The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1917-06-30
CHAPTER XVII.
Hone ForIorn.

spite of their devotion. to the end Of
their dream. They parted late, each
trying to soften the blow as 1t fell on
the other, each processing courage
which, In the face Of the revelation,
neither could clearly feel.
In the morning Jeffries brought
down to De Spain. who had spent a
sleepless night at the Office, letter
from Nan.
De Spain opened 1t with acute mis-
Hvings. Hardly able to believe his
Eyes, he slowly read:
Dearest-A wild hope has come to me-
Perhaps we don't know the truth of this
terrible story as it really is. Suppose we
should be condemning poor Uncle Duke
without having the real facts? Sassoon
was \ wretch, Henry. IL ever one lived
a curse to everyone. What purpose he
could serve by repeating this story. which
he must have kept very secret till now. 1
don't know; but there was some reason.
I must know the whole truth-I feel that
I. alone, can get hold OF it, and that you
would approve what i am doing II you
were here with me In this little room.
where I am writing at davbreak. to show
you my heart.
Long before you get this shall be
speeding toward the gap. / am going
to Uncle Duke to get from him the ex-
act truth. Uncle Duke Is breaking-has
broken-and now that the very worst has
come. and we must face IT. he will tell
the what / ask. Whether l can get him
to repeat this to you. to come to you, to
throw himself on your pity. my dearest
one, / don't know. But 1t is for this l
am going to try, and for this l beg OF
your love-the love OF which l have been
so proudl-that you will let me stay with
him until at least learn everything and
can bring the whole story to you. II /
can bring him, I will,
And / shall be safe with Unexpectedly
safe. Gale has been driven away. Pard-
aloe. I know / can trust. and he will be
under the roof with me. Please. do not
try to come to me. II might ruin every
thing. Only forgive me, and l shall be
back with what hope for. or what I
fear, very, very soon. Not till then can
/ bear to look into your eyes. You have
better right than anyone In the world
20 know the whole truth. cost what IL
may. Be patient for only little while
with NAN.
1t was Jeffries who said, afterward,
he hoped never again to be the bearer
Of letter such as that. Never until
he had read and grasped the contents
Of Mans note had Jcffries seen the
bundle Of resource and nerve and
sinew, that men called Henry de
Spain, go to pieces. For once, trouble
overbore him.
When he was able to speak he told
Jefrries everything. ut is my fault
he said hopelessly. II was so crippled,
go stunned, she must have thought
see 1t now-that / was making ready
to ride out by daybreak and shoot
Duke down on sight. It's the price a
man must pay. Jeffrles, for the abil-
tty to defend himself against this
bunch of holdup men and assassins'
Because they can't get me, I'm gun
man"
mo, you're not 'gunman.
"a gunman and nothing else. That's
what everybody, friends and enemies
reckon me-a gunman. You put me
here to clean out this Calabasas gang
not because of my good looks, but
because I've been, so far, fraction oil
a second quicker on trigger than
these doubled crooks"
Jeffries, from behind his pipe. re-
gsrded De Spain's random talk calmly
III do feel hard over my fathers
DEATH" he went on moodily. "WhC
wouldn't? If God meant me to forget
1t, why did he put this mark on my
face, jeff / did talk pretty strong to
Nan about 1t on Music mountain.
81 did feel, for long time, I'd like
TO kill with my own hands the mar
that murdered my father, Jeff. My
mother must have realized that hel
babe, IL a man-child, was doomed to Q
life Of bloodshed. I've been trying t.
think most Of the night what shet
want me to do now. 1 don't know wha'
I can do, or can't do, when / set eyes
On the old scoundrel. He's got to tel
the truth-that's all I say now. II hi
lies, after what he made my mother
suffer, he ought to die like dog-nt
matter who he Is.
II don't want to break Mans heart
What can I dor Hanging him here II
Sleepy Cat, II I could do 1t, wouldn'
help her feelings a whole lot. II
could see the fellow" De Spain,
hands, spread before him on the table
drew up tight. "if could get my fin
gers on his throat, for minute. ant
talk to him. tell him what think o
him-I might know what ! would wan
to do-Nan might be there to see ant
Judge between us. I'd be almost will
ing to leave things to her to settle her
self. / only want what's right. But
the oath that recorded his closin
threat was collected and pitiless, u
any harm comes to that girl now fron
this wild trip back among those wolve
God pity the men that put 1t over. III
wipe out the whole accursed clan, IL
have to swing for 1t right here Il
Sleepy Catw
Join Lefever. Jeffries, Scott In turl
took him in hand to hold him durin
three days, to restrain the fury Of hi
resentment, and keep him from rldin
TO the gap In temper that each o
them knew would mean only a TRACED
worse than what had gone before
oven three days of tactful represents
tion and uat,ent sdmon'''"n from "no