Williams news., 1914-11-12
Copyright. 1914. by Frank A. Munsey.l

Copyright. 1914. by Frank A. Munsey.l
 For a week they labored on together, grim, watchful, expectant-then, at the break of day. they heard a distant rattle of arms, like the tearing of cloth. and knew that the battle was on.
 The great whistle at Fortuna opened with it's full. bass roar, and Amigo snatched up his gun and went loping down the canyon, drawn irresistibly by the sound of conflict. Bud fingered, climbing higher and higher to get a view of the country. But his young blood clamored for action too, and soon he vas mounted and gone.
 The fighting was not at the Amer- can town, but down the valley by Old Fortuna, and as Hooker galloped on toward the sound of the firing he mo- ticed that 1t was on the move. AL ready the cowardly rebels were re- treating-the volunteers from Fortuna were hurrying to get closer to them, the rurales were riding to flank them; and when Bud jumped his horse up the last hill and looked down into the broad, cultivated valley he saw the dust of their flight.
 Down the fenced trail that led to the lower country the mounted insurrectos were spurring in rout; across the newly plowed field, of Aragon the men on foot were making short cut for the hills; and all about them, like leaping grasshoppers. sprang up puffs of dust
 Now they plunged into the willow in against the ridge; and as their pur- suers broke into the open they halted and returned the fire. The bullets struck up the dust like hailstones in front of the oncoming irregulars, man or two in the lead went down, and they faltered. Then, as frantically as the rebels. they turned and ran for cover.
 While defenders and invaders shot Bud put spurs to his horse and rode closer. and when he came out on an- other hilltop he was just in time to see the rurales come pelting in from the west and take the revoltosos on the flank. There was a great deal of long distance firing then, while the rebels slowly retreated, and finally. with last defiant volley, the defenders turned back from their pursuit and marched triumphantly to Old Fortuna.
 There, amid numerous vivas, Don Cipriano rolled out a cask of mescal and. after fiery speech, invited the victors to help themselves. So they fell to drinking and carousing, and the one defender who had been wounded was bandaged and made much of, while a great crowd from the upper town looked on in awe and admiration.
 At last Manuel del Key and his rurales returned from harassing the en my and with several wounded pris- oners in their midst, the valer-drunk Mexicans formed riotous procession and went marching back to town Every horse and mule was carrying double. guns were being dropped. broad hats knocked of. and ever. as. they marched, they shouted:
 Viva Madero! Viva Mejico! Muerte los revoltosos!"
 It was an edidying spectacle to an : American. and with the rest Bud tagged along to the plaza. where they had speeches and cheers galore and But in the midst of it, while he sat laughing on his horse by the hotel, Bud felt a gravel strike his broad hat from above and, looking furtively up, hs heheld Gracia Aragon smiling down at him from the balcony. : She heekoned him with swift movement and gazed out over the as- asublxga again, and after few mo- neata of 1ehheration Hooker tied his heFse rad wandered into the hotel. 5 \ t3nsia of excitenient vent over htIa as hs tfamped up te the ladies' parioF, fer he hsd never met Gracia lace to face. But he disguised his aualms by assuming 6 masklike grim ness of countenance and, when the glorious Gracia glided out of her room to meet him, he only blinked and stood pat. 4
 A long experience as @ poker player was all that saved him from. betrayal, for there was something in her very presence which made his heart }eag and bound. But he only gazed at her somberly, without even so much as raising his hat.
 Back in Texas, in his social world, 1t Was considered almost unmanly to thus salute the ladies. So he stood there. his big sombrero pulled down over his mop of light hair, gazing at her without blink.
 Perhaps it was not altogether as friendly scrutiny of her charming features as Gracia expected, for he remembered what she had done to his