The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1926-01-29

Teller to lose stock an have to stand
helpless"
"And how do you think 1t gals me
to fall to catch the lifters?" asked
Selwood quietly. tits my job-my-
my honor"
He picked up his cards again and
turned to the table.
But no matter what Is said, or
thought about me-" he finished, every
day of my further hold on office will
be given over to the same hunt-untii
l find what I'm after, or give up as a
failure"
Hink Kelsey, the bearded man who
had sat on the store porch that day
of the fight between Selwood and. Nc
Kane, now dropped the forward legs
Of his chair to the floor and sat up,
doubling his knife and putting 1t away
In pocket.
SHERIFF" he said. SIN stackin' on
you, along with Bossick. think you'll
ketch yer game-an' ] think you're al
ready on tn right trail"
McKane looked at him as IL he
could kill him and his tongue itched
to fail both men, the speaker and Sell
wood, for he knew that they meant
the same thing.
There was one listener, however,
who said nothing and whose sharp
eyes scanned each face in the room
with painstaking thoroughness. This
was Sud Provine, a rider from Sky
Line who had come down for the mail.
The Sky Line men never stayed
long at Cordova. except as they came
now and again for night at play.
When the talk had changed from
the all-absorbing topic of the stolen
cattle. this worthy rose. took his sack
and departed.
Several pairs of eyes followed him,
but no one spoke Of him.
There was something about the Sky
Line riders which seemed to preclude
discussion in the open.
Price Selwood had told the truth.
There was not q night of the long
warming weeks of spring which had
not seen him, shadow in the
shadows, riding the slopes and flats
Of Nameless. Sometimes he sat for
hours high on some shoulder of the
hills watching the bowl beneath with
the moonlight sitting down in silver
flood. Again, when the nights were
dark, he rode up under the very lip
of Rainbow cliff and watched and lis
tened, his every sense as acute as a
panther's. There were times when he
sat for half night within hailing dis
tance of Kate Cathrew's stronghold,
and once her dogs, winding him, YAM
mered excitedly. This brought out a
stealthy listener. whose only betrayal
was the different note In the dogs
voices.
But someone was there in the dark
ness of the veranda. and Selwood out.
stayed him, whoever he was-out-
stayed the animals excitement, their
curiosity, and left with the hint of
coming dawn to drop back down the
slants and sleep the day away at
home.
Night again saw him travelling, and
always his one obsession travelled
with him-the hard-and-fast PRESENT.
ment that Kate Cathrew was the tan
gible element In the smoke-screen of
mystery which rode the country.
1t was not long after the talk at the
store, perhaps week or such a mat
ter. when he got the first faint inkling
of clue. 1t was scarcely more. yet II
served to sharpen his wits to razor
edge. 1t was not moonlight. neither
was 1t clear dark Of the moon, but
that vague time in between when a
pale sickle sailed the vault and shed
its half-light to make shadows ghostly
and substance Elusive.
Selwood had ridden all the lower
reaches Of Nameless that week, had
skirted the western end Of Mystery,
and even trailed far into the Deep
Hearts themselves in an effort to find
something, anything, which might tell
him he was at least on the right track.
He hardly knew what 1t was for
which he searched perhaps an old
trail. perhaps secret branding fire.
But he had found nothing. So he fell
back on his night riding again, and as
always this led him instinctively into