Adventure, August 3, 1919 — page 46: what you’re looking at

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

36 drumming that could mean but one thing “Horses!” he gasped. “They're re ee through the pass! Hear it?” his wife out of her slumbers. . “peas that?” She came to consciousness slowly. “T hear something,” she said at last. “Tt sounds like animals running.” She stayed quiet for a time. “They're com- ing, not going!” Carlton sprang out of bed. ‘Maybe Finch is up to something!” he surmised. “They're coming!” she reiterated. “Wait! [ heard a metallic sound. They’re going past the lane. I wonder what time it is.”’ Carlton lit a match and peered into the clock. ‘Three in the morning,” he announced. He went to the window and looked out, seeing nothing but the cold stars and the old copper mountain whose black silhouette loomed high above. And still the eery drumming continued. Carlton at length thought he could almost hear the creak of saddle-leather, He grasped his trousers and boots and pulled them on. He picked up his Winchester and got ready to start down-stairs, but, while he was organizing, the noise of the spectral cavalcade grew fainter and fainter until only the sound of the cricket could be heard, seeming to chuckle over the mystery. “It seems to be over,” announced the wife. ‘They didn’t stop here. They went up the valley. Better get back to bed. I guess it won’t affect us.” “I’m not so sure!’ responded Carlton. ‘“There’s something fishy here. It sounded like a troop of cavalry—and Dolan’s in this house. I wonder if they’re after him, Great Scott, it may be the sheriff with a posse, putting up at Finch’s for the night!” Carlton grabbed all his clothes off a chair and began to move as if he were through with. sleeping. “What are you going to do?” she asked at length. “Why, I’m going to look into this thing! There’s some monkey-business going on and BS to his ears from far across the upper fields. He ran to the window, but- toning his shirt. There was a quick flash from the brush near Finch’s house—then THE muffled crack of a shot came Adventure aroties oey oll ike muasketiy ieee reports to € was a faint, stifled yell—then a fusillade that sounded like fire-crackers. A pin-point of steady flame arose from a dark blotch that stood where a Finch barn ought to be. It grew g bit. Then a lurid yellow glare sprang up from the place as if all the hay had caught fire at ence. Horses started stampeding in the distant fields, thundering their hoofs as they milled around inside their fences. The glare swung high, illuminating the sides of the tumble-down houses and barns, Carlton jumped down-stairs two steps at a time, holding the Winchester. He rushed upon the tenantless di -room, where the hearth-embers were glow- ing and a lighted lamp stood upon the red table-cloth. He looked out of the door. One of the hired men was standing outside the threshold, smoking a corn-cob and Jooking across the field. “Hello!” he ejaculated. “You up? Looks as if there’s trouble over there?” “Where’s Dolan?” demanded the engi- neer. “Him? Oh, mebbe he’s asleep. He sleeps sound, Dolan does. No use to go after him. Let him sleep.” Carlton grunted assent and walked for- ward, swinging open his yard gate and making for the oak groves on the upper part of his ranch. He was filled with curiosity. It was a riot, nothing less. A riot in his valley! What did it mean?” He walked past the dark willows of the creek and neared his boundary, where the half-built irrigation ditch lay. The shots were keeping up, some singly and some in gusts, and, as he went nearer, he could see the silhouettes of men dodging about xu the light of the crackling fire. He came to the ditch and nearly fell in. He started walking along it cautiously. A horse whickered from an oak grove to the left. He turned and approached it and finally discerned the dark forms of horses massed under a tree. He put out his hand and patted a soft muzzle, noting the bridle. A cry came tohis ears. He sensed that.a form was staggering across the ditch and approaching the horses. He held his nfle ready and walked toward the man warily. The man’s breath seemed to be sucking in like a broken-down pump, but even in his pain he noticed the engineer. comicbooks.com —