Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1921-02-11

not aiming to leave any tracks, but
it's so dark | can't make sure" He
was talking rapidly. "Tm not expectin'
to leave the Flatwoods, and-you, I'M
less they crowd me hard not i'll I've
run him down and found my proof.
But the odds are against me. If any
thing should happen, / want you to
have this money. And the minute you
hear they've got me, you must go
straight to the sheriff Don't risR the
woods another hour. Put yourself I'M
der his protection, and tell him why
have the money transferred to you;
and-send fer that surgeon"
The tears beat their way up into the
girls eyes in spite of her, and ran
down her cheeks Her head bent low,
It was the one thing he knew not how
to face. His hard life hadn't taught
him that. The tears hurt him. What
had caused them? Maybe it was tust
woman's way. Maybe he had done
wrong to come to her with his cuts
and blood and danger.
She raised her face after a time. He
drew long breath: dropped his hand
to his side; stared in establishment.
She was smiling smiling through the
tears-and the dimples were back. The
ways of wOman-utterly beyond him.
and past finding out! She smoot..ed
the drafS out in her hands and was
looking at him over it.
81 wonder if ought to take it" she
unused to herself, as much as to him.
He took the paper out of her hands,
folded it and with masterful air
thrust it under fold of the loose gar
ment across her bosom.
81 haven't a soul in the world to
leave it to bnt-you."
His slow eyes left her face and
stared hard at the basin of red water
Stepping over to the stand, he stopped
and snuffed the candle The huge
shadow Of him filed the room. Turn
ing away, after he had the candle
again at full flame, his eyes came back
to the thoughtful face of his compan-
ion.
''That revolver i saw yesterday on
the mantel--is it loaded?"
Il think so"
She looked up in curious half cur
prise, as if the question had brought
her thoughts back from afar.
MAY see it?"
"Why-yes-"
! He shaded the candle again while
she lifted the curtain over the door !;
paused moment to listen to the
heavy breathing Of the sleeper in the
west room; crossed to the mantel over
the fireplace and brought him the re-
yolver.
Several minutes the man spared TO
its inspection: testing the action OF
the hammer, cylinder revolution and
trigger pull; replacing the somewhat
corroded caps on the tubes with new
ones even packing fresh grains OF
powder into the tubes where ne
thought necessary.
DO you know how it use it?" he
asked, looking up from his Inspection
"Ive shot lots of squirrels with It,
sometimes clear in the treetops, she
4 u. -
that pestered the chickens"
A grin puckered his eyes for a mo-
ment, then his brows lowered. An
other question, hard one, had to be
asked that set him raking over his
i slim stock of words for ways to ask It
''Do girls-I mean-have you got any
place about you your dress-to car
ry it,"
1 She was looking at him, her eyes
/ frank and wide-eyes that had no
need to narrow.
Il haven't" she answered; but
can make one"
II advise you to-"
He laid the revolver on the stand
i and turned back to her. The time had
come to go, and they both knew it
For while they stood silent. Once
his hand reached toward her, but he
drew it back.
"Will you he ready to raise the
blind when I blow out the candle?" he
said at last.
She went to the window and the
next moment the room was in dark.
ness.
Two futtering spots of white in the
gloom rolled up the blind, found the
strings that held it and whipped them
into a knot. Then the girl stepped
back. The man crawled through the
window-with extreme care not to
scar the ground outside.
It is past all knowing how her hands
happened to get into his. He bent his
head and laid his face upon them
suffered them to slip out Of his fingers
at last; and turned away.
He was gonei on the instant-gone
as a shadow goes-never knowing
that for long and long the dull window
framed a white face listening fol
some sound of him to come back out
of the night.
-
The woodcraft of the Pearlhunter
was profound. 1t was about all life
had taught him, but it had taught him
that. With the logical precision of q
i schoolmaster passing from one step OF
problem to another, it led him
straight to the trail Of the man he had
i been following short time before
rection of Fallen Rock. The man he
followed had doubtless gone back tC
the village by this time. This prob.
ability he had already estimated and
| cot down in his pnaEOni1p of ire