down. And they're all liars when they says the Warrens hired me to exterminate 'em at five dollars a sculp. I don't believe even a Warren would pay five dollars for one of their mangy sculps. Anyway, I don't fight for hire for nobody, And the Warrens needn't belly-ache about me turnin' on 'em and trying to massacre the entire clan. All I wanted to do was kind of disable 'em so they couldn't interfere with my business. And my business, from first to last, was defending the family honor. If I had to wipe up the earth with a couple of feuding clans whilst so doing, I cain't help it. Folks which is particular of their hides ought to stay out of the way of tornadoes, wild bulls, devastating torrents and a insulted Elkins.
This is the way it was: I was dry and hot and thirsty when I hit Chawed Ear, so I went into a saloon and had me a few drinks. Then I was going out and start looking for a gal, when I spied a friendly game of kyards going on between a hoss-thief and three train-robbers, and I decided I'd set in for a hand or so. And whilst we was playing, who should come in but Uncle Jeppard Grimes. I should of knew my day was spoilt the minute he hove in sight. Dern near all the calamities which takes place in southern Nevada can be traced back to that old lobo. He's got a ingrown disposition and a natural talent for pestering his feller man. Specially his relatives.
He didn't say a word about that wild goose chase I went on to get back the gold I thought Wolf Ashley had stole from him. He come over and scowled down on me like I was the missing lynx or something, and purty soon, jest as I was all sot to make a killing, he says: 'How can you set there so free and keerless, with four aces into yore hand, when yore family name is bein' besmirched?'
I flang down my hand in annoyance, and said: 'Now look what you done! What you mean blattin' out information of sech a private nature? What you talkin' about, anyhow?'
'Well,' he says, 'durin' the time you been away from home roisterin' and wastin' yore substance in riotous livin'--'
'I been punchin' cows!' I said fiercely. 'And before that I was chasin' a man to git back the gold I thought he'd stole from you. I ain't squandered nothin' nowheres. Shet up and tell me whatever yo're a-talkin' about.'
'Well,' says he, 'whilst you been gone young Dick Blanton of Grizzly Run has been courtin' yore sister Elinor, and the family's been expectin' 'em to set the day, any time now. But now I hear he's been braggin' all over Grizzly Run about how he done jilted her. Air you goin' to set there and let yore sister become the laughin' stock of the country? When I was a young man--'
'When you was a young man Dan'l Boone warn't whelped yet!' I bellered, so mad I included him and everybody else in my irritation. They ain't nothing upsets me like injustice done to some of my close kin. 'Git out of my way! I'm headin' for Grizzly Run--what you grinnin' at, you spotted hyener?' This last was addressed to the hoss-thief in which I seemed to detect signs of amusement.
'I warn't grinnin',' he said.
'So I'm a liar, I reckon!' I said, impulsively shattering a demi-john over his head, and he fell under the table hollering bloody murder, and all the fellers drinking at the bar abandoned their licker and stampeded for the street hollering: 'Take cover, boys! Breckinridge Elkins is on the rampage!'
So I kicked all the slats out of the bar to relieve my feelings, and stormed out of the saloon and forked Cap'n Kidd. Even he seen it was no time to take liberties with me; he didn't pitch but seven jumps, and then he settled down to a dead run, and we headed for Grizzly Run.
Everything kind of floated in a red haze all the way, but them folks which claims I tried to murder' em in cold blood on the road between Chawed Ear and Grizzly Run is jest narrer-minded and super-sensitive. The reason I shot off everybody's hats that I met was jest to kind of ca'm my nerves, because I was afeared if I didn't cool off some by the time I hit Grizzly Run I might hurt somebody. I'm that mild-mannered and retiring by nature that I wouldn't willing hurt man, beast, nor Injun unless maddened beyond all endurance.
That's why I acted with so much self-possession and dignity when I got to Grizzly Run and entered the saloon where Dick Blanton generally hung out.
'Where's Dick Blanton?' I demanded, and everybody must of been nervous, because when I boomed out they all jumped and looked around, and the bartender dropped a glass and turned pale.
'Well,' I hollered, beginning to lose patience. 'Where is the coyote?'
'G-gimme time, will ya?' stuttered the bar-keep. 'I--uh--he--uh--'
'Evadin' the question, hey?' I said, kicking the foot-rail loose. 'Friend of his'n, hey? Tryin' to pertect him, hey?' I was so overcome by this perfidy that I lunged for him and he ducked down behind the bar and I crashed into it bodily with all my lunge and weight, and it collapsed on top of him, and all the customers run out of the saloon hollering: 'Help, murder, Elkins is killin' the bartender!'
That individual stuck his head up from amongst the rooins of the bar and begged: 'For God's sake, lemme alone! Blanton headed south for the Mezquital Mountains yesterday.'
I throwed down the chair I was fixing to bust all the ceiling lamps with, and run out and jumped on Cap'n Kidd and headed south, whilst behind me folks emerged from their cyclone cellars and sent a rider up in the hills to tell the sheriff and his deputies they could come on back now.
I knowed where the Mezquitals was, though I hadn't never been there. I crossed the Californy line about sundown, and shortly after dark I seen Mezquital Peak looming ahead of me. Having ca'med down somewhat, I decided to stop and rest Cap'n Kidd. He warn't tired, because that hoss has got alligator blood in his veins, but I knowed I might have to trail Blanton clean to The Angels, and they warn't no use in running Cap'n Kidd's laigs off on the first lap of the chase.
It warn't a very thick settled country I'd come into, very mountainous and thick timbered, but purty soon I come to a cabin beside the trail and I pulled up and hollered: 'Hello!'
The candle inside was instantly blowed out, and somebody pushed a rifle barrel through the winder and bawled: 'Who be you?'
'I'm Breckinridge Elkins from Bear Creek, Nevada,' I said. 'I'd like to stay all night, and git some feed for my hoss.'
'Stand still,' warned the voice. 'We can see you agen the stars, and they's four rifle-guns a-kiverin' you.'
'Well, make up yore minds,' I said, because I could could hear 'em discussin' me. I reckon they thought they was whispering. One of 'em said: 'Aw, he cain't be a Barlow. Ain't none of 'em that big.' T'other'n said: 'Well, maybe he's a derned gunfighter they've sent for to help 'em. Old jake's nephew's been up in Nevady.'
'Le's let him in,' says a third. 'We can mighty quick tell what he is.'
So one of 'em come out and 'lowed it would be all right for me to stay the night, and he showed me a corral to put Cap'n Kidd in, and hauled out some hay for him.
'We got to be keerful,' he said. 'We got lots of enemies in these hills.'
We went into the cabin, and they lit the candle again, and sot some corn pone and sow-belly and beans on the table and a jug of corn licker. They was four men, and they said their names was Warren--George, Ezra, Elisha, and Joshua, and they was brothers. I'd always heard tell the Mezquital country was famed for big men, but these fellers warn't so big--not much over six foot high apiece. On Bear Creek they'd been considered kind of puny and undersized, so to speak.
They warn't very talkative. Mostly they sot with their rifles acrost their knees and looked at me without no expression onto their faces, but that didn't stop me from eating a hearty supper, and would of et a lot more only the grub give out; and I hoped they had more licker somewheres else because I was purty dry. When I turned up the jug to take a snort it was brim-full, but before I'd more'n dampened my gullet the dern thing was plumb empty.
When I got through I went over and sot down on a raw-hide bottomed chair in front of the fire-place where they warn't no fire because it was summer time, and they said: 'What's yore business, stranger?'
'Well,' I said, not knowing I was going to get the surprise of my life, 'I'm lookin' for a feller named Dick Blanton--'
By golly, the words warn't clean out of my mouth when they was four men onto my neck like catamounts!
'He's a spy!' they hollered. 'He's a cussed Barlow! Shoot him! Stab him! Hit him on the head!'
All of which they was endeavoring to do with such passion they was getting in each other's way, and it was only his over-eagerness which caused George to miss me with his bowie and sink it into the table instead, but Joshua busted a chair over my head and Elisha would of shot me if I hadn't jerked back my head so he jest singed my eyebrows. This lack of hospitality so irritated me that I riz up amongst 'em like a b'ar with a pack of wolves
