| Show 10 i L AM I 1 MACLE RAIN TIIE HE STORY SO 80 FAR ellen catty acte mil rn interested la in two men jeff brand rand a dashing rustier and calhoun terry erry ranch manager four rustlers b tad of been mysteriously killed fastens OD an terry and the his big CHAPTER it terry teny and ri richards c hards came into round top after dark As they rode along the railroad tracks they become became tow aware re or of unusual activity in uie the town in the shadow of a loading chute they drew up A man with a rifle in his hands bands cantered past he shouted at them we aim to get a second troop of the boys off of inside ineide of an hour he did not wait for or an answer this town has gone wild larry said 1 I reckon maybe wed better scout around here a little before we how ourselves were not exactly popular Bo pular w cautiously they advanced toward the e town square A light gleamed from the back window of the gazette office calhoun terry tapped on the window and horace garvey slewed round his parchment like face who Is it what you want he be snapped the diamond reverse B manager tapped lapped again he did not want to shout his name aloud garvey grunted impatiently he peered out of the window dont you know I 1 keep this back door locked with piles of paper in front of it he called out who Is it anyhow go round to the front door calhound Cal houns face came out of the darkness close to the window garvey exploded you got any sense at all Hs he began to haul bundles of paper from in front of the door presently he opened to let them in and led the kway to a dark corner back of a ray p bess the idea of coming to round top after your friends have pulled such a crazy outrage as this invasion he demanded larry told the story of their adventures es tor for the day garvels Gar veys eyes gleamed good for apu he said since you have broken with ellison and his crowd it ought to fix you up with your old friends as soon as I 1 can get the gazette out with the story they will be glad to shake hands and make up but I 1 think you boys had better get out of town as soon as you can folks dont yet know your new position we came in to see a cattleman about buying a bull tor for the new firm of richards terry said terry probably he has been waiting tor for us all day at the holden house we r think of going without a confab with him well ill bring him down here IT ill not have you crossing the courthouse square some tool fool would probably take a crack at you terry discussed the matter ol of sending telegrams to washington to induce the president to order troops from fort garneld garfield garvey admitted that he thought it would be a good idea before morning he told them tour four or five hundred armed men would have left town towa to engage the invaders and as many more would pour in from the ranch country to join them ill sign with you garvey said inside of thirty minutes the appeals for troops were on the way to washington and the story was spreading through the town that calhoun terry had wired the president to send government troops to fight with the big outfits and their hired texans against the settlers garvey brought the cattleman to the office from the hotel and inside of five minutes of his arrival terry and his new partner merethe we rethe eithe owners of an imported pedigreed hereford bull the editor hovered over them while the bargain was being struck like an anxious hen with one k hick chick F all ali right he sputtered now youve made your deal its time to get out of town calhoun but they had waited too long A an irruption of angry citizens pourer into the office through the front door to ask garvey what he nice meant nt by signing a telegram tele gram requesting re questin 9 that troops be sent to help the invaders it had lane careys carels name on it too and that scoundrel terrys uv v hart yelped horace garvey felt goose pimples run down his back the diamond reverse B men were in the shadowed semi semidarkness darkness back of a press ress they had slipped out of sight as the first of the group showed in the doorway dooray but at any moment they might be discovered youre getting this all wrong lee tte tre har harassed asbed editor ins insisted isted I 1 his voice voce shrill with excitement maybe you dont know that cal saved jeff brands life today when these texans had him lying wounded on the ground who told you that fairy tale dern demanded a rough unkempt nester who had a winchester in his hands why ask any of the boys who came down from black butte with jeff who chien one put a name I 1 in 10 rum garvey pit felt the sweat drops staid tog log on his forehead ore head he did not installment FIFTEEN ranchers it turns out to have been the work a ot lack jack turley tarley a spy py lor for the till big ranchers rancher about whom terry had known nothing terry ferry also alio protested bringing in an aa army ol of texas ex peace oft leers to march upon the rustlers rust leri and know who had brought brand to town 1 I get it direct he admitted weakly but ive heard talk same as some of you must have done sure weve heard talk weve heard these hired killers have rubbed out eight or ten of our friends alenda and that you are trying to get the troops to in to side with ellison a men now they are getting in a jam not to side with them garvey explained desperately to stop a war where dozens of you boys will be killed im not throwing you down but trying to stop a terrible slaughter cant you see where you are heading for or if you dont keep cool we dont want cut it it interrupted hart harshly we dont want any more guff from you holcome you to sign terrys name on that telegram talk fellow the nester with the winchester in his hands craned a long scrawny neck forward someone hiding in the back of the room he announced the rifle leaped to his IJ I 1 read nothing hart snarled shoulder come outa there with yore hands up whoever you are terry and richards came out not with their hands up the diamond reverse B manager answered the question hart had put my name was on that telegram m because im I 1 m the man who sent it he said quietly CHAPTER there was a shift in the hatt half circle of men who fixed their attention on an terry and richards lee hart had been in the foreground crowding the editor with snarling questions now he was back of the big nester with the winchester over the shoulder of his shield he flung a triumphant shout at his enemy got you at last you damn looking round on the grim faces of these men all armed most of them ready to start out on a long ride to exterminate their foes terry guessed that in his turbulent life had he been in more deadly peril larry and horace are not in this he said quietly garvey has not thrown you down hes he s on your side still larry is a hired rider he I 1 is s n not 0 I 1 responsible tor for what the diamond reverse B has done il aim m the manager if larry richards claims hes he not on yore side he be keeps mighty bad company jeered a redheaded red headed rustler 1 im I m not claiming it red larry cut in coolly my chips are on the table alongside those of cal shrilly garvey begged a chance to talk 1 for gods god s sake dont make a mistake bys I 1 he cried listen to me calhoun terry is our friend take turne time to find out hes he s y your our friend but not ours hart interrupted savagely we dont don t need any more time I 1 say right now A man had walked in the front door booi and joined the group he was sheriff hart one sweeping glance was enough tor for him to size up the situation dont push on the reins lee he said evenly these two men are my p prisoners prisoners riso ners how do you mean yore prison i ers his brother blustered elli sons warriors arent taking any prisoners that goes with us too the hard eyes in the long jawed boniface bony face of the sheriff looked almost contemptuously at his older brother come out from back ol of houck if you have anything to say though it wont be important anyhow im the law and im arresting these men dont any of you get the wrong idea about that terry knew that the sheriff had no friendliness tor for him but he had no doubt that nate hart had interfered kill them without ut trial terry and nd his foreman or oman larry are attacked by the th amy army being mistaken for or rustlers and they rush to cover in fis IL small cabin there too jeff goes goei thinking to aid fel ellow rustlers BUen rii jeff ti Is wounded to prevent him and larry from being killed what are you arresting us tot for doing he h asked it did not matter what pretext was offered by the officer but as a matter of form calhoun made a protest were peaceable citizens going about our lawful business for conspiring to bring about an armed insurrection in the territory the officer answered empl we came here to buy a registered bull from mr murdoch here larry said we have done bought b ought it now were ready to leave i and go back to the ranch looks to me like these gents who were working themselves up to bump us off ob when you sashayed in are doing the no use littering up the jail with them lee hart urged 1 I say hang them to a teli telegraph graph pole the sheriff drew a revolver 1 I know all of you boys bos he be said caul etly id hate to have to kill any of you and I 1 dont want to be killed myself but im going to take these men to jail it if anybody interferes there will be trouble the cowboy comboy red bed threw in the hand tor for his group all right nate if you want these fellows take em am but be sure you dont let em go well be hearing from the hills soon as to whether any of our friends have v e been murdered and if they have hell bell and high water cant keep us from busting into yore boo seand and hanging these birds high as haman red and his allies followed the arrested men to the jail to make sure the sheriff did not release them they posted a guard at both the rear and front doors the leaders adjourned to the crystal palaie palace and the red triangle to drum up sentiment in favor of a lynching lunching lyn ching calhoun put the matter bluntly to the sheriff getting down to cases hart what Is your idea in locking us up he asked are you holding us here till your friends are ready to lynch us im holding you here tor for your own safety if I 1 turned you loose you would never get ou out it of town alive you get fifty 1 yards from the jail door impatiently he be added why in hell bell did you come to town now why we come terry wanted to know we have nothing to do with this crazy invasion eui sons men attacked us today and almost killed us we rescued your friend jeff brand the diamond reverse B is being cut up into small ranches of which larry and I 1 are buying one what have you against us except that we wont stand tor for having our stock rustled the trouble with this town just now is that it is seeing red and cant think straight if I 1 could get red and some of the other hotheads hot heads to go up to the house where jeff is and talk with him they might get some sense thumped into their heads but no chance of that now they figure you are one of those who paid that two thousand dollars to turley to ambush their friends you may have been at that even if you have quarreled with ellison since then that prove a thing and far as that goes they only have your own say so that youre not hock bock deep in this invasion the sheriff slanted a suspicious look at terry looks like you are when you get off a telegram to the president asking him to send troops to support the big ranches in this business ot of killing settlers not what I 1 asked him to do the diamond reverse B manager said since the operator was in such a hurry to give out a private message he might at least have done so correctly larry tossed a question at hart lets know where were at sheriff Is it yore intention to ask us to give up our guns and wait jn a cell for these outside to break in and send us west because we have other views nate hart was a harassed man 1 I get you in this jam larry he said you have to come here and drop a snatch match in a barrel of powder im trying to save you but ill tell you straight that it if any bad news comes to town the boys will attack the jail its only a flimsy shack you know that I 1 aim to protect you it if I 1 can and it if it comes to a show showdown down ill give you back your guns to help me stand them off more than that teat I 1 cant promise he added after a moment it if I 1 could get a chance to let you slip away I 1 would since were not pro ners better let us keep our guns larry suggested you might be where you get them back to us when we have to have them the sheriff recognized the force of the argument all right he be said keep them I 1 dont need to tel bod if you begin shooting you are sunk stink TO ITO BE CONTINUED |
