Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1892-12-21

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Nancy Hamlet urged her pony tor,Uartl
across the lonely prdtrte.
II reckon ther coal business IL be er
lively one on these puraries some day"
"Why, Finley, it's boun' ter be!
KANT holp but be! This hyer's Il poorly
timbered country, an coal mines is sure
ter be somethin' wuth owliin'. Thar's a
railroad comm frum Kansas City. cl'ar
through the Neutral Lands, an on ter
ther Gulf O Mexico. Their country III
be on er big boom purity soon, an eff
we uns control ther coal beds hyer on
Deer creek We'll be capitalists afore we
know wot we uns air doin'. We uns
must hev ther claim, Finley" declared
Hines, uttering an oath that must have
made the beautiful sensitive roses, grow
ing luxuriantly at his feet, close their
tender, fernlike leaves in terror.
"Maybe this hyer settlers already con-
tracted fur the claim?' said Finley.
"No, he amt. I've been over ter
Baxter an seed ther records. Hamlet
hain't ther grit ter contract fur it, havin'
been warned by ther league not to. Their
league hain't no use fur ole Joy, an
though Hamlet amt er Lacquer hisself l
low he's plumb erfeard O. ther s'ciety,
an amt Amin ter make ther members
mad at him."
"But yer er member O ther league
yerself, Dick"
eyes," and Hines laughed coarsely,
"but burned little I'm keerin' fur it or
anythin' else 'ceptin' this claim on Deer
creek"
They'd string yer up ter blackjack,
Ireckon, eff yer went back on 'em."
"They hain't goin' ter find it out fur
some little spell. Thar's more settlers
than yer think fur stealin' slylke inter
the land Office at Baxter and contractin'
fur their claims unbeknowns ter ther
league. tell yer, we uns II git er con-
tract fur this piece O. land, let ole humpy
live in ther dugout undisturbed till ther
leaguers cool off er bit, then we kin
show our papers, and run ole Hamlet an
ther gal off,"
"Purty slick, Dick; but wot eff Tom
Byers gets wind of it? They say he's
struck bad on ther settlers gal, an
Toms mighty hard ter contend aginst,
let me tell yer"
"I reckon Tom would be er ugly Gus
toner to deal with. Durn his big picter!
He's been watchin' me like er hawk this
summer, but he's down in ther Injun ma
ton now, pickin' up some shippin' stock,
an hyar it said thet he's goin' ter sell
out his ranch an leave ther county. Eff
he does, we uns needn't fix fur any
racket with him, an eff we uns gifts
squatted down hyer on ther claim it'll
take more'n Tom Byers ter git US off"
81 reckon it would, with the gang frum
Lightnin' to back us"
"Thet's wotever!"
"But say, Dick, why don't yer con-
tract fur ther claim yerself, an not take
er pardner9" the other suddenly asked.
II would eff he'd ther money. know
yer hev plenty O cash, after stoppin'
thet train over in Missoury," and Hines
chuckled gleefully, San kin pay down
ther fee required by ther land agent"
"Waal, l am better heeled than afore
1 boarded thet train," replied Finley,
IAN I'm willin' ter 80 cohoots on ther
claim with yer, Dick. When do yer
want ter git ther contract?
II thought we could start in ther
mornin' afore daylight an ride ter Bax-
ter" returned Hines. Eyer see, if we
uns gifts er airly start nobody in ther
neighborhood will see us, an so we uns
will not be suspicioned of goin' ter ther
land Office. Yer know ther league has
spies out"
Then the plotters mounted their po-
nies, which had been permitted to crop
the grass along the margin of the stream,
and rode off, chuckling with much self
satisfaction over the cleverness of their
scheme to gain possession of Adam Ham
let's claim.
The girl, nearly petrifed with fright
over the underhand plot to which she
had listened, and which, if carried ont
according to the villains plans, would
rob her and her father of home where
they had been faithfully toiling all sum-
mer, waited until the deepening shades
of evening hid the horsemen from view,
then leaving the COW to find her own
way back, she sped up the creek toward
the dugout.
She found her father, pale, thin and
weak, sitting in the door, where the cool
breath of evening famed his feverish
brow. He looked so ghostlike, so pow
erless to contend with human affairs, as
he half reclined there in the starlight,
that Nancy hesitated to tell him what
she had overheard down in the wild
plum thicket. But it was right that he
should be forewarned, and she must
break it to him as gently as she could.
"Wher' yer been, Nancy" he asked
feebly, as she threw herself on the bench
near him.,
"Jest down ther creek" she answered,
her voice trembling.
eyer act scarf, Nancy, as ef yer'd been
a-runnin'," her father remarked, noticing
the girls strange agitation.
"Well, pap, 1 did see two big var
1nints down on the corner O ther claim, "
she returned, trying to laugh.
"Two big varmints! Wolves:'
eyes, or leastwise wolves tibet hes
two feet an wears trousers-human
wolves, wot's er heap more dangerouser
than ther four footed kind"
"Wot do yer mean, Nancy?' Hamlet
asked, mystifed.
II seed Dick Hines an one O his gang
down thar"
"Dick Hines! On my claim? Wot was
he doin' thar"
"Plottin' ter git er contract fur our
claim an then run us out" and with
that Introductory explanation she gave
her father clear account of the vii
lains scheme as she had overheard it..
"Wot kin we do:" he appealed to the
girl in his h ;lpless weakness. II reckon
he'll beat US outen ther claim yit." and
the sick man became overwrought with
detection.
"No he won't, pap" and Nancy set her
mouth resolutely as she asked herself
what she could do to outwit their enemy.
She would not show despair now before
| her feeble father.
EFF Tom Byers was only home he
might stop Hines" said the troubled set
tier.
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