The Washington weekly post., 1899-10-03

forbOEe to give any alarm Sinclair was
/ an elderly man. and would be of little as
sistance In such a desperate struggle as
was before him. and the appearance Of
/ lights in the house would warn the rang
I ers OF the resistance awaiting them. oh.
for his partner the Boss for Chicago Bill.
/ for any one OF the twenty gallant men
who would have come al his call and stood
I BY him in such a quarrel He turned into
/ the narrow pathway. There was the we'll
remembered wooden gate; and there,
perched upon the gate. languidiy swinging
his legs backward and forward, and peer
ing down the road In front OF him. was
| Mr.. John Morgan, the very man for whom
Abe had been longing from the bottom of
| his heart.
There was short time for explanations.
A few hurried words announced that Boss.
returning from his little tour, had come
across the rangers riding on their mission
| Of darkness, and, overhearing their desti-
nation, had managed by hard running and
knowledge Of the country TO arrive before
| them. mo time 10 alarm any one" he
explained, still painting from his exertions;
must stop them ourseives--not come for
swag-come for your girl. Only over our
/ bodies. BOpes." And with these few
4 broken words the strangely assorted
| friends shook hands and looked lovingly
| into each others eyes while the tramp OF
/ the horses came down 10 them on the fra
! grant breeze Of the woods.
! There were six rangers in all. One who
! appeared to be the leader rode in front,
| while the others followed In a body. They
! flung themselves off their horses when
| they were opposite the house. and after q
| few muttered words from their captain,
| tethered the animals to a small tree, ana
walked confidently toward the gate.
! Boss Morgan and Abe were crouching
/ down under the shadow Of the hedge a .
| the extreme end of the narrow passage
| They were invisible TO the rangers, who
| evidently reckoned on meeting little re-
sistance in this isolated house. As the
| first man came forward. and half turned
to give some order TO his comrades. both
the friends recognized the stern profile and
| heavy mustache of Black Ferguson, the
! rejected suitor of Miss Carrie Sinclair.
Honest Abe made q mental VOW that he.
at least, should never reach the door alive.
The ruffiian stepped up to the gate and
put his hand :pon the latch. He started
as stentorian Stand backr' came thun-
dering out from among the bushes. In
| war, as in love, the miner was man OF
few words.
There's no road this way" explained
another yeice, with an infinite sadness and
gentleness about it which was character
istic OF its owner when the devil was ram
pant in his soul. The ranger recognized it.
He remembered the soft languid address
which he had listened to in the billiard
room of the Buckhurst Arms, and which
had wound up by the mild orator putting
his back against the door, drawing a der
ringer, and asking to see the sharper who
would dare to force a passage. IT'S that
Internal fool, Durton," he said, "and his
white-faced friend"
Both were well-known names Ia the
country round. But the rangers were
reckless and desperate men. They drew
up to the gate in a body.
Clear out Of thatr' said their leader in
grim whisper. you can't save the girl.
Go off with whole skins while you have
the chance"
The partners laughed.
Then, curse you, come onp'
The gate was flung open and the party
fired struggling volley, and made a rush
TOW ard the graveled walk
The revolvers cracked merrily in the ST.
lence of the night from the bushes at the
other end. 1t was hard to aim with pre-
cision in the darkness. The second man
sprang cOnvulsively into the air, and fell
upon his face with his arms extended,
writhing horribly in the moonlight The
third was grazed in the leg and stopped.
The others stopped out of sympathy, TOO.
After all, the girl was not for them, and
their heart was hardly in the work. Their
captain rushed madly on, like u valiant
blackguard as he was, but was met by a
crashing blow from the butt of Abe Dur
toms pistol, delivered with a fierce energy
which sent him reeling back among his
comrades with the blood streaming from
his shattered jaw, and his capacity for
cursing cut short at the very moment
when he needed to draw upon it most.
Don't so yet"' said the voice in the
darkness.
However, they had no intention Of going
yet. few minutes must elapse, they
knew, before Harvey's Sluiee could be
upon them. There was still time TO force
the door If they could succeed in master
ing the defenders. What Abe had feared
came to pass. Black Ferguson knew the
ground as well as he did. He run rap
idly along the hedge, and the five crashed
through it where there was some appear
ance of a gap. The two friends glanced
at each other. Their flank was turned |
They stood up like men who knew their |
fate and did not fear TO meet it.
There was a wild medley of dark fig !
ures in the moonlight and a ringing cheer |
from well-known voices. The humorists |
OF Harvey's Sluice had found something |
even more practical than the joke which |
they had come to witness. The partners |
saw the faces of friends beside them !
Shamus, Struggles, Mccoy. There was |
desperate rally, a sweeping fiery rush, a /
cloud of smoke, with pistol shots and |
fierce oaths ringing out of it, and when /
il lifted a single dark shadow flying for |
dear life to the shelter OF the broken |.
hedge was the only ranger upon his feet |
within the little garden. But there was |
no sound of triumph among the victors; /
a strange hush had come over them. and /
murmur as of grief-for there. living /
across the threshold which he had fought 1
so gallantly to defend, lay poor Abe, the |
loyal and simple-hearted, breathing heav- 1
lily with bullet through his lungs.
He was carried inside with all the rough /
tenderness of the mines. There were men |
there. | think. who would have borne his /
hurt 10 have had the love of that white /
girlish figure, which ment over the blood
stained bed and whispered so softly and
80 NcudcIiS III MS tdf. IitT VOICE seemed
20 rouse him. He opened his dreamy blue
eyes and looked about him. They rested
on her face.
Played out" he murmured: pardon.
Carrie morib-" and with a faint smile
he sank back upon the pillow
However, Abe failed for once to be as
good as his word. His hardy constitu
ton asserted itself and he shook of
what might In a weaker man have proved |
a deadly wound. Whether il was the
balmy air of the woodlands which came
sweeping over a thousand miles of forest /
into the sick mans room, or whether il ,
was the little nurse who tended him sa
gently certain il is that within two
months We heard that he had realized his
shares in the Conemara, and gone from /
Haryey's Sluice and the little shanty upon
the hill forever.
/ had the advantage, a short time after
ward. OF seeing an extract from the letter |
of young lady named Amelia. We have /