Camas Prairie chronicle. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1901-1917, 1917-01-05

| last three weeks. NOW we've got Oh
to who's dom it there'n be no more
Of 1t. Reckon you'll dance whar the
grass is too short"
The girl cast glance at the pro-
lessor, who had not the faintest con-
ception of what they all meant then
meaning glance at his captor, tap
ping her head with her finger, indicat-
Ing that the horse thief was not in his
right mind. Then, riding up to Mart,
as she called him, she said in a low
voice, not to be heard by Dibbley:
Hes goin' to Hutton's cave, he
says, to hunt for the bones O people
thousand o. years old. That's evidence
enough that he's went daft"
Mart concluded to ask the professor
few questions himself:
"What We expect to find In the cave"
"a treasure worth more than millions
of dollars"
what kind of q treasurer
1.-THE bones of a man who lived when
the plains down there were covered
by an ocean"
"That'll do, SAL" said the interrog-
ator to the girl. II don't want to
hear any more. But we can't let
Teller like that go browsin' about by
hisself. Come, my friend" to the pro-
fessOr. you'll have to go back with
me-"
II can't do that" replied Dibbley.
"I've come all the way from New
England to examine this find, and l
beg of you not to interfere with me.
I didn't know the horse was yours"
Dibbley begged so hard that Sal set
about persuading his captor to let him
go to the cave, which was but a mile
distant.
"Y' got to humor them lunatics," she
said aside to Mart. "If you don't
they're liable to hurt themselves"
Mart yielded to please her, and the
three went on to the cave. The escorts
watched to see what Dibbley would do.
Dibbley had brought some digging
utensils with him and began to make
hole in the floor of the cave. Remov-
ing some earth, he picked out fints.
The watchers, supposing them to be
stones and seeing the professor put
them carefully in bag, saw cOnfirma-
ton Of their theory that he was crazy.
Besides, the excavator was constantly
talking to himself, using the words
neolithic, paleolithic and such other
unintelligibla names.
| What the professor discovered or
what he might have discovered is not
to be definitely described, for the pa
tience of the two lockers on was soon
exhausted, and they concluded that he
should be confined in a place where he
would do neither himself nor any one
else harm. They compelled him to
leave his work and return with them
to the place where he had paid a man
SIS for the use Of another mans horse.
| Unfortunately persons who had re-
Gently lost horses were waiting Mart's
return, and they were not prepared for
the line Of defense the professors at
tandants were about to give them.
An angry knot of men were talking
about the loss of their horses when the
captive was seen coming, between
Mart and Sal. When the party reach
ed the station there were frantic cries
of "Hang himw "Shoot him. "Kill
himw mingled with uncomplimentary
remarks. Mart, who had become con-
WINGED Of Dibbley's insanity, attempted
to argue with the crowd, but failed
They all said that, having recovered
his own horse, he was inclined to for
give the crime that had deprived 9TH
ers of their horses.
| Meanwhile the professor had come
down from the age Of primitive man to
his own tragic situation and was trem-
bling like leaf. Then Sal rose to the
occasion and proved that a woman
may be a valuable legal advocate.
"Men," she said, arguing from the
rostrum Of horses back, sitting
straddle, "ef you'd "a seen and heard
what we seen and heard you'd be con-
WINGED of this we're little feller's limo
cence. He's as crazy as a loon. He
said while he was talkin' that we was
all the sons and darters Of monkeys;
that there was times when everything
was covered with ice, runnin like wa
ter; that kangeroos was cavortin'
around bigger'n any house In this yere
place: that sometimes the sea was
a-splashin' agin Table mountain; that
there was men on earth before the In
jins. He went into HuttOn's cave and
was a-diggin' there, throwin' up dirty
stones and putin 'em in his bag, s If
they was silver spoons. If them
things don't prove him crazy there's
nobody crazy, and they'd better tear
down the madhouses."
"HOw about his stealin' Mart's
horse" called a voice.
I'm tell you; he's not only lunatic,
but fool. He got tux in by some un
that he give flyer to fur the use O.
Mart's horse to go to the cave to hunt
for the bones of a man $4,000 years
old"
Pm the party as tux his flver," said
man. 81 knowed him for a tender
foot right of, but didn't think he was
so soft as to pay me for ridin' Mart's
horse. Here, Mart, take yer money"
This addendum to SAILS speech
convinced the crowd that the stran-
ger was not only mad, but half witted,