The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-08-02


 ing piece of meat held on the point of stick. The flames lent ruddier tint to the dark countenance of Indian JoSn.
 X coTfTse 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 I been so struck by a human countenance. It was face in which beauty, manliness, dignity, intellectuality, impressiveness, self mastery. courage, strength, seem ed equally blended. There was noth. ing repulsive or wicked about it.
 My God. what liars mems faces can bev' thought.
 Ethan, who was less impressionable. begged me in a whisper to lat him blow him to pieces with a shell.
 "No"' I returned forcefully. 'I for bid it absolutelyw
 In the energy of my refusal my voice rose too high, and Payton heard the sound. Instantly he stood erect, and his eyes peered straight at the Crow. But the fire blinded him, and he did not sec us.
 "Crouchr' 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
 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. I or dered the steersman to skim close above it at speed little exceeding that of good runner. But when we had advanced nearly as far as thought that the fugitives could have gone we stopped and hovered, carefully watch ing and listening. But there was no movement and no sound.
 The brush, intermingled with few stunted trees, extended. as have said, in a belt which was not more than ten rods broad, but apparently inter- minable toward the southwest. made up my mind that it followed the course of sluggish stream or chain of swamps. On either side of it 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 movins across it.,
 determined to "beat" this belt thor oughly, keeping so close to the top o1 the bushes that the fugitives would not dare attempt to dodge back be meath us.
 It 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 six. became bright, and we could see the ground through the brushs Glancin ahead, was delighted to perceive tha within short distance the belt raT out, ending in an open country.
 Suddenly shot rang from the bush es little in advance, and the rifemar at my side fell dead without a groan Another shot followed, and I felt { sting in my right shoulder. A third fattened on the nauzzle of Ethan's gun
 They were at bay and in ambush.
 "Fire, Ethan-fre!" shouted.
 His gun belched its blue flame, ant the shell exploded in clump of bush es directly ahead and so close to Us that some of the fragments flew back and struck the aero. He had fired al the point from which he guessed that the shots had come, and evidently his judgment had been good, for we saw the bushes moving violently as if some one were running through them. In a where the shell had struck, and, look ing down, I saw the Indian expiring on the ground. But Payton had again escaped
 Speed ahead!" I called.
 But now came provoking accident. We had been sailing so close to the bushes that some of them had become entangled with our aeroplane, and the shock threw us all from our feet. We were detained perhaps fifteen minutes. Then we rose about twenty yards and forged, ahead. I now saw the termi- nation of the belt of brush. and, look ing beyond it, beheld the fugitive, who had got upon a high rock and was awaiting us, rifle in hand.
 Payton was making his last stand and doing it in his own manner. He made not the slightest attempt at con- cealment. but coolly brought his wea- pon to his shoulder as we approached. His hat had fallen of, and his dark hair was waving in the morning breeze
 His situation was not so desperate as 1t may seem. I could not call off either my steersman or my engineer from his work, and I myself could not <. on account of my wound handle my rife. But Ethan was there with his gun, and that, after all. gave us an immense advantage, to say nothing of the mobility of the aero. But if he ~I~ -I~