FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145  
146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   >>   >|  
reat a lady, anyhow. [FOOTNOTE 81: muy caballero--(Spanish) very much a gentleman] Considering this extremely courteous idiosyncrasy of the Kid and the pride he took in it, one can perceive that the solution of the problem that was presented to him by what he saw and heard from his hiding-place in the pear that afternoon (at least as to one of the actors) must have been obscured by difficulties. And yet one could not think of the Kid overlooking little matters of that kind. At the end of the short twilight they gathered around a supper of _frijoles_, goat steaks, canned peaches, and coffee, by the light of a lantern in the _jacal_. Afterward, the ancestor, his flock corralled, smoked a cigarette and became a mummy in a grey blanket. Tonia washed the few dishes while the Kid dried them with the flour-sacking towel. Her eyes shone; she chatted volubly of the inconsequent happenings of her small world since the Kid's last visit; it was as all his other home-comings had been. Then outside Tonia swung in a grass hammock with her guitar and sang sad _canciones de amor_ [82]. [FOOTNOTE 82: canciones de amor--(Spanish) love songs] "Do you love me just the same, old girl?" asked the Kid, hunting for his cigarette papers. "Always the same, little one," said Tonia, her dark eyes lingering upon him. "I must go over to Fink's," said the Kid, rising, "for some tobacco. I thought I had another sack in my coat. I'll be back in a quarter of an hour." "Hasten," said Tonia, "and tell me--how long shall I call you my own this time? Will you be gone again to-morrow, leaving me to grieve, or will you be longer with your Tonia?" "Oh, I might stay two or three days this trip," said the Kid, yawning. "I've been on the dodge for a month, and I'd like to rest up." He was gone half an hour for his tobacco. When he returned Tonia was still lying in the hammock. "It's funny," said the Kid, "how I feel. I feel like there was somebody lying behind every bush and tree waiting to shoot me. I never had mullygrubs like them before. Maybe it's one of them presumptions. I've got half a notion to light out in the morning before day. The Guadalupe country is burning up about that old Dutchman I plugged down there." "You are not afraid--no one could make my brave little one fear." "Well, I haven't been usually regarded as a jack-rabbit when it comes to scrapping; but I don't want a posse smoking me out when I'm in your
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145  
146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153   154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
hammock
 

cigarette

 

tobacco

 

canciones

 

FOOTNOTE

 
Spanish
 
gentleman
 

yawning

 
returned
 

caballero


Considering

 

longer

 
Hasten
 

idiosyncrasy

 
quarter
 

leaving

 
grieve
 
extremely
 

morrow

 

courteous


afraid

 

Dutchman

 

plugged

 

scrapping

 

rabbit

 

regarded

 

burning

 

waiting

 

mullygrubs

 

smoking


Guadalupe

 
country
 

morning

 

presumptions

 

notion

 
dishes
 

difficulties

 
washed
 

blanket

 
obscured

chatted
 

volubly

 
inconsequent
 
happenings
 

sacking

 

smoked

 
twilight
 

gathered

 
supper
 

overlooking