Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 127: what you’re looking at

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

THE LAUGHING RIDER. And Mr. Nicholas Tazewell paid up. Supernumerary Constable Flynn watched the transfer of money from Mr. Tazewell’s cash register to Billy’s ample pockets with an uneasy regard for the future. He was conscious that his prisoner still possessed his gun. Billy pocketed the roll. “Now come along,” urged Flynn. But Billy drew shyly back. ‘ Just a minute,” he said. “ Got to burn this up.” He turned from Flynn, opened the door of the stove, and bent: forward with the I. O. U. in his hand. As he bent over, Supernumerary Constable Flynn essayed at once to whisk Billy’s gun from its hol- ster and draw his own weapon. But Billy, bending to the fire, threw the paper into the flames without interrupting a skillfully executed swooping movement which swung him completely about and brought him up with Supernumerary Con- stable Flynn over his shoulder. Boy scouts call it the fireman’s carry, but that wholesome enthusiasm which boys are wont to put into their exercises was lacking on the part of Supernumerary Constable Flynn. : Billy’s spirit, however, did not lag. Using soap boxes as steps, he sprang with his burden to the counter and, leaping the breach, ran along the counter to the store window. He held Flynn’s body equally across his chest and back, and at least two men in the crowd who had drawn revolvers were thereby prevented from using them. As Billy ran the length of the counter the crowd moved for the door, but Billy ignored the door. Reaching the store win- dow, which was piled high with a display of merchandise, Billy stood Supernumer- ary Constable Flynn on his head in a po- tato barrel, tumbled the piled cans and boxes with.a crash to the floor in front of the surging crowd, shattered the window with a barrel of apples, and plunged after it to freedom. He stopped only long enough to overturn a heavy barrel across the doorway, and then sprinted for Concho, whose knowl- edge of his coming was overtaken by the feel of her master in the saddle. Pursuit was further delayed by the fact 8A : ~ - <—a-g—< > z - . — - fa ~~ oan 2 Sen, — - > —— va 9 tet = 2 a <2 - a FR a ee ~Z — at De a elie rn ee ee a w= a ee eS ge SF ae 2+ that the barrel which Billy had overturned’ was a barrel of molasses with the bung out, and they who first forced the door found themselves wading in the sticky sirup. When they had dusted off Constable Flynn and restored him to _ coherent thought Billy was not in Sleepy River. CHAPTER XXVI. TRAPPED, E have seen Annette Savardé ro- \y mantic; we have seen her baited by Staff Sergeant MacQuillan of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police, and pursued by an incensed cow; we have seen her enraged, and we have seen her as gentle before the fact of Billy’s admiration as any cooing dove. But we have not yet seen Annette in the true and tranquil light of her daily occu- pation. Therefore, to look upon her in the kitchen of her father’s homestead that Wednesday evening, deftly preparing the provender for another day on the heels — of the dinner that was gone, is to look upon the heroine of vivid drama trans- formed into as efficient a housewife as the range had ever known. What quality of housewife she was, in- deed, is to be proven by the fact that while she worked beside her mother, she added to a fleeting regret upon the dinner that was gone a hope that it would not be for- gotten. When a woman’s interest in the affairs of her table takes that subtle touch she is more to be valued than fine gold, because fine gold is no cure for indiges- tion. And yet this particular evening was not one which showed the girl in a wholly nor- mal light, for, since the night of her party, Annette had gone about her household af- fairs with something more than the vigor ous interest which pervades the work of the true craftsman. There had been a pensive light in her eyes, which would have sug- gested to the close observer that her mind was upon still other things. This peculi- arity of Annette’s eyes was perhaps best manifested when, on this very evening, she heard Billy’s voice in the next room. “comicbooks: (E(0)