New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1893-05-31
A PLUCKY WIFE.

Fifteen minutes after. Bill had reported
his loss at the bar i party had found
the trail and ridden eff toward the south
west. Presently, as they were crossic g
q wet bit Of land in hollow. Bill. who
led tie party, looked sharply at the
hoof prints sunk deep in the soil and
reined up quickly.
Look at that shoe mark" he e:zclainl-
ed, pointing down at the trail.
by guns! it's the easterncr's boss
shoe!' calculated Sa-:, Pike after an il
stant's scrutiny Of the footprints among
which we're several larger than the rest
and showing the clear impress CT a shoe.
The others were those Of unsh0l horses.
Then the party scanned the mars close
; ". Then the nlen looked g: ea,:h ot!2:l
with ugly froT1ss.
"ENeli:' said Bill tentatively at last
No one answered for {, moment Then
Sam remarked: 1T looks bad for thcr
fastener, sure! I'll hain't any one got
boss shoes like them in tn district 'ccDt
! him. I'm sorry'f til feller's put his head
i'll a ropes end, boys. Butwe'll have ter
. LOlICi Hill ~ l1O IL ~ GACF.
~ couple OF the party volunteered.
! The men separated. Part Of them NOV
ed forward On the trail The others
turned their horses at right angles to the
! former line of march and LOPEZ! on to-
, ward the fasteners cabin.
The easterner, otherwise Jack Craig.
Of whom they had been speaking. had
hoo,, i7,S a0o Eo7, only, c1,o,.t IL
was a tenderfoot. out and out When
he came to the Bar he brought his wife
with him. She was a bright, pretty
little woman, but they hardly knew her
in the settlement. Craig always had
been reserved and the two had kept by
themselves il the little cabio which
stood a mile or more away from town
So Sage Bar had come to consider the
pair d queer lot" and to designate
them as 9Th fastener an his wife,
which was intended to be nytlling but
complimentary.
When the trailing party rei1:ed up in
front of Craig's cabin, they found the
object Of their search sitting on a log
before the door smoking. From his
dress, despatched with mud. it was evi-
dent that he had just returned from rid
ing. The party exchanged glances of
understanding.
Sam Pike came to the point at once.
Craig" he said. Yer wanted down ter
tn Bari"
whats that?' demanded the oasterner
angrily.
Yer wanted down ter tn Bari" Sam
repeated. For boss stealing!' he added.
Craigs face WAS afame in tbs instant.
He sprang from his seat, throwing back
his hand to his hip. But the others had
him covered. and his hand dropped
loosely by his side again. "It's -
lie he said, land you know it!'
Just then woman's figure appeared
in the cabin doorway. It was Craig's
wife.
whats the matter?' she questioned
anxiously, seeing her husband attitude.
Craig spoke up quickly: go back,
Dolly! They've got up a dirty story
about me and want me to go to the Bar.
But III come back in little WHILE
Sam had a great fear of women's
tongues and tears, and immediately Or
dered Craig to mount a horse which
another man at a word secured from the
stable near by. The woman had looked
on dumbly. seeming hardly to compre-
bend what was taking place, but as she
saw her husband walk over toward the
horse. she ran to him and threw both
arms about him, holding him tight to
her. He unclasped her arms gently after
an instant and mounted the horse, and
turning in the saddle waved his hand to
her. Then they rode away, and after
they had gone piece Sam looked back
and saw the woman still standing there.
her hands loosely locked before her,
watching them with wide open ewes,
'She's grit ter tn backbone" muttered
that worthy and dashed his horse into a
gallop.
All Sage Bar crowded around the party
when they drew rein in town, and there
were some who would have strung Craig
up upon the spot when Sam had told the
story. Sage Bar was in that stage Of
progress where horse stealing was a
capital offense and short shift was
granted to offenders. But Sans protest
that nothing should be done until the
Hines party returned was needed, and
the prisoner was put in an empty cabin,
tied hand and foot, several of the men
agreeing to stand guard.
The afternoon waned away, and even
ing came. and the Hines party did not
make its appearance. So Craig was
given something to eat and then was
fastened tightly once more, and the men
rolled themselves up in their blankets
in front of the cabin about IL o'clock,
leaving only 10 Stetson on guard.
Stetson sat himself down on a sturnn
and lit a pipe, and with his rifle across
his knees fell to thinking about some
mavericks" he'd had branded that day.
Presently he imagined he heard soft
step from the prairie He raised his
head and listened. Just then the moon
showed a rim beyond sailing cloud,
and it's light fell on a fgure-a woman's
figure making its way toward the cabin.
Stetson rose to his feet, letting his rife
butt drop on the ground, and curiousl..