The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1920-03-11
CHAPTER XXI.
The Gentle MIR. Bruce.

cat the theater!" said Gil
Granados. His eagle face looked
inflamed. And why not? We
h; We not been abe to trip him.
He had right to his political
opinions before the will Of the
people was declared, and since
then he dares nothing-outward-
y! When ] saw his impndent
face in box at the play last
night, it was too much | de-
sired to stand up i'll my place, to
borrow you: tongue, David, and
address the people: to say :
There sits a traitor and an assas-
sin, my fr,ends!' Sangre Tear
him to pieces. Ali"
eff Senior Ferraz were here,
he would say, that in his day
Meyer would have disappeared, !"
remarked Milo Valdez.
lie spoke with less than his
usual verve. He had a subdued
nien altogether, and his dark
eyes turned frequently to Corey
Bruce with distressed solicitude.
The four men sat after dinner,
around the table, the second
night since Bruce had been
brought home.
~ wish he might-into Rio
Nabuco," growled Granados.
"There are worse places than
Rio Nabuco," Bruce spoke hast
lily, with reassuring glance at
Milo. .I''-he colored with the
effort of breaking his habitual
reserve, yet compelled himself to
the statement that might lessen
his friend s self reproach, 60 am
almost gIad-since it is over-to
have found out the thing was a
sort Of bugbear. | mean, that it
could be faced down.
Milo looked down at his plate.
Noel and Granados exchanged a
glance.
When l found Bruce, day be-
fore yesterday, | made him a
promise" Noel presently spoke.
/ did not make it rashly, or.
without elaboration. Jacinto
Meyer has been cautious, indeed.
| do not say that he could not
have been disposed of, but not
with perfect fairness. And we
could afford to be fair. While a
brutal imperialism is a bad cause
to serve, while stealthy propa
ganda to subjugate a country af-
fordnng it's hospitality is dis
gushing service, Jacinto Meyer
did seve his own cause and
country with a sort of loyalty.
He is our enemy: we fought with
a sort of loyalty. BE is our enc
my we fought and he lost. Gran
ADDS would have interrupted,
but let it SO pass. He would
have been deported as an unde-s
sirable alien, no more. Now he
has fixed his status as that Of a
criminal. When he tried to.
coerce Bruce into opening my
safe, when, failing he kidnapped
him, tricked the .jailor of Rio
Nabaco by forged certificates,
and thrust an innocent man into
prison to accomplish an Illegal
purpose, Meyer made himself a
criminal and did that for which
there is no pardon. His con-
temptible cruelty recoils upon
himself. 1t is Bruce who will
accuse him before court Of
Justice. Bruce who will convict
him, Bruce who will send him
to prison, perhaps to death. For
when he publicly falls, I think
evidence against him will pour
in from hundred sources. You
know now, Bruce, what | meant
when | promised that you should
strangle Meyer. Z
But. but can II stammered
Bruce.
z Certainly. He had no more
right to put you in Rio Nabuco
than he had to put me there, or
Milo. z
j think he did not know of
the pardon.
That may have been so when
he took you to the prison. But. he
found out afterward; he never
tried to carry out threats against
y sse.s.. rep, 8 Il .,s.es; 4 ,sss
carefully concealed what had
become Of you. He made another
mistake. He visited the prison
and tried to bring you to submits
sion second time, and the jailer
Manuel overheard him. Meyer
is lost. The police are looking
for him now. Z Is, z at 4 gen
eral movement Of surprise,
have attended to that. I believe
that last night will be the last