New Britain herald., 1925-01-12

A slug of lead which cost a few cents would make some lucky man the possess for a small fortune to say nothing of reputation which might easily lead him into office as sheriff of some unquiet county. Crack shots mounted upon their best horses literally swarmed out by the score. There was no trail too obscure for their notice. They combed the hooks and crannies.
 And yet Gloster shook them off. He managed it by clever move, although he did not at all consider it as a wise measure when he took 1t. He had to see Joan again, no matter at what risk, and so he doubled straight back into the re- zion of his jail break.
 He felt that 1t was like putting his head into the lions mouth. And every one else seemed to feel that such a march would be the same thing. They hunted with increas- ing fury. but they hunted in a grow ing circle, the activity being on the rim while the center of the circle was the town of Sim Hargess and the jail break, That center was quiet, and near 1t, toward the ranch of Buck Daniels. came the outlaw.
 The town itself was humming this morning with a new excite oP rr-li ola C1apta,. lrn nothing. For, at dawn, 1t was found that the big black stallion had been turned out of his corral -'the gate had been deliberately unbarred. and it was the opinion of all that some member of the Haines gang had come down 70 claim the great horse.
 None of this was known to Clos ter himself. for he came shortly after the dawn in sight of the little ranchhouse, installed his horse near the cotton-woods and stalked the house itself He had hardly taken covert in shed when Buck Dan- iels appeared, and uttered a shout of surprise at the sight of a trim built gelding standing near the gate of the corral and touching noses with the horses within.
 After that the ranchcr acted like man possessed with fear. In an- other moment he had thrown saddle and bridle on horse and was riding north and east, leaning far from the saddle and studying a trail. He dipped into a swale. and as soon as he had disappeared Clos ter came from his hiding and ran to examine the marks in the sand.
 If was at once apparent that Daniels was following the back trail of a horse, and 1t was not hard to put two and two together. Yon- der was the gelding with the sad dle mark still showing on his back, and Daniels had left with such haste that he had not even turned the beautiful animal into the cor ral.
 And Gloster remembered the out line of the horse which he had seen Joan riding the night of the jail break. He could not recognize it. of course, having only seen it by starlight. but there was enough similarity 10 make him feel req sonably sure. Joan's horse had como back to the ranch without saddle or bridle, and now the ranch CT was following the back trail to find what had become of his girl.
 So Gloster returned to the cot ton-woods and took up the pursuit.
 In two hours of the slow. jour ney. he saw Daniels change his di- rection to north and west, and start riding with increased vigor He him self soon came 10 the spot: al- though he was not an expert trails man, yet it was easy enough 10 read the sign here. Wonder the marks of the gelding's hoofs crossed the sign of q much larger horse, as was shown by the size of the prints and the depths to which they had sunk. Here, too, was a place where the sand was raked. as if the saddle had been brushed across 1t.
 What had happened. Gloster could not dream, unless at this point Joan had caught a fresh horse which might have been wan dering loose.
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