The Red Cloud chief., 1921-01-06
Copyisht A. o. Meciurs . ca


make that trail Mt night. Morn like
ly he's amin ter com through the
other way"
"What'll we do, then-rlde on?"
after a bit; It's early yet, an may
be It'll do no harm to lie quiet awhile.
But we kin light up, an be com
Portable"
He struck match, following the
flame In his hands, revealing the
bearded face Of man Of fifty, shad-
owed beneath soft hat brlm. Be
yond him appeared the obscure out
line Of the other, a mere smudge. A
moment the two puffed away content
edly, Shelby not venturing to move
muscle.
"Say, Hanley, I've alters played my
hand the best knew how. but do
like ter know what the game Is I'm
playln' at. What do yer know, any
howf"
The other chuckled in his beard
rustlIng his feet in the leaves.
Easier ter ask about than explain,
Hank" he answered slowly, Especially
rs there is things don't Just cotton
to myself. Mostly pulled the facts
out Of that Kid Macklin when he was
drunk, cause he wanted me to help
him. But II seems he's only hired fer
the Job; it's that guy we're waitln' for
who has got the real dope, and like
wise the long green"
"Churchills his NAME amt itr
"That's the duffer; some big Teller
down East; Virginia, as I understand
Judge Cornelius Churchill; the
whole story goes HI Of a long
why's back"
He leaned his head against the tree
trunk behind him, putting away at
the cigarette between his bearded
lips, the dull glow barely touching his
face. The younger man leaned for
ward waiting.
SWELL" he said impatiently, shat
amt all Of IL: what started the rump-
us? What's the idea Of stealln' the
girlf An just whar do you an me
come in?"
"Well, as I figure It, we've got to
Tske our own medicine. You saw that
outfit go along afore dark-MackliD
an the four redsT"
"Sure; they had o woman with
'emT
"That's the ticket, an they was
bound for Wolves hole. thought
maybe they'd camp down here, but
they dldn't-tust kept movln'. Well,
that's one thing you an I laid out here
for, to get a line on Macklin. The
other thing is that this yere Cornelius
Churchill Is about due also. an Is
most likely to blow In along this same
trail. It Is my notion to have word
privatelike with that gent before Joe
gets to him-see?"
"Can't say that do, Hanley, exact.
ly. WHAT'S It all about-the girl?"
MOSTLY, reckon, an HI OF n
slice Of money down East. This Is
how the Kid blew It to me. 1t seems
an army officer named Carlyn bout
the time the Civil war closed. ran
| away with Rose Churchill down in
Virginia, and married her. All he
cared for was the girl, an he never
even knew she was rich. only that her
family objected to him, an that they'd
have to skip out. ! reckon. maybe,
she didn't know II herself Mt the time.
nor the rest O. the Churchill family.
for they didn't make no great effort
to find her for some while. Then.
when they opened will, they dscov-
cred that most all the Churchill for
tune had been left to this Rose. and
they naturally becom' mighty inter.
ested. Cornelius, as ! understand
was the brother Of Roses father, an
the property was put In his hands as
trustee on behalf Of the girl. Maybe
he was a straight enough guy general.
ly speaking, but ne had expected to
get most Of this dough after the girl
skipped out, an was consequently al
mighty hot. Naturally he wantRl to
keep the stun, an he didn't make nc
great effort to locate the heiress. BY
the time he did learn who she had
married., Rose died, leaving n daugh
ter. BY the terms Of the will II she
died childless the entire estate revert
ed to Cornelius, and he wasn't the
sort o. guy to lose that kind o. bet"
"An' this soldier never suspected
nothing?"
"Not q thing. He was colonel b!
this time, out at some frontier post
and left his baby to the care Of some
relatives In the East. There WASH
no fuss made, an 50 Churchill sorte
let affairs slide along. He had the u.s.
Of the money. an begun to thinl
there never would be no trouble. o
course he kept line on the husband
but lost trace Of the kid entirely"
Eyer mean the colonel never eve
know'd he'd married rich giff'
$50 II seems. reckon she didn'
even know II, his wife. But afte
awhile some inhling Of the truth mus
have reached him, for he went Eas
and began to make inquiries throug
lawyer. When Churchill heard abou
; this he got scared. ! reckon he