Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1920-01-09
another at the right temple. A bullet
had raloxrnd fhrn,,nh tho h.,..,e II. III


revolver of the dead puncher was In
his hand. The riders were closing in
on him. The nearest called to him to
surrender. Almost at the same time
a red-hot pain shot through the left
arm OF the trapped rustler. Someone
had nipped him from the rear.
Curly saw red. Surrender moth.
ing He would 90 down fighting. As
fast as he could blaze he emptied
Macs gun. When the smoke cleared
the man who had ordered him to give
up was slipping from his horse. Curly
was surprised, but he knew he must
have hit him by chance.
I'VE got him. His guns empty"
some one shouted.
Cautiously they closed in. keeping
him covered all the time. OF O sudden
the plain tilted up to meet the sky.
Flandrau felt himself swaying on his
feet. Everything went black. The
boy had tainted.
When he came to himself strange
faces were all around him and there
were no bodies to go with them. They
seemed to float about in an odd, casual
sort Of way. Then things cleared.
Hes coming to all right" one said.
"How is Culllson2"
This was said to another who had
Just come up.
Hard hit. Looks about all in. Got
him in the side"
The rage died out of Curly. In a
fash he saw all that had come of this
drunken spree: the rustllng of the
Bar Double NJ stock, the discovery,
the death of his friend and maybe of
Cullison, the certain punishment that
would follow. He was horse thief
caught almost In the act. Perhaps he
was murderer, too. And the whole
thing had been entirely unpremedi-
tated
you've played h." one of the
men told the boy.
He was sawed-off little fellow
known as Dutch. Flandrau had seen
him in the Map of Texas country a
year or two before. The rest were
strangers to the boy. All of them
looked at him out of hard, hostile eyes
He was scarcely human being to
them rather a wolf to be stamped out
of existence as soon as 1t was conven-
tent.
At shift In the group Flah,lrau's
eyes fell on his friend lying in the
sand with face turned whitley to the
sky he never would see again. A lump
came into the boys threat and he had
TO work 1t down before he spoke.
''There's picture in his pocket, and
some letters, reckon. Send them to
Miss Myra Anderson, Tombstone, care
of one Of the restaurants. / don't
know which one"
lend nothin'," sneered Dutch, and
coupled 1t with a remark no decent
man makes Of a woman on a guess.
Because Of poor Mac lying there
with the little hole In his temple Curly
boiled over. With jerk his right arm
was free. II shot out like a pile
driver, all his weight behind the blow.
Dutch went down as II charging bull
had flung him.
Almost simultaneously Curly hit the
sand hard. Before he could stir three
men were straddled over his anatomy
One Of them ground his head into the
dust.
"You would, chr Wen see about
that. Jake, bring yore rope"
They tied the hands of the boy
hauled him to his feet, and set him
astride a horse. In the distance a
windmill OF the Circle @ ranch was
Ginning in the morning sun. Toward
the group Of buildings clustered around
this two of his captors started with
F1andrau.
As they rode along a fenced lane
which led to the house girl came fly
ing down the steps. At sight Of those
coming toward her she called out
quickly:
How is dadT The culver Of fear
broke In her voice.
"Don't know yet, Miss Kate" an
swered one of the men. Hes right
peart, though. Says for to tell you
not to worry. We've got here the
NANCY son Of gun that did It,"
DClOiC hC Iuu hDlShtu SiC was VII
like an arrow shot from bow, but
not until her eyes had fallen on the
youth sitting bareheaded and bloody
between the guns of his guard. Curly
noticed that she had given shudder
AS one might at sight of mangled
mad dog which had just bit dear
friend. Long after the pounding OF
her pony's hoofs had died away the
prisoner could see the startled eyes OF
fear and horror that had rested on
him.
His guards put Flandrau In the bunk
house and one Of them sat at the door
with a rife across his knees. The cook
the stable boy, and red-headed Bob
Cullison, nephew of the owner of the
ranch, peered past the vaquero at the
captive with the same awe they would
have yielded to a Gagged panther.
"Why. he's only kid, Buck" the
cook whispered.
Buck chewed tobacco impassively
"Old enough to be n rustler and a