Democratic messenger., 1903-11-07

vANCED.
chances and coming out on top. The
laborers in the mine were always ripe
for mutiny, but he had held them in
hand without bluster. They noted his
quietness and his grimness, and they
feared him more than if he had talked
and threatened. They said to each 9TH
er that devil lurked under his placid
demeanor and if that devil was ever
aroused it would demand blood.
Scott didn't set out for forty mile
tramp through a tropical forest when
he found that he had been left behind.
He simply settled down to stay on and
receive visitors and dispense such hos
pitalities as the situation afforded. Nei-
ther of the belligerent factions was
likely to disturb him for a week or 80,
but other callers might drop in any
day.
Pedro the Devil was abroad in the
land. Pedro was the leader Of guer-
rilla band. He was a rObber and a
murderer in peace; he was pretty fair
specimen of a fiend when war was on.
He had not acquired his title in day.
On the contrary, it had not come to
him until he had shot, hanged or cut
the throats of 200 or 300 prisoners. He
was not at all particular in his killing.
Everything was fish that came to his
net, be it an American, an Englishman.
a German or one of his own country
men.
Pedro had a way about him. 1t was
a suave, slick, oily way. He interro-
gated his prisoners with a grin on his
face, and he sent them to their death
with smile that was bland. He prid-
ed himself on his suavity. Pedro's
band had been heard of within twenty
miles of the mine on the morning of it's
abandonment, and it could be safely
figured that he would look in on tile
Union before leaving for other fields
He might find no throats to cut, but
there would be considerable plunder
and opportunity for destruction. Pc
dro knew the power of blasting powder
and had used it with great success to
blow down stone walls and to blow
open iron doors.
Scott went to work with pick and
shovel and dug many holes on the level
ground in front of the stone office
building. He was at this work all day
long Every hole received a deposit
after being dug to certain depth and
was then covered up again. Copper
wires connected one hole with another,
and then a signal wire was led into the
stone house and connected with an
electrical battery.
It was sundown before he had fin
ished his labors, and he ate his supper
and smoked couple of cheroots and
waited for Pedro the Devil. Pedro was
taking things easy a dozen miles away.
He had church to blow up in case the
priest failed to raise ransom money,
and there were half a dozen prisoners
to be done to death in different ways.
Being thus employed and not knowing
that any one was waiting at the Union
to interview him, he did not arrive un-
til 3 o'clock p. M. the next day. He
had forty of his cutthroats with him,
and he smiled one of his blandest
smiles when he saw Scott sitting alone
in the open door of the Office building.
The smile grew blander as he ad-
vanced alone and greeted the superin-
tendent with:
"Senor Scott. take 1t that the mine
has been closed down on account of the
war and that all the people have left
but you?"
"You take it correctly" was the quiet
reply.
"And your mission is to guard the
mine, to keep intruders at distance?"
"You've hit it, Pedro. I have been
expecting you and your murderers all
day. and now that you have finally
shown up let us have plain under
standing. am here to defend this