Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1904-09-07

a battlemented tower, or, better. Oh
some vast fantastic crown To the
east there was a cleft, where willows
and underbrush grew thickly On
steep slope: and enid them issued
tiny spring
could hear barking and splitting
from somewhere in the rock. and de-
termined to Chamber up and see how
my dogs were faring. l struggled up
through the tangled underground.
then, with knees and fingernails up
slippery slope of sandstone, and
checked myself at the top just in time
to avoid breakneck fall :.
For the great rock was hollow. Just
as the sheer walls rose on the outside
so they fell within. enclosing a great
pit, perhaps 80 yards in length and Is
broad. In one corner were the bul.
pups, actively assailing the cat. How
had they come there? Examining the
pit more carefully, l saw that on one
side there was a difficult entrance.
where the rock sloped down, and the
sheer drop was only about seven feet,
though there was no unaided exit for
man or beast. l fetched lariat FROM
my horse, made a dangerous scramble
among the mushroom-headed rocks.
and, securing my rope round the stem
of one of them, let myself down just
in time 10 assist at the obsequies OF
the cat.
The field of battle had conferred near
small hole in the rocky wall, which
pack rat had partly filed with brush
and various rubbish This had been
disturbed by the cat and dog encoun-
ter, and further in the hole I saw what
looked like brown leather. Brown
leather it proved to be-a check book
of the kind that folds over, and serves
for holding other documents.
The checks had been used, and the
counterfoils were scrubbed over in pen
Gil The pencil writing was hard to
decipher, but very short inspection
satisfied me that it was a diary kept
by Archie Sparks.
This is what he wrote:
October 1S-Pain in my foot is awful
but l must write, as l do not expect to
get out of here alive. Why did he dc
it? But you do not know yet what he
did, so l will tell. Yesterday we came
here and camped at the little spring
Started TO explore the rocks about sun
set Found the way into the hollow
and let myself down by a rope Left
both rifles at the top, and Clark Fen
ton was to follow me down. Instead OF
doing so, he pulled up the rope, saying:
This place will do as we'll as any
and shot me through the right foot
Shock must have made me faint, as
heard him saying things l didn't I'M
derstand. Finally wished me a pleas
ant evening; said I should see him to-
morrow, and went away. Fenton must
be mad, to attack me like this, and |
doubt if help arrives in time
October 19-Fenton is worse thar
mad-he is Minnie's brother Minnie
was my Chicago girl, you know Was
mining in Oregon then, and l never
saw him. Now he tells me he is going
| to watch me starve to death, and hopes
l will enjoy it. Pain in foot worse.
and leg swollen. He let me down wa
ter in a tin bucket; says he wants me
to have plenty of time. l see no hope.
October 20-Screamed all day, but
| Fenton, or Johnson, as his real name
| is, told me to go ahead and scream
Pain in foot less, but awful cramps ir
| stomach. He eats his meals in full
view of me. l ate gooseberry leaves.
October 21-Minnie came to see mt
| to-day with baby in her arms: opened
a way for me out of the rock; l started
| to follow, but fell down, down, down.
October 22-Poor Minnie
After this there were only few fee
| BILE scrawls.
We have turned over all the loos,
sand in the hollow, and have had large
| gangs of men examine the ground il
| all directions, but have come on nc
other evidence that would support the
! idea that poor Archie was buried in the
neighborhood
| Up to date there has been no new:
of Johnson, alias Fenton.
| He is thickset, speaks with nasa
accent and never swears.