The Project Gutenberg eBook, Overland, by John William De Forest

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Title: Overland

Author: John William De Forest

Release Date: May 13, 2004 [eBook #12335]

Language: English

Character set encoding: US-ASCII

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK OVERLAND***

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OVERLAND.

A Novel

By

J. W. DE FOREST,

Author of "Kate Beaumont," "Miss Ravenel's Conversion," &c.

1871

CHAPTER I.

In those days, Santa Fe, New Mexico, was an undergrown, decrepit,
out-at-elbows ancient hidalgo of a town, with not a scintillation of
prosperity or grandeur about it, except the name of capital.

It was two hundred and seventy years old; and it had less than five
thousand inhabitants. It was the metropolis of a vast extent of country,
not destitute of natural wealth; and it consisted of a few narrow,
irregular streets, lined by one-story houses built of sun-baked bricks.
Owing to the fine climate, it was difficult to die there; but owing to
many things not fine, it was almost equally difficult to live.

Even the fact that Santa Fe had been for a period under the fostering
wings of the American eagle did not make it grow much. Westward-ho
emigrants halted there to refit and buy cattle and provisions; but always
started resolutely on again, westward-hoing across the continent. Nobody
seemed to want to stay in Santa Fe, except the aforesaid less than five
thousand inhabitants, who were able to endure the place because they had
never seen any other, and who had become a part of its gray, dirty, lazy
lifelessness and despondency.

For a wonder, this old atom of a metropolis had lately had an increase of
population, which was nearly as great a wonder as Sarah having a son when
she was "well stricken in years." A couple of new-comers--not a man nor
woman less than a couple--now stood on the flat roof of one of the largest
of the sun-baked brick houses. By great good luck, moreover, these two
were, I humbly trust, worthy of attention. The one was interesting because
she was the handsomest girl in Santa Fe, and would have been considered