July 31, 1909.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
1 G 9 
as mum as a goat. All you could ever get out 
of him was to answer a question, an’ that in 
the fewest words possible. But you bet he was 
a rustler, an’ a good, steady, dependable cuss, 
j any way you took him. 
“It was early in November when we left 
Tucson, with our outfit—ten pack burros an’ 
one apiece to ride, an’ somethin’ like two weeks 
later we struck the north fork of the Yaqui 
River, where, runnin’ northwest, it turns, bends 
around the point of the Sierra de Nacori, which 
it has been following from its source more than 
a hundred miles back—and flows due south 
along the east side of the range. Here we had 
a council of war; some was for goin’ down the 
river an prospectin’ the streams runnin’ into 
it from the east, others for goin’ up it an' 
takin’ in the branches on both sides. While 
we were arguing, we came to a little settlement 
of Mexicans—five or six adobes at the edge of 
here that you’re makin’ terrible mad an’ jealous, 
an’ they’re liable to knife you.’ 
“‘Not while I carry this good gun,’ said he, 
slapping the forty-five at his side an’ laughin’. 
An back he sailed into the dance with one of 
the beauties. 
We all sat around for a couple of hours, 
then pulled our freight an’ went to bed, Pedro 
comin home a-singin’ La Paloma an’ crawlin’ 
into his blankets considerable later. Just as 
day was breakin’ he reached over an’ nudged 
me: ‘If you’ll pack my burros for me,’ he said, 
I 11 saddle up, ride on ahead and look out a 
trail.’ 
" ‘Sure, go on if you want to,’ I told him, 
an in a few minutes he was up an’ goin’. 
"We were camped right close to the settle¬ 
ment’s well. While we were eatin’ breakfast, 
among others that came to it for their mornin’ 
olla of water was one of the pretty senoritas 
sayin. Anyhow, in another second they were 
screamin bad names at one another, an’ cryin’. 
Women an’ men rushed out of the adobes to 
em, dogs barked, children yelled, everybody 
talked at once. Out of the mix-up five or six 
of the men came runnin’ over to us. ‘Where 
is your partner Pedro?’ they asked. ‘Either he 
has made of us a foolishness or one of these 
senoritas tells not the truth,’ says the head man, 
or governor, of the camp. 
My daughter is not a liar,’ yelled one man. 
‘Nor is mine. How dare you insinuate?’ 
yelled another. An’ then the women joined in 
an you talk about rows! Of all the name- 
callin s an wranglin’s I ever heard, that was it. 
"Meantime we got busy and started in packin’ 
the burros. Soon the governor came blusterin’ 
over to us an’ asked where Pedro was. ‘He’s 
took the back trail to pick up a sack we lost 
off the packs yesterday,’ I told him. ‘He’ll be 
1 
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BE *85 
f T.vii 
KgjjgC. Jj 
A 
SCENES IN 
FISHING PARTY ON THE TANGIPAHOA RIVER. 
LOUISIANA. 
From photographs by F. G. Govan. 
A CAMP ON BAYOU BOUFUCA. 
a small plantation of irrigated land, an’ we un¬ 
packed an’ visited with ’em. They knew a lot 
about the country down the river. No placer, 
they said, had ever been found there. About 
the country up river, well, they had seen a part 
of it. They said that it was ‘Tierra de los 
Apaches,’ a rough, almost inaccessible valley 
rich in placer, abounding in game. They feared 
:0 So up it on account of the Apaches. We de¬ 
rided to have a try at it. 
There was a fandango in one of the adobes 
hat night, an’ we were all invited to it. Pedro 
iug down in his war bag an’ what with a clean 
■have, a white silk shirt an’ rainbow nectie, he 
•ure had the Caballeros of the settlement skinned 
0 a fare-you-well. We all went over to have 
1 swig or two of mescal, an’ look on a while, 
he minute Pedro stepped inside the shack the 
eiioritas had no eyes for any one else. There 
‘ere two mighty pretty ones in the bunch, an' 
lc Parted right in dancin’ with one an’ then 
other of ’em, turn about, an’ inside of half an 
our he was gettin’ mighty black looks from 
ome of the young fellows he had cut out. 
Look out, Pedro,’ I told him, ‘there’s some 
Pedro had danced so much with the night be¬ 
fore. Just as she was haulin’ up the bucket, 
here came the other pretty one, an’ said the first 
one to her: ‘Good morning, Anita. I have great 
news for you; it is that I am to marry the 
Senor Alvarez. Is he not the very handsomest 
man you ever saw?’ 
" ‘Do not jest, Maria,’ said t’other one, ‘do 
not jest. I love him very much and wish that 
we could be married to-day instead of waitin’ 
until he returns from this expedition he goes 
upon.’ 
“'Ah, it is you who will jest!’ said Maria. 
W ell, as I said, never was there a more hand¬ 
some man than my Pedro, and I am sure he 
is good. I shall be very happy with him. And 
listen: we are to live in Tucson, in the United 
States.’ 
Great snakes, fellows,’ said I, turnin’ to the 
boys—who none of ’em understood Spanish— 
‘here’s a fine how-dye-do: Pedro has asked both 
them girls to marry him, an’ they’re goin’ to 
find it out right now. There’s sure goin’ to be 
a circus.’ 
“Talkin’ to them, I missed what the girls were 
along all right after a while an’ then you can 
ta.k with him.’ 
"We pulled out, an’ as we was leavin’ I saw 
five of the Mexicans takin’ our back trail. An’ 
seven of ’em followed us—what do you think! 
That riled us. We waited, though, till we had 
gone five or six miles an’ then stopped an’ let 
’em catch up. ‘See here,’ said I to ’em. ‘You 
fellows have trailed us far enough. We don't 
know what all Pedro has done or said to those 
senoritas, but he’s our partner. If you want 
him bad enough to fight for him, why, begin 
right now. If you don’t, then turn an’ go 
straight back home.’ 
“One of ’em began to explain an’ argue, but 
I cut him short. ‘Vamose,’ said I, ‘or pull your 
guns.’ They vamosed. 
‘‘Along about noon we overtook Pedro. ‘Dog¬ 
gone you,’ said I. ‘You’ve kicked up a fine row 
back there. What do you mean by askin’ two 
women at once to marry you?’ 
“He asked what had been said, an’ when I 
told him he just lay back an’ laughed till he 
nearly choked an’ we had to laugh with him. 
‘Each one of them girls was engaged,’ said he, 
39 
