Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1917-04-26

said the man. You're on my horse.
stranger. This is the fifth case O.
boss stealin' in these yere parts in the
last three weeks. Now We've got Oh
to who's dom it there'll be no more
of it. Reckon you'll dance whar the
grass is too short.
The girl cast a glance at the pro-
lessor. who had not the faintest con-
ception OF what they all meant, then
u meaning glance at his captor, tap
| ping her head with her finger, indicat-
ing that the horse thief was not in his
right mind. Then. riding up to Mart.
as she called him. she said in q low
voice. not to be heard by Dibbley:
Hes goin' to Hutton's cave, he
says, to hunt for the bones O. people
| thousand O. years old. That's evidence
enough that he's went daft"
Mart concluded to ask the professor
a few questions himself:
"What We expect to find in the cave?"
"A treasure worth more than millions
| Of dollars"
"What kind of q treasurer"
1.-THE bones Of a man who lived when
| the plains down there We're covered
by an ocean"
"That'll do, SAL" said the interrog-
ator to the girl. II don't want to
hear any more. But we can't let a
| Teller like that go browsin' about by
hisself. Come, my friend" to the pro-
fessor. you'll have to go back with
me-"
II can't do that" replied Dibbley.
Eve come all the way from New
| England to examine this find, and I
| beg of you not to interfere with me-.
1 didn't know the horse was yours"
Dibbley begged so hard that Sal set
| about persuading his captor to let him
go to the cave. which was but q. mile
| distant.
"Y' got to humor them lunatics," she
said aside to Mart. eff you don't
| they're liable to hurt themselves"
Mart yielded to please her, and the
three went on to the q The escorts
watched to see what Dibbley would do.
Dibbley had brought some digging
utensils with him and began to make
a hole in the floor Of the cave. Remov-
ing some earth, he picked out fints.
The watchers, s%upposing them to be
stones and seeing the professor put
them carefully in a bag, saw confirma-
ton of their theory that he was crazy.
Besides, the %eXcaVator was constantly
talking to himself, using the words
neolithic, paleolithic and such other
unintelligible names.
What the professor discovered or
what he might have discovered is not
to be definitely described, for the pa
tience of the two lockers on was DOR
exhausted, and they concluded that he
should be confined in a place where he
would do neither himself nor any one
else harm. They compelled him to
leave his work and return with them
to the place where he had paid a man
So for the use Of another manss3horse.
Unfortunately persons who had re-
Gently lost horses were waiting Mart's
return, and they We're not prepared for
the line of defense the professors at
PENDANTS were about to give them.
An angry knot of men were talking
about the loss of their horses when the
captive was seen coming, between
Mart and Sal. When the party reach
ed the station there were frantic cries
of "Hang him." Shoot him!" "Kill
him. mingled with uncomplimentary
remarks. Mart. who had become con,
vinced Of Dibbley's insanity, attempted
to argue with the crowd, but failed.
They all said that, having recovered
his own horse, he was inclined to for.
give the crime that had deprived 9th.
ers of their horses.
Meanwhile the professor had come
his own tragic situation and was trem
bling like a leaf. Then Sal rose to the
occasion and proved that a woman
may be a valuable legal advocate.
"Men," she said, arguing from the
rostrum Of a horses back, sitting
straddle, "ef you'd "a seen and, heard
what we seen and heard you'd be con
WINGED of this yere little fel1er's limo
cence. He's as crazy as a loon. HI
said while he was talkin' that we was
all the sons and darters of monkeys
that there vas times when everything
was covered with ice, runnin like wa
ter; that kangeroos was cavortin
around bigger'n any house in this yer'
place; that sometimes the sea wa
%a-splashin' agin Table mountain; tina
there was men on earth before the In
jins. He went into Hutton's cave ant
was a-diggin' there, throwin' up dirt.
stones and putin EN- in his bag, IS i
they was silver spoons. If then
things don't prove him crazy there
nobody crazy. and they'd better tea
down the ~madhouses.''
GLOW about his stealin' Mart
h~orse?" called a voice.
"I1l tell you: he's not only a lunatic
but a fool. He got TUX in by some III
that he give a flyer to fur the use q
Mart's horse to go to the cave to hun