Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1901-05-17
CHAPTER XIV.

A sleepless night had old John Fol-
som, and with the sun he was up
again and hurriedly dressing. Noise
less as he strove to be he was dis
covered, for as he issued from his
room into the dim light of the upper
hall there stood Pappoose.
"Poor Jess has been awake an hour"
said she. "We've been trying to see
the troops through the glass. They
must have started before daybreak,
for there's nothing on the road to
Frayne."
cit disappeared over the divide three
miles out" he answered vaguely, and
conscious that her clear eyes were
studying his face. 81 didn't sleep
well, either. We shall be having
news from Hal to-day, and the mail
rider comes down from Frayne."
She had thrown about her long,
loose wrapper, and her lustrous hair
tumbled like a brown-black torrent
down over her shoulders and back.
Steadfastly the brown eyes followed
his every move.
sit is an hour to breakfast time.
daddy dear; let me make you some
coffee before you go out"
s'What? Who said was going out %
he asked, forcing smile; then, more
gravely: "I'll be back in thirty min
utes, dear, but wait moment I
cannot. I want to catch a man be-
tore he can possibly ride away"
He bent and kissed her hurriedly,
and went briskly down the stairs. In
the lower hall he suddenly struck a
parlor match that f1ared up and IL
third story. Some thought as sudden
prompted her to glance aloft, just in
time to catch glimpse of woman's
face Withdrawing swiftly over the
balcony rail. In her hatred of any
thing that savored Of spying the girl
could have called aloud a demand
to know what Mrs. Fletcher wanted.
| but strange things were in the wind.
as she was learning, and something
| whispered silence. Slowly she re-
turned to Jessie's side, and together
once more they searched with the
glasses the distant trail that, dis
! tinctly visible now in the slant of the
morning sun, twisted up the north
| ward slopes on the winding way to
Frayne. Not a Whit of dust could
| they see.
Meantime John Folsom strobe swift
ly down the well-known path to the
quartermaster's depot, a tumult of
| suspicion and conjecture whirling in
his brain. AS he walked he recalled
| the many hints and stories that had
come to his ears of Burleigh's ante
cedents elsewhere and his associa-
tions here. With all his reputation
for enterprise and wealth, there were
SHADY" tales of gambling transac-
| tions and sailed mines and watered
stocks that attached perhaps more
| directly to the men with whom he
| foregathered than to him. "a man
is known by the company he keeps, IS
said Folsom, and Burleigh's cronies,
until Folsom came to settle in Gate
City, had been almost exclusively
among the ssharps," gamblers and
| their kindred, the projectors and pros
! pectors ever preying on the unwary
on the outer wave of progress. With
in the past six months he had seen
much of him, for Burleigh was full of
business enterprises, had investments
everywhere, was lavish in invitation
and suggestion, was profuse in offers
of aid of any kind if aid were want
ed. He had gone so far as to say that
he knew from experience how with his
| wealth tied up in real estate and
mines q man often found himself in
! need Of few thousand In spot cash,