Two weeks later the traveller who had humiliated Pug Parsons in Juniper halted his
horse on the flat top of a small mound and surveyed the surrounding expanse. The
railway, by a devious route, had brought him a part of the journey across Arizona, but
for the last four days he had been riding, and knew that he must now be nearing his
destination. The view was wild but imposing. Great ridges of rock, spired and
pinnacled, their bases buried in primeval forest, were on every side, and between them
were clearings with rich grass in which tiny lakes and streams gleamed like silver in
the sunlight. Through a gap in the hills the man caught a glint of yellow, and knew it
for a desert. There was no sign of human habitation, and indeed he had seen nothing
of the kind since he had left Dovertown in the early morning. The sky was a vault of
palest blue, and with no movement in the air, the vertical rays of the mid-day sun had
almost the heat of flames.
"It sure is a fierce bit of country," the traveller mused. "If half I’ve heard is correct,
I'm due for a very interesting time."
For though he had talked but little, the mere mention of his objective had produced
raised eyebrows and other symptoms of surprise, and this had become more marked as
he proceeded. A citizen of one town he stayed at even expressed his wonder verbally.
"I’m not presuming, traveller, but why would you want to go to Windy?" he asked.
"The only fellow I ever knew who visited there was bored to death."
"Too slow for him?" the traveller suggested.
"No, too fast—it was a .45 bullet what bored him," chuckled the speaker. "The drinks
are on you, stranger."
The traveller laughed and paid; he had been fairly caught. But beneath the surface he
sensed a serious undercurrent, an unwillingness to talk about the town to which he
was travelling. The keeper of the hotel at Dovertown had flatly refused to answer his
questions.
"Windy is bad medicine," he had said. "King Burdette has a long arm and a heavy fist
at the end of it."
The traveller smiled grimly as he recalled the remark; the fact that Dovertown was no
less than forty miles from Windy suggested that Burdette was an opponent to be
approached warily. Beyond the bare statement that there was a mess to be cleared up,
and that it would require a man with all his wits about him, some good luck, and an
outstanding ability to take care of himself, the Governor had told him little. As a man
will, who spends long, lonely hours with a horse, he confided in the animal.
"Don’t know what sort of a hornets' nest we're stepping into" he said, "but there's one
way to find out, Black. Go on, you piece of cinder." The big black horse swung its
head around, lips lifted to show the strong teeth, and the rider grinned sarcastically.
"Playing like you want to bite me, huh? You old fraud." and he stroked the sleek neck.
The trail, which might have been no more than a runway for wild creatures, dropped
down in a zigzag from the mound and plunged into a big patch of pines. Pacing
leisurely beneath the pillared arches of the forest, the traveller's thoughts reverted to
the little man who had sought him out to send him on this errand of danger. He knew
that by doing so the Governor had saved him from a worse fate. Saddled, unjustly,
with the reputation of an outlaw, hunted in certain parts of his own country, Texas, for
offences of which he was not guilty, it would have taken little more to turn him into a
desperado. the Governor had known it. The traveller himself knew it, and was
conscious of a sense of satisfaction in being definitely on the right side of law and
order; though, as a young man will, he affected a quizzical disdain, even to himself.
"We're respectable folk now, Black, working for Uncle Sam, and we’ve got to be
good," he drawled. "No more fooling round, no fights—the soft answer that turneth
away wrath for us every time; we’ve got to let ourselves be trampled on, you
understand?"
The animal shook its head and whinnied softly.
"Makes you laugh, huh?" the rider continued. "Well, I don't blame you for that, but all
the same, if I catch you chewing up another gentleman’s horse I'll just naturally bring
out the raw-hide for you."
Adapted from “Sudden” by Oliver Strange
(a) Give the meanings of the following words as used in the passage.
One word answers or short phrases will be accepted.
(i) surveyed (line 2)
(ii) wonder (line 17)
(iii) confided (line 35)
(b) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words.
(i) How did the man know that he was in a fierce part of the country?
(ii) Why had the traveller laughed and bought the citizen of one town a
drink?
(iii) How had the Governor prepared the traveller about his trip to Windy?
(iv) Describe the path leading down from the mound.
(v) Why did the traveller feel he had been saved from a fate worse than the
dangers his current errand posed?
Answers
Answer:
Two weeks later the traveller who had humiliated Pug Parsons in Juniper halted his
horse on the flat top of a small mound and surveyed the surrounding expanse. The
railway, by a devious route, had brought him a part of the journey across Arizona, but
for the last four days he had been riding, and knew that he must now be nearing his
destination. The view was wild but imposing. Great ridges of rock, spired and
pinnacled, their bases buried in primeval forest, were on every side, and between them
were clearings with rich grass in which tiny lakes and streams gleamed like silver in
the sunlight. Through a gap in the hills the man caught a glint of yellow, and knew it
for a desert. There was no sign of human habitation, and indeed he had seen nothing
of the kind since he had left Dovertown in the early morning. The sky was a vault of
palest blue, and with no movement in the air, the vertical rays of the mid-day sun had
almost the heat of flames.
"It sure is a fierce bit of country," the traveller mused. "If half I’ve heard is correct,
I'm due for a very interesting time."
For though he had talked but little, the mere mention of his objective had produced
raised eyebrows and other symptoms of surprise, and this had become more marked as
he proceeded. A citizen of one town he stayed at even expressed his wonder verbally.
"I’m not presuming, traveller, but why would you want to go to Windy?" he asked.
"The only fellow I ever knew who visited there was bored to death."
"Too slow for him?" the traveller suggested.
"No, too fast—it was a .45 bullet what bored him," chuckled the speaker. "The drinks
are on you, stranger."
The traveller laughed and paid; he had been fairly caught. But beneath the surface he
sensed a serious undercurrent, an unwillingness to talk about the town to which he
was travelling. The keeper of the hotel at Dovertown had flatly refused to answer his
questions.
"Windy is bad medicine," he had said. "King Burdette has a long arm and a heavy fist
at the end of it."
The traveller smiled grimly as he recalled the remark; the fact that Dovertown was no
less than forty miles from Windy suggested that Burdette was an opponent to be
approached warily. Beyond the bare statement that there was a mess to be cleared up,
and that it would require a man with all his wits about him, some good luck, and an
outstanding ability to take care of himself, the Governor had told him little. As a man
will, who spends long, lonely hours with a horse, he confided in the animal.
"Don’t know what sort of a hornets' nest we're stepping into" he said, "but there's one
way to find out, Black. Go on, you piece of cinder." The big black horse swung its
head around, lips lifted to show the strong teeth, and the rider grinned sarcastically.
"Playing like you want to bite me, huh? You old fraud." and he stroked the sleek neck.
The trail, which might have been no more than a runway for wild creatures, dropped
down in a zigzag from the mound and plunged into a big patch of pines. Pacing
leisurely beneath the pillared arches of the forest, the traveller's thoughts reverted to
the little man who had sought him out to send him on this errand of danger. He knew
that by doing so the Governor had saved him from a worse fate. Saddled, unjustly,
with the reputation of an outlaw, hunted in certain parts of his own country, Texas, for
offences of which he was not guilty, it would have taken little more to turn him into a
desperado. the Governor had known it. The traveller himself knew it, and was
conscious of a sense of satisfaction in being definitely on the right side of law and
order; though, as a young man will, he affected a quizzical disdain, even to himself.
"We're respectable folk now, Black, working for Uncle Sam, and we’ve got to be
good," he drawled. "No more fooling round, no fights—the soft answer that turneth
away wrath for us every time; we’ve got to let ourselves be trampled on, you
understand?"
The animal shook its head and whinnied softly.
"Makes you laugh, huh?" the rider continued. "Well, I don't blame you for that, but all
the same, if I catch you chewing up another gentleman’s horse I'll just naturally bring
out the raw-hide for you."
Adapted from “Sudden” by Oliver Strange
(a) Give the meanings of the following words as used in the passage.
One word answers or short phrases will be accepted.
(i) surveyed (line 2)
(ii) wonder (line 17)
(iii) confided (line 35)
(b) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words.
(i) How did the man know that he was in a fierce part of the country?
(ii) Why had the traveller laughed and bought the citizen of one town a
drink?
(iii) How had the Governor prepared the traveller about his trip to Windy?
(iv) Describe the path leading down from the mound.
(v) Why did the traveller feel he had been saved from a fate worse than the
dangers his current errand posed?