Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1918-01-25

the man is your worst enemy and Is
suffering justly for his sins. Wards
fingers fumbled the rope as though his
determination were weakening. Then
he remembered some things, hunched
his shoulders, impatient of the merci-
full impulse, and began the knot again.
An old prospector had shown him once
how it was done.
"Of ours a plain slipknot would do
the business all right" he said. But
III try and give you the genuine thing,
same as yor gave the other fellows"
"Ward, for Gods sake, let me go?'
Ward started. He did not NOW that
a mans voice could change so much in
SO short a time. He never would have
recognized the tones as coming from
Buck Olney's loose, complacent lips.
Ward, I'll never-IH leave the
try-I'n go to South America or Aus
tralia Or"
you'll go to a hotter climate, Buck"
Ward cut in %inexorably. you've got
your ticket"
"ITl own up to everything. I'll tell
you where some of the moneys cached
we got in that Hardup deal, Ward.
There's enough to put you on Easy
street. I'll tell you who helped"
"You'd better not" advised Ward
hirshly, cor I'll make hanging a relief
to you. 1 know pretty well right now
all you could tell. And if l wanted to
send your pardners up I wouldn't need
your help. It's partly to give them a
chance that I'm sending you out this
way myself. 1 don't call this murder,
Buck. I'm saving the state a lot of
time and trouble, that's all, and your
PARTNERS the black eye they'd get for
throwing in with you. 1 heap sabe
who was the head push. You got them
in to take whatever dropped, SO yen
could get off slick and clean, just as
you've done before, you-you-"
Buck Olney got it her hot from the
fires of Wards wrath. A man does
not brood over treachery and wrong
and a b~lackened future for years with
out storing up a good many things that
he means to say to the friend who has
played him false. Ward had been a
happy go lucky young fellow who had
faith In men and in himself and in his
future. He had lived through black,
hopeless days and weeks and months
because of this man who tried now to
buy mercy with the faith of his part
nerS.
In the saddle Buck sat all hunched
together as If Ward had dashed him
with rawhide instead of with singing
words. The muscles of his face witch
ed spasmodicaEy. His eyes were
growing bloodshot.
Ward spilled two papers of tobacco
before he got a cigarette rolled and
lighted. He wondered a little at the
physical reaction from his outburst, but
he wondered more at Buck Olney sit
ting alive and unhurt on the horse be-
fore him, a Seabeck horse which Ward
had seen Floyd Carson riding once or
twice. He wondered what Floyd
would do if he saw Buck now and the
use to which the horse was being put.
Ward finished the cigarette, rolled
another and smoked that also before
he could put his hand out before him
and hold it reasonably steady. When
he felt fairly sure of himself again he
lifted his hat to wipe off the sweat of
his anger, gave a big sigh and returned
to the tying of the hangman's moose.
When he finally had it fixed the way
he wanted it he went close and flung
the moose over Buck Olney's head. He
could not trust himself to speak just
then. He cast an inquiring glance up
ward, took Bucks horse by the bride
and led him forward a few steps so
that Buck was directly under the over
hanging limb. Then, with the coil of
Bucks rope in his hand, he turned back
and squirmed up the tree trunk until
he had reached the limb. He crawled
out until he was over Bucks bullet
punctured hat crown, sliced off what
rope he did not need and flung it to the
ground. He saw Buck vince as the
rope went past him. The pinto horse
SHE'D out of position.
-Take the reins and bring him back
here" Ward called shortly, and gave a
twitch of the rope as a hint.
Mechanically Buck obeyed. He did
not know that the rope was not yet
tied to the limb.
Ward tied the rope securely, leaving
enough slack to keep Buck from chok-
ing prematurely. He fused a minute
longer, with his lip curled into a grin
of sardonic humor. Then he crawled
back to the trunk of the tree and slid
down carefully SO that he would not
brighten the pinto.
He went VI and took the hobble off
Buck Olney's feet, felt in the seam Of
his coat lapel and pulled out four pins,
with which he fastened Bucks ''pedi-
gree" between Bucks shrinking Shout
derblades. Then he stood off and sur
veyed his work critically before he
went over to Rather, who stood doing
in the sunshine.
"Sorry I can't stay to see you off"