The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1926-03-12

pretty well winded with the hard go
ing IL afforded, and at last drew up
to let Selwood come alongside
He sat still for moment.
Listen Bit" he said, do you hear
anything different from the sounds OF
water and the murmuring of the big
cutY'
The sheriff listened sharply.
YES" he said presently, Il do.
Sounds like wind"
Exactly. Yet there isn't any wind,
more than the draft which always
draws down the canyon. Now look
closely at the wall. Watch that clump
of willows yonder.
He pointed ahead and to the left
where a dense green growth stood
alone against the rock face.
Selwood looked and for a moment
his face did not change
Then, suddenly, his mouth fell open,
his eyes grew wide with astonish-
ment.
Great Scott" he said, they're
blowing out from the wall There's
wind behind themw
Fair moved forward and dismount-
ed, leaving Diamond in the stream.
The sheriff followed.
They stepped lightly across the strip
of sand which lay between the water
and the willows and Fair turned to
the right, circling the clump.
Here" he said, shat red steer and
the man who drove 1t went into the
wall. l found their tracks that day.
They've been obliterated by the shift
ing sand since then"
He pushed aside feathery branch
and the sheriff at his shoulder craned
an incredulous head to look into what
seemed the mouth of q cave.
"No--it's not cave" said Fair at
his surmise, fits prehistoric under
ground passage. 1t leads straight into
the heart of Mystery ridge from this
end, and it has an opening somewhere,
attested to by this current of wind.
This mouth is just wide enough to
admit one steer at a time, one horse
anu TiucT-Dul-Wud uoiC w you
want?'
"Great Scott |" cried Selwood again,
"of all the impossible things! And
| not soul on Nameless knows about
| itp'
"Wrong!" said Fair, kate Cathrew
| and her riders know. That open plain
yonder-it leads out to town, doesn't
| it? On the railroad"
"Marston-yes. A long way across"
''Water?" queried Fair.
"Yes-at intervals. Springs. Do for
| driving for range-too far
apart"
Exactly" said Fair. "Now, sheriff.
find the other end Of this subterran-
| can passage and believe you'll have
| solved the mystery of the disappear
| ing steers"
Price Sawood held out his hand. 1t
was trembling.
Il can't tell you what owe you for
this information, Mr.-Y
'Smith-yes" said Fair smiling.
Smith. 1t means more than l can
| say-to me-"
"It means as much-or more-to
me-" returned the other, I've given
two years of my life to still-hunt for
Kate Cathrew. I'd give two more to
see her brought to justice"
"And we'll get her!" said the
sheriff grimly, though with Tilt of
| ioy in his voice. "Oh, my Lord, just
won't we get her! Well follow this
hole straight to its"
"If l might suggest" cut in Fair,
'I'd say we'll back out now-even
brush out our tracks-and begin a
systematic picketing of the Cathrew
bunch. The cattle are fat on the
ranges-it'll soon be time to drive.
Don't you think it likely that another
big bunch might--disappear down
Nameless Rivera"
"Say," said Selwood, smiling. Mis-
ter, you just move in my house with
me. You can think faster and straight
er than any man ever met Let's
go right now
Fair laughed and turned away, lead
ing Diamond back down the canyon.
'For the present" he said, 'Tll keep
to the background as have been do
ing This woman would recognize me
and be instantly alert for trouble. An
other thing, sheriff-those men with
her are not cattlemen."
| frn pE CONTINIJED