Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1892-02-04

Aoll Itt5Cl O41
He glared at us, we gazed at him, an
instant, without a word.
A ghastly pair-this apparition-horse
and man, The horse was a tall, gaunt,
white There were the deep hollows Of
age oYer his bloodshot eyes, His out
stretched head showed that he shared
his masters eagerness Of pursuit. Death
would have chosen such steed for a
gallop on one Of deaths errands.
Death would have commissioned such
rider to bear a sentence of death. A
tall, gaunt man, with the loose, long
frame Of a pioneer, but the brown vigoI
of a pioneer was gone from him. His
face was lean and bloodless. It was
clear where some of his blood had found
issue. A strip Of old white blanket,
soiIed with dust and blood, was turbaned
askew about his head, and under it there
showed the ugly edges of recent
wound
When he pulled up beside us his
stringy right hand was ready upon the
butt Of a revolver. He dropped the muz-
zle as he looked at us.
For what horror was this man the EN-
bodied Nemesis!
"Where are they?'
He whispered this question in voice
thick with stern purpose and shudder-
ing with some recollection that inspired
the purpose.
They! Who.7
The two murderers.n
'They staid behind at Bridger."
''No. The Mormons told me they
were here Don't hide them! Their
time is come"
Still in the same curdling whisper.
He crushed his voice, as if he feared the
very hilloclzs of the prairie would re-
vertebrate his words and earth would
utter warning cry to those he hunted
to fly, fly, for the avenger of blood was
at hand.
No need to be told whom he sought.
The two gamblers the two murderers
the brutes we had suspected; but
s1ss5-e sEzfssse 10 Ir SOUGHT.
We hailed the mail trsiil It was but
a hundred yards before us over the ridge.
Jake Shamberlain and his party returned
to learn what delayed us.
The haggard horsemen stared 4 them
all in silence.
Eve seen you before, stranger" said
Shanberlain
Yes, 7 said the man, in his shuddering
whisper
''It's Armstrong from Oregon, from
the Umpqua, amt it? You don't look
as if You were after cattle this time.
Where's your brother
Murdered. =
Il allowed something had happened
because he warn't long. I never seed
two men stick so close as you and he
did. They didn't kill him without get
tin lick at You, see. Who was it
Indians:"
Worse"
Il reckon know why you're after Us
then"
Il can't waste time, Shamberlain,
said Armstrong, in hurried whisper
III tell you in two words what's hap
pened to me, and p'r'aps you can helI
me to find the men mean to find.n
''I'll help you, If know how, Arm
strong. hain't seen no two in my life
old country or new country, saints OIL
gentiles, as I'd do more for n you and
your brother I've olluz said, eff the
world was chock full Of Armstrong;,
Paradise wouldn't pay, and Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob mout inst as well blow
out their candle and &c under bushe
basket, unless a half bushel would kivel
'em"
The stranger seemed insensible to thi:
compliment. He went on in the same
whisper. full of agony, pain and weari
ness. While he talked his painting horse
drew up his lip and whinnied, showing
his long, yellow teeth. The spirit of hi:
rider had entered him. He was impa
tient of this dalliance.
"We were coming down from the
Umpqua, my brother and l." said Arm
strong, ''goan across to the states tC
/ drive out cattle Eext summer. We wa.
a little late one morning, along of oul
horses havin strayed off from camp, anc
4 that was how we met them men. Two
ON 'ein ther' was-a tall, most ungodly
Pike and little, fat, mean loolxin runt
We lighted on 'em just to the crossin o.
Bear river They was comm from Sac
4 ramenter, they said. | kinder allowed
they was horse thieves and wanted tC
shy off. But Bill-that was my
4 brother
Here the poor fellow chol1ed little.
"Bill, he never could think wrong oi
nobody. Bill, he said: No. Looks was
nothin,' he said, and we'd Ine the fel
lers.' So we did, and rode together al
day, and camped together on brancl
we cum to. | reckon we talked too
much about the cattle we was goan tC
4 buy, and ! suppose ther' amt many OF
\ the Pacific side that amt heard of til,
Armstrong;. They allowed we hat
money, them murderers did. Well, We
camped all right, and went to sleep, and
/ never knowed nothin, eff it warn't Q
dream that grizzly had wiped me ovel
! the head, till woke mp the next day
4 with the sun brilin down on my head
and my head ali raw and bloody. as el
4 I'd been scalped. And there was Bill
my brother Bill-1yin dead in hi
blankets
A shudder passed through our group
These were the men we had tolerated
sat with at the camp fire, to whose rough
stories and foul jokes we had listened
Brent's instinct was true.
Armstrong was evidently an honest
simple, kindly fellow. His eyes were
pure, gentle blue. They filed with
tears as he spoke. But the stern look re
mained, the Rhadamanthine whisper
only grew thicker with vengeance
bill was dead, he continued. "Tht
hatchet slipped when they come to hi
me, and they was too skeared, sup
pose, to 40 on chopin me as they had
him. P'r'aps his ghost cum round and
told EN- t warn't the fair thing they'd
ben at, and t warn't. But they got oul
horses, Bills big sorrel and my Flathead
horse. what's made hundred and TWEEN