The Ordway new era., 1914-10-02
CHAPTER I.

CHAPTER !.
The stow-roilIng winters sun rose
ooldly, tar TO the south, riding up
from behind the saw-toothed Sierras
OF Mexico TO throw . silvery halo on
Gadsden, the border city. 4 hundred
miles OF desert lay In tts path waste
ot broken ridges. dry srroyos, and
sandy plains-and then suddenly. a.
u By magic. the city rose cleaning In
che sun
II was q big city. for tho West, and
svarming with trafao and men. Its
broad main street. lined with brick
buildings and throbbins with automo-
biIcs. ran from the railroad straight to
the south until. at . line. Il stopped
short and was lost In the desert
That line which marked tho sudden
and Of growth and progress was the
border of the United States; the desert
vas Mexico. And the difference was
not in the land. but In the government
As the morning air grow warm and
the boar frost dripped down from the
roofs the idlers OF the town crept
forth, leaving chill lodgings and stale
saloons for the street corners and the
sun.
Against tho dead wall Of . big store
the Mexicans gathered IA shivering
NrouDs. their blankets wrapped around
eheir nscks and their brown ankles
bare to the wind. On another corner
\ bunch OF cowboys stood clannishly
aioof. eyihg the passing crowd for oeh-
esB q their hind.
In this dun stream which aoved
under the morning sun thsrd were nin-
Ing men. with high-lacsd boetY and
ealgins pockets: graybeards. wtkA tAo
gossip u - town In tAsir choekS:
hohoes. still wearing thsir eastern
caps and sttil rpstling for quarter 70
sat on: sombsr-sysd refugees and soa-
diess OF fortune from Mexico-but
sdiers all. and each seeking his class
and kind
II any vomsn passsd that way they.
walked fast, looking neither 10 the
right nor 70 the left; for they, too, b,
ing 70 few. ',missed tAeiF class and
%ind.
0adsdsn had bscoms city Of msn,
Auselimbed and powerful and With .
questing look In their eyes; city OF
adventurers gathered from the ends Of
the world. A common calamity had
driven them from their. mines and
ranches and sluttsd the town with
men. for tho war VS. on in Mexico
and from the farthermost corners OF
Sonora they still came, hot from some
new scene OF murder and pillaxs, 70
add to the general discontent
As the day wore on the crowd on
the bank corner. where. the refugees
made their stand. changed its com.
piexion. grew big. and stretched far IN
the street. Men stood In shifting
groups. talking. arguing. gazing mood
lily at those who passed.
Here were hawk-eyed Tsxas cattle
man. thinking Of their scattered herds
at Aababi or Ei Ttgre: mining men.
with idle prospects and deserted mines
a. Tar south as the Rio Yaqui; MILL
mon. ranchers and men Of trades; ali
driven In from below the line and ali
channg At the leash. While . hundred
petty chiefs stood out against Madero
and lived BY ransom and loot, they
must cool their heels In Gadsden and
vait for the end to come.
Into this seething mass Of the dis
possessed. many Of whom had Lost .
fortune BY the war. there came two
more. with their faces still drawn and
rod from hard riding through the cold.
They stepped forth from the marble
entrance Of the big hotel and swung
OF down the street to see the town.
They walked slowly. gazing into the
strange faces in the vague hope of
nnding some friend: and Gadsden, not
to be outdone. looked them over curl
ously and wondered whence they had
come.
The bunch of cowboys. still lettering
on the corner. glanced scornfuliy at
che smaller man, who sported a pair
OF puttees-and then at the big mans
feet. Finding them encased In pros
pector's shoes they stared dumbly at
his wfnd-burned face and muttered
among themselves.
He was tall. and broad across the
shoulders, with farSeeing blue oyes
and . mop Of light hair: and he walked
on his toes, stiff-iegged, swaying from
his hips like . man on horseback. The
rumble OF comment rose up again a
he racked past and thsn . cowboy
voice observed:
"I1i bet 70 hes . cow-puncht-
The big man looked back q them
nockingly out q the oernsr Of HI sys
aad went ON without word