Western news and the Libby times. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1920-1933, 1929-02-28

lie Sceue was once lioic iiiuhi
nnted as she rode from the wagon.
rIderless hor5e circled In the flat, a
dark shape sprawled- near him. and
she wondered which one of her men
had gone down. A knot of horsemen
were turning up an opening gulch on
the far side OF the valley. A hnf-
dozen III rec Bar riders veered their
horses for the spot. Harris turned In
his saddle and his voice reached her
above the tumult.
"Let EN- col" he shouted. LET em
gol Hold the herd |"
Far of on the opposite side she
made out ! LONE horseman riding at
full run along th, sidehllI above the
COWS MS he made a supreme effort TO
reach III, heat Of the run. The Three
Bar men split md streamed ur both
sides of the bottoms The flashes
had ceased except for brief quiyering
plays of less than a seconds duration
She hung her spurs into Papoose and
trusted 10 his footwork. half-1ure
showed the pinto bare twenty yards
ahtad. with Harris putting him at the
slope 70 pass the cows. She swung
her own no se after him and she felt
the freduent skid o. his feet on the
treacherons sldehll.
From tho sounds below she knew
they were we'll up on the tanks OF
the run and nearing the peak. The
stampede seemed slowing. long,
waverng fash revealed Harris dozen
Jumps ahead. papoose followed the
puint.horse as Harris put Calico down
the slippery sidehill and lifted him
round the point of the herd. In the
same flush Billie had seen two slick
ers out before the peaks of the run.
Humping welrdy In the faces OF the
foremost cows This accounted Tor
the slowlng-up she had sensed. Two
Of her men we're before them and she
wondered how this had come to pass.
The lightning play broke forth once
more. She Jaw two riders swinging
round the opposite point The two
slickers were working In the center
Harris gun flashed six times. She
,erked her own and rolled 1t. The two
riders whr had just rounded the far
point Joined II. Cows In the front
ranks held back from this fearsome
conmoflon out In front.
| The stor ceased as suddenly AZ II
Ind begun and for two miles she rod
10 inky darkness TIL. run had spent
t., force. The herd stopped and the
cows gnzcd stupidity about, standing
With dropping hends and heasine
/ sides. Three Bur men showed on both
tanks are In the rear. They had held
the drove intact and prevented Its
shifting up In attachments and scat
terlng through the night
Horne N ] Moore rode over to them
and for the FIRST time the girl noticed
TINT the two men who had " 'ldef
slIckers ont In front of the run were
i.owhere to be seen.
| "Who was the pair out aheadf'
Moore asked. Aud what swallowed
EN- up7"
| Harris shook his head.
| "BIllic and were the fret to mak'
the front he said.
"Not any," Moore stated positively
II saw em i've minutes fef0re yos
two swung round the point. ! WIS VI
guard nd halfway up the far side
| nit
delayed me some"
He pointed to the mud crusted o.
Ills clothes. Billie knew that he Wa
the lone rider she Lad seen on tll
tanks OF the, herd as she lode ava
from tie wagon. The fall acc0unte
for their rounding the point ahead Q
him. Moore was looking off across tn
country.
"Do you mean TO tell me you didn
see those two sllckers Tapping out
front?" he demanded.
II confess didn't observe any,
Harris said. YOU'RE getting spook.
Moore. A couple OF white cows, lik'
ly. out aheaa OF the rest"
Moore regarded him curlousy.
maybe that's So" he said "Wayln
their tails Ia the air, sort or Il
grlnned and turned his horse to hea
back a bulcf that had drlfted out
the herd
"The boys made nice ride" liza
ria said TO Horne. "You float rouT
] from one to the next and tell e
] we'll soon have feed. I'll ride bat
, and send the wagon up"
Billie rode with him as ne skirt'
] the herd and started on the retul
) Trip Her nil was occupied with Il
two riders Nho had slowed the n
] and disappeared. There had be-
8 something familiar about them.
q she had viewed them In the lightning
r fash they had closely resenbl
e BENTLEY and Carp. But she decld
' that this resemblance had been but
e fancIed one. suggested by the "a
\ Tint the two men had been much
J her mind OF late.
ITO RI rGNTINUED.0