The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1937-12-02

Marian doesn't know thing in the
world about this. But the first thing
that come to me was something I
remembered that she said. You re-
member after"
"Stop," said Old Man Coffee.
So sharply had the old man COM
manded him that Wheeler at first
thought Coffee was listening to some
distant sound. whats the mat
teri"
"I've heard enough"
"Then," said Billy Wheeler, "you
know the answer too?"
"I've kind of suspected it these
many days. / didn't know for sure
until today"
do you think anyone else
knows?"
"Son, I'm virtually certain that
no one in the world knows but you
and me-"
"You must have come at it diff
ferently than l did, Coffee"
Different than you," Coffee
agreed. "God knows how you come
at it. / don't want to know. In a
minute now I'm going to say no
more. But nobody else in the Red
Rock could have found it out ex-
cept maybe Cayuse Cayetano-and
he's dead"
They sat silent for little time.
whats the next mover" Wheeler
presently asked.
"Until you spoke" Coffee said,
81 knew what my next move was
going to be. My next move was 60
ing to be out. But now that you've
come onto the right trail, / guess
maybe it's kind of up to me to stand
by a little while, until / see what
you do"
Something in Old Man Coffee's
voice bothered Wheeler. "You mean
we're not working together, them"
Seems like we might not be,
son. I'm an old man; and / long
ago learned that sometimes it's a
good idee to leave sleeping dogs
lie"
"You mean, you'd have been will
ing to pull out of this case and
leave it unsolved forever"
Old Man Coffee drew half dozen
slow puffs on his pipe before he
answered "The first murder case
l worked on" he said at last, twas
a long time ago. Sometimes I think
that one first case was the misfor-
tune of my life. Because it gave
me a kind of a reputation in a
small way, so that ever since then
I've been called in on such, from
time to time, over and over again.
Man hunting isn't a pretty job, Bill
ly, nor anything man would care
to turn his hand to more than once,
if he could get out of it. But I've
always worked hard and honestly on
my case where once set my hand.
And now that I'm old I figure to
keep one right to myself-the right
to keep my mouth shut if / can't see
where clearing up mysteay will
serve no proper end.
"Take this case, here. DO you
think that solving this crime can
possibly come under the head of
helping any living person. or pre-
serving the peace? You know bet
ter than that. You know well as
/ do that the minute the answer is
made known the guns will crack out,
and good boys that's got nothing to
do with either side will be throwing
lead into each others CUTS"
"You think Horse Dunn will take
to the guns?"
"Of course he'll take to the guns!
You know him well enough to know
that. The guns will be talking be-
fore ever the thing is proved"
''The proof ought to be easy
enough"
81 got no doubt of that. 1 see at
least one way of proof and maybe
you see more. But what Pm tell
ing you is this, son-think what
you're doing before you raise this
lid. Don't raise it unless you think
you'd rather see what will come of
it, in place of what we already got"
The moon was gone, and they sat
in the chill blackness before dawn;
but it seemed to Wheeler that the
night was no darker than his mood.
81 thought of all that" he said. 81
thought of all that the moment it
come to me. And first off, thought
like you. But now-I'm not so sure.
Sometimes it seems like there's
something unsound at the bottom of
any plan that calls for just hiding
our heads"
''Then I'll give you your answer"
said Old Man Coffee abruptly. "I'u
give you the whole thing, once and
for all, in four words. Think of the
girl"
He took couple of drags on his
pipe. Forget Horse Dunn, and the
cattle, and the money, and the
range Forget even the good fight
ing boys, here on the 94-Tulare
and Steve Hurley and Val Douglas
they'll fight while they can hold up
their guns. And Gil Baker, he'll be
in it if he has to drag a broken leg
into the street. But forget all them.
And think what this here head-on
smash between the "a and all of the
rest of the range is going to mean
to the girl"
Wheeler sat silent for long time.
At last, needing to be alone, he got
up and walked off into the dark,
leaving Old Man Coffee with the
darkness and his pipe. He went
out and he sat on the corrals, and he
was thinking about Horse Dunn and
the COW kingdom of the "a; but most
ly he was thinking about the girl
who had at last taken him into her
heart, now at the end. He could
never think about anything any more
except in terms of its effect upon her.
He had an hour to come to his
decision there before the first pale,
reddish light of the dawn showed at
%ba oJoa of fho u,or1I. opd IL uoo