For three days, watch-
ing in turn, we held out before our suffering became
insupportable. Then--It was the morning of the
fourth day--Ramon Gallegos said:
'"Senores, I know not well of the good God and
what please Him. I have live without religion, and
I am not acquaint with that of you. Pardon, senores,
if I shock you, but for me the time is come to beat
the game of the Apache."
'He knelt upon the rock floor of the cave and
pressed his pistol against his temple. "Madre de
Dios," he said, "comes now the soul of Ramon
Gallegos."
'And so he left us--William Shaw, George W.
Kent, and Berry Davis.
'I was the leader: it was for me to speak.
'"He was a brave man," I said--"he knew
when to die, and how. It is foolish to go mad from
thirst and fall by Apache bullets, or be skinned
alive--it is in bad taste. Let us join Ramon
Gallegos."
'"That is right," said William Shaw.
'"That is right," said George W. Kent.
'I straightened the limbs of Ramon Gallegos and
put a handkerchief over his face. Then William
Shaw said: "I should like to look like that--a little
while."
'And George W. Kent said that he felt that way,
too.
'"It shall be so," I said: "the red devils will
wait a week. William Shaw and George W. Kent,
draw and kneel."
'They did so and I stood before them.
'" Almighty God, our Father," said I.
'"Almighty God, our Father," said William
Shaw.
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