The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1897-11-18
CHAPTER nv.


CHAPTER nv.
SOME RATHER QUEER ROAD AGENTS.
You had better come back to the car
Miss Cullen" remarked Lord Rulle
after pause.
But she declined to do so, saying sh
wanted to know what I was going t,
telegraph. And he left us, for which
wasn't sorry. I told her of the goot
news had to send, and she wanted tt
know if how We would try to catch tn,
road agents. I set her mind ut rest g,
that score.
II think they'll give US very little
trouble to bag" I added, "for they are
SO green that it's almost pitiful "
sin not cutting the wilcj?" 81" nslscl
"In everything, repli;4 - th'
worst botch is their waiting '' AaG
just passed tho Arizona line II III, y htG
held us up an hour earlier, itwould only
have been states prison"
"And what will it DO now"
Hanging.
"What?" cried Miss Cullen.
SIN New Mexico train rohbing is no,
capital, but in Arizona it is" told her
And if you catch them they'll be
hung?" she asked.
yes"
"That seems very hard"
The first signs of dawn vera begin.
a Ehy Kbr t. fhSMa RT hasM tire @ I'll a
was going to look for the trail of the
fugitives. She said she would wax with
Inc, if not in the way, and my assurance
was very positive OH that point. And
here want to remark that it's saying n
good deal if girl can be up all night
in such excitement and still look fresh
and pretty. and that she did,.
ordered the crew to look about, and
then began big circle around the train.
Finding nothing, I swung Il bigger one
That being equally unavailing, I did a
larger third. Not trace of foot or hoof
within half mile Of tho carsl / had
heard of blankets laid down to conceal a
trail Of swathed feet, even of lcathern
horse boots with cattle hoofs on the bot
tom, but none of these could have been
used for such distance, let alone the
entire absence of any signs of place
where the horses had been hobblel. Re.
turning to tho train, the report of tho
men was the same.
"We've ghost road agents to deal
with, Miss Cullen" laughed, "They
come from nowhere, bullets touch them
not, their lead hurts nobody, they take
nothing, and they disappear without
touching the ground"
''I1ow curious it is'' she exclaimed.
zone would almost suppose it dream. :"
Hold on, said. eve do have some
thing tangible. for if they disappeared
they left their shells behind them. y
And I pointed to some cartridge shells
that lay OH the ground beside the mail
car MY theory of aerial bullets won't
do"
1.-THE shells are as hollow as feel"
laughed Miss Cullen.
Your suggestion reminds me that I
am desperately hungry" said. Sup
pose we go back and end the famine
Most of the passengers had long since
returned to their seats or berths, and
Mr.. Cullen's party had apparently done
the same, for 2lS showed no signs of
life One Of my darkies was awake, and
he broiled steak and made us some
coffee in no time, and just as they were
ready Albert Cullen appeared. So we
made very jolly little breakfast He
told me at length the part he and the
Britishers had borne and only made me
marvel the more that any one of them
WAS alive, for apparently they had jump
ed off the car without the slightest pre-
caution and had stood grouped together
even after they had called attention to
themselves by Lord Rallies shots. Gull
len had to confess that he heard the
whistle of the four bullets unpleasantly
close.
you have a right to be proud, Mr..
Cullen" I said "You fellows did
tremendously plucby thing, and, thanks
to you, we didn't lose anything"
But you went to help, too, Mr.. Cor.
don, ~ said Miss Cullen.
That made me color up, and after q
moments hesitation said:
I'm not going to sail under false
colors, Miss Cullen. When I went for.
ward, | didn't think could do any
thing. l supposed whoever had pitched
into the robbers was dead, and l expect
ed to be the same inside of telminutcs. "
"Thcn why did you risk your life,'
she asked. "if you thought it was use
less?'
l laughed, and, though ashamed to
tell it, said, IT didn want you to think
That the Britishers had more pluck than
had
She took my confession better than I
hoped she would, laughing with mc,
and then said "Well, that was coura
gcous, after all. :"
Yes" said "Iwas frightened into
bravery"
Perhaps if vhey had known the dan
ger us we'll as you, they would have
been less courageous, she continued.
And l could have blessed her for the
speech.
Willie we were still eating, tho mai
clerk c,IIls TO my car and reported thai