Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-01-09
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A wildly excited figure came piuns-
Ing through the door, and Samsons
left hand swept out and seised 10
shoulder In sudden wise grip.
do you know me3" he inquired. %
the mountaineer pulled away ana
crouched back with startled surprise
and vicious frenzy.
mo, damn yei Git outen my road'
Aaron thrust his cooked rins csose
against the strangers faca From
its muxsle came the acrtd stsnen OF
freshly burned powder. CIT outen my
road afore kills ys!"
my name IL Samson South.
Before the astounded finger on the
trigger could be crooked, Samsonls
pistol spoke from the pocket. ana. -
though In echo. the ride blazed, little
too late and shade too high. over Ms
head, as the dead mans arms went up.
Except for those two reports there
was no sound. Samson stood Still. an
ticipating an uproar Of alarm. Now
he should doubtless have to pay with
his life for both the deaths. which
would inevitably and logically be a.
tributed to his agency. But. strangely
enough, no clamor arose. The shot IN
side had been mufled. and those out
side, broken by tho intervening store.
did not arouse the house. Purvys
bodyxuard had been sent away by Hol-
| lis on q false alarm Only the women
folks" and children remained indoors.
and they were drowning with piano
any sounds that might have come from
without. That piano was the chief
emblem OF Purvy's wealth. 1t repre-.
scented the acme of having things
hung up" that ancient and expressive
phrase. which had come down from
days when the pioneers worldly con-
dition was gagged by the hams hang
ing in the smokehouse and the pep
pers. tobacco and herbs strung nlsn
against the rafters.
Now Samson South stood looking
down. uninterrupted, on what had been
Aaron, Hollis a. it lay motionless al
his feet. There was q powder-burned
hole in the butternut shirt. and only
a slender thread of blood trickled into
the dirt-grimed cracks between the
planks. The body was twisted side
wise, in one Of those grotesque atti-
tudes with which q sudden summons
20 frequently robs the greatest phe-
uomenon of all It's rightful dignity,
The sun was gliding the roadside
clods and Furnishing the green's OF the
treetops. Tho breeze was hsrpins
| sleepily among the branches. and sew
eral geese stalked pompously alons
! the creeks edge. On tho top OF the
| stockade q gray squirrel. sole witness
TO the tragedy, rose on his launches,
airted his brush. and then. In . sud
den leap Of alarm. disappeared.
Samson turned to the darkened door
way Inside was emptiness, except for
the other body. which had crumpied
forward and face down across the
counter. A glance showed that Jesse
! Puryy would no more fight back the
! coming OF death. He was quite un
| armed. Behind his spent body ranged
| shelves Of general merchandise
Boxes OF sardines and cans Of peaches
were lined in homely array above him
His lifelees hand rested az though
flung out in an oratorical gesture on
bolt of blue calico.
Samson paused only for momen
tary survey. His score was clean. M
/ would not again have to agonize ovel
! - Ill
Tomorrow the word would spread iikt
| wtldf,re along Misery and Crippleshir
that Samson South was back and tina
his coming had been signalized b.
these two deaths. The fact that b
was responsible for only one-and tina
In self-defense-would not matter
They would prefer to believe that h
had invaded the store and killed Purv.
and that Hollis had fallen In his mas
ters defense at the threshold. Sam
son went out, still meeting no one. ant
continued his journey.
Dusk was falling when be bitches
his horse in clump Of timber. and
lifting his saddlebags. began climbing
to cabin that sat back in thickete'
cove. He was now well within Soutl
territory and the need Of MASQUERADE
had ended.
The cabin had not for years besn o
cupied. Its rooftree was lesninl
askew under rotting shingles. Tn
doorstep was uncovered. and til
stones Of the hearth were broken. Blu
It lay well hidden and would serve hi
purposes.
Shortly, candle nickered inside
before small hand mirror. Scissor
and safety razor were for Will
busy. The man who entered In In
peccable clothes emerged fifteen mil
utes later-transformed There q
peared under the rising June crescsr
a smooth-faced native. clad IN staans
store clothes, with rough WOODEN soch
,, showing at his brogan tops. and
battered felt hat drawn over hi fac
No one who had known tho Samso
south Of four years aco would fail
recognise him now. And the stfanl
3 cot part, he told himself. va that b
felt the OLD. osmsoa. He 20 lonss
doubted his courage. He he'd CON
home. ana his eoaselsoee was ono
more clear.
The mounEaln roads End the mou,
, tain sidsc thsmselvss wsre sweet
: silent. Noon mist sngulfsd the aa