Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-01-19
The Daily
Short Story
THE SNOWFALL.
By Augustus Goodrich Sherwin


you got them. did your" pressed
eagerly one of two men hustl.ng slop,
in the darkness.
Il got all the papers there were.
yes" responded the other. "Now vha,
are you going to do with them?"
Get little further in among tn.
brush and Ill show you." chuckle6
Boyd Willett.
! They were rough men in a roush
communitN and they had just accom-.
plished rough deed. Briefly, Willeft
mad hired a common criminal to bur.
glariZe the home Of a man with whom
he had a lawsuit over some land ana
secure documents the lack OF which
on the part OF the latter would give
Willett all the advantages.
What's this? What you sneak;ny
around here for?" suddenly burst
forth Willett, as he stumbled over a
PROSTATE form. "Oh! Indian Jim,-and
| drunk as usual"
Not fire-water this tme," mumbled.
the halfbreed. Jim got rheumatism.
Can't go fast"
We'll, liven the way Just now ana
don't hang around here poking into
our business" growled Willett, giving
the poor wretch brutal kick that sent
him rolling out of the path.
1T come. l mark you for that"
growled Jim, and lay where he wa.
and glared after the fellow who haf
hun hi n1 hrry h;
his confre1Se advanced little further
into the wood. Willett scraped up a
heap Of dry leaves with his foot and
| lit the mass.
Dump on the papers," he said, ana
his associate opened a small sack he
carried and number of documents
fell into the flames.
They're all there." gloated Willett
| Once out of existence my game In
clear. Now let Richard West and his
slick young lawyer prove that they
| have any claim to Moccasin ranch"
"Whew!" calculated the other, as
whirl of the wind sent up spiral stray
ing wreaths Of smoke and blinded his
sight and neither he nor Willett OBJ
served that one yellow, time-worn
sheet flew free Of flame contact. II
whirled in among some bushes, out
of them and over to where Indian Jim
lay. He secured it, not then knowing
/ it purpOrt or value.
There was pretty romance current
concerning the young lawyer, Vance
Dale, who had the Moccasin ranch land
case, and the daughter of the man who
was his client. Gossip had it that II
Richard West won his rights he would
be a very rich man. Gossip too, fore
told that if he won the case Dale
would win, as we'll, Elnora as a re.
ward for his labors.
In all good faith, never dreaming Of
the abstraction of the papers, Richard
West delivered over to his counsel the
box that contained them. He was
crushed. Frustrated, when Vance Dale
one day informed him that the boz
was empty.
Then we will lose the case
mourned West. There was one paper,
contract, that would have proved
our right of priority. 1t never was re-
corded. What can we do?"
Flight to the end" replied young
Dale staunchly. "Willett has cross
deed, it is true, but you have posses
sion. Yes, we will beat them yet"
Young Dale came across Indian Jim
one day, sick and half-starved, in an
old dugout, provided for his needs and
Jim got on his feet.
Then all minor themes Of interest
and excitement in the town were OBJ
scured by the great trial. Winter had
come, but the courtroom was thronged
each day Of the trial.
ut looks as If West is beaten out"
was the popular opinion, but Vance
Dale fought the opposite side every
inch of the way. The final afternoon
Of the trial, however, the loss Of the
papers told heavily against his client.
/ Dale rose to deliver his final argu-
ment in the case All he could do was
to make a strong point Of the actual
occupancy of the ranch by West
through the years. Willett based his
claim on the deed of a relative of the
original owner. The contract OF this
man. no wdead. with West would have
beeA conclusive, but, as shown, 1t had
been distracted by the criminal asso-
ciate of Willett.
/ Dale rose to make his great appeal
before the court. There was hush
in the courtroom, and then. as Dale
lifted one hand to begin his perora'
ton, crash sounded through the
room. A flying object had smashed
pane of glass, striking the young law
! yer squareiy in the breast and then
j dropped to the floor A SNOWFALL had
come speeding from the outside. In
stantly there was a commotion. Some
court officers ran out There were
echoes of rife shots; then aifairs
Quoted down as it was known tnat
Indian Jim had fired the SNOWMAN
from an overlooking building and haa
then fled ON his feet Indian pony.
/ Dale had pushed the snowfall aside
with his foot. CHANGING down now
about to resume his speech. nc
Glanced to observe, protruding from
one side of the snowy sphere, rag
ment of buckskin. He pulled at tnis
to bring to light a pouch. and fnsi0e
of it the folded document, blown ava!
from the fire that night in the WOODS
the old contract.
I So Indian Jim had his revenge On
Boyd Willett and repaid the kindnes.
Of Dale at a critical juncture, ana
brought fortune to Richard West ano
a loving wife to the young fropuef
LAWYER