Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1917-08-02
v5aad nothing else =
any men to throw aw.

any men TO throw aW
dabs and furbelows."
Smith sprang up and held out his
hand.
you have at least one man that
you can spare, Mr.. Harding" he
snapped. "Give me those papers. I'll
go over and serve them"
At this the big sheriff promptly lost
his temper.
you blamed fool" he burst out.
You'd be dog-meat before you could
get ten feet away from this ditchw
Never mind: give me those papers.
I'm not going to stand by quietly and
see a lot Of men shot down Oh the
chance of a misunderstanding
Take 'em, thenw rasped Harding,
meaning nothing more than the call
ing of foolish theorists bluff.
Smith caught at the warrants, and
before anybody could stop him he was
down upon the stagings, swinging him
self from bent to bent through storm
Of bullets coming, not from the com.
missary, but from the saloon shack
on the opposite bank-a whistling
shower Of lead that made every man
in the sheriff's party duck to cover.
How the volunteer prOcess-server
ever lived to get across the bridge OF
death no man might know. Thrice In
the half-minute dash he was hit; yet
there was life enough left to carry hin
stumbling across the last of the stag
Ing bents; to send him Keeling up the
runway at the end and across the
working yard to the door of the COM
missary, waving the folded papers like
an inadequate flag Of truce as he fell
on the doorstep.
After that, all things were curiously
hazy and underlined for him. There
was the tumult of a fierce battle be-
ing waged over him; deafening rife
fire and the spat-spat of bullets pune
turing the sheet-irOn walls of the COM
missary. In the midst of it he lost
his hold upon the realities, and when
he got it again the warlike clamor was
stilled and Starbuck was kneeling be-
side him, trying, apparently, to deprive
him of his clothes with the reckless
slashings of q knife.
Protesting feebly and trying to rise,
he saw the working yard filled with
armed men and the returning throng
Of lahOrerS; saw Colonel Baldwin and
Williams talking excitedly to the sher-
no nr %Eo 4
neer and beckoned eagerly with his
one available hand.
Hold still, until I can find out how
dead you arer' gritted the rough-and-
ready surgeon who was plying the
clOthes-ripping knife. But when Will
liamS came and bent down to listen,
Smith found voice, shrill and strident
and SO little like his own that he
scarcely recognized it.
Call 'em out-ca11 the men out and
start the gate machinery" he painted
in the queer, whistling voice which
was, and was not, his own. possess
possession is nine points of the law
that's what Judge Warner said: the
Spillways, Bartley-Shut 'em quick!'
"The men are on the job and the
machinery is starting right now," said
Williams gently. Don't you hear it?"
And then to Starbuck: "For Heavens
sake, do something for him, Billy
anything to keep him with US until a
doctor can get here! !"
Smith felt himself smiling foolishly.
Il don't need any doctor, BARLEY :;
what l need is q new ego: then I'd
stand some sha-sOme chance Of find
| ing" he looked up appealingly at
Starbuck-"what is it that I'd stand
some chance of finding, Billy2 II
can't seem to remember"
Williams turned his face away and
Starbuck frightened his benumbing grip
upon the severed artery in the barred
arm from which he had cut the sleeve.
Smith seemed to be going off again,
| but he suddenly opened his eyes and
pointed frantically with a finger of the
| one ServiceaDla hand. "Catch him |
Catch him!" he shrilled. He's going
to dy-dynamite the damn
| Clinging to consciousness with q
grip that not even the blood loss
could break, Smith saw Williams
spring to his feet and give the alarm !;
! saw three or four of the sheriff's men
drop their weapons and hurI them
/ selves upon another man who was try
! ing to make his way unnoticed to the