The Oklahoma Ledger. (Sterling, Okla.), Vol. 11, No. 17, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 6, 1916 Page: 2 of 8
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THE STERLING LEDGER
5haPEDIH5T
A TALE OF CML STRIFE tt
r RANDALL PARPISH Tf
xUSTPATIONS &-C.D RHODES
I COPYR/CHT
[A C./tf CLl/#G tt CO. I
SYNOPSIS.
Confederate Sergeant Wyatt Is sent
as a t.p;' <o his native county on the
Green Briar. He meets a mountaineer
named Jem Taylor. At a house beyond Hot
Springs they meet Major Harwood. Wyatt
Is sent to bed. He becomes suspicious,
and finds that Taylor lias murdered Har-
wood and escaped. Wyatt changes to U.
S. uniform, and to a detachment of Fed-
eral cavalry identifies himself as Lieu-
tenant Raymond. Third U. S. cavalry.
Captain Fox finds Hurwood's body. The
detachment Is ambushed. Wyatt escapes
to the Green Hrlar country and goes to
Harwood's home, where lie finds Noreen
Harwood. He Introduces himself as Lieu-
tenant Raymond. Parson Nichols comes
to the house and tells Noreen of her fa-
ther's death. Wyatt forces Parson Nich-
ols '0 confess that he has been sent In
advance of Anse Cowan, who proposes to
marry Noreen at once, and so quiet title
to the land In dispute between the Cow-
ans and Norecn's dead father. Anse Cow-
an and his KanK arrive and find tho
preacher hound in a closet. Wyatt and
Noreen have concealed themselves in the
attic.
CHAPTER X—Continued
I was obliged to loosen it by the In-
sertion of my knife blade, yet the
clamp yielded with but little noise,
and I peered eagerly down the open-
ing. There was a lamp burning in the
lower hall, the reflection sufficiently
bright to reveal the general situation.
No men were visible, nor did 1 he&r
any voices In conversation. One thing
was certain—the upper hall was com-
pletely deserted, for I could see along
Its entire length. I lifted my head, and
glanced back to where the girl re-
mained silent, and motionless. My
*yes, long accustomed to the darkness,
could distinguish her outlines, even
the dim contour of her face. She sat
upright on the rough flooring, appar-
ently regarding me intently.
"Do you find the way left clear?"
"So far as the upper hall Is con-
cerned—yes. There Is a light burn-
ing below, although I can perceive no
movement. They may be In the dining
room, but 1 do not believe they will
searcl" up here again."
"No?" The slight rising inflection
Btung me. What did her action mean?
Why should she so suddenly assume
that tone with me? The sooner 1 knew
the better.
"I beg your pardon, Miss Harwood,"
I said quietly, "but I fall to understand
why you should speak to me In this
manner. You ha.'e shown confidence,
trust, In my former efforts to serve
you, and I am just as eager now to be
of service."
"You mean you wish me to have
complete confidence in you?"
"Certainly. 1 can do nothing other-
wise."
There was an instant of lence, in
which her breathing was plainly audi-
ble. Beneath the shadow of an uplift-
ed hand 1 felt that her eyes were upon
my face.
"Very well, then," she said finally,
her voice more expressive of Interest.
"It is surely no more than natural that
I should desire to know whom I have
the honor of talking with."
"But do you not know?"
"No," firmly and decisively. "You
heard what those men said—yet you
go on pretending to me. You are the
officer they referred to, are you not?"
"Yes; I escaped when Fox's com-
mand was attacked."
"You were an officer In Capta,lri
Fox's troop?"
"No; I Joined him by accident at
Hot Springs."
"Under what name?"
The utter uselessness of attempting
to lie was apparent. Her questions
were too direct, too straightforward,
for any further evasion. The slightest
quibbling now would cost me her
friendship forever. If I hesitated. It
was scarcely noticeable.
"Under the name," 1 replied quietly,
"of Charles H. Raymond, lieutenant
Third U. S. cavalry, on recruiting
service."
"Oh!" the exclamation burst forth In
surprise at my frank avowal. "Then
you did not make that up merely to de-
ceive me? You had been passing un-
der that name with others. You had
taken It for a distinct purpose—a—a
military purpose?"
"I took it," I said slowly, and delib-
erately, my eyes looking steadily at
her, "because I knew such a Federal
officer had been detailed to service in
this neighborhood. If 1 have taken my
life In my hands to serve the cause of
the South, it was in obedience to the
orders of my superiors."
"Whose orders?"
"General Jackson directly; although
Robert E. Lee was present, and gave
final instructions."
Her hands concealed her face, and I
could Judge nothing as to its expres-
sion; whether, or not, my words <tad
any weight with her. She sat motion-
less, bent slightly forward. At last she
said slowly:
"!—I know enough of—of army life
to be aware that men are not ordered
to such hazardous work—they are
asked to volunteer. Only a brave man
would assume such a risk; only a
man who believed in himself, and his
cause. 1—I like you better because
you have told me. I believe you are
honest with me now. 1 did not know
what to do, or what to say before. I
knew you were not Raymond, and that
you were acting a lie- -hut could not
guess your purpose. What made it
harder to understand," her voice hesi-
tating slightly, "arose because there
was something about you so oddly fa-
miliar; I—I felt that I ought to recog
nize your face; that somewhere we
had met before—have we?"
"Yes, Miss Noreen; I am Tom
Wyatt."
"Why! Why, of course!" the swift
expression was one of Intense relief.
"How stupid of me! Oh, I am so glad
that I know." To my surprise she
held out both hands mpulslvely. "Your
being a spy doesn't make any differ-
ence now that I know who you really
are. It Is no wender I did not recog-
nize you—why you were only a boy—"
"Not wnen you rode by my mother
and me on the pike."
"A year ago? I remember; yet I
hardly caught a glimpse of you
through the dust. You were Just a boy
a
Wmm
There Was the Sound of Chairs Being
Pushed Hastily Back.
when you were here last. Why you
had long curls."
"And thought Noreen Harwood the
most beautiful little girl I had ever
seen."
"Why you—you are in even greater
danger than I."
"Oh, no; from all I have seen and
heard the Cowans must be In sympa-
thy with the South, or they never
would have made the attack on Fox's
party, or held Lieutenant Raymond
prisoner. I had considered going di-
rect to Anse, revealing my identity,
add demanding protection."
Her hands grasped my sleeve.
"No, not that! You do not under-
stand, Tom Wyatt. These men care
nothing for the issues of the war. They
merely use thorn to cover up their own
lawless deeds, and to assist In work-
ing out schemes of revenge. They are
neither Federal, nor Confederate; they
are robbers, murderers, and thieves.
Is Anse Cowan here tonight for any
purpose but his own? You realize
what that purpose is."
"I have heard enough to make me
certain," I answered. "He would force
you Into marriage to thus gain control
of this property. The killing of Major
Harwood was part of the plan."
"You know then of my father's
death? You know that report to be
true? Why, you said you were with
Captain Fox at Hot Springs! Is It
so?"
"Yea, Miss Noreen, it is true. I saw
your father's body, and that of his
servant Tom. I came across the moun-
tains with the man who killed them
both. I supposed him to be a scout.
He called himself Jem Taylor, and
when they first met your father ad-
dressedfilm by that name. They met
by appointment at a house a miie south
of Hot Springs. Your father said noth-
ing to you of such a man?"
"No; I saw him but for a moment
as be passed through Lewlsburg on
his way east. He was to meet a scout
beyond the mountains, but no name
was mentioned. What did the man
Taylor look like?"
"1 described him to Captain Fox,
and one of his men, a sergeant, in-
stantly pronounced the fellow to be
old Ned Cowan."
"Ned Cowan! Why, that could not
be! My father would never have an
appointment alone with him. They
have been deadly enemies for years."
"That may be true, Miss Noreen. I
can ouly tell you what little I know.
Yesr father might have been deceived;
drawn into a trap. He was there ap-
parently by appointment to confer
with a man known to him as Taylor.
Who Taylor really was I cannot say—
but he wf.s an enemy, not a friend, of
Major H&rwood. I do not insist thai
the f'jllow -was Ned Cowan, but I am
sure he belonged to the gang. We
trailed him nearly to New River, and
had gone into camp amid the moun-
tains when the Cowans attacked us. In
my judgment the killing of your fa-
ther, and the raid on this house to-
night, form part of the same plan."
1 do not think she was crying, al-
though her face was buried in her
hands. I turned my eyes away, down
through the scuttle nole, but nothing
moved along the hall below. The house
seemed absolutely deserted, but the
lamp continued to burn, and yet, even
as 1 felt the strangeness of such in-
tense silence, a door ilammed some-
where in the distance, and a gruff
voice spoke.
will give up by daylight, and then the
way will be clear."
"And where will you go?"
"Why," in surprise. "I could not
leave you alone until I placed you in
the care of friends."
"At Lewlsburg. you mean?"
"If that is where you wish to go."
Her eyes met mine frankly, but with
an expression in their depths I failed to
fathom.
"Not wearing that uniform," she
said quietly, "or under the name of
Lieutenant Raymond. Do not misun-
derstand. There is friendship between
ug—personal friendship, the memory
of the past, a knowledge of the lntl-
CHAPTER XI.
Waiting the Next Move.
"Anse—Kelly, are either of you
there?"
There was the sound of chairs being
pushed hastily back from a table, and
rapid steps on the floor.
"Yes; what's wrong? Have you
found something?"
"Sure; Bill an' I saw them; they
were a tryin" ter git thyB hoss; but
afore either of us could fire, they
sorter slipped 'long back o' ther fence,
an' got away. It's darker'n hell out
thar, an' Bill sed fer me ter cum In
yere an' tell yer that If you 'en Kelly
wud cut across the road, an' sorter
head the cusses off we'd bag the two
easy." * t
"Whar's the rest of ther boys?"
"Rldin' the Lewlsburg pike accordln'
ter orders, I reckon. Leastwise we
ain't seen 'em since yer tol' us ter
watch ther stable. Bill an' 1 can't
round them up alone."
"All right, l^ave. Where are they
now?"
"In ther orchard, a creepln' 'long
the fence. Bill's followin' 'em up, an'
all you got ter do is run 'long the road
an' git ter the corner ahead o' 'em
They can't go no other way."
I caught a glimpse of the two as
they crossed the lower hall hurriedly.
The lamp flickered in the draft of the
opened door, and one fellow swore
roughly, as he stumbled over some ob-
stacle. Then the door closed, and the
flame steadied. In the silence we could
hear again the beating of rain on the
roof over head.
"Who do you suppose they could
have seen?" she asked.
"Shadows likely enough. Let them
hunt. We know now the house is de-
serted, and can find more comfortable
quarters—perhaps even slip away be-
fore anyone returns. You will go
with met"
"Of course; I am not afraid of Tom
Wyatt."
We passed the ladder down slowly,
and carefully, until the lower end rest-
ed securely on the floor below. If
Nichols had recovered from the effect
of the severe blow, he had made no
sound, and I had almost forgotten his
presence. I drew back, and permitted
the lady to descend first, holding the
upper supports firmly until her feet
touched the floor. It was a struggle
for me to force my larger bulk through
the narrow opening, but I succeeded
finally, and stood beside her. in the
brighter light 1 could perceive more
clearly the expression of the girl's
face, realized the friendliness of her
eyes. My frank confession had won
me her confidence; no matter where
her sympathy might be in this war
struggle my allegiance to the cause of
the South was no serious barrier be-
tween us; even the fact that I was
masquerading there In a stolen uni-
form and under an assumed name, had
not greatly changed her trust in an old
playmate. My heart beat faster to this
knowledge, yet, In some way, although
I rejoiced, the recognition brought
with It a strange embarrassment.
"It sounds as though the storm was
harder than ever," she said. "Where
shall we go?" .
"My choice would be to hide in one
of these rooms, for the present, at
least. We could scarcely hope to get
the horse out of the stable unseen,
and, even If we did. we would be like-
ly to ride Into some of the gang."
"But they will return to the house."
"Before they leave—yes; but It is
hardly probable they will search up
here again. Anse will be in ill-humor
enough when he d6cides we have real-
ly escaped, but will never imagine that
our hiding place Is In the house. They
HE
I Flung Him Down on the Bed.
macy between your father and mine.
More, I am grateful to you for the
service you have been to me this
night; nor do I hold it against you that
you risk your life in the cause for
which you fight. But I am Union. Tom
Wyatt, and I cannot help you in your
work, nor protect you. When day-
light comes I am going tq say good-by
—and forget that I have even seen
you."
"But," I protested, "why could we
not part. If we musl, at Lewlsburg,
after I know you are safe?"
"There are Federal troops at Lewis-
burg. They know me, and their com-
mander is aware of my acquaintance
with the officer whose name you have
assumed."
"Yet, in a measure, at least, you
trust me? I want you to consider me
a personal friend."
"Why I do," her eyes opening widely.
"It is for your own protection I refuse
your escort to Lewisburg. I am a
traitor to my flag not to take you
there, and surrender you a prisoner.
If—if I did not care I would. Hark!
That was a shot!"
"Yes, and another; they sound to
the west of the house."
"In the orchard, beyond the stable.
Can there really be someone hiding
thereV"
"They are certainly firing at some-
thing—there speaks another rifle
farther south. Those fellows will be
back presently, and we must be out of
their way. What room is that beyond
the chimney?"
"It was used by the housekeeper.
Do you know where Parson Nichols
was left?"
"In the room at the head of the
stairs; why yes, your room. Could they
have killed the man?"
I pushed open the door, which stood
slightly ajar, and looked In. Nichols
had partially lifted himself by cling-
ing to the bed, and his eyes met mine.
The marks of the savage blow with
which Cowan had floored him, were
plainly evident, and the man appeared
weak and dazed. Yet he Instantly rec-
ognized me, and crouched back in ter-
ror. I stepped Into the room, and
gripped his collar.
"Stand on your feet, man! Oh, yes,
you can; you're a little groggy yet, no
doubt, but with strength enough for
that. Come; I'll hold you. Now, out
Into the hall. Miss Harwood, may I
trouble you to open that door—yes,
the housekeeper's room; we'll hide
ourselves in there. By Jove, that
sounds like a regular volley!"
I pushed the man forward, and flung
him down on the bed, still retaining
my grip on his collar.
"Not a move, or a sound, Nichols!
Attempt to betray us, and your life
is not worth the snap of a finger. Miss
Harwood close the dnor, and lock It."
The same instant a vivid flash of r6d
lit up the whole Interior, the light glar-
ing in through the unshaded windows,
and reflecting from the walls. Nichols
started up with a little cry of terror,
but I forced him backs'
"It is not the house," I said sternly.
"They must have fired the stable.
Keep down out of sight. Miss Noreen,
creep across to that nearest window
and take a glance out—be careful that
no one sees you. I'll keep guard over
our preacher friend."
ITO BE CONTINUED..
And Likes the Laws in Western
Canada.
*1 lived near Lee, Illinois, for 46
years. I came to Saskatchewan in the
spring of 1912 and bought land near
Briercrest. I h^ve farmed this land,
1680 acres, ever since. I have had
grand crops. In 1914 I had 100 acres
of wheat that yielded 40 bushels to
the acre. I sold this wheat at $1.50
per bushel. I like the country and my
neighbours. M y
taxes on each quar-
There Is No
War Tax So-
Called.
ter sectioh (160
acres) are about
$32 a year. This
covers municipal tax, school tax, hail
insurance tax—everything. There is
no war tax so-called. I like the laws
in force here. There is no compulsion
to me in any way. I am just as inde-
pendent here as I was in Illinois, and
I feel that my family and I are Just as
well protected by the laws of the prov-
ince as we were in our old home in Illi-
nois. What I earn here is my own.
I have seven children and they take
their places at school, in sports and
at all public gatherings the same as
the Canadian born.
(Sgd.) M. P. Tysdal.
"February 9th, 1916."
Former Iowa
Farmers Are
Doing Well
in Canada.
We reprint the following article,
complete, without comment, from the
latest number of the "Saskatchewan
Farmer," an agricultural paper pub-
lished at Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan;
"The attempt to
check emigration
from the United
States to our prai-
rie provinces by
publishing alarming
Ing statements about the enormous
war taxes that are being paid here—
$500 on a quarter section yearly—
about forcing young men to enlist for
the war; about the co'd, no crops and
any old story that by its extravagant
boldness might Influence men and
women from venturing north to Can-
ada, is really in the list of curios to
our people. Knowing the country, we
can hardly take it seriously. Our gov-
ernments, however, dominion and pro-
vincial, are taking steps to expose the
false statements that are being made,
and thereby keep the channel open for
continuing the stream of settlers that
has been flcwing to us for the past
decade.—Advertisement.
Czar Nichc'as of Russia dislikes tel-
ephones.
Spartan Women Suffered Untold Tortures
but who wants to be a Spartan? Take
"Femenlna" for all female disorders.
Price 50c and $1.00.—Adv.
Col. Churchill and His Father.
Winston Churchill is bound to re-
mind those old enough to remember
of his father, Lord Randolph, a man
who made everybody sit up in joy or
wrath, but who never achieved much
of anything except mischief, brilliant
and interesting but erratic and un-,
convincing.—Hartford Times.
STOP EATiNG MEAT iF
KIDNEYS OR BACK HURT
Take a Glass of Salts to Clean Kid-
neys If Bladder Bothers You—
Meat Forms Uric Acid.
Eating meat regularly eventually
produces kidney trouble in some form
or other, says a well-known authority,
because the uric acid in meat excites
the kidneys, they become overworked;
get sluggish; clog up and cause all
sorts of distress, particularly backache
and misery in the kidney region; rheu-
matic twinges, severe headaches, acid
stomach, constipation, torpid liver,
sleeplessness, bladder and uninary Ir-
ritation.
The moment your back hurts or kid-
neys aren't acting right, or if bladder
bothers you, get about four ounces of
Jad Salts from any good pharmacy;
take a tablespoonful in a glass of
water before breakfast for a few days
and your kidneys will then act fine.
This famous salts is made from the
acid of grapes and lemon juice, com-
bined with lithia, and has been used
for generations to flush clogged kid-
neys and stimulate them to normal
activity; also to neutralize the acids in
the urine so it no longer irritates, thus
ending bladder disorders.
Jad. Salts cannot Injure anyone;
makes a delightful effervescent lithia-
water drink which millions of men and
women take now and then to keep the
kidneys and urinary organs clean, thus
avoiding serious kidney disease.—Adr.
Possibly an honest man might be
otherwise if an opportunity worth
while were to knock at his front door.
Great Britain Is divided into eight
munition areas.
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Seay, R. R. The Oklahoma Ledger. (Sterling, Okla.), Vol. 11, No. 17, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 6, 1916, newspaper, April 6, 1916; Sterling, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc155393/m1/2/: accessed May 23, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.