The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-05-11

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The taller horsemnn held out his hand.
aohich Wing shook ecith cordial ferUor.
1t sounded to the troopers unaccus-
toned ears. surely not at Moreno's
YETI"
Mot yet, paquita mia. Is Ruth
awake? Tell her to poke that curly
pate of hers out of the door. / want
you to know Mr.. Wing, Sergeant Wing,
who has charge of the signal station
here.
Almost instantly slender hand, hold
ing little brass hurricane lantern, APP
peared at the opening, followed by
sweet, smiling face, while just behind
it peered another, only trifie older and
more serious, yet every whit as pretty.
Wing raised his old felt hat and mentally
cursed the luck that had sent him down
there in his ragged shirt sleeves. Pike,
the cynic, busted himself in getting
the buckets from underneath the stout
spring wagon, and bumped his head
savagely against the trunk laden boot as
he emerged.
Il never dreamed of seeing ladies
tonight" laughed the sergeant. Its
the rarest sight in all the world here,
but l remember you well when you
came to Yuma last year. That was
when you were going to school at San
Francisco, believe" y
THAT was when l was in short
dresses and long face, sergeant"
merrily answered the younger girl. 81
hated the idea of going there to school.
Fan, here, was willing enough, but /
had never know anything but Arizona
and Mexico All could think of was
that l was leaving home.
"She was soon reconciled, Mr..
Wing" said Miss Harvey; 81 there were
some very pleasant people on the steam
er."
"Oh, very pleasant for you, Fan, but
what did they care for chit of IA?
You had lovely times, of course. !"
80 did you, Ruth, from the very
day Mr.. Drummond helped you to catch
your dolphin.
"Ahl we were more than half way to
San Francisco Them protested Miss
Ruth promptly, land nobody had
taken any notice of me whatever up to
that minute. ~
well, Mr.. Drummond made up for
lost time from that on, laughed the
elder sister. Il never told of her, Ned
wasn't l good ?-but Ruth lost her
young heart to u cavalry cadet not
year out of the Point.
us it our Lieutenant Drummond
who was with your" queried Wing.
''Oh, yes; why, to be sure, he is of
your regiment. He was going back to
testify before some court at the pre-
sidio, and--wasn't madame mean p
she wouldn't allow him to call on Ruth
at the school, even when promised to
play chaperon and insure strict pro-
priety and no flirting.
Ruth Harvey had. with quick move
ment, uplifted little hand to silence
her sister, but the hand dropped,
startled, and the color rushed to her
face at Wings next words:
Then you're almost sure to meet the
lieutenant tonight or tomorrow. He's
been scouting the Santa Maria and the
Christobal and is due along here at this
very moment.
And now Miss Harvey had the field
to herself, for the younger sister drew
back into the dark depths Of the COW
cred wagon and spoke no more. In 10
minutes the team was rafting down
the eastward slope. and Sergeant Wing
turned with u sigh as at last even the
sound of hoof and wheel had died away.
Slowly he climbed the steep and
crooked trail to their aerie at the peak.
No sign of Jackson yet, 10 message
from the ranch. no signal fires at do
feno's or beyond.
Yet was he right il telling Harvey
with such precious freight TO push on
across that open plain when there was
even rumors of a Yacllos in the air9 The
loveliness of those two dark. radiant
faces, the pretty white teeth flushing in
the lantern light, the soft, silvery, girl
ish voices. the kindly. cordial handclasp
vouchsafed him Ey the elder as they
rolled away these were things to stir
the heart of amy man long exiled in this
ueSeTt lduu- IL luu DSSu HAS CuotOiii
to spend an hour in chat with his com.
rades before turning in for the night.
but with jackson still away and Pike
still plunged in glooin--with. moreover.
new and stirring emotions to investi-
gate and analyzs- Wing strolled off by
himself, passed around the rocky but
tress at the point and came to the broad
ledge overlooking the eastward way to
the distant range.
Here mass Of finder, dry baked by
weeks exposure to the burning sun
shine. stood in a pyramid of firewood
ready to burst in flame at first touch
of the torch. Close at hand were the
stacks of reserve fuel. Never light
this until you know the Indians arc
raiding west of tho Christobal, were
his orders. But we'll he knew that once
ignited it could be seen for many a
league. Here again he filled his faithful
pipe, and moving a safe distance away
lighted its charge and tossed the match
stump among the jagged rocks below.
He saw the spark go sailing down
ward, unwafted from its course by faint
est breath of air. Then he heard Pixies
prowl or somethint ike it and called