The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1917-03-15
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! Al ilIOuEu lllC StIeEl WlluOWs
Morgans were celebrating uncommnS
ly. Rubbing it in, eh, JohnT" sug
gested Jeffries.
''Think of it," gasped Lefever, etc
be beaten by an eighteen-year-old girl.
"NOw that" declared Jeffries, wax
ing up as if for the first time inter
ested, sis exactly where you made your
mistake, John. A gunman shoots his
best when there's somebody shooting
at him. That's why you shoot we'll
because you're a gunman, and not 6
marksman."
"That boy can shoot all around me
jeff"
For instance" continued Jeffries
eff you had put Gale Morgan Ut
against Henry, and told him to shoot
at each other, instead of against each
other, you'd have got bulls-eyes tC
burn from De Spain. And the Gala
basas crowd wouldn't have your
money. John, if you want to win
money, you must study the psycholog
ical."
There was abundance of raillery in
Lefever's retort: THAT'S why you are
rich, jeff"
mo, am poor because I failed to
study it. That is why am at Sleepy
Cat holding down a division. But
now that you've brought Henry up
here, wen keep him."
'What do you mean, keep him?'
demanded Lefever starting in protest.
II mean 1 need him. 1 mean the
time to shoot a bear is when you see
him. John, what kind of fellow is
| De Spain?" demanded the superintend-
ent, as if he had never heard of him.
| Lefever, regarding Jeffries keenly,
exclaimed with emphasis: "Why, if you
want him short and sharp, he's a man
with a soft eye and snap-turtle jaw,
man of close squeaks and short-arm
shots, always getting into trouble, al
ways getting out; a man that can
wheedle more out of a horse than any
body but an Indian; coax more shots
out of a gun than anybody else can
put into tiff you want him fat, that's
Henry, as ] size him."
Jeffries resumed his mildest tone ::
"Tell him to come in a minute, John"
De Spain himself expressed con-
temptuous impotence when Lefever
told him the superintendent wanted
him to go to work at Sleepy Cat. He
declared he had always. hated the
town, raised one objection after anoth-
er to leaving Medicine Bend, and JEFF
fries finally summoned a show of i'm
patience.
'You are looking for promotion,
aren't your he demanded threaten
ingly.
Eyes, but not for motion without the
pro-" objected De Spain. Il want to
stick to the railroad business. You
want TO get me into the stage bust
ness"
Temporarily, yes. But I've told
you when you come back to the divi-
sion proper, you come as my assist
ant, if you make good running the
Thief River stages. Think of the sal
ary."
81 have no immediate heirs'
"This is not a matter for Joking, De
Spain"
81 know that, too. How many men
have been shot on the stages in the
last six months?"
"Why, now and again the stages
are held up, yes" admitted Jeffries
bruSquely; "that is to be expected
where the specie shipments are large.
The Thief River mines are rotten with
gold just now. But you don't have to
drive a stage. We supply you with
good men for that, and good guards
men willing to take any kind of a
chance if the pay is right. And the
pay is right, and yours as general man
ager will be right"
Il have never as yet generally man.
aged any stage line" remarked De
Spain, poking ridicule at the title, mo
matter how modest an outfit"
"You will never learn younger. We
must have man to run that line that |
can curb the disorders along the route. |
Calabasas valley, De Spain, is a bad |
place."
as it?' De Spain asked as naively |
as If he had never heard of Calabasas, |
though Jeffries was nervily stating a
fact bald and notorious to both.
"There are a lot of bad men there"
Jeffries went on, 'who are bad simply
because they've never had a man to
show them"
"The last general manager was
yilIod fboro UaSn,t bn2D
mot in the valley, no. He was shot
1T Calabasas inn."
would that make very much differ
.nce in the way he felt about It'll"
Jeffries, with an effort, laughed.
That's all right, Henry! They won't
ret you" Again he extended his fin
,er dogmatically: "If I thought they
would, 1 wouldn't send you down
here"
THANK you"
"You are young, ambitiOus-four
thousand year isn't hanging from ev-
ny telegraph pole; it is almost twice
What they are paying me-"
you're not getting shot at"
mo man, Henry, knows the hour of /
lis death. No man in the high coun-
~ knows when he is to be made a {
you well understand. Men !
re shot down in this country that {