The Argosy, Volume XLIV — page 114: what you’re looking at

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

110 She had thrown her arms about the manager, and was holding him upright. “If he falls,” returned her father, “if his wound comes in contact with the solution, nothing can save him. We must get him out at once.” Setting his lantern on the planks, Gonzales lowered himself into the pool of liquid death, and his daughter and himself between them succeeded in lifting the manager to the plank gang- way overhead. The injured man was far spent and could do nothing to help himself, and all in all the work of rescue was as grave as it well could be. But it was accomplished at last, the coat and blood-stained shirt were stripped away, and the rebosa tied over the wound. “Go for the Senorita Travis, Teresa,” said Gonzales; “she must know of this.” “No,” struck in Whipple, rousing Limself with an effort, “ it 13 not neces- sary to tell Miss ‘Travis anything. Help me to your home, Gonzales; I have im- portant work for Pablo.” “But you cannot walk, senor!” de- murred the watchman. “ Yes, I can,” answered Whipple with something of the old determination, “with you and Teresa to help.” Slowly and painfully he rose to his feet, and, leaning upon the girl and her father, made his way along the plank and down the incline. Then by easy stages they ascended the hill and reached the house. In ten minutes one of the Mexicans was galloping up the pipe-line after Gualterio, and half an hour later Pablo was racing for Cache d’Oro to summon the sheriff. CHAPTER XVI. A SISTER’S SORROW. MANY times in the course of an ad- venturous career had Whipple been near to death, but never so near as on this Saturday night. He had been forewarned, and had planned to take his enemies at a disad- vantage by striking first. His conver- sation with Amy, however, had caused him to yield this point. He had taken steps to insure the THE ARGOSY. safety of the bullion, and had willingly faced the peril he knew was to come— because Amy had demanded a little more time in which to convince him of her brother’s innocence. Why had he been weak enough to change his course? He looked into his heart, and the answer he saw there ap- palled him. He sympathized with Amy, but sym- pathy alone could not have swerved him. <A deeper feeling had taken root in his soul, and he shuddered to think what might come of it. He had saved the gold; of that he was positive even before he had caused an investigation to be made. But that was only part of his trust, and to the other part he had been false. What had happened was only what he might have expected. By a combina- tion of circumstances his life had been spared, but the three men whom it was his duty to capture had been allowed to effect their escape. Stil, he had no fault to find with Awy ; all the blame he took upon him- self, Gualterio came, pronounced the knife-wound serious but not likely to be fatal, dressed it, and went away. Thereupon Whipple had his thoughts to himself, and after he had reflected for a space he fell asleep, opening his eyes in the broad hght of day with the sheriff at his bedside. His first act after picking up the chain of events where he had dropped it was eminently characteristic of him: he asked the sheriff to open the satchel at the foot of his bed and take out a packet of rice-paper and bag of tobac- co. As he could not use his right hand, Christopher rolled the cigarette for him. “If I had come yesterday afternoon,” said the sheriff, after hearing as much of the affair as Whipple chose to tell him, “this would not have happened.” “Certainly it would not,” answered the manager. “Why did you send me word not to come until Monday? ” “That’s a point we need not discuss. You have a description of the three men wanted, and the thing now is to _find them.” GORMIGOOO (COL