I did, however, venture away from the heat long enough to make certain that my mother was comfortable. There were two other women in the fort, one a Mexican who appeared to be a sort of servant, and the other the wife of that man who had extended to us the hospitality of the place. With these two my mother remained nearly forty hours, when the wind subsided and the air grew balmy once more.
I remained the greater portion of that time in the hut where I first sought refuge. The hours were not wasted, for I had a strong desire to learn something regarding this country in which we were to make our new home.
[HOW TURKEYS KILL RATTLESNAKES]
One of the Mexicans was a most talkative kind of person, and seeing that I was a tenderfoot from the cotton country, who had never before ventured away from home, undertook to amuse me by telling stories, some of which I believed to be true, while others appeared extremely doubtful.
When he made the statement that wild turkeys killed rattlesnakes, I set it down that he was drawing the long bow for my especial benefit; but before I had lived in Texas six months I saw it done, and truly it was interesting.