The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1915-02-06

Farbish with a frightened glance
at the set face OF the man who was ad-
yancing upon him, Isaped back, and
drew from his pocket d pistOl-it was
an exact counterpart of tie one with
which he had supplied Samson
With a panthe--like swiftness, the
Kentuckian Ieaped forward, and struck
up the weapon, which spat one in
effective bullet into the rafters. There
was a monetary scuf1e of sTaying
bodies and a crash under which the
table grOaned amid the shattering
Of glass and china Then, slowly. the
eonspirator's body bent back at the
waist, until its shoulders were
stretched on the disaTranged cloth.
and the white face, with purple veins
swelling on the forehead. stared up
between two brown hands that gripped
its throat
Swallow that" ordered the noun
taineer.
For just an instant. the company
stood dumfounded, then a strained.
unnatural voice broke the silence.
Stop him, he's going to kin the
mani
The odds were four to two. and
with a sudden rally to the support OF
their chief plotter, the other conspira-
tors rushed the figure that stood throt-
Ting his victim. But Samson South
was in his element The dammed-uD
wrath that had been smoldering dur
ing these last days was having q tenn
pestuous outlet He had found men
who, in q gentlemen's club TO which
he had come as a 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 a crashing Of glass
and china, and a cIatter of furniture
and a chaos of struggle
Samson South stood for a moment
! painting in a scene OF wreckage and
disorder. The table was Uttered with
! shivered glasses and decanters and
/ chinaware The furniture was scat
| tered and overturned Farbish was
/ weakly leaning to one side in the seat
/ 10 which he had made his way The
men who had gone down under the
/ heavy blows of the chair lay quietly
/ hu6T6 Lu6N ndQ LaA16u-
Wilfred Horton stood waiting. The
/ whole affair had transpired with such
celebrity 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 Farbish's
hand and he contemptuously kicked it
/ to one side. He came back to his
place
Now. Mr.. Horton he said to the
man who stood looking about with a
dazed expression, If you're still Of the
same mind, can accommodate you
You lied when you said 1 was a saw
! age-though Just now il 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 amt 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. Pm 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, OF viii you go into another room
and talk?"
Leave them where they are" said
Horton, quietly. Wen go into the
reading-room Have you killed any of
them?"
I don't know" said the other. curt
IL, land 1 don't care"
When they we're alone, Samson
went on:
81 know what you want to ask me
about, and I don't mean to answer you.
You want to question me about Miss
Lescott- Whatever she and I have
done doesn't concern you. 1 viii say
this much-if I've been ignorant OF
New York ways and my ignorance has
embarrassed her, I'm sorTy.
81 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. I have
something to ask her pardon about,
but she hasn't asked It.
TO BE CONTINUED)
Whale a Victim Of War.
An enormous whale drifted ashore
near Margate, England, the other day.