The Savannah morning news., 1903-05-10

ty had taken part amusedly. They
were under the command of the scouts.
When the scouts ordered speed. speed
was made. When they said to climb
hills. hills We're climbed. When they
advised difficult fOrds, the difficulties
of crossing We're overcome. If the 9TH
er train had trouble keeping up with
the procession, why. that was good
enough fun. But actual resistance was
a different matter. After all, accord
ing to their lights, these other men
were entirely in the right. They had
been excluded from the expedition, on
the basis of a rule which had been
agreed to after some grumbling; and
now that the rule had been broken by
the very trainers of IL, there seemed to
be no longer fair grounds of exclusion;
and therefore a certain rough sense of
justice inclined them TO take sides
with the bearers of the pea rifles in
the rear. At the same time, they felt
the truth of Billys statement. that it
would be impossible TO get so unwieldy
Il caravan over the rough country and
through the dangers to come. So, see
ing reason on both sides, they main
tanned a guarded neutrality.
Resistance being out of the question,
the three next considered the other
horn of the dilemma. Alfred rode over
to examine the prospective addition to
the party He found the animals in
poor condition, partly because of the
forced marches he had himself impos-
ed. In his opinion they would not last
out the journey, and he SO reported, to
the great CONSERVATION of the other
two.
While they lamented, Prue came up
and heard a part. She demanded the
whole, and they told her frankly. The
heroine of romance, realizing herself
the cause of the trouble, would have
offered to return with the other wom-
en-, and so the whole question would
have been resolved; but Prue was only
a very nice little woman, in love with
her husband. Her chief concern was
not the triumph of eternal justice, but
whether the whole expedition would
cCme 10 nothing. She pondered
IF you can't keep them from going
with US, and if you can't get through
if they do go with US she said final
~, sit seems TO me that the only way
10 fix it would be to do something SO
they couldn't go" with which vague
hint this Puritan looked wickedly at
them all, and went away, clinching her
small hands with anger. From the
hint, they made a plan to which all
three agreed.
Next morning Jim reused the camp
an hour earlier than usual. and insist
ed on an immediate departure. The
horses were hiuched. and the break
fast things put away. Then Alfred
rode over to the other camp, with Jim
and Billy following at a little distance.
People start camp on the plains, in
q safe country, by arranging the wag-
ons in a rough semicircle. Behind this
] semicircle the horses are hobbled, and
1 left to Craze. In front of it the cook
I ing-flre is built. During the night, be-
| sides the regular sentinels, one man is
/ assigned to ride herd, but this is un-
necessary in full daylight; SO at break
! fast the horses are left TO Craze quite
! unprotected. In hostile country, pick
! ct ropes and more care are needed
! This party had so hobbled twenty-fouT
! animals-four to each wagon, which is
| a scant supply.
! Alfred cantered rapidly up to the
/ herd from the east. He had made a
| long detour, so as to approach in the
| eye of the sun. With the twelve cham
/ bers Of his reyolvers he killed eleven
I horses. As 1 have said. Alfred was one
OF the best pistol shots in the Middle
! West. After this, he put spurs to his
/ mount, and shot away like an arrow
| in the direction of his own camp.
The unsuspiciOus mountaineers, at
/ breakfast did not gather their wits
until too late. Then eight of them leap
ed fercely upon some of the remain
/ ing animals, and pursued the wagon
train. which. under the frantic urging
! of Billy and Jim. was already under
/ way in close order. A few of their bull
lets spattered against the wagon bod
les, and they wounded a horse.