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Show '' ' ,; ' THE BINGHAM NEWS, BINGHAM. UTAH l&wuwwmiHitHtttm:iiitiiin I I By WILLIAM MACLEOD RAINE 8 Copyright by William Mac Leod Rain 1 rettmffltfflaiimiii;iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitttt: the Hunt cnme back to that post many times ns the starting-poin- t for weary, high-heel- e 1 tramps through streets within a circuit of a mile. lie could not have explained why he did so. 'Per-Imp-s it was because this' was the only spot in the city that held for him any tangible relationship to Clay. Some one claimed to have seen hlnv vanish Into one of these houses. Perhaps he might come back again. It was a very tenuous hope, but it was the only one Johnnie had. He clumped over the pavements till his feet ached in pro-test. Ills patience was rewarded. On the second duy, while he was gazing blank-ly at the post a groom brought two horses to the curb in front of the house opposite. One of the horses had a real cowboy's saddle. Johnnie's eyes gleamed. ThhVwus like a breath of honest-to-Go- d r Arizona. The door opened, and out of it came a man and a slhn young woman. Both of them were dressed for riding, she in the latest togs of the town, he in a well-c- ut sack suit and high tan boots. Johnnie threw up his hat and gave a yell. "Yo blamed old horn-toad- ! Might 'a' knowed you was all right! uuu aim pies. Mm latent cuaie in handy now, for Clay was no house-keeper. - After the breakfast things were cleared away Johnnie fared forth to a certain house adjoining Riverside drive, where he earned ten dollars a week as outdoors man. His business was to do odd jobs about the place, lie cut and watered the lawn. He made small repairs. Beatrice had a rose garden, and under her direction he dug, watered and fertilized. Incidentally, the snub-nose-d little puncher with the unfinished features adored his young mistress in the dumb, uncritical fashion a schoolboy does a Ty Cobb or an Eddie Collins. In his heart he had hopes that Clay would full In love with and marry her. But her actions worried him. Some-times he wondered If she really under-stood what a catch Clay was. ' He tried to tell her his notions on the subject the morning Clay praised his flapjacks. She was among the rose-bushe-gloved and hatted, clipping American Beauties for the dining room, a dainty but very self-relia- little personality. "Miss Beatrice, I been thinkuV about you and Clay," he told her, leaning on What mole tiKely limn thai W.iuul arranged to have her spirited awayl Lindsay had read that hundreds ol ' girls disappeared . every year in tn city. If they ever came to the surface, again it was as dw'eUers In that uu- - .' derworld In the current of which thej ., had been caught. ... He had an engagement that after- - noon to wulk with Beatrice Whltford, They crossed to Mornlngslde park ' ' and moved through it to the northern end where the remains of Fort Lalght, built to protect the approach to tin ' city during the War of 1812, can still be seen and traced. Beatrice had reud the story of.th earthworks. In the midst of the tell-ing of It she stopped to turn upon htm with swift accusation, "You'r not listening." "That's right, I wasn't," he admit-ted. "Have you heard something about your clgnrette girl?" Clay was amazed at the accuracj of 'her center shot. ..... "Yes." He allowed her the', new paper. She read. The golden head nodded triumphantly. "I told you she coula look out for herself. You see when " nha hnri lost vnn uhe enonrh tt . u THE MATCH-MAKE- R SYNOPSIS. A foreword tells this: , Motoring through Arizona, a party " .'of easterners, father and daughter and a male companion, stop to wit-ne- ss a cattle round Op. The girl leaves the car and is attacked by a wild steer. A masterpiece of riding on the part of one of the cowboys saves her life. Then the story begins: Clay Lindsay, range-rid- er on an Arizona ranch, an-nounces his- - Intention to visit the "big town,"-- New York. On the train Lindsay becomes interested In a young woman, Kitty Mason, on. her way to New York to become "Who are you?" "Me, I'm Johnnie Green of the ranch. I Just drapped In from Arizona and I wantta see the postmas-ter." " "Suppose you tell your troubles to me." Johnnie changed his weight to the other foot "No, suh, I allow to see the postmaster himself personal." "He's busy," explained the official. "He can't possibly see anybody with-out knowing his business." "Thnt'a all right, I've lost my pal. I wantta see " ' The superintendent of complaints street, and take this note to Capt. Luke Byrne. He'll see that the matter Is Investigated for you. Do you know the way to police headquarters?" "I reckon I can find it. Is It fur?" The man from Arizona looked down at the high-heele- d boots In which his tortured feet had dumped over the pavements of the metropolis all morn-ing. 'Til send you in a taxi." The post-master was thinking that this babe in the woods of civilization never would be able to find his way alone, i ' As the driver swept the car in and out among the traffic of the narrow a motion-pictur- e actress. She la marked as fair prey by a fellow traveler, Jerry Durand, gang politi- - clan and fighter. Perceiving , his' Intentions, Lindsay provokes a quarrel and throws Durand from the train. On his first day in New York Lindsay Is splashed with wa-ter by a janitor. That individual the range-ride- r punishes summarily and leaves tied to a ' fire hydrant A young woman who sees the oc t currence Invites Clay into her, house and hides him from the po-lka. Clay's "rescuer" introduces herself as Beatrice Whltford. Lind-say meets her father, Colin. Whlt-ford, and is Invited to visit them again. He meets Kitty Mason by accident. She has been disappointed in her stage aspirations, and to support herself la selling cigarettes In a cabaret. Clay visits her there. Kitty is insulted by a customer. Clay punishes the annoyer. After a lively mlxup Llndvay escapes. Outside, he is attacked by Jerry Durand and a companion and beaten insensible. Lindsay's ac- - qualntance with Beatrice Whltford ripens. CHAPTER VI Continued. But though Clarendon Bromfleld had no doubt of the issue of his suit, the friendship of Beatrice for this fel-low from Arizona stabbed his vanity. . It hurt his class pride and his personal self-estee- m that she should take pleas-ure In the man's society. Bee never had been well-broke- n to hnrness. He set his thin lips tight and resolved that he would stand no nonsense of this sort after they were married. If . she wanted to flirt It would have to be with some one In their own set. Beatrice could not understand her-- . self. She knew that she was behav ing rather Indiscreetly, though she did not fathom the cause of the restless-ness that drove her to Clay Lindsay. Ilie truth is that she was longing for cut Into lils parrot-lik- e repetition. "Yes, you mentioned that But the postmaster doesn't know where he Is, does he?" "He might tell me where his mall goes, as the old sayln' Is," "When did you lose your friend?" , "I oln't heard" from htm since he come to New York. So beln' as I got a chanct to go from Tucson with a Jackpot tralnload of cows to Denver, I klnda made up my mind to come on here the rest of the way and look him up; I'm afraid some one's done him dirt." "Do you know where he's staying?" "No, suh, I don't.". The superintendent of complnlnts tapped with his fingers on the desk. Then he smiled. The postmaster was fond of a Joke. Why not let this odd little freak from the West have an In-terview with him? Twenty minutes later Johnnie was telling his story to the postmaster of the city of New York. He had written three times to Clay Lindsay and had received no answer. So he had come to look for him. "Is your friend like you?" asked the postmaster, Interested in spite of him-self. "No suh." Johnnie, alias the Runt, begnn to beam. "He's a sure-enoug- h Clay Is, every Jump of the road. I'd follow his dust any day of the week. He's the IIvest proposition that ever come out of Graham county. You can ce'talnly gamble on that." The postmaster touched a button. A clerk appeared, received orders, and disappeared. - The clerk presently returned with three letters addressed to Clay Lind-say, General Delivery, New York. The postmaster handed them to the little cow puncher. , "Evidently he never called for them." streew Johnnie clung to the top or , the door fearfully. Every moment he expected a smash. His heart was la his throat. The hurricane deck of a bronco had no terrors for htm, but this wild charge through the humming trenches shook his nerve. "I come mighty nigh askln' you would you Just a lief drive slower," he said with a grin to the chautteur as he descended to the safety of ine side-walk. "I ain't awful hardy, an' I sure was plumb scared." . . A sergeant took Johnnie In tow and delivered him at length to the office waiting-roo- of Captain Anderson, head of the bureau of missing persons. The Runt, surveying the numbers in the waiting-roo- and those passing In and out, was ready to revise his opin-ion about the possible difficulty of the Job. He Judged that half the popula-tion of New York must be missing. After a time the captain's secretary notified Johnny that it was his turn. As soon as he was admitted the punch-er began his little piece without wait-ing for any preliminaries. "Say, captain, I want you to And my friend Clay Lindsay. He " "Just a moment," Interrupted the captain. "Who are you? Don't think I got your name." - Johnnie remembered the note of in-troduction and his name at the same time. He gave both to the big man who spent his busy days and often part of the nights looking for the lost, strayed, and stolen among New York's millions. The captain's eyes swept over the note. "Sit down, Mr. Green, and let's get at your trouble. .This note Bays that you're looking for a man named Clay Lindsay who came to New York several months ago. Have you or haji. anybody else heard from htm In that time?" "What have you been thinking abont us?" the girl asked, snipping oft a big rose. , "How you're the best-lookl- n couple that a man would see anywheres." Into her clear ' cheeks the color flowed. "If I thought nonsense like that I wouldn't say It," Bhe said quiet-ly. "We're not a couple. He's a man. I'm a woman. I like htm and want to stay friends with him If you'll let me." "Sure. I know that, but " Johnnie groped helplessly to try to explain what he had meant "Clay he likes you a heap," he finished Inadequately. The eyes of the girl began to dunce. There was no use taking offense at this simple soul. "Does he? I'm sure I'm gratified," she murmured, busy with her scissors among the roses. "Yep. I never knowed Clay to look at a girl before. He sure thinks a heap of you." She gave a queer little bubbling laugh. "You're flattering me." "Honest, I alnt" Johnnie whispered a secret across the rose bushes. "Say, If you work It right I believe you can get htm." The girl sparkled. Here wai new slant on matrimonial desirability. Clearly the view of the little cow-punch-was that Clay had only to crook bis fingers to summon any girl In the world that he desired. "What would you advise me to do?" she dimpled. "Sho! I dunno." He shyly un-burdened himself of the warning he had been leading up to. "But I'd tie a can to that dude fellow that hangs around the Bromfleld guy. O" course I know he ain't one, two, three with you while Clay's on earth, but I don't reckon I'd take any chances, as the bid sayln' is. Better get et of the dude." advertise." . , Was there or was there not a faint note of malice In the girl's voice 1 Clay did not know. But It would have, neither surprised nor displeased hlra. ne had long since discovered that hi Imperious little friend was far from an angel. At his rooms he found a note await-ing him. "Come tonight after eleven. I am locked in the west rear room of tin second story. Climb up over the hack, porch. Don't make any noise. Th window will be unbolted. A friend Is mailing this. For God's suke,: don't full me." Th6 note was signed "Kitty." Be-low were given the house and street number. Was It genuine? Or did It lead to a trap? He could not tell, , It might be a plant or It lHght be a wall of real distress. There was only ! -- one way to find out unless he went to f the police. That way was to g ' through with the adventure. He dot elded to play a lone hand except fot i such help as Johnnie could give hiio j Clay took a downtown car nnd rods j to the cross-stre- mentioned In the let. . ter for a preliminary tour of Investb ? gatlon. The street designated was f one of plain brownstone fronts with. j iron-grille- d doors. The blnnk face , of the houses Invited no confidence. It struck him that there was some, thing sinister about the neighborhood, but perhaps the thought h born of th fear. Number, 121 had windows: barred with ornamental grilles. This might be to keep burglars nut. It would serve equally well to keep prls oners In. The cuttlemnn did not linger in that street lined with houses of sinister faces. He did not cure to call atten-- '' "HI Yl YII Doggone Yore Old Hide, If It Ain't You Big as Coffee, Clay!" Might 'a knowed you wouldn't bite off more'n you could chew I Oh, jou Arizona!" Clay gave one surprised look and met him In the middle of the street. The little cowpuncher did a war dunce of Joy while he clung to his friend's hand. Tears brimmed Into his faded eyes. "HI yl yl ! Doggone yore old hide, If . It ain't you big as coffee, Clay. Thinks I to myse'f, who is that pilgrim? And, bv cum. it's old h les' he said. Johnnie's chin fell. He looked a pic-ture of helpless woe. "They're the let-ters I set down an' wrote him my own se'l. Something has sure happened to that boy, looks like," he bemoaned. "We'll try police headquarters. May-be we can get a line on your friend," the postmaster said, reaching for the telephone. "But you must remember New York Is a big place. It's not like your Arizona ranch. The city has nearly elgat million innabltants. You'll understand that when one man gets lost It Isn't always possible to find him." "Why not? We got some steers down In my country about as many as you got men In this here town of youni. Tha's what we ride the range for, so's not to lose 'em. We've traced a steer clear from Tucson to Den- - mm WW Bra an escape rrom uie empty lire sue was leading, bad been seeking one for years without knowing It. Surely this round of social . frivolities, the chatter of these silly women ana smug tailor-mad- e men, could not be all there was to life. She must have been made for something better than that. And when she was with Clay she knew she had been. He gave her a vision of life through eyes that hnd known open, wide spaces, clean, whole-some, and sun-kisse- He stood on his own feet and did his own thinking. Simply, with both hands, he took hold of problems and examined them stripped of all trimmings. The man was elemental, but he was keen and broad-gauge- Jt amazed her one'day to lenrn that he had reud William James and understood his philosophy much better than she did. There was In her mind no Intention whatever of letting herself do any-thing so foolish as to marry him. But there were moments when the thought of It had a dreadful fascination for her. She did not Invite such thoughts to remain with her. For she meant to accept Clarendon Bromfleld in her own good time and jnake her social position In New York absolutely secure. She had been In the fringes too long not to appreciate a hance to get Into the social Holy of Holies. A bow-legge- d little man In a cheap, wrinkled suit with a silk kerchief knotted loosely round his neck stopped la rroiil of a iaicr wl.;e t 'r! vras selling stamps. "I wantta see the postmaster." "Corrld'y'rlght. Takel'vatorthlr'door-left,- " she said, Just as though It were two words. At that the freckled-fac- e little fellow opened wider his sklm-mll- k eyes and Ills weak mouth. "Come aguln, mu'am, please." "Corrld'y'rlght. Takel'vatorthlr'door- - left," nlie repeated. "Next." The Inquirer knew us much as he did before, ut he lacked the tournge to ask for an F.nglish translation. He shuffled ay from the window and wandered helplessly, swept up by the tide of hurrying people that flowed continuously Into the building 'and ebbed out of it. From this he was tossed Into 9 tiackwatpr thut brought Mm to nnooicr window. "I wantia wv the postmaster of this burg," lie tuui'iimeed again with a plaintive wh in. "What nlx' it T" asked the man hack i.f the gating. "Impm-taii- business, hiiiIro. Where's he at ?" The man lilm to a door upon which uu punted the legend, "Super-intendent df iioplalnts." "Wei', sir! VlMt can I do for you?" the inrn behind the Ug desk snapped. "I wantta ne the postmaster." t "What about?" "I got linp'irtutit builncss with hliu." "We got a letter rVtfht after he got here. He ain't writ since." "Perhaps he's tead. We'd better look up the morgne records." "Morgue!" Tie Runt grew excited Instantly. "That place where you keep folks, that get drowned or bumped off! Say, captain I'm here to tell you Clay was the llvest man In Arizona, which Is the same as sayln' anywherefl. Cowpunchers don't take naturally to morgues. No, sir. Clay ain't In no morgue. Like as not he's helpefi AH this yere morgue If any crooks tried their rough stuff on him. Don't get me wrong, Cnp. Clay Is the squarcst he-ma- n ever God made. All I'm yln' Is " Tle captain interrupted. He asUed sharp, Incisive questions and got busy. Presently he reached for a 'phone, got In t'juch with a sergeant at the police desk In the upper corridor, and sent an attendant with Johnnie to the po-lice department. The Irish sympathies of the ser-geant were aroused by the naive hon-esty of the Utile man. He sent for another sergeant, had card records brtfught, consulted a couple of patrol-men, and then turned to Johnnie. . "We've met your friend all right," he said with a grin. "He's wan heluva lad. Fits the description to a T. There can't be but one like him here." Andhe went on to tell the story of the adventure of the Janitor and the hose. The washed-ou- t eyes of the punch-er lit up. "That's him. That's sure him. Tell mewhere he's at?" "We dou't know. We can show you the place where he tied the Janitor, but that's the best we can do." The captain hesitated. "If you find tiiin, glv him a straight tip from me Tell him to buy a ticket for Arizona and tak the train for home. This town Is il healthy place for him. Your friend has made an enemy a powerful one. He'll understand If you tell lilm." "Whs Is this here enemy?" "Nevtr mind. He hit up too fast a pace." "You can't tell me a thing against Clny not a thing," protested Johnnie hotly, "ile'll sure do to take along. Clay will. There can't any guy knock him to me, If he does wear a uniform." "I'm not saying a thing against lilm," replied the officer Impatiently. "I'm giving him n friendly Hp to heat It, If you see hlni. Nuw I'm going to send you uptown with a plain-clothe- s man. He'll nhow you where your friend made his New York debut. That's nil we can do for you." An hour' lter the little cowpuncher wan gazing wistfully at the hitchinc-post- . His face was twisted pathet-ically to n question mark. It was as though he thought he could conjure from the post the secret of Clay's dis-appearance. Where had he gone from here? And w!--- e was h now? In the cour next two days his heels. Where yon been at, you old skeezlcks?" "How are you, Johnnie? And what are you doln here?" "You didn't answer my letters, so I come to see if you was all right." "You old scalawag. You came to paint the town red." Johnnie, highly delighted at this charge, protested. "Honest I didn't. Clay. I wasn't feelln' so tur'ble peart. Seemed like the boys picked on hie after you left. So I Jes' up and come." If Clay was not delighted to have his little FIdus Achates on his hands he gave no sign of It. He led him across the road and Introduced him to Miss Whltford. Clay blessed her for her kindness to this squnt, snub-nose- d adherent of his whose lonely henrt had driven him two thousand miles to find his friend. Her hand went out Instantly. A smile softened her eyes and dimpled her cheeks. "I'm very glad to meet any friend of Mr. Lindsay. Father and I will want to hear all about Arizona after you two have hod your visit out. We'll postpone the ride till this afternoon. That will be better, I think." Clay agreed. With a cool little nod that Included them both, she turned and ran lightly up the steps Into the house. "Some sure-enoug- h queen," mur-mured Johnnie In naive admiration, staring after her with open mouth. Clay smiled. He had an opinion of liti o.va on tiial pc!nl. CHAPTER VII Johnnie Green Match-Make- Johnnie Green gave an upward Jerk to the frying-pa- n and caught the flap-jack as It descended. ' "Fust and last call for breakfast in the dinlng-cyar- . Come and get It, he sang out to Clay. That young man emerged from his bedroom glowing. He was one or two shades V)f tan lighter than when he hnd reached the city, but the point of Arizona's untempered sun still distin-guished him from the native-born-, If there are any such among the Inhabi-tants of upper New York. "You're one sure-enoug- h rook," he drawled to his satellite. r"P.est flap-Jack- s ever made In this town." The Runt beamed all over. If he had really boon a puppy he would have wagged his tall. Since he couldn't do that he took It out In grinning. Any word of praise from Clay made the world n sunshiny one for lit id. The two men were baching It. They had n little apartment In the Bronx and Johnnie looked after It for his friend. One. of Johnnie's vices ac-cording to the standard of the boys was that he was iim neat ns nn old maid. He liked to hang around a mess-wago- and cook dough- - Miss wnitfora hit her up to keep from exploding in a sudden gale of mirth. But the sight of her d chaperon set her off Into peals of laughter In spite of herself. Ev-ery time she looked at Johnnie she went off lnto'renewed chirrups. He was so homely and so deadly earnest. The little waif was staring at her in perplexed surprise, mouth open and chin fallen. He could see no occasion for gayety at his suggestion. There was nothing subtle about the Runt. In his social code wealth did not fig-ure. A bronco buster was free to offer advice to the daughter of a millionaire about her matrimonial prospects if It seemed best. "Clay ain't one o' the common run of cowpunchers, ma'am. You bet you, by Jollies, he ain't. Clay he owns a half-Intere- In the O' course It ain't what he's got, but what he is that counts. He's the best darned pilgrim ever I did see." "He's all right, Johnnie," the girl admitted with an odd smile. "Do you want me to tell htm that I'll be glad to drop our family friends to meet his approval? I don't suppose he asked you to speak to me about It, did he?" The little range-ride- r missed the. Irony of this. "No, ma'am, I Jest but-ted in. Mebbe I hudn ought to of spoke." , "You needn't feel bad, Johnnie. There.'s no harm done If you don't say anything about It to Mr. Lindsay. But I don't think you were Intended for a match-make- r. That takes iulte a little finesse, doesn't It?" The word "finesse" was not In John-nie's dictionary, but he acquiesced In her verdict. "I reckon, ma'am, you're right." Clay was waiting for lunch at a le on Sixth avenue, and in order to lose no time of which he hod more Just now than he knew what to do with was meanwhile reading a news- - paper propped against a water-bottl- From the personal column there popped out at him three lines that caught his uttentloii : "If this hieets the eye of C. L. of ' Arizona please write me, Box M 21, The Herald. Am In trouble. Kitty M." He read it again. There coulS.be no doubt In the world. It was ad-dressed to him, and from Kitty. He remembered that on the bus he hud casually mentioned to her thut he usually road the Herald. After he had eaten. Clay walked down Broadway and left a note at the office of the Herald for Kitty, The thought of her was In his mind all day. lie had worried a good deal over her disappearance. It was not alone thut he felt responsible for the loss of her place as cigarette girl. One disturbing phase of the situation wus thut Jerry Durund must have seen her. Was There or Was Thar Not a Faint Not of Malic in th Girl's Vole? tlon to hlg presence by staying, too long. Besides, he had some arrange-ments to make for the night at his rooms. These were simple and few. He oiled and loaded his revolver careful-ly, leaving the hammer on. the op thwabtf lift cuiptj' to. preTvT.t nccf-- i dents, after the custom of all careful gunmen. He qhunged Into the wrinkled suit he had worn when he reached the city, and substituted for his shoes a pair of felt-sole- d gymnasium Ones. The howlegged ' little . ' puncher watched his friend, Just as a faithful dog does his master. He asked no questions. In good. time be knew be would be told all It was necessary for him to know. As they rode from the Bronx, Clay outlined the situation and told his plans so far as he had any. "So I'm goln to take a whirl it It, Johnnie. Mebbe they're lyla' low up In that house to get me. Mebbe tho note's the real thing. You can search jne which It Is. The only way to find out Is to go through with the thing. Yore Job is to stick around lu front of the hacienda and wait for me. If I don't show up Inside of thirty min-utes, get the police irusy right away , breakin' Into the place. Io you ge; ine, Johnnie?" "Leinine go with you Into the house, Clny," the little man pleaded. "Say, 'why don't you go Into the movies and b n of these here screen Ideals r (TO UK CONTIXL'KIXJ "Go to Pollc Headquarters, Canter Street, and Take This Note to Capt. Luke Byrne.'" ver, done It more'n onct or twice too. I notice you got a big hunch of man-punche-in uniform hero. Ain't It their business to rustle up strays?" "The police," said the postmaster, amused. "That Is part of their busi-ness. We'll pass the buck to them, anyhow." After some delay and related ex-planations of who he was, the post-master got at the other end of the wire his friend the commissioner. Their conversation was brief. When the post-muste- r hung up he rang for a stenog-rapher and dictated a letter of Intro-duction. This he handed to Johnnie, with explicit Instructions. "!c to polh'e headquarters, Center |
