Argosy All-Story Weekly, April 28, 1928 — page 30: what you’re looking at

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

Or ae earnestly. “There are circumstances that you don’t understand and which I haven't time to explain now. You must hide me somewhere quick. You see, my guardian and his nephew are liable to arrive here any minute, and if they catch me [| won’t be able to escape again, but will be made an unwilling and unhappy prisoner for the rest of my life. Oh, please, please believe me, and help me!” She spoke with such evident sincer- ity that I was convinced on the spot that she was either a rotten liar or a peach of an actress, or both. She sounded honest enough, but still I hated like the devil to swallow that yarn. “How do you know they’re chasing you?” I asked her. “TI saw them at Caxton Junction. I arrived there last night about ten oclock from the north, and was obliged to wait four hours for the westbound train on this line. When it came in I got right on and had just nicely seated myself, when the later train from the north, that connects with the westbound, pulled in right be- side me, and I saw my guardian and his nephew get off. “} made a quick run for the door and jumped off on the side opposite from where they were, and crouched down close to the car. My guardian wore striped trousers, and from under the car I could see those striped legs running up and down the platform, followed by another pair, evidently be- longing to his nephew, hunting for poor _ hittle me. “T saw them get aboard the train at one end and get off again at the other. Then the train pulled out, and I jumped on again, crouching low on the steps until we were well away from the depot before returning to my seat. ‘All this took but a minute or two. I don’t doubt but that they have made inquiries around the depot at Caxton Junction, and as | had to wait there for hours and bought a ticket and must ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. have been observed by a number of people, | know they must have learned by now that I got away on that train. They’ve no doubt wired ahead to the conductor and learned that I got off here, and they are liable to arrive any minute. Won’t you please hide me somewhere?” I could see by now that the girl was plumb desperate. Caxton Junction was the first station east of us and twelve miles away, and it would not take long to cover that distance. May- be this wasva fairy tale she was telling me, and maybe it was the truth. I could not prove it one way or the other just then. There seemed to be a reasonable doubt either way. It’s never been said that Rawhide Billings deserted a lady in actual distress, and, acting on in- stinct, I decided to help her. “ All right, ma’am, I’ll do what I can,’ I told her. “I’m hanged if I know where I’m going to hide you. Personally I ain’t got no more home than a jack rabbit.” “Oh, you must think of some place!” she cried, wringing her hands and starting to squall. ‘ I—I—l’d rather wed a nice, big, handsome cow- boy, like you, and live out here in the great open spaces, than go back to St. Louis.” “You mean, you'd marry me?” I asks, astonished. “Oh, I'd just love to!” she gasped eagerly. “I know I could be happy with a big, honest man like you. We'd buy the biggest ranch in the whole West and build a castle on it, and have lots and lots of cows and horses and everything! Wull—will you do it?” Wow! That was a mouthful, wasn’t it? And she was not a bad looking dame, at that, with her golden locks and slim ankles and boyish figure. What couldn’t a poor rannie like me do with twenty million bones? I fair turned dizzy thinking about it. Biggest ranch in the whole Southwest,, stocked with imported English shorthorns! Maybe this was a fairy tale—it was COPMICLOOokKs (C@