Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-05-05

pOrtlOEate deal OF trouble In Our effOrtS
| to dislodge him, but nothing had any
effect. As ill-luck world have it, there
| were no guns available at this point: and
! it was in vain that we peppered the
place whence the deadly shots proceed
| ed with our rifles. Every day several
| valuable men were lost, until at last the
question, What was to be done? be-
came serious and pressing one. The
unknown marksman never was known
to miss; and all that any of us ever saw
of him was the puff of smoke from the
muzzle of his weapon.
One afternoon Fred Bolton came to
my tent Ct was surgeon to our compa-
ny) in a state of such manifest discom-
posure that at first thought either the
Colonel had been killed or the mystic
rious sharpshooter captured. 1t
turned out to be quite another matter,
| however.
"What do you think?' he began, in
an excited undertone. "Whose house
do you suppose is a mile off there, on
our left ?'' And without giving me the
time to hazard guess he went on:
'sThe Capels's, as sure as you are there.
And whom do you suppose 1 saw? Miss
Rosalind herself, as I'm living sinner!
She rode up on horseback, just as l was
palavering at the front door for proven
der. By Jove, she's more divinely
handsome than ever! And, oh, my wig!
didn't she give me q rating though!
Whew!"
"What did she scold you about?"
demanded I. amazed.
"For being Virginian and fighting
on the Northern side. tell you she
made me feel like born sneak and
blackguard. A little more, and be-
ieve I should have rated again, and
| joined the Johnny Rebs. If were a
man, said she, Il would make it my
business to catch such creatures as you,
and hang you'll It's my opinion if few
hundred women like her were to enlist
on the Rebs' side we would be thrashed
out of our boots in a month. But luckily
there is not another woman like her on
the planet
| "You'd better look out, or she'll make
a conquest of you in more ways than
one," said l, laughing. "By the way,
this news would probably interest Cam
lion. Does he knowP"
emo; and don't mean to tell him, ;"
replied Bolton, rather sharply, and after
sitting few moments longer he got up
and left me in apparently no very good
humor.
That same evening, however, he ap-
peared again, this time in a preoccu-
pied mood, and with his pipe il his
mouth. The conversation presently
turned upon the ever active sharp
shooter, and after few remarks had
passed, Bolton suddenly exclaimed:
give made up my mind to kill that
fellow, and have thought of a way how
it may be done. guess I'm as good a
shot as he is, and if can get sight of as
much as square inch of him he's set
tled!" He then went on to unfold to
me his scheme, which appeared feasible,
though there were certain obstacles in
the way. After we had discussed it for
while, he said: "Do you know why
I want to shoot him?''
4" From patriotic motives, I trust"
was my reply.
"That's very we'll so far as it goes;
but there's something else. believe
know who he is-or what he is, at all
events. believe he's the man whom
| Rosahnd Capel means to marry. From
| something she said to-day I'm certain
she knows him, and that there's some
thing more than ordinary between them.
And don't intend that she shall marry
him if can help it,
l did not much like this attitude of
Belton's, and told him so; but he took
my structures in such i'll part that for
the present l judged it best to say no
more. Plainly, he was in love with
Miss Capel. I devoutly wished that she
was out of the way, but before breakfast
time next morning was destined to
hear of her again. 1t was about the
hour of sunrise, when Camlion, who had
been out on picket during the night,
entered my tent, his face flushed, and
his blue eyes kindled with repressed ex-
element.
81 have seen Miss Capel," he said,
going to the point at once, as his custom
| was. "There was an alarm at my out
post two hours age, and one of my men
fired. We heard something fall, went
out, and found rider entangled with
his horse, which was shot dead. knew
her in a moment, though she was in
mans clothes-a blouse and high boots.
She had lost her way, and had stumbled
on us in the darkness. Their house is
near here, she says. 1t was a narrow
escape; if she had been killed. could
not have borne it! wish this war was
over"
"Was she armed?'' inquired, feel
ing more uneasy than cared to con-
fesS.
i "No. Why should she, poor girl !?
She had been to see some friends OF
theirs somewhere up the country. !
gave her man to see her safe home -
He had spoken the latter sentence in a
low voice; now he looked suddenly up
and said, with the deepest emphasis, 81
would give my life to know that she
loves me still as love her! She did
love me once! There's no other woman
in the world for me-"
/ "You must bear in mind that she's q
red-hot rebel" ventured to remark.
"On the contrary, she's more than
half inclined to our side,' returned
, Camlion, eagerly. She told me almos,
as much. In her heart she loves the
Union best"
This unlike assertion increased my
!, misgivings ten-fold; but before 1 could
|