The Cushing Citizen (Cushing, Okla.), Vol. 15, No. 58, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 22, 1924 Page: 5 of 7
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: The Cushing Citizen and The Cushing Independent and was provided to The Gateway to Oklahoma History by the Oklahoma Historical Society.
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Thursday May 22 1924
THE CUSHING CITIZEN
Page 5
Vi
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VIOLA
GWYN
Gmt But McCctdiam
CkffttlU by Mt Hm OiBHW iH
All hour later Kenneth arose from
his sent on the front doorstep and
stole over to the sitting-room window
She wav asleep la the big rocking-
chair her head twisted limply toward
her left shoulder presenting a Ujree-
quarters view of her fnce to him ns
he gazed long and ardently upon' her
He could see the deep rise and fall of
her bosom The shawl unclasped at
the- throat had fallen away reveal-
ing the white flannel nightgown over
which she bad hastily' drawn a petti-
coat before sallying forth
He:weDt 'to the kitchen door nnd
found Zucharlah sitting grumpily on
: -the step
‘‘She’s still sound asleep” ho nn-
' oounced '
:‘‘So’s 'dat lazy Hattie over yonder"
lamented Zachnrlnh with a jerk of his
head “Ain’ no sinoke cotniq’ out'n
her chlrabley lemme tell yo’”
“Fill that washpnn and get me a
clean towel" ordered -his master He
looked: at his watch ‘Tin going to
uwaken her — In half an hour"
It was nearly seven o'clock when
he stamped noisily Into the sitting
room with towel and bnsin IIo had
thrice repeated bis visit to the win-
dow and with each succeeding visit
i had remained a little longer than be-
! ’ ‘ lore notwithstanding the no uncer-
tain sense of guilt that accused him
: of spying upon the lovely sleeper
' She awoke with a start looked
blankly about as if bewildered by her
strange surroundings nnd then fixed
her wide questioning eyes upon him
watching him In silence as he placed
the basin of spring-water on a chair
and draped the coarse towel over the
back -
"Breakfast will be ready in ten min-
utes miss' he announced bowing
deeply “If you desire to freshen your-
self a bit after your profound slum-
bers you will find here some of the
finest water' In the universe and a
’ towel warranted to produce n blush
upon the cheek of a graven Image"
i "Has mother-come borne?" she In-
quired anxiously as she drew the
Shawl close about her throat again
'“No sign of her Hurry along nnd
as soon as we’ve had a bite to eat I’ll
ride down to the courthouse nnd see If
she’s there"
He left her and presently she came
out Into the kitchen her skin glowing
Warmly her braids loosely colled on
the crown of her head her eyes like
violet stars
Zachariah marveled at his master’s
appetite Recollection of an already
devoured meal of no small proportions
caused him to doubt his senses From
time to time he shook his head in won-
der and finally took to chuckling The
next time Marse Kenneth cnmplnlnod
about Laylas aa apatite he would
know what to say tf him
“I must run home now” said VIoln
at the close of the meal "It’s been aw-
fully nice— and so exciting Kenny I
feel as If I had been doing something I
ought not to do Isn’t it queer? Hav-
ing breakfast with a man I never saw
until six weeks ago!”
"It does my heart good to see yon
blush so prettily” ‘said be warmly
Then his face darkened “And it turns
my blood cold to think that if you had
succeeded in doing something you
ought not to have done six weeks ngo
you might now be having breakfast
wjth somebody else Instead of with
me”
“I wish you would not spenk of that
Kebnetli" she said severely "You will
make me hate you if you-bring It up
aguln” Then she added with a plain-
tive little smile: "The Bible says
‘Love thy neighbor as thyself’ I am
doing my best to live up to thnt but
sometimes you make It awfully hard
for me"
He went to the door with her She
paused for a moment on the step to
look searchlngly up the rond nnd
through the trees There wns no sign
of her mother The anxious worried
expression deepened In her eyes
"Don’t come any farther with me"
she said “Go down to the courthouse
as fast as you can"
He watched her till she passed
through the gate As he wns on tho
point of re-entering the house he saw
her come to an abrupt stop and stare
straight ahead He shot a swift ap-
prehensive glance over Ills shoulder
Barry Lapelle had just emerged
from Rachel’s yard his gaze fixed on
the girl who stood motionless In front
of Gwfynne’s gate a hundred feet
away Without taking his eyes from
her he gjlowiy closed the gate nnd
leaned against it folding his arms (fs
he did so
Viola after at moment's Indecision
and without a glance at Kenneth-lifted
her chin and went forward to the
encounter Kenneth looked In all di-
rections for Lapelle's rascals ne was
relieved to find that the discarded suit-
or apparently had ventured alone upon
' this early morning mission What did
It portend! "
Filled with sharp misgivings ho left
his doorstep and walked slowly down
to the gate where ho halted It oc-
curred to him that Barry after a sleet
less night had come to make peace
with his tempestuous sweetheart II
such was the case his own ssnso of
fairness andf dignity would permtfe no
Interference on! his part unless It was
solicited by the girl herself Ho was
ready however to take Instant action
If she made the slightest sign of dl
tress or alarm While ho had no In-
tention of spying or eavesdropping
their voices reached him distinctly and
he could not help hearing what passed
between them
"Have you been np to tho house
Barry?" wqre Viola's first words an sh
"Have You Been Up -to tho Houoo
Barry?" ’
stopped In front of tho man who barred
the way
' Lapelle did not change his position
Ills chin was lowered and he was look-
ing at her through narrowed unsmil-
ing eyes
“Yes I have”
“Where was the dog?” she Inquired
cuttingly '
"He cume and licked my hand He’i
the only friend I’ve got up here I
reckon”
"I will have him shot today What
do you want?”
"I came to see your mother Wher
Is she?"
"She’s away” '
"Over night?”
"It will do you no good to see her
Harry You might as well realize It
first as last"
Lnpelle glanced past her at tho man
beyond nnd lowered his voice- : Ken-
Tinrii could not’ heir what he eald
Veii"T’m-goIng'io see” her amf sh
will be down on her knees before I’m
through with her let warn toll you Oh
I’m sober Viola ! I bad my leaooa yee-
teriluy I’m through with whisky for-
ever So she was away all night eh?
Out totlie farm eh? That nigger girl
of yours says she ikust have gone out
to the fnnn last night because her bed
wasn’t slept in And you weren’t ex-
pecting visitors as early as this or you
would lmve got home a little sooner
yourself huh?”
“What are you talking About?"
“Soon ns she Is out of the house yon
scoot over to big brother Kenny’s eh?
Afraid to sleep alone I suppose Well
nil I’ve got to say Is you ought to have
taken a little more time to dress"
"Oli! Oh — you — you low-lived dogt"
she gusped going white to the roots
of her hair "How dare you asy— "
"That's right I Call me all the pret-
ty names you can think of And say
I didn’t come up here to beg anything
from you or your mother I’m not in
a begging humor I’m through licking
your boots Viola Whnt time will the
old woman be back?”
“Stand awny from that gate I" she
said in a voice low and hoarse with
fury "Don’t you dare speak to me
ngnin And If you follow me: to the
bouse I’ll— I’ll— "
“Whnt’ll you do?” he jeered "Call
brother Kenny? Well go ahead and
call him There he is I’ll kick him
from here to the pond — and that won’t
be hnlf as pleasant as rocking little
sister to sleep in her cradle while
tnaminn Is out for the night" ’
"And I used to think I was In love
with you !” she cried la sheer disgust
"I could spit in your face Barry La-
pelle Will you let me pass?"
"Certainly But I’m going Into the
bouse with you understand that I’d
just os soon wait there for your mother
as anywhere else"
’’When my mother hears about thly
she will have you horsewhipped within
on Inch of your Ilfs” cried the girt fu-
riously These words rising on a wave of an-
ger came distinctly to Kenneth's ears
lie left his place at the gata and
walked swiftly along Inside his fence
until he came to the corner of the’yard
where the bushes grew thickly Here
he stopped to await further develop-
ments He heard Barry say with a
harsh laugh:
"Oh she will will she?”
"Yes she will She knows more
about you than you think tbs does—
and so do I Let me by I Do you bear
me Bar — "
“That’s funny" he Interrupted low-
ering his voice to a half-whisper
“That's just what I came up to see her
about I want to tell her that I know
more about her than she thinks I do
And when I get through telling her
what I know she’ll change her mind
about letting ns get married And you'll
marry me too my girl without so
much as a whimper Oh you needn’t
look" artnindfor big brother— G--dT I
bet you’d- be happy if he wasn't your
brother wouldn’t you? Well he has
sneaked Into the’ house just as I knew
he would If it looked like a squall
He's a white-livered coward How do
you like that?” —
Ho was not only astonished but dis-
tinctly confounded by the swift incom-
prehensible smile that played about
her disdainful lips
“What the hellfire are you laughing
at?” he exploded
“Nothing much 1 was only thinking
about last night” ’ “ ! ‘ j- x : ' ' ‘
“H— 1!" he exclaimed ‘thel (flood
rushing to his face whyyou
— " The words failed him (Hp could
only stare at her as if stunned
most shocking confession
"Flense remember ' that yOu 1 are'
speaking to—” ' ’ ' 1 ’ i v
He broke In with a ’snarling laugh
“By thunder I’m beginning to believe
you’re no better than she was She
wasn’t anything but a common — — —
and I’m blessed if I think It’s sensible
to marry Into the family after all"
"6h !” she gnsped closing her eyes
as she shrank nwny from him The
word he had used stood for the foulest
thing on earth to her It had never
passed her clean pure lips For the
moment she was petrified speechless
"It’s about time you learned the
truth about that d— d old hypocrite —
If you don’t know It already” be con-
tinued raising bis voice at the urge of
the now reckless fury that consumed
him He stood over lief shrinking fig-
ure glaring mercilessly down Into lidr
horror-6truck eyes "You don’t need to
take my word for It ’ Ask Gwynne
He knows He knows whnt happened
back there in Kentucky' lie knows
she ran off with his father twenty
years ago taking him away from ’the
woman he was married to That's -why
hw pates her That's wiiy jhe jieyqr
had anything to jlo with fills dog of a
father And he probably knows you
were born out of wedloek—that youTe
' - ' ' i ( ' !
CHAPTER XVI
'
The Blow
He never 'finished the sentence A
whirlwind was upon him Before ho
could raise a hand to defend himself
Kenneth Gwynne’s brawny fist smote
him squarely between the eyes He
went down as though struck by a
sledge-bnmmer crashing to the ground
full six feet from where Jie stood Be-
hind that clumsy blow was the weight
of a thirteen-stone body hurled as
from a mighty catapult !
He never knew how long efierward
it was that he heard a voice speaking
to him The words jumbled and un-
intelligible seemed to : Come frri'm a"
great distance He attempted td'rlsb
gave It up and fell buck dlZzilyi '' Hta
vision was slow in Clearing Wttnt he
finally saw through blurred uncertain
eyes was the face of Kenneth (jwyjinei
far above him — nnd It was a-kg time
before It stopped whirling imp Jiecquie
fixed in one piace Then lie' enlizecl
that It was the voice of Gwynjie’ttiat
was speaking to him nnd he made out
tbs words Something warm '0nP wet
crept along the sides' of hfs monjh overt
his chin down his neck Hist' throat
was full of a hot nauseous fluid t
raised himself on one elbow anjd spat
“Get up! Get up you filtb wiielp ! '
I’m not going to hit you 'n'gnlta 'Get
up I say!" (1
He struggled to his knees arid then
to his feet sagging limply ngnlnst the
fence to which he clung for support
He felt for his nose filled with a hor-
rid sickening dread that It was no
longer on his fact
“I ought to kill you" he beard
Gwynne saying “You blaek-henyted
lying scoundrel Get out of my sight 1”
He succeeded In straightening up
and looked about lilm through a mist
of tears lie tried to speak but could
only wheeze and sputter He dedred
bis throat raucously and spat again
“Where — where Is she?" hg man-
aged to say at last
"Shut upl You’ve dealt her the
foulest — ’’ i
lie broke off abruptly struck by
the other’s expression : Lapelle was
staring past him in the direction of
the house and there was the look of a
frightened trapped animal in his
glassy eyes
“My G — d 1” fell from his lips and
then suddenly he sprang forward
placing Kenneth’s body between him
and the object of his terror “Stop
her! For God’s sake Gwynne— atop
her 1"
For the first time since Barry went
crashing to enrth and lay as one dead
Gwynne raised his eyes from the
“Get Upl Get Upl You Filthy Whelp"
' t
1 i -
blood-smeared face Vaguely he re-
membered -the swift rush of Viola’s
feet ns she sped past him but that
was long ngo and be had not looked
to sec whither she fled
She was now coming down the steps
of the porch a lialf-rnlsed rifle In her
bonds He wos never to forget her
white set face nor the menacing look
In her eyes ns she advanced to the
killing of Barry Lnpelle — for there
was no mistaking ber purpose
n-’ ‘Drop down!" be shouted to Ln-
pelle As Barry sank cowering be-
hind lilm he cried out sharply to the
girl : 1 "Viola 1 Drop that gun Do
yob hear me? Good G — H hove you
losfc our senses?” u- u 1 ”
n-dShe came on slowly her head a lit-
i tie to mo side the better-to see the
partially obscured figure of i the
crouching man
"it won’t do you any good to hide
Barry”- she said In a Voice 1 thnt i
neither of the men recognized
“Don’t be a fool viola !” cried Kenneth-
"Leave him to me Go back
to the house I will attend to him”
She stopped nnd lifted her eyes to
stare at the speaker In sheer wonder
nnd astonishment
“Why you heard whnt he said Yon
heard what he called my mother
Stand nwny from him Kenneth"
“I can’t allow you to shoot him
Viola You will have to shoot me first
My G — d child — do you want to have
a man’s life-blood on your hnnds?"
‘Tie said she ran nwny with your
fnther" she cried a spasm of pain
crossing lier face “He snid I was
born before they were married I
have a right to kill him Do you
hear? I have a right to — ”
' “Don’t you know it would be mur-
der? -Coldblooded murder? No! Y’ou
will have to kill me first Do you un-
derstand? I shall not move an Inch
I am pot going to let you do some-
thing you will regret to the end of
your life Put it down! Drop that
gun say ! If there Is to be any kill-
ing :I’ will’ do It — not you!”
’ She closed her eyes Her tense
body relaxed The two men watch-
ing her with bated breath nnd vastly
different emotions could almost vis-
ualize the struggle that was going on
within her At last the long rifle bar-
rel was lowered ns the muzzle
touched the ground she opened her
eyes Slowly they went from Kenneth
to the man who crouched behind him
She gazed nt the bloody face as if see-
ing It for the first time
The woman In her revolted at the
'spectacle After a moment of inde-
cision she turned with it shudder nnd
Walked- toward the house dragging
the--rifle by the stock Asi she' was
abqut to mount the stqp she paused
to send a swift glance over hep shoul-
der nnd then obeying the appeal h
Kenneth’s eyes reluctantly evdn enre-
rtflly'' leaned the gun Ugalnst I a post
ritod disappeared through thC door
n “Stand up I" lordered- Gwynne turning-
to -Lnpetlee -“I ought to kH you
myself-1 It's In my lienrt to do so Do
you know whnt you've done to her?”
Barry drew himself up Ills 'fast
swelljng bloodshot eyeg tilled with a
deadly' hatred Ills voice was thick
tontV'nnsteady ’ 51 "
ty-cai’d better kill me while you
have the chance" bo said “Because
so lvelp-me God I’m going to kill you 1
for tills” i
“Go!" thundered the other his
hands twitching "If you don’t I’ll
strangle the life out of you”
Lapelle' drew back quailing before
the look In Kenneth’s eyes lie saw
murder In them
“You didn’t give me a clmnee d — n
you” he snarb-d “You hit me before
I hud a clinnco to—"
“I wish to God I bad hit you sooner
and thnt I had billed you” grated
Kenneth !
“You will wish thnt with all your!
soul before I am through with you”j
snarled Barry “Oh I’m not afraid of
you 1 I know the whole beastly story
about your father and that — ’’ j
“Stop !’’ cried Kenneth taking a step
forward his arm drawn back "Not
another word Lapelle'! You've said
enough 1 I know where you got your j
Information — and I can tell you here
and now thnt the man lied to you
I’m going to give you twenty-four
hours to get oat of this town for good I
And If I hear that you have repented
a word of whnt you said to her I’ll see i
to It that you are strung up by the j
neck and your miserable carcass filled j
with bullets Oh you needn't sputter 1 1
It will be your word against mine I j
guess you know which of us the men I
of this town will believe And you !
needn’t expect to be supported by j
your friend Jusper Suggs or the gentle
Mr Hawk — Alia thnt got under your j
pelt didn't It? If either of them Is
still alive at this minute It's because
he surrendered without a fight nnd !
not beenuse God took care of lilm !
Your beautiful game Is spoiled I-n- j
pelle — and you'll be lucky to get off '
With a whole skin I'm giving you a j
Chance Get out of this town — and
stay out 1”
Barry recovering quickly from the
shock made a fair show of bravado
v- "tVliat are you talking about? What
-the devil have I got to do with—’’
l-'tThat’s enough! You know what
I’m -talking about Take my advice
Gef out of town before you are a day
plier You will save yourself a ride r
on a roll and a rawhiding that you’ll '
riot-fbrget to your dying day"
“I will leave this town when I feel j
like It Gwynne" said Lapelle drawing
himself up "I don’t take orders from
you You will hear from me later
You’ve got the upper hand now — with
that nigger of yours standing over
there holding an ax In bis hands
ready to kill me If I make a move
We’ll settle this In the regular way
Gwynne— with pistols You may ex-1
pect a friend of mine to call on you
shortly"
“As you like" retorted the other I
'tiowlng’ stiffly "You inay name the!
time nnd place" ’ ' '
Lnpelle bowed nnd then enst an eye
nbout In quest of bis lint It wns lying i
In the rond some distance away He j
strode over nnd pickoij It up Quite
naturally perhaps unconsciously he j
resorted to the hnliit of yenrs he j
cocked it slightly nt just tho right
angle over his eve Then without a
glance behind lie crossed tile road
nml plunged Into the thicket
Kenneth watched him till he disap-
peared from view Suddenly aware
of n pain In Ills hnnrl lie held It out
before him nnd wns astonished to find
tint the knuckles were already begin-
ning to -puff lie winced when he
tried to clench Ills fist A rueful smile
twitched at the corners of his mouth -
"Mighty slim chance I’ll have" he
snid to himself "Won’t he able to
pull a trigger to save ifly life”
It suddenly occurred to him that lie
ought to intercept Rachel Carter be-
fore she reached the house not only
to prepare lier for the shock that await-
ed la-r hut to devise between them
some means of undoing the barm that
already laid been done They would
have to stand together In denouncing
Barry they would have to swear to
Viola that tho story was false He
realized what tills would mean to
him: an almost profane espousal of
bis enemy’s cause involving not only
the betrayal of his own conscience
but the delihornto repudiation of the
debt he owed his mother nnd her peo-
ple lie would have to go before Viola
null proclaim tie Innocence of the
woman who had robbed and murdered
his own motlu-r The unthinkable the
unbelievable confronted him
A cold sweat broke out all over him
as be stood dowq I the gute torn be-
tween hatred for one woman and love
for another: I’nehel and Mindn Cnr-
er lie could not spare one without
sparing the other lying to one of
them Meant lying for the other But
there was no alternative- The mem-
ory of the look in Viola's eyes ns she
shrank away from Lapelle tHe
thought of tho cruel shock she must
have suffered the picture of lier as
she came down the path to kill — no
there could lie no alternative!
And so ns he leaned rigidly against
the gate sick at heart hut clear of
bond waiting for Barbel Carter he
came to think that after all a duel
with Barry Lnpelle might prove to be
I he easiest and noblest way out of his
difficulties
CHAPTER XVII
The Affair at Hawk's Cabin
It wanted half an hour of daybreak
when a slow-riding silent group of
men came to a halt and dismounted
ill the narrow lane some distance
from the ramshackle abode of Martin
Hawk squatting unseen among the
trees that lined the steep hank of the
Wabash A throe hours’ ride through
(lark muddy roads lay behind them
There were a dozen men in all— and
om woman at whose side rode the
hunter Stain They hail stopped at
he hitter's cabin on the way down
and she bad conversed apart with hlin
through a tVindow Then they rode
off’ leaving him to follow
There were no fights nnd no man
spoke above a whisper The work of
tethering the )- uses progressed swift-
ly hat with infinite caution Eyes
made sharp by long hours of dnrkness
served their owners well In this
stealthy enterprise
The half-hour pns-cd and the night
began to lift Vague unusual objects
shiv ly took shape like gloomy
spectres emerging from impenetrable
fastnesses Blaknoss gave way to
a faint drab pall then the cold un-
earthly gray of the still remote dawn j
came stealing across the fields
At last It was light enough to see
and the advance upon the cnbin be- 1
gnu Silently through ttie dense
shadowy wood crept the sheriff and
his men followed by the toll woman
in black ami a lank bearded man
whose rifle-stml bore seven tiny but
significant imtelics — sinister epitaphs
for as many bygone men I
A deg luirhed — the first alarm Then
nnother and still a third joined in n
fierce outcry against the Invaders
Suddenly the door of the hut wns j
thrown open and a half-dressed man
s looped in the law aperture peering
out across the dawn-shrouded clear-
inp Thd three coon-dogs slinking out
of the shadows crowded up to the
dor their snarling muzzles pointed
toward the encircling trees
Two nicti stepped out of the under-
brush and advanced Even in the dim
uncertain light Martin Hawk could
see that they carried rifles His eyes
were like those of the bird whose
name lie bore They swept the clear-
ing In a flash As if by magic men
appeared to right of him to left of
him He counted them Seven — no
there was another — eight And he
knew there were more of them back
of the bouse cutting off retreat to the
river
"Don't move Martin” called out a
voice
“What do you want?” demanded
Hawk in a sharp querulous voice
“I am the sheriff Got a warrant
for your arrest No use innkln’ a
light for it Hawk You are complete-
ly surrounded You can’t get away”
“I ain't done nothin’ trp he nrrestod
fer" cried the man In the 'doorway
“I'm an honest man — I Imin't ever
done — ”
“Well that's not for nte to decide”
Interrupted the slieriflf now not more
tliun a dozen feet uwny "I’ve got a
warrant charging you with sheep-
stealing and so on nnd tlmt's all
there Is to it I’m not the judge and
Jury You coine along quiet now and
io foolishness"
“Who says I stole sheep?"
“Step outside here "nnd I’ll read the
affidavit to J on And say If you ilon’t
want your logs massacreed you’d bet-
ter call ’em off"
Martin Hawk looked over his shoul-
der Into the dark Interior of the hut
spoke to some one under his breath
and then began cursing his dogs
“I might have knowed you’d git me
Info trouble you lop-eared sheep-killin’
whelps!” he whined "I'd ought to shot
the bull puck of ye when you was pups
Git out’n my sight! There’s yer sheep-
stealers sheriff — them ornery white-
livered blood-suckin' — ”
"I don’t know anything about that
Martin” Snapped-4he sheriff "All I
know is you got to come along with
me — peaceable or otherwise — and I
guess if you’re half as smart as I think
you are you won’t come otherwise
Here 1 Don’t go back in that house
Hawk"
"Well I got to tell my daughter — "
“We’ll tell her There’s another man
or two In there JustAell ’em to step
outside — and leave their weapons -behind
’em"
“There ain’t a livin’ soul in tliar
Vept tny daughter — so he’p me God
sheriff’’ cried Hawk Ills teeth begin-
ning to chatter The sheriff was close
enough to see the look of terror and
desperation In his eyes
"No use lyin’ Hawk You’ve got
a man named Suggs stayin’ with you
lie ain't accused of anything so ho
needn't be afraid to come out Same
applies to your daughter Moll But I
don’t want anybody In there to taka
a shot at us the minute we turn our
backs Slinks ’em out Hawk"
“I tell ye there ain’t noobdy here but
me an' Moll — an’ she’s sirtc She can’t
come out An’ — an’ youVan’t go In —
not unless you got a warrant to search
my house That's what the law sez
nn’ you know It I’ll go along with
you peaceable an’ stand my trial fer
sheep-stealln’ like a man Lemme get
my hat an’ coat an’ I’ll come — "
"I guess - there’s something queer
about all tills" interrupted the sheriff
The man beside him had just whis-
pered something in his ear "We'll
take a look inside that cabin law or
no law Hawk Move up boys !'' he
called out to the scattered men “Keep
your eyes skinned If you ketch sight
of n rifle ball cornin' to'arda you dodge
And you Martin step outside here
where you won’t be In the way I'm
going In there"
Martin Hawk looked wildly about
him On nlj aides were men with
rifles There was no escape Ills
craven heart failed him his knees gave
way beneath him and an Instant later
he was groveling In the mud at the
sheriff's feet
"I didn't do It I I didn’t do It! I
swear to God I dlin’t It was her She
done It — Moll done It!” he squealed In
object terror
lie wns grabbed by strong hands and
Jerked to Ills feet While others held
him the sheriff nnd several of the men
rushed into the cabin
Off at the edge of the clearing stood
Rachel Carter and Isaac Stain watch-
ing tlie scene at the door
"One look will be enough” the wom-
an had snid tersely' “Twenty yenrs
will not have changed Simon Braley
much I will know him at sight”
“Yfm got to be sure Mrs Gwyn"
muttered the hunter "Ef you got the
slightest doubt sny so"
“I will Isaac"
“And ef you say it's him fer sure
nn' no mstuke I'll foller hint to the
end of tlie world but what I git him”
"If it Is Simon Braley he will make
a break for cover He is not like that
whimpering coward over yonder And
the sheriff will make no attempt to
bring him down There Is no co:n-
plnint against him No one knows that
he Is Simon Braley"
“Well I’ll be on his heels” was the
grim promise of Isaac Stain thinking 1
of the sister who had been slain by
Brnley’s Indians down on the River
White
One of thq men rushed out of the
cabin He was vastly excited
"Don't let go of him” he shouted to
tho men who were holding Martin j
"There’s Ii — 1 to pay in there Where :
is Mrs Gwyn?” I
“I never done it !” wailed Martin '
livid with terror “I swear to God — ’’ I
"Shut up !”
"She's over there Sam— with Ike
Stain"
Ignoring the question that followed
him the man called Sam hurried up to
tlie couple at the edge of the bush
"Better clear out Mrs Gwyn” lie
said soberly "I mean don’t stay
around ' Something in there you :
oughtn't to see"
"Wbat is It?” she inquired sharply
"Well yon see — there’s a dead man
In there — knifed Blood all over every-
thing and — ’’ I
“The man called Suggs?” j
"I reckon so Leastwise it must be '
him Tears to be a stranger to all of
us Deader’n a door nail He's — "
‘Tin not chicken-hearted Mr Cor-
bin” she announced "I hare seen a
good many dead men in my time The
sight of blood does not affect me I
will go in and see him Not Flense
do not stay me"
Despite his protestations she strode
resolutely across the lot As she
passed Martin Hawk that cowering
rascal stared at her first without com-1
prehension thei with a suddenly
awakened acute understanding
It was she who had brought the au-
thorities down upon him She had
mads “alfidavy” against him — she had
got him into this horrible mess by I
swearing that he stole ber sheep and
calves True he had stolen from her
— there was no doubt about that — but
he had covered his tracks perfectly
Any one of a half-dozen men along tlie
river might have stolen her stock I
they were stealing right and left Hqv
then did she come to fix upon him as
the one to accuse? In a flash he leaped
to a startling conclusion Barry La-
pellet The man who knew all about
his thievish transactions and who for
months had profitetF-by tliofa Hides
wool fresh meats from the secret lairs
and slaughter pens back in the track-
less wilds nil these had gone down
tlie river on Barry’s boats products ol
n fnr-reaching system of outlawry
with Barry and his captains sharing
in the proceeds
Now he understood Lapelle had gone
hack on him had betrayed him to hie
future motlier-in-l'uv The fine gen-
tleman had no further use for him
Mrs Gwyn had given her consent to
the marriage and in return for that he
hud betrayed a loynl friend! And now
look at the position he -was in all
through Barry Lapelle Pheep steal-
ing was nothing to what he might have
to face Even though Moll had done
tlie killing he would have a-devil of a
time convincing a jury of the fact
More than likely SIoll would lip and
deny that she had anything to do with
It — and tljen what? It would be like
tho ornery slut to lie ont of it and let
’em hang her own father just to pay
him buck for the llckin’s he hud given
her
All this raced through tho fast-
steadying brain of Slartin Ilawk as ho
watched his accuser pass him by with-
out a look and stop irresolutely on his
threshold to stare aghast as whnt lay
beyond It became icqnyiction rathe
than-a conjecture “Barry had set the
dogs upon him! Snake! Well just
let lilm get loose from these plagued
hounds for half an hour or so nnd by
glory they’d have something to hang
him for or ills name wasn't Martin
Hawk
Isnac Stain did not move from the
spot where she had left lilm over at
the edge of tlie elenrlng His rifle wns
ready his keen eyes alert Rachel
Carter entered the hut Many minutes
passed Then she came to the door and
beckoned to him
"It Is Simon Braley" she said quiet-
ly "He is dead The girl killed him
Isaac Will you ride over to my farm
and have Allen co"e over-here wjth a
wagon? They're going to take the
body up to town — and tlie girl too”
Stnin stood his rifle against the wall
of the hut “I guess I won't need this"
was all lie said as lie turned and strode
away I
Tlie man called Jasper Suggs lay in
front of the tumble-down fireplace his
long body twisted grotesquely by the
iinul spasm of pain that carried him
off Tlie lower part of his body was
covered by a filthy strip of rag carpet
which some one had hastily thrown
over him as Rachel Carter was on the
point of entering the house His
coarse linsey shirt wns soaked with
blood now dry and almost black Tlia
harsh light from the open door struck
full upon Ills bearded face nnd its
staring eyes J
In a corner nt the foot of a straw j
pallet ordinarily screened from the!
rest of the cabin by a couple of sus- I
nended quilts stood Moll Hawk lean-
Ing against the wall her dark sullen !
eyes following the tnen hs’they moved j
uliuut the room The quilts ruthlessly !
torn from their fastenings on the pole
lay scattered and trampled on the floor
sinister evidence of the struggle that
lmd taken place between woman and
beast At the other end of the room
were two similar pnllets unscreened
and beside one of these lay Jasper
Suggs' rawhide boots
From her place In the shadows Moll
Hawlwatched tlie other woman stoop
over nnd grze intently at tlie face of
tlie slain man She wns a tall well-
developed girl of twenty or thereabouts
Her long straight linir the color of the
raven’s wing swung loose about her
shoulders nn occasional strand traik
ing across her face giving her a singm
lnrly witchlike ippearance Her body
from the waist up was stripped almost
bare there were several long streaks
of blood across her breast where the
Angers of a gory hand had slid in re-
laxing their grip on her shoulder With
one hand she clutched what was left of
a tattered garment vninly seeking to
hide her naked breasts The stout
coarse dress had been almost torn
from her body
Mrs Gwyn left the hut hut soon re-
turned After a few earnest words
with tlie sheriff she came slowly over
to the girl Moll shrank hack against
the wall a strange glitter leaping into
her sullen lifeless eyes
"I don't want nobody prayin’ over
cr VS3&
1 v"3
“I Don’t Want Nobody Prayin’ Ovoi
Me"
me" she said huskily "I Jest wan!
to be let alone"
"I am not going to pray over you '
my girl I want you to come out Id
the back yard with mqlwhereJ eaa
(Continued Next Week
I
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Green, E. M. The Cushing Citizen (Cushing, Okla.), Vol. 15, No. 58, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 22, 1924, newspaper, May 22, 1924; Cushing, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1750729/m1/5/?q=central+place+railroads: accessed July 18, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.