The Adair County news., 1922-03-28

the chimney. tancha had said the
place where Olga was confined was
visible from this spot. Could this be
it? He stared down a long while, but
without reward.
Yet there seemed to be much pass
ing and repaSsing along the main val
ley; black, ill-defined figures Of men
on horseback almost constantly visible.
he was surprised at the number,
never having supposed that this colony
Of outlaws was so numerous. An
other thing, while he could not clear
ly distinguish such small objects at
that distance, the majority Of these
riders had the appearance of being In
dians. Could they be Sioux warriors
gathered here in preparation for some
raid on the exposed settlements? or
was 1t possible that the troops had al
ready struck, and driven the rem
nants Of scattered war parties into
this Hole for refuge? In either case
their presence in such numbers rem
dered his own position so much more
precarious, and increased the danger
surrounding Olga. He felt that, in
spite of his pledge to the Mexican girl,
he could not remain in his hiding
place quietly. without endeavoring to
learn more of what had actually Oc-
Cured during the night.
Indeed he cOuld perceive no reason
why he should remain entirely mac
tive. At the very best she could ac-
complish nothing before night, and
had held out very little hope for even
then. There were no signs that he
was being sought after down below. 1t
might be that in the excitement of
other happenings, his escape had been
considered as of minor importance;
that Indian Joe, convinced that he
could never get out of the Hole unob-
served, took no immediate interest in
trailing him. What was the use, when
he must eventually surrender? 1t
would be a simple matter to steal eau
tiOusly down through that deep cleft
in the rocks, as far, at least, as the
stream below. He would be concealed
all the way, and once there, hidden
securely among those thick bushes, he
might then learn what was actually
occurring. 1t would be far better for
him to know. Besides, this would be
no disloyalty to Pancha; even If she
sought him he would still be in the
path she must follow, and, so long as
he remained undiscovered, just where
he was concealed could make no pos
sible difference. The argument satis-
fed his mind, because he felt he must
act; must make some effort of his
own.
Descending was far easier than the
toilsome climb through the darkness
Of the night before. There was moth
ing in sight so far as the mouth Of the
ravine where it opened into the main
valley. Beyond that he could per-
ceive moving figures, and occasionally
hear the sound of a distant voice. 1t
was clearly evident to his mind that
something unusual must have Oc-
curred-sOme news Of disaster or ap-
preaching danger-tO arouse such ex-
citement among the citizens of the
Hole; and he also felt convinced that
this more important thing had for the
time being. at least, rendered his own
escape Il matter Of small cOnsidera-
ton. If any attempt had been made
to trail him, this effort had certainly
already been abandoned. AS he leaned
forth from his hiding place he saw,
scarcely a hundred yards away. the
log walls of that hut, concealed among
the trees which he had dimly noted
from the crag above. This was prob
ably where Olga had been confined.
His heart beat rapidly as he studied
the outlines. Could she be there StillE
Was MackIin with her? or had she
been left there under guard of some OF
his Indian allies?
If she was there, and not too Sc
cureiy guarded, it might be possible
for him alone to effect her rescue. The
inspiration to make the attempt APP
pealed to him strongly. If he only
could get her away unObserved as far
as that cave, he believed it possible To
follow the trail to the summit. The
project appeared staple enough, as he
turned it thus over in his mind; ut
least it surely could do no harm for
him to determine definitely if the lady
still remained imprisoned there. He
would venture far enough to assure
himself that this must be the fact.
Shelby was sufficiently conscious of
danger to use every precaution; the
training of years came TO his aid. The
rocky banks of fARl stream were sut-
ficiently high to 6ohceal his advance,
and the creek curved about so as to
approach the hut within a few yards.
Assured that the water would thus
conceal his trail, he crept across the
narrow open space, and lowered him
self over the bank, crODching knee
deep in the cold stream, safely under
cover. Thus protected he waded slow
ly downward. He saw no evidence of
any guard, and became convinced the
cabin also was deserted; that if this
was actually the place where Olga
had been confined on arrival, she had
since been removed elsewhere.
AS he drew nearer the place appeared
old, rather dilapidated and long desert
ed, a shack scarcely fit for human habi-
tation any longer. The one window was
L ~, ,OA nf