Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1908-12-26

R
| looked to the cinches. mounted. and
rode down the street leading to the
, lower mesa and the river.
CHAPTER XIV.
HE rode easily, as one born to the
} saddle, the feathers creaking must.
} cally under him to keep time to the
shuffling foX-trot of the wiry little
range pony. Once free of the mining
camp and out upon the mesa. he
found a corn-husk wrapper and a bag
of dry tobacco and deity rolled a
cigarette, doing it with one hand, COW
boy FASHION. When the cigarette was
lighted, the horseman ahead was a
mere khaki-colored dot, rising and
railing in the mellowing distance
with the eye Of a plainsman he
measured the trails length to the bro
ken hill range where the Pannikiu
\ energies from its final wrestle with
the gorges, Then he glanced UP at
the dull crimson spot in the murly
sky that marked the suns altitude.
! Thee was time sufficient and the
trail was long enough. He did not
push his horse out of the shuffling
trot. At the portal hills the horseman
now disappearing over the rim of the
high mesa, would slacken speed In
the canyon itself q dog could not go
faster than a walk.
On the lever mesa the Mexican
picked up the galloping dot again,
holding it ID view until 1t halted on
the river bank hundred yards below
the entrance to the CANYON. Since the
4 water was low in the ford, the river
bank hid the crossing. and the Mexi-
can drew rein and waited for the dot
to reappear on the opposite shore.
A slow minute was lost, then a
second and third. The man in the
corded sombrero and laced buckskins
touched his horses flanks with spu"
and crept forward at walk, keeping
his eyes fixed upon the point where
i the quarry ought to come In sight
! passed and The farther shore was still
a deserted blank the Mexican dug
both rowels into the mustang and gal.
loped down to the river, muttering
curses in the patois of his native So
nora
Apparently the closing in had been
DELAYED too long There were fresh
footprints in the mari of the hitheI
approach to the shallow ford but none
to match them on the farther side
I The Mexican crossed hastily AMI
searched for the outcoming hoo[
marks. The rocky bar which formed
the northern bank of the stream told
him nothing.
! Now it is only in the IMAGINATION Of
the wordsnlirh that the villain in the
play is gifted with supernatural
mowers of discernnent. Ruiz Gregorip
Maria y Alvarez Mattacheco, fa-,i1arly
/ and less cumbrously known as Mexi-
can GEORGE was a mere murdered,
with a quick eve for gun SIGHTS and 4
re" lv and itching trigger finger. But
he was no Vidoco, to know bv instinct
which of the two trails. the CANYON
MASSAGE or the longer route over the
hills, Ford had chosen
Having two guesses he made the
wrong one first urging his mustang
toward the canyon trail. A stumbling
half-mile up the narrow cleft of the
rivers path revealing nothing. he be-
gan to reconsider. Drawing a second
blank of The same dimensions he
turned hack to the ford and tried the
hill trail. At the end Of the first hun
dred yards on the new scent he came
again unon the fresh loof prints, and
took off the brow-cramping hat to
swear the easier
/ Two courses were now omen to him.
to nress hard upon the roundabout hill
trail in the hone of overtaking the
eneineer before he could reach the
Horse Creek camp. Or to pass by the
shorter route to the uDner ford TO
head him off at the river crossing
The Mexican gave another glance at,
the dull red spot In the western sky.
and nlaved for safety. The wav'ay-
ing alternative commenced itself on
several counts. The CANYON trial was
1.-THE shorter and it could be traversed
I1eisurely and in daylight. Pressing
his livery hack as he could, Ford
would scarcely reach the CROSSING at
the mouth Of Horse Creek before
dusk Moreover, it would be easier
to wait and to smoke than to chase
the quarry over the hills, wearing
ones pinto to the bone.
Ruiz Greporio Maria set his horse
once more at the task of picking 4
path among the CANYON bou1ders, rid.
ING loosely in the saddle, first in one
stirrun and then in the other and
smoking an unbroken succession of
corn husk cigarettes
One small cloud fecked the sky uf
satisfaction. His instructions hal
been explicit. If Ford should resien,
butt wash his hands Of the Pacific
Southwestern, he might be suffered to
escane. If not-there was only one
condition attached to the alternative;
what was done must be done neatly.
with despatch, and at sufficient
distance from any Of the Marlborough
camps to avert even the shadow Of
suspicion.
ITO be Continued.l
Itch cured in 80 minutes by Wool