Adventure, August 3, 1919 — page 20: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

the fading sunlight weave its red brocades over the copper mountain. “Neither can I.” “And yet,” she hesitated, “‘it’s glorious.” She sniffed the cooling October air, scented from the pines and the dry grass ope so near-by rose-bushes. ‘Finch offered eight hundred dollars for the land,” she con- eluded paradoxically. “Then he offered a little more.” “Te cost us eight thousand,” he stated. “Would you like to give it up?” “No, And yet—can we stay?” He took the pipe from his mouth and seemed to be watching a humming-bird as it studied a new honeysuckle vine. “Mabe not,” he admitted. “If it wasn’t for the confounded mysteries, maybe we could. Who’s been poisoning those horses?” ‘ “Perhaps they were not poisoned at all.” “They were! I’ve seen the dead ani- mals.” “Well, then they were;”’ she sighed. “TI give it up. What can we do about it?” “T’ve got a plan. I’ve been thinking-it over. We'll go to town for a while. Tl come and farm the place at odd times and hire a few huskies to relieve me in guarding it.’ The engineer was really contemplating an offensive war, but of this he said nothing. “Tn that way,” he explained, “we can run the ranch and get away from this mystery.” “For how long? Have we money enough?” “Tguessso. MaybelI can doa little land- Surveying outside. Anyhow, the change will do us good. How about it?” “But how can we leave with Finch watching us?” “That's easy. We'll get-things packed quietly and wait till he starts out some morning for supplies. He'll leave Abe Bilger, that half-witted hired man of his, to guard the place. We'll let. him get well started, and then we'll follow on.” They discussed it all evening, measuring things from every angle, but they had decided beforehand. They had come to realize that their single-handed battle was a little too much for them at present. They needed a respite, Thus it happened that next day the wife got things in order, and then they awaited the of Finch. Black had disappeared from the | scene and almost from their minds. Two weeks later Finch went by with fron rhomietice He saw the glin Carlton's ready gun and kept at a respectful _€ngineer cautiously mounted the ridge to make sure it was not some ruse, but Finch kept on, past cliffs and foot-hills, till at length his dust faded in the far white dis- tance of the alkaline plains. Then Carlton descended to his home. “It’s after nine o'clock,” he announced. “Let’s hurry.” They took two saddle-horses and a pack- mule, loading them carefully. They did not want their departure to appear per- manent. Then, with everything ready, they trotted down the little lane and toward the pass that led out of their valley of dreams. Once, at the gap, they halted for a mo- ment, and the wife looked back, wondering if it were for the last time. The gentle October sunlight glorified fields, pine- groves, oaks and willows, and the cool breeze brought the gracious scent of pine to their nostrils, while the old copper moun- tain gave them benediction from above. A meadow-lark sang them a little song. A bee hummed by. The girl’s eyes moistened from a queer homesickness, but she turned her horse resolutely and started onward. Il ™ THEY arrived at the settlement cattlemen or prospectors on the way. Carlton took his wife to the ramshackle hotel for the time and then swung past the seven saloons of the “street” to where the porch of Dolan’s dance-hall and general merchandise store jutted into a turn of the road. A pianist was practising for the evening’s noise, and the quavery banging floated out of many windows, past the dozen loungers © squatted on the wide porch or leaning against hitching-posts as they performed their evening task of watching the darkness arrive. Inside another dozen was gathered about the bar near the wide door. Dolan’s heavy bass voice floated out, giving direc- tions about trimming the lamps. When ae toa dropped a rag and grabbed his “Well!” he roared. “You still om ear ~~ €omicbooks.co before dusk, meeting only a few | m