Arizona republican., 1900-12-09


 anew. Spence to free his hands; Gra- ham to retain them. Their forts were feebler now They stopped to rest frequently. The fight had boiled down to one of grim, sullen determi- nation to kill, to annihilate. They were both possessed by the same fixed thought. It was simply a question of endurance.
 It was now past four. They had been fighting for more than two hours. The snow was trafled and tramped over more than an acrs of space. and nearly every flake was dyed with a 1 gleaming crimson.
 Suddenly, with a superhuman effor-, | Graham raised himself on his shoul- ders and heels, swiftly keeled his body and flung the scout in the snow by his side.
 The effort must have been great for he lost consciousness then he knsw nold how long he slept, but he was awakened by a bloody hand tighten | ing around his throat. The scout was | too exhausted to raise himself, but he | leaned on one elbow and tried feeby l to choke his victim to death. His eyes were dazed and he swayed on his el- | bow like a drunken man. He was tired to the point of death, his brain was whirlng mass, tenaciously cling | ing ito a single thought Invisible de- mons circled about in fiendish glee, | dancing on the lambert air or stand | ing stopped, with hands on pended knee, watching the inhuman fray in unfeigned delight; their cool, calcu- lating eyes gleaming, and their ghoul- ish heads holding in grim approval at each slight advantage. Now they were in his brain, rending it-a million devils feasting and dancing and sing l ing, and the burden of their song was, XIII kill! kill!'
 Graham gasped feebly; his head swan; .he world was a black revolving mass studded with scintilating flashes of light.
 He snatched away the pinching | fingers, and reused himself from the deadly lethargy. He saw the scouts glittering eyes above him. There was murder in them no pity, no re- lenting-nothing but the sentence of deaIdh He felt the scouts hot breath there was poison in it. Something | prompted the thought and he felt in | his pocket and drew out a small pen knife. He attempted to open the blade with his teeth, for-one hand was re- quired to hold the scouts murderous | fingers.
 Spence still reclined on his. elbow and watched his antagonist with a vague wonder He was too tired to realize his danger, and too weak to care. He swayed back and forth, and occasionally blinked his lids in vain attempts to clear his muddy brain. He made constant feeble efforts to free his hand. and did so once. when it immediately felt for the bleeding, swollen throat of his antagonist.
 After an age the blade was open. It was intensely cold and the frost chilled the steel, causing it Ito cleave to his warm lips. He tore it away taking the tender skin with it. He arose on his elbow, despite Spence's feeble efforts at resistance. He pushed him over on his back and struck at him with the knife. He drew it to- ward him, the keen blade cutting into the quivering flesh and severing th= jugular vein. The hot blood spurted in feeble response to tired heart.
 Then his hand relaxed it's hold of the knife, and he knew no more.
 The sun was but a half hour high.
 The steaming horses ran on with ever diminishing speed and finally stopped, one on either side of pine tree they had attempted to straddle. The half-breed huddled in the blan- kets for a long time, covering and shivering. He did not understand 1t at all, and in trying to solve the problem | fell into uneasy slumber
 After a long time he awoke, wonder ing why his father was not there, and ! the horses unhitched. Then it all came back to kim, and he Thought he would go back and investigate.
 He climbed slowly down from the | high wagon-bed over the wheel. Es was very cold and his small teeth chattered. He trudged bravely back. occasionally blowing on his blue fling CTS to warm them.
 By and by he came to where the 1 snow was tralled and tramped as though herd of cattle had foddered | there, and the snow was red and very l pretty. He thought it. funny snow and l stopped and tasted it. It was not good, so he spat it out and looked around. What was tkat dark object lying half-hidden among the trees? He l walked up 10 IL ana saw Ills ldtHeI anu his friend lying on their backs, side by | side. His fathers eyes were wide open, as though he rested, but there was a | great, red gap, like another mouth, 1 across his throat, and both men were red and ragged.
 He told this story in court after l wards:
 Me felt my papa's face an it all told an hard. His eyes was wake, so me told him to dit up. He no speak tall, an me afraid, tause me fink him mad. Me sit down in told snow long | time an make little snowman. Den me dit up din an pull papa's hair title bit, but he no dit up din. Me pull it din harder dis time, but he no move din. Den me fraid din, an sit down in snow an make title bullets an frow at snowman. Me hit him on nose an mash him all teenty bits; den me laugh. Den me dot nothin to play with, an it awful told. an me ky title