The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1913-08-22

color surging. go to your old Eleven
x Ranch right away"
Put mean it." he declared, earn,
estly. Then, as she retreated farther:
tits no use, shan't go now until"
"You have known me less than a
week."
THAT is long enough. Roberta"
Mrs. Keap spoke with honest en-
barrassment. Listen! Don't you see
what situation this is? If Jean and
Helen should ever discover"
Jean planned 1t all; even this"
Mrs. Keap stared at him in Mortified
silence
"You do love me, Roberta?" Chapin
undertook to remove the girls hands
from her face, when slight cough in
the hall behind caused him to turn
suddenly in time to see Berkeley Fres-
no passing the open door.
There! You see!" Mrs. Heaps face
was tragic. you see!" She turned
and fed, leaving the master of the
ranch in the middle of the floor, be-
wildered, but bit inclined to be
happy. A moment later the plump
face Of Berkeley Fresno appeared eau
tiously around the door-jamb. He
coughed again gravely.
II happened to be passing" said he.
| You'll pardon me?"
"Tbis is the most thickly settled
spot in New Mexico!" Chaplin declared
with an artificial laugh, choking his
indignation.
Fresno slowly brought his round
| body out from concealment.
'I came in to get match"
"Why don't you carry matches?"
Fresno puffed complacently upon his
pipe. "This," he mused, as his host
departed, eliminates the chaperon,
and that helps some"
Still Bill Slower lost no time in
| breaking the news to the boys.
There's something comm off," he
advised Willie. We've got another
foot-runner!"
II he had hoped for an outburst of
man he was disappointed, for Willie
shifted his holster, smiled evilly
through his glasses, and inquired, with
| ominous restraint:
where Is he?"
Being the one man on the Flying
Heart who had occasion to wear q
gun, Willie seldom smiled from q
sense of humor. Here 1t may be said
that, deceived at first by his scholarly
appearance, his fellow-laborers had
jibed at Willie's affectation of swing
ing holster, but the custom had Ian
guished abruptly When 1t became
known who he was, the other ranch
hands had volubly declared that this
was a free country, where a man
might exercise wide discretion in
the choice of personal adornment;
and as for them, they avowed unani-
mously that the practice of packing a
Colts was one which met with their
most cordial appreciation. In time
Willie's six-shooter had become ac-
cepted as a part of the local scenery
and, like the scenery, no one thought
of remarking upon it, least of all those
who best knew his lack of humor. He
had come to them out of the Nowhere,
some four years previously. and while
he never spoke of himself, and dis
couraged reminiscence in others, 1t
became known through those vague
uncharted channels by which news
travels on the frontier, that back in
the Texas Panhandle there was
limping marshal who felt regrets at
mention of his name, and that farther
north were other men who had SUI
perstitious dread Of undersized cow
men with spectacles.
"This here Is a real foot-runner,"
said Slower.
Exactly" agreed the other Where
Is he?"
He'll be here this afternoon. Mig
ger Mixes bringin' him over from the
railroad. He's guest"
"Oh!"
yep! He's intercollegit champeen
of Yale" :
"Yale?" repeated the near-sighted
man. Don't knows l ever been
there. Much of a town."
81 amt never travelled east myself,
but Miss Jean and the little yaller-
haired girl say he's the fastest man in
the world. 1 figgered we might rib
up something with the Contipede."
Still Bill winked sagely.
See here, do you reckon he'd rum"
Sure! He's a friend of the boss.
And he'll run on the level too. He
can't be nothin' like Humpy."
'1f he is, I'll git him." said the cow
boy. ooh, I'll git him sure. guest or
no guest. But how about the phono-
graph?"
"The Centipede will put it up quick
enough; there amt no sentiment in
that outfit"
Then 1t sounds good"
AN 1t IL work Gallagher's anxious
to trim us again. Some folks can't
stand prosperity"
Willie spat unerringly at a grass
hopper. Lord" said he, It's too
good! 1t don't sound possible"
We'll, it Is, and our man will be
here this evenin'. Watch out for Mig
ger Mike, and when he drives up let's
give this party a welcome that II
! warm his heart on the jump. There's
nothin' like a good impression"
"I'll be on the job" assured Willie.
But | state right here and now, II we
do get a race there amt a-goin' to be
no chance of our losin' for a second
| time
And Slower went on his way to
| eprood tho tidinps