The Caldwell watchman. (Columbia, La.) 1885-1946, 1912-07-26

&EaX nlbS@AzAr W.
TO tell his story and stumbled On US
looking after him."
What happened them"
i went back to the camp" said
Maitland. I'VE loaded Newbold on a
mule and took him with us; he was
SO crazy he didn't know what was
happening; he went over the shooting
again and again In his delirium. II
was awful"
Did he die?"
Il don't think So" was the answer
but really / know nothing further
about him. There We're some good
women in that camp: we put him in
their hands and | left shortly after
wards"
i kin tell the rest" said old Kirk.
by. KNOWN more about the noun.
tains than most people hereabouts
led the men that didn't go back with
Bob an Newbold to the place were
he said his woman fell, an there we
found her, her body leastways."
But the wolves?" queried the girl.
He'd drug her into kind OF a
holler and piled rocks over her. He'd
gone down into the canon, witch was
something frightful, an then climbed
up to Were she'd lodged. We had
plenty Of rope, hayin' brought 1t along
a purpose, an We let ourselves down
to the shelf where she was a lynn.
We wrapped her body up in blankets
an roped 1t an finally drug her up
on the old Injun trail, leastways sup
pose it was made afore there was any
lnjuns, an brought her back to Ever
green camp, witch the only thing about
It that was green was the swing doors
on the saloon. We got a parson out
from Denver an give her a Christian
burial"
rs that all?" asked Enid as the old
man paused again."
Nope" ...A
"Oh. the man." exclaimed the wom-
an with quick intuition.
He recovered his senses so they
told us, an we'en We got back he'd
gone"
''Where?" was the instant question.
Old Kirkby stretched out his hands.
Don't ak me-" he said, he'd jest
gone. l amt never seed or heerd of
him sence. Poor little Louise Rosser,
she did have a hard time"
EYES," said Enid, but l think the
man had a harder time than she. He
loved herr"
1T looked like it." answered Kirkby.
If you had seen him, his remorse,
his anguish, his horror" said Matt.
land, you wouldn't have had any
doubt about 1t. But 1t is getting late.
In the mountains everybody gets up
at daybreak. Your sleeping bags are
in the tents, ladies; time to go to
bed"
AS the party broke up, old Kirkby
rose slowly to his feet; he looked
meaningly toward the young woman,
upon whom the spell Of the tragedy
still fingered, he nodded toward the
young brook, and then repeated his
speaking glance at her. His meaning
was patent, although no one else had
seen the covert invitation.
Come, Kirkby," said the girl in
quick response, you shall be my es-
cort. want drink before turn in.
No. never mind" she said, as Brad
shaw and Philips both volunteered
mot this time"
The old frontiersman and the young
girl strolled off together. They STOP
ped by the brink of the rushing tor
rent few yards away. The noise
that 1t made drowned the low tones OF
their voices and kept the others, busy
preparing to retire, from hearing what
they said.
That amt quite all the story, Miss
Enid said the old trapper meaningly.
There was another man."
What" exclaimed the girl.
"Oh, there wasn't nothin' wrong
with Louise Rosser. witch she was
Louise Newbold. but there was an
ether man; l suspected it afore, that's
why she was sad. Wen We found her
body knowed it."
Il don't understand"
'Thesell explain" said Kirkby. He
drew out from his rough hunting coat
q package of soiled letters; they were
carefully enclosed in an oil skin and
tied with faded ribbon. You see,"
he continued, holding them in his
hand yet carefully concealing them
from the people at the fire. wen
she fell of the cliff-somehow the
mule lost his footin', nobody never
knowed how, leastways the mule was
dead an couldn't tell-she struck on
8 spur or shelf about hundred feet
below the brink: evidently she was
carryin' the letters In her dress. Her
bosom was :rightfully tore open an
the letters was lynn there. NewboId
didn't see 'em, because he went down
into the canon an came up to the
shelf, or butte head, were the body
was lynn, but we dropped down.
was the first man down an got 'em.
Nobody else seein' me, an there amt
no human eyes. not even my wife's.
that's ever looked on them letters, ex-
cept mine and now yourn."