The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1915-02-03
CHAPTER lv-contlnued.

He sauntered down the road, out,
when he had passed out Of vision, ne
turned sharply into the woods, and
began climbing. His steps carried him
Ito the rift In the ridge where the white
oak stood sentinel over the watch
tower of rock. As he came over the
edge from one side his bare feet max
3 ing no sound, he saw Sally sitting
there, with her hands resting on the
moss and her eyes deeply troubled
I. She was gazing lxedly ahead and her
+ fps were trembling. At once Sam
sons face grew black. Some one had
been making Sally unhappy. Then he
saw beyond her q standing figure,
which the tree trunk had hitherto con-
cealed. It was the ose-knitted figure
OF young; Tamarack Spicer.
Il ""In course" Spicer was saying, we
4 don't Tow Samson shot Jesse Purvy,
but them Hollmans II 'spicion him, an
i heered just now thet them daWgs
was, trackin' straight up hyar from the
mouth OF Misery. They'll git hyar
I against sundown." NJ al, (
Samson leaped violently forward.
With one hand he roughly seized hie
cousins shoulder and wheeled him
about
.Shet upi" he commanded. What
fool stuff hey We been. tellin'
Sally 81 :.
KS ( For an instant the two clansmen
I stood fronting each other. Samson's
4 fhce was Bet and wrathfui. Tamarack's 8
Was surly and snarling. "Haint l got
1 d license ter ten Sally the news?" he
demanded. "A y. -$s r., Y.
Nobody hain't got no license" re-
i torted the younger man in the quiet
& of cold anger, ''ter tell Sally nothin'
thet1l fret her. ,s. u, 5& L..
X "she air bound ter know hit all
pretty soon. Them dawgs-"
Didn't I tell ye ter shet up?" Sam
4 son clenched his fists, and took step
4 forward. "Ef ye opens yore mouth
again, I'm a-goin' ter smash hit. Now,
y git!"s y
u Tamarack Spicer's face blackened,
!. and his teeth showed. His right hand
I swept to his left arm-pit. Outwardly
1 he seemed weaponless, but Samson
], knew that concealed beneath the
J hickory shirt was holster. worn
mountain fashion. fssit. 81, (
what air ye a-reachin' after,
Tamrack? :" he inquired, his lips twist.
Ing in amusement.
Thet's my business" ~ i.}
well. git hit outor git out yeself,
! afore / throws ye often the cliff"
Sally showed no symptoms Of alarm.
Her confidence in her hero was abso-
lutte. The boy lifted his hand, and
pointed of down the path. Slowly
and with incoherent muttering, Spicer
took himself away. Then only did
i Sally rise. She came over, and laid a
3 hand on Samson's shoulder. In her
blue eyes, the tears were yelling.
Samson" she whispered, "ef they're
after. ye, come ter my house. / kin
hide ye out. Why didn't ye tell me
Jesse Jurvey'd done been shot?"
"Hit tain't nothin' ter fret about,
Sally" he assured her. He spoke
awkwardly, for he had been trained to
regard emotion as unmanly. THAR
hain'tSno danger" cs&
She gazed searchingly into his eyes,
and then. with short sob, threw her
arms around him, and buried her face
:. on his shoulder.
"N anything happens ter ye, Sam
son." she said, brokenly, "hitIl Jest
kill me. ] couldn't live withouten ye,
Samson. jest couldn't do hit!"
The boy took her in his arms, and
pressed her close. His eyes were gag.
ing off over her bent head, and his lips
twitched. He drew his features into
a scowl, because that was the only ex.
y preston With which he could safe.
I guard his feelings. His voice was
husky.
Il reckon, Sally" he said, Il couldn't
live wtthouten you, neither"
The party of men who had started
at morning from Jesse Purdy's store
had spent hard day. The roads fol
lowed creek-beds, crossing and re-
crossing waterways in fashion tina,
gave the bloodhounds hundred baf
fling difficulties. Often, their noses
q lost the trail, which had at first been
so surely taken. Often, they circled
and whined, and halted in perplexity
but each time they came to a point
where, at the end, one of them again
raised his muzzle skyward, and gave
voice.
Toward evening, they were working
up Misery along course less broken
The party halted for moments rest
and, as the bottle was PASSED. the man
from Lexington, who Rad brought the
dogs and stayed to conduct the chase
put a question: .
= '-What do you call this creek?"
Hits Mi.ery."