Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1898-01-15
The Old SILVER TRAIL.
BY MARY {. SuCMtY.
tcepyrigh. 1896. BY J. B. LIppIneou Col
CHAPTER vI-CoNTNuEp.

vcutufc III tnc storm, uuu, inuispoSet
10 ride by reason Of the lingering lame
nese OF her wrist, she had kept rathe'
closely to her room, until now seeing
nothing Of Harvey Neil. She caught
her breath sharply, the hot flush deep
ching upon her cheeks rs she saw hin
sweeping the hotel with n keen glance
guessing that his thought might be Of
her, and devoutly thankful for the
screen OF lace which afforded her safe
covert TO watch him undetected. HS
had exchanged his miners clothes fol
u well-fitting suit Of gray with russet
leggings to his knees, wearing q soft
gray hat by no means so disreputablc
In appearance us the one that had
framed his head the other day. He
had been good-looking then, but he
was handsome now us he stood talking
with the doctor, his attitude instinct
with the unconscious grace Of splendid.
ly developed strength, us he slightly
leaned against his horse. with one hand
caressing its neck. Something was evi.
IDENTIFY amiss with one Of the animals
hind legs, Mt which the doctor was look.
ing, the two men standing for several
moments in earnest discussion OF the
trouble, after which they disappeared
within the shop together.
Dorothy could hardly have told the
meaning Of her sigh rs after little
she saw him come out and ride away,
back over the road he had come. She
had so far recovered from her rancor
that he no longer appeared TO her the
unprincipled adventurcr her unbridled
Indignation had first assumed that her
fathers enemy necessarily must be.
Tier father had said that the young
man might well be honestly mistaken,
even averring that in Ncil's place his
attitude might have been the same,
She was glad to accept this justification
for him. II rcinstatcd her worlds fair
hero in her respect, although she could
not feel that II narrowed the gulf which
circumstances had brought between
them. TO assume that he was the VIC
tim Of error was to say that he held
honestly to the belief that her father
was no better than n common thief.
To call il misunderstanding could not
alter the fact of his actual attitude;
and so long us this was so, Dorothy
felt that any friendship between them
must be out of the question. For her
fathers daughter, from his standpoint
CT belief, he could hardly have even
common respect to give; while, us her
fathers daughter. it seemed clear to
her that she could show no favor To
this Harvey Neil without In n way being
n traitor to her fathers cause. But,
while this conclusion appeared to her
simply inevitable, she knew in her
heart that she was sorry for It, knew
That in spite of herself she must nc
knowledge sort of willful liking for
him which cold reason had not Eower
to argue down.
She WINS reused from her revery by
a scraping of chairs on the wooden side.
walk outside the window, and, remind
ed of the walk she had been going to
take, was starting upstairs to fetch her
hat, when she was diverted from the
purpose again by the remark Of an I'M
seen speaker, who had just established
himself there in the shade.
Pears like that horse OF Neil's m
kinder goin' back on him." he drawl-
ingly observed, punctuating the re-
mark by n sibilant expectoration Of
tobacco juice far out into the street.
''fIe docs have such luck, that Teller.
Seems like everything is jest natchelly
fcreordained to go back on him the min
ute he gifts aholt OF It,"
"Sandy, though, never loses his grip"
another voice lazily supplemented, ac-
cepting the first statement rs beyond
argument. speaking Of that, how's
that case OF his with the colonel comm
out, d'you Think"
"Well, amt bettin' on that ut this
stage of the game" was the response,
in tone expressive of the speakers
confidence that he was cannily. up to
snuff; ''but II was. my money would
20 down on the colonel, sure. He's n
bird, that old duffcr. II you have any
dealin's with him you want 10 git up
pretty early in the mornin' n hang on
TO eendof the rope that's got the knot
in It, or it will be slippin' through your
fingers with 'now-you-sec-it-'n'-now-
you-don't!' Why, they talk about Jay
Gould comm out here TO Colorader n
jumpin' hull railroad. ] tell you jay
want In it side of Col. Randolph Mere
dith when he gifts his jumpin' pants on.
He'd jump church II he took n notion;
m then he'd 60 to law n heat the
preacher m the hull congregation.
N now he's took fancy to jump the
Mascot--.well, Neil's goner, the way
] look at It,"
"But the colonel amt got no case,"
nrgued the other, dispassionately.
sYou know how twas. Never a smell
Of mineral in the Grubstake till they
relocated, floppin' round the side lines
COS to take In the Mascot's best ground"
"Well, amt for arguin' about that.
All I'm sayin' is that the colonel says
the veins his'n, n what the colonel
snys generally goes with n jury. I've no
ticed. He's got way with him that
seems to catch EN-"
'Catches EN- in their pockets"
laughed the other nppreciatively.
"Sure. M II Neil thinks he's playin'
agninst a square game-well, probably
he knows better'n that. Everybody
knows what the colonel is. ~ when 1t
comes TO goin' to law ag'inst him-well,
NeiI's bitten OF more'n he can chaw.
in my opinion" And here for the mo-
ment the argument poused.~
Dorothy turned away from the win
dow, walking the length Of the room,