River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1901-08-08

| HhHc' he SoC tiIeu VI nei by ana Dy
and he vamoosed the rancho there
too, and went down near 10 Lo:
Angeles. He got into a scrap there
and the other fellow was a better
shot, l guess. That's ALL"
"Who told you?" asked Maggie.
1.-TWO fellows that was on the cor.
oncr's jury" he answered her.
"What did ne fight for?"
woman" he told her, CURLY "She
was the other mans WIFE"
Maggie's face was so near the color
of the alkali sand outside that it
could not turn pale. And the only ex-
preston of which her eyes had ever
been capable was q duh hopelessness.
So there would have been no guessing
/ how the news affected her except that
her fingers strained until the joints
of them were livid. where's he
planted?" she asked.
He told her the name of the town.
IF you'll marry me now, I'll take
you to see his grave"
Maggie began to cry then. Even
when Dennison had departed she had
not shed tear. So il was all the
worse now. Tears held back for four
years from eyes, heat-dried, come
painfully.
Leslie thought for a while that she
was going TO die. And that would
be his fault 1t occurred to him
that he had perhaps been abrupt.
He had never seen woman cry, be-
cause women had not entered much
into his scheme of things. For a
while he sat and shifted on his chair
and watched, very unhappy indeed
Then he got up and went to her and
put mis- hand on her shoulder tenta-
lively. She pushed it off-and he
felt that he had been unwise again.
So he walked to the door and stood
. there, his feet wide apart, consid-
ering the glazing fiat and looking
back at Maggie, over his shoulder,
now and then.
She cried for good half hour, and
the whole experience frightened Les
lie so much that it was not until
nearly sunset that he dared get up to
the subject again. He meant to go
at it tactfully this time, but it came
at the end of long, strained pause.
"Say-what about our getting Joined
in wedlock and all that-anyway? 2"
He held his breath for fear she would
cry again.
But she took it quietly this time
Il amt sure he's dead" she answered.
II am" said Leslie. But I'll go
fetch the fellows that told me about
it, and you can find out for your
self" He went out and saddled his
broncho, and departed by the way
he had come. "Tll be back" he said
lie had no idea where the fellows
were to be found They had been
prospectors, and might be anywhere
in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado or
California by now. But though his
phrasing might have been less pol
ished, his sentiments were indentical
with those of Calonne-if it We're but
impossible, it should be done. 1t
took him four months to do it. But
at the end of that time he rode up to
the adobe again. There were two
men with him, and they went into
details that caused Maggie to be con-
yinced
"All right" she said to Leslie that
night 'I'll marry you" 1t was not
enthusiastic, but Leslie made allow
ances, and took what he could get.
So, the next morning, the ranch
was left in charge of the two
yaqueros, the Mexican woman, the
IA children and five mongrel dogs
And Maggie and Leslie rode off, side
by side, with the two men bringing
up the rear. The same padre who
had made her Mrs Dennson made
her Mrs. Leslie now, and gave her
his blessing. She took it stolidly.
Then she and her husband took the
the train for California, to see DEN
nisons grave.
The head board to it had the sur
name in black letters on plain board
ground Maggie did not like that,
so Leslie paid for a new onc--white,
painted with the Christian names as
well. When it was duly put up, they
went on their way. The way was to-
ward the Mojave. Leslie had mining
interests up there. and, being in rhe
general neighborhood, he took the
opportunity Of looking them up.
At Moiave they left the train, hired
a wagon and proceeded toward the
interior. All day they drove along
a road that wound between soft
rolling hills. pale brown, shrub
flecked. The sun scorched. Near the
railway there were small cultivated
hits, where green things grew. But
they stopped after a while. BY after
noon it was desolation.
"Where'n we put up to-night?"
Maggie asked the first time there
had been a word in two hours or
more.
There was a house ahead, he told
her. He had inquired as to that 1t
was IS miles from the railway more
on less and it belonged to one Den
mis- it seemed.
They came to ii in due time, but
Dennis himself was not around lust
then. His wife explained that he