Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1918-04-18

shore of a fair-sized lake, on the far
Their side of which doomed the conical
lodges of an Indian camp.
"You Sabe now?' said he as they
crossed the ice. 'ThiS bunch generally
comes in here about this time, and
stays till spring. 1 get the sGuaws to
wash for me. Ever see Mr.. Indian on
his native heath?''
Hazel never had, and she was duly
interested, even if a trif1e shy of the
red brother who stared so f1xedly. She
entered lodge with Bill, and listened
to him make laundry arrangements in
broken English with a withered old
beldame whose features resembled
ham that had hung overlong in the
smokehouse. Two or three Bianketed
bucks squatted by the fire that sent its
blue smoke streaming out the apex of
the lodge.
Heap fine sQuaw !" one suddenly ad-
dressed Bill. "Where you ketchum?'
Bill laughed at HazePs confusion
away off," He gestured southwark,
and the Indian grunted some unintel-
/ ligible remark in his own tongue-at
which Roaring Bill laughed again.
Before they started home Bill sue
ceeded in purchasing, after much talk,
pair of moccasins that Hazel con-
| coded to be work of art, what with
the dainty pattern of beads and the
ornamentation of colored porcupine
quilts. Her feminine soul could not
cavil when Bill thrust them in the
pocket of her coat, even if her mind
was set against accepting any peace
| tokens at his hands.
In the nearing sunset they went
| home through the frost-bitten woods,
where the snow crunched and squeaked
under their feet, and the branches
broke off with pistol-like snap when
| they were bent aside.
A hundred yards from the cabin Bill
challenged her for a race. She refused
to run, and he picked her up bodily,
and ran with her to the very door. He
held her a second before he set her
down, and Hazels face whitened. She
could feel his breath on her cheek, and
she could feel his arms CULVER, and the
rapid beat of his heart For an instant
she thought Roaring Bill Wagstaff was
about to make the colossal mistake of
trying to kiss her.
But he set her gently on her feet and
opened the door. And by the time he
had his outer clothes off and the fires
started up he was talking whimsically
about their Indian neighbors. and Ha-
eel breathed more freely. The clear
est impression that she had, aside from
her brief panic, was of his strength He
had run with her as easily as if she
had been a child.
After that they went out many times
together. Bill took her hunting, initi-
ated her into the mysteries of rifle
shooting, and the manipulation CT a
six-shooter. He taught her to walk on
snowshoes, lightly over the surface of
the cruSted snow, through which other
wise she fioundered. A sort of truce
| arose between them. and the days drift
ed by without untoward incident. Bill
tended to his horses, chopped wood
carried water She took upon herself
the care of the house. And through
the long evenings, in default of CONVEX
Sation, they would sit with a book on
either side of the fireplace that roared
defiance to the storm gods without.
And sometimes Hazel would find her
self wondering why Roaring Bill Wag-
staff could not have come into her life
in different manner. AS it was-she
never, never would forgive him.