Show GUNLOCK RANCH RA ri C H N by FRANK ff SPEARMAN copyright frank 11 spearman armao service CHAPTER VII continued 11 where we got caught there cried the barber we got back to the ponies an had to cut cross across a piece of burned timber to get cut A dead limb from one of the trees fell on me I 1 went down with the pony when I 1 kicked loose the puny pony bolted an when I 1 tried to get up my leg was broke there we was doe doc panamas pajamas Pa pony carry double the tire fire was creedin creep cre epin ln up on two sides of us it was nas terrible doc lints all a man can say just terrible we hardly hear vs ms talk panama picked me up to set line on his pony no I 1 bells it wont do panama an you know it im done panama save yourself you ant got a minute to lose G del let loat hait k on n your lour horse and run for it shut up jake panama yells get tip p on that pony I 1 tried to tight fight it out with him but I 1 was crazy with pain in n handle myself neither lie lifted me on his pony stuck the lines in my hands beat it he yelled i you do says L ive bot of good legs ill III run be says A melancholy procession took the desert road that night for leepy cat to the wagon lay panama beside him lay his injured friend spotts jake would have hae it no other way in town next day the boys tried vainly to figure out some sort of a decent dea burial service for panama a the test best coffin to be had in medicine bend was ordered by telegraph to reach sleepy cat on train number one ive got it exclaimed jeff sellers who was sitting near carpy ue he slapped lapped the doctors knee well hare bare the old doe doc himself hl make a few remarks over panama Ia iiama no yes ye hell no I 1 I 1 wont do it growled carpy they all set on him yes you will hlll carpy was inflexible boys you night just as well shut up but why wont you well I 1 tell you im just another bum bom like poor panama all you steed nt yell I 1 know the way I 1 look at t it Is this nothing in panamas pajamas Pa we ute became him like the leaving of it IL surely no DO man could die a nobler death than panamas pajamas Pa now I 1 want to see a man who lives a life like panamas pajamas Pa leath death say a few words over panama and im going to try to get him to do tt ft who the old padre over on the reservation but he wont do it panama belong to his church 1 that make a d d bit of difference boys the padre knew panama ile he knows me ue be will do it if were lucky enough to catch him at home and not away fifty miles on a sick call ive done a few things tor for padre cataldo I 1 know the man inside and out dr carpy called up the padre and was lucky at least the padre was at home As to his coming that was something else again carpy held him long on the wire he pleaded earnestly at last he be agreed to come at eight the welcome splutter of the dilapidated engine was heard outside the padre a gunlock buck chauffeur and a little indian boy of ten or twelve dis embarked and the reception committee welcomed the guest of honor to the hotel office long well filled and headed by the clergyman and the little fellow the growing crowd straggled down the street to harry where poor panama lay in state on the rearmost rear most of the pool tables padre cataldo laying aside his hat bat and big hl overcoat of many patches made imade the sign of the cross knelt a moment in silent prayer and standing behind the pool table on which pan ama lay in his coffin spoke clearly and simply boys said the old priest this looks like a queer place for or a padre perhaps a queer job but ive known bill hayes a good many years I 1 knew him in his wildest days and ive known him for the last three years since he turned over a new leaf bill used to visit me and talk with me ine it was something I 1 said to him once so he told me that started him thinking all this about this reedy greedy rotten old world he be asked him that make a damned bit of all to think about bill was not a follower of my faith you yon know that but he believed jesus christ to be the son of god and for or three years he has tried the best be could to keep his commandments and persuade the boys up and down the line to do the same he told me be wanted to try to do right where he hail had spent his life trying to do wrong naturally I 1 never beard bill preach but I 1 have been told what eloquent and sincere sermons be did preach but out there la in those forgotten hills racing lacing no not facing but a dreadful death hill bill preached a deathless sermon for tie took his next from the lips of god himself arid and wherever you bury him boys let the words of 0 that text be graven on ills his tomb greater love than this no man m in hath that a man lay down hla his eife for or his friends the lull in the lire fire threat issued in fresh dangers to the hill ranches A blaze blaze starting up anew on the reservation cut over lands crept north on the very night that panama was burled with what nit aid she could bring jane rode next morning over to her neighbors only to find the situation critical by noon the lire fighters ight ers were being driven back all along the line but loath to abandon hope ot of saving the rauch buildings the men fought till denison Den lson riding awong among them warned them to look first to their own safety riding then fast to the ranch house he be found jane consulting with quong quon in the kitchen 1 I must think of your safety jane lie he said it Is getting too close to danger er here you ind and quong must go home mil bill Is it that bad we might it as well face the truth its not sare safe here for you you must go anil and are your ponies sid sad tied chev arr are then take quong quon and mount up janes eyes softened they tell fell before lils his 1 I just hate hale to go bill she li pou td tantalizing Is it s spins dinst iliade artin a friend it tane you may imagine girl how I 1 hate to send you away cut but you know olio im thinking of dont you you think thin too much of anybody but yourself just now bill she murmured 1 1 I I to do some thinking myself these days quong had been called always forehanded without any words he was winking and blinking in his saddle denison handed jane tier her lines she leaned boware him and spoke low we must do some more running ourselves jane bill will you promise me solemnly one thing pr promise you anything girl solemnly bill solemnly what la is it that think first for your own safety now promise I 1 1 I promise jane for my sake bill do you mean that 1 I do mean it god bless you it if the buildings go ill ride over to report tomorrow the wind died that night with the bloodshot sun as it to leave in the hearts of its victims a faint hope of escape from the worst of its ravages jane slept so well that she opened her eyes to in the heavy air of daybreak conscience stricken at having rested peacefully during the hours in which her neighbor might have been burned out she dressed ate quon s hurried breakfast saddled tier her pony and set out for Dent sons directing quong to follow as soon as he be could the smoke grew more dense as she neared the ridge and she olie reluctantly turned about for home and told quong quon of 0 her failure and that site die would ride up into the high hills bills to try to see what was going on she re mounted and rode up tip the divide trail the smoke was so dense that it cut off hope of seeing the valley and spurred by the determination to see by riding higher she rode oo on and on till she found herself at the foot of gunlock knob jane headed the tha pony up the mountain the summit had never seemed so hard to reach but panting and exhausted the pony carried jane to the summit and she rode out on the table to look the scene below was terrifying huge clouds of smoke billowed and spread only to boll up op anew and race on the wind it seemed as it if the whole country were in flames here and there tongues of tire fire shot from the rolling smoke jane sat the pony tear fear stricken and immovable watching and hoping for a rift in the angry clouds that would reveal the ranch buildings none came weary at length and depressed jane turned her ponya head to ride home gunlock itself might be in danger even the pony took the downward trail reluctantly jane could not tell why until rounding founding a shoulder of the tha knoo knob sue she saw below her a tire ore sweeping across the trail she lie was w following worse than that the fire was wa spurting rt n through the brush up the mou mountain la front of tier her the pony bil balked ikea thoroughly frightened jane turned him up the narrow trail and headed for the summit even the few she had beer been awny away from the top had changed the scene overwhelmed with consternation she began to think anew of her own onn safety slie she urged the pony swiftly down the trail abaiz hoping faintly to find some hidden bypass by pass ner her path pa 1 th was blocked the hot air of the tire below was catching at her throat gusts of smoke burned into her eyes she reined about to return despairing to the summit once again the level rock afforded her temporary refuge she dismounted the pony was growing unmanageable ile he snorted stamped flung his head up tip and down and chewed frantically at his bit hope deserted her she sank to tier her knees and fell forward covering her face with tier her arnis amis for a moment tier her mind was a blank slie she heard nothing of a frantic calling of tier name when sk a singed and blackened horseman spurred and lashed his pony toward her sprang from the sad die and caught tier her up in his arms janel lie he cried as he looked into tier her face and shook tier her in his effort to restore conscious consciousness nes janet jane open your eyell eyes speak to met me its bill jane pill bill I 1 cant you hear me speak I 1 ner her eyes opened she looked in a daze at him film its bill jane she threw her arms convulsively around his neck oh bill ba bill 11 1 what can we to do must we die B bill 11 1 1 in n this horror no he be exclaimed we can get through but we lose a minute not a second comel come he half carried her to an edge of the summit where a rock crevice gave a slight footing a few feet below into this lie he lowered himself and raised his arms to jane but the horses bill she died cited leme leae them he called back they may escape theres no footing for horses where were going quick janet jane I 1 jump he caught her in his arms steadied her showed her how to secure herself nit an the precarious footing and lowered himself to another slender ledge to brace himself bade her spring nod and caught her again in his arms tier her heart beat so violently he seemed to feel it as she hugged bugged close to him there was barely room for the two to stand keep cool jane we can make it but be very very careful of your footing fooling darling jane the fire touched this side of 0 the mountain yet but if you fell it would be a hundred feet be everlastingly sure of every step w wont nt you youa never move until I 1 tell you spurned to superhuman effort benl son achieved the almost impossible and by sliding clinging with fingers hands and arms and by carefully using his lariat he managed to bring jane down unharmed to the foot of the precipitous wall that had given him the bare chance to save her life lie he held out his bis arms to catch her for the final jump bill I 1 she exclaimed breathing hard and looking up in ID sheer shee r amazement at the precipice down which he be bad brought tier her how did we ever get down there alive ue he was still very anxious the wrinkled veins of his smoked forehead plainly mirrored that she waited for orders we must run through that grove of quaking asp and try to get away from the knob this will all be burning in a few minutes are you able to run ill bet I 1 can run faster than you bill the laughing tone of her words thrilled and cheered him he knew better than site she what still lay between them and safety they hastened on through the light timber then running a broad shoulder they saw a vast panorama of smoke lighted in places by lames flames where the fires had wrought destruction in the virgin pine forests along the mountain slope denison hurried on jane briskly keeping pace with him but when they neared the smoking pine she felt dis bayed bill its all on fire yet look at the little blazes see the ground pine and the trees are smoking and burning yet bill 1 see the deer running over there mercy those are bear running too why every animal you can thick of jane was looking toward an opening in the pines halt half a mile away it was a precipitous right flight of the animal life fire of a whole mountainside from the wrath of a forest fire better run said denison grimly we must do some more running ourselves jane theres very little littie danger crossing this strip but I 1 want to get across it quiet quick they dashed into the fire area together little tongues of flame darted from the still burning ground but nothing to threaten janes stout laced boots or leather trousers they crossed the burned strip and broke together down a long slope that bordered another forest of pine denison dellson paused and looked anxious ly at jane how are you standing it girl she was panting but game her high bagh colored cheeks the flashing fl brightness of her eyes her parted eager lips made her a picture floe fine bill are we out of danger they were standing together in ID the wind and smoke that swirled and eddied up the mountain his hand was at her back as she leaned on his bla arm perhaps overwhelmed by the thought of 0 what he must say gay be hogged bugged her bet close and drawing her unresisting lipto his big own held them in a long ki als 1 I wish we were jane W atre re gill only now into danger i wish so go jane TO 70 BE CONTINUED |