Owingsville outlook. [volume] (Owingsville, Ky.) 1879-192?, 1896-10-08

less, with every fiber of his being strain.
ing itself for flight in an impulse 50 real
that he turned and Graspcd at the rough
bark of the tree to keep himself from
being carried bodily away 10y the whirl.
wind of terror.
The attack did not last long, and
about the time the blood began to Jingle
in his veins again he heard the muilled
.rampliug of horses approaching along
the dusty road At the signal the vcrv
recollection Of his late discomposurs
seemed somehow to vanish into tho
limbo of remote past; m. pulses
Puickcucd and his muscles thrilled
with the vibrations of an accommodating
energy that sang ioyously as it lcaped
through the tense nerves and the throb-
were unnaiurally acute; he heard the
woody clink If the rails rs the men
made breach in the 2iglag fence, then
the smothcrcd hOof-hrats of the horses
coming across the soft turf of the lawn:
moment later, in an intcrNalo of silence,
he fancicd he could almost hear the
whispered instructions given To Jed.
When the two men emerged from the
deeper shadows of the grove he snw
them quite distinctly in the starlight;
they came directly toward his hiding
place, and when they paused within
few feet of the trees he could scarcely
restrain the eager fcrocity that prompt
Il Ia ., In, Il.
instant of hesitation he had time to note
that one of them carried an armful Of
hiudlin@ wood; the man gathered il
into iirmcr hold while they paused,
End there was Smothcred tinkle of
breaking glass, and the pungcnt odor
of kerosene filled the air.
what was that thar roise?" asked
the other.
Tits that thar blame bottle q coal
oil. that's what hit is: hits done
bu'stcd an run all down into my boots"
replied the first; and they ms5ed for.
ward sa6 Disappeared behind the corner
of the house
Rnghrand kept them in sight ms long
rs he could, and then ran across 10 the
clump of laurcls. going down ON his
hands and knees and staring inicntly
into the gloom until he found trm
again, two darker bluts of shadow
cTouching in the angle formed hv the
bay window i'm the parlor. While he
was straining his eyes to catch the
CLEAN of the match which would he the
signal for their return, hc did not hear
the stcalthy steps of a man who was ap-
proachcd him from hchind, nor did he
know Of its presence when the gliding
figure came cutie close and stood with
dubbed gun waiting for him to rise.
The appearance of the third brother
upon the scene was due to the fact that
Ludlow had chosen his position unfor-
tunately and so was unable to see the
men when they dismountcd. For this
reason. he waited until he was sure that
the two inccndiaries had started for
the house, and the delay gave the holder
of horses time To yield to sudden inn
pulse born of desire to know if his
warning To Hester had accomplished it's
purpose. Looping the horses brides
together and throwing them over the
branch of a tree. he followed uoisclcssly
in the footsteps of his brothers; and
coming out on the open lawn in time to
catch glimpse of Ringbrand as he ran
across TO the laurels, he crcpt forward
until he stood with upliftcd gun behind
the unsuspecting sentinel. When Ring
brand rose at the flash of the match,
the poised rifle cut n quick circle in the
mir and descended with blow that sent
him back to his knees with thousand
scintillating notes dancing before his
eyes; for n single confused instant he
thought the end had come, and then he
felt the reyivifying breath of the spirit
of battle which seemed to inspire him
with the reckless and invincible courage
of his warlike ancestors. Leaping To
his feet, he fell upon his assailant with
Irresistible fury; there was a sharp,
breathless struggle. a fierce clutching
for under-holds. and then Ringbrand
swung the slight form of his antagonist
over his head and dashed il, limp and
helpless, against the hole Of the oak.
While this bit of by-play was going on
behind the laurels, another incident oc-
cured which further disarrangcd Ring
brands plans and left Col. Latimer and
Henry in doubt as to what they should
do. When the elder Bynum stopped To
light ;he pile of kindlings. Bud started
back toward the ambush alone; and as
the first match went ont, the younger
brother had time to reach the clump of
laurels before jeff could find and light
another. Seeing but one of the men
appear, the colonel and his son both hes
itatcd, and Bud confronted Ringbrand
just as the latter recovered himself
from the grapple with Jed. There was
no time for delibcration, and, realizing
that the mountaincer could not use his
rifle at close quarters, he flung himself
upon the newcomer, taking him I'M
awares and throwing him heavily just
rs bright blaze sprang mp beside the
house and a howl of agony rang ont on
the still air of the night. \ single
glance revealed the cause of both. There
was terrible picture of a man wrapped
in winding sheet of fame and
running toward him-a yelling human
torch blazing from head to foot and
swinging its fiery arms frantically as il
ran.
tTo BE Continued
GODEREv'S TANKARn