the final year
of his life, at any rate, was n year of
Mich courage and self-sacrificing hero
ism as one reads of In books, but sel
dom looks for In real life. The people
of West Texas are not much prone to
hero worship, and whenever they ngree
that a man of their acquaintance Is
above the average of mortality there Is
very likely to be some basis for the be
lief. Judging merely from physical ap
pearances, one would have had little
trouble In deciding which of the two
men would be more likely to prove of
heroic mold. Bill, the younger, was a
man of magnificent physique, not un
duly large, but with muscles of such
herculean strength as perfect air and
the free life of a Western cowboy are
npt to Impart. lie was llght-eomplex-loned
and Is said to have possessed a
vigorous, manly countenance, such as
ought to have made him more success
ful In his love affairs than he really
was. Joe, on the other hand, was as
much a. picture of weakness and de
formity as his brother was of health
mid strength. He was not only a peaked-faced,
slender slip of n man, but he
was a cripple as well. When he wns 5
yeius old and Bill was only 3, a cyclone
had struck the log house In which the
boys mid their parents were living, The
not her and father were killed, but
when the neighbors came to look
through the ruins of the cabin they
round Joe crouched on the bed with his
limbs spread out in such a manner as
to protect his baby brother. A heavy
log had fallen across his right foot and
right wrist, crushing tliem both very
badly, but Bill was still sleeping in nb-
Ann YOU LOST ?"
solute unconsciousness of the existence
of any such disturbing affairs as cy
clones. As a result of his Injuries at
the time, Joe wns "club footed" through
the whole of his life, and his right
forearm had a big knot on It. nn.l n
rrook that made his right hnnd turn
out when It should have turned In. It
Is said that Joe was proud of his de
formities rather than otherwise, pre
sumably because they had been Incur
red In the defeuse of his baby brother,
ml that Bill was. for tho most part,
tenderly regardful of tho brother who
had sacrificed health aud almost life
tor hltu.
Nnturally enough, Bill was the more
prosperous of the two, Before lie was
BO he owned a considerable "bunch" of
rattle, and leased quite a body of land
In the eastern part of Baylor County !
ns u nincn. joo was ills line rider, and
lu that capacity was able to do a great
dcnl of such work ns did not require
ny very great amount of mere musou-
lar Btrengih. Kverytulng worked
smoothly with them until May Couley
came to llv. with a marrl. brother
MM,: ill
"hello!
SAVAGE TOLD. :
, of hers wlio lived only n few miles from
the Savage ranch. She was not a high
ly educated girl, by any means, nud It
Is doubtful If she was more than fairly
Intelligent; but she was pretty, and she
wns fickle and that tells the whole
story. In this case Joe wns the first
victim. He met May at one of the big
camp meetings that are common In
that country In the fall of the year, and
after that lie was very pronounced lu
his attentions to her for Beveral
months. Then his attentions ceased as
suddenly and abruptly as they had be
gun. 1'eople noticed this nud they
also noticed that just about that time
Bill began going to see her.
"Bill took it up Just where Joe laid
It down," remarked one cowboy to an
other during one of the Intervals In a
dance on one occablc?.
"Naw, that ain't It," responded his
friend. "I think Joe laid It down Just
where Bill took It up."
One day as the two brothers and one
or two others were engaged In brand
ing some of Bill's yearlings the subject
was brought up.
"Sure enough, Joe, whatever made
you quit goin' to see that Couley gal so
suddeut?" asked Jim Smith, one of the
helpers, In a Jocose
"I stopped so's to give Bill n chance,"
said Joe, with what was evidently a
forced attempt at gayety.
"Shucks!" ejaculated his brother.
"You needn't a stopped for that. If I
couldn't bent you I'd better quit."
There was just the least bit of con
temptuous emphasis on that word
"you," and Joe noticed It. A slightly
shamed, pained look came over his
poor, thin face ns ho faltered:
"W well, I didn't keer much for her.
no way. I was just a foollu' from the
first."
My very deliberate opinion Is tlmt
this stntemeut was a lie. It Is my opin
ion, furthermore, .that In this single,
ungrammatlcal, mispronounced, muti
lated lie there was a loftiness of
thought nud purity of purpose such ns
an angel In heaven might well aspire
to. Bill did not take any such view
of the matter, though, for he only look
ed up and retorted angrily:
"My opinion of anybody that would
go foolln' 'round a woman when he
didn't care nothing for her Is tint he
aln t much man."
"He's pretty small potatoes he shore
Is," put in Tom Jackson, the fourth
man at the branding. Nobody noticed
the remark particularly at the time,
but subsequent even's caused them to
think a great deal about It later on.
"I'm surprised at you, Joe," said Bill.
The ghost of a forced smile hovered
plteously on Joe's Hps for a moment,
but he merely rubbed his forehead with
the knob on his wrist lu the nervous
way peculiar to hlni on such occasions,
aud said nothing.
Aside from one or two little Incidents
like this which are hardly worth
counting as exceptions Bill's coutrshlp
was an Illustration of tho fact that,
notwithstanding a certain very emi
nent authority to tho contrary, tho
course of true love does occasionally
run smooth for awhile. In this case
it ran smooth down to the very day set
for the wedding. The ceremony was
to be performed at what was known as
l'luiu Creek school house, and early In
the morning Bill went with a number
of his friends to get ready for the fes
tivities. In some couutrles It might
not be considered as a part of the
groom's duties to make these prepara
tions, but in Texas it is etiquette for
anybody to do anything provided there
wns not some one else to do It.
The ceremony was to take place at 10
o'clock. Perhaps half an hour before
that time Joe nud his friend Jim Smith
were riding through the timber which
always abounds around creek bottoms
In Texas, and were much nstoulshed
when, at a sudden bend In the trail,
they came across the supposed prospec
tive bride. She was on horseback and
unaccompanied.
"Hello!" exclaimed Joe In surprise.
"Are you lost?"
"Yes," nnswered May, with a nervous
laugh. "I never was so glad to see
anybody In my life. Tills here creek
bottom timber's so thick a wildcat
I would mighty nigh get lost In It let
alone a woman."
"I should think you and Bill had
been to l'luiu Creek Bchoolhouse often
enough to know the way by this time?"
"I ain't goin' to Tlum Creek," said
May, with a foolish giggle.
liatl Ain't TOU Kolu' to eot nmn.
rled?'
"Yes "
"Well. Bill's at tho schoolhouse now
a wnltlu' for ye"
May tossed her head and then giggled
again. KWea
"I ain't walthV for him none." she
r-M. "I might as well teU touW2
anr time. I'm goin' to be married to
Tom Jackson this morning at Bound
Timbers. I've lost my way there aud
I want you to tell me how to go."
At the mention of Jackson's name
Joe's face hardened for a moment. He
wns the nian who had been so quick to
take Bill's part in the quarrel with his
brother. Then Joe began to reason
with Mary as to her conduct, but a very
few moments sufficed to show him the
futility of the nttempt. Promptly
changing his plans, he gave her a de
tailed account of the way to Bound
Timbers.
"Say!" Interrupted Jim Smith, who
had listened in profound astonishment
to the whole conversation, "you're mis
taken about "
"No, I nin't," retorted Joe. "The
trail's been changed lately. That's nil
right. May. Come on, Jim."
"I still think you were mistaken
about that trail," said Jim, as the two
men rode on together.
"No, I wasn't mistaken," said Joe. "I
Just lied that was all. I did it for
Bill's sake. If May goes the way I sent
her she'll not get to Round Timbers
this morning."
After they had ridden n few moments
In silence, Joe began again:
"Jim, old fellow, for God's sake don't
let on that you've seen or heard noth
ing this morning. It'll be plenty tough
on Bill, anyway."
"I shore won't," said Jim.
There wns quite a crowd assembled
around the door of the little log school
house when these two men rode up.
The groom wns there and so was the
preacher; so also were the people. The
house was decorated within and with
out with flowers aud leaves and other
ornaments more or less appropriate to
the occasion. However, there was one
ornament generally considered neces
sary on wedding occasions which was
still missing namely, the bride.
"See anything of May lately?" asked
Bill, stepping to the front as the new
comers rode up. There was just a trace
of anxiety In his voice ns he spoke.
"Naw," answered Joe promptly. Ills
face looked perfectly unconcerned as
he spoke, but In a very few moments a
cloud began to rest upon It. I suspect,
though, that Instead of grieving over
the lie he had told as of course he
should have been he was merely won
dering how he might spare Bill the
mortification which a public discovery
of the real facts In regard to May
might occasion. He was now sitting
with one leg thrown over the horn of
his saddle. Suddenly his face lighted
up with Its old sickly smile,, and In a
voice that trembled a little In spite of
the bravado he tried to throw into It,
he began:
"Say, Bill, that was the devil of a lie
I told you nbout May just now. I saw
her not over half an hour ago."
"You did, did you? When will she
be here?"
"She won't be here at all."
Bill's face grew stern and white.
"Why won't she?" he demanded.
"Because I directed her in the wrong
road. Jim tried to tell her right and I
wouldn't let him. Ain't that so, Jim?"
Jim nodded grimly. With faces that
now began to grow drawn and anxious,
the spectators glanced from one speak
er to the other In turn. Bill's face was
fairly livid with rage, and his voice
trembled with the awfulness of re
pressed fury as he asked the next
question:
"What did you do It for?"
The expectant silence that followed
was deathlike, -but even then Joe's
voice was hardly audible as he an
swered with the same sickly smile
hovering about his white lips:
"Because I useter court her myself
and you cut me out!"
Before the words were fairly out of
his mouth Bill sprang at him with the
fury of a wild beast. With all the force
of his mighty arm he struck and the
ins BLOW DESCENDED UPO TUB ARM.
blow descended upon the arm-the crip
pled, knotted arm which Joe had Inter
posed to ward it off. Some say It de
scended upon the very knot Itself. He
fell from his pony as If he had been
shot, and lay for several moments on
the turf where he had fallen.
"Which way did you send her?"
asked BUI, in the same awful tones lie
had used before.
"I won't tell," gasped Joe.
"Then get oft that grouud!"
Joe meekly obeyed.
"Get on your pony-no, I see It's got
away from you. Then saddle up mine
yonder and go after May and bring her
back at once, sir! Do you hear?"
Joe meekly took the huge Texas sad
dlo in his left hand and carried It to
where the pony was grazing, tied bv a
ong rope to a tree. His right arm hung
limp by his side. After some Inefrect
ual efforts to throw on the saddle with
his left arm he gave up the attempt.
I can t get the thing on," he said.
"Use your right arm, sir!" called his
brother.
"I think you've broke his game arm,
Bill," said Jim Smith.
"It's a lie!" shouted Joe, "that arm's
as good ns ever It wns."
To prove the truth of this assertion
he made a mighty effort nnd managed
to lift his arm to his shoulder, though
the wrist still dangled loosely from his
elbow. Even then he could not restrain
his face from wincing and his teeth
from clinching with the pain. Drop
ping the snddle he turned abruptly nud
limped off into the woods without a
word.
Jim Smith afterward said that only
his solemn promise to Joe kept him
from telling the whole truth at this
Juncture just as he knew It to be, and
that he hnd to grit his teeth hard and
say cuss words under his brenth to do
It then. As to the rest of the crowd, It
must be remembered thnt they knew
nothing but Joe's own statement nbout
the matter, nnd consequently they all
sympathized with Bill. After some
moments of condolence nnd consulta
tion with the crowd, Bill, with some
four or five others, started out to find
Joe.
"Get that rope off your unilil'n there
nnd bring it along," he said to one of
the men.
"You nin't goin' to string him up, are
you, Bill?" wus the rather anxious reply-
"No; just want to sheer him a little.
Come on."
In a very short time they found the
man they were looking for.
"Are you ready to tell where May Is,
or to go after her?" Bill demanded.
"N-no," faltered Joe, with a distrust
ful glance at the little group of attend
ants. Again his brother sprang at him.
This time he threw hlin to the ground
aud held him there with his grasp firm
upon his throat.
"Don't, Bill, old fellow, for God's
sake," gasped Joe, ns his brother some
what relaxed the grip on his throat, "I
didn't mean no hnrm by It honest, I
didn't. I won't do It no more. AVhnt
are you going to do with that rope,
Bill? You're not going to kill your poor,
no-account brother, are you, old boy?"
Without a word Bill aud his attend
ants continued wrapping the' rope
nround Joe. Then they stood him up
beside a tree nnd tied him to it, so that
his club foot touched the ground, while
the other, the strong one, was doubled
back In the coll of rope.
"Now, you ungrateful whelp," said
Bill, as he started to leave, "I'll be back
In thirty minutes to see if you're readv
to tell me."
"Didn't he kiss your hnnd ns you was
tying him?" asked some one. ns they
walked awny.
"Dogged If I know," said Bill. "Did
he?"
Hardly had they left when Jim Smith
came up and at once began to untie the
ropes.
"Don't!" said Joe. "Bill will be back
in a few minutes. Just unsllp this loop
here. Thank you! The strnin was on
my right arm, and it hurt, because It
was sore. Jim, this is hard but I guess
I can stand it, for Bill's sake. I ain't
hurtin' so much now, though, as I was.
It's mostly all a Joke. Bill was always
a powerful fellow to Joke. I wlsht
you'd go tell him when he comes back
please not to bring anybody else with
him."
At the appointed time, Bill saddled
his pony and rode off to where Joe was.
"I'll take the hoss, so tlmt If Joe's
ready by now he enn start off after
May and bring her back. I rather
guess he's ready by now, too. Maybe
we'll get to "eat a wedding dinner' to
day, yet only a little late, of course."
After some time had elapsed and
neither brother had "showed up," as
the phrase goes In Texas, Jim Smith
wnlked to the nlnce wlierp hp linil lati
Joe. There the poor fellow w.-is, ot.111
ueu to tne tree but dead! The thirty
minutes' strnin hnd been too much for
his crippled leg to bear, and it had
gradunlly given way, and this had al
lowed the poor fellow to choke to
death. Of course. Jim lost nn iinu tn
rousing the quasi wedding guests, aud
iu leumg tne rem rncts about May. It
Is not the first instance In thn hinnni
of the world where a man has had the
truth told about him too hite to do him
any good. A pursuing party was out
after Bill at once, hut nil ...
avail. Some sny he committed suicide
snoruy afterward in Snn Antonio; oth
ers, that he is still nllve in
still others, that he Is to-day in the ln-
suue asyjum at Terrell. I do not know
what the truth about It is. Mr. and
Mrs. Tom Jnckson still
County, Texas. Jim Smith Is the man
wuo nrst told me this story. Joo Sav
age is burled on the banks of Plum
Creek, nnd on his WOOllen llnnrlhsinfff
you can still decipher the inscription:
no ijovea Mutcn.
The Scripture had tn hn mt.nni
to suit the gender of the pronoun and
'uo "Peuing 18 slightly peculiar, but I
can not help thlnklnir tl.o in.nHnfun
a good one. Many people consider love
ery gooa ming, and Prof. Drum
niond has written a book to prove that
It Is The Greatest Thl
If these estimates are correct Joe Sav
age was certainly a great and good
iu. u rputer 10Tb unto no man than
thlS, that he IflV rinn-n 1,1a t ..
... " IW ills
friend. tltlca Globe.
The dance they sit out la the most
delightful to a pair of lovers
Sf1rAI
-Joq
fitj
Seattle
Tii!on C
Among the many curious Invents
in which rtrlcltyptar.tA
fcilvices
orenine
. D. We
inn wei
r Victoi
ver, is i
red peoj
. .... ...... a "'inuie lneaniesw-
lnmn. inteniled t m,... ., Hft-
, ""innate a iimI
- - j"'i" , mm prevented n,
shining Into the eyes orthewteU
little reflector placed Just above
on lor
In a concert hall of rarl,, eJ
OllniWV lino L. .... . C1CU"t
jiere, bn
ate an
..BJ .,,-eu pin to the novel
of moving the ceiling. This is i,
r
ort Jul
rwln
"uiu are irnvn back on tam
ing cranes, opening the hall to tbe a,
roof by day. The opening or eloslL,
the celling is effected in one mtoutet
two electric motors.
A wealthy lady who possesses an
Maltese cat found recently that-
xrease
roid of g
,at cam
liiefly, '
tort Jul
Ire an c
cat's eyesight began to fall, so she toll
lien at C
mm io in ocuimt. By means of a pi
ture of a mouse the oculist qnltt
learned what wns the matter, nmi
iiiperati
l Ci
able to fit the cat with glasses. Tti
.'clock,
iving I
la left
i'T and I
u-uoi-B tint bvl in goiu irames especkl
iy iiniue, anu now the cat s
as good as ever.
Dr. G. K. Gilbert, of the Geologiol
Survey, says that a comparison of nil
lellCirc
my wit
records for a period of twenty yearf
Lit of t!
snows unit the land surrounding th(
Great Lakes Is being gradunlly tDtti
im ut
irom northeast to southwest at such
rolled t
Mr. ;
:Ierin
rate that, of two points 100 miles apart!
me nortnern rises five inches tvlth ret
erenee to the southern In 100 yean. a
Chicago the lake level rises about ml
ffrecai
hmon,
inch In ten years. Dr. Gilbert predicts
that, If this movement continues, hi
about 3,000 years all the upper lakei
Hndereo
will discharge Into the Illinois Rim,
the Detroit nnd St. Clair Riven mil
flow backward, carrying the water oil
Lake Erie Into Lake Huron, and t!j
Niagara River will run dry.
A new fireproof paper, made In Ber
lin, is reported to be capable of resitt
ing even the direct Influence of flame,
while it may be placed In a white beat
without harm. It consists of 91 parti
tie fn
of the best asbestos fibre, which
washed In a s?!:U!ou of pennanganat
of csluluni, and then trcalcd vrith
phuric acid and 5 parts of ground wooJ
pulp, the entire mass being placed
the agitating box, with the addition
some lime water nnd borax. After thor
ough mixing, the material Is pumped
Into a regulating box, nnd allowed to
flow out of a gate Into an endless wire
cloth, where It enters the usual paper
making machinery.
The electric trolley has been a source
of great Injury to metallic pipes In Its
vicinity, causing their corrosion by ei
trolysls. Recently It has been found
thnt the operation of the syphon re
corder of the submarine telegrapn ca
ble at Cape Town, South Africa, wai
interfered with by the new trolley line.
The shore end of the submarine cable
for the lenirtli of a mile was at a mean
distance of one-half a mile from the
trolley line. As a remedy, a second oi
dnmmv cnlile. with nn enrth plate, wai
laid as nearly as possible over the oM
one, nnd this effectually cancelled tb
disturbances. Observations msde
London have shown that the earth'i
magnetic field Is disturbed over the
n-hnlo nolcrlilvirhnnil of the City M
South London Electric Railroad, and
In the United States the utility of tbi
mngnetlc observntory In the new navi
observatory is threatened by tbe tri
ley. '
An American company Is maklnK
tlmates of the cost of a cable rond from
the City of Mexico to the sulphur de
posits in the crater of ropoeatepeu,
A doctor says that In society one maj
niurnva tett the o-lrls whose parenti
have risen from the humbler class to
wenlth by the superior quality of then
hair.
Some people In the South are predict
ing thnt the current trend in cott
manufacture will flood the Norti w
negro operatives and the South wi"
Yankee white girls.
Several cases of bloomers
anion the liooty taken by tramps iW
a freight car at Chlllicothc, Ohio, iw
police are puzzled to know what u
marauders intend to do with the P1
ments. wn
A quaint Inscrpltlon has lately oe
nmutnni. without nan"
and without date, In a cemetery. i
. ., . tho case rw
ueuu II1M11 VL nuiuwi
be, had ordered the following worw
should be placed over the grave: l
. ti-.. nnt thv time w
on, on, reuuur; un" ,j
reading vain prose and still lcs
j- if- nii thee what 1 W'
worm), jij v. mi tj i 4.vrJ-
WU11V 1" tuiiiciuu ..."
tas vanttatum" was evidently
thoughts of this philosophically wan
ed person.
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