The Tabor independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1913-19??, 1917-02-22
the Two PASSENGERS
BY NAPOLEON s. zARIcK.


Out of the door Of a popular gam.
bling hall fed 20 hatless, coatless fig.
ures, and after them came a host of
officers of the law. namely, sharp
eyed detectives and shrewd policemen.
1t was a famous raid. The gamblers
had been caught In the act, the gam
bling devices, some Of them valuable,
were all confiscated, and the men, ex-
cept one, were seized after a long run.
The n who escaped was Bob
Crane, the owner of the hall.
In vain all searched, trying to win
the large reward offered for his cap.
ture. But he had disappeared. as II
of the face Of the earth.
But there was one person In the
city where the raid occurred who
could have told the searchers where
Bob Crane was, and that n person
was Nellie Hayes. Nellie was a tall
girl, with soft brown hair and large,
blue eyes. One afternoon after Bob
had left the gambling hall to get q
light lunch before going back to his
evening work, he had decided to take
q walk through one Of the parks.
While In this park he saw q horse
madly running down the long. smooth
drive. His heart gave a thump as he
saw a girl dashing before the oncom-
ing horse. Bob made a desperate at
tempt to rescue the girl and succeed
ed In pulling her away from the dan
ger. This girl was Nellie Hayes, and
later, when Bob first met her on the
street. nearly a year before the raid,
he stopped short to look at her. He
then deliberately turned and followed
her at q respectful distance to her
home on n Of the fashionable streets
Of the town. Time passed rapidly
and before long he had made friends
with her father, and in an amazingly
short time the upper class knew him
as the sweetheart of pretty Nellie
Hayes.
She knew nothing about him. but
Just took him on trust. thinking him
to be an honest, upright man. Now.
when he lodged under the arm of a
%bluecoated pursuer. and swung an
other n out of the way with a blow
Of his big ist, he ran, more from
force Of habit than anything else.
straight in at the half-open door of
the Hayes home. Nellie was standing
in the hall as he rushed In.
Bob" she cried. showing a little
excitement in her voice, as she came
toward him with her arms out
stretched and her eyes plying him.
ooh, what's the matter, dear?"
"Don't, Nellie" he said huskily, as
he looked embarrassed into her eyes,
"you mustn't touch me now. I don't
know what I'm here for anyway. IN
less it's to tell you the truth. You
have put too much confidence in me.
Don't look at me that way. I'm not
fit for you to touch, nor to look at,
nor to think Of, Nellie, darling" He
choked back a sob before he contin-
ued: "Tm a bad man, and the police
are looking everywhere for me this
minute, but I had to come and tell
you first that It's all true-what you'll
see In the papers ~today-that Bob
Crane Is a gambler and a sharper, and
that his business Is to cheat men out
of their ~hard-earned wages. I'm this
same Bob Crane" he confessed to the
only girl that he had ever loved. "I've
been trying to get into something else
for your sake lately. dear, but I
couldn't seem to and old ways are
hard to break. So good-by, Nellie,
you'd best forget about me-"
Bob" she h%esitated; then she
came and laid her hands on his
shoulders to gaze into his eyes. Bob,
dear, If I'll get you out Of the country
and keep them from finding you, will
you promise to be a good man as long
as you live?"
He caught his breath.
Promise" she urged, as she
grasped him by the arm.
II promise" he said solemnly, and
then added, "but it's leaving my heart
behind me, Nellie, dear"
She did not answer, but crossed the
hall and took a small envelope from a
table drawer, then came and stood be-
fore him again. "Now, listen. From
now on, Bob, you're Mr.. John Edwards
and you're going back to your old
home in Ireland. Your rooms and
passage were taken last Friday for to-
days boat. You see, Mr.. Edwards.
who bought this ticket, is Ill, and the
doctor said 1t would kill him to go.
His wife brought the ticket here last
night and asked me to take 1t back to.
the steamship Office this morning. So,
Mr.. John Edwards, I will hire a car
riage for you and tonight you'll be
safe on your way to the distant land"
She drew away a little as she hand
ed him the envelope; she knew very
we'll what would happen. He looked
up in surprise as he opened it. His
heart beat faster. "Why. Nellie, there