Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1903-08-29
CHAPTER VIII.
MY UNCLE's ENEMIES.

rushing on at q stride to a stage in ouI
! confidence which ought to be of a later
date. If, indeed. of any date; for when
a man sat before a great fire in a great
house, well provided with everything
necessary to living except the mere
counters Of money. 1t seemed to me
that he was crying out before he was
hurt.
Uncle" said /, as the thought
flashed into my mind, who are these
men who are haunting the country, the
men who seized Miss Vaughan
My uncle went as white as paper and
arew In his breath suddenly. His dark
eyes dilated and glowed, but whether
IN anger or fear l could not tell.
X Gwylliaid Cochion," he said in a
low voice. and then, as If the sound
fascinated him, he repeated slowly
again, Y Gwylliaid Cochion.'
That's the name / heard said 1,
and told him of the little saddler who
would not venture into the hills.
They are a band of thieves" said my
uncle. and very ferocious, dangerous
fellows, too. 'Gwylliaid' means men
who move about in the dusk, 'Cochlon'
Is the mere adjective red. 1t is applied
to them because they are all red-haired.
They marry n intermarry in n in
among the band, and 1 believe that a
black haired one was never whelped.
- - as hAlI "oaAe q aAGpNoS
of it to keep up their tradition"
The Red Men of the Dusk" said I.
why dusk7"
Because" replied Sir Arthur, they
lie by closely in the day and never stir
until the dusk falls. You might march
through their very haunts in daylight.
and you would go safely. But let the
sun set and find o on the hills with
no shelter ear at hands n you may
turn your head and see n moving on
you as noiseless as a shadow and as un-
expectedly as If the earth had yawned
behind you n flung him forth. 1t Is
this popularity OF theirs which makes
people so frightened of them. Many Of
the Ignorant are more than half per-
suaded that the Red Men Of the Dusk
are not mortal, but are evil spirits of
the mountain"
There is a man among them. in u
thority, who seemed mortal enough"
said 1. Il met him by chance. and he
was willing enough to quarrel and fight
n q terrible fighter he was"
/ began to describe the swordsman,
n my uncle held up his hand before
l had said a dozen words.
"Ieuan Gwyllt," he said; that Is, In
English, Wild John"
l went on to describe our encounter,
n at the mention of our crossing
swords, my uncle looked up with ex-
tradorinary interest.
You killed him." he cried, eagerly;
SAY you killed him."
THAT was more than 1 could do in
fair fight" / rejoined; II had a chance
Of doing 1t, certainly, but it was not a
chance which a gentleman could take"
What chance? How?" painted my
uncle.
I told the story.
And 1 say nephew, that you are lit
tie better than an idiot screamed my
uncle, with your foolish notions n
raw fancies Of honor and fair play and
the like. here Ia your enemy-kill him;
1 say-kill him. To think you had
Ieuan Gwyllt at your feet and spared
given half 1 possess to enjoy such a
chance" He sprang from his chair and
paced the room excitedly. He looked
at me with a scowl, and 1t Is possible
hat L was looking black also, for 1
felt by nc means pleased with the COM
pliments my relative had showered upon
me. Sir Arthur stopped suddenly and
smiled. IT was not q happy smile, and
when he laughed, as he proceeded to do,
there was no mirth In the sound.
"Geoffrey," said he. your story ex-
cited me not a little, and / fear my ex-
element carried me beyond the bounds
Of p~oliteness. II you only knew what
reasons I have to hate Ieuan Gwyllt,
you would have given him no quarter
but would instantly have struck him
out Of my path!"
"Out of your path, .ir?" said I, for
he had half a~pologized. and that was
enough for me from an old man and a
les relation.
"Out Of my path" repeated Sir Ar
thur. 1.-THE story Is this: Five and
twenty years or more ago the father
Of Ieuan Gwyllt belonged to those OF
whom ws have been speaking. Ths
chief Of that day died, and a fierce
quarrel arose between two cousins for
the vacant place. The one who was
worsted left the band, and settled,
without his origin being known, on this
estate. He was the father Of Ieuan
Gwyllt, and Ieuan, then a child, came
with him. Until two years ago Ieuan
was a favored tenant, treated by me
with the utmost consideration and
kindness. Then he took it into his
head that he had some grievance
against me, and twice l was fired at
as T rode home in the dusk"
HE tried to kill you-a tenant on the
estate tried to kill you!" I exclaimed,
for matters were on quite another
footing at Butley Croft, and, for mat
ter of that, everywhere else of which /
knew In Worcestershire.
HE tried to kill me- repeated my
uncle, dropping his hand with solemn
and deliberate gesture on the table.
II endeavored to restrain him, as much
to save him from the consequences
which his violent temper would bring
upon him as to protect myself, but he
fled to his tribe. Here he Don rose
to authority, and he has made use of
1t to draw them to this side of the
country. Partly, also, they had made
their old haunts too hot to hold them"
"And you think that his movement
is directed against your" l asked.
"I know It," said Sir Arthur, with de-
cision. ''These people, Geoffry, are hot
of temper, vindictive and t~reacherous
to q degree. They never forgive and
never forget. Their love of revenge is
a thing incredible. They will go
through fire and water to reach it, and
to wait for it merely infiames them;
they will make it the deeper and blood
Ter when they get it."
do you expect them to attack this
house?" / asked.
"It would not surprise me, indeed"
said Sir Arthur, gloomily.
But what can they do with pixies
against such a strong place as this?"
said 1. "A dozen stout fellows could
hold this house against a regiment un-
provided with cannon"
"Ay, ay," said my uncle. but a regi-
ment comes on with drum and trum-
pet, and you know where to lCok for
them. But these fellows come on you
as the mist glides over the bill" He
fell silent, tapping with his foot upon
the floor and looking into the fire. A
question has been in my mind for some
time, and i put 1t.
why" said l, twas Master Vaughan
so eager to fight with me when he
found / was an Englishman?"
Partly" replied my uncle, because
he is a hot-headed fool. and partly be-
cause he has reason. His father Joined
the kings army a little before Naseby
fight, and either was promised, or be-
lieved he was promised, q regiment.
However, a gentleman from Wor-