The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1906-09-20
CHAPTER XII.

of rage, the Pole dragged out his re-
volver and fired. As he did so, the sharp
hum of bullet, like the buzz of an
angry bee, fed over us. l ducked my
head at the sound; but give myself the
credit of saying that poked it up again
the next moment
May the iend grip him, but he has
a Mauser pistolv' cried Reski. and l saw
that the weapon in his own hand was
of the common bulldog make. AT this
range I can do nothing against him."
He dashed his horses, and they plunged
calamity forward. / could see that Mar
nae had stopped his sleigh and was cud-
ding his weapon with a perfect COOL
ness. Even at that distance l seemed
TO feel the goggling murder in his eyes,
Zip. zip. He had missed Jain!
Thung' / saw one of the galloping
horses s-sgger, and then his head and
shoulders seemed to fall away, as if he
had dropped forward into hole. There
was humping and twisting wrench,
the snow by the roadside seemed to
spring up at me, and the next instant
was struggling in cold, binding darkness.
l wriggled out from the drift. gasp
ing, with the flakes in my mouth and
eyes, The sleigh IVES twisted across the
road, half covering the dead horse. The
other two had scrambled to their feet
and now stood shivering. with dropping
heads The fail had knocked the heart
clean out of them. Reski lay beside
them, huddled where he had fallen.
Eighty yards away Marnac had stopped
and was watching US. He seemed salts
fed with what he saw, for presently he
turned and, lashins his team, trotted on
down the road.
l don't suppose it was more than
couple of minutes before Reski came
round. though it seemed long enough TO
me. He had got a nasty thump on the
head, but as a matter of fact his wrist
turned out TO be the more serious bust
ness, being very badly sprained indeed.
| made sling out of neck wrap aud
fixed him up as well as 1 was able. The
man had remarkable vitality, besides
brute courage. for, the moment | had
finished, he walked over and examined
the sleigh.
1t looked hopeless enough. One of the
runners had been torn almost clean away,
and the central part was badly cracked.
The body of tie poor lad Ivan lay on its
back in the roadway, staring up at the
sky. | threw a rug over it.
We'll. we can't so on, that's certain"
I said
Not in the sleigh. mein Herr he
answered calmly.
And how else?"
There are the horses, one for each.
When you have freed them of their har-
ness, l win ask you to assist me TO
mount"
There was no good arguing with him.
than a man in his crippled condition.
With his clasp knife I cut the twists
traces away and freed them of th,ir
collars At his direction | dragged the
body of Ivan into the sleigh and left him
there decently covered.
Reski mounted from the stump of q
tree. 10 which | led the stronger of the
pair. | was a fairly good rider but |
was excessively stiff from my long drive,
and not a little shaken by my fall. Nv
beast seemed to have the sharpest knife
bone of a back that Nature ever gave
to horsefesh. But. after all, there was
nothing to be gained by grumbling. Per
haps l was growing wiser by painful ex-
perience.
A curious pair we must have looked
that morning. Reski. with his arm in A
sling. and the butt of his revolver peep
ing from his waist belt, would have made
as good stage brigand as need be. For
myself, l was in too much of immediate
pain from the jolting trot of the brute
rode to carry formidable appearance.
could never have imagined that a
horse lived with such adamantine fet-
locks as mine seemed TO possess.
I have no exact record of the time.
but should imagine that it was about
half an hour later that we sighted Mar
nae again. He was then a good three
quarters of mile ahead. but travelling
Ieisurely Also, was very glad to no
tice that we were free of the waste lands.
and that the spire of a church was pok-
ins out amongst some poplars ahead of
him. He would never dare to use his
revolver a second time when men were
about Also. We might procure another
sleigh and team.
Reski sent his heels into his horse. ind
we quickened our pace, though the poor
brutes were getting very done and drove
heavily along with hanging heads. 1t
was about then that / noticed a man be-
hind Us.
We were topping a slight rise when !
looked round. He was then some dis
lance in our rear, but coming up fast. As
fer as could make out, he was in a sort
of uniform and well mounted. The nos.
sibility of official help was very pleas
ant
We were gaining on Marnac, who had
not yet noticed US.
With kicks and curses from Reskj. and
the application of a hazel branch from
myself, we had squeezed numbering
gallop out of our horses The sleigh was
not more than one hundred yards away.
Reski gripped his reins in his teeth and
drew his revolver.
stop, there! Stop, say. in the name
Of the lawr'
It was the man from behind who hail
ed Us. but we rode on.
stop, or / frei'
pulled up. / don't think 1t was very
cowardly when you think Of it. Besides.
I was anxious to explain.
Resk rode on
The man who had shouted flashed by
me, travelling at an easy gallop. He was
dressed In a neat green uniform an
carried drawn revolver.
Reski rode on.
II was all over in a moment. The
stranger cried another warning. to which
the Pole answered with a snarl over HI
shoulder. The next instant there was
sharp report. and Reski's horse pitche.
forward, throwing his rider clear. he
was then scarcely thirty yards from Mar
macs sleigh
The Pole was not hurt apparently, for
despite his injured arm he scrambled to
his/<eet in an instant. But he had lost
bis revolver in his fall and was helpless.
he began furious explanation in his ma
tionaI tongue, dropping the hated Ian
guage of his Teuton conquerors.
Speak in German, you Polish dogw
growied his captor, and then turning on
NE as / rode up
Here, you," he said. "dismount and
stand by your accomplish. If you resist,
I shootr'
II obeyed. From his manner he was
without doubt a policeman. Also l re-
spect the law.
Now. you," he said, addressing me,