Windy Gus and Crabby Pete |
by Michael L. Charters |
Now Windy Gus were a Texas man With eyes as black as coal. He had a head of curlin' hair, And a simple, gentle soul. |
He come from down Laredo way. No one is sure jest where. He 'peared one day in early May, Atop a dragged out mare. |
The boys and me we looked with
glee At that wonder to behold. He wadn't tall, he wadn't short, And his face was worn and old. |
He slowly came up through the
gate, And tipped his hat at us, Then jumped down off his horse right quick, And said, "The name is Gus." |
"I'm lookin' fer a friend
o' mine, They call him Crabby Pete. I reck'n he's 'bout the best cowman You'd ever like to meet." |
"I ain't seen him in many
a year, But he could rightly rope and ride. I guess he were pret' near the tops At most anythin' he tried." |
"We shore spent a lot of
time down there Jest bustin' through the brush, Then on the sudden one fine day, He plumb took off in a rush." |
"He didn't like to set hisself In one place fer all too long. Ya'd think that he were doin' fine, Then he'd jest be gone." |
"I don't know where he got
to, I don't know where he went. I 'spect he found somewheres to work To satisfy his rent." |
"Well, by and by the years
rolled on And I jest forgot about old Pete. I had a place to work and sleep, And I had a place to eat." |
"Then one snowy day here
comes this gray, With a cowpoke from up 'round here, Who spins us a tale of a man named Pete, And it were Crabby Pete it's clear." |
"He said Pete come up north
to get a job, When his work in Texas quit. And when his grubsteak disappeared, He 'bout had a fit." |
"The story that come down
to me Were that Pete was dang near through, And I pondered how I could help him out, And find a life that's new." |
Gus straightened up and scratched
his neck, And shuffled in the dust, And when he took his Stetson off, His hair was all a'mussed. |
"I hear'd tell of a spread
called the Bar KK, Hit's down near San Antone. They're lookin' for some men, they say, That boss he's all alone." |
"The cowpokes jest up and
left one day, Is the story that I hear'd. The cook was out to get 'em, And death was what they feared." |
"The food there was so bad,
they say, They couldn't do their chores. And when the chuck bell went to ring, It were like goin' to the wars." |
We stood there in that dusty
yard And shared a smoke or two. No one went to speak real quick, And the silence jest kinda grew. |
We din't want to speak right out And scare him off the place, So I fixed a look of puzzlement Acrost my worried face. |
Gus kept on with his story, While we all looked around, And besides the words that he bespoke, You couldn't hear a sound. |
"Now that cook's fired, and
a new one hired, And I aim to sign on soon. So I'll be headin' back that way Towards the end of June." |
He plucked a piece of old dried
grass And put it in his mouth. "It ain't that I don't like it here, But I'd be better off down south." |
"I thought I'd try to find
old Pete, As a pal he were tried and true. I guess I'm gettin' kinda tired Of friends that only moo." |
"I s'posed that he might
jest go back Down the Guadalupe way, To push some cows and ride the range, And mebbe make some pay." |
"He's a right old cheat,
that Crabby Pete, And he might'a caused a fuss. He's shore been in some scraps like me, And he's been known to cuss." |
"I wonder if you've saw
him here, Or if'n you've heard a tale. Might be he's around somewheres. Might be he's in jail." |
Gus pulled a wanted poster From outa his saddle bag. It showed a man jest sittin' there Up on a scrawny nag. |
"This here's old,"
Gus said with a grin, "No one wants him anyhow. He used to be a handsome scamp; He might look diff'rent now." |
We offered Gus a place to sleep, And a bare spot to set his roll. Then we tied his mare with a real good knot To that old wood hitchin' pole. |
"I shore could use some
chuck," he said, "That trail was mighty dry. I felt so doggone dragged out there I thought I's bound to die." |
"Yes, I'm hungrier than
a corn-fed snake," He declared with a rimpled smile. "I've eaten much of nothin' For nigh on twenty mile." |
We looked each other up and down, No one spoke out a word. It were a techy situation, so We made like we hadn't heard. |
It wadn't that we didn't care, We'd a'liked to feed him up. There jest was somethin' that we knew, And 'sides, we'd already had our sup. |
"Come on now boys, I'm grumblin'
bad, You gotta help me out. I cain't make it till tomorrow, And there's no saloon heres about." |
"The cook's not here,"
someon' finally said, "He skedaddled right 'round four. But we got some leavin's here somewheres. There really tain't much more." |
Gus ate a plate of beans, then
two. Some cold coffee went down fast. A piece of beef, and biscuits too. Seems he had to make it last. |
He downed a bunch of white skunk
eggs, All gravied up real fine, Then he grinned and burped, and said right out, "That's the way I like to dine." |
"I shorely do appreciate The way you filled me up. But mebbe you could put a drop Of redeye in this here cup." |
Well, late that night the fire
was gone, And the boys was sleeping sound. The stars was out, the wind was down, And there was coyotes all around. |
Suddenly old Gus jumps up and
cries, "I plumb feel mighty queer. My belly's all a'tumble, Is there a backhouse near?" |
Now Gus was gone fer quite some
time, But finally he came back. And he was walkin' sorta slowly Along that dusty track. |
He sank down on his old bedroll And gave up a groan or two. "That chuck ya offered treated me Jest like a horntoad stew." |
"Mebbe you're used to it
by now, But how do ya eat sech food? I guess I shouln't go to fussin' none, And I don't like bein' rude." |
"But your sallie must be
a real greenhorn To serve up sech a plate. And eatin' grub that acts like that... It's just a'temptin' fate." |
Gus went to the backhouse once't
agin, Then we got to beddin' down. He laid there while the moon came up, His face a wrinkled frown. |
Ever' now and then we'd hear
somethin' Besides a coyote's cry, Rumblin' from beneath his roll In that night so still and dry. |
Well, by morning we'd moved off
aways, And he was most all alone. When he peeked his head out in th' air, Even the birds had flown. |
"How 'bout some grub,"
he heard a call, And it were a voice he'd heard before. It were the very same old Crabby Pete That he'd been a'lookin' for. |
He had an old white apron on, And was holdin' a coffee pot, And from the steam risin' in th' air, Gus could tell that it was hot. |
Pete stood
there peerin' down at Gus With a grin that split his face, And Gus looked right back up at him With a sour incensed grimace. |
"Don't tell me you're the
cook," Gus said, "After that rough night I had. I've ate some chuck that din't agree, But that was pretty bad." |
Pete settled down beside him, |
"The boys tole me that you
come up To drag me to the Bar KK. But they don't want to see me there, Not since they fired me that day." |
"I'd cowpunched there fer
a spell When our cook went off and died. He were shore an ace-high beanmaster, And the boys jest broke and cried." |
"They needed someone mighty
quick, Someone who could cook, So the bossman lopes on up to me, And throws me a cookin' book." |
"Well, I'd never wrangled
a pot or pan, But I said I'd give a try. It truly didn't work out well, And those boys was fit to tie." |
"They took to eatin' out
on the range Instead of comin' back. They'd stay off there for days on end, Sleeping on their tack." |
"You see, my cookin' jest
weren't right, And it made most ever'body ill. So them cowpokes plain scooted off, And even took the grill." |
"Now it's true that the
food was perty bad, And might make ya take a pill. But I done learnt a thing or two, And now we eat our fill." |
Pete stood up and poured a cup Of coffee thick as mud. He dropped a biscuit in my hand. It landed with a thud. |
"I cain't go back down that
Texas way, So how 'bout stayin' here? I'll give ya all the grub you need. Hit ain't a bad career." |
Backhouse - privy |
Index |
© 2010 M. Charters, Sierra Madre, CA. |