The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1917-01-20
CHAPTER xxvl-contlnued.

CHAPTER NNvI-Continued.
u.s.
Whyf Then came realization. He
was not ranger now. He cared moth
Eng for the state. He had no thought
of freeing the community of danger
GUS outlaw, of Kidding the country of
an obstacle to Its progress and pros
perity. He wanted to kill Poggin. 1t
was significant now that he forgot the
other outlaws. He was the gunman,
the gun-thrower. the gun-fghter. pas
sionate and terrible. His fathers
blood. that dark and fierce strain, his
mothers spirit, that strong and I'M
quenchable spirit Of the surviving pio-
neer-these had been In him; and the
killings, one after another, the wild
and haunted years, had made him, alb
solutely in spite Of his will, the gun
man. He realized it now, bitterly,
hopelessly.
The thing he had intelligence
enough to hate he had become. At
last he shuddered under the driving,
ruthless, inhuman blood-lust of the
gunman. Actual pride Of his record
Actual vanity in his speed with a
gun! Actual jealousy of any rivall
Duane could not believe 1t. But
there he was, without choice. What
he had feared for years had become
a monstrous reality. He stood strip
ped bare, his soul naked-the soul of
Cain. And at the utter abasement
the soul he despised suddenly leaped
nd with Of Rou
Longstreth.
Then came agony. He loved the
girl. He wanted her. All her sweet
cess, her fire, and pleading returned
TO torture him.
At that moment the door opened, and
Ray Longstreth entered.
Duane" she said, softly. captain
MacNelly sent me to YOU"
"But you shouldn't have come" re-
oiled Duane.
"As soon as ne told me I would
have come whether he wished 1t or
cot. You left me-all Of us-stunned.
had no time to thank you. Oh, do
with all my soul. 1t was noble of
you. Father Is overcome. He didn't
expect so much. And he'll be true.
But, Duane, was told to hurry, and
here I'm selishly using time"
"Go, then-and leave me. You
mustn't unnerve me now, when there's
q desperate game to finish"
"Need 1t be desperateT she whisp-
cred, coming close to him.
"Yes; it can't be else"
Her eyes were dark, strained, beau
tiful, and they shed light upon
Duane he had never seen before.
you're going to take some mad
risk" she said. LET me persuade
you not to. You said-you cared for
me-and I-oh, Duane-don't you
know"
The low voice, deep, sweet as an
old chord, faltered and broke anu
failed
Duane sustained a sudden shock
and an instant Of paralyzed confusion
Of thought.
She moved, she swept out her hands,
and the wonder Of her eyes dimmed
n a food of tears.
my Godl You can't care for me9'
he cried, hoarsely.
Then she met him, hands outstretch-
ed.
"But dol dor
Swift as light Duane caught her and
held her to his breast He stood hold
ing her tight, with the feel Of her
warm, throbbing breast and the clasp
Of her arms and flesh and blood reali-
ties to fight a terrible fear. He felt
her, and for the moment the might
of 1t was stronger than all the demons
that possessed him. And he held her
as II she had been his soul. his
strength on earth, his hope Of heaven
against his lips.
The strife of doubt all passed. he
found his sight again. And there
rushed over him q tide Of emotion un'
utterably sweet and full, strong like
an intoxicating wine, deep as his ma
ture, something glorious and terrible
as the blaze Of the sun to one long II
darkness. He had become an outcast
q wanderer, a gunman, q victim Of
circumstances; he had lost and sui
fered worse than death in that loss
he had gone down the endless, bloody
trail, q killer Of men, a fugitive whose
mind slowly and inevitably closed Il
all except the instinct to survive ant
a black despair; and now, with Till
woman In his arms, her swelling breas
against his, in this moment almost o
resurrection, he bent under the storm
of passion and Joy possible only Il
him who had endured SO much.
do you care-a littlef" he wills
pered unsteadily.
He bent over her, looking deep int
the dark. wet eyes.
She uttered low laugh that wa
half sob, and her arms slipped n
to his neck.
y "A littlei Oh. Duane-Duane-
great dealw ,9e
Their lips met in their first kis'
The sweetness, the fire Of her mout
seemed SO new. so strange, 80 irresis'
ible to Duane. His sore and hungr
heurt throbbed with thick and heav