Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1917-01-14

"uii" unconscious OF this az rather I'm
ha'tcied; aS II such homage were her
"HiiN iar''--aS II might we'll have been
fuI ~ nnhappily happened that hei
rowing. curious Rlances detected Phillip
III the act of StarinS-a rudcuess OF
which ne had been Till then all un
aware. hut consciousness of which now
mad" his Lace lame with bushes ana
"t"\e nm an hot. miserable confusion
from the doorway TO The farthest tc-
cess az The hotc! office.
Thcr" he lnrk.d iilI h. reckoncd i,
sat" 10 cmers. without again en-
""um'"rtuG til. object Of his uninten-
ti"n:'i h"oriShn.ss.
u" found l;"d Wing watching n sec.
"nd blackboard traii its plume OF red
dish dust up the road aud ont Of sigh,
over tn" nearest rise.
Ssh" srZ ms how 4ecin' her train =
stalled for bell knows how long. shed
admire Tor I" see somethin' Of the
country. Philip was Informed so
Tw"-Hun ups an seq he's n guide an
pets blackboard an drives her an
The boy "N-ih" Merry cuss."
'rw"-iun"' I'hiip repeated slowly.
somehow Ii" didn't relish the notion
OF ia" girl going off in company with
that vicious character. unprotected i,u,
i"r the presence Of the very young aud
ingenious l"oaing Mir Manwaring
OF course. II wasn'i likely that Two
Ran would TRY anything roush" under
tn" circumstances. Il. might be a.
dangerous bad man as he boa 81, ed {:
"m, even such creatures mus; rcSpec,
publ" sentiment: if anything unto
ward occurred while tn" girl was with
him Two-Gun would have tu travel
asst and far to escape thu wrath Of
he community
~; il WASH, in the Least nheIy.
Lust ihe Samc. rhi!ir would have been
happier in hiS hume" had tho gi,i
chosen almost amy other guide"
'r sudden IA" found himself IN
hItchinr aud mounting his pony AMI
starting off IN the wake of the vanished
blackboard
Ills departure caSioucd NO com
m"n. The road was that which h.
would naturally have taken II inl.u,
on nothing more serious than return
ms I" tho, ranch.
Keeping I" = moderate pac" as long
as FED Wing could see him. once b.
N"nd the ris" rhilip tish,cncd 'ne
rcins. ana hiS horse willingly extended
himself
some time later he paused At fork
IL, he roads Y" tho rirhi Was his
way home To the LET, tn. wagon
track penetrated Wild and sparsclN pop.
nlated foothills
one glance At the tracks Ia tn. dus;
informed Philip that Of the two bu',
boards which had preceded him on.
had turned of into tho foothills: and
sinve The first had been bound FOR
Red Wing Ranch, this mus, have hccn
the vehicle driven by rvo-GGn Wai,"rs.
Vaguely troubled. rhiup chose The
road to the left,
In Ia
ne rounded the bare req shoulder of :,
.un-baked hill 10 sec below him the
FORD OF Il shallow watcrcoursc-m the
rainy season the bed "f raging tor
rent. to-day chain "f little pools
linked 10y an idlc wandering tricklc
ON the far side Of this man lay
prone in the dust.
Philip used his spurs in earnest H.
twenty seconds he was lca2ine from
tho saddle 10 knccl beside the un-
conscious Mauwarue boy.
Turning his face upwards. Philip
relied 10y cruel blow on the RICH;
tcmple. blow from some blunt in
s,r'uncn'. NOT improbabiy tho butt Of
revolver
Fetching 4 hatful Of water from the
nearest pool. he bathcd tho boys face
till IN" sighed. revived little. stared
hiankiN up at Ihilip. then suddenly
tried &" rice. bohblns almost incn-
hcrcntly ~ the trrarh"ry OF IN.
'Suid" vino had ~ some spccious
protest induced hin, I" aliSht from the
blackboard and then had hrutaliy
Knocked him inscnsihlc
Philip did not wait 10 hear the end
OF his story Bidding the hoy Wal,
his return he rode ON 49, madlv As
though The devil himself were a, his
heels
The road twisted and turn.d snalily
through the heart Of those arid mills
u grew loss like road. more fain,!y
marked. even as the country seemed
q" grow more grim and wild.
In land of such solic,,udcs any.
thing miSh happen. and the vi,tin's
screams he swallowed up. hlottcG out
dic unhehrd in the aching silcu,es
lie rode without draw wing rein for
miles. and with never "a glimpse of AM.
thing remotely resembling tn. bu H.
board.
Then suspec,ins he nigh, have oven
shot his mark, he pulled up and ex-
amined the ground for traces az hoofs
and wheels.
lie rode more SLOWLY back. intent
gaze To the ground FOR !. mile or NOR.
then found tn" spot Whcr. tile burl.-
board had turned OFF. clearly tracked
III the dry baked earth.
the lraii crossed broad. gentle
down into - wooded AMI meado,,.d
hollow on the upper reach Of tha; sam.
waicrc"ursc beside which he had found
the stricken boy!
In the distance Philip cspied (. I|ril.
half-ruin"d adobe dwelling With snui
doors and suffered windovR
Al the same time he discovered ,I,a
hu"' board with its stcsmin2 team
half-hiddem III Is ciump Of rarrh.d COL
toHw Gods.
bisnouniiug. he Approached tia. mn
afo"'. walking waril!. aIi"naiI. IN
hand
Near one III It's shuiIer.u nindovY
ii" interrupted his cat-fooi"d progress
aud listened.
i'romr th. interior lac heard IA. s.lni-
drunken accents OF TwO-Gun Walters.
That cres, on your handkerchief
means royalty. OF somethn' :,hui.hi.
nigh onto royalty Your" 8 foreigner,
an your familys rich Y"u'u Just Wal;
here with m" taking precious good
car. Of YOU ill your FOLKS ransom,
YOU.
cautiously rhiiip tried The shutter
II proved 10 be merely .loScd-noi
fastened lie swung i, open
fw"-GGn Walters was STANDING with
bach /" him The girl faced tn. vim
dow. staring in terror. Between the