El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-08-10


creep a little nearer. | want to be
sure shouldn't care to kill innocent
men, although I suppose there is not
one chance In a thousand of any trap
pers or hunters being hereabouts."
Moving with extreme caution just
above the tops of the brushwood. we
silently drew nearer Presently the
fire began to show in CLEANS through
the mass of twigs and foliage, and
quite suddenly we came in line with
| an opening through which the whole
camp was visible as through window.
A birch log was burning brightly,
and over it bent man busy with cook
ing piece Of meat held on the point
of a stick The flames lent a ruddier
tint to the dark countenance of Indian
,, John.
| A couple of yards back of the fire
and so seated that his face was fully
| Illuminated sat Alfonso Payton- The
glare Of the fire in his eyes would have
prevented him from seeing us If he
| had looked up, but from our side we
could make out his every feature.
Never in my life have 1 been so
struck by a human countelance. 1t
was face in which beauty, manliness,
dignity, intellectually, impressiveness,
self mastery, courage, strength. seem
| ed equally blended. There was moth
ing repulsive or wicked about it.
my God, what liars mems faces can
ber' thought
Ethan, who was less impressionable,
begged me in a whisper to let him
| blow him to pieces with shell.
"No.' L returned forcefully. 81 for
bid it absolutely
In the energy Of my refusal my
voice rose too high, and Payton heard
| the sound. Instantly he stood erect,
and bis eyes peered straight at the
! Crow. But the fire blinded him, and
be did not see us.
Crouch I whispered in Ethan's
ear, "and lie STILL"
Payton stepped quickly round On our
side Of the fire. The Indian dropped
his meat and also turned to look. Then
both vanished.
"Skeedaddled, by jingow exclaimed
| Ethan.
) Which way had they gone? Prob
ably directly ahead. because only in
! that direction would they have the con-
! tinued shelter of the brush. This ex-
| tended away in comparatively mar
row belt as far as we could see, and It
was unusually thick and tall. 1 or
| dered the steersman to skim close
| above it at a speed a little exceeding
that of a good runner. But when we
| had advanced nearly as far as thought
that the fugitives could have gone we
stopped and lowered, carefully watch
ing and listening. But there was no
| movement and no sound.
The brush, intermingled with few
stunted trees, extended, as I have said,
in a belt which was not more than
ten rods broad, but apparently inter
minable toward the southwest. made
up nv mind that It followed the course
Of a sluggish stream or chain OF
swamps. On either side Of 1t lay a
stretch of bare country, and the moon,
now rising, began to illumine this
sufficiently to have enabled us to see
any object as large as a man moving
across it.
/ determined to cheat" this belt thor
oughly, keeping so close to the top OF
the bushes that the fugitives would
not dare attempt to dodge back be-
meath us.
1t was slow, tedious, nerve rackine
work as we swept from side to side
but doggedly ] kept at it, confident
that the quarry would be driven or
ahead.
/ now longed for daylight, and al
last it came. In short time the sky
became bright, and we could see the
ground through the brush. CHANGING
ahead, / was delighted to perceive tha
| within a short distance the belt raj
out, ending in an open country.
Suddenly shot rang from the bush
es a little in advance, and the rifennaI
| at nv side fell dead without groan
Another shot followed. and 1 felt {
sting In my right shoulder. A third
fattened on the muzzle of Ethan's gun
They were at bay and in ambush.
"Fire. .Ethan-fire" shouted.
His gun belched its blue fame. ant
the shell exploded in clump Of bush
es directly ahead and so close to u
that some OF the fragments flew bacl
and struck the aero. He had fired a
the point from which he guessed tina
the shots had come, and evidently hi
Judgment had been good, for we say
the bushes moving violently as If SOM
one were running through them. In
minute we sailed directly over the spo
where the shell had struck. and, look
ing down, saw the Indian expiring
on the ground. But Payton had again
escaped
Speed aheadw. / called.
But now came a provoking accident
we had been sailing so close to tn
bushes that some Of them had becom
entangled with our aeroplane. and tn
shock threw us all from our feet w