The Holbrook news., 1921-02-18
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The question caught the Pearlhunter
 unawares. He, too, was gazing out
 over the landscape, but absorbed in
 things of which the placid little Jew
 had not the remotest inkling.
 ''I hardly know" he answered slow
 ly, as if feeling for each word.
 Thought maybe I'd go to school"
 "SchOol!" The Jew ridiculed the word with his hands. T know a-ready men could be professors. undt dey got noting. go by school not more as two weeks for mine life, undt look at me"
 The Pearlhunter did look at him hard-faced, red-nosed, yellOwish teeth, a potty prOtuberance swung to the front of his waistline. It looked like two weeks wasted.
 "Why you don't buy timber? You can shoot it dis waterfall tito a Hume undt run a mill yet"
 The Pearlhunter made no answer. The little Jew talked on.
 You can buy it de Flatwoods a. ready yet, if you handle right your money" He walked back around the end of the cabin. The Pearlhunter followed "veI. you come long ven you get ready, ilain'dt it?"
 He went on down the slope, through the bushes toward his skiff; the Pearl hunter turned in at the cabin door. Alone at last, he did the very thing that nine men out of ten would have done; took the draft out of his pocket and fingered it over-the concrete and tangible evidence of a great day won. He had seen it born at midnight; had seen it drive in through the gates of dawn-and now 1t was forever his. He spelled out the magic words: Five thousand, a wavy line, no hundredths, dollars. He said each bold figure over to himself. Slowly a face grew alive among the words and figures; face framed in yellow. hair; eyes that laughed. They had laughed for him. he had made them laugh. The draft would make them laugh again. And tomorrow she should send for that sur geon.
 The sound of grooming came in at the cabin door from the bushes down the hill. The face was gone from the draft. He thrust it back in his pocket and stepped out into the yard. His first thought was that the little Jew, none too sure-footed among the rocks, had stumbled and hurt himself.
 The groan came again. He sprang into the bushes. The Jew had hurt himself look so wild and terrible the Pearlhunter had never seen upon the face of q man. He had fallen upon his back, with one arm cramped under him. The other arm was free, but he seemed unable to rise. With his free hand he was clawing desperately at his bosom, and the fingers of the hand were mussed with blood.
 The Pearlhunter leaped down the hill and bent over him. It was then he saw what the bloody hand was clawing at-the handle If knife, hilt deep in his breast. The Pearlhunter raised him, and the other hand came free. It clutched bit of cloth of fiam- ing red-a red mask
 The Jew opened his eyes, recognized the man bearing him up.
 Dot timber buyer" he gasped out of his flooded chest. He choke mel
  stricken Jew dropped the mask and beat the pocket of his vest. "Himmell ! l De pearli De Blue Moon l' His eyes grew vacant; fiared up again. Mine Gotti Rachell RachelI"
 His mouth quivered open so wide | that his beard rumpled upon his breast, | and the blood welled out over his chin. | His eyes bulged; the smeared fingers | ceased clawing at the knife; he gasped twice; and dropped back-dead.
 The Pearlhunter picked up the bit of scarlet cloth that had fallen from the dead mans hand. It is surprising how fast a man can think when he has to. The mystery of the arm thrust in at the cabin door across the moonlight | cleared. The finding of a red mask be- side the body would identify the mur- derer to any man in the Wabash coun- try; the finding of another. upon search of the cabin. would be deemed sufficient proof that the tenant of the cabin was the murderer.
 But why had the bandit planned to lay the theft of the jewel on him? IL was not his way. He took his toll at lnC lllSlOi punt anu 6ohOPCO away. Why had he changed his methods now?
 He had laid his plans well. though they hadn't worked out quite as he ex- pected. The killing of Louie Solomon had been an accident, forced on him by the fact that the little Jew, in his had chanced to claw the mask off and had recognized him. Oth- erwise he would have merely choked him into uncOnsciOusness, taken the pearl and left the mask behind to com plete the tangle he was weaving around another man. He had probably taking the pearl some time that night, leaving his mask behind, and afterward, when the hue and cry was raised, suggest a search of the cabin. His chance had come sooner than he had expected. Of course, he could not have foreseen that the man he wished to fix the crime upon would be the first to find the body.
 It was not lost on the Pearlhunter hat he had undoubtedly crowded the murderer close, else why had he left he knife? But why all these elaborate plans against him? Was it some an- ,ient grudge he bore his blood? Did
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