The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1913-04-10
coe,R,onr 1879 BY A.c.rrclueo & Co


yRtohT 1919 By A~.c.rrClueo G. CO
without making any reply. Then he
was thrust roughly into a stone-lined
cell, and left alone. Outside in the
corridor two guards were stationed.
Hamlin sat down on the iron bed,
dazed by the silence, e~ndeavoring to
collect his thoughts. The nearest
guard, leaning on his gun watched
carefully.
Voices reached him from outside,
echoing in through the high, iron
barred window, but they were distant,
the words indistinguishable. AS his
brain cleared he gave no further
thought to his own predicament, only
considering how he could best divert
suspicion from her. 1t was all a con-
fused maze, into the mystery of which
he was unable to penetrate. That it
was Molly Mcdonald shrinking there
In the dark corner of the barracks
wall he had no doubt. She might not
have recognized him, or imagined
that he saw her, but that spear Of
light had certainly revealed a face not
to be mistaken. White as it was, bag
gard with terror, half concealed by
struggling hair, the Identification was
nevertheless complete. The very pit
of expression appealed to
him. She was not a girl easily fright
ened; no mere promiscuous shooting,
bswever startling, would have brought
that look to her face. He had seen
her in danger before, had tested her
GOODNESS under fire. This meant some
thing altogether different. What?
Could it be that Gaskins had wronged
the girl, had insulted her, and that
she, in response, had shot him down?
In the darkness of conjecture there
seemed no other adequate explanation.
The two were intimate; the m of
an engagement was already %circulat-
ing about the garrison. And the strick-
en- man had endeavored to shift the
blame on him. Hamlin could not be-
lieve this was done through any de-
sire to injure; the Lieutenant had nc
cause for personal dislike which
would account for such an accusation.
They had only met once, and then
briefly. There was no rivalry between
them, no animosity. To be sure, Cas-
kns had been domineering, threaten
ing to report a small breach of discip-
line, but in this his words and actions
had been no more offensive than was
common among young officers Of his
quality. The Sergeant had passed all
memory of that long ago. 1t never
occurred to him now as of the slight
est importance. Far more probable
did 1t appear that Gaskins' only mo-
tive was to shield the girl from pos
sible suspicion. When he had realized
that Hamlin was a prisoner, that for
ome reason he had been seized for
the crime, he had grasped the oppor-
tunity to point him out as the assas-
sin, and thus delay pursuit. The
chances were the wounded man did
not even recognize who the victim
was-he had blindly grasped at the
first straw.
But suppose he had been mistaken?
Suppose that woman hiding there was
some one else? Suppose he had imag-
ined a resemblance in hat sudden
fash Of revealment? What then?
Would she car enough to come to
him when she learned Of the arrest?
He laughed at the thought, yet it vas
a bitter laugh, for 1t brought back a
realization Of the chasm between
them. Major McDonald's daughter in
teresting herself in a guard-house
prisoner! More than likely she would
promptly forget that she had ever be-
fore heard his name. He must be
growing crazy to presume that she
permitted him to remain on her list of
friendship.
He got up and paced the cell, not
ing as he did SO how closely he was
watched by the guard.
Have you heard how badly the
Lieutenant was hurt?" he asked, ap-
preaching the door.
The sentry glanced down the CORR
dor.
He'll pull out, all right" he re-
piled co~nfidentially, his lips close to
the door. "Nothin' vital punctured.
You better go to bed, an forget 1t till
mornin'."
"All right, pardner," and Hamlin
returned to the cot. "Turn the light
down a little, will you? There, that's
better. My conscience won't trouble
me, but that glare did"
With his face to the stone wall he
fell asleep.
CHAPTER XIV.
An Old Acquaintance.