Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1898-07-01

AAAAtH AAA1 - VIZ 1A1 .
shaggy outline looked shadowy and in
distinct to Stsnhope, so astonished was
he. Ite whistled softly, and thu pony
pricked up his cars.
81 b'liovo you are as close to the
truth as you ever get, " he said to Tip.
ton.
The shaggy man lared up, and Stan
hope could see a dangerous glitter in
his gray eyes.
None Of that" no growled. "This
is a matter tween Greaser and white
man. I'm with tho white man. Savvy?
After it's over you and NELL have it
out.
"In any way you like" said Stan.
hope stitily. "You know me, Upton"
And he returned tho shaggy mans glare
through the gloom.
81 s'poso them two fellers I run
acroBt with their threats cut back up
the trail was your friends?'' Upton de-
scribed the men.
Eyes"
"well, then, the Greasers is only
waitin fer night to rub us out"
II suppose So"
"Well, then, we'll fool 'em, - and to
Stanhope's astonishment the shaggy
man collected a lot Of mesquite roots
aud lighted a fire.
"What tho dovil are you up to,
man?' he demanded roughly. "D'you
want to fix 'em q light to kill us by?"
my son, I've been at this game
longer'n you have" replied Upton.
Stanhope held his peace. After Upton
got the fire started no made two piles,
one on each sido Of tho fro, out Of
Stanhope's saddle and what was left Of
the mesquite roots he had collected.
He covered oGe with Stanhope's blanket
and threw his own buckskin jacket over
the other. When be finished, he looked
up.
CHOW, Stanbope, we'll hide in that
patch o. %chaparral yonder and wait till
they turns up"
"Why not clear out Of this altogeth-
er?' asked Stanbope.
"Ain't one ohcnce in 1000, 600 that
we could get away" said Upton, "end
we can entertain 'om better here"
S~tanhope saw the wisdom of Tipton's
scheme, and, picking up his rifle, fol-
lowed him to the chaparral thicket.
The grass was heavy with dew, and
they were soon wet to tho skin. The
cool, steady breeze did not tend to make
them moro comfortable. They lay shiv-
ering III the chaparral until Tipton's
fro YVES nothing bat a pile of rod cmi
bers. The moon pushed its silver rim
over the eastern hills and shed q ghast-
ly light over the prairie, metanorphos-
ing the chumps of chaparral and isolat-
ed scrub oaks into fantastic shapes.
Not a soupd disturbed the stiffness
except tho ohirp Of insects, the vail Of
tho coyotes and tho occasional rustling
of tho chaparral as a breath of wind
stirred it. Stanhopo was just doing OF
when he felt Tipton's toe scraping
against his shin. He was wide awake in
an instant.
Look" said Upton. 81 thought
there was too id many insects
bout"
Stanhope looked toward the fire,
which consisted now of one or two dim
rel GOALS. A dark form was stealthily
worlning it's way toward the pile OF
mesquite roots that his blanket covered.
GOOD job you amt under that blan-
ket, whispered Upton. Stanhope
thought it was.
The w~riggling figure approached
nearer and nearer to the pile. Suddenly
a hand was raised and q cleaning knife
sank into the blanket. At the same in
slant Tipton's rife went off. The dark
form rose, gave q piercing yell and fell
with outstretched arms. Fohr other Gg-
ures rose from the prairie, and Stan
hopes rife exploded. There was anoth-
or yell-another dark form dropped.
Three figures lodging backward and
forward, vanished in the uncertain
moonlight. Upton laughed-a wild,
terrible laugh, that sounded like tho
howl of a whole pack of coyotes.
Answering yells came from every live
oak about them.
"Them's Kiowas," said Upton, ram
ming a charge home. Guess old Con
zales lowed he'd lift all the cattle in
this part of Texas"
S~tanhope didn't have time to say he
thought SO toe. Fifty rifles flashed about
AhSAA Al H1 AAAAJ buAAOla bOLo bIlOuSl
the ohaparral overhead. Two rifles epit
back their streaks of irefrom the thicket,
and two robust voices yelled out theil
defiance. The cracks of the rifles con.
tinued for two hours, the circles OF
flashes without the chaparral drawing
closer and closer and tho yells OF def
anoe within it becoming feehler and
feebler, BY and by tho fire from the
~chaparral stopped and tho fire from
without i6 slackened. Then all wal
still.
Half a dozen of Hays rangers gallop
ing toward San Antonio at daybreal
the next morning disturbed a pack o.
snarling coyotes rending the flesh of {
dead bronoho, three Kiowas and two
Mexioans near the ashes Of a campfire
Another pack was circling warily abou
a olump of ohaparral 100 yards away
Breaking into the thioket. the ranger
found two bodies fall of bullet holes.
"That's Upton" said ones ranger
looking down into the face Of one.
"Yes, and here's Stanhope," said an
other.
"Well, this beats me-" they all sale
tOOather.