Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1914-01-08

inside to get my bearings for valua-
bles and take them away with me. 4
had started in with the intention OF
combining my operations to STAGE
coaches. army paymasters n the
like, but mar is always going either
uphill or downhill. and as I was eces-
sarily going down l wasn't above TAX
ing anything l could get my hands on
even from Il woman
"a woman came to the door. She
was young and fairly good looking. To.
my request for some supper she gave
a smiling assent. asking me to come
in and make myself comfortable. She
went into the kitchen, and I looked
about me. There was a chimney fH
the room where l was with nc fire. e
knew a chimney was a favorite place.
to III money. and, going to the fire
place. 1 stopped and looked up. On 81
projecting brick l saw a small box.
which l appropriated and, lifting the
cover, saw a lot of bills and loose
change. 1 slipped it all in my pocket
and put the box back in the chimney.
by and by the young woman came
in and set a good supper on the table.
I ate my fill and when I had finished
took out one of the coins I had taken
from the box and handed it to h."
"'No,' she said; there's MOTH tor
pay. You're quite welcome to y, IL
supper. | hope it has done you go ID.
You looked tired and hungry when your
came in. and l felt sorry for you. Sos
l have given you the best in the house,
"That was the first lesson in kindlf-
was the first that ever took hold of,
me. When l thought of the contentg
of the box in my pocket and my offer
ing one of her own coins in payment
for her kindness. not the least part of.
which was the way she offered it, my
despicable meanness seemed to shriveE
me all up. l couldn't look her in the
face.
"'1ou d2n't need to go on she said
We have Il spare bed upstairs
81 was thinking how I could get the
money back in the box in the CHM
ney, and it occurred to me that il T
stayed there all night I could Slip
down in the night and do the job. So
[ said: Thank YOU. miss. If YOU
don't mind l reckon I will. It'll be a
great accommodation to me-
"'NO more than to me. MY brother
and his wife have gone away for 81
few days and left me alone with the
children. They say that Murphy's
gang is operating in the neighborhood-
and 1 wouldn't mind having a man in
the house. T
"'In that case l said. I think T'lr
sleep on that lounge. and TT guarantee
that no man gets upstairs Nnless he
goes over my dead body
Il knew two of my men would be
along there that night, and I reckoned
they'd take in anything by the way.
The first thing l did before turning in
was to put the money back in the box.
When I'd done that | felt the first Of a
kind of comfort I'd never experienced
before. l didn't go to sleep, wanting
to be awake if any one called. In the
middle of the night my two men, Pete
Barnickel and Colorado Bill. did call.
l showered bullets everywhere ahn-t
them except just where they We're. RI F..
they concluded there must be IA who.e
vigilance committee inside. When they
had gone l heard a soft voice call down
the stairs:
"'Thank you
Just you go to sleep. I'm in COM
mand here
{.
"And I've been in command here,
ever since. l married the girl. I didn't,
confess till shortly before the wedding
and have been living here ever since.
My wife owned the property. and after
I came in her brothers family went Oh
to Il ranch they bought farther west"