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Show ' ' ' ' " ' ' ... , - . , ' , . . . . : , ; .'.'- ,",Kif'-c- ' :.: ',J ' .' V-' ; "', '' - ' ? ! V: ' THE BINGHAM NEWS, BINGHAM, UTAH k' fj'--"-r- ;i ' ' ' ' ' 1 ' " ' -- U, nqnK., U,Q arnuL: ,n 1 1 1 1 ' ! j Tlie Big-T-o wn Round Up a Iff I c,. WILLIAM MACLEOD RAINE SPSS "You were all right jrefltarday. Vfcf are you ill owl" He groaned unhappily. --You're golngfrt tell jaeery thing everything." ""Y , Hi fascinated, fright id eyea clung to this straight,. alliuVl whose look stabbed into blra ani jieok his soul. Why had she come (o trouble him this morning while be was cower-ing in fear of the men who would break in to drag him away to prison? "Nothing to tell," be got ut with gulp. ,.'..'- - ' I, "Oh, yes, you have. Are you ill be-- cause of what happened at Mad- - J dock's?" He tried to pull himself together, 1 to stop the chattering of his teeth. j ray dear. I'm done up completely. Delighted to see you and all that, but Won't you go homer His appealing eyes passed to Whlt-for-d. "Can't you take her away?" "No, I won't go home and he can't take me away." Her resolution was hard as steel. It seemed to erowd in-exorably upon the shivering wretch la the frogged gown. "What Is It you're so afraid to tell me, Clarendon?" He quailed at her thrust. "What what do you mean?" She knew now, beyond any question or doubt, that he had been present when "Slim" Jim Collins had been killed. He had. seen a man's Ufa snuffed out, was , still trembling for fear he might be called In as a party to the crime. - "You'd better tell me before It's o CHAPTER XV Continued. a feeble camouflage of Its real reason for being, Haddock's culled Itself the "Omnium club." But when Clay found how particular the door-keeper was as to those who entered he guessed at once It was a gambling , louse. From behind a grating the man peered at them doubtfully, nromlield showed a card, and after some hesi-tation on the part of his inquisitor, passed the examination. Toward Clay the doorkeeper Jerked his head Inquir-ingly. "He's all right," the clubman vouched. Again there was a suspicious and lengthy scrutiny. The door opened far enough to let them slide Into a scantily furnished hall. On the landing was another guard, a heavy, brutal-lookin- g fellow His disgust was shared by the club-ma- Bromfleld had never been in such a dive before. His gambling hnd been done In gilded luxury. While he touched shoulders with this motley crew his nostrils twitched with fas-tidious disdain. He played, but his Interest was not In the wheel. Du-ran- d had promised that there would be women and that one of them should be bribed to make a claim upon CIny at the proper moment. He had an un-happy feeling that the gang politician hnd thrown him down In this. If so. what did that mean? Had Durand some card up his sleeve? Was he using him as a catspaw to rake In his own chestnuts? Clarendon Bromfleld began to wenk-e- n. He and Clay were the only two men In the room In evening clothes. His questing eye fell on tough, scarred faces thnt offered Ms fears no re-assurance. Any one or all of them "Collins 'Slim Jim," answered big Dave. "Well, he's got his this time," the policeman said. "Skull smashed." Clay's heart sank. In that noise of struggling men and crashing furniture very likely the sound of the shots had been muffled. The revolver gone, false testimony against him, proof that he hud threatened Collins available, Clay knew that he was In desperate straits. "There was another guy here with hlra In them glud rags," volunteered one of the gamblers captured In the raid. "Who was he?" asked the plain-clothes man of his prisoner. Clay was silent. He was thinking rapidly. His enemies had him trapped at Inst with the help of circumstance. Why bring Bromfleld Into It? It would mean trouble and worry for Beatrice. "Better speak up, young fellow, me lad," advised the detective. "It won't eyes sparkled. For all her silmness, she looked both competent and dan-gerous. "What does he say?" her father asked. "Says he didn't meet Clay at ail-- that he didn't show up. Dad, there's something wrong about It. Clary's In a panic about something. I'm going to see him, no matter whether he can li'ave his room or not." Whitford looked dubious. "I don't w e " "Well, I do," his daughter cut hha off decisively. "We're going to his roomsnow. Why not? He says he's ill. All right. I'm engaged to be married to him and I've a right to see hew ill he is." "What's In your noodle, honey? You've got some kind of a suspicion. What is It?" "I think Clary knows something. conviction it had been done in e. "We'll get the best lawyers In New York for him, honey," he said. "No-body will slip anything over on Lind-say if we can help it" "Will they let us see him? Or shall we have to get; permission from some one?" "We'll have to get an order. I know the district attorney. He'll do what he can for me, but maybe it'll take time." Beatrice rose, strong again and re-silient. Her voice was vibrant with confidence. "Then after you've called up the district" attorney, we'll drive to Clay's flat In Harlem and find out from Johnnie what he can tell us. Perhaps he knows what Clay was doing in that place they raided." It was not necessary to go to the Runt. He came to them. As Beatrice and her father stepied Into the car My notion is that he was at Mad-dock- 's and that he's In a blue funk for fear he'll be found and named as an accessory. I'm going to find out all he can tell me." "But" She .looked at her father directly, a deep meaning In the lovely eyes. A little tremor ran through her body. "Dad, I'm going to save Clay. That's the only thing that counts." Her words were an appeal, a chal-lenge. They told him that her heart belonged to the friend In prison, anl they carried him back somehow to the hour when the nurse first laid her, a tiny baby, In his arms. His heart was very tender to her. "Whatever you say, sweetheart." Their chauffeur broke the speed laws getting them to the apartment might be agents of Durand. He shoved all of his chips out, put-ting half of them on number eight and the rest on seventeen. His object was to lose bis stark immediately and be free to go. To his annoyance the whirling ball dropped Into the pocket labeled eight. "Let's get out of this hole," he said to Lindsay in a low voice. "I don't like It." "Suits me." agreed the other. As Bromfleld was cashing his chips Clay came rigidly to attention. Two men hnd Just come Into the room. One of them was "Slim" Jim Collins, the other Oqrilla. Dave. As yet they had not seen him. He did not look at 'them, but at his host. There was a question In his mind he wanted solved. The clubmnn's gaze passed over both the newcomers without the least sign of recognition. "I didn't know what this Joint was like or I'd never have brought you," apologized Clarendon. "A friend of mine told me about It. He's got a queer funcy If he likes this frazzled dive." Clay acquitted Bromfleld of He must have been tailed here by Durand's men. nis host had help you any to be sulky. You're up against the electric chair sure." The Arlzonan looked at him with the level, unafraid eyes of the hills. "I reckon I II not talk till I'm ready," he said In his slow drawl. The handcuffs clicked on his wrists. CHAPTER XVI Be Makes a Morning Call. Colin Whitford came Into the room carrying a morning paper. His step was hurried, his eyes eager. When he spoke there was the lift of excitement In his voice. "Bee, I've got bad news." "Is the Bird Cage flooded?" asked Beatrice. "Or have the miners called a strike again?" "Worse than thnt. Lindsay's been arrested. For murder." The bottom fell out of her heart. She caught at the corner of a desk to steady herself. "Murder! It can't be! Must be some one of the same name." "I reckon not, honey. It's Clay sure enough. Listen." He read the head-lines of a front-pag- e story. "It can't be Clay ! What would he be doing In a gnmbllng-dlve?- " She Johnnie and Kitty appeared round the corner. Both of them had the news of a catastrophe written on their faces. A very little encouragement and they would be In tears. "Ain't it tur'ble, Miss Beatrice? They done got Clay at Inst. After he made 'em all look like plugged nickels they done fixed it so he'll mebbe go to the electric chair and" "Stop that nonsense, Johnnie," or-dered Miss Whitford sharply, a pain stabbing her heart at his words. "Don't begin whining already. We've got to see him through. Buck up and tell me what you know." "That's right, Jol.rnle," added the mining man. "You and KIttw quit looking like the Atlantic ocean In aU-tres- We've got to endure the grief and get busy. We'll get Lindsay out of this hole all right." "You're dawg-gone- d whlstlln'. Y'bet-ch- a, by Jollies !" agreed the Runt, Im-mensely cheered by Whltford's confi-dence. "We been drug into this an' we'll sure hop to It." "When did you see Clay last? How did he come to be In that gambling-house- ? Did he say anything to you about going there?" The girl's ques- - late, now did you and Clay Lindsay J come to go to that den?" II "We went out to to see the town." J . "But why to that place? Are you y In the habit of going there?" 1 He shuddered. "Never was there H before. I had a card. Some one gave. H It to me. So we went In for few H minutes to see what it was like. The B police raided the place." He dropped I his sentences reluctantly, as though they were being forced from him in, pain. "Well?" "Everybody tried to escape. The lights went out. I found a back dooi and got away. Then I came home." "What about Clay?" Bromfleld told the truth. "I didn't see him after the lights went out, ex-cept for a moment. He was running at the man with the gun." "You saw the gun?" He nodded, moistened his dry Hps with the tip of his tongue. "And the the shooting? Did you see that?" Twice the words he tried to say faded on his lips. At last he managed a "No." "Why not?" AH "I found a door and escaped." . Told, There Were Not a Dozen Respectable-Lookin- g People in the Room, who was no doubt the "chucker-out.- " He, too, looked them over closely, but after a glance at the card drew aside to let tlictu pass. Through a door near the head of the stairs they moved Into a large room, vtdently made from several smaller ones witft the partitions torn town and the ceilings pillared at Intervals. Cluy hud read about the magnifi-cence of Canfleld's In the old days, and he was surprised thnt one so faa-tldlo-as Bromfleld should patronize place so dingy and so rough as this. At the end of one room was a marble mantelpiece above which there was a defaced, gilt-fram- e mirror. The chan-deliers, the chairs, the wallpaper, all suggested the same note of one-tim- e opulence worn to shabblness. A game of Klondike was going. There wore two roulette wheels, a faro table, and one circle of poker players. The cold eyes of a sleek, slippery man sliding cards out of a faro-bo- x looked at the westerner curiously. Among the suckers who came to this den of thieves to be robbed were none of Clay'g stamp. Lindsay watched the white, dexterous hands of the dealer nouung ro do with It. What for? They could not openly attack him' "Slim" Jim's eyes fell on him. He nudged Dave. Both of them, standing near the entrance, watched Lindsay steadily. Some one outside the door raised the cry, "The bulls are comin'." Instantly the room leaped to fren-rle- d excitement. Men dived for the doors, bets forgotten and chips scat-tered over the floor. Chairs were smashed as they charged over them tables overturned. The unwary were trodden underfoot. Bromfleld went Into a panic. Why had he been fool enough to trust Durand? No doubt the fellow would ruin him as willingly as he would Lindsay. The raid was fifteen min-utes ahead of schedule time. The ward politician had betrayed him He felt sure of it. All the carefully pre-pared plans agreed upon he Jettisoned promptly. Ills sole thought was to save himself, not to trap his rival. Lindsay caught him by the arm "Let's try the back room." He followed Clay, Durnnd's gang-me- n at his heels. The lights went out. The westerner tried the window. It was heavily barred outside. He turned to search for a door. " uui wnen sne had It the lines blurred before her eyes. "Read It, please." Whitford rend the story to the last line. Long before he had finished, his dnughter knew the one arrested was Clay. She sat down heavily, all the life stricken from her young body. "It's that man Durand. He's done this and fastened it on Clay. We'll find a way to prove Clay didn't do It." "Maybe, In self-defens- Beatrice pushed back her father's hesitant suggestion, and even while she did It a wave of dread swept over her. The dead man was the same criminal "Slim" Jim Collins whom the cattleman had threatened In order to protect the Mllllkan girl. The facts that the man hnd been struck down by a chair and thnt her friend claimed nccording to the paper, that the gun man had fired two shots, buttressed I he solution offered by Whitford. But Ihe horror of It was too strong for her. Against reason her soul protested that Clay could not have killed a man. It was too horrible, too ghastly, that through the faults of others he should be put In such a situation. And why should her friend be in such a place unless he had been trapped by the enemies who were de-- lumuiru oer iniu ouier id ner hurry. "Well, ma'am, It must 'a' been about nine o'clock that Clay left last night. I recollect because " : "It doesn't matter why. Where was he going?" "To meet Mr. Bromfleld at his club," said Kitty. "Mr. Bromfleld!" cried Beatrice, sur-prised. "Are you sure?" 'That's what Clay said," corroborated the husband. "Mr. Bromfleld Invited him. We both noticed It because It seemed klnda funny, him and Clay not beln' " "Johnnie," his wife reproved, mind-ful of the relationship between this young woman and the clubman. "Did he say which club?" "Seems to me he didn't, not as I How about that, Kitty?" "No. I'm sure he didn't ne said he wouldn't be back early. So he went to bed. We s'posed after we got up this mo'nln' he was sleepln" In his room, till the paper come and I looked at It." Johnnie gave way to lament "I told him awhile ago he had orto go back to Arizona or they'd git him. And now they've gone and done It sure enough." Keen as a hawk on the hunt. Bea-trice turned to her father qutcMy. "You must have heard shooting." "I heard shots as I ran down tho stairs. This morning I read that that a mnn was" He swallowed down a lump and left the sentence un-finished. . "Then you know that Clay Is ac-cused of killing this man, and that the police are looking for you because you were with him." "Yes." His answer was a dry whis-per. "Did you see this man Collins in the room ?" "No. I shouldn't know him if I saw him." . "But you heard shots. You're sure of that!" cried Beatrice. "Y-yes- ." The girl turned triumphantly to her father. "He suw the gun and he heard shots. That proves self-defen-at the worst. They were shoot-ing at Clay when be struck with the chair If he did. Clarendon's testi-mony will show that" "My testimony!" screamed Brom-fleld. "My O d, do you think I'm going to to go Into court t They would claim I I was " She waited, but he did not finish. "Clay's life may depend upon It, and of course you'll tell the truth," she said quietly. He Shivered at Sight of Her. house for bachelors where Bromfleld lived. His valet for once was caught off guard when he opened the door to liiein. Beatrice was inside before l.e cotiTtf quite make up his mind how best to meet this frontal attack. "We came to see Mr. Bromfleld," she said. "Sorry, miss. He is really quite III. Rronght up by the partition. Brom- The doctor says" fleld was whimpering with fear as he too groped for a way of escape. A pale moon shone throngh the window upon his evening clothes. In the dim light Clay knew that tragedy Impended. "Slim" Jim had his automatic out. "I've got you good." the chauffeur snarled. The gun cracked. Bromfleld bleated In frenzied terror ns Clay dashed for-wnr- A chair swung round In a sweeping arc. As It descended the spitting of the gun slashed throngh the darkness a second time. "Slim" Jim went down, rolled over lay like a log. Some one dived for Lindsay and drove him against the wall, pinning him by the wnbtf A second figure Joined the first and caiight the cattle-man's wrist. Then the llglifs flashed on again. Clay saw that the man who had flung him against the partition was Ooillla Dave. A plain-clothe- s mnn with n star hnd twisted his wrist and was clinging to it. Bromfleld was nowhere to be seen, hut an open d.wr to the left showed that he had .found at least a temporary escape. fte: Tim "Maybe I didn't hear shota." he hedged. "Maybe It was furniture falling. There was a lot of noise of people stamping and fighting." " I ou hea rd shots." The eyes of the girl were deadly weapons. They glittered like unscab-barde- d steel. In them was a con-tained tflre that awed him. He threw out his hand In a weak. Impotent gesture of despair. "My (J d, how did I ever come to get Into such a mlx-up- ? It will ruin me." "How !ld you conte to jo?" she asked. "He wanted to see New York. I suppose I had some notion of taking hi in shimming." t Beatrice went up to hlin and looked straight into his eyes. "Then testify to thnt In court. It won't hurt you any. o down to the police and say you have read In the paper that they wunt you. Telt the whole truth. And Clary don't wenken. Stick to your story about the shots." Her voice shook a little. "Clay's life U at stake. Remember that." "Do you think It would be safe to go to the police?" he asked doubtfully. Whitford spoke up. "Thats the with an honest distaste. All along tba border from Juarez to Calexlco he had seen Just such soft, skilled fingers fleecing those who tolled. He kuew the - bloodless. Impassive fc of the professional gambler as well as he knew the rnxlous, reckless ones of his victims.. His knowledge had told him little good of this breed of parasites who preyed upon a credulous public. The, traffic of this room was crooked business by day ns well as by nlht. A partition ran across the rear of the hsck per!, which sh-- ao opening mit two siualt holes with narrow shelves at the bottom. Back of that was. the paraphernalia of the pool-room, another device to separate cus-tomers from their money by playing the "ponies." As CIny looked around It struck Mm that the personnel of this gamhlliig-den'- s patrons was a slnguinrly depress-ing one. All told, there were not a dozen respectable looking peopW in the room. Most of those present were derelicts of life, the failures of a great city washed up by the tide. Some were pallid, haggard wretches clinging to the "vestiges of a prosperity that had once been theirs, others were hard-face- ruflliins from the undcr- - l m going to get Clarendon on the phone. Hell know all about It." "Why will he know all about It?" "Because he was with CIny. He's the man the paper says the police are looking for the man with Clay when It hr,pened." Her father's eyes lit "That's good guewsino; . Jee." It whs her fiance's man who an-swered the girl's call. She learned that Clnrendon was still In his room. "He's quite sick this morning, miss." the valet added. "Tell Mm I want to talk with him. It's Important" "I don't think, miss, that he's able" . "Will you please tell hi in what I say?" Presently the voice of Bromfleld, thin ii.nl worried, same to her over the wire. "I'm ill, Bee. Absolutely done up. I I can't talk." "Tell me about Clay Lindsay. Were you with him when when it happen d?" There wns a perceptible pause be-fore the answer came. "With him?" She could feel hi ter-ror throbbing over Ihe wire. Though she could not see him, she knew her "I'm Miss Whitford. We're en-gaged to be married. It's very Im-portant thnt I see him." "Yes. miss, I know." The man was perfectly well aware that his master wanted of all things to avoid a meeting with her. For some reuson or other, Bromfleld was In a state of collnpse this morning the valet could not understand. The man's business was to protect him until he had recovered. But he could not flat-ly turn his master's fiancee out of the i.pl iniOiil. Hia eyes turned to Whit-ford and found no help there. He fell back on the usual device of servants. "I don't really think he enn see you. miss. Tbe dix-to- r has specially told me to guard against any excitement. But I'll ask Mr. Bromfleld If If he feels up to It." The valet passed Into what wns evi-dently a bedroom and closed the door behind him. There was a fulnt mur-mur of voices. "I'm going in now," Beatrice an-nounced abruptly to her father. She moved forward quickly, before Whitford could stop her. whipped open the door and stepped Into the room. Her futher followed her only square and safe thing to do, Bromfleld. They'll find out who you are, of course. If you .go straight to them you draw the sting from their charge that you were an accomplice of Clay. Don't lose your nerve. You'll go through with flying colors. When a man has done nothing wrong he needn't be afraid." "I flare say you're right." agreed Bromfleld miserably. (TO UK CONTINUED A policeman came forward and stooped over the figure of the prog-trat- e man. "Some one's croaked a guy." he said. Corilln Dave spoke up quickly. "This fellow JiiI It. with a chair. I neon him." There wns n moment before Lindsay answered quietly. "He shot twice. The gun must be lying under him where he fell." Already men hnd crowded forward to the scene of the tragedy, moved by the morbid curiosity a crowd has In such sights. Two policemen pushed them hack and turned the still ,ody over. No revolver was to be seen. "Anybody know who this Is?" one of the officers asked. world. Not a few bore the marks of the drug victim. All of those playing had a manner of furtive suspicion. They knew thnt if they risked their money the house would rob them. Yet they played. Bromfleld bought a small stack of Thtps at the rouMte table. "Won't you lake a whirl at the wheel?" he askod Lindsay. "Thanks, no. I believe not." his guest answered. The westerner was a bit disgusted at Iris host's huk of discrimination. "Dws he think I'm a soft mark too?" he wondered, "if this is what he calls high life I've had uion; than enough nlre:ii The Bottom Fell Out of Her Heart. She Caught at the Corner of a Desk to Steady Herself. termlned to ruin him? She knew he had a contempt for men who wasted their energies in futile dissipation He was too clean, too much a gon of the wind swept desert, to care any-thin- g about the low pleasures f in-decent and furtive vice. He was the last man she knew likely to he found enjoying a den of this wort. 'Tail, I'm going to him." she an-nounced with crisp decision. Her father offered no protest. Hit Impulse, too, was to stand by the friend in need. He hud no doubt Clay had killed the umo, but he had a sure question had stricken hlin whliu. "With him where?" "At this gambling house Ma "No, I Bee. I lell you I'm III." He went out last night to Join jou at your club. I know that. When did you see Mm last?" "I we didn't he didn't come. "Then you didn't see him at nllT There was another pause, significant and telling, followed by a quavcrln? "No-o.- " "Clary. 1 want to see you rlghi a way." "I'm III. I lell you enn't leae my bed." lie gave a groan too genuin" to doubt. Beatrice bung up the receiver. Her re-luctantly. Clarendon, in a frogged dressing-gown- , lay propped up by pillows. Be. side the bed was a troy, upon which was a decanter of whisky and a siphon of soda. His figure seed to have fullen together and Us sensed face was that of an old umii. But It was the eyes that held her. They were full of stark terror. The look In them took the girl's breath. Tfcey told her that he had undergone some great shock. II shivered at sight of her. , "What Is It, Clary?" she cried, mov-ing toward him. "Tell me tell me nil about It." " . "I I'm III." He quaked It from a burning throat. First Use cf Term "Yankee"? The term Yankee, according to Bom-bnug- Is not Indian, hut Dutch, and means to snarl and quarrel. It was applied hy the burghers of New Am-sterdam to the lavader from Conne-cticut |