The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1894-08-13

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not believe at first; bnt. pshawi what
have / been doing all my life to let such
fellows doubt me? So the end Of Id was
that i cot them all inside the house.
There was one thing-their horses were
all fresh, as Hilton Whispered to me.
They had only ridden them few miles.
They had stolen or bought them &C !
ranch to the west Of us. / could not
make up my mind what to do But ii
was clear must keep them quiet till
something shaped.
They were ell drinking brandy when
Hilton's wife entered the room. Her
face was, mon Dieu, SO innocent. so
childlikei She stared at the men. and
then / told them she was deaf and
dumb, and ! told her why they had
come. VOLTA, it was beautiful-like
nothing you ever sawi She shook her
head 20 innocently and then told them
like a child that they were wicked to
chase o girl. I could have kissed her
feet. Tonnere, how she fooled them
She said would they not search the
house? She said all through me, ON her
fingers and by signs. And / told them
ct once. But she told me something
else-that the girl had slipped out q
the last man came in, had mounted the
chestnut and would wait for me by the
spring, q quarter Of a mile away. There
was the danger that some one OF the
men knew the finger language. 30 she
told me this thing in signs mixed up
with other sentences
Good There was now but one thing
TO do-for me TO get away. So ! said,
laughing, to one of the men, Come and
we will look after the horses, and the
others can search the place with Hilton. ;
So we went out to where the horses
were tied to the railing and led them
away to the corral.
"Of course you will understand how
] did it. ] clapped q hand ON his mouth,
put a pistol at his head, gagged and
tied him. Then / got my Tophet, and
away ] went to the spring. The girl
was waiting. There were few words. I
gripped her hand, gave her another pis-
tol, and then we got away ON q fine
moonlit trail. We had not gone O mile
when ! heard a faint yell far behind
My game had been found ont. There
was nothing TODD but to ride for Il now,
and to fight, If necessary. But fighting
was not good, for I might be killed, and
then the girl would be caught just the
same. We rode on-such q ride-the
horses neck and neck. their feet pound
ing the prairie like piston rods, rawbone
to rawbona, q dingdong gait I knew
they were after us, though ! saw them
but once ON the crest OF o divide, about
three miles behind. Hour after hour
like that, with 10 minutes rest and now
and then Of . spring, or TO stretch our
legs. We hardly spoke to each other,
but God OF love, my heart was warm
to this girl who had ridden l5Omiles in
- hours. just before dawn, when I
was beginning TO think that we should
easily win the race IL the girl could bat
hold ont, IL 10 did not kill her, the chest
mt stuck . leg into the crack OF the
prairie, and horse and girl were ON the
ground together. She could scarcely
move, she was 50 weak, and her face
was like death. ] put o pistol to the
chestnut's head and ended it AT that
the girl stopped and kissed the poor
beasts neck, but spoke nothing. A I
helped her ON my Tophet I put my lips
TO the sleeve OF her dress. Mother Of
God, what could q man do, she was 90
nobel
Dawn was just breaking oozy and
gray at the swell Of the prairie over the
jumping Sand hills. They lay quiet and
shining In the green brown plain, but
] knew thai beneath there was o churn
which could set those swells Of sand in
motion and make deadly sport of an ar
my. Who can tell what Ii il? IA Hood
under the surface, q tidal river-what?
No man knows. But they are sea mon
STEERS ON the land. Every morning at
sunrise they begin TO eddy and roll, and
no man even saw q stranger sight.
Bien, ! looked back. There were four
horsemen coming ON about three miles
away. What was there to do? The girl
and myself ON my tired horse were too
much. They saw also and hurried ON.
There came to me a great idea. I must
reach and cross the Jumping Sand hills
before sunrise. IL was all q deadly
chance.
When we got to the edge of the
sand, they were almost q mile behind.
! was all sick to my teeth as my poor
Tophet stepped into the sand. God, how
I watched the dawni Slow, slow we
toiled Dive that velvet powder. As we
reached the farther side / felt that it
was beginning to move. The sun was
showing like the lid Of an eye along the
plain. / looked back. All four horsemen
were In the sand, plunging ON toward
40. BY the time we touched the brown
green prairie on the farther side the
sand was rolling behind us. The girl
had not looked back. She seemed too
dazed. ] jumped from the horse and
told her that she must push ON alone to
the fort; that Tophet could not carry
both; that / should be In NO danger. I
She looked at me, / cannot tell how, /
then stopped and kissed me i0etween the
eyes. ] have never forgotten. I struck
Tophet, and she was gone TO her happi-
mesa, for she reached the fort and her
lovers arms.