The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1920-01-15

get out, as you surely will, send a tele-
gram to William Scott, international
hotel, Nogales, Arizona, u. S. A., tell
ing him I'm here. That may help a lit
tie. There's something going on here
that l don't understand at all, JiteDdra.
/ didn't ask you to come with mel
did the best / could to get you to go OF
about your w business. So there's
no reason at all for you to be locked
up, and if there's any why i should
be, 1 want to know it,"
do you, indeed?"
Buck leaped toward the sound and
peered through the tiny, grated ori1ce
in the iron-bound oak door. The query
was In English, but it carried a mock
ing sheer which worked the mine own
er into a new frenzy.
He could not make put the features
of the speaker in the semi-darkness, yet
some other occasion.
II see you do not recognize me-"
blandly went on the same speaker.
"Weli, Mr.. Williams, I'm Herbert
Hardinge-you recall the name, don't
you-Hardinge, agent for the United
Kingdom Exploration company?"
"Yes," replied Williams b%rusquely;
"that is, if you are the same Hardinge
that tried to peat me out of the El
Tigre property five years ago. What
of it?'
81 Just heard Of your plight"
smoothly answered the syndicate agent.
and hurried down to see if / could be
of any assistance to you"
Williams hesitated.
Herbert Hardinge had consistently
and relentlessly opposed him in the
past. Their litigation over the owner
ship of FL Tigre had been expensive to
both and it had only ended when the
highest court in Mexico upheld his own
prior rights.
But blood is thicker than water, and
the Anglo-Saxon love of justice some
times causes white men in foreign
ianas to forget past differences in ner
Is. So Williams replied:
That's mighty white Of you, Har-
d.nge. I don't know why I'm here, foI
T'12 done nothing to merit imprison-
NEST. or course. I don't want to stag
want to get back TO El Tigre-
as3 if you can help me eut I'll surelT
pe grateful to you.
i tl.lE lAe matter can be very cas-
ly arranged" su-gely answered th1
Il .llsi0nsn; 'olAerwise I should n
l.a,e bothered about coming down"
4o}e?7
you will transfer El Iigre mine
ID l.e ownership Of my company
.op3 ID return TO tne United States
elyaa.t5 aa'ay, and gre a pledge not TO
rc-aat.c Mexico for i've years, you
atl ne free in half an hour
Williams could not credit his hear
ar What had i'll Tigre's ownership
10 40 v.tii his arrest, or in what man
ner cc,.ld the abandonment of his
4. auerty he made an excuse for Re.
,rs lin?
that you Go not thoroughly
understand your present position
raUrically observed Hardinge as Will
lians CROPPED vainly for words with
w-lich to voice his indignant surprise
you are right don't, Hardinge.
BIT, before you go further, let IA tell
you this: / returned to FL Tigre only
yesterday from the United States.
was set upon by my former mine
foreman, bound while asleep, and he
started to bring me here. He offered
no explanation for his extraordinary
and Illegal conduct.
He died, from some cause L can
not understand, while on the way. But
| did not %jeopardize myself by return
ing to Mexico with any intention of
beng coerced into signing away the
property / have fought for years to
develop. Why should I purchase free
dom by voluntarily s~urrendering Ell
Tigre, when / came back here to hold
it, at all hazards?"
II would not advise haste in a de
cision." Hardinge's tone was frigid.
you ought to think this matter over
and weigh things carefully, Williams,
before coming to a conclusion which
may only involve you further"
How can it involve me? What
are you referring tor
THE officials of the government at
Mexico City who decided that you
the rightful owner of Ell Tigre
have been superseded by other men"
II know that, Hardinge. But ever
the ones now in power will not pre-
to declare my titles invalid with
out a hearing on the merits, nor up ]
hold an arrest for peacefully occupy
ing my property-surely, at least, not
before the reOpening of a case which !
was settled before their highest court" J
mop" The query carried an IN +
dertone of insolent sarcasm. {
mol" The defiance in the prison !
er's voice was unmistakable. I
81 supposed, Williams, that you had I
been in Mexico long enough to under
the unstable character of the I
government. But you are evidently
unaware that since your departure
from the state of Sinaloa it has Sc
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