Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1931-02-20

side when they began their journey.
Jeems carried an arrow fixed to the
string Of his bow, and suddenly
twig caught 1t and 1t slipped from his
fingers and fell to the ground. He
was STOPPING to recover it when ter
rified scream from Toinette brought
him erect.
Not more than eight or ten PAGES
from them stood a painted and half
naked savage whose intention had
been to make his way toward the
abandoned house. He was an appal-
ling figure, and during the few Sec
onds in which they faced each other
Jeems recognized In him the white
skinned scalp hunter he and Toinette
had seen with the Mohawks. At this
discovery there shot through him a
fash of relief, but a second glance
showed him fiend more dangerous
than an Indian, one of the merciless
butchers who hunted human hair for
the price his own people had set upon
it. A blue-eyed Indianl How often
had he heard his uncle curse their
breed Beasts more cruel than tigers,
demons set loose and paid by English
money until their sport as well as
their livelihood became an orgy Of am
bush, murder, rape, and fire! Here
was one of them. The man was
creased and painted, but he was white.
His warlock was light and his eyes
were small and blue. He carried a
gun, knife, and Ratchet, and at his
belt was woman's hair, and with it
another scalp that must have been
taken from the head Of a child.
So quickly did Jeems see these
things that the echoes Of Toinette's
scream had scarcely died away before
their meaning pressed itself upon him.
The savage possessed moment of adj
vantage, and as Jeems made move
ment to whip an arrow from his
culver, the scalp hunter swung his
gun to fire. Seeing the hopelessness
of his position, Jeems sprang forward
and hurled his useless bow at his enc
my. This and the impact of his body
came at an instant when the other
let the hammer of his flintlock fall,
and with the explosion of the gun the
lead from its barrel few wild. The
scalp hunter had seen only boy and
a girl, and a vision of easy victims had
leapt to his mind. Now he found
upon him an antagonist of unexpected
strength and feroclty. In the first
few seconds of the fray. neither had a
chance to draw knife or tomahawk,
and with all the pent-up madness Of
his body and brain Jeems struck at
his enemy and clutched his slippery
throat as they crashed to earth to-
gether. For a space Toinette's horror
filled eyes could scarcely tell which
was one and which the other; and
Odd, snarling white-fanged at their
heels, was unable to become a partner
in the conflict. Then, with a powerful
effort, the scalp hunter freed himself
and sprang to his feet, drawing his
tomahawk in the act. AS he prepared
to use his weapon, Odd vaulted for his
throat, and the blunt head of the
Ratchet met him in midair, striking
with such force upon his head that he
fell a limp and inert mass to the
ground.
A cry of triumph came from the bleed
ing lips of the Frankenstein, who saw
victory within his reach, for he now
regarded the youth, who was on his
feet with Ratchet in his hand, as an
insignificant obstacle between himself
and the pallid-faced loneliness OF the
girl whom chance had so fortunately
placed in his way. This cry, dis
guised by guile and habit, betrayed
only trace of the white man. It was
cultural exultation of one lost to all
the obligations of blood and race,
cry loosed not so much by heat and
passion as by the promise of what he
saw as his eyes appraised Toinette-
Toinette had possessed herself Of
the empty gun and stood at Jeems'
side, prepared to fight.
Jeems was so near that his arm
pressed against her and he gave
sidewise thrust which sent her head
long among the bushes. In this same
movement he hurled his Ratchet at the
scalp hunter, who was slowly advance
ing. AS the other lodged to avoid the
hurtling missile Jeems snatched one
of his scattered arrows from the ground
and ran to his bow. Toinette saw
what happened then. She saw the
SLIM beautiful figure of Jeems drawn
as tensely as his weapon in the path
way. She saw the painted monster
descending upon him. She heard the
musical twang Of the bowstring and
saw a silvery tlash-a flash which
passed in at one side Of the blue-eyed
Indian and went out at the other, a
flash which fell to earth score of
PAGES beyond, bloody and broken
arrow that had done its righteous
work.
INTO rE C0NrTNTIFnN