Hyder weekly herald., 1934-02-17
Digging His Own
 Grave
By R. T. M. SCOTT
@. by Mcclure Newspaper syndicate.
 WNu Service

idlT. oiHlln uSuhiiy louSht "''H ms mind while he allowed his lanky lazy body to assume the most com. Portable posture possible but. when Bull Dandy footed Los Angeles bank, Smith found himself so close to death that he had to fight with everything that was in him. Smith knew Danby but had always failed to pin any thing on him and Danby was con- vnced that Smith should be killed be- fore he became successful.
 Danby made the mistake of letting himself be recognized before he es- capped in his high-powered car with the banks money. Fifty miles from the city. on a lonely mountain road the bandits car broke down. The police found 1t and were certain that Danby and his one companion had struck into the mountains on foot. The sheriff was organizing several posses when Aurelius Smith. in the pay of the footed bank. decided to look over the ground alone and in advance.
 Near the deserted car was an old and precarious trail which ascended the mountain along the side of deep valley. Smith, his long legs dangling from the back of a small burrO, turned into this trail and began to ascend. The narrow and dangerous path wound tortuously and rose sharply. On one side the high mountain rose steepiy and on the other side the deep valley dropped precipitously.
 He had been riding for several hours when his burro halted suddenly. On the. path ahead large rattlesnake was coiled with raised head. Evi- dently it was temporarily blinded by the summer heat. Smith took spare cartridge from his pocket and tossed it at the snake which struck yiciously at nothing and glded under small bush. At the same instant a rock crashed down the mountainside and struck the trail few feet behind the burro. The animal dashed ahead but Smith kept his seat and pulled his mount to halt at a spot where the trail broadened sufficiently to make d turn.
 Glancing upward he saw nothing but jutting rocks and steeply rising slopes. He bent forward slightly. ready to kick his heels into the bur ro's Hanks. As he did so there was a flash and sharp report from above. The burro started violently and Smith fell, limp and inert shape upon the narrow trail.
 There was silence and then a man rose from behind a boulder on the mountainside and looked down. AS he did so an arm from the figure on the trail shot upward and there was a roar from a forty-fve. The man dropped behind the boulder and the next second the lanky Smith was claw ing his way up the steep slope.
 Behind the rock, which had con cealed his assaiant. he found his man lying face downward, beside some can vas bags and shovel. Pistol in hand he stopped to feel the heart of the prostrate man.
 Put 'em up,"
 Bull Danby rose from rock twen ty feet higher up the slope-gun in hand. Smith dropped his pistol and raised his hands while the man on the ground rolled over and stood up after securing Smiths pistol. Certainly Smith was caught. He stood quite still, his face eXpressionless.
 Danby insolently confronted his cap. tive. After staring gloatingly for a few seconds he spat full in Smiths face Desperate as he was Smith did not forget the value of keeping his temper. He smiled.
 That smile infuriated Bull Danby. He kicked the shovel toward Smith and told him to dig the hole bigger and at least six feet long.
 wen bury you with the money from the bank" Danby snarlcd, "and you can guard it until we come back. Now get to work v
 It was to be his grave. He lowered his hands, shrugged his shoulders and picked up the shovel while Bull Dan