Waterbury evening Democrat., 1893-05-20

mavericks" he 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 a sailing cloud, and its light fell on a figure-a wom- ans figure-mal1ing its way toward the cabin. Stetson rose to his feet, letting his rifle-butt drop on the ground, and curiOusly surveyed the woman, who was closo to him now. It was the east crner's wife.
 "Is he in there?" she said, her voice trembling bit.
 "Ycs," answered Stctson.
 Cant see him?" she asked. "Only for a moment" she added.
 Cant do it, mar'1n," said Stetson, decidedly,
 For moment she was quiet, looking longingly toward the cabin and clasp ing and unclasping her hands softly. The man hoped she would go. He had hated to say no and he didn't know how long his determination to refuse would last. "But they say they're going to | try him tomorrow, and I mayn't get another chance" She looked at him so sadly and yet so bravely withal that Stctson wavcrcd and was lost.
 For five minutes, then, no morc!" he said, half rcpcnting of his words the instant they were uttered. But he unlocked the cabin door for her, and locked it behind her again. Then he stood out side the door cursing himself Presently there was a rap l from tho inside of the cabin, and, much | relieved, he undid the door. But he kept his finger on the hammer of his rifle as he stood aside to allow her to pass.
 She came out quickly. Stctson turned | and bent to fastGn the door. As he did so, he felt tingling-cold metal against | his head, and heard in her voice, now without trcmblc:
 "Put up your hands and do it quick ly!" The order was so distinctly put and so cmphatically backed up by the cold metal, which Stctson knew only | too well was the dangerous end of re- volvcr, that he did not hesitate. As he threw up his hands, the door was pulled open from the inside and a man | dashed out and melted in the darkness of the prairie. A moment moro and the hoof beats of horse came back, sounding clear and sharp on the still air.
 The men who had been asleep till now, awakened by the noise, slecpily | raised themselves on their elbows. The | woman had not moved the pistol from Stctson's head. But she now dropped
 the weapon quickly and started to run. In an instant Stetson was after her, and, wild at being outwittcd had run | her down and caught her before she had gone fifty yards As he grasped her by | the shoulders the hOOf beats were dy- | ing on the air and the woman looked l into her captor's face with an cXultant smile.
 Stctson brought her back to the cab | in and in a half~shamcd way told his l story. The woman was quiet and did
 not seem to hear what they said. De l spite their chagrin at having been l wOrstrd by a woman, the men could
 not but admire her pluck and skill | Then they argued as to what they l should do with her, and finally decided | to take her into town as soon as it was | light. They locked her in the cabin 1 and then sat up and talked the rest of
 the night. They felt that it would be
 useless, tp attempt tn trail Craig in the
 l";',,. ;.. !, tu tell the truth, they were | just Lit fearful that the woman would
 re,'upr thru unless they kept sharp | lunlv"ut.
 When morning came q hiE party set
 "tf in pursuit "f Craig. But they had
 ~"ant hop" of overriding him with a
 horse under him and his many hours
 start. ! he cast"rnor's wife still re-
 uluinrl locked in the cabin. Sage
 for once found itself non- | :,nrd. Law and order had been re-
 vvr>"d by q woman and the town had
 tl',' "tIrudvrju custody. Bat smoke and
 poud,r &:, it might, Sage Ear was at q
 ln~, tn !.joW huW tn proceed. All the | EHNv, rf the settlement, unWritteu
 though they were, had sprung from ar | acute sense of frontier needs, and re- | fUrrCd to mon. There was an undcfina
 hlr feeling among the Sage Bar solons | that these laws could not be applied
 with propricty to women, and so they
 talked much, smoked and drank mucf
 moro, and did-nothing. When the
 Hines party came iri, tired, hungry anC
 empty handed, no solution of the diff
 culty presented itself, and so, with ad
 mirublc judgment, the town decided tc
 free itself of further responsibility bJ
 setting the woman at liberty. The
 Castcrncrs wife was pale and evidently
 worn out when they brought her out O
 tho cabin; but she said not a wort
 when they told her she might go, ant walked off in the direction of her homo with smile, half of defiance, half O satisfaction. That night the party which had gone in pursuit of Craig re , turned, having made a fruitless search Two days later, just as Sage Bar wa preparing it's evening meal, two mel were seen riding over swell from tn northeast. Five horses were driver l | loosely before them. When the mel got nearer the town one of them wa | recognized as the casterncr. He wa = riding barc-headed, and beside him rod = another, dark and swarthy, his arm l bound to his sides, his horse led b.
 Craig All Sage Bar assembled abou } the party, while Craig told the story O how he had ridden away that night 9 had struck the trail of the horses, an l following it had brought the MeXica s thief to terms with q shot from hi Q rifle, and then came back. And whe