Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1913-07-29

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?" Chaplin
undertook to remove the girls hands
from her face, when a slight cough In
the hall behind caused him to turn
suddenly In time to see Berkeley Fres-
no passing the open door.
There! You sect" Mrs. Heaps face
was tragic. you see!" She turned
and fed, leaving the master OF the
ranch in the middle of the floor, be-
Wlldered, 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.
Il happened to be passing" said he.
You'll pardon me?"
This 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.
Il came in to get match
why don't you carry matches?'
Fresno pulled complacently upon his
pipe. This" he unused, 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 of" he
advised Willie We've got another
| foot-runner!"
If he had hoped for an outburst of
rapture on the part Of the little gun
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 a
gun, Willie seldom smiled from a
| sense of humor. Here it may be said
that, deceived at first by his scholarly
appearance. his fellow-laborers had
jibed at Willie's affectation of a 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
q Srnn VIII
might exercise a 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 "reminiscences in others, it
became known through those vague
uncharted channels by which news
travels on the frontier, that back In
the Texas Panhandle there was a
limping marshal who felt regrets at
mention of his name, and that farther
north were other men who had SUI
perstitious dread of understood cow
men with spectacles.
This here is a real foot-runner,"
said Slower
Exactly" agreed the other where
is hep"
He'll be here this afternoon. Mig
ger Mikes bringin' him over from the
railroad. He's a guest"
"Ohl"
yep! He's intercollegit champeen
of Yale"
"Yale?" repeated the near-sighted
man. Don't knows l ever been
there. Much of 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 l figgered we might rib
up something with the Contipede."
Still Bill winked sagely.
O6S mere, uO you ISChOu uS u run
Sure! He's a friend of the boss.
And he'll run on the level too. He
can't be nothin' like Humpy"
"If 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 viii put it up quick
enough; there amt no sentiment In
that outfit"
Then it sounds good"
AN 1t II work. Gallagher's anxious
to trim us again. Some folks cant
stand prosperity"
Willie spat Unerringly at a grass
hopper. Lord" said he, 'it's too
goodl 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 welcome that II
warm his heart on the jump. There's
nothin' like good impression
"I'll be on the job" assured Willie.
But l state right here and now, if we
do get a race there amt a-goin' to be
no chance of our losin' for a second
time.2
And Slower went on his way to
spread the tidings.
CTo BE CONTINUED.)