Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1904-03-22

crowd and made him get up on the
fence and confess that his prisoners
had escaped. at what time he did not
know. probably toward the beginning
Of the storm. when it was noislest.
you see." cried the attorney. there
is nothing US yet of which we can ac-
cuse the Crossroads. If our friend has
been hurt it is much more likely that
these crooks did it. They escaped in
time to do it. and we all know they
were laying for him. You want to be
mighty careful. fellow citizens. Hor-
ner is already in telegraphic communi.
cation with every town around here.
and he'll have those men before night.
All you've got to do is to control your
selves little and 30 home quietly"
He could see that his words Except
those in reference to returning home
no one was going home) made an I'M
preston. There was babb!e Of shout
ing and argument and swearing that
grew louder and louder.
Mr.. Ephraim Watts. in spite Of all
confusion. clad as carefully as upon
the preceding day. deliberately climbed
the fence and stood by the lawyer and
made single steady gesture with his
hand. He was listened to at once, as
his respect for the law was less noto-
rious than his irreverence for it. and
he had been known in Carlow US GUS
tomarily reckless man. They want
cd illegal and desperate advice and
auieted down to hear it. He spoke in
his professionally calm voice.
Gentlemen. it seems to me that Mr..
Smith and MIR. Ribshaw." nodding to
the man with the rawhide whip, "are
both right. What good are we doing
here? What we want to know is what's
happened to Mr.. Harkless. 1t looks
just now like the shell men might have
done it. Let's find out what they done.
Scatter and hunt for him. Soon as any
things known for certain Hibbard's
mill whistle will blow three times.
Keep on looking till it does; them" he
finished. with a barely perceptible
scornful smile at the attorney-"then
we can decide on what had ought be
done"
Six Crossroads lay dark and steam
ing in the sun that morning. The forge
was silent. the saloon locked up. the
roadway deserted even by the pigs.
The broken old buggy stood rotting in
the mud without a single lean little old
man or woman-such were the chill
dren Of the Crossroads-to play about
It. Once. when the deputy sheriff rode
through alone. a tattered black hound.
more wolf than dog, half emerged.
growing. from beneath one Of the
tumbledown barns and was jerked
back into the darkness by his tail, with
q snarl fiercer than his own. while a
gun barrel shone for second as 1t
swung for stroke on the brute's head.
The hound did not yelp or whine when
the blow fell. He shut his eyes twice
and skunk sullenly back to his place.
The shantics might have received a
volley or two from some Of the mount
ed bands. eyasperated by futile search.
ing. had not the escape Of Horner's
prisoners made the guilt Of the Cross
roads appear doubtful in the minds OF
many. AS the morning waned the ad-
vocates Of the theory that the GAM
blers had made away with Harkless
grew in number There came tele'
gram from the Rouen chief Of polic'.
that ne had clew to their whereabouts
He thought they had succeeded i:
reaching Rouen. and it began to 81
generally believed that they had
taped by the / o'clock freight train.
which had stopped to take on some
empty cars ut Il side track a mile north
west of town, across the fields from
the Briscoe house. Toward noon q
party went out to examine the rail
road embankment.
Men began to come back into the vii
lage for breakfast by twos and threes,
but many kept OIL searching the woods,
not feeling the need of food or caring
If they did. Every grow. uld clump
of underbrush, every thickct, was ran
sacked. The waters of the creek. shall.
low for the most part, but swollen
overnight, were dragged at every pool.
Nothing was found. There was not a
sign.
The bar Of the hotel was thronged
all morning as the returning citizens
rapidly made their way thither, and
those who had breakfasted and were