The Dolores star., 1920-04-30

"what can l do7 Is 1t this Indians
body?" !.
"Yes." preathed. the effort OF
speaking an agony. He Hes direcuy
across my chest. dead weight.
II taxed her strength to the utmost.
but oh the immediate relief WIFE
the drawing Of full breath ! felt
return OF manhood. revival OF ire
Another body pinned my limbs to the
floor but this was more easily dis
posed of. Then | managed to lit my
self. but with the first attempt hef
arm was about my shoulders.
mo; not alone-let me help you. 10
you really think you can stnnd1 Why'
you are hurt. dear: this is knifs
wound in your side. II looks ugly. but
is not deep and bleeds no longer. Are
there other injuriesl"
"My head rings. and this left arm
appears pnralyzed, from blows. no
doubt: there are spots on my BODY
which feel like burns. No, am not In
bad shape. Now let me stand alone;
that's better. Good God, what a
scene"
The fire, by this time blazing bright
Iy. gave us n full view of the entire
dismantled intcriu The cabin was a
complete wreck the roof practically
all gone and the upper logs Of the side
walls either fallen within or dangling
in threat. Clearly enough 1t had been
the sudden plunge of heavy timbers
nI Iiutn nf fhnSn
logs. which accounted for this havoc
of death. There were dead there
pierced by bullets and Drained by rifle
stocks, but the many had met their
fate under the avalanche OF logs. and
amid the burning glare Of exploding
powder.
Only between arched timbers and
sections of fallen roof con'd we move
at all. and beneath the network OF
this ENHANCEMENT the ma iority OF the
bodies lay. crushed and mnngled. l
saw Kirby, free from his bonds. but
dead beneath n heavy beam. His face
was toward us and the ricker OF flame
revealed dark spot on his forehead
his life had never been crushed out
by that plunging timber which pinned
him there: it had been ended by bul.
let. My eyes sought hers, in swift
memory Of my last order, und she must
have read my thought.
"No." she said. mot that, Steven.
II was the boy who shot him. Oh.
please, can We not go? There is light
already In the sky overhead-see. Take
me away from here-anywhere out.
side"
In moment; all these surely are
dead. beyond our aid, and yet we
must not depart foodless. We know
Wait. while search for the things we
need"
mot alone; must be where can
touch you. Try to understand. Oh.
you do not know those hours I have
spent in agony-I have died thou.
sand deaths since that sun went
down"
you were conscious-all night
long?"
CONSCIOUS? Yes. and unhurt, yet
prisoned helpless beneath those two
logs yonder, saved only by that over
turned bench. Elsie. poor thing never
knew how death came. 1t was so swift.
but I lay there. within foot of her
body unscrntched. I could think only
of you. Steven, but with never a dream
that you lived. There were groans at
first and cries. Some Indians crept
In through the door and dragged out
few who lived. But with the coming
OF darkness all sound ceased and such
silence was even more dreadful than
the calls for help. Oh, l cannot tell
you" and she clung to me. her voice
breaking. IL dared not move for
hours. and then. when did try, found
could not: that was held fast.
Only for knife In the hands Of dead
savage. which I managed to secure.
l could never have freed m"self. And
oh, the unspeakable horror of creeping
In the darkness among those bodies
| knew where the fireplace must be
that there might be live Goals there
still. I had to have light: 1 had to
know If you were dead"
Don't think about it any more, tea
heart" 1 urged. "Yes, we can 20 now
nothing else holds us here"
We crept out through the door. un-
derneath mass of debris, Into the
gray of the dawn. Beyond a little
grove we found some horses browsing
In the deep grass; they were those
that had brought us from Yellow
Banks, and whinnled greeting as we
drew near. Two of them were fit to
ride and the others followed, limpIng
along behind.
A half mile up the vallew we came
TO beaten trail. running straight
across from bluff to bluff, and disnp.
pearing into the prairie beyond, head
ing directly toward the sunrise. We
stopped and looked back for the first
time. There on the side Of the slope,
under the shade OF the big tree, stood
the cabin. Only for the wreck of the
roof 1t spoke no message Of the trae.
edy within. The suns rays gilded n