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88 Tamale Ridge by: Chuck Cusimano

as long as I can for these horses to make some real money. They ain’t doin’ too bad if people

would pay me like they’re supposed to. I met a feller, that wants ten or more, two year olds, but

it will be next year before I’ll have that many. I wish I could have kept Tamale. When I was in

Alamosa last week, I saw Sanchez and he seemed real friendly. I don’t know whether to trust him

or not. He wants to come here and look at some colts sometime. I told him that would be alright.

I haven’t writ anything for a month or two but I’m getting lazy. I’m headed down to Mexico for

more mares next week. I want to see if I can find that son of Tamale that I sold two years ago.

I’d like to bring him back to Tamale Ridge, now that I got a little money. I’ve had some pretty

good luck with folks payin’ me some of the money that they owe me and I sold all I had to sell.

I’m building up that little account in Trinidad. I went once to see if Johnson would sell Tamale

back to me but he wouldn’t do it. I offered him twice what he paid me and he still wouldn’t sell

him. Worse thing, he changed Tamales name and now his colts are building up a reputation

with another name. I have worked dam hard to keep records of what colt, or filly had which

parents and I hope someday to start a committee to keep records of horses like that. I ain’t writ

again for a long spell. I got to Mexico and the Frenchman took me way down south to a big

ranch that has most of their breedin’ stock even farther south and east. We went all the way to

Vera Cruz and there was all kinds of problems in that place. Frenchy left me there for a couple

of days, so he could set up a meeting to look over the horse herd and I met another pretty

señorita. “If you can’t be with the one you love.. Love the one you’re with” they say. I watched

some of our soldier boys in action. They fight purty good, in a brawl. It was all because of a

fiddle player too. I finally met up with the Frenchman and the ranch owner and I traded for some

mares. I found out about that son of Tamale. He was over in Mexico City. I might even go there

if I can.

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