Evening star., 1921-12-18

Strewn freightroOm OF the ram
bling station at Rawlins. cold
and dark, except for the faint'
reflected rays of a street lamp out
side, and the weak spray of light
splattered from the dusty. old IAN
tern in the hand Of the freight
agent as he made his trip of inspec-
ton before locking up for the night.
Perfunctorily he inspected the
shipments that awaited loading In
the morning-case after case OF
shoes, of shirts and overalls from the
workrooms of the state prison just
outside town, the work of men VINO
day by day thus expiated their re-
bellion against the law.
It was an old story to the freight
agent. this evening inspection before
locking up. He raised the lantern
high above his head. peered about In
a squirting effort to pierce the heav-
Ter shadows at the far end OF the
room. then. whistling out OF tune
turned his back upon the piles or
boxes in the freightroom and slam
med the door. With the sound. an
other man, eyes projecting with pain
muscles knotted. face contorted.
breathed evenly again for the first
time in long. horrible moment.
He had held his breath since the first
clutterinG sound of the agents ap-
proach: if the lantern had revealed
so much as the vapo.' of his breath
in that frigid. cracklins coom-
But he had won. A long wait.
while the sound of steps sounded
family from the waiting room be-
yond. Then the jingling of keys, the
clack of a heavy lock and silence
silence which lasted. minute after
minute, broken only by the slow
pounding of heart, like tripham-
mer, to the only ears that could hear.
Then a new sound broke the still
ness; It came from the biggest Of the
packing cases. Cracking, board
broke from the nails which bound it,
Again, for a third time. a long,
splintering crash, and then as the
boards few back. a great figure rose
from the box, his tall, heavy -shoul-
dered form casting monstrous
shadow on the back wall as he stood
an instant listening. A leap and he
had emerged completely from his
hiding place; another and he was
peering out the smokesmeared win
dow. Only the swirling snow. the
swaying shadow Of the arc above
he saw nothing more, and a thin
smile bent his boyish lips. His 1.-THE.
sinewy hands. still brown, opened
and closed nervously. The bright.
sharp eyes. catching the CLEAN Of
the street light. seemed to radiate it.
like freshly cleansed jewels. Tense
ne stood, breathing deep at the cold.
refreshing air. only to shake him
self suddenly into realization of his
freedom and, with swift, noiseless
steps, strobe toward the door.
y + X
DEYOND, the office was dark, but
instinct guided him to the hat
hung there-then to the drawer of the
bill desk. He fumbled, then clutched
tight at a black -muzzled forty-five
six-gun and a box of cartridges.
Again a smile bent the boyish lips.
He thrust the gun and cartridges into
a pocket of his prison suit and reach
ed for the lock of the nearest win
dow. Only the snow and the scream
ing wind of the blizzard greeted him
when. cautious and alert, he Chamber
ed out into the night and closed the
window behind him.
He sought the side streets and al
leys with the fevered desire that only
a fugitive can know. At bright cor
ner he stood huddled in the shadows
for a long time summoning the cour-
age to cross. Then he grinned: the
siren at the prison had not sounded.
Thus long no one knew. except the
comrades who had nailed him into the
box, and they would never tell. He
strode out into the light Of the thor
oughfare. the splattered snow on his
prison suit neutraIizing its telltale
gray, the freight agents cap pulled
low over his eyes.
His long. gansling, half-swaying
stride was that Of man of the
range: the swing of his shoulders and
arms was that of one accustomed to
the saddle and the wide stretches of
wyoming's vast expanses: passers-by
saw nothing more in him than a
young. strong. good-looking cow
puncher in town for a night of
movies: that was all. He even brush
ed the sleeve of a policeman as he
passed him on a corner. The officer
nodded patronizingly:
Tough night. amt it,
"Shore isl. was the drawing an
swer; and the man who an hour be-
fore had been convict No. 1926 passed
on.
Two blocks farther along he came
to a doorway, leading. by means OF
worn, wooden staircase, to lodgings
above. He turned in swiftly and with
stealthy steps ascended. light shone
through the grimy transom above the
door The man squared his shoulders,
stood hesitant a moment as if to sum-
mon something more than physical
courage-then knocked.
who's there?" 1t was a feminine
voice, sharp. somewhat fearful. The
only answer was a repetition Of the
knock. Steps approached beyond the
door and the lock clicked. A wave of
light swept over him, and with it
came the gasp Of a frightened woman.
Bart. Bart, what are you@
Better not talk so loud,' he drawl-
ed softly, THAT amt a good name