Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1899-05-25

they were away her mother seized her
and drew her into the room and shut
her there. But she heard horsemen rush
into the camp, and minute later New
ms, jeering and laughing in the bar,
and that very night they took her away,
her and her father and the stepmother,
and Nevins was with them.
They went by Tucson to Hermosillo
and to Guaymas, and her mother told
her she must never breathe what she
knew-it would ruin her father, whom
she loved, yes, dearly, and whom she
would not believe had anything to do
with it. And at Hermosillo Nevins had
the watch, the diamond ring, the dia-
mond stud, these very ones, she was
sure, as the valuable "exhibits'' were
displayed.
But at San Francisco, when the lady
superior told her of the accusation
against "this gentleman" (even now
her eyes would not look into Loring 50
and of all his trouble, she forgot. her
fathers peril, forgot everything but
that Lieutenant Loring, who had been
SO good and kind and brave, was wrong
fully accused, and she told all to the
lady superior and went with her and
repeated it to the general, the general
who had died, and when at last she fin
ished her trembling, fearful story, Lor-
ing rose before them all, went over and
took her hand, bowed low over it, as
though he would have kissed it and
said, "Thank you, senorita."
And the judge advocate declined to
cross examine. What was the use? But
the defense insisted on other witnesses
"a local locksmith who had sold New
ms keys that would open any trunk, a
hotel porter who swore that the blinds
to Loring's room had been foroibly
opened from without, bellboy who
had seen Nevins on the gallery at that
window three nights before the search
of the luggage was made. And the
court waxed impatient and said it had
had more than enough. Every man of
the arrav came IN to and shook Lorine
by the hand before they let him leave
the courtroom, and Blake hunted high
and low through Omaha until he found
poor Petty and relieved his mind of his
impressions, and finally the order an
nouncing the honorable acquittal of
Lieutenant Loring on every charge and
specification was read to every COM
mand in the department. fast as the
mails could carry it.
Brought to by a bullet in the leg,
George Nevins was recaptured down the
Missouri three days later and sent for
his wife that she might come and nurse
him. Though everybody said no, she
went and did her best, and if nursing
could have saved reprobate life, he
might still have remained an ornament
to society such as that in which he
shone. But Naomi wore widows veil
when late in October she returned to
Folsom S roof; the good old trader had
stood her friend through ALL
There wers some joyous weddings 10
the department. Of the Platte the sum-
mer that followed, Loring gravely fig
uring as best man when Dean of the
cavalry was married to Elinor Folsom,
and smiling with equal gravity when
he read of the nuptials of Brevet Cap.
tain Petty and the gifted and beautiful
Miss Allyn. He had reverted to his orig.
inal idea-that Of waiting in patience
until he had accumulated nest egg
and had acquired higher rank than q
lieutenancy in the engineers-and so he
might have done if it took him dozen
years had not orders carried him once
more to the Pacific coast after the com
pletion of the Union Pacific railway.
Regularly every month he had written
to Pancha, noting with surprise and
pleasure how rapidly she learned. Glad.
~ ne went to see her at the gray sisters
the day after his arrival. He had meant
to laughingly remind her of his goodby
words, "You know we always come
back to California, but he forgot them
when she came into the room. He took
her hands, drew her underneath the
chandelier and looked at her and only
said:
"Why, Panoha!''
Loring never did say much, and it
was beautiful, dark eyed girl who
uplifted those eyes to his and smiled in
welcome, saying as little as he. She
was graduate now. She was teaching
the younger girls until-until it was
decided when she should return tc
Guaymas-to the home Of Uncle Ra.
mon, who had been good to her always,
but especially since her poor fathers
death. She did 60 back to Guaymas by
and by, but not until Uncle Ramon had
come twice at long intervals to Sar
Francisco to see her and the good lady
an periOr and tn confer with an aarnast