The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1902-12-12

fortune and the legacy, which con.
sisted wholly in cash, was ready for
delivery upon proof Of the identity
OF the person named. They went to
New York and Martin, who somewhat
resembled the legal neir, swore to the
rights of William Lyle and James
swore to his identity, the agreement
being that they should share the ILL.,
gotten gains equally. They remained
in New York until communication
could be had with the courts OF
Scotland. The evidence sent was so
accurate as to details that the money
was sent without hesitation.
During their stay in New York
they busted themselves looking up
the whereabouts of the defrauded
brother, who was a dissolute fellow
and who had become physical
wreck at last accounts. He had mar
ried In New York and had one child
"a boy and later had drifted ia
Chicago and then no trace had been
heard of him. But they learned that
there was sailor who was intimately
acquainted with the circumstances,
but who at the tine had gone on
long voyage to sea. They had taken
the precaution to find the sailors ad-
dress and the cripple had remembered
it. 1t was the purpose in sending AL.
Beach to New York to find this sailor
IL possible and then trace down the
rlghtful heirs to the property, hoping
by this means to bring the Lord OF
Tho nocort faoo IN fooo V,i4I tha Iox,
and mete out punishment to him.
This had been the sole desire of the
cripple and trapper for many years,
and they had been working together
to carry out the plan prompted by the
sole desire that justice be done.
The cripple had long since paid
the penalty Of his crime and while he
related the circumstances with some
embarrassment his conscience was
now at ease for the part he had taken
II, the swindle. except that he desired
to see the real heirs in possession OF
their inheritance.
But the part of the story that made
tears come to the eyes of Bertha fol
lowed this. On the return of Jim and
The Lord Of The Desert to their
ranch where now stands the great
Stone House the brothers grew
more distant from each other.
Scarcely civil word ever passed be.
tween them and Martin was continual
ly plotting with Dan Follett.
One cold winter day while James
and Follett were riding the range
they took shelter from a snow storm
in a cavern in the rimrocks. Unex-
pected to James the Canadian ap-
preached him from the rear and gave
him a stunning blow across the head
with a branding iron which he had
carried into the cavern. He repeated
the blows until he thought his victim
was dead and dumped his body into
a crevasse by the wall Of the cavern
It was the following day before James
Lyle regained consciousness, and the
snow and sleet had blown in from
above almost covering his body. His
hands and feet were frozen. but not.
withstandlng this condition he
climbed out of the crevasse and half
walking and half-dragging himself, he
started for the ranch to inform his
brother Of the murderous assault Of
the Frenchman.
He arrived late at night In a blind
ing snow storm and was about to en-
ter the house when he saw the
Frenchman and his brother in earnest
conversation, and heard the French
man give the details of his own muir
der and saw his brother pay him
$500 for the deed.
He went to the stables, procured n
horse and rode away in the binding
storm. After this he lost conscious.
pess and did not regain II until he
found himself in the trapper's home.
who had found him and rescued him
from the storm on the plains.