The Nezperce herald. (Nezperce, Idaho) 1900-1957, 1904-06-16

SScocOOCSSSSSe
to be, with a six-shooter handy, ought I
to be able to blum or half-breed. any
rs way"
v IL was while they were cooking SUI
It per In a secluded spot in the ravins
l. just below the first OF the claims the
3 had come 10 operate upon that nigh
o that Josiah learned more OF Henri
y Flatfoot 1t would seem that he mus
6 be the boss bad citizen OF Shast,
o County. Barclay told Josiah that tn,
t half-breed had shot at many men II
r various fights, had stabbed one or two
: and bore the record of his encounter,
: in scars over his body and long knit,
+ mark across his left cheek. HE served
; term in San Quentin" went on Bar
} clay, Eliminating. 1T was after he
tried to hold up the Bieber stage, Ut
, yon way. and was shot in the shoulder
They chased him for five days. He
: was so near petered out that he even
threw away his gun, or some OF them
wouldn't have been so hot to overtake
him. AT last they caught him In a deep
cave on the McCloud, and how do you
s'pose they knew he was back In the
dark hole? 1t was by the shine of his
eyes; they were just like an animals. {"
1t was very dark in the hills at nine
O'Clock At that hour, Pete Barclay
stationed Josiah Godbolt beside the
scrub-oak upon which Henry Flstfoot's
location Of the claim was posted, with
the instruction that when he could feel
both hands OF his big silver watch.
from which the crystal had been re-
moved. pointing straight upward. he
was 10 tear down the half-breed's no
tice and tack up their own as noiseless-
ly as possible Then he was to stand
guard beside the sign of their posses
sion until morning. Pete would do the
same on the other claim
and what If somebody comes snort
ing around here and wants to clean me
out?" asked Josiah
We'll, the law gives a man the right
to defend his property In the certainest
way he knows how, and that's my best
gun you've got In your belt there" re-
piled Pete, as he felt his way into the
little trail which led to the other claim.
half mile away over the hill.
Josiah found his vigil growing tedi-
Gus rapidly He feared to move about
In the darkness, lest he should lose the
tree, and he had been advised not to
disclose his presence to chance prowI- |
ers by striking light For the same |
reason he checked a half-invoIuntary |
Impulse to whistle He slid to the
ground, with his back against the tree.
and occupied himself with thinking
over all he had heard about the half
freed, who would own the very ground
1pon which he was sitting for more
han two hours to come. Surprising
Henry Flatfoot should take a notion 10
Tisit the claim while it still belonged
o him? Who would be the intruder
hen, and on whose side would the Law
Re? Josiah moved his big foot, and the
of twig beneath it startled
i'm and set his heart to beating.
The darkness was so intense that To-
lab could see as little with his eyes
pen as with them shut. He could
OF see the hand on his crooked-ub
nee, and he could not see his right {
and. which. somehow, seemed COM
'rtable only when 1t rested upon the
utt OF the revolver swung loosely in
8 leather belt Many the night when a
: had followed the dogs at a run in '
Ie bottoms along the Mississippi until q
lie .'possum was freed and the axes Z
'uld be swung to fell the perch. but n
had not supposed that night, when q
either snow nor rain was falling. t
'utd be as dark as this Clouds hid II
cry star. In shifting his position he Il
as delighted to discover a glow o.
orm- He seized the insect, and draw 5;
up his cowhide shoes, smeared IL
losphorous on the toe of each. He Il
uld now follow the motion Of his
ct when he moved them, and he felt II
ore collected h,
With limbs numb from sitting so I'll
ny in this posture, Josiah pulled out ca
) watch in haste. Surely It was al 9,
ady past midnight. The long hand tt
IS undoubtedly pointing straight up, al
t an angle separated the short hand W
I'M it. 1t was eleven O'Clock. II
,nry Flatfoot were coming to try to ca
We his claims he would arrive during CT
; next hour. Josiah tried to keep ST
,ughts Of the desperate Indian out of
mind. The night had been very al
u. Suddenly the brush cracked la
yhtly. Josiah found when all was m
mt again that he had unconsciously dc
en- to his feet and was supporting fiji
nself with one hand against the tree al
lie in the other he gripped his re- O,
yer. 1t was only a rabbit moving ex
the chemise, of course. He restored te,
weapon to its place and sank down as
lin. After a time a sound in the I'm
Ssh OF to the other side set him a. We
yer again, but he convinced himself of
t only a toad could make such a for
, noise, though It had sounded loud be
ugh at first When strange night an
! cried out he did not move or an,
ch bis gun, and he told himself that KIT
had banished his silly fears The the
ut wns cold, but somehow he did I'm
feel the chill.
uring the last half-hour before mid
IT, Josiah held his watch on his {"
N and with his finQpra followod tho 49,,