The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1875-02-11
THE LONE CABIN.

THE LONE CABIN.
I HAD ridden hard and fast, and was
astonished to find myself coming into
struggling settlement. On the course
which | should have taken there was
nothing of the sort. Somewhere / had
crossed the right trail and taken the
wrong one. Almost any traveller in the
border sections would have been glad to
thus stumble upon place for food and
refreshment Not 50 with myself In
the breast-pocket of my coat / carried
s., 490-odd dollars, United States money.
| had received this amount from Maj.
Gen. L. NJ. Lacy, and it was TO be carried
through to Fort L and placed in the
hands of Col. Asa F. Southland TO defray
necessary army expenses.
Get through at your best gait Carnes,"
said the Major. The money is long
since overdue, and Southard's rather
irascible temper must have been tried to
the utmost. You know how the soldiers
get to growing if uncle is at all delin-
quent in paying up. Ride in careless
manner, but be careful. / don't think
that anyone dreams Of the arrival Of
this money-save, of course, the mail
agent and the clerk who delivered me
the packages"
| was directed over an unfamiliar sec
ton, hence my losing of the direct route
] considered it my safest plan, SO long as
] had Numbered upon the verge of the
settlement to boldly enter and rest as an
push hurriedly on, ! might by that very
act excite suspicion.
There were only two men in the bar
room when l entered; the landlord and
the hostile. Under his familiar cordial
ity the landlord furtiyely eyed me in a
manner that made me wish / was well
done with my job, but / treasured myself
with the thought that it was the con-
seriousness of the responsibility reposing
upon me that caused his glances to dis
turb me. Before ! had finished my
supper two more travellers rode up,
called out for the hostler, and ordered
drinks, or rather one of them came in
with the orders and the other threw him
self down on bench outside and began
loading huge pipe. Strolling careless
ly about the room, / managed TO glance
out OF the window. My heart leaped
into my throat, for in the man outside
! recognized-from description of him
Bill Wolf-one of the most desperate
characters that ever figured in the annals
OF border-rutfianism. There was the
huge red mustache, the thick, hairy
throat, and the shoulders hunched uD
around his head, suggesting the shape
of mammoth ciam-and the voice with
deep-down information like the plop,
plop, pop of water hurrIedly leaving a
jug. If the description of the notorious
renegade is inelegant, it has the merit of
truthfulness, and must, therefore, be
excused.
went through with my supper in
form, but whatever appetite might have
felt on ny entrance into the inn had van
ished with my discovery. After a time
the other fellow came in, having been
out, he said, 10 look after the animals,
and they also ordered supper Now was
my time to leave, which | did in a care
less manner, passing some commonplace
remarks with the two men as | crossed
the dim, smoky bar-room AS they seemed
to take no notice of me whatever | felt
my spirits rise with hope that l should
make safe transit. 1t was quite dusk
ish outside, but the hostler was fitting
about the stable with his lantern, which
emitted but little more etfulgent light
than white bean would have done, but
he graciously brought out my steed at
the order, and mounting | thankfully
trotted away. The moon-a little passed
full-would make her debut in something
more than an hour after sunset, and |
pushed along at a smart trot so as to get
well out upon the plains and into the
right trail before that time. The animal
went along at an assuring gait and | was
feeling infinitely relieved at my provi-
dental escape from contact with the des-
perate characters whom had left at the
settlement when my acute, trained, ever
alert ears detected the sound of swift
riding. In which direction? From be-
hn l, 40
blew from that quarter The face of the
prairie in this section was little rolling,
but not so as TO afford any shelter, and
not shrub or bush dotted the expanse
for miles
/ drew up my horse one moment 10
listen. No chance travellers ever rode
like that. 1t meant pursuit.
gave my steed CALLING lash and she
broke into q convulsive gait hove her
body up with one or two plunges, STUN
bled, going down from her knees to her
nose, and pitched me literally heels over
head. For an instant | was paralyzed
with aston.shment, the next | seized the
bit to fetch up the fallen animal which
had in the brief mishap undergone
strange metamorphosis. She had lost
her white face on or in the grass, and,
passing my hand between her eyes,
IbuUu inc HdlE WIS wei III an lUStdut
was examining the white legs-my horse
had been peculiarly marked with white
legs and face-and | found these sticky
with whitewash. What then? Simply,
my trappings had been transferred to
another animal gotten up to exactly rep
resent mine in the evening. This dis
covery brought an appalling intepreta
ton of the oncoming horsemen. | gave
the horse the whip as soon as his unsta-
BILE legs were well under him and sent
him securing on ahead while ran off to
the right, making for little hollow near
shallow, dry ravine. Here, to my pro-
found establishment, | discovered a lone
cabin, or hut, about the dimensions of
an ordinary country log house, and i'm
pulsively dashing up TO this | gave a
rapid succession of knocks. A shrink
ing, pale and covering woman opened it.
"What is its" was her first question,
noticing my breathless haste.
Had i stopped for moments reflec-
ton upon the strangely isolated position
of the cabin | should not have pushed
in by her with the explanation:
lis there any chance to hide here
my horse has thrown me and believe
party of desperadoes are close up with
me"
j noticed that the moon was coming up
dry and red in the east when she me-
chanically closed the door behind me
before / had finished my explanation.
"No, no; there is no place" she
gasped, her quick ear now catching the
sound of the coming horsemen. "Tais
is all tho room there is, and there is
neither cellar nor attic"
But this?" | exclaimed. rushing for
dark object in the corner.
stIt's a coffinp' was her quick re-
Spouse; "but there's no other chance
they are turning up to the door-get in -
had barely time to place myself in
this receptacle for the dead when
hoarse voice-one that l knew by de-
scription which had of it-called out:
Here. you, Dick
The woman threw her apron over her
head and opened the door.
Where's I,ick?"
He hasn't come back yet" returned
the woman.
"0h, he ain't-Jen, hev yer hurd a
horse 60 by tonight"
Yes, only little while ago-a small
MANI"
Yes-driving like the DEUCE
guess she said, and then paused:
"you can hear the horse now" feigning
to listen.
But Bill Wolf must have been of a sus
picious nature. / heard him leap from
his horse and strike with Earring plunk
upon the sod. A smoldering fire was
burning on the stone hearth. | could
imagine Bills attitude-he had hand