, 1921-12-23

n a storm was raging ncrozs the
Wyoming plains The Casper noun
tains were draped IN storm clouds.
n Casper town. nesting bstsreen
>th>se ttnbered slopes and tho Platte
river. resigned Itself to a period OF
cunncss untti the ranges should blow
clear and the roads open for travel.
II was IN . n when the twenty
horse string team was In evidence In
stead OF the two-ron truck; and tho
feed barns which havs since given
way TO garages ana service stations.
were TILED with freight horses eating
their heads on a. their owners
owners were cating-and IN somc
the holiday esson
AT the old Adsit motel . number Of
vptcran stoclrmcn sat around the big
heater In n office. the smoke from
their pipes mingling socially with the
cigar smoke Of the drummers. and the
talk turned 10 Christmas
"Cristmas comes but ono q rear
thank Godr. bitterly proclaimed one
case-hardcned oid-timer who sat WARM
ing his feet on the nickied railing
at the coal stove; and this outburst
met with an appreciative chuckie
from his companions Big Dan Nc
Oregon. n retired cattieman. lev n
rrixzled. embraced one knee lid TIT
I'D his chair back against the wall
putting vigorously at his pipe The
symptoms pointed to a ~reminiscencs.
ct mind n time making for town
IN 5ust such n blizzard to spend
Christmas." he began
"The big bay mares I DROVE . long
to the supply waEon-" Here he was
interrupted by a new arrival who had
fast come IN from the range and
hearing this last remark exclaimed:
Hey. Mncf That reminds me. I
saw that ! team yesterday u in
the Teapot country. They were up
there IN the shelter Of Saddle Rock.
and looking pretty CANT No feed
around there to speak Of. so you may
a. well sing their rcquiem--they viii
never pull through the storm"
you sure they were the old
bays7" inquired Mac with animation.
s'sure. why I rode that close to
fhcm I could read the brand" =
well. I turned the DID voters out
ia de-" he. muttcrcd half to himself.
sbut 50 long as I know the fix there
IN rye n notion to 60 throw another
feed Of hny and grain into their old
hides"
AN fncredulous laugh went up
~pon't do anything foolish old man."
counseied tho new arrival. Il barely
'xnade II IN. and / was most here wf>n
the blizzard started I LETT my team
and walked"
-Different here:- rumbied ne cat
ticmar deliver the goods"
..Don't Worry. Mac. go on with your
story. The old skates have weathered
many gale: let 'em rustic"
AT this point conversation was
again interrupted. A number OF pas
rengers from the afternoon train
came stamping into tho hotel. bring
ing news of a hold-up. Shortly be-
fore reaching town the train had been
slapped by three bandits. Specie and
voluables estimated at over forty
Thousand dollars had been taken from
the express car along with h regis
tered mail, and the bandits Ia car
cd to the hills on horses- 1t was SUR
missed that they would be difficult to
trace unit after the storm by which
time they would have divided their
treasure and scattered. They had
been seen going south as the train
pulled out
4sThe sheriff win be doing well II
he SO much as ever hears ten Of them
boys" remarked old Beebe. an ex-
deputy of long experiences. They
WIN Jump the u. p. with h loot ! n
their s~uitcases. You might 1nd their
ponies next spring. grazing over on
the Red Desert"
rNever you mind:s' spoke up anoth-
err. s'just let enough reward hang over
them and some fooihardy fortune
hunter is going to take tncir trail
blizzard or no blizzard. Some hard
head stands a show to land him a ss
Christmas present tomorrow to just
get a line on those hold-ups. he might
even find the bunch drifted up against
a line fence froze hard as boards: then
he could just mosey off with the
whole forty thousand"
firing of these idle specuiations.
Bfy Mac soon vcntured forth into the
street thinking about his horses.
which he could barely picture in his
minds eye. beliy-dcep In SNOW, backs
to the wind. heads dropping. while
they yearned for the nutriment that
would warm their old frames and help
them weather the storm He remem
bered an occasion when he spent the
night with them lost in tho snow on
the open range. He had grain along
for them. and he tied them to the
box where they could feed con-