Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-03-31

Alaire is gone to La Feria and is in
great danger.
Chapter lXVIII-Dave goes to Las |
Palmas and arrives just after the MUIR
der of Ed Austin.
Chapter XlX-He rounds up Jose.
gives him the water cure and gets
from him confession that he killed Ed,
then starts for La Feria to protect
Alaire, whom he knows Longorio will
capture He instructs Blaze to give
the whole matter the widest publicity
and to send Ellsworth to Washington
to sing battle hymns.
Jose drew his lips back in n snarl Of
mgc and pain, and Dave realized that
further words were useless. He felt
certain pity for his victim and no little
admiration for his courage but such
feelings were Of small consequence
as against his agonizing fears for
Aloirc's safety. Had he in the least
doubted Joae's guilty knowledge OF
longorio's intentions. Dave would have
hcsitated before employing the bar
barous measures he had in mind but
there was nothing else for IT, He pulled
the canteen cork and damned the
mouthplece' firmly to Jose's lips. Clos
Ing the fellows nostrils with his free
knt - l,s t<,1 ,t
Jose clenched his teeth. he tried to
roll his head, he held his breath until
his face grew purple and his eyes
bulged. He strained like u man upon
the rack. The bench crcnked to his
muscular colitortions: the rope tight
cned. Ii was terribly cruel, this crush.
ing Of strong will bent on resistance
to the uttermost; but never was an
exccutioncr more pitiless, never did 4
prisoners agony receive less consid-
GRAFTON. The warm water spilled over
Josc's face. 1t drenched his neck and
chest, his joints creakcd as he strove
for freedom and tried to twist his head
ont Of Laws iron grasp. The seconds
dragged, until finally nature asserte,!
herself. The imprisoned breath burst
forth, there sounded loud glugling
cry and choking Inhalation. Jose's
body writhcd with the commissions of
7 drowning MS the water and air were
sucked into his lungs. Law was kneel-
4 ing over his victim now, his weight and
strength so applied that Jose had no
I liberty Of action and could only drink,
coughing and fighting for mir. Some
how lie managed to revive himself
briefly and again shut his teeth; but
q moment more ard he was again
retched with the furious battle for air.
more desperate now than before. After
a while Law freed his victims nostrils
and allowed him partial breath, then
once more crushed the mouthplece
against his lips. BY and by, to relieve
his torture, Jose began to drink In
great noisy gulps. striving to empty
the vessel
But the stomach's capacity Is I'm
tied. In time Jose felt himself BURST
ing; the liquid began to rcgurgitate.
This wnsl hot mere pain that he snf-
fcred, but the ultimate nightmare hor-
ror Of dcnth more awful than anything
\ he had ever imagined. Jose would
| have met Tbullct, i.fife. n lash. with
out flinching; flames would not have
served to weaken his resolve; but this
slow drowning WIS infinitely worse
tlmn the worst he lmd thought pos
sible; he was suffocating by long,
black, ugonizing minutes Every nerve
and muscle of his body, every cell In
MS bursting lungs. fought against the
outrage In purely physical frenzy
over which his will power had no con-
troll. Nor would insenslbility come to
MS reNcf--Law watched him too care
fully for TINT. He could not even voice
his sufferings by shrieks he could only
writhe and reich and gurgle while the
ropes bit into his flesh and his cnptor
knclt upon him like a monstrous stone
weight. 1''
But Jose had made better fight
than he'kncw. The canteen ran dry At
last, and Law was forced to relense his
hold.
"WiIl yon speak?' he demanded.
4 Thinking TINT he had come snfcly
through the ordeal, Jose shook his