The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-11-25
Co., Haf1Aia. NY. Propgiatoss.

above her ten miles away. Five men, all mounted, came upon him as he was saddlinE up and called upon him to surrender. He yelled back in defiance, and taking cover, he stood them off for | half an hour, wounding two and being | himself grazed by bullet Then, as , the survivors began to work around to | his rear, the man mounted his bronco and fled down the trail at full speed. The three unwounded men pursued him, l firing whenever the curving trail brought him into sight. The girl in the gorge heard the shooting and shout ing, but could not locate the sounds. I In her alarm she rose to her feet and was looking up and down, seeking to make out the situation, when a man and horse came over the top of the cliff l above her and crashed into a tree fifty feet down. Thence they affected into the top of 6 second tree, thirty feet lower, and as she gazed with wide open l eyes, the two bodies brought up in the creek almost at her feet. She heard
 the shouts of men and the chatter of
 horses's hoofs above, but both soon
 passed out of hearing.
 The girl sprang from the rock and
 bent over the bodies in the creek. The horse was dead, but the rider lived In
 moment she had dragged him out of | the creek, and as he came to he stared
 at her in stupid surprise. Sitting up l after moment, he dreamily asked: Did come over the cliff there?"
 You did" was the answer, 'and your horse lies dead In the creek. Those trees broke your fall"
 Much obliged to the trees. Did the sherifrs party keep on down the trail?"
 So the sheriff was after your she queried, as she stepped back pace. Yes; but give me a chance to tell my side of the story. had a claim
 up on tbA mountain and a hound of a
 man jumped it. I tried to shoot him out. That's the game in these parts,
 and there's nothing criminal about it. Don't be afraid of me. You belong to
 some camping-out party, I suppose?" "Yes, and I will ride back and get | help for you" t
 'Donx do 1t. If you'll help me a bit can get along here all right,
 Help me up against the wall. Thanks.
 Now, then, I'll want blanket and l some food, and shall depend on you. You have the soul of an artist, and, therefore, plenty of romance. We will
 stop at romance. It will be an inci- dent for you to think of, and 1t will esave me making long explanations to the sheriff. Shall 1t be as say, or will you leave me to make a dinuer for the first bear that comes along? Don't take too much trouble, and keep think
 ing what a romantic incident it is. No love-no matrimony-just romance"
 There was something in the reckless
 nature of the man that appealed to Miss Gussie. She doubted that he had told her the truth about himself but he was temporarily helpless and she sympathized with him. She gave him her monday lunch and rode away to camp, returning with a blanket and further provisions She suggested the camp again, but the man made light of his shaking up aud declared he was doing very well. Give him three or four days and he would be ready to go his way.
 When the girl left the gorge on this occasion, it was understood that she was not to return next day. but early next morning she stole a bottle of lini- ment from the medicine chest, bribed the cook to put up luncheon for two, and rode away for further sketching. She found the stranger stiff and lame, but more talkative than the day before, On this occasion she saw more romance in the affair. He was a fairly good looking man. He was a victim of in- justice. He had passed through a great peril. He was what she had al- ways hungered to behold--a hero.
 Miss Gussie fingered for an hour and then left the things she had brought, taking her departure to re- appear next day and the next and the next. In brief, her visits were made daily for the next seven days, and each day she saw that her bad man was making improvement. On the last day she found him waiting at the plum trees He had furnished himself up as best he could and looked more present.