The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1912-09-21

II the dogs were to be used with any
hope of success he had no time to
spare, and this was the merest sus-
picion, Illogical conjecture, based on
nothing beyond his distrust of Ware.
In the end he sprang from the saddle,
and leading his horse into the woods.
tied 1t to q sapling.
A hurried investigation told him
that i've men had ridden In and out Of
that path. OF the i've. all coming
from the south. four had turned
south again. but the nth man-Ware,
In other words-had gone north. He
weighed the possible significance OF
these facts.
Il am only wasting time!" he con-
fessed reluctantly, and was on the
point of turning away, when, on the
very edge of the road and Just where
the dust yielded to the hard clay Of
the path. his glance lighted on the
print of small and daintily shod
foot. The throbbing OF his heart
quickened curiously.
"Betty!" The word leaped from his
lips.
That small foot had left but the
one impress. There were other signs,
however, that claimed his attention;
namely. the footprints OF Slosson
and his men; and he made the in
eyitable discovery that these tracks
were all confined to the one spot.
They began suddenly and as sudden
ly ceased, yet there was no mystery
about these: he had the marks Of the
wheels to help him to q sure conclu-
sion. A carriage had turned just
here, several men had alighted; they
had with them q child, or q woman.
Either they had re-entered the car
riage and driven back as they had
come, or they had gone toward the
river. He felt the soul within him
turn sick.
He stole along the path: the, terror
of the river was ever In his thoughts.
and the specter of his fear seemed to
fit before him and lure him on. Pres
emily he caught his frst glimpse OF
the bayou and his legs shook under
him: but the path wound deeper still
INTO what appeared 70 Dc an UNI
toucned soitude' wound on between
the cro"oing tree iorms' ittie DscA
from the shore. with an Intervening
tangie OF vines ana Dusnes' ne
scanned this closely as he hurried
forward scarcely conscious tnat ne
was searching LOT some trampieo
space at the waters edge; put the
verdant wall preserved IT'S unproken
community ana twenty minutes iater
ne came within signt OF HICKS clear.
ing ana the Keel boat, Wnere II rested
against the oank.
little lartner on ne iouno tne
SPOT Wnere Siosson mao iauncned inc
SKIN the night pelore. Inc Keel OF ms
boat nad cut deep INTO the slippery
clay; more tnan TINS, the impress OK
the small shoe was repeated mere ana
just beside II was the PRINT OF cniios
bare loot.
He no longer doubted that Betty
and Hannibal had been taken across
the bayou to the cabin. and ne ran
back up the path the distance OF .
mile and plunged into the woods on
his right. his purpose being to pass
around the head OF the expanse OF
sluggish water to point from which
he could later approach the cabin.
But the cabin proved TO be better
defended than he had foreseen; and
as he advanced. the dimculties OF the
task he had set himself became al
most insurmountable; yet sustained
as he was by his Imperative need. ne
tore his way through the labyrinth OF
trailing vines, or fioundered across
acre-wide patches OF green slime and
black mud, which at each step threat
ened to enguh him IN their PREACHER
O1Yo dopfha r1Uffl Qt tina end 1T an