Show their arl r name I 1 1 r a mae was legion L eglo 0 by COURTNEY RYLEY COOPER 0 by the bell syndicate inc service CHAPTER 11 II 2 A new marshal barts interview with leon harrows barrows had been but little different from others in the lie past that alint harrows barrows had and refused to tell the identity of the person who had furnished the money molloy to sustain franklin frankiln rogers during the days when tits son lind had boen been hold held lit in hospital after hospital lid did not surprise bart in the least the true amazement was the fact that lie find ills his father had possessed a friend who desired IL to remain in the dark for friends with them had been very few seven years before they ito had come west to play with fate in the tilling of a quarter section of arv sandy soil they had find fought tor for their water rights and obtained them at lust last then they had worked ns as only a fattier and son bon can work when there Is perfect communion mu tilon A dry winter in the mountains with a cu consequent sequent dwindling irrigation supply hod taken their savings in one summer then it 11 crop bountiful and marketed fit at high prices had lifted thom them to the pinnacle only to be followed by war more than two years errs after the lie ending nil of the war bon bart had been allowed to come home and start on the winning road in spite of tin nn invalid father find tho the pressure of debt only to find a mystery at the bottom of it all who had been the man inan who had taken notes only ns as a formality who had entered into n pact with ills his father hart bart gave it up tip and joined it little group in front of the polling place who surrounded tom jordan tile apparently successful candidate vart bart looked itro around tind for the other broad shouldered blustering 1111 hull till fratina eton alon hut but failed to see jim him instead lie ile moved forward quietly as a girl came around the corner a rather child childish 1811 a appearing paea ring and wistful featured girl who ito hesitated then turned toward the bent angular figure of tin nn old man who followed tier her nod who hastened to tier lier side with a sort of doglike dog like ilke devotion in obedience to tier lier silent coil command coming for tile the results miss bliss F arnn ran nl ston ho he questioned yes ves site she smiled quickly who won they finished counting tile ballots in here yet et the alie other four precincts gave it ft majority of about to tom jordan did they honestly hart bart rogers believed lie he caught a tone of hope in tier her voice olce then then fathers beaten it looks that way im so sorry sorri hart bart rogers looked at tier her quickly wondering if what alint she sold bald were the lie truth it if youre ouro sorry im sorry too miss Fr annIston lie ile moved closer to her nut but to tell the truth I 1 voted the other way 1 I 1 I under understand strind site she hesitated tin and turned away its as though to tilde the expression pres slon which a bitter memory had brought to her features then the doglike dog like old jim once more following fol lowling tier her she went on hut but alart rogers watched after tier lier to him blin she represented more than n pretty ilk able girl she was nil all and nothing an unattainable ideal to him she represented the lie gap the near hatred which stood between him find bull Fr anniston tier her father it gap cap which dated back to tile the night before hart tin biad left for france lie ile had been walking along the rond toward town when suddenly lie he had stopped nt at the lite sound of n girlish scream followed by tile the hoarse a tiger anger 1 burdened if voice olce of it a man mail lie ile had find turned and running back the rond road had find leaped toward a man find a girl the girl cringing nit and frightened the man bellowing over tier lier list clenched for another blow then bart rogers lind fought fought with nil tile the strength in film fought ri against superior odds and lie he had bad won while in tile the background the frightened girl had crouched in the lie arms of nf a whimpering prematurely aged man only to learn when once victory hall lieen been ills his that lie lint had fought a father to prevent blin allm from boating his own daughter more blore than olice had hart bart rogers wondered if llull anniston Fr still strove to bent beat ills his daughter and it if old jim shrunk whimpering find lie apless in tile the background more lhnn once too lind hall lie he dreamed of the time when the lond load of debt which now was ills lie ile lifted that lie he might think of other things than work ofa girl per imps hops a girl for whom abom he be might strive tint the frightened wistful glance depart from tier her eyes forever and glowing happiness beam there in ted put hut the dream had bad not cowe ccuin tru tn so now as ai in the post past lie wa was 9 11 watcher looking after them na its they alade their way down the street the crowd at the curbing moved forward the workers surging about the red faced somewhat docile appearing tom jordan us its lie he went forward to receive the verdict ord lct the election judge grinned find and put forth a hand so im mayor ell eh genial easygoing old tom jordan ex merely stood and grinned gosh I 1 then tile the workers surged about him while fit at the vry very edge bart cloger 8 stood smiling tin and satisfied ile he had wanted tom jordan to win not that jordan would make it a wonderful mayor but rogers knew ono one tiling thing that tom jordan would try to do the right tiling thing whether lie ho accomplished plis lied the feat or not at last the group about tile the newly elected mayor parted tin and bart rogers true rue to small western town ton form went forward to proffer ills his the big cattleman bo boomed ollied witt with imp just as lie he hall had lone done with jill the others who ulio had shaken ills his liand hand then suddenly lie he sobered hart bart lie he said quietly na as he drew him aside ive ile had illy DO eye ee on you jou for a long time now I 1 want to ask you ou a person personal nl question are you ou as friendly with hull bull Pr anniston as you sou tire are with ills daughter 1 I vote ota for him im not a F man mr air jordan good enough haiti bart I 1 I 1 had a hunch you ou but I 1 just wanted to lo be sure you see hart bart im ens easy goin ini im the sort of follow fellow who lets ills his friends play piny with him bilm tin and to do him up tit brown ra thern en say no to loin em so ini im lookin for a young oung fellow with avith a gool good strong chin that I 1 can say sa to here theres only one job lit in tills his ton that has to to do with tile keeping of the peace and the lie marsdal mar I 1 im in going to gle give you ou that job I 1 want him hill tile the kind of a ft fellow alow pinch iny im best friend it if lies lone done wrong and tell me 1110 to go to h 1 if I 1 come along and try to get him out understand exactly 11 all right dart bart and a big fi lendl hand found a place on the younger lounger mans shoulders ive ie been looking over oer the lie lierd herd considerable and le ive just about come coine to the conclusion that youre joure the lie critter ci liter I 1 want vhal sni say nut but I 1 dont know anything an thing about the job know nn riny thing about war until you ou went into it did you ou no true all right the same thing goes here what say sa can I 1 have hae a little time to think it over oer sure a week it if you ou want it 1 I guess I 1 ought to know by bs that time then hart bart thanked jordan and started to run home A half nille mile and lie dropped into n walk fagain to ease the pull on tits his lungs for the mark of a bullet built still remained there unnoticed most of tile alie time fiffie but bill ready to probest at the first heay heavy strain five hundred yards lie gained ills his breath again and once more lit increased creased tits ills speed only to it turn ira suddenly from the rond to stop and to watch with something of in terest as it car lurched over oer it hill bore down upon jim then in a swirl of lust dust passed lilia ow on the wily way to town llull mused rogers as lie tied eyed tile the dust listed haved form ot of tile ninn man jit at tile the wheel sure Is lii hurry irr ing guess lie must be beating it into town to find olli out liow how bad lie got whipped in tile the election soon however three more machines roared past pait unit and lie once more resumed tits ills journey wondering slightly the cause of four racing machines each cadi loaded to its limit but it tit only for a moment moni tnt then the throbbing of other engines from the rear caused him again to stolid stand aside in straight succession three bills by b nor did the lie occupants seen bebin I 1 to laced his waving waging signals as lie he strove to flag them thein at last however li oter in ili obedience to ills his frantic upp appeals Pills tin an overloaded vehicle elite ie camo came to a skill ling stop and rogers laughing laughl nc ran rain toward it lust had in to flag you ou lie he apologized so many any blamed blame machines lini chines passing I 1 cant keep to the road well hurry up III the llie driver was playing placing with the hand throttle tills things to big too miss thing Ihl ng koecis stored stared thing lint happened belled happened tile man tit nt the wheel kieel stared blared blankly nt lit lilla as rogers caught the windshield i and ind clung precariously to a footing on tile lie running board us as the in macli nelline lne started slimed again dont you on conw kon oil I 1 happened I 1 oil you yon mean over oe the there re where been drilling where else do you sup Rup pos pose 9 1 I I 1 dont know A sudden ex ellet cl lement nent tin lind swept cool thoughts from the he brain of hart bart rogers do you lou really mean it thep struck lel oil over oer there you mean tile the derrick over oer liy by my illy place ice youre rogers arent bonill oy tile aliver looked tit at with it new in lerest how flow much land lne have you got A hundred undred li unit and sixty what do you jou want for it 1 I I 1 dont know tell me lite about tile the oil there any an joke about this Is there joke johe ot of course not bull plan fron elston brought the word vord the well caine arne in about an hour ago its a gusher from what lie he sold said run 10 barrels a day dart bart rogers bogers could only repent repeat tile the shouted announcement of tile the driver 1 ten thousand barrels a day a end nd the well wits was loss less than a halt mile front from his division fence that meant what did it mean what it mean oil pools are not selective things they the extend for miles und and tills this bart rogers knew As the c hugging chugging motor car whizzed away tile the last mile the shouting driver told bini of the possible wealth which lay in for him in the future then the car turned the last bend in the rond road and there before hani till bart rogers saw a dream come true tit the e sun was waa just setting and silhouetted against it the lie oil derrick a black skeleton like thing ling sprucing tying toward the sky a spouting stream of ebony eboni which flitch disintegrating and it drifting with the wind caught the sheen of tile the lying blue sun and burst into myriad rainbows A floating mass of colors colora such buch wits was that spray spra which lew flow high from tile the gushing well ivell colors which seemed to wilie out for hart bart rogers lily ills colorless past and coln bingle into a painting of happiness fur for the file future nearer and nearer tiny they cattle came to the derrick will and the thronging persons about lt itchen hart bart unable to hold himself longer leaped from tile lie running board of the car as the machine macli lne wallowed lit in a ined hole and raced toward the denied AMU it last it seemed to be tile the only question lie he could think of as aa I 1 he e forced ills his way toward the driller dr illers will it lust they looked nt at him with scornful eyes of course last its just the beginning I 1 tills coun tryg going to ile he a madhouse of money I 1 didde of three months oil all and its high gradel grade 1 hart bart rogers turned awny vale pale with the realization of what had happened trembling with the excitement of 0 it throbbing with the knowledge that tits his troubles lea find and the troubles of theman the man alie ni vallel litell lit in tile the little cabin over oer the lie were over idich Rl clit I 1 lie he gasped and there was as tin an instinctive reverence reference in the tone itoch I 1 rich I 1 lie ile swerved away now running plunging through the irrigation ditch in anter to ills his armpits armp itil then dripping scrambled onward neither realizing ills wetness vet ness nor coring caring A half mile wily aw a lay illy ft a little cabin just visible when lie readied reached the top of tile the hill a cabin where here the rays rais of the setting sun had blazed the windows to ruddy rudd gold its as though lit in prophecy and where awaited the man to whom bart lingers longed most of till nil to give ghe the news of happl happiness ness rind and of wealth le ive got to ile he careful with him lie said to himself oot at to break it ansy ens get him too excited netter better nett bett er I 1 not at tell lint him the whole truth better t er let it grow dm day by day yes it better just tell him that brought in oil all enough so that we wont lune have to worry P then through sheer will power he restrained himself to a walk so BO tint that his own excitement not betray the file true importance of tits Ms message then ills pes eyes beaming what ills his lips could not say lie he forced himself to a leisurely pace and approached the dollso hello lello I daal it was the usual eve ee nang greeting placing ills hand upon tit alip rh shoulder of the lie slumped figure ile he waited as aa lie always had waited in I 1 the lie vain aln hope that tills this might be the night where there would come tin an on an awer when some faint ocal so sound lillI would tell of a return of speech tind it a chonce chance for reco recover vry rut but there was waa only silence A As usual rort lint ted led the shoulder lovingly long lv anil and turning groped through tile gathering darkness for the lamp oot got a little news today toda dad lie he chatted as lie shook tile lie old oil burner mid and scraped the lie wick with lh the burning mateli they brought in some oil over tit at tile alie derrick dont think it amounts to so ao much but bd r it Is 8 it boosts the price of our lond land anything that looks like oil all you iou know means money of course it inny ina 11 amount mo ID I 1 to a lot find and then it way ma amount to nothing so sn I 1 guess wt we 11 get it lie HP w wiped the chimney jill ad adjusted lusted it set the lamp upon a table then lie went to the chair alch always awaited him the one beside the lie big comfort able one where rested the invalid yep dud dod whatever jt Is were hound bound to loine come nut mit ahead oil and lie ile allowed allow id a bit of ills his enthusiasm to roll forth lit a laugh we vere re going to get there yet let you ion and 1 I just walt wait all ami see 1 I lie stopped ills outstretched elied hand had touched the one of its his father it I 1 was cold cold suddenly trembling lie ho rose and faced face the form in the chair dad lie called did dad I 1 hut but the faint reflected rays ras of the lamp showed no answering light lit in the set stare of at the eyes the hie mouth was dropped and drawn the features were fixed again burt called lit in a voice that bore a n note of agony agoni feverishly 11 lie e grasped tile the ley icy hands bands and rubbed them hoping against hope it lip burled buried ills his head ri against the chest where as a tousle headed beaded tiny 1 lie he often hall had rest ast ed pra praying ing hoping but hart bart rogers father bollier wits was dead more complications |