The Arkansaw traveler., 1885-06-13

nding, continued. abruptly, @You don't
 seem curious7"
 9Of whatP' said Gideon, lifting his
 soff eyes to the speaker. ~You tell me
 of a brother af the point of death who
 seeks the Lord through an humble vessel like myself He will tell me the rest.'' A silence still more constrained on the part of the two strangers followed, which they endeavored to escape from by
 furious riding; % that in half-an-hour the party had reached point where the jules began to sap the arid plain, while beyond them broadened the lagoons of the distant river.. In the foreground, near ciump Of dwarfed willows, camp lre was burning, around which fifteen or t~enty armed men were collected, their horses picketed in an outer circle guarded by two mounted sentries. A blasted cot tonwood with single black arm extended over the jules stood ominously against the dark sky.
 The circle opened to receive them and closed again. The elder man dismounted, and leading Gideon to the blasted cot tonwood, pointed to a pinioned man seated at its foot with an armed guard over him. He looked up at Gideon with an amused smile.
 "You said it was dying man," said Gideon, recoiling.
 He will be dead man in half-an- hour" returned the stranger.
 "And you?"
 'We are the vigilantes from Alamo. This man." pointing to the prisoner, "is a gambler who killed man yesterday. We hunted him here, tried him an hour ago, and found him guilty. The last man we hung here, three years ago, asked for parson. We brought him the man who used to live where we found you. So we thought we'd give this man the same show and brought you"
 And if refuse ?" said Gideon.
 The leader shrugged his shoulders. That's Ais lookout. not ours. We've given him chance. Drive ahead, boys," he added, turning to the others "the parson allo Ws he won't take a hand"
 "One moment" said Gideon, in des- peration, one moment for the sake of that God you have brought me here to invoke in behalf of this wretched man. One moment for the sake of Him in whose presence you must stand one day as he does now" With passionate earnestness he pointed out the vindictive impulse they were mistaking for Divine justice; with pathetic fervency he fell up- on his knees and implored their mercy for the culprit. But in vain. As at the camp meeting of the day before, he was chilled to find his words seemed to fall on unheeding and unsympathetic ears. He looked around on their abstracted faces in their gloomy savage enthusiasm for expiatory sacrifice, he was mortified to hRd the same unreasoning exaltation that had checked his exhortations then. Only one face looked upon his, half mis- chievously, half compassionately. It was the prisoners.
 "Yer wasiin' time on us," said the leader dryly; wastin' his time. Hadn't you better talk to him2"
 Gideon rose to his feet, pale and cold. " He may have something to confess. May l speak with hi n alone ?" he said gently.
 The leader motioned to the sentry to fall back. Gideon placed himself before the prisoner so that in the faint light of the camp fire the mans figure was partly hidden by his own. "You meant well with your little bluff, paydner," said the prisoner, not unkindly, but they've got the cards to win"
 "Kneel down with your back to me-" said Gideon in low voice. The prisoner Tell on his knees. At the same time he felt G;deon's hand and the gliding of steel behind his back, and the severed cords hung loosely on his arms and legs.
 "When lift my voice to God, brother" said Gideon softly, drop on your face and crawl as far as you can in straight line in my shadow, then break for the jules. will stand between you and ,heir first fire."
 "Are you mad ?" said the prisoner. Do you think they won't fire lest they should hurt you3 Man ! they'll kill you he first thing"
 " So be tiff your chance is better"
 Still on his knees, the man grasped two hands in his and devoured Jim with his eyes.
 You mean it"
 "I do."
 "Then," said the prisoner quietly, "I eckon I'll stop and hear what you've 'ot to say about God until they're eady."
 fou reuse 10 nyr
 reckon was never better fitted to lie than now," said the prisoner, still ,rasping his hand. Alter a pause he Idded in lower tone, "I can't pray 'ut-l think" he hesitated "I think I ould manage to ring in in hymn"
 aWll a W you try, brother3"
 With their hands tightly clasped to- ether, Gideon lifted his gentle voice. The air was common one, familiar in he local religious gatherings, and after he first verse one or two of the sullen ookers-on joined not unkindly in the re- rain. But, as he went on, the air and 'ords seemed to offer vague expression Q the dull, lowering, animal emotion of he savage concourse, and at the end of he second verse the refrain, augmented n volume and swelled by every voice in he camp, swept out over the hollow lain.