The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1919-10-23
CHAPTER 1.

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The shadows of the spruce trees
fell northeastward, pointing long, cool
fingers across belts of undulating
prairie or leaning lazily against the
brown foothills. And among the
trees it was cool and green. and clear
blue water rippled over beds of shin
ing gravel.
The house was of round, straight
logs; the shingles of the squat roof
were cupped and blistered with the
suns of. many summers. Refuse lOi-
tered about the open door: many
empty tins, lraky barrel with miss
ing hoops, boxes, harness. tangled bits
of wire. Once there had been fence.
q sort of picket fence of little sap
lings, but wild broncos had kicked it
to pieces and range steers had strag-
gled unsecured across it's scattered
remnants.
Forward. and to the left, was a
small corral, mill slabs on end or
fences of lodgepole pine; a corner
somewhat covered in, offering vague
protection from the weather. The up
per poles were worn thin with the
cribbing of many horses.
The desertiOn seemed absolute; the
silence was the silence of the unspo-
iken places. But suddenly it was bro
ken by a stamping in the covered part
of the corral, and a mans voice say
ing:
Hip. there! Whoa, you cayuse !!
Get under your saddlel Sleepin'
against a post all day, you Sloppy
eye. Hip! Come to it!'
Horse and rider dashed into the
sunlight. The boy-for he was no
more than a bOy-sat the beast as
though born to it, his 1.-THE frame TAX
ing every motion of his mount as
softly as a good boat rides the sea.
With a yell at his horse he snatched
the hat from his head, turning to the
sun a smooth brown face and a name
of dark hair, and slapped the horse
across the flank with his crumpled
headgear. The animal sprang into
the air. then dashed at gallop down
the roadway, bearing the boy as I'M
concerned as a flower on its stem.
Suddenly he brought his horse to a
stop, swung about, and rode back at
a gentle canter A few yards from
SI4C HOOoC lie S-rSSlGu ulIn 10 Il
gallop, and leaning far down by the
animals side deity picked a bottle
from among the grass. Then he circled
about, repeating this operation as
often as his eye fell on a bottle. until
he had half a dozen; then down the
road again, carefully setting a bottle
on each post of the fence that skirted
1t to the right.
Again he came back to the house,
but when he turned his eye was on
the row of posts and his right hand
lay on the grip of his revolver. Again
his sharp yell broke the silence and
the horse dashed forward as though
shot from a gun. Down the road they
went until within q rod of the first
bottle; then there was a flash in the
sunlight and to the clatter of the
horses hoofs came the crack-crack
of the revolver. Two bottles shivered
TO fragments, but fouP remained in
tact, and the boy rode back, muttering
and disappointed. He reasoned with
his horse as he rode:
""Tain't no use, you OF Slop-eye:
"a fellow can't get the bead if he amt
sgot the fillin'-cooked meals an de-
cent chuck. 1 could plug 'em six out
% six-you know that, you OF flop
ears. Don't you argue about it, nei-
Their. When I'm right inside my belt
smash 'em six out O. six, but l amt
right. an you know it. You don't
know nOthin about it. You never had
father; leastways you never had to
be responsible for one. Well.
It's comm TO a finiSh-a d lame
finish. you know that. You know"
But he had reloaded his revolver
and set up two more bottles. This
time he broke four and was better
pleased with himself AS he rode bacE,
his soliloQuy was broken by strange
sound from beyond the belt of trees
The horse pricked up his ears and
the boy turned in the saddle to listen
'-Jumpin' cricketsI What's loose?' he
calculated. He knew every sound al
the foothill country. but this was
strange to him. kind of snort. 3
sort of hiss, mechanical in its regu
Iarity, startling in its strangeness, il
came across the valley with the un
broken rhythm OLA watch tick.
sWeH, I guess it won't eat u.s." b,
: ventured at last. "We'lI just run i
down and perhaps poke hole In it.
So saying, he cantered along the road
crossed the little stream. and swun;
up the hill on the farther side.
He was half way up when turn il
the road brought him into suddei
sight of the strange visitor It wa
the first he had seen. but he knew /
at once. for the fame OF the automo