Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1917-04-06

lands. All Of You'll"
ured to the shock and tumult of con-
..ict by the experience OF many years.
who first recovered his self-possession
and noted q one-eyed man stealthily
making his way out OF a deep and
cavernous assure in some nearby
rocks. Over one shoulder this villain
ous-faced prowler bore burlap sack
which gave out clanking sound as
he felt his way step by step along
the rough trail.
The captain made up in valor what
he lacked In discretion, and, tugging
out his heavy service revolver he
rushed after that skulking gangster,
loudly calling on him to surrender in
the name OF the law. But One-Lamp
Louie had no apparent intention Of
surrendering either himself or the
coveted bag of loot to that wrathful
guardian OF public morals. Instead.
he coolly dropped to one knee and
lived up to his reputation of being
the handiest gunman in Legar's hard
shooting gang by sending a bullet neat
ly drilled through the police captains
shoulder
But he did not know as he lodged
his way among the shadowy tree
trunks that youthful figure armed
with heavy police revolver. a reso-
lutefaced girl and an elderly white.
haired man were rapidly closing in
on him. AS he broke from cover and
started up the railroad embankment
he ripped out hasty oath as he saw
his pursuers emerging from the woods
a short distance below him. At the
same moment they saw that sinister
figure with the burlap sack and came
toward him on the run.
OneLamp Louie instantly reached
the conclusion that it was safer to
run than to fight. and he pounded up
the ties with rapid strides.
Fifty yards up the track the gang
ster saw battered old switching en-
CINE standing by a dripping water
tank. He leaped aboard and opened
the throttle.
AS the self-constituted posse came
to bafiled stop close by the water
tank they saw an evilly grinning fig
ure leaning out from the cab OF the
fast receding engine. a figure whose
hand waved hooking signal OF fare
well in true railroad style.
few feet distant from the water
tank was a small. boxlike shanty con-
tanning the levers manipulating va
rious switches. In front of this shanty
stood a distraught engineer, volubly
cursing the bold depredator who had
robbed him of his iron charge. Sud.
denly a new look OF CONSERVATION
ii shed into his eyes and he turned
in frenzy of excitement to his grimy-
faced assistant
We've got to throw that devil of
tn main line, Gus" he shouted as he
lived into the boxlike structure The
Overland is due any second They'll
crash together head on
Almost as he spoke the last words
he jammed over one of the shining
levers with all his strength. At that
moment came a long-drawn screech-
ing whistle, accompanied by the grind.
ing sound of hastily applied airbrakes.
Down the level stretch of track the
onlookers, gripped in an agony of sus-
pense, saw the heavy Overland ex-
press rushing at top speed straight for
the numbering freight engine. The in.
tervening space between those speed
ing iron-c clad monsters lessened with
every second.
With set faces the little group by
the water tank steeled themselves for
that seemingly Inevitable crash of col
lision But at that crucial instant the
outlaw engine werved with incredi-
BILE swiftness and shot of into the
long siding. just as the express thun-
dered past with its dozen coaches of
human freight.
Like crazy Malay running amuck I,
the engine, with the desperate at it's
thu ottle. tore down the siding toward
startled group OF laborers who had
been ripping out defective rail. Amid
babble OF warning shouts the engine
struck that deadly gap, and bereft of
its steel guides, plowed wildly for q
short distance along the ties, and then,
enveloped in swirling cloud of steam,
plunged headlong over the steep en-
bankment. Under that shapeless mass
OF twisted metal which had once been
a staid old switching engine the white
faced pursuers of One.Lamp Louie
found the crushed and lifeless form of
the unregenerate gunman huddled
across burlap sack of stolen plate.
With gesture of distress Margery,
Golden turned away from that repul
sive. death-stilled figure
Please take me home" she said
YEARLY to her father. who was staud-
ing near by.
ITO on CnNrINtrur.