The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-05-12
jim TRENBAR'S LUCK

r
county and his deputy rode out from
the timberland that slxirted the river
bottom and drew rein. Before them
lay the prairie burned brown by the
sun stretching away to meet the faint
gray lines of the horizon.
The sheriff's face was lean and dark
with the sharpened, watchful look of
a timber wolf on the trail of its prey.
His eyes glanced keenly from under
meath the hand which he had raised
to shade them, as he scanned the prairie
long and attentively.
The deputy shifted to an easier posi-
ton in the saddle and pushed the SOM
brero back from his heated forehead.
He was young man with a heavy,
stolid cast of features. The curling
ends of his red-brown hair reached al
most to his shoulders. His long, mus
cular throat rose like a column from
the loose collar of his coarse wool
shirt.
The stout little broncho upon which
he sat pulled peevishly at the bride
and blew the foam from it's nostrils.
They had Travelled far and fast since
sunrise and there was still the prospect
of long, hard gallop before them. The
deputy felt that his strength needed re-
enforcement. This fact was the more
vigorously impressed upon him since
the means of reinforcement was at
hand. He drew fiat, black bottle from
his hip pocket and held it up to the
light. Itshowed little more than half
full. He put it to his mouth and drank
with evident zest of the contents. The
sheriff took his hand from his eyes and
eyed him thirstily.
"Have some, Bill?" the deputy said,
speaking with his soft, lazy drawl and
extending the bottle toward the sher-
if, who received it without comment
and drank deeply in his turn. The
deputy wiped his mouth on his wrist
and gave a hitch to his cartridge belt.
"Well, what's the next move?' he
asked, when the bottle had been re-
stored to it's former security in his
pocket.
The sheriff leaned forward, resting
his elbow upon the pummel of his sad
die and rubbing his prominent, I'M
shaver chin thoughtfully with the
palm of his hand. His narrow, deep
set eyes were contracted until only a
tiny cleaning line of light showed be-
tween the lids.
"Our mans gone morrill," he said, at
length. ''Struck out straight for the
Rio Grande. He's got a good horse
under him and five hours the start;
but" He Strengthened up suddenly
and thrust his feet farther into the
stirrups, "we're after him, and it's a
good man that can git away from the
sheriff of Bandera county with hull
skin. reckon he'll make for the North
fork. He won't trust himself to the
open prairie in broad daylight. If I
can head him off before he gifts thar
He looked at his deputy, who answered
with look that said plainly they
could and would.
The sheriff touched his wild-eyed lit
tie mare with the spur. She plunged
forward, with the deputy's broncho
close upon her track. A fine yellowish
grass stalks and weeds and hung about
them as they rode. The sun poured
it's level rays full upon the parched
and lifeless prairie and upon the two
men galloping with grim set faces in
the pursuit of justice.
All day long the man upon the black
horse had been steadily making for the
Mexican border. It was nearing sunset
now. The mans slight figure dropped
YEARLY in the saddle. His head had
sunk upon his breast and the reins lay
loosely in his relaxed fingers. The
black horse still galloped, but slowly
His nose was thrust far forward and
either wide nostril gave glimpse OF
the red within. Great flakes of foam
dropped from his bit or foated back
upon the wind of his motion against his
quivering shoulders.
All day long he had galloped-gal.
loped almost without pause, under the
burning southern sun, across the
sccrched earth toward the creek there
whose sluggish shallow tide the sun
Get had Redeemed until it had looked
like trail of blood. They had long
since left the open prairie behind them
Here the ground was newer, broken
by sloping hillocks and clumps of chap
arral and here and there a scrub oak
a1fording excellent advantages for hid
ing. He must be keen of scent in
deed who would ferret out man il
such a place of scent aud sharp
Of eye, with long and efficient training
in thief-catching.
With deep-drawn breath of relief
Trenbar brought the black horse to d
standstill in the shadow of clump Of
chaparral and slipped heavily down
from the saddle. He was all but spent
with hunger and WEAKNESS and merry.
Gus tension. His face was pale and his
knees shook under him. Yet his first
thought was not for himself, but for the
animal beside him.
He removed both saddle and bride
and rubbed down the tired limbs. Then
he led the horse by the name down tc
the creek, and they drank together
Trenbar throwing himself prone upon
the sand with his lips laid to the water
It. was so still there in the low west.
ern light. The ripple washing family
the horses heavy breathing as he drew
the water in in long thirsty draughts
these were the only sounds, but
they smote the air with thrilling dis
tinctness.
Once the horse flung up his head with
start and thrust his head sharply for.
ward in the attitude of listening. In