The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1923-09-01

alfalfa fields, round them, and back
up to the spillway Of the lower lake.
where q group Of mesquite-trees, ow.
ing to the water that seeped through
the sand to their roots, had taken on
bloom and beauty of renewed life. Un-
der these trees there was shade
enough to make q pleasant place to
linger. Madeline dismounted, desiring
to rest a little.
Her horse, Majesty, tossed his head
and flung his name and switched his
tail at the flies. He would rather
have been cutting the wind down the
valley slope. Madeline sat with her
back against a tree, and took Off her
sombrero. Suddenly Majesty picked
up his long ears and snorted. Then
Madeline heard a slow pad Of hoofs.
A horse was approaching from the d.
rection Of the lake. Madeline had
learned to be wary, and, mounting
Majesty, she turned him toward the
open. A moment later she felt glad
of her caution, for. looking back be-
tween the trees, she saw Stewart lead
ing horse into the grove. She would
as lief have met a guerrilla as this
cowboy.
Majesty had broken into a trot
when a shrill whistle rent the air. The
horse leaped and, wheeling so swiftly
that he nearly unseated Madeline, he
charged back straight for the mes
quites. Madeline spoke to him, cried
| angrily at him, pulled with all her
strength upon the bride, but was
helplessly unable to stop him. He
whistled a piercing blast. Madeline
realized then that Stewart, his old
master, had called him and that moth
ing could turn him. She gave up try
ing, and the horse thumped into an
aisle between the trees and, stopping
before Stewart, whinnied eagerly.
II want to talk to you," said Stew
art.
Madeline started, turned to him,
and now she saw the earlier Stewart,
the man who reminded her of their
first meeting at Ell Cajon, Of that
memorable meeting at Chiricahua.
II want to ask you something" he
went on. 1--WE been wanting to know
something. That's why I've hung on
here. But now I'm going over-over
the border. And I want to know.
Why did you refuse to listen to me?'
| At his last words that hot shame,
tenfold more sitting than when it had
before Inundated Madeline, rushed
over her, sending the scarlet in a wave
to her temples. Biting her lips to
| hold back speech, she jerked on Maj
esty's bride, struck him with her
whip, spurred him. Stewards iron arm
held the horse. Then Madeline, in
| flash of passion, struck at Stewards
| face, missed it, struck again, and hit.
With one pull, almost drawing her
from the saddle he tore the whip from
her hands. It was not that action on
his part, or the sudden strong master
fulness of his look, so much as the
livid mark on his face where the whip
had dashed that quieted, if it did not
check, her fury.
"Thats nothing" he said, with some
thing of his old audacity. "Thats
nothing to how you've hurt me-"
Madeline battled with herself for
control. This man would not be de-
MED. About him now there was only
the ghost of that finer, gentler man
she had helped to bring into being.
The piercing dark eyes he bent upon
her burned her, went through her as
If he were looking into her soul. Then
Madeline's quick sight caught a fleet
ing doubt, a usefulness, surprised
and saddened certainty in his eyes,
saw it shade and pass away. Her
wOman's intuition, as keen as her
sight, told her Stewart in that moment
had sustained a shock of bitter, final
truth.
For the third time he repeated his
question to her. Madeline did not an
swer she could not speak.
"You don't know I love you, do
you" he continued, passionately.
'That ever since you stood before me
in that hole at Chirfcahua I've loved
you? You can't see I've been another
man, loving you, working for you, liv-
ing for you? You won't believe I've
turned my DICK on Cu0 Olu WlIO lie,
that I've been decent and honorable
and happy and useful-your kind Of
a cowboy? You couldn't tell, though
I loved you, that never wanted you
to know 1t, that I never dared to
think of you except as my angel, my
holy Virgin? What do you know Of
mans heart and soul? How could
you tell of the love, the salvation of
a man who's lived his life in the ST.
lence and loneliness? Who could teach
you the actual truth-that wild cow
boy, faithless to mother and sister, ex-
cept in memory, riding hard, drunk
en- trail straight to hell, had looked
into the face, the eyes of a beautiful
woman infinitely beyond him, above
him, and had SO loved her that he was
saved-that he became faithful again
that he saw her face in every flow
er and her eyes in the blue heavenY'
Madeline was mute. She heard her
heart laundering in her ears.
Stewart leaped at her. His power
full hand closed on her arm. She
trembled. His action presaged the