The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-10-26
(Continucd From Saturday,

CONTINUED From Saturday,
Simple-minded Bud readily accepted
the willy half breeds explanation ana
surmises, and fell into the trap he was
preparing. This was to hold up the
express agent and rob him of the money
Payson was expecting, on securing
which 1t .McKee's intention to flee
the country before Dick Lane returneo
to denounce him. To ascertain just
when the money came into the agents
hands, and to act as a cover In the
robbery itself, ar accomplish was
needed. For this purpose no man In
all the Sweetwater region was better
adapted than Bud Lane. Trunk q
friendly with every one, he would De
trusted by the most suspicious and
cautious official in Pinal county. The
fact hat he had chosen Buck Mckee
as an associate had already gone far
to rehabilitate this former "bad man
in the good graces of the community.
Under cover of this friendship, Mckee
hoped to escape suspicion of any part
in the homicide he contemplated.
For it was murder, foul, unprovoked
murder, that was in the black soul of
the half breed. He intended to incrimi-
nate Bud SO deeply as to put 1t beyond
all thought that he would confess.
Young Lane, ~passionately loyal to his
brother, was ready for anything that
would delay Payson's marriage to Echo
Allen. Together with the wild joy that
sprang up in his hear at the thought
that his brother was alive, was en-
twined a violent hatred against his for
mer employer. In the fierce turbu-
lence within his soul, generated by the
meeting of these great emotions. he
was impelled to enter upon a mad~de'
bauch, In which Mckee abetted and
Joined aim. Filling up on bad whiskey
they ode through the streets of Flor
ence. yelling and shooting their gums
like crazy men. 1t was while they were
engaged in this spectacular exhibition
of Workmanship, gun-play. and vocal
cation that Buds sweetheart rode into
town to execute some commissions In
preparation for Echo Aliens wedding.
Already "blue'' over the thought that
her own wedding was far in the dim
future, poor Polly was cast into the
depths of despair and disgust by the
drunken riot in which her prospective
husband was indulging with her par
ticular aversion, the cruel, calf-tortur-
Ing half-breed. Mckee. Thoroughly
mortified, she slipped out OF town by a
side street, and modify rode back to
Allen Hacienda, meeting on the way,
as we have seen, Jack Payson.
After the debauch was over, and the
merry, mad devil of nervous excite
ment was succeeded by the broodire
demon of nervous depression, Mckee
preached to Bud the idea of robbins
the express agent of the money COM
ing to Payson. This fell in readily with
the young mans revengeful mood, and
he unreservedly placed himself under
the half-breed's orders.
In accordance with these, Bud hung
about the railroad station a great deal
%cultivating the friendship of Terrill, the
agent. "Ole Man" Terrill, as he was
called, although he was a vigorous
specimen of manhood on the under side
of sixty, was ticket and freight agent,
express messenger and telegraph oper-
ator, in fact, the entire bureau of
transportation I'M communication al
Florence station. Bud frankly told him
he was out of a job, and had, indeed,
decided, in view of his coming mar
riage, to give up horse wrangling for
! some vocation of a more elevatine
character. SO TerriIl let him helr
about the station, chiefly in the clerical
work. While so engaged Bud learned
that a package valued at three thou
sand dollars was expected upon a GER
tain train. Although no consignee was
mentioned, the fact hat the amount
tailed exactly with the sum Payson
mn axrorffnr nottScd him 10 nnDnlude
1t was Dicks repayment of his loan
Accordingly he Informed Mckee that
the time they were awaiting had ar
rived.
Florence had grown up as a settle
ment about a spring of water some time
before the advent of the railroad
Builders of the line got into trouble
with the inhabitants. Il in revenge
located the station half a mile away
from the spring, thinking new settler,
would conn to them. In this they were
disappointed. The point was an iso-
lated one, and the station a deserted
spot between trains.
Eastward and westward the single
track of railroad drifted to shimmerlng
points on the horizon. To the south
dreary wastes of sand, glistening white
under the FURNISHED sun and crowned
with chulnps of grayish green sage
brush, stretched to an encircling rim OF
hills. Cacti and yucca palms broke the
monotony of the roll of the plains TO
the uplands.
Sahuaroes lowered over. the low sta
ton, which was built In the style of
the old Spanish missions. Its red roof
flared above the purple shadows cast
by It's walls. In the fathomless blue
above a buzzard sailed majestically
down an air current. and lowered mo-
~tionless over the lonely outpost OF
civilization.
Within the station a telegraph
sounder chartered and chirruped. "Ole
Man" Terrill was at the instrument.
His duties were over for the forenoon,
the east bound express, which, with the
west-bound, composed the only trains
that traversed that section of the road