Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1905-03-24
CHAPTER x.

DARREL AGAIN AT THE HALF WAY
HOUSE,
Darrell tarried for breakfa;t at the
Half Way house. Here he had the
first opportunit. of testing the eff
fectiveness of his disguise.
The shrinking personality of the
| man in corduroys was we'll assumed.
In dismounting st the stable, Jimmie.
the hostler, wished him brusuue
"howdy," then averted his face,
winked at friend standing near by
and thrust his tongue in his cheek.
Dislike was written large in the pro-
prietors face wht.n Darrell entered the
office. Darrell gave small heed to this
and dropped into chair with his eyes
on second man who happened to be
in the room at that moment.
This man was zone other than the
youth whose money Darrell had saved
at Hawkbill's and who had SO well re-
paid the debt. ThH young mans keen
glance swept the fugitive then turned
away without the aiightest sign of rec
ognition.
| "The sheriff went up War Eagle way
last night" said tho proprietor, resum-
ing his conversation with the young
! man.
with the intention of investigating
the explosion?"
II reckon that's it. He wants tc
make out whether the Sandy Bar chaps
told the facts or Jest rung in q yer.
sion of the Rabian Nights onto him.
Tive been up the trail and looked
over the ground nnd there can't b.
the slightest doubt of what happened.
There was an undsrtone Of regret and
sadness in the young mans voice.
| Here's the pint" returned the pro
prietor, argumentatively. SIS 1t pos
sible to snake man off'n the eartl
in tina. a-way2"
| Five hundred pounds of dyna
mite
II know about that There amt nc
question in my mind but that thai
much giant powder 'ud lay out rigi
ment, but here: would it wipe out the
remains of regiment, or of even one
man? 1t don't seem sensible, not tel
me-
| There wasn't trace OF the wager
left; and If the wagon was sponget
out SO effectually why not Darrel?"
1t was the same argument used b,
Cliff and it was unanswerable.
WELL was the logged answer, "Il
alters have my doubts, anyways. On,
things sure: Uncle Alb was in lucl
ter git jounced out'n the wagon be
fore the blow-up, an the team was il
luck ter break away from the Wagon
an git out O. range. The sheriff ii
comm back this afternoon an thel
maybe We'll know more. Wonder VIII,
gets Murgatroyd's thousand dollars ?"
ut isn't likely that any one will &c
it."
Hardly, that's fact. 1t was quicl
action, don't We Think" The propri
etor laughed jestingly. The Sand,
Bar boys were saved bad job tina
might have looked ugly for them be
fore they got through"
They'd have lynched Darrell If the,
had caught him."
Wouldn't they, though? They,
have hung him higher'n Hannah an
tween you an me, it would have beel
good enough fer i'm"
That's where you're wrong" sal
the youth, warmly; mo mob ever We
had moral right to lynch man
ooh, shucks!"
And if the Sandy Bar boys had beel
able to carry out their lawless de
signs they'd have hung man who's
guilt had yet to be proved"
You're plum crazy!" declared tn
proprietor.
Where the discussion would hav
led the two is problemaucal. Just the
the Chinaman walked through the OF
flee with his song.
"Breakfus Teddy" he announced
and began hammering out the alarr
in front of the door.
When Darrell sat down at the tabl
the proprietor posted himself at tn
dining-room entrance and watched hir