The Winslow mail., 1898-04-02

of the real facts in regard to Nav
might occasion. He was now sitting
with one leg thrown over the horn of
his saddle. Suddenly his face lighted
up with its old sickly smile, and in a
voice that trembled a little in spite of
the bravado he tried to throw into it,
he began:
"Say, Bill, that was the devil of lie
told you about May just now. l saw
her not over half an hour ago"
"You did, did you? When will she
be here"
'She won't be here at ALL
Bills face grew stern and white.
why won't she?' he demanded.
Because l directed her in the wrong
road. Jim tried to tell her right and
wouldn't let him. Amt that so, JimY'
Jim nodded grimly. With faces that
now began to grow drawn and anxious
the spectators glanced from one speak
er to the other in turn. Bills face was
fairly livid with rage, and his voice
trembled with the awfulness of re-
pressed fury as he asked the next
question:
What did you do 1t forY
The expectant silence that followed
was deathlike, but even then Joe's
voice was hardly audible as he an
swered with the same sickly smile
lowering about his white lips:
Because 1 useter court her myself
and you cut me out!'
Before the words were fairly out of
his mouth Bill sprang at him with the
fury of wild beast. With all the force
of his mighty arm he struck and the
blow descended upon the arm-the Grip
pied, knotted arm-which Joe had inter
posed to ward it off, Some say it de-
scended upon the very knot itself. He
fell from his pony as If he had been
shot, and lay for several moments on
| the turf where he had fallen.
(Which way did you send her?"
asked Bill, in the same awful tones he
/ had used before.
81 won't tell,'' gasped Joe
"Then get off that groundp'
Joe meekly obeyed.
"Get on your pony-no, see it's got
Isaway from you. Then saddle up mine
Isyonder and go after May and bring her
back at once, sir! Do you hearY
Joe meekly took the huge Texas sad
idle in his left hand and carried it to
where the pony was grazing, tied by a
ttlong rope to tree. His right arm hung
|slimp by his side. After some ineffect-
ual efforts to throw on the saddle with
his left arm he gave up the attempt.
| 81 can't get the thing on" he said.
"Use your right arm, STRIP called his
brother
81 think you've broke his game arm,
Bill" said Jim Smith.
'It's liev' shouted Joe, "that arms
:as good as ever it was"
| To prove the truth of this assertion
he made mighty effort and managed
to lift his arm to his shoulder, though
the wrist still dangled loosely from his
,elbow. Even then he could not restrain
his face from wincing and his teeth
from clinching with the pain. Drop
ping the saddle he turned abruptly and
| limped off into the woods without a
word.
Jim Smith afterward said that only
| his solemn promise to Joe kept him
| from telling the whole truth at this
| juncture just as he knew it to be, and
that he had to grit his teeth hard and
say cuss words under his breath to do
| it then. AS to the rest Of the crowd, it
must be remembered that they knew
nothing but Joes own statement about
the matter, and consequently they all
sympathized with Bill. After some
moments Of coincidence and consulta-
tion with the crowd, Bill, with some
four or five others, started out to find
Joe.
"Get that rope off your saddle there
and bring it along" he said to one of
the men.
"You ain't goin' to string him up.<sre
you, BillY' was the rather anxious re-
ply.
"No; Just want to skeer> him little.
Come on"
In very short time they found the
man they were locking for.
"Are you ready to tell where May is,
or to go after her." Bill demanded.
'N-no,,' faltered Joe, with distrust-
fri glance at the little group of attend
| ants.
Again his brother sprang at him.
| This time he threw him to the ground
and held him there with his grasp firm
upon his throat.
Don't, Bill, old fellow, for Gods
sake" gasped Joe, as his brother some
what relaxed the grip on his throat. Il
didn't mean no harm by it-honest, 1
| didn't. / won't do it no more. What
are you going to do with that rope,
Bill? You're not going to kill your poor,
| no-account brother, are you, old boy?"
Without q word Bill and his attend
ants continued wrapping the rope
around Joe. Then they stood him up