The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1917-03-15

high bar stretched across the farther
side OF the room. The left end, as they
faced the bar. was brought around to
escape small window opening on a
court or patio 10 the rear Of the room.
Back Of the bar itself. about midway.
a low door In the bare wall gave en-
trance to a rear room. Aside from
this the room presented nothing but
walls. Two windows flanking the front
door helped to light 1t, but not mir
ror, picture, chair, table, bottle or
glass was to be seen. De Spain COW
cred every feature of the interior at
glance. 'Quiet around here, John" he
remarked casually.
| "Thls is the Quietest place in the
| Rocky mountains most of the time But
when II IL noisy, believe me, 1t is
noisy. Look mt the bullet holes in the
walls"
"The old story" remarked De Spain,
inspecting with mild-mannered interest
the punctured plastering, "they always
shoot high"
He walked over to the left end of the
bar, noting the hard usage shown by
the ornate mahogany, and spreading
his hands wide open, palms down, on
the face of il, glanced at the low win
dow on his left, opening on the gray
eled patio. He peered, In the semi
darkness, at the battered door behind
the bar.
"Henry." observed Lefever, ''if you
are looking for a drink, 1t would only
be fair, as well as polite, to call the
Mexican"
De Spain, turning, looked all
around the room again. "You wouldn't
think" he said slowly, "from looking at
the place there was road-agent with
In thousand miles,"
"You wouldn't think, from riding
through the Superstition mountains
there was a lion within thousand
years, and l never saw one except
when the dogs drove 'em out; but for
eleven years they saw me. If we
haven't been seen coming in here by
some of this Calabasas bunch, i miss
my guess" declared Lefever cheer
fully.
The batten door behind the bar now
began 70 open slowly and noiselessly.
Lefever peered through 1t. "Come in,
Pedro" he cried reassuringly, "come
IN, man. This is no officer no revenue
,agent locking for your license. Meet
n friend, Pedro" he continued encour-
agingly, as the swerthy publican, low
browed and sulien. emerged very de-
liberately from the inner darkness into
the obscurity of the barroom, and bent
his one good eye searchingly on De
Spain. ''This," Lefever's left hand lay
familiarly on the back of De Spain's
shoulder, sis our new manager, Mr..
Henry de Spain. Henry, shake hands
with Mexico"
This invitation to shake hands
seemed an empty formality. De Spain
never shook hands with anybody; nj
least II he did so, he extended, through
habit long Injured, his left hand, with
! an excuse for the soreness of his right
: Pedro did not even bat his remaining
eye mt the invitation. The situation, a.
, Lefever facetiously remarked, re
: NAMED about where It was before h,
spoke, when the sound of gallopinl
: horses came through the open door.
> moment later three men walked, sin
gle file, Into the room. De Spain stoot
Z at the left end of the bar, and Lefeve
4 introduced him to Gale Morgan, I,
David Sassoon, and to Sassoon's crony
e Deaf Sandusky, us the new stage-lin
Q manager. The later arrivals lined NJ
g before the bar, Sandusky next to lie
Q fever and De Spain, SO he could hea
e what was said. Pedro from his de-
g produced two Queer-looking bottles an
Q a supply of glasses.
6 "De Spain," Gale Morgan begal
: bluntly, lone Of our men was put off
J, stage of yours last week by Frank FL
!, paso." He spoke without any pre-
s liminary compliments, and his heav
r voice was bellicose.
r De Spain, regarding him undis
e turbed, answered after little pause
n "Elpaso told me he put man of hi
It stage last week for fighting"
r "No," ccntrad.cted Morgan loudly
It mot for fighting. Elpaso was drunk"
d whats the name of the man II
d pnso put of, John?" asked De Spair
looking at Lefeyer.
4 Morgan hooked his thumb towar
l. the man standing at his side. "Here'
p the man right here, Dave Sassoon."
e Sassoon never looked man In tn
K r.. a