Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1890-01-15
LIZ OF THE PINES.
a Thrilling and Pathetic Story OF Life
the Wilderness,

a Thrilling and Pathetic Story OF Life In
the Wilderness.
1t was her wild beauty that made me
love her. That /, Ned Gray, bachelor
of leisure, should have fallen under the
thraldom of ''Backwoods Liz" seemed
absurd, and yet my passion was honest
and sincere.
Tonight was to meet her in lonely
canyon, for her father, with whom l
boarded, was not fond Of my attentions
to his adopted daughter.
had not long to wait saw by the
terror in her face that something had
happened IS she hurried toward me,
Il have come to warn you to fly" she
said, earnestly.
my cousin Jim has returned; he has
heard about you, and he swears he will
have your life. They are sitting to-
gether, my father and he, down in the
cabin now, drinking together and plot
ting your destruction. Go, before it is
too later
The moon had risen higher now, and
her light made all things visible.
Scarcely had the words left Lizzie's lips,
when, with cry of rage, man sprang
from among the pines, and made as if to
seize her. Instinctively, as recognized
Ben, flung her around beyond his
reach and placed myself before her.
That movement saved my life.
For on the instant the report of a gun
was heard, and old Ben Allen, with one
agonizing cry, fell dead before us; while
Liz, with a wild scream of horror,
dropped on her knees beside him.
l stood for one brief second, bewil-
dered, horror-stricken. then darted away
in the direction whence the shot had
been fired. The crashing of the under
brush, as under the feet of some one in
full fight, guided me. In among the
pines / picked up a gun, whose warm
and still smoking barrel showed that it
had been the murderer's weapon, but I
found not him who had fred it. So, after
hasty, fruitless search, returned to
the scene of death, where / found, de-
spite the lonely spot and lateness of the
hour, a crowd had already collected
rough, uncouth fellows; wood-cutters
and charcoal-burners and the like; all
sworn friends and comrades of the
Aliens and natural enemies of all men
richer than themselves. They received
me with howl of loathing.
The circumstantlal evidence they
brought against me in court was terrible,
and verdict of guilty seemed almost a
foregone conclusion, when suddenly
there staggered into the court room
pale, worn, haggard woman, and fell
with moan of anguish-prone at the
judges feet.
No one knew her. An officer came for
ward to take the wretched, ragged Great
ure away. Then. as he lifted the sense
less form. the head fell back, miserable
bonnet dropped from it, down tunbled
a mass of magnificent, long black hair,
and in an instant we recognized-lyinr
apparently dead before us-Liz of the
Pinesi
1t was all over directly. She revived.
and proved my innocence and Jim,s
guilt; told of the plot against my life.
Ben Aliens theft of the gun and that
Jim had borrowed it.
1t appeared that she had seen him fire
the fatal shot, and that when I darted
away, and she fell fainting with horror.
he had returned and lifting her in his
arms secured her in hut near by until
the crowd removed me.
And then he had carried her further
away, and beaten and starved her in his
desire to force her into marriages lmore
than ever desirable now considering
what she kneR against hianl. until re-
ouced fo sickne4s and almost death bv