The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1924-05-23
CHAPTER x-continued-

He thought he was dreaming; anc
when at last he convinced himself OF
the reality of the four walls he i'm
Agincd that he had dreamed every
thing, from the assault to Sheila.
Then the honest face of Sam ap-
peared before him. like a dusky half
neon; and Winton had never seen
Sam with so much pleasure In his life
before.
whats happenedr' he asked.
'Irs all right-it's all right, Mr..
Garrett" said Sam, putting a cup of
water to his lips. Winton drank
gratefully and, too weak to make in
qulries, went to sleep again.
Later in the day he awoke, feeling
more like himself. Sam was still at
his bedside, in exactly the same posi-
ton that he had occupied before.
sam, tell me what's happened"
said Winfon In perplexity. did |
dream about the burglaryT'
mo. indeed Mr. Garrett. But that's
all over and done with. II you'll go
TO sleep, sir
'Dil l ride out into the d.serf?"
'Well-yes. Mr.. Garrett. Fui you're
back home now, and THAT'S all"
"Tell me how l gol here at once.
Sam"
"Well, Mr.. Garrett" said Sam re-
luctantly. 81 happened to L.la you in
the DESERT"
How far out?"
"About ten miles, sir You were
lost and you'd tainted, and your head
was cracked open. You wanted 10
fight me- sir. had quite little diff
Guilty getting you home, sir. And you
fell Off the horse twice. You gave me
this. Mr.. Garrett" he continued, point
ing to one optic, which Wnton no
ticed was discolored. But that's al
over and"
"When, Sam?'
1.-Two days ago, Mr.. Wlnton. You
see, your head had been cracked open,
and you weren't altogether RESPONSE
BILE. / don't think I'd have got you
home, Mr.. Garrett. If you hadn't sud
denly collapsed. The doctor was quite
doubtful until this morning.
"Sam," said winton humbly. may
I shake hands with your"
Sans black hand went out and met
Winton's white one. After that Win
ton lay very still, thinking of Shella.
II was not until the following day
that he learned what had happened.
The police had discovered from the
evidence of natives in the adjoining
compound that Kash had beeh engaged
for weeks in the excavation of the
tunnel. The expectation at the start |
seemed to have been that Winton |
would make his headquarters in Ma
lopo. His presence on the claim
proved disconcerting; and since muir
der would have meant the certainty of
arrest, and the prescribed
Van Worst had resorted to the
outrage to avoid the COM
mission of capital crime.
However, Burns had heard the men
n the cottage. and had exchanged
shots with Kash. killing the Armen-
an. but suffering a serious head in
Jury from a blow by Van VOrst's re-
Tolver butt 1t was believed that a
,iece OF bone was pressing on the
speech center. for. though fully con-
clous and considered out of danger.
Ned could only utter meaningless
ounds. and was consequently unable
o describe what had occurred.
They had tried TO get his evidence
n writing, but the marks that he
made upon the paper were meaning
ess.
An inquest had been held promptly.
burns had been exonerated. and YER
let Of justifiable homicide returned.
vinton's evidence was taken at his
edside for the Information of the
police. who hoped to
ound up the fugitive.
Van Vorst's action was the most
nexpllcable part OF the affair. The
he man, known for years as the most
rafty and cautious purchaser of 1
tolen stones in the country, had sud
emily developed streak of vicious
ess and adventure. There had been
ak of sending a body OF police into
ne native territories In pursuit of {
i'm, but ultimately 1t was decided to I
telegraph all the border posts to watch Z
Or him. Through one of these Van
orst must eventually pass on his
ay back to civilization. |
What surprised Malopo most, per s
apps, was the fact that Van Worst had {
one to such pains In order TO secure 7
ngle stone of no extraordinary value
at least, not of enough to make its t
worth ou-lawry. Winfon S
lzzled over this for some time until q
heila's explanation suddenly came
lck into his memory. T
If Davis and De WIT had plotted I
lie robbery, in order TO get him into
Ielr power. they would stop at moth c
&; and they must have some knowl- r
ige of the claims value which he (
cked. u
Being strictly forbidden to leave his 5
ed for some days. OF account of the
,ver induced by his wound and sun \
roke, Winton fumed and fretted in o
is bed. He was sure everything In d
he compound was going wrong. in Il