The Winslow mail., 1924-01-18
By VICTOR ROUSSEAU
Copyright by W. G. Chapman

WInLOn SulpeQ, Dut managed TO re-
tain an aspect of tolerable Indifference
did the De Witt stone happen to come
out of the Big Malcpo claim?" he in
quired.
LOOK here, young man, you know
more than you're pretending" an
swered the other in disgust. Think
you're smart, don't you? don't know
what your game is, but take word of
advice and don't play innocent in
Malopo, because it don't go DOWN.
He left Winton in disgust and saun-
tered back, only pausing to kick the
native, who had the misfortune to in
tercept him, back into the road again.
Winton saw the situation, as he
thought, precisely. If his claim had
actually proved valuable, De Witt, who
had unloaded the shares upon the un-
suspecting Archie, must be kicking
himself savagely at that moment. He
resolved to be very cautious and to say
nothing to anybody about his business.
He learned the location of the coach
office from the station agent, and
strolled across the market square to-
ward it, stepping among the recumbent
oxen. Now he began to perceive signs
of prodigious activity in Taungs. The
market square was filling up. Auction
eers were putting up thin, miserable
donkeys and broken carts, which
brought incredible prices. Indian ped
dlers, old clothes men, hawkers of 'ice-
cold" drinks poured out from canvas
bottles suspended in the sun, to lose
heat by evaporation, swarmed among
the crowd of bidders. Occasionally a
man on horseback, in flannel shirt and
wide-brimmed hat Of felt, his worldly
goods packed in his saddle-bags, and
humping at his steed's flanks, came
Many of the OK wagons were already
upon their way, making their first
march before the heat of noon.S
Winton pushed his way through the
throngs and found the coach office,
near the northeastern corner of the
square, surrounded by a crowd of ap-
plicants, among them his travelling
companions of the two days and nights
spent in the train.
The coach, huge affair, containing
seats for sixteen, with an immense
leather boot at the back for baggage
stood at the side of the office; in the
rear a half-dozen mules, which had
been led from their stables, were TAX
;,orr hn In 1oc OF roll tho Inc r.
tering clouds upon the bystanders.
Winton heard passenger offer twen-
ty pounds for a ticket to little one
eyed man, who rejected his proposal
scornfully. The fare was ten pounds !;
the little man had bought some seats
on speculation, and was receiving Of
fers with astonishing disdain and ar
rogance.
Twenty pounds!" he repeated sar-
castically, splitting into the dust.
"Gemmen here offers twenty pounds for
a seat as far as Malopo. Come, gem
men, shame him! Only one stage a
day, and all the seats booked weeks
ahead Who says fifty?"
lily CilCu SIdIN All OlO pIOS-
pector at Winton's side.
"Sixty'' shouted another.
"Sixty! Who'll raise sixty? Seven
ty? Thank you, sir. Eighty? Seventy
fve?" He was holding out the ticket
to Winton, who shook his head indig-
nantly.
Just then his eyes lit upon a pair
who attracted and arrested his atten-
tion Immediately. One was an old
man, apparently in his late sixties, with
his occupation as prospector stamped
all over him, in the hungry eyes, sun
wrinkled and staring, his calloused
hands; the other was girl, dark
haired, about three -and-twenty, and OF
singular and rather exotic beauty, who
stood beside him, her arm drawn
through his own.
| 1t was not so much the contrast be-
tween the two that struck Winton as
the reversal of their natural roles, in
| that the girl seemed to be the leading
spirit. There was something indica
| tive of protectiveness in her finely
modelled face, her gesture. The man
on the other hand. looked like one
broken by misfortune; his hands shook
as with a palsy, and he glanced up into
| the face of his taller daughter from
| time to time with appealing helpless
ness.
Its fortunate that l got ticket fol
you, father, when 1 left Malopo," saiC
the girl.
She had evidently come into Taungs
to meet her father WintOn wondered
who she was, and what she was doing
alone in Malopo, unless her father livec
J there habitually.
eighty! ~ shouted the ticket-holder
"Eighty-five?" Winton realized thai
the man was addressing him again. He
had declined to pay seventy-five with
Indignation. But now, before he quite
realized what he was doing, he nodded
All the while he was watching the gir
| onI old man