The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1942-08-06


| way, catching slanting view of the
street-end. His horse, spooked by
/ the firing, had drifted away from
the hitching-rack into the farther
| shadows. Meanwhile he heard Her
endeen calling from the Yellow
Front saloon. "Get your horses off
the street. jim" One more bull
let struck the shelves. Kern Case
said, so smoothly outraged, I'll
have a little slice of this" and
walked back through the store. Roll
ing over to the opposite edge of the
doorway, near the counter, Morgan
heard Kern Cases fat weight groan
up at a back set of stairs and
across the second floor. From his
new position Morgan saw a Three
Pines hand lead four horses into an
alley. AT the moment there was no
firing; but, watching the Yellow
Front, Morgan caught a fiutter of
light on its windows and stared
steadily at it, not Immediately un-
derstanding the source of that flash.
Kern Case had reached an up
stairs window and now waited for
his chance. Somebody ran along
the back of the store and came
through rear door. Morgan rolled
against the base of the counter,
listening to those quick steps ad-
vance. He heard Hack Breathitt's S
voice murmur: "You there, Kern"
Morgan said: How you like our
little party, kid?"
"Clay? Whut the hell you doin'
here?"
Kern Case came down the stairs
with a fat mans slow haste. He
said: 1--WE got to get out of here,
Clay"
Sure" said Hack. "We depart
from hence, mighty damned hence" 4"
"Yeu all right, Clay?" said Case.
That drew Breathitt's interest.
''Why wouldn't he be all right"
Il tripped on rug" said Nor
gan. He followed Case and Breath
lit through the back quarters. The
three of them paused by the back
door while Case secuted the round
about shadows; afterwards they
drifted along the building line and
paused halfway between the street
and the down-bearing timber of the
hillside. Light began to brighten at
the other end of town; smoke-smell
drifted with the wind. Morgan saw
his horse in the shadows ahead OF
him and went over for it. When he
came back he heard Case say in
the same even tone:
"My dad built that store. l was
born in it-and all my brothers and
sisters. But she'll be nothin' but
ashes in two hours from now. There
lain't a single way to stop this whole
Gn from goin' up." He let out his
}. "Well, it was a good store.
h goin' back to get the rocker my
mother used"
Light broke the shadows. He saw
Hacks face set in its restless half
smile and realized his partner found
a malicious satisfaction in this
chase. That was Breathitt's way
He had a wild kink in him and he
was tough enough to run his luck out
to the bitter end. Hack murmured
Later, maybe"
Morgan said, "Get out of thi:
light If you bump into trouble, kid
you know where to come"
Hack raised his head. He said
'"That's whut you came down here
to say, wasn't it?" He was no long
er smiling. His face was in tn,
shadows, his voice was grave ans
troubled. II guess l have brough
hell of lot of trouble down OF
my friends. I'll remember it, Clay
If I don't see you again soon I wan
you to know" This was as far a.
he got. He shrugged his shoulders
only adding, "So-long."
Morgan turned up the trail, wind
ing with the steep grade until h,
had reached the last high point be
fore going into solid timber. From
this elevation he looked down on tn,
white-red tangle of high leapin,
flames. The roof and sides of tn,
hotel were eaten away and what h,
saw now was the inside skeleton o
the building penciled darkly agains
the sWirling fire. One wall of th,
store had caught. All the surround
ing gulch was day-bright and h,
made out Gale and Gales famil,
slowly crossing the head of tn,
gulch, toward the Potholes. Heren
deem, apparently, had gone Some o
the adjacent trees began to catch fire
ITO BE CONTINUED