Folklore of the Rio Grande Valley

The Handsome Stranger

as summarized by Natalie Gonzalez

Dolores was a girl who used her beauty to get young men and then suddenly dump them without any warning. When the Black and White Ball came up, her mother tried to stop her from going, but Dolores paid no attention to her mother's request, so her mother went with her instead. When Dolores walked into the hall, everyone stopped when they saw how beautiful she looked. The evening was going wonderful for Dolores. At 11:45 a handsome stranger walked in the hall. Every girl wanted him to ask her to dance, but he walked up to Dolores and asked her to dance instead. The stranger was a very good dancer, but he whirled Dolores around in circles even after the music had stopped. Instead of slowing down, faster and faster he spun her, Dolores pleaded with him to stop. At midnight smoke filled the room and the smell of sulfur filled the air. The handsome young man was gone, vanished in the night, and Dolores was lying there dead. Everyone agreed that Dolores had danced with the Devil himself.

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