Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1912-05-23
CHAPTER v.
The One WAY.

~ "i"NN h'dl hdu tne patient look
or dog as they watched: evidently
he had cast aside all responsibility.
now that this other had come. Final
ly Keith spoke slowly:
We are IN much the same position.
Neb, and the fate of one is liable to
be the fate OF both. This is my story"
and briefly as possible. he ran over
the circumstances which had brought
him there, putting the situation clear
enough for the negro's understand
Ing, without wasting any time upon
detail. Neb followed his recital with
bullying eyes, and an occasional excla-
nation. AT the end he burst forth:
"Yo' say dar was two oh dem white
men murdered-one an OIL man wild a
gray beard. an de odder bout thirty?
Am dat it, Massa Jack. an dey had TO-
span OBJ mules, an runnin' hoss?"
YES"
An how far out was itT'
About sixty miles"
oh, de good Lawd," and the negro
threw up his hands dramatically. pat
sutt'nly am my OUTFIT Dat am Massa
Waite an John Sibley"
You mean the same men with
whom you came here from Indepen-
dence?"
Neb nodded. overcome by the dis
covery.
But what caused them to run such
a risk?" Keith insisted. Didn't thev
know the Indians were on the war
PATH"
"Sho'; I heard EN- talkin bout dat.
but Massa Waite was Jest boun' foh
TO git movin'. He didn't pear TO be
'fraid oh no Injuns: reck'ned dev'd
nebber stop him. dat he knowed ob-
berry chief on de plains. reck'n dat
he did. too"
But what was he so anxious to get
away for?"
Il dunno, Massa, I done heerd EN-
talk some bout dey plans. an bout
some gal dey wanted ter fin. but |
didn't git no right sense to Il. De
Gin'ral, he was a might stu man"
The General? Whom do you mean?
Not Waite?"
John Sibley done called him dat"
Then Keith remembered-just
dim, misty thread at first, changing
slowly into a clear recollection. He,
was riding with dispatches from Long,
street to Stonewall Jackson, and had /,
been shot through the side. Thei
drst OF Jackson's troops he reached
was a brigade OF North Carolinlans.
commanded by General Waite-Gen-'
eral Willis Waite. He had fallen from
bis horse at the outposts, was brought
helpless TO the Generals tent, and an
ether sent on with the papers. And
Mrs. Waite had dressed and bandared,
MS wound. That was where he had
seen that woman's face before. with
its haunting familiarity. He drew the
locket from beneath his shirt, and
gazed at the countenance revealed.
with new intelligence. There could be
no Doubt was the face of her who
had cared for him so tenderly IN that
tent at Manassas before the fever
came and he had lost consciousness.
And that, then, was Willis Waite ly-
ing In that shallow grave near the
Cimmaron Crossing, and for whose
death he had been arrested. Twas a
strange world. and a small one. What
miserable ending to a life like his
a division commander OF the Army OF
Northern Virginia. a Lieutenant-Gov-
ernor OF his state. What strange
combination OF circumstances could
ever have brought such man to this
place, and sent him forth across those
lndian-scouted plains? Surely nothing
ordinary And why should those Dor
der desperadoes have followed,
through sixty miles OF desolation, to
strike him down? 1t was not robbery,
at least in the ordinary sense. What
then? And how was BLACK Bart" in
VOWED? Why should he be sufficient
ly interested to swear out a warrant.
and then assist in his arrest? There
must be something to all this not ap-
parent upon the surface-some object,
some purpose shrouded in mystery
No mere quarrel. no ordinary feud, no
accident OF meeting, no theory OF com
monplace robbery, would account for
the deed, or for the desperate efforts
now being made to conceal It.
Some way, these questions, thus
surging upon him. became call to
live, to fight, to unravel their mystery.
'"N N4ShACAy Vi Nhdl SWStL-IdC6Q WODl-
an who had bent above him when the
fever began its mastery, appealed to
him now with the opportunity of serv-
Ice. He might be able to clear this.
bring to her the truth, save her from
despair, and hand over to justice the
murderers of her husband II was up
to him alone to accomplish this-no
one else knew what he knew, suspect
ed what he suspected. And there was
but one way-through escape. To re
main there in weak surrender to fate
could have but one ending, and that
swift and sudden. He had no doubt
as to BLACK Bart's" purpose, or of his
ability to use the Red Light" outfit
as desired. The whole plan was clear
~ evident, and there would be no de-
lay In execution-all they were wait
ing for was night and a lax guard. He
glanced about at the walls Of the
room, his eyes grown hard. his teeth
clenched.
"Neb." he said shortly, 81 guess that
was your outfit all right, but they
were not killed nv TndioDs Tbav