The Huttig news., 1915-02-27

unnatural voice broke the silence.
 Stop him, he's going to kill the mani"
 The odds were four to two, and with sudden rally to the support of their chief plotter, the other eonspira- tors rushed the figure that stood throt- ting his victim. But Samson South was in his element. The dammed-up wrath that had been smoldering dur ing these last days was having a tenn pestuous outlet. He had found men who, in gentlemen's club to which he had come as guest, sought to use him as catspaw and murderer
 AS they assaulted him, en masse. he seized a chair, and swung it fail like about his head For a few mo- ments, there was crashing of glass and china, and chatter of furniture and chaos of struggle.
 Samson South stood for a moment panting in a scene of wreckage and disorder. The table was filtered with shivered glasses and decanters and chinaware. The furniture was scat tered and overturned Farbish was weakly leaning to one side in the seat to which he had made his way. The men who had gone down under the heavy blows of the chair lay quietly where they had fallen.
 Wilfred Horton stood waiting. The whole affair had transpired with such celerity and speed that he had hardly understood it, and had taken no part. But. as he met the gaze of the dis ordered figure across the wreckage of a dinner-table, he realized that now, with the preliminaries settled, he who had struck Samson in the face must give satisfaction for the blow. Horton was sober, as cold sober as though he had jumped into ice-water, and though he was not in the least afraid, he was mortified. and, had apology at such a time been possible, would have made it. He knew that he had misjudged his man; he saw the outlines of the plot as plainly as Samson had seen them, though more tardily
 Samson's toe touched the pistol which had dropped from Farbishs hand and he contemptuously kicked it to one side. He came back to his place.
 Now, Mir Horton" he said to the man who stood looking about with a dazed expression, Eff you're still of the same mind, I can accommodate you You lied when you said I was say age-though just now it sort of looks like I was, and'-he paused, then added-"and I'm ready either to fight or shake hands. Either way suits me-"
 For the moment Horton did not speak, and Samson slowly went on:
 But, whether we fight or not, you've got to shake hands with me when we're finished. You and me ain't going to start no feud. This is the first time I've ever refused to let a man be my enemy if he wanted to. I've got my reasons I'm going to make you shake hands with me whether you like it or not, but if you want to fight first it's satisfactory. You said awhile ago you would be glad to be more explicit with me when we were alone-' He paused and looked about the room. Shall throw these damned murderers out of here, or will you go into another room and talk?"
 Leave them where they are,' said Horton, quietly. Well go into the reading-room Have you killed any of them?"
 q don't know" said the other, curt ly, "and I don't care"
 When they were alone, Samson went on:
 q know what you want to ask me about, and don't mean to answer you You want to question me about Miss Lescott. Whatever she and l have done doesn't concern you. l will say this much-if I've been ignorant of New York ways and my ignorance has embarrassed her, I'm sorry.
 q supposed you know that she's too damned good for you-just like she's too good for me. But she thinks more of you than she does of me-and she's yours. As for me, I have nothing to apologize to you for. Maybe, l have something to ask her pardon about, but she hasn't asked it.
 George Lescott brought me up here and befriended me. Until a year ago had never known any life except that of the Cumberland mountains. Until I met Miss Lescott, I had never known a woman of your world. She was good to me. She saw that in spite of my roughness and ignorance wanted to learn, and she taught me You chose to misunderstood, and dis iincu me. Inese men saw that, a44u believed that, if they could make you insult me. they could make me kill you. AS to your part, they succeeded. 1 didn't see fit to oblige them, but, now that I've settled with them, I'm willing to give you satisfaction. Do we fight now and shake hands after ward, or do we shake hands without fighting?"
 Horton stood silently studying the 
 Good God!" he exclaimed at last. I tA