The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1935-05-31

| nouce, out might easily be set back &c
their beginnings If MasCns death
should cause the bank to close its
doors; and many others.
Lee Bishop, the blocky, almost burly
witness chair, very red in the face
from public speaking and the heat
Bishop was only telling what he knew
about happening which every one had
already accepted as an accident, ire
mediable, over with; but his nervous
phrases fell upon the thick silence OF
complete attention.
~ was going out to the pump house
carrying couple of pals of hot water
from the Kitchen" he was saying. 81
aimed to thaw out the pump. Then
seen this hump in the snow-thought
maybe a calf had drlfted in and fell
down. went over and looked; and II
was Old Ironsides-I mean, John Ma.
son."
"How long did you think he had been
dead?"
"He wasn't lying there around one
| SlOSht "hCh VIC lCLl IhC uoLlC hohSi'
And there wasn't any snow under him.
1t begun showing around two o'clock,
| out there"
"Then you figure Mason had this ac-
cident between one and two o'clock?"
"That amt what l said. only said
there wasn't no snow under him."
Sheriff Floyd Hopper exhibited an
noyance Lets not bubble over words
What we want is to get done, here"
"Well," Lee Bishop went on with an
| unnecessary air of stubbornness, II
| turned him over, and saw that he'd
been shot. His gun was in his hand
| that long-barreled As he always car
| ried to take pop at coyote with, If
! he should see coyote"
rs this the gun?' said the sheriff's
brother, turning toward cluttered
| window ledge at one side. A deputy
handed the coroner the required wea-
| pom. Bishop identified it. "Well," he
went On, 81 sent up long yell but no.
body answered; and l took out and
run for the house. :"
Kentucky Jones had been searching
all the room for sight of Jean Rag
| land, and now he was surprised to dis
cover her so near the focus of interest
| that he had missed her by searching
| too far away. She was sitting beside
her father, the big stoop-shouldered
| owner of the Bar Hook. The two sat
| almost under the window ledge where
| a deputy kept his eye upon a muddled
| collection of exhibits.
He noticed instantly how pale she
seemed. so that her hair looked dark
er than usual against her face. Had
she been stranger his glance might
have passed her unnoticing, so little of
her usual vividness was apparent Then
a deputy shifted his position, blocking
her profile from Kentucky's view.
The sheriff was bombarding Lee
Bishop with questions of little point.
'Is that cutoff trail between the SS
and the Bar Hook often used?"
Almighty little!" 1t was the first
emphasis Bishop had used.
Kentuckys eyes sought Jean Rag
land again. Suddenly he perceived that
she had leaned back so that she could
peer between the standing deputies and
was looking directly at him. He smiled
at her but her face did not change.
Then suddenly he was aware that
she had signaled to him, secretly beck
oned him to draw nearer. 1t had been
the faintest narrowing Of an eye, the
eli oh In nf ba~
he knew absolutely, as she again avert
ed her face. that signal had been
conveyed.
Deeply puzzled, he began to work
his way along the side of the hall. The
sheriff, he noticed, was perspiringly
pushing ahead with his questions, evil
IDENTIFY very conscious of his far-gath-
cred audience. The sheriff's brother,
the coroner. was nudging him, but he
was barging ahead, as Kentucky Jones
presently reached point not more than
three yards from Jean Ragland. He
was still separated from her by the
thicker press of men which had been
forced back from around the coroner's
| table; but here he stuck.
He was trying to catch Jean Rag
| lands eye as sound of scuffling and
| contention broke forth in the back of
| the room. The sheriff glared, faltered
| and stopped. A tall deputy left Jean
Ragland's side to go pushing back
through the crowd.
Watching the disturbance at the
back, Kentucky did not see that Jean
Ragland had left her chair until she
stumbled almost against him. Her
| handkerchief was at her mouth, and
she seemed even paler than before, as
If turned suddenly faint by tn, stifle
of the close air. Campo Ragland, hel
father, sprang up and was beside hel
in a stride, supporting her in his arms
For a moment the press Of the crowd
was too much and they cou'' not gel
through. Her shoulder pressed hare
against Kentucky, but although be
| spoke to her by name she did not ap
| pear to hear.
Then unexpectedly, In the smother Of
the crowd, her fingers closed upon hi:
in quick. hard grip. She had pressed
small heavy object into his hand.
Turning 1t over In the pocket of hi!
coat, Kentucky Jones discovered witt
queer slow stir of the blood tha
the thing she had left in his hant
could be nothing else but used bull
let He knew at once that this wal
the slug which had killed a man.
Campo Ragland said through hi
teeth. "Will you let us out, or not?
and the standing cattlemen fattenet
against the wall to let Campo and hi
daughter by. Kentucky Jones lost sigh