José — page 105: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

98 JOSE, of the Indian’s ponies had been found dead, without the sharpest fellow among them being able to tell how it had happened.” A long silence succeeded the closing words, when Green arose to his feet and was soon followed by the wagon-boss. “T reckon,” growled Dutch Bill, “that it’s either steady nerves or bite the grass, this time!” As he slowly rose from the side of the fire, he added: “ All right; t’ain’t the first time I’ve been there! At least they can’t have me for nothing!” Baumann experienced a sensation of peculiar interest as he followed his friend. All the romantic conception he had involuntarily associated with a trip across the plains now seemed on the eve of realization, and even at the thought of his mysteri- ous inamorata, whom he fancied to be following over the great prairie route, the contingency of a hazardous encounter with the Indians, seemed only to be a part of the romantic odor which had en- veloped the past few eventful weeks of his life. For his personal safety he had not the least appre- hension. He found Green and Wood, the wagon-boss, at the close of an important conversation, which ap- peared, however, to have led to no special conclu- sions, for the latter was just saying, with a shrug of the shoulders: “We have no choice, sir; yet that the men will do their duty is amply guaranteed by their sense of self-preservation !” | The night passed without interruption, and the next morning the train resumed its journey as on the day preceding. The soldier took up with the mule drivers, and after a hearty breakfast seemed Gomichooks sco m