Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1900-04-24

; The Swamp Secret 1
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Copyright. 1854. by Robert Bonner's Sons.
CHApTER N-lCnnfinuedA

now. we IL see IHel ne uOn I steal any
more bosses while yer gone" he added,
with a brutal laugh.
Dicks brain was in a muddle. He could
not realize the true condition of affairs.
He felt as if he must be in some strange
kind of waking dream.
Explain it all, please" he said to one
of the men. who had had less to say than
the others. las true as / stand here, L
don't know what you mean by this"
Wait. an yen hev it explained to We
soon enough said Bill You needn't
try to soft-sodder us. Step off, now, an
don't try to git away, or it'll go hard with
ye''
At Mr.. Porter's he might be able to Sc
cure an explanation of the matter. He
walked on in advance of the men silently.
In short time they reached their desti-
nation.
Good Lordr cried Mr. Porter, when
he fully comprehended the state of af-
fairs. I'm sorry TO see yon in this fx,
Dick. / be So"
For PHYS sake, tell me what it
means" said Dick These men refuse
to do 50. / get the idea, from what they
have said, that | am believed to be a
horse thief. Tell me the truth, Mr.. Por
ter. Is it SOP
I'm afraid it is, answered Mr.. Porter,
He sat down and told Dick all that
had happened since he went away
$50 help me God, I'm innocent" said
Dick, soemnly, looking unhinehingly in
Mr.. Porter's face as he made the asser-
ton. I'm as innocent as you are. 1
never made a mark on the cottonwood
tree, and Bill Green lied when he said
so. ] went there that night, and l read
what there was to read-what Bill Green
probably read after / came away; but l
made not one mark there, and that's the
truth. As to the knife, | lost it over a
week ago-where, | haven't any idea
That's the truth about that, Mr.. Porter.
I hope you don't believe that I'm guilty
Of the crime I'm charged WITH
No, | don't" answered MIR. Porter,
stoutly. But there's them as does, Dick,
an plenty on EN-, too, I'm sorry to say.
! tell We, ye're in tight place, Dick, an
there's no use in denyin' it. | wish
could git ye out of it,"
Dick had it on his tongue 70 give vent
to his suspicious of Wayne. but Mr.. Por-
ter was called away just then. and he
made up his mind, on second thought,
that II was better TO say nothing about
them at present. lie could prove moth
ing. That was the difficulty. With the
opinion OF nearly every one against him,
Il might damage his case to attempt to
excite suspicion against any one else The
question would be asked. at once, very
likely: Why had he not said something
about these suspicious before?
Why, indeed
II he had only taken Mr. Boone into
his confidence! If he had only told MIR.
Porter. If But the, ifs" in the way
were not to be got rid of now. The trap
he had hoped another might be caught
IN was sprung upon himself
The only consoIing thought about it was
that he was innocent. There was a good |
deal of personal satisfaction in that, but |
1t did not help him 10 see his way out eff !
the very unpleasant and dangerous po-
sition be was in.
crowd began to assemble within |
short time after his arrival.
Ihe excitement was intense. His pres
eence seemed to increase it.
He could hear muttered threats from
those whom he had considered warm |
friends. lie met stern and pitiless faces |
when he looked about in search of sym |
patty.
At length, a feeling of anger, arising |
from sense Of the cruel injustice shown
him by refusal to listen to anything he |
attempted 10 say in yindication of HIM
self. led him to ignore the crowd as much /
as possible. He shut his eyes upon it and |
tried to think what the result was to be, !
and thinking of that made him sick at |
heart
For he knew enough of the frontier and !
its ways 10 know that it was easily sway |
ed by impulse but not by cool-headed rea-
son and Judgment. II was dangerous
thing to face when wrought up to such a
pitch Of excitement as had possession of
it now.
See here, neighbors,9 he heard a ia
miliar voice saying presently, its late.
We can't do anything tonight. We're
all beat out, aud need rest. Besides,
we're excited, an we amt tit to give him
an onpreiudieed trial. | take it, neigh
hors, that we're all wilin' to give him a
fair chance 1t would be an onjnstice
to go rash. Let's wait till mornin'. What
dye sayf'
Some agreed readily to the proposal,
while others objected, saying that horse
thieves didn't need trial. Hanging was
what they needed.
Il was finally decided that he should
be put in some safe place and kept there
till morning.
At 5 o'clock he was tried on the charge
OF stealing horses. Gould it be true, or
was he ia the midst of horrible dream?
Then the question arose Of where he
should be put over night
In the milk house. whispered Saman-
thy to Mr. Porter, with a meaning wink.
There amt but one winder TO the place,
an you Gu show EN- that he can't git out
o. It; an they en- set men to watch out
side eli they're afeared o his gittin' out
o the door. No boss thief en- git out o
that place 'thout somebody's KNOWN 1t.
Mr., Porter understood Samanthy with
out asking an explanation, and acted on
her advice.
Il reckon the milk house is the place
for him" be told the men. ''Ye see, We
can pat men all round it, bein' its Seprlt
from the house"
An I'll resk anybody's diggin' thru
them walls 'thout hein' watched" said
Samantky. "Fer'S I'm consumed, | want
Justice done. an the only way we can
do it is to keep the pris'ner SOS it can be
did to him when the proper time comes
fer it. hain't no kind o patience with
boss thieves. an never had, an when
.sou ketch one an know he's guilty. hang
him, say"
This to Bill Green. who stood in ave of
SRmanthy, and consequently had great
regard for her opinion, as she very we'll
knew.
That's the talk" responded Bill.
~Hang EN-. | say, too"
Il nevcr'd a'a b1eeved you'd a-turned
hess thief" said Samanthy. coming up to
whore Dick sat, with her face full of con-
tempt aud lofty Indignation. Il declare,
] sha'n't hev no confidence left in no
body alter this. Its an awful deceitful.
wicked world, when one can't feel sartin
but his best friend'l so to cuttin' up all
manner o. wickedness the minuit his
backs turned
Under ordinary circumstances .Saman-
thy's condemnation OF HIN ought TO have
troubled Dick. bat fer some reason it
failed 10 do SO.
He was taken 10 the milk house and