The Coolidge examiner., 1931-10-02
CHAPTER Vll-Cont;nued.

Thursday But that's the day
the paper comes out"
well. the Wigwam amt been so
regular since you been away" She
allowed that to pass without COM
ment. up in the hills he STUN
bles on Doctor Valiant. drunk, but
not so drunk he don't recognize
Yancey. Well. he tells Yancey,
drunk as he is. that he's right in
the camp where the Kid and his
gang is hiding out. One of them
was hurt bad in that last Santa Fe
hOld-up at CimarrOn. Like to died.
only they sent for doc. and he came
and saved him. They got close to
thirty thousand that trick, and 1t
kind of went to their heads. Val
liant overheard them planning to
ride in here to Usage, like today,
and hold up the Citizens National
In broad daylight like the Kid al
ways does. They was already
started. Well, Yancey off on his
horse to warn the town, and knows
he's got to detour or he'll come on
the gang and they'll smell a rat.
Well. say. he actually did meet 'em.
Came on 'em, accidental. The Kid
sees him and grins that wolf grin
of his and sings out, Yancey. you
still runnin that paper of yourn
down at OsageY Yancey says,
Yes We'll. say he says. how
much is itT Yancey says dollar
a year. The Kid reaches down and
throws Yancey a shot sack with ten
silver dollars in it. Send me the
paper for ten years, he says. Where
toT Yancey asks him. Well, say, the
Kid laughs that wolf. laugh of his
again and he says, I never thought
of that. I'll have to leave you
know later Well, Yancey, looking
as meek and mealy-mouthed as
baby, he rides his way. he's got
little book of poems In his hand
and he's reading as he rides, or
pretending to. but first chance he
sees he cuts across the hills, puts
his horse through the gullies and
into the draws and across the scrub
oaks like he was circus horse or
a centipede or something. He gets
into Usage. dead tired and his horse
In lather. ten minutes before the
Kid and his gang sweeps down
PawhuSka avenue, their six-shoot-
ers barking like regiment was
coming. and makes a rush for the
bank But the town is expecting
them. Say! BloOdw
Sabra waited for no more. She
turned. And as she turned she saw
coming down the road in cloud
of dust a grotesque scarecrow, all
shanks and teeth and rolling eyes.
Black Isaiah.
Nom, Miss Sabra, he amt hurt
NOT what yo' rightly call hurt.
No. ma'am. Jes' a nip I'm de arm,
and he got 1t slung in a black silk
hand'chief and looks right sma't
handsome. They wouldn't let him
along noways. Ev'ybody in town
they shakin' his hand Gaze he shoot
the shot dat kill de Kid. An you
know what he do then. Miss
Sabra? He kneel down a. he cry
like baby. Le' me tote ris
yere valise. All kin tote Mis- Don
ma, too. My. she sho' growed!"
The newspaper office, the print
shop, her parlor, her kitchen, her
bedroom, were packed with men in
boots, spurs. sombreros; men in
overalls; women with children.
Mrs. Wyatt was there-the Philo-
matheans as one woman were
there; Dixie Lee, actually; every
one observation-disclosures Hefner
swell. Mis- Cravat, | guess you
must be pretty proud of him! .
You missed the shOotin'. Mis- Cra-
vat, but you're in time to help Yam
cey celebrate. Say. the San
ia Fe alone offered five thousand
dollars fol the capture of the Kid,
dead or alive. Yancey gets it, all
right. And the Katy done the same.
And they's government price on
his head. and the Citizens Nation
al is making up a purse. You'll be
ridin' In your carriage. settin' in
silks, from now"
Yancey was standing at his desk
Ii the Wigwam office. He looked
up as she came in, and at the look
In his face she forgave him his neg
lect of her; fOrgave him the house
full of what Felice Venable would
term riffraff and worse; his faith
lessneSs to the Wigwam. Donna,
tired and frightened, had set up a
wall. Gin, bewildered, had gone on
a rampage But as Yancey took a
stumbling step toward her she had
only one child. and that one need
ed her. She thrust Donna again
Into Isaiah's arms; left Cim whirl-