Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1917-01-24
LIBERTY.
ANOH0ANGE OF OLD N0I{204 NJ
81 H.H.AN LOAN "a
Novelfzed from tie PbOrQohay Serial Of
the Same Name, Released BY tie Uni JT@ , ~
Sersaf Film Maintaining Company
Copyright. 1850

cilcked together ike q wise, empha-
sizing the determination in his heart.
They'll pay for this. pardner; by
God they'll pay!" And his bronzed
hand went to his belt, which held an
ugly six-shOoter.
"We1l help yer c1lect tibet bill"
added McGuirk as he brought his
clumsy fist down on the bar.
They did pay. When the govern
ment sent Mccullough and his men to
destroy the murderous and thieving
bands, which for years had been loot
| ing and killing in the vicinity of Las
Vegas, Albuquerque and Discovery,
james Horton was one of the first to
| join the fighters. When he met an
Apache he fought like a mailman.
In due course of time the govern
ment rewarded him by giving him a
commission as captain, and later he
was promoted TO colonel. He led
his men with the same fearlessness
| which characterized his father when
he headed the Indian troops at Pigeon
Gap, and it wasn't long before he
had driven the Apaches back from
the New Mexican trails. The day he
retired he walked into McGuirk's, and,
| throwing his sword on the bar, re-
marked to the proprietor: There
| Jack, I'm through with it now, for
| they've paid me in full. Hang it above
your bar as a reminder to the Apache
that he must behave"
He told the truth. Although there
were thousands of settlers who had
never been able to exact their debts
from the blood-thirsty tribes. the
Colonel had collected, and. as he took
off his mud and dust-covered uniform
and laid it carefully away in the big
chest in the attic he felt convinced
that the bones of the Apaches, which
were scattered across the big area
from Las Vegas to Discovery, were
| physical notes that had long been
overdue; that the brutal death of one
of the fairest-flowers of the Southland
had been avenged.
The land he owned, which consisted
of several thousand acres; the great
| herds of cattle that roamed over his
vast estate had been taken from the
Apaches, while the big mansion which
was known as one of the finest across
| the border. had been constructed, I'M
| der his supervision. by their hands.
| The Colonel had never been cruel at
heart; in fact he was generous to
| the point of extravaganza and his
charities were many and widely dis
! trbuted. Discovery had benefited
greatly by his generosity and he had
| helped those whom he had never seen.
But, when his old friends. Pancho
Leon and Major Richard Winston, APP
pealed to him on one occasion, to as
sist a tribe of starving Apaches. en-
camped near his hacienda, he burst
| into a rage.
'Let them die; the dogs" he ex-
claimed. as he arose and paced back
and forth. "They killed the best part
of me at Glorieta fifteen years ago ~
At the time of writing Colonel Hor-
ton was one of the wealthiest land
owners in Mexico. His most valuable
possession had been his daughter,
whom he had christened Liberty the
day after the Glorieta massacre, and
who was now seventeen.
Liberty felt keenly the absence of
a mother. There had been moments
in her young life when she longed
for mothers comfort and advice.
Although she had never attended
school. Liberty had been provided
with special tutor who had given
her an excellent training. Every sum-
mer she had spent several weeks with
the family of Major Winston in AL
buquerque.
It was while visiting the Winstons
that Liberty received word Of the seri-
Gus illness of her father. He had not
been feeling well for some time and
she had wished to delay her visit, but
the Colonel, who was conscious of her
fondness for the Major and his family,
urged her not to sacrifice an enjoyable
holiday for an ailment which he was
convinced was only slight on his part
and from which he would soon recover.
But, the Colonel grew worse after
she had gone. The terrible exposures
he had undergone while fighting the
Apaches were now exacting their tolls
with the aid of apoplexy and Liberty
reached home Just in time to learn of
her fathers death.
When her mother died, she was too
young to realize what it meant to her
But it was different now. The blow
stunned her. 1t meant that every
thing she loved in the world I: every
thing she had cherished had been
snatched from her when she needed
| it most.
The will of Colonel Horton was a
rather peculiar one. It made Major
Richard Winston and Pancho Leon the
trustees of his vast estate and Gre
ated them guardians of his daughter
and only child. 1t also commanded
| that Liberty must not marry before
reaching the age of twenty-One with
out the written approval of both trus-
tees. Further, it bequeathed $1,000
to the Colonel's faithful servant, Pc
dro; saddle to Manuel, son of Pancho
L con and his favOrite horse to Cap
tain Robert Rutledge, of the Texas
| Rangers.
1t further declared that Liberty