The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1908-01-15
ing on the attorneys table ana drank
q ..c,,..x,,...l.x

SoHal iudlteI Ol lulS witness ana nav
ing to do with his private quarrels be
stricken out of the evidence as not
bearing on the case in question"
All in vain. The judge ruled that it
did bear on the case, and Williston
picked up the thread of his story
We rode and rode hard-it must
! have been hours; daylight was coming
| before we stopped. Our horses were
spent. | had no idea where we were.
| From the formation of the land,
Judged we We're not far from the river.
We were surrounded by bluffs | can
hardly make YOU see how clearly this
little retreat had been planned 1t
was in valley-one Of !, hun lred
similar in all essential respects. The
sulch at the bottom of the valley was
heavily wooded with scrub-oak. cot
tonwcod wcodbne and plum trees.
and this tangle of foliage extended for
some distance up the sides of the
hills. In the midst of this under
brush-a most excellent screen-was
tiny cabin. In this tiny cabin
have lived a closely watched prisoner,
from that day until | escaped
The defendant stirred little uneas-
| lily Was he thinking of Nightbird
with the dark, frozen face-who had
not answered to his call?
Black left me soon after. He did
| not unbind me, rather bound ME the
| tighter. There was no one then to
watch me. He deigned to inform NE
that he had found it rather inconven-
| lent to kill me after the relief party
rode up. as then there was no abso
lutte surety of his making clean get
away, and being caught in the act
would be bound to be unpleasant. very
| unpleasant just then, SO he had alter
| ed his plans a little-for the present.
He gave me no hint either that time,
nor either of the two times | saw him
| subsequently, as to what was to be his
| ultimate disposal of me. | could only
| suppose that after this trial was we'll
over in his favor and fear of indict-
| ment for arson and murder had blown
| over-if blow over it did-he would
then quietly put an end to me. Dead
i
gulch did not seem to be much of a
rendezvous for secret meetings. led
a lonely existence. My jailers We're
mostly Enthusiastically Charlie
| Nightbird. Two or three times Jake
, Sanderson was my guard.
Then from the doorway came a
| loud, clear. resonant voice joyful
voice, voice whose tones fairly oozed
rapture.
"Hellity damn, The Three Bars s
geTtin' busy. Mouse-hair,'
Judge Dale started He gared
angrily in that direction.
Remove that man." he ordered
curty- He liked Jim. but he could
not brook this crying contempt of
court. Jim was removed He went
quietly. but shaking his head reproach-
fully.
II never would a thought it o the
! ledge" he murmured. disconsolately
Il never would "a thought it,
There was a movement in the bach
of the room. A man was making hi.
way out, slipping along. catlille. try
| ing to evade attention Quietly Cor
don motioned to the sheriff ane
slipped Il paper into his hand.
Look sharp he whispered, his
steady eyes on the shifty ones of the
sheriff. If YOU let him get away jus,
remember the handwriting on the
wall. It's our turn now
Presently there was slight scuffie
| by the door and two men quietly left
/ the improvised courtroom.
Day before Yesterday, in the after
noon, continued Wlliston. Il man
| aged to knock Nightbird down at the
4 threshold as he was about to enter.
| had secretly worked a cross beam
| from the low. unfinished ceiling There
| was nothing else in the room | might
use for weapon. They We're very
| careful. | think | killed him, Your
| honor and gentlemen of the jury
am not sorry. There was no other
way. But | would rather it had been
| the maker, not the tool BY the time
| had made my way back to the Lazy
| | was too exhausted TO go further;
| SO | crawled over to my neighbors
| the Whites, and Mother White made
me shake-down. ] lay there, nearly
! dead, until this morning"
He leaned back YEARLY
Black stood up. He was not lank
nor lazy now, nor shutting His body
was drawn TO its fun height In the
| instant before the spring Mary. who
was sitting close to the attorneys
table, met his glance squarely She
| read there what he was about TO do
| Only a moment their eyes held each
! others but it was time enough for a
swift message of understanding of
utter dislike, and of a determined will
1 to defeat the mans purpose. to pass
1 from the accusing brown eyes to the
! cruel ones of the defendant
Quick as a flash Black seized the
/ chair upon which he had been sitting,
I sprang clear of the table and his law.
yels. and landed close To Marys side.
With his chair as weapon. he meant
TO force his way to the nearest win
| dow AIary'S di;ataJ l. nhac;ta in o. ~