| Show THE FREE TRADERS AND YOU Lie L L e Ano Anderson mon Hoy- Hoy al aI Canadian Mounted Mount Pollee sergeant ser ser- er geant Is la tent lent to Stony Ston range ranee to torrent arrest a man named Telly relly for tor murder He lIe la Is also Instructed to look after Jim reputed head of the Free 1 reo Trader Traders Illicit liquor runners At Little Fall Faile he fin ands da Pelly i U Ie cr credited d with having baying found a gold Bold mine and andIe andIs andla la Is At the hotel appear appere a girl obviously out of place In Inthe Inthe the tho rough A half halt br breed ed Pierre and a companion Shorty Short Anno annoy the tho girl Irl Anderson Anderson An An- derson denon Interferes In her behalf m CHAPTER M Continued It-Continued 2 2 He tie took refuge In Irony Well w fink of ot him him IllIn boys Joys he tie demanded de dE'- again of ot the men who ho had hod formed n II close clr circle le around the pair He ne don fight an nn he got Jot de tie nerve to toMY tosny say MY dat dot dotI II I be all all' to Pierre Couch Cauchon on No by hy gar gor 1 I guess you ou know better heller dan to 10 fight he continued adding a II afoul afoul foul epithet and onel grinning he lurched Insolently past post toward the bar shouldering shouldering haul dering Lee as he passed posed He Ile looked back for an on Instant to tore see tp re whether the other would accept the provocation and seeing that he showed no signs of or doing so he went wenton on his way with Shorty The crowd I v Lee Lea the over once It had hod no love for tor the tho bully but an Individual without the fighting Instinct In is not supposed to pose as all a alady's lady's ladys champion and then back bock down The minds of ot the prospectors were wre too obtuse to see that Lee Iee had hod simply been satisfied with gaining his point and nod enabling the girl to get ret away un un- molested Leo Lee paced the stoop for tor a It while finished a pipe and went early to his blankets lie He Interested himself In speculating who the girl was She was almost certainly going to the mission there could be no other oilier destination Perhaps he would see her hr again lie He thought of ot the possibility quite without emo emo- tion lie He ceAsed censed to think k of or her tier and ond tired after the days day's ride began beon to doz doze lIe He was awakened when the men began beon began be be- gan on to stagger Into the parlor Nearly all of ot them were drunk some were rolling drunk and after sporadic noisy altercations they were soon sprawled out like logs nil all over the floor and snoring loudly Several times Lee Ie wn was obliged obliged- to r remove move heads bends arms arm sad and feet teet from various portion portions of or his anatomy He lie was Just fall falling 1111 asleep again when hn the sound of or a name whispered whimpered almost In his bis ear car startled him Into Instant wakefulness Lee recognized the theole Voice ole as that of ot the breed Terre Pierre Cauchon For a moment or two he be could not Imagine from m where here the man mun was speaking Then r he discovered erell that the voice came from the other of ot the large empty stove e which stood at his hits head bend a n little out from the wall Ills his face and Pierres Pierre's were separated therefore by no more moro than the circumference circumference cir dr- of the tho metal container though Terre Pierre of or course did not nut g that Lee lay on the other side of 01 It nor that ho he would bo he likely to have 1111 any particular Interest In what he was saying But the name naino that had startled Lee Iee I Into wakefulness was that of or Pelly Ills fits alert through slumber lumber hud had caught It and communicated the tile warning Before Lee 11 had Imd quite attuned his ones ears to catch Pierres Pierre's remark Shorty the other man mall broke In You fool tool Pierre you nearly give tho game uway tonight fer shore You aint got tot no sense sene at nil buttin In like that flint and her tier away You didn't spose shed she'd got our grafts In her pocket did yn ya o The trouble with Is you hold jer yer r liquor Terre Pierre growled I didn't have no to say suy a n word before that tour four flusher butted In I wish Id I'd heat beat him up now no Ill I'll git the In Inthe Inthe inthe the Well anti and why didn't yn ya o Ill I'll tell n sit why Because you OU sine saw he aint no four r. r lies lie's tough that feller tel fel ler let Is an un he was yn ya u like a 0 cut cat Dont Don't yn n n make no mistake about that lint And Its It's lucky luky you OU didn't get no to 10 spill what ya U was us coin goin to or oud you'd shore have the girl away uway You listen here he lie continued you OU keep out of or this t to till tillI I gun gone 1 and then we cn ride rille hard burd and ketch up lip with her at rat sundown n and explain that were we're friends of or kern hern Their voices became Inarticulate Lee strained hl his ears to catch the Import Im tul- port of or their conversation but he could hear bear p- p thing but the low whisper wIlls this per of or their fOl s. H. H Well II I 1 guess joure youre oure right tight Short Shorty said suld Pierre utter lifter a II while hill We got to tos s see I a Mie lie hl dont don't give o us de slip SIlI though Short Shorty I and whispered something i to which h the other clucked approval She neither he said Theres There's only one way Into Inlo the range rn rn w when hen w wp I e got her there we got ot her where we Wl want tier her No more was WUi said and anti soon the snoring from front the other oilier side Bide of or the stove l I Indicated 1111 I I tint that the pair had succumbed succumbed suc sue to sleep But all desire for sleep was banished from Lees Lee's bruin brain There was the alternative of or two courses of or action atlon he could warn the girl In the morning placing himself at ather ather her disposition or he be could k keep p leer her more or less IMS In sight BIght durin during his Jour Jour- aey y t the M. M following d. d day with wit a to I A By V VICTOR ROUSSEAU Copyright by W W. O. O Chapman Service protecting her from the pair of ot ruffians rut rut- fians whenever they made mode their l ap- ap p- p o nut But he could not afford to take any action which would give the clue to his status and activities and apart from that he wanted t to- to to keep In touch with the two men men In case they could furnish any clue to 1111 Pelly's Tellys whereabouts where where- lt if If he were weri alive flye Some time Ume early In the betell be befell tIll tell Into a r restless slumber clumber from which he was waa portly partly aroused by the sound of ot a horses horse's hoofs hoots clattering in inthe the yard yord Lie wondered sleepily sleepily- whether this was wag an early arly departure or some belated arrival and then turning over monog managed d to lose consciousness consciousness con con- for tor an hour bour or two longer At last lost when further sleep had become become become be be- come Impossible he sat flat up struck a match and looking at his watch discovered discovered dis dis- covered red that It W was 8 nearly six lie He threw his Ills blankets over oter his KITH arm stepped over the sprawling limbs limbe of ot the sleepers and went out to the stable stobIe where he watered his horse afterward orten kicking his hll heels about the place II ace until In the first glimpse of ot the dawn down the squaw came shuffling Into the he kitchen Lee Iee went In Get me a cup of coffee coffee cottle cof cot fee tle and ond a piece of ot brend bread he said putting Cutting a cent piece Into her hand hondo be enough nough for tor me Ive I've got cot tobe tobe to be je moving lUo The Tile woman Shied Oiled the kettle from a apall pall of ot water on the kitchen table Lee You know that girl who came last lost night nigh Me 1 not know um the squaw grunted as she ahe set the kettle on the stove stave Dont know what time she's lea leavIng leaving leav leav- ing lug I suppose Girl um gone Gone at four tour o'clock grunted the squaw Lee whistled softly That was her horse lorse that he had hod heard then She was vu losing notime whatever her business business busi busi- ness and destination might be Lee fidgeted while willie the coffee corree came to the boll soil and had just gulped down a cupful cupful cup cup- ful tul and taken token a few tew bites at the bread and ond butter which the woman gave him when hen the landlord came sleepily I In and Lee took the opportunity of ot settling settling set set- set his bill Well Vell youre you're shore off early grumbled the fat tot proprietor Say she beat to It you though I Who Is she Lee Inquired Blamed Warned ef of t I know w Nobody hereabouts hereabouts' hereabouts hereabouts' here here- teems seems to know her ber But Dut shucks Little Falls aint moran moren three or four year yar old I 1 Guess she's the gal gol of one of ot the timers old rs back bock from school or college Or shell she'll be be l oln up to the Moravian mission like as not Yes Tea sir that shore re must be It She wouldn't be any to to of them runners hooch up to lake Joint Isn't It U So they say lay say A A cunning look into his tits eyes I guess guess ues we we aint our bends none about that Nice Free Trader outfit since they're there thereto to stay No sir It Ilont dont ids to know too much about Captain Carcajou now that the police Is In with him Lee almost betrayed himself as he struggled not to display his Indignation tion lion You mean the floe he 11 U. C C. M M. Ps P.'s been bought by that scum In Montreal Montreal Mont Mont- real he demanded what they're soy sayin In In these here parts See here stranger ef of that so sop why dont don't they git a after that Carcajou as ns they calls him You heerd heard what he did to that camp of or Indians last summer Shore SharI J I Well I sayin and I aint speak speak- In for tor you understand Im I'm only satin what other folks say soy Why th theres there's res re's two of ot gang gong In this here hotel You fou mean the big breed breid and the red headed man mun Shore I do do The landlord winked at him runners Hooch from SIston lake they doln doing here asked LeeI Lee I guess they aint here for fer no good That's why lIy I was 08 within Ish In you'd had the sand Bund to stand up to em last lost night I boy hoyl 1 I CHAPTER III An Unwelcome Guardian Lee Ipe rode rod off orr hot with Indignation at the landlords landlord's Innuendo about the II n. C. C M. M 1 1 I Nut But this soon yielded to anxiety about the girl The disclosure that tile the two men were wre from SIston lake luke and the recollection of the conversation con on he tie hind had o overheard convinced him that they were planning to kidnap kidnap kid kid- nap and convey ey her there Such a plan would seem Inconceivable able ahle but Lee Je knew that the gang gong believing believing be hl lieving their organization firmly entrenched entrenched en en- trenched In power r would stop at very little Other things equally sinister had hod been tn done by Ih them hems m. m However lr Tee Tte began to tree treathe the themore more morl freely when he had hind left the squalid little to town ton n behind him He lie walked or trotted his horse till noon neon gradually ascending toward the outskirts out outskirts skirts of ot the range ronge through a fairly open country The snows might hold off for tor tw t or three Ihna weeks yet and Lee Iee felt confident on that well within that period he would be lie able to bring back bock Telly It If the latter lat Int ter were In the region unless he took alarm In which event ent of course Lee would have to bring his bin horse bor back to Little Falls and prepare for tor a long longwinter's longwinter's winters winter's chase chas The TIle new MW dl dominion force torce carries on the tradition of ot the old West North It U does doe II not return without without without with with- out Its Ita man SIston Slaton lake was admirably adapted tot for the needs of ot the Free Traders It wu was at the extreme of ot the range or a little tittle beyond and aneS the head of ot a a lak lake and river system by which could be water forth tb II or or- tork ork Factor Factory or west as far tor as Lake Atha Atha- ba basca a. a The York boat boot laden Inden to the gunwale with supplies of liquor could push anywhere along the thousands pf of lakes and streams acting as mother r boat In turn to the canoe conoe with one or r more cases ases And over all this vii vif It it Ill de fined district the runner hooch had lad almost unlimited sway proving a serious rival to the legitimate trading Interests since he carried his poison polson Into the Indians Indian's camping grounds and took his pick of ot the choicest furs Ills trade embraced a viler one All along the fringe of ot white settlement It was active It had bad sprung up like a fungus overnight during the disorganization disorganization of ot the police In consequence of ot the war and the readjustment The gang gong were steadily embittering the relations relations relations re re- lations between whites and reds which had hod been amicable almost since the advent od of the first pioneer Whichever district the girl was bound for tor It was 88 Impossible to mIstake mistake mistake mis mIs- take the course that she would take Initially In front of Lee lay a long backbone of ot mountain with only a single pass POliS pass Into the Interior over a range of ot many many miles Scanning the galley alley carefully Lee Leesa sa saw lV about a mile beyond the P pass ll athin a n thin curl of ot smoke rising Into the still air Satisfied that he had hod the girl In InsIght Insight Insight sight Lee hesitated for tor a while undecided undecided un un- decided whether to ride up to her or orto orto orto to camp where he was keeping a lookout lookout lookout look look- out for tor Pierre and Shorty In the end nd he lie decided that the better course would be to make himself known and accordingly he descended the slope and und followed the trail along the bank of the river until he reached the camp The girl had bad already set up her tent her horse was os tethered near near the stream and she was cooking her dinner dinner din dine ner net at a fire which she had hod made She looked ver very very trim and business business- A I to toV tot t V Aa She Looked VelY Trim and Businesslike Business Business- like lika With Her Hsi Sleeves Rolled Up to Her Elbow Elbows and Her Air of Being Completely at Home Hom In These Thea Sur Sur- like Ilke with her sleeves es rolled up to her elbows and her air Ir lr of or being completely a at t home In lu these surroundings As AI Lee Iee Jumped from tram his horse she started then looked at nt him with an expression of or calm which was an at attempt attempt at- at tempt to conceal a very obvious dation Good evening h he called Im travelling our Jour our way and saw your camp tire fire rl so took the liberty of ot Joining Join Join- i ILl ing you If It theres there's no nt objection She stared hard at nt him o as If his advent advent ad ad- vent were some long expected blow that tend had suddenly fallen For a few moments she seemed under the Influence In In- fluence of or an possessing all fear Then mastering It It she answered with the same affectation of ot Indifference You can nn camp where you like ilkI of ot course The range Is free tree for tor all ail Lee a little staggered at ot the unwillingness unwillingness of or this Invitation decided that It would be better for tor the the present present not to alarm alarms tier her with tiny explanations explanations lolls and proceeded to pitch his tent near hers While he be was unloading his puck pack and watering his horse the girl went on with tier her meal without paying ati act aty attention to him L Lee feeling both uncomfortable and foolish was beginning to wish he had bod waited when a horse neighed close at hand his horse and the girls girl's answered and a |
