The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1935-06-07


another reason that you haven't given
met?
Lee Bishop hesitated for long
time. NO. he said at last.
"Lee," said Kentucky, "if Jean
doesn't want her father to scrap 1t out
with Elliot, what do you suppose her
reason ISL"
slow do I know what her reason
is?" said Lee Bishop explosively. 'How
does any man know what any woman's
reason is? Maybe the trouble we've
had here already has made her
sick of guns, and she's afraid that IL
we stand our ground there'll be more
Of these here empty saddles come in
under the bellies Of horses"
slave you talked to her, Lee?"
Lee grunted a negative, and hest
tated again, cropping for words. "Look
here!" he burst out at last. "Look
here! You've got to talk to herl"
"MeT
"There's nobody around here she'll
pay any attention to but you. Some
way she's got blind on the old mans
eyes and she's keeping him snubbed
down helpless. Kentucky, tell you,"
Lee Bishop declared savagely, "if we
make our stand against Elliot now, it
may be we can turn him, and get out
of it cheap. But the farther this thing
goes the harder 1t will be for him to
draw back. If this thing goes too far
there will be no way but to fight 1t
at deadlock until one or the other is
smashed. You've got to talk to that
grill"
"What makes you think can do any
thing with her, Lee?"
Lee Bishop CROPPED for some way to
express thing that he sensed, but
could not prove. "She follows you
with her eyes," he said at last. "What-
ever you do, If you aren't looking, she
follows you with her eyes,"
"Horsefeathers said Kentucky.
"Maybe; but you got to do what I
say anyway" said Bishop stubbornly.
"What chance we got here, the way
things stand now? You got to talk to
that grip
"You think" said Kentucky, there's
anything about the COW situation 1 can
tell her that she don't known"
"You got to get her to pull out Of
here until this thing is over. You got
to get her out of here and leave this
thing to her old man to work out in
his own way"
II see swell chance to get popu-
lar, with that" said Kentucky. "Ex-
cuse me, ma'am, kindly ma'am, would
you just as leave get the hi out of
the state?"
you'll talk to herr"
NO." said Kentucky. "Do you think
I'm a d-n fool?"
Eyes," said Bishop.
Kentucky fingered at the corrals,
however, after Lee Bishop had ridden
Waterman road; and presently, as he
had more than half expected, Jean
Ragland came out.
II want to ask you about couple
Of things" she said.
II was kind of looking for you to-"
he admitted.
Jean Ragland said, "You have the
thing gave your"
He regarded her gravely. "That bull
let2" He told her what he had done
with it. IT don't know that 1t did any
good to get hold of 1t, though"
She stared at him a moment. "Do
you think-do you think" She
stopped.
II don't know for sure" he said;
"but I'll gamble you that the sheriff
has the other bullet"
The back of her gloved fingers went
to her mouth, but her face was calm,
and she was not afraid to meet his
eyes. "What other bullet?"
"It's possible I'm wrong. But I tell
you for what it's worth; I'll bet my
last cent that that bullet has a twin;
and that the sheriff has it."
But what makes you think there
were two?"
"Well-he was cussing because the
bullet had got away from him; and he
said that taking it wouldn't help any.
body, because even If they needed it
| they had the-and there he stopped.
So asked him If he meant they had
| another slug. It kind Of made him
mad, and we had little dispute. But
| finally he said that they had taken
cast Of the bullet. Now, took that
last to be lie."
jeans face was troubled. "Why"
she asked sharply.
"The sheriff offered me a job" he
said. He told her about what Hopper
had wanted him to do concerning the
Bar Hook man who had not been where
he had said he was when Mason died.
at doesn't amount to anything" she
said. 1T was just rider here-that
quarter-blood Indian, Joe st. Marie.
I'm certain he-doesn't know anything
about It."
Kentucky Jones now knew st. Marie
as one of the two cowboys who had
come in during the night, blunt-faced.
competent rider.
"St Marie is the best bronze rider
we've ever had here" Jean said. "But
| L oIxx Ioh hA