Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1912-12-26

rluerS WHO udQ Deen his companions OF
the night before had discovered his
fight and were in hot pursuit.
With despairing eyes fixed straight
ahead and ears painfully alert to every
sound in the rear. he urgen his tired
beast forward with cruelty nipping I'm
gers. The pain from his wounded foot
was maddening. and the agony sent
the blood reeling to his head. His daz-
ed eyes hunted the plain for a place of
refuge. Every flashing hoofbeat thun-
dered: ITO cover" ITO cover"
There was a sharp crack and the
whistle of n bullet over his head. He
turned his sandy head and laughed
shrilly. but the derisive laughter chang
ed to a cry of terror as he saw his pur-
suers not a hundred yards distant.
their weapons leveled. The next shot
would take him between the shoulders.
He would be shot in the back, and they
would know 1t at home in the east.
All the blood of his forbears, heroes
of Bunker Hill and Gettysburg, rose
and famed in his little gray-green eyes.
With a hOarse shout he swung his
pony about and faced the oncoming
men.
Blame it all-shoot if you wanter!w
he yelled.
The line riders pulled their dripping,
animals to a halt, and the tallest and
leanest. Long jerks, drew q ragged
mustache between his fingers thought
fully. "What s-say?" he drawled.
II say, shoot if you wanter. 1t won't
hit me in the back" The boys voice
shook with some sudden emotion as he
faced the three grim, saturnine faces.
For a moment they stared back at
him; then they slipped from their sad
dies and rolled in the cracking sage
brush. Long jerks was the first to
recover himself.
The lad or the pony's back Redeemed
to his unkempt hair. II heard you
talking last night-something about
me stealing a blue mustang. l don't
know anything about it. 1 v saw
a blue mustang!" he muttered sui
lenly.
The three men rolled in the brush
once more while the tenderfoot stared
resentfully at them. "He amt never
seen a blue mustang" shrieked Beese,
pointing a finger at the lads mount
The boy looked down and a strange
expression came into his homely face.
When he raised his little eyes a fame
fickered in their green depths. The
pony which he had found ready bridled
in the gray dawn and which had borne
him so valiantly in his fight dropped
YEARLY under the fierce rays of the
sun. The wet coat showed a blush
gray.
els this the blue mustang?" asked
the boy in a husky voice.
They shrieked assent. 1T was a
joke" they said gleefully.
"Git up there, you blamed cowardsr!'
cried the boy fercely, and. strange to
relate, there was that in his voice that
brought the three to their feet.
"Look at that there foot" he COM
handed Of Long jerks. and that gen.
tleman inspected the injured and swol-
len foot with some concern in his good
natured face.
ut sure must hurt some, sonny" he
said regretfully as he backed off to a
position beside his companions. 1t
looked very much as If the tenderfoot
was to be Judge and jury and execu-
toner also.
1--WE was only breaking you in" MUIR
INJURED Beese. uncomfortably. for they
could all see the boy was suffering and
dared not offer him any assistance in
his r%esentful mood.
you've gone and broke up my
plans!" he fared suddenly. 1--WE come
way out here into the God forsaken
country to look for somebody and you
have gone and put me back weeks in
my search. She'll only have to worry
that much more SOS you folks could
have some fun. ibid like to smash
your faces!'
II reckon we deserve tive didn't
think Of doing harm. Tell us who you
are looking for and mebbe we can
help you. Sure. the three Of us as
knows the plains like an open book can
do more than one lone little chap like
you" When Long jerks smiled like
that he was irresistible. and the boys
somber face softened.
cts my father I'm looking for. He
and my mother disagreed about some
thing when I was a little Teller, and
he went away and left her. He sends
her money every month, but that isn't
the proper thing. He's got to come
back and be the head of the family
and stand back Of her or I'll know the
reason why. didn't know where he
was till lately. She knew he was in
the cattle country from the postmarks
on his letters. and I've come to find
him, but nobody seems to know the
name of Pinney so far as I've come"
He looked discouraged.
Hen and Beese looked at Long jerks,
and Long jerks went white as paper
and stared at the homely face Of the
boy, now so like his own, even to the
grim mouth. The boy gazed back at
him long and earnestly, and something
flashed between them, and they both
knew.