The Argosy, March 27, 1920 — page 107: what you’re looking at

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

Wea e ee & THE TRAIL HORDE. 207 leaving the men to stand in the white gale that enveloped therm. The wind was now roaring steadily, and with such force that no man could have turned toward it with uncovered face. It came over the vast emptiness of the north- erm spaces with a fury that sent into one the consciousness that here was an element with which man could not cope. Lawler emerged from the dugout and closed the door behind him. He barred it, turned, and motioned the two men toward the cabin. He followed them as they opened the door and entered. Then, after closing the door and barring it, he lifted the peak of his cap, removed the scarf from his neck, glanced around the interior of the cabin, and looked coldly at the men, ‘“ Well,” he said; “ there’s a heap of ex- plaining to be done. You can begin now— one at a time!” CHAPTER XVII. THE INQUISITION. THE two men had walked to a point near the big fireplace that occupied the great- er part of one end of the cabin. The hat- less one, big, assertive, belligerent, prinned defiantly, saying nothing in answer to Law- ler’s words. The other man, slighter, and plainly ap- prehensive, glanced swiftly at his compan- jon; then lowered his eyes and gazed at the floor. “You skunks bunked here last night!” charged Lawler sharply. ‘‘ When I was here, yesterday, these bunks were made up. Look at them now! Talk fast. Were you here last night?” The smaller man nodded. “Why didn’t you cut the fence last night?” : The smaller man grinned, ‘“ We wasn’t aimin’ to get caught,” “Expected there’d be line riders here, eh?” The other did not answer. “Then, when you saw no one was here, . and that it was likely the norther would keep any one from coming, you cut the fence. ‘That’s it, eh?” 7 Arcosy The two men did not answer, regarding him sullenly, Lawler smiled. This time there was a cold mirth in his smile that caused the two men to look quickly at each other, They paled and scowled at what they saw in Lawler’s eyes. Half a dozen bunks ranged the side walls of the cabin, four on one side, two on the other, arranged in tiers, upper and lower, A rough, square table sat near the center of the room, with a low bench on one side of it and several low chairs on the other. A big chuck-box stood in a corner near the fireplace, its top half open, revealing the supplies with which the receptacle was filled; some shelves on the other side of the fireplace were piled high with canned goods and bulging packages. The bunks were filled with bed clothing ; and an oil-lamp stood on a triangular shelf in a corner near the door. The walls were bare with the ex- ception of some highly-colored lithographs that, evidently, had been placed there by some one in whom the love of art still flourished. Tt was cold in the cabin. A window in the north wall, with four small panes of glass in it, was slowly whitening with the frost that was stealing over it. In the cor- ners of the mullions were fine snow drifts; and through a small crevice in the roof a white spray filtered, ballooning around the room. During the silence which followed Law- ler’s words, and while the two fence-cutters watched each other and Lawler, all caught the voice of the storm, raging, furious, in- cessant. With his free hand Lawler unbuttoned his coat, tossed his cap into a bunk, and ran a hand through his hair, shoving it back from his forehead. His movements were deliberate. It was as though catching fence cutters was an occupation of every-day oc- currence. Yet, something in his eyes—the thing the two men had seen—gave the lie to the atmosphere of deliberate ease that radiated from him. In his eyes was something that warned, that hinted of passion. As the men watched him, noting his mus- cular neck and shoulders; the slim waist of conniclooolks.cotin