Gunnison news-champion., 1913-11-14

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esssUss essasassv ~ ~ 80
pos1ae tbs usousA o Bu9sas csssh. e.
Thas . one thing sSre-shey amt sny
sast q thst. As ve amt hit NO trsA
I rsckGa - how lie Fevre's outflt
uust hes arifted further then I eslc la-
~"
= Thought % sf the time" com
useated the oehsr. euiesly. However.
NE win have 70 make the circle. and.
n the country cut yonder is as you de-
scribe. they viii be no better Oh.
They'll have to follow the ridges TO
get through We may sst . glimpss
when daylight comes"
They rode On steadily. heapine down
bslow the essst Of the hills. yet pich
Nc . passA0e where the snow had
bssa swspt olsar The slipperiness a
she incline uaAe their progress slos.
- hey asss1 - risk the breaking q
. horses leg In that wilderness, and
the faint giimmer Was most conf asins.
The wind had ceased, the calm was
impressive after the wild tumult, but
the cold seemed to strengthen as the
dawn advanced, viciogsly biting the
exposed faces of the men. The strain
ing ponies were white with frost. In
the gray Of q cheerless dawn they
reached the FIRST line Of bluffs. and
drew rein just below the summit.
where they could look on across the
lower ridges to the westward.
II wss . wild. aesolate scene, the
dull Gray shy overhead, the black and
white shading below. Mile on mile
the picture unrolled to the horizon,
the vista widening slowly ~ the light
Increased. bringing forth the details
Of barren, wind-swept ridges and shall
low valleys cAoked with snow. Not .
tree. not q shrub. not even . rock
bsoks the dead monotOny. All Was
Deaeliness anl silence. Tie snow lay
GieaminG and untrampled, except -
here and there q dull brown patch Of
dead grass darkened the side of hill.
Hamlin shadowed his eyes with gloveA
hands. studying intently inch by inch
the wide domain. suddenly he arose
In his stirrups. bending eagerly for
ward.
by heaven! There they are,
Hughes" he exclaimed, feeling the hot
blood course through his veins. See,
on the incline of that third ridge.
There 10 a shadow there, and they are
not moving. Here; draw in back of
me; now you can see. 1t looks as
though they had a horse down"
Hughes stared long In the direction
Indicated. his eyes narrowed into mere
Sits.
"Ahl that's it," he said at last.
Horse broke leg; shot it jest then
] seen the nash. Now they're goin'
on. See! One fellow climbin' up be-
hind mother. an the horse left lynn
thar on the snow"
How many people do you make
out?" and Hamlins voice shook q lit
tie. There's four. amt there?"
At that distance the fugitives looked
like mere black dots. II could scarce
ly be determined that they moved,
and yet their outlines were distinct
against the background of white snow,
while the two watchers possessed the
trained vision of the plains. Hughes
answered after a deliberate inspec-
ton, without SO much as turning his
head
Thar's four; leastwise thar was
four hosses. and two-the Injuns /. e.
ly-are ridin' double. Thar animals
are bout played, it looks ter me-just
able ter crawl Amt had no fodder is
bout the size o. it. We ought to be
able ter head thet bunch off fore they
git TO the Canadian at thet rate o.
travel-hey. Sergeant?"
Hamlin's eyes followed the long
sweep of the cross-ridge, studying its
trend, and the direction of the inter
vening valleys. Once down on the
other slope all this extensive view
would be hidden. they would have to
ride blindly, guessing at the particular
swale along which those others were
advancing. To come to the summit
again would surely expose them to
those keen Indian eyes. They would
be searching the trail ahead ceaseless-
ly. noting every object along the
crests Of the ridges. However, IL the
passage around was not blocked with
snow, they ought to attain the junction
In ample time. With twice as far
to travel, their ponies were strong and
f1t and should win out against Le
Fevre's starved beasts. He waved his
gloved hand.
We'll try IT," he said. shortly;
come on. Hughes"