The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-26

BY STEWART EDWARD WHITE.
Copyrighted by Mcclure, Phillips & Co.

| wanted TO near more ABOUT II. 1HeIe-
fore it's speed was not as rapid as it
/ might have been, had horse thief, for
instance. been the object of pursuit.
So Lafond. after his first impulse
to get away from the scene of his deed
! had spent itself. logged along unmo-
/ Tested toward Rapid. His brain was
working like lightning. but always on
/ one line. He saw himself alone, stand
! ing opposed to this huge black Bad
! luck. Everything was against him.
/ But they couldn't get him down. He
was -who-speaks-M Medicine, the
| Sioux: he was Lafond, the half-breed;
! he was Black Mike the pioneer. Let
them come on! They thought they
could corner him. He would show
them. One was gone. There remained
red; he was set on murder. No con-
| sideration of reason. probability, or
| common sense obtruded itself athwart
his plan. He could perceive one fact
that three men knew his secret, of
whom one was dead and the other two
were living. Why Knapp and Buck
ley should have told Durand what
they expected to gain by going to
Rapid; or what benefit the naturalist
imagined could accrue to him from his
insinuating the state of affairs to the
half breed, the latter did not inquire.
He only knew that he wanted to catch
| Knapps blackboard before it had left
the pine belt. Ambush would then be
easier. He dashed his horses unmerci-
fully
, Rockerville told him the two men
had passed through not half an hour
before, and wondered at the wildness
| of his eye.
That was we'll They could not
! escape him now. for their wagon was
hAn 81
! ing leisurely, having no reason for
haste. Remembering appearances. he
! told Rockerville that it did not much
matter he would not try to catch up;
and then drove back toward Copper
| Creek, only to make a detour by
! wood road into the Rapid trail again.
! AS he approached the foothills, he
! could hear occasionally the creak of a
/ brake below him, by which he knew
that he was drawing near. He slowed
! up at once, for he knew of a short
! cut a mile or so ahead, which the
| prospectors would not attempt because
/ of their heavy load, but by which he
! could come out ahead of his victims.
| Then he would lie in wait. The short
| cut in question dipped steeply down
! into the bed of creek, and as steep
| ly up on the other side; while the
/ main stage road made a long horseshoe
! curve around the head of the canon.
| Lafond decided to drive rapidly down.
/ to leave his team in the creek bot
tom, and to climb on foot to the level
| of the main road on the other side In
! the meantime he drew as near to the
| other wagon as he could without be-
! ing seen. The minutes seemed to drag
At last he discerned the dimly blaz-
! ed trail, rocky and dangerous enough
which dropped sheer away into the un-
! derbrush below. He locked the brakes
/ oh To he
! The descent was hazardous, bumpy,
exceedingly noisy. For this reason it
! was not until he had reached the level
! ground at the bottom of the canon and
the clash of iron tire against stone had
ceased, that he became aware the ra-
vine was already occupied. A sound
| or voices and laughter floated up
through the thin screen of leaves. AS
| the half-breed's vehicle pushed out to-
| ward the creek itself, he saw that he
had unwittingly stumbled on a camp
of Indians up in the Hills on one f
their annual jaunts after teepee poles.
once year they make these ex-
cursions. The whole band-men, wom-
| en-, children, ponies dogs and house
| hold goods-goes along. 1t is an out
| ing The women fell and strip the
| long slender saplings. The men loaf
lazily in front of their temporary shell
tiers or ride about the Hills to the
various camps, giving war dances for
! nickels and silver pieces. The occa-
sion is eminently peaceful.
| Or such nature was the gathering
which Michail Lafond came upon in
the level of the little canon. The wig
vans had been pitched either side of
the old overgrown road. Children had
| cut away the slight underbrush to
clear round smooth park of perhaps
thirty yards diameter, in the circum-
/ ference of which were crowded the
| persons and household belongings of
four score people. Near the center
stood the chiefs lodge distinguished
| by a shield and spear. The whole was
| a facsimile of a plains camp, except
| that here the whole affair was in
miniature-little wigwams, little ket-
! tle-tripods, little space-for the. camp
was but temporary. Perhaps a score
of men were idling about, dressed in
/ blue overalls and old flannel shirts.
! Moccasns and no hats left stiu a
! slight flavor of savagery The women
were clothed for the most part in dirty
! calico prints. The children had on
! just nothing at all.
Lafond cursed a little excitedly as
| he became aware of this not unpic-
turesque gathering. 1t was plainly out
| of the question to leave his horses and
wagon in the creek bottom as he had
intended; and ii was now equally i'm
possible to Waylay the prospectors at
the top of the grade. A shot would