The Bienville Democrat. [volume] (Arcadia, Bienville Parish, La.) 1912-1980, 1921-06-02
cuApTER VllI-Contlnued.

h0SS OF VI t"i >''''
The plot Itself was simple AT . :,
.ortoiu hour Of a given night all 1t ,
anonymous letter was to be sent 10 " "
". vorcroys, telling him that Il gang Il
:. roted train robbers was steaIlhS i
'. o,rine from the Portal City yard y
t0r the purpose of running down the {
,,no and wrccking the Fast Mail,
,rhioh often carried q bullion express
nr II the boss should fall for it
IS no did, when the time came-aha
90 in person to stop the rala' he WIS
.. ho overnowcred and spirited away,
: forged letter purporting to be no.
/ t,cp Of his resignation was TO De 'eiV
for Mr.. Van Britt, ard a fake 'ele'
gram, making the same announce.
,nort was TO be sent to PRESIDENT
4 Dunton in New York. Nothing was
left indefinite but the choosing OF INC
night.
81 sucpose Hatch was to give the
word" said the boss. who had been
listening soberly while the Lawyer
talked. -,
"Tbat IS the Inference. Hatch prom
ably gave the word after his TAX Nl,n
vou hut the time was made even more
nron,tious BY the arrival of the two
to,scroms: the one from Mr. C'aa-
II ,r,ol, and the one from Mr.. Dunton'
both Of which they doubtless inter,
eanted by means of the tapped wires
Mr. Norcross looked up quickly
"Ripley, did Dunton know what was
Going to be done to me:' =,
"oh 7 think not. It wasn't at al
necessary that he should be taken Ill
On il, He has been opposing your
" no,ic,es all along. and had just SEM
Won a pretty savage call-down. ne
didn't want you in the first place, ah'
he has been anxious to get rld OF you
ovor since The plotters knew YER!
,o,l what he would do if he shoul'
cet wire which purported to be you
resignation. He would appoint al d,
other man. quick, and all they wou'
have 70 do would be to make sur
that Won we're we'll off stage, and wou,
s,sv off until the other man co''
take hold"
.1t worked out like charm az
mitted fine boss, with wry smile
haven't been talking much about u
details, partly because | wanted
and ont if this young fellow, Taroe
was as good as the majors recoI
mpodotion Of him, and partly becau
Tn honestly ashamed, Ripley A,
nan of my age and experience '"
would swallow bait, hook, and line
| did that night deserves to get
that is coming to him."
~ you Cuil tcli HiN hwy
quered the attorney
~Ob, yes; you have it all-or pr
tically all. fell for the anonym'
letter about the Mail hoid-up,
while | don't rattle very easily
,djnar,lv. that was one time whel
lost my head, just for the mo'' u.
The obvious thing to do-if any all
sion whatever was to be paid 10
anonvmous warning-was to teieph
the police and the round-house' l
neither because l thought it might
too SLOW
$50 YOU made straight shoot
the scene OF action!
81 did; down the back streets
across the lower end of the plaza
II sppeared-or rather as it was IL
TO anpear-I was barely in time. l
we're mon At the engine. and
] sprinted across the yard they
ready to move it out to the 'l, 1,,
Yelled ot them and ran in. Ihre
them tackled me the moment
within reach, got one Of the
on the point Of the jaw, ana 'ile'
to leave him behind; but there
enough more Of them. Before !
realized what was happening 'l'e!
/ me trussed up like a Christmas
key, and loaded into the CAP y
engine From that on, it was al
sailing" =,
"rhen they took you to the old
Der camp?" -,
"As fast as the engine could NC
10 turn her wheels. Arroyo III
night operator, and when we ~
through the Banta yard and pa
station, the operator there was
| saw him, with his head IN 'he
of his arm, at the telegraph Ia
the bay window as we passed
I'VE ran out to the Iilhper
tain ~ and from that on up
saw-mill line. The ran .on"
we're all In place. ana hneN
this that preparations had |. peer
beforehand. They wouldn't I
ANYTHING except that l was
locked up for few days
You knew what that h'e"n
Perfectly. My dropout W.
made to look as If ! had Juinl
job, and Dunton would appvn,
man. After that, | couid col'
if I wanted to. Whatever ! II
or try to do would cut no ns.
no explanation could MAKE a,,s.,S "
believed. l had most ouA 81
my own official grave anu 'ne