The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1921-01-27

Pop-eye was upon him. He grasped
the young man by the latter's left
arm and held him, while he drew back
for the awful disembowiling stroke.
AS his long arm sped forward the hook
Of John Stuart Webster's heavy cane
descended upon that fiexed arm In, the
crook of the elbow, s~nagging 1t
cleverly.
The knife never reached It's destina-
ton
"You would, would your" said Web
ster reproachfully, and jerked the fell
low violently around. The man he had
rescued promptly struck Pop-eye a
terrible blow in the face with his left
hand and broke loose from the grip
that had so nearly been his undoing;
Their Webster tapped the assassin a
meditative tap or two on the top Of his
sinful head for good measure and to
awaken in him some sense of the m
propriety and futility of resistance,
after which Webster turned to dis
cuss a similar question of ethics with
Pucker-eye.
The scar-cheeked man was on his
knees, cropping ~groggily for his knife,
for he had received a severe kick un-
der the chin, and for the nonce was
far from dangerous. STOPPING, Web
ster picked up the knife; then with
knife and cane grasped in his left
hand he seized Pucker-eye by the nape
with his right and jerked him to his
feet. The assassin stood glOwering at
him In a perfect frenzy of british, in
articulate fury.
Take the knife away from the
other fellow before he gets active
again." Webster called over his Shout
der. "Ill manage this rascal. Well
march them over to the market and
turn them over to the police" He
spoke in Spanish.
Thanks, ave. so much, for my life,"
the young man answered lightly, and
in English, "but where I come from 1t
is not the fashion to settle these argu-
ments In a court Of law. To call an
officer Is considered unclublike; to
shoot a prisoner in this country is
considered murder, and consequently
l have but one alternative and l advise
you, my good friend, to have a little
Of the same. I'm going to run like the
devil"
And he did. He was in full flight
before Webster could glance around,
and in an instant he was lost to sight
among the trees.
"That advice sounds e%minently fair
and reasonable" Webster yelled after
him, and was about to follow when he
observed that the young man had
abandoned his pretty little silver
chased walking stick.
That's too nice O little stick to
leave TO these brigands," he thought,
and forthwith possessed himself Of it
and the pop-eyed mans knife, after
which he ta,-ied not upon the order Of
his going but went, departing at top
speed.
The young man he had saved from
being butchered was right. An an
tangling alliance with the police was,
decidedly, not to John Stuart Web
ster's liking, for SHOULD he unfortu-
nately, form such an alliance, he would
be hailed into court as a witness and
perhaps miss the steamer to San
B~uenaventura.
He had planned to spend an hour In
the market, drink a cup Of cafe noir,
smoke a cigarette, and return to his
hotel In time for a %leisurely breakfast,
but his recent bout with grim reality
had blunted the edge of romance. He
ordered his driver to take him back to
the hotel, sprang inside and con-
graduated himself on his lucky escape.
(To be C%ontinued)