The review. [volume] (High Point, N.C.) 1908-19??, 1917-01-25

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| ing the horses over and inspecting the
wagons with a new but mild curiosity
awakened by Jeffries proposal, De
Spain walked back toward the station
He had virtually decided not to take
| the job. Medicine Bend was his home.
| He knew every man, woman and child
| in the town. Before the tragic death
of his father, his mother had lived
there, and De Spain had grown up In
the town and gone to school there. He
was a railroad man, any~ay-a modest
trainmaster-and not &ager for stage
line management.
| AS he passed Grant street again he
encountered a party on horseback
heading for the river bridge. Three
of the men were riding abreast and a
little ahead. OF these the middle
hOrseman was a spare man of frankly
disreputable air. His face was drawn
up into a one-sided smile. Satt Nor
gan's smile was habitual and lessened
his stern aspect. At his right rode his
cousin, Duke Morgan older, shorter
and stouter. His square, heavy-jaweC
smooth-shaven face was lighted b.
hard, keen eyes, and finished by an un-
compromising chin. Duke was the real
head of the clan, of which there we're
numerous branches in the Superstition
mountains, all looking with friendli-
ness or enmity to the Morgans of Nor
CAMS gap.
The yellow-haired man riding on the
left, with a red face and red-idded
squirting eyes, showed none of the
blood of his companions. But David
SassOon, the Calabasas gambler, QuOn-
dam cowboy, and chronic brawler,
stood in some way close to the differ
ent Morgans, and was reputed to have
got each of them, at different times.
out of more than one troublesome af-
fair, either by sheer force Of arms, or
through his resourceful cunning.
These men were followed by young
err man riding with very young WON.
an. De Spain knew none Of the front
rank men, but he knew we'll Nan Nor
gan and her dancing partner. Gales
face lighted as he set eyes on De Spain,
and he spoke quickly to Nan: There's
your handsome Medicine Bend gun
man."
Nan, glancing toward De Spain.
seemed aware that he heard. She
looked away. De Spain frightened up
with a rage. The blood rushed t' his
face, the sarcasm struck in. If the
birthmark could have deepened with
humiliation it would have done SO at
the instant of the cold inspection of
the girls pretty eyes. Gale, calling
ahead to the others, invited their at
tentiOn to the man on the street cor
ner. De Spain only stood still, re-
turning their inspection as insOlently
as silence could. Each face was faith
fully photographed and filed in his
memory, and his steady gaze followed
them until they rode down the hill and
clattered jauntily out on the swaying
suspension bridge that still crosses the
Rat river at Grant street, and corr
meets the whole south countryside
Spanish sinks, the Thief River gold
fields, the saw-tOOthed SuperstitiGn
range, Morgan's gap, and Music mOml-
tain with Sleepy Cat and the railroad.
De Spain, walking down Grant
street, watched the party disappear
among the hills across the river. The
encounter had stirred him. He already
hated the Morgans, at least all except
the blue-eyed girl, and she, it was not
difficult to divine from her expression,
was, at least, disdainful of her morn
ing rival.
Reaching the station platform while
still busy with his thoughts, De Spain
encountered Jeffries and Lefever.
"Jeffries, I'll take that Thief River
stage job" announced De Spain bluntly.
"What's the reason that fellow
changed his mind?" demanded Jeffries,
when Lefever joined him later in his
Office.
'sDon't ask me-" frcwned Lefever
perplexed. "DOn't ask me. Henry is
odd in some ways. You can't tell
what's going on inside that fellows
head by looking at the outside of it"
Jeffries grunted coldly at this bit Of
wisdom. ''I'll tell yon what ! should
think-if I had to think: Henry de
Spain has never found out rightly who
was responsible for the death of his
father. He expects 20 do it, some
time; and long ago some of these same
Morgans lived on the Peace river above
his fathers ranch"