Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1907-10-31

have no action
or all those present only Cherry Ma
lotte OWNED even vaguely the real rea-
son which prompted the man TO do
this. 1t was not "gamencss" nor alto
gether q british stubbornness which
would not let him quit. It was some
thing deeper. He was desolate, and
his heart was gone. Helen was lost to
him-worse yet, was unworthy-and
she was all he cared for. What did he
want Of the Midas. with its lawsuits,
/ its intrlgues and its trlckery? He was
! sick of 1t ALL of the whole game, and
wanted to get away. If he won. very
well. IF he lost. the land Of the aurora
would know him no more
When he put his proposition the
Bronco Kid dropped his eyes as though
debating. The girl saw that he stu
died the cards in his box lntently and
! that his fingers caressed the top one
ever so softly during the instant the
eyes OF the rest were on Glenlster.
The dealer looked up ut last, and Cher
ry saw the CLEAN Of triumph in his
eye. He could not mask it from her,
though his answering words were hesl-
tating She knew by the look that
Glenlster was a pauper.
"Come on" insisted Roy hoarsely;
turn the cards"
you're on
The girl felt that she was fainting.
She wanted to scream. The triumph
of this moment stifed her-or was it
triumph, after all? She heard the
breath Of the little man behind her
rattle as though he were being throt-
tied and saw the lookout pass a shak-
ing hand to his chin. then wet his
parched lips. She saw the man she
| had helped to ruin bend forward. his
lean face strained and hard, an odd
look of pain and WEAKNESS In his eyes.
| She never forgot that look. The
crowd was frozen In various attitudes
Of eagerncss. although it had not yet
recovered from the suspense of the
last great wager. 1t knew the Midas
and what 1t meant Here lay half of
1t. hidden beneath tawdry square Of
| pasteboard. With maddening delib-
GRAFTON the Kid dealt the top card. Be
lister said no word nor made n move.
Some one coughed, and it sounded like
a gunshot. Slowly the dealers fingers
retraced their way. He hesltated pur-
posely and lcered at the girl. then the
three spot disappeared and beneath 1t
lay the ace as the king had lain on
that other wager. It spelled utter ruin
to Glenister. He raised his eyes blind
lv, and then the deathlike silence of
crash. Cherry Malotte had closed her
check rack violently, at the same in
slant crying shrill and clear:
That bet is off! The cases ere
wrong"
Glenister half rose. overturning his
chair; the Kid lungcd forward across
the table. and his wonderful hands
tense and talon-like, thrust themselves
forward as though reaching for the
riches she had snatched away. They
worked and wrlthed and trembled as
though In dumb fury the nails sinking
into the olcloth table cover. His face
grew livid and cruel, while his eyes
blazed at her till she shrank from him
affrightedly. bracing herself away from
the ia BILE with rigid arms.
Reason came slowly back TO Glen
lister and understanding with it. He
seemed to awake from a nightmare.
He could read all too plainly the gam
bler's look Of baffed hate as the man
sprawled on the table his arms spread
wide his eyes glaring ut the covering
woman, vho shrank before him like u
rabbit before snake. She tried to
speak, but choked. Then the dealer
came to himself and cried harshly
through his teeth one word
Christ"
He raised his fist and struck the
table so violently that chips and cop
pers leaped and rolled, and Cherry
closed her eyes to lose sight of his aw-
full grimace. Glenster looked down or
him and said
Il think / understand, but the money
was yours anyhow, so I don't mind
His meaning was plain. The Kid sud
denly jerked open the drawer before
him, but Glenister clinched his right
hand and leaned forward The miner
could have killed him with 4 blow, for
the gambler was seated and at his
mercy. The Kid checked himself
while his face began 10 twltch as
though the nerves underlying II had
broken bondage and were dancing in u
wild, ungovernable orgy.
You have taught me lesson" was
all that Glenister said, and with that
he pushed through the crowd and out
into the cool night air. Overhead the
arctic stars winked at him, and the
| ~.1.lyIl