The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1924-01-10

was just III iliiit " see DldCh bORn
light the lamp, go to the ruined fire
place, lift up the slab of stone ON ths
hearth and feel under it. Nothine
there-he slammed the stone pack
kicked It with his ragged boot, snatched
out his pipe, lit 1t v~iclously, smoked
hard for a minute or more, blew out
the lamp, stormed out of the door and
down the yard.
All the way up Eagle Hollow road
and to Loge Belden's cabin the woods
man Swallowed him; watched him go
around to the back; heard him enter
and slam the~door after him; slipped
up to the small east window and lay
listening. The window was open a
scant inch or so at the bottom; he
guardedly raised himself even with the
narrow opening and cautiously peeped
within.
A match scraped, was laid to a can
die on a shelf over the crumbling fire
place; Black Bogus whipped off the
charred end of the wick it fiared to
full strength and the interior of the
cabin came out of the dark.
The Watchers eyes lifted in amaze-
ment. The cabin was almost totally
bare of furniture of any kind-no
beds no table Oh chairs-merely some
pots and pans by the empty fireplace,
and two pallets on the floor.
On one of these pallets, almost under
the window, lay Belden's sister; on
the other lay Loge. He raised up on
his elbow as the candle lared alight;
noticed the sullen glover on the face
of his associate.
"WelI?"
"He didn't come out"
"H-I! an y'u had t bring 1t
back?'
"What else?"
There came a voice from the pallet
: under the window-a voice soft and
mild, shaken and half afraid, the lis
tener fancied.
"Didn't e send no word t-me?'
Didn't come out, L tell y'u."
The wOodsman had caught the an
peal in the soft tones wondered what
could be the relation between the girl
and such a man as Hopkins. Then he
recalled her reference to "the third
man" that startled moment in the
bushes by the side of the road; re-
membered her running down the yard
toward them on the evening of the
ride and he brought his eyes as close
to the slit under the sash as he dared.
After a short pause, during which he
fancied she might be gathering reso-
luton for another question, the soft
voice came again, more faltering than
before:
AN Their wusn't nothin' under the
rOck-no note mr. nothin'-?"
mot a damn scrap"
The face under the window turned
to the wall. Loge dropped back to the
pallet. Black Bogus drew the unof-
Tending bills from his pocket and
slammed them down on the shelf; I'M
buckled his holster and put the re-
volver under his shirt; blew out the
candle and pitched down beside Bel
den.
The man crouched on the outside of
the window pOndered what he had
and heard. He looked eagerly
for the outfit with which they made
their spurious money-that was the
One big reason, in fact, that had
brought him. He saw no trace of it
hint dropped by Hopkins in the
little park that they had printed a
supply before coming up the
was doubtless true, and that
meant practically the absence of any
very substantial proof.
He recalled what Hopkins had told :
Black Bogus about the large amount :
If money still in the safe at the red
'oofed cottage-unguarded, as they
would now suppose. They would be
Utmost certain to make some attempt
o get it. When they did
But they were certain not to make
he attempt till they learned that
Hopkins was gone. Until then all was
afe.
In his brief glance over the interior
f the cabin, the woodsman was struck
Y the fact that the place was neat
nd clean. Mean as it was, 1t bore
he mark of orderly hands-dOubtless
he hands of the girl lying just inside
ne window. /
The cabin settled still. The outlaws
n the farther pallet began to breathe
The woodsman prepared to
lip away but suddenly stopped and
rought his ear close to the slit under
le sash-the mountain girl was cry
ig softly.
There was a stir under the blanket
here Loge Belden lay; the creak Of
cps came across the floor and a dim
stopped above the pallet under
le window.
Don't cry, little sister. He amt
9th cryin' f'r-no man amt" D.,
The grit and grind of powerful teeth
.ached to the listener outside. -
Hes gott' quit pesterin' you-play -
; hot an cold with y'u-damn i'm, I
III wake up some mornin' in hell