The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1921-08-19

| ef Il hadn't ha' BEEN
And there she broke OF abruptly.
After q silent moment, she continued
sadly. half tearfully: And yet-and
yet-the's not a bit . W In mo
a-goin' back noww
"WhyT Dale was smiling, and she
was glad to note that he did not ap-
pear to be grieving ver his mister.
tune. :
"'Cause the ain't," simply. .
But you'll 60"
EYES," she said, 'In the mornin' I'll
60"
He bent toward her and held down
his hand. "Good-by, little girl. ! hope
it will come out all right, and ! be-
lieve 1t WILL"
Babe slowly lifted her hand to his.
Her eyes were downcast.
"Go0d-by," she told him brokenly.
"And I hope 1t will come out all right,
too-God knows l do, Bill Dale"
Thus they parted. Dale rode back
to the sheriff and Major Bradley. and
q minute later the three Of them start
GU " lax AVWAa0o 0A0
jail.
When a bend In the dusty ox-wagon
road had hidden them from view,
Elizabeth Littleford turned homeward.
Her mother followed her.
The younger woman dropped to the
stone step at the v%ine-hung front
porch with the air Of q who II very
tired, plucked q full-blown marigold
and began absently to ear its petals
slowly apart. Mrs. Littleford looked
Out across the meadows, sighed
smoothed back her gray hair with
both hands, and sat down beside her
daughter.
II wouldn't worry about it. Babe.
honey" she finally said. Then she
too plucked q marigold and began to
tear its petals slowly apart. "Ef he
killed Adam Ball, It was to save HIM
self. He's q good man, honey. I think
he's about the best man I ever seed.
Babe"
mo. he never killed Adam Ball 70
save hisself even." Babe replied.
Hes q fighter. but he amt NO killer.
Listen. mother, 1t might ha' been this
away:
HE is ahind Of q tree, and Adam II
ahlnd of another tree. Adam shoots
at his hat, and he shoots at Adams
hat-which Is the regular way Of .
two-man fight, as you know. Well.
suddenly Adam he Jumps up like he's
been shot, and falls a-groanin' n
a-twistin'. Bill Dale, a-thinkin' he's
killed Adam, out from ahind OF
his tree. Havin' drawed Bill Dale out
into the. open by his trick, Adam gifts
ready to shoot and kill him. Jest as
Adam is about to shoot, somebody else
shoots and Kills Adam and saves Bill
Dale-mebbe the amt time TO- any
thing else. Now don't We see? And
don't 1t all sound natchel, mother?
II reckon it does" granted the old
woman. But who was 1t shot Black
AdamT"
"Somebody who is a friend O. Bill
Dale,s," said Babe. somebody who
was a-follerin' Bill with the idee o
pertectin' him eff he needed 1t. Some
body who knowed it was dangerous
TO- him to go off by hisself in the
woods that away. I've got 1t reasoned
out Jest like this. . u. And n
ever It was at was friend enough to
Bill Dale to Kill a man to save him
will be friend enough to own up when
he proper time ZONES and keep Bill
Dale from a-bein' hung. Whoever 1t
was at done it Is skeered bad now,
but later on he'll shore tell 1t, eff it'll
save Bill. You jest wait and see,
mother.
II hain't never fo'got," Babe went
on, after a moment, about Black
Adam Ball a-tellin' me about a-workin'
that same trick on q man over IN
Nawth Ca'liner-and he killed the
man. The law never found 1t out.
And We see what Black Adam got.
Who lives by the sword shall perish
by the sword It's in the Good Book.
mother. honey; and everything in the
Good Book is God A'mighty's truth, as
you know"
EFF 1 was pinned down to guess who
It was at done It," drawled Mrs. Lit
tleford, I'D guess it was BY Heck.
He was a plumb fool about Bill Dale.
His a she says he talks In his sleep
about Bill Dale. He was auus a-fol.
ierin' him around like a dawg."
Babe pointed to the meadow. An
aged and stopped and witchlike wom-
an was limping slowly through the
clover, coming toward them.
"Granny Heck" muttered Babe.
The neighborhood's newsbearer and
fortune-teller limped or up to the
cabin, and dropped to the stone step
beside Ben Littleford's wife and
daughter. s.
LA, la, lap she painted, for tho
days were warm. "And hain't 1t jest
turrible! I wisht I may die this min
ute eff ! wouldn't might nigh as o
see my own son 60 to jail! But EN-