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lewis m. grist, proprietor. j gin Jndepciulcnt ^amilg gUirapapcr: <dfoi; the promotion of the political, Social, Agricultural and (Commercial .Interests of the ?outh. jterms?s2.00 a year ix advance. "VOL. 40. YORKVILLE, S. C? WEDNESDAY, MARCH 81, 1894. ISTO. 13. . FOES Hi J BY CAPT. ('HAS Author of Dunraven Rancl Portia, The Deserter, Copyrighted, 1893 by Chas King. CHAPTER V. At midnight the situation at Moreno's ranch was a strange one. The oc- ! cupants of the two rooms farthest to the east were being besieged by 10 or 15 outlawed men, some Mexican, 6ome "gringo," but all cutthroats, and up to this moment the besieged had had the best of it. And yet their plight was desperate. 1 In the easternmost room, secure from bullet or missile of any kind so long as they crouched close to the ground and back from the doorway, lay trembling in silence old Harvey's daughters. At the door, only the barrel of his rifle protruding, keeping under cover all he possibly could behind an improvised parapet of barley bags, knelt their devoted brother, cool and determined, ev- j ery now and then whispering words of hope and encouragement. In the ad- ; joining room, connected with the eastern chamber by a doorless aperture through the adobe wall, lay the paymaster, sorely wounded, but still con- ' scious and plucky, his faithful clerk ministering to him as best he could, i stanching the flow of blood and comfort- i ing him with cool water. At the doorway opening on the hard, trampled space at the southern front of the ranch, sheltering himself behind his breastwork of barley, but never re- j laxing vigilant watch, knelt Sergeant Feeny, a bandana bonnd about his fore- j head, the blood trickling down his right cheek, the sleeve of his flannel shirt ! rent by a bullet that just grazed the i upper arm. Kneeling on the counter ; 'and peeping through a hole in the bottom of the wooden window shutter, I one of Harvey's men kept guard. The other faced the doorway into Moreno's I domestic apartments, every now and , then letting drive a shot through the j woodwork to keep them, as he said, "from monkeying with the bolt on the | other side." In planning his roadside ranch More- | no had allowed outer doors only to those j rooms which were for public use. The i three which lay to the west of the bar could not be entered except through that resort or by a door giving on the i corral, both of these doors being sup- | plied with massive bolts as security j against intruders, and all three room* being furnished with air ports rather than windows, pierced at such a height through the adobe that no one from without, except in saddle, could peer through the aperture and see what was coiner on within. The travelers' room ! and the barroom ports, however, were low and large, and all the rooms were spacious. The bar of course, being the dining as well as drinking room, carried off the honors in point of size. , This, too, was furnished with an opening into the corral, but Feeny's first thought on reaching his comrades was to barricade. Springing into the walled inclosure and bidding Harvey watch while the j others worked, he had soon succeeded j in lugging a score of big barley sacka into the interior and piling them into breastworks at the three doors, the one opening into the corral being provided [ in addition with a high traverse to j protect its guard against 6hots that : might come through from Moreno's room. All this was accomplished amid the wailing of the Mexican women and the fusillade begun by the assailants in j hopes of terrorizing the defense before 1 venturing to closer quarters. Like famous Croghan of Fort Stephenson, Fee- i ny had kept up a fire from so many dif- I ferent points as to impress the enemy I with the idea there were a dozen men and a dozen guns where there was in ^ reality only one, and even the tempta- I tiou of that vast sum in the paymaster's safe was not sufficient to nerve the followers of Morales to instant attack. The valor and vigor of the defense and the appalling death of one of their leaders had so unnerved them that Pas- I qual himself, raging, imploring, threatening by turns, was unable to urge j them to close quarters. "Most men j are cowards in the dark" is a theory | widely believed in. Indians certainly i are only brave against defenseless women and children at such a time. Not until the firing had ceased and it was * evident that the defenders had retired j to the shelter of the ranch, and then I only very slowly and cautiously, would these brigands of the desert be induced j to resume th^ir stealthy approach. For . fully half an hour there was a lull in the j fight, and then, guided by the light Mo- j reno was now able to show, Pasqual and two of the stouter hearted knaves approached the western wall and held a brief consultation with the rascally owner. Rage at the death of their leader's brother and ally, the thirst for vengeance and the hope of securing such rich booty?all were augmented by Mo- ! reno's fiery assurances and encourage- | ment. All the soldiers were gone, he j said, except the "pig of a sergeant" j and two drugged and senseless swine. Somebody among them was wounded, j There were only three, possibly four, ! left. Let his companeros make combined attack, two or three through his f Moreno's) rooms, two or three rush in from the corral, and the same number from the south front at once, and beyond doubt the cursed Yankees would succumb. Then no quarter, no quarter for the men. His connection with the outlaw band was now known, and these witnesses must be put to death. Then ?then the paymaster's safe could readily bo battered open, then there was the mint of tnoney to be divided among the v victors, then away to Sonora with their spoil and with old Harvey's beautiful daughters. What ransom would he not be willing to pay?that proud, disdain- i ful father! Was ever luck so great? But haste! haste?not a moment could be lost. They must act at once. And so Morales hurried to station and instruct his men. Prowling like coyotes through the darkness and at re* spectfnl distance from the guarded end of the corral ranch, half a dozen of the number crept into the corral. Others were distributed over the southern front. Three of the lighter and more slender of tho band were "boosted" through the high west window into Moreno's domain. Then through the middle room tl >y made their way, where sat the senora, rocking, weeping and moaning over the body of the outlaw leader, where, hiding under the bed, 'shivering and praying, crouched the scnorita, her daughter, and then, barefooted, they crept into the room adjoining tho bar and listened, breathless, to the low toned instructions of the veteran sergeant. From without no glimmer of light could guide the assailants or help them in their aim. The black apertures of the doorways wero poor marks for night shooting, and tho more enterprising and adventurous, crawling like snakes to reconnoiter, wero soon able to report that most scientifically had the defense thrown up their breastworks. From group to group flitted Pasqual. At his shrill battleery all hands were %. to rush simultaneously to the attack, i firing no shot for fear of hitting one another, but with pistol in one hand and the long, deadly knife in the other | close at once upon tho defenders, leap over their barriers and overwhelm them in tho dark interior. In three minutes king, r. s. ti, Two Soldiers, An Army , Soldier's Secret, Etc. I the signal would be given. Ho himself would lead the dash of the party within the corral. Pasqual was shrewd enough to know that where there was only one doorway instead of two there would be better chance of dodging the bullets. But keen eyes and ears and wits were there alert. Feeny and Harvey well knew that this was but the lull before the storm. "Lay low, boys, and be ready. Shoot the first man that shows," was the last I caution old Plummer heard before the bursting of the tempest. All on a sudden a wild cry went up in the corral. All on a sudden from north and south the assailants dashed forward with answering yell. In an instant the dark apertures flashed their lightning, and rifle and revolver shots rang on the still night air. Iiarvey's Henry barked like a Gatling.. Feeny's old Springfield banged like a six pounder. Two of the assailants on the south side went down in the dust, face foremost, the others 6werved, broke and scurried for shelter. Pasqual Morales, leading his men close under tno norm wall, made a pantherlike spring for the crest of the hurley parapet and was saved from instant death when ho fell by being dragged feet foremost, with a Colt*8 44 tearing through his thigh. In vain Moreno's squad fired shot after shot through the wooden door. Their bullets buried themselves deep in the j improvised traverse, but let no drop of blood, while two return shots scattered , the attack with the splinters from the heavy panels. Pleading, raging, mad- J dened, Morales learned that the dash had failed and that two of his most daring men, the two Americanos who had ridden forward to personate* prospectors j and who had led the rush in the south- ! ern front, were knocked out of the fight. ] And then it was that the inhuman ; brute gave the order to resort to Indian j methods, and even old Moreno begged and prayed and blasphemed, all to no purpose. Furious at their repulse, the band were ready to obey their leader's j maddest wish. The word was, "Burn I them out." Ned Harvey, crouching i behind his barley bags, felt his blood turn to ice water in his veins when, with exultant yells and taunts, the corral suddenly lighted up with a broad red glare. The match had been applied to the big haystack close to the brush i covered shed, close to the'' leanto," under which so much inflammable rub- : bish was stored. It could be a question j of only a few moments; then they, too, i won 1<1 he a mass of flames, snreadimr rapidly westward. The stout adobo wall separating the ranch proper from | the sheds would protect the occupants j from direct contact with the flame, but | what could save the roof? Stretching from wall to wall were the dry, resin- j ous pine logs that formed the basis of i the bulky structure. Over these the i lighter boards of pine and over all, : thickly piled, dry as bone and inflam- J mable as tinder, heap on heap of brush, j Once this was fairly ablaze the hapless ; occupants of the rooms beneath might ! as well be under the grating of some j hugo furnace. High in air shot the leaping flames. Far and wide over the desert spread the lurid glare. Screaming with terror, the women of Moreno's household were al- j ready dragging into the corral their few j treasures ar.d rushing back for such ! raiment as they could save. Far over j at the corral gate, where the bullets of j the besieged could not find them, Pasqual Morales and his exulting band : were gathered, the chief lying upon his serapo, with bloody bandages about his log, his followers dancing about him in frantic glee, all keeping carefully out of range of the black doorways, yet three or four crack shots lay flat in tho sands, their rifles covering the now glaring fronts of the threatened rancho, ready to shoot down. Indianlike, the wretched garrison when driven out. It was at this juncture that from somewhere in the middle room, behind i Moreno's heavy door, a voice was heard: "Hand out the safe. Hand out your j money now, and we'll leave you in peace. Everyman of us will ride away, and you can come out as soon as we sire I gone. Answer, for you have no time to lose." "Answer him, you!" shouted Feeny to Mr. Da wis. "Send a shot through and hit him if you can." But before the clerk could drop the fan with which he was striving to revive his fainting chief, the young fellow from Harvey's party, he who was stationed at the north door and had , been so fortunate as to shoot Morales himself, now suddenly sprang from his covert, and placing the muzzle of his Henry rifle eloso to the door deliberately popped three shots in quick succession j through the splintering woodwork, and in the confusion and dismay which re- ! suited was able to leap nimbly into his corner again before the answering shots could come. "Take that for your answer!" shouted Feeny again, "you black hearted, black bellied thafe, and take this, too, bad scran to ye! Every dollar of that money's in greenbacks that'll burn as aisy as tissue, and if you want it come and get it now. 'Tis you that's got no time to lose. C'oine and get it, I say, for be the toul of St. Patrick you'll never have another chance. Just as sure as ye let that fire reach this ranch and harm those young leddies?old Harvey's daughters that never did ye a harm in the world?every dollar in tho safe goes whack into the fire, and sorra a shinplaster will you have for all your pains. Ain't that so, paymaster? Sliure the government ought to be mighty glad of the chancy of saving all those prom iscs to- pay. "Bravo, Feenv!" shouted young Harvey from the adjoining room. "We're not smoked out yet, by a good deal," he added in lower tones. "But if the worst comes to the worst we can make a rush for the barley stack in the corral. Lie still, Ruth, little sister. It won't be any timo now before the soldiers will come galloping to us." And, hiding her terror stricken face in her sister's breast, the girl obeyed. Out at the corral gate meantime a vehement council was being held. Feeny's bold defiance and threat had produced their effect. His voice had rung out above the roar of the flames, and what Morales could not hear was promptly reported by those who had crawled up nearer to the bar and could understand every word. Even hampered by the care of their helpless women, the defense was undismayed. The little garrison was fighting with magnificent hope and courage. Beyond the wounding of one of their number, no impression apparently had mnitn wtii.niiis the bandits had i sorry loss to contemplate. Ramon shot (lead. Pasqual crippled and the two "gringos," the (hiring, enterprising leaders of the attack, painfully wounded, one probably mortally so. And now, with the flames lighting up the whole valley between the Picacho and the Christobal, with cavalry known to Ik* out in several squads within easy march, some of the men were already weakening. They had had enough of it and were quite ready to slink away, but Pasqual was a raging lion. Revenge for the death of his brother, | wrath over his own crippled condition, I jit the door knelt their devoted brother. ; fury at the failure of "the assault and , I hatred on general principles of all honI est means and honest men, all prompt- ! ' ed him to order and enforce a renewal j : of the attack, all served to madden him to such a degree that even burning his ; adversaries to death seemed simply a case of serving them right. What cured 1 he that two of the besieged were fair young girls ? noncombutunts? They were George Harvey's daughters, and that in itself was enough to bring balm i to his soul and well nigh cause him to forget his physical ills. One or two of the band strove to j point out that the faintest indignity ofi fered to the sisters would array uot only all Arizona, but all Mexico against them. Like dogs they would bo hunted to their holes and no quarter be giv- ' en. Returning hitherto with their spoils, Chihuahua or Sonora had welcomed them with open arms, but what outlaw could find refuge on Mexican soil who had dared to wrong the children of George Harvey and Inez Romero? It was ?ven as they were pointing this out to Pasqual and urging that he consent to be lifted into the ambu- i lance and driven away southward be- ; fore the return of the cavalry that Morpnn himself nrmeared. Slimiinor out of his western window, dropping to tho ground and making a complete circuit of the corral, he suddenly joined in the j excited conference. What he said was in Spanish, or that pan-Arizona patois | that there passes current for such, and j was a wild, fervid appeal. They had ruined him?him and his. Ho was unmasked, betrayed, tor now his connection with the band was established beyond all question. Now ho was known and would soon be branded as an outlaw. His home was being destroyed before his eyes?not that that i amounted to much now that ho could no longer occupy it?his wife and child must flee at once for Sonora, and he go with them, but recompense for his loss ho must have. Never again could he venture into Arizona. Ho would be known far and wide as tho betrayer of j his benefactor's children, though he called God and all tho saints in tho ' Spanish calendar to witness he never dreamed of their being involved in this plot. The paymaster's funds, not the lives of any of the paymaster's men, were ! what he had sought to take, and now j there lay the dollars almost within their grasp, but unless captured at once would be gone forever. "1 know that pig of a sergeant! May the flames of hell envelop him for all eternity!" he cried. "Ho will not scruple to do as ho says. He will cast ev- \ ery package into tho seething furnace. Mira! Look! The shed is now all ablaze! In one minute tho roof of the rancho will burst into flame! There is not an instant to lose! I adjure you, let the daughters of Harvey, the son, the men, come out at once. Swear to them safety, honor, protection. Let them go their way now, now! Then you will | have to deal with only two or three, aud the treasure is ours. Look you, [ Sanchez. Pedro, Jose, down with that shed next the rancho! Hurl it, drag it 1 down so that its tiro cannot reach the | I in iuli liovnrwl tlimi u*n /? in tinrlnv* wo can win their ear. They will he but j too glad to be spared to go 011 their way unharmed. Yonder are their mules across the corral. Hitch them in at once. Save tho others for the ambu- ) lance and the blackboard here and for our noble chief. Is it not so, captain? Am I not right?" Approving murmurs followed his fiery words. So long as the Yankees held together there was little likelihood of tho outlaws gaining tho ground except by burning out, and that now meant tho destruction of the very money they were after, the utter loss of the fortune that, divided even among so many, would enable them to live like princes in Hermosillo or beyond. They would bo heroes, conquerors. But if that wero lost after all their plotting, planning, labor and crime, there was absolutely 110 recompense. Even through the brain clouding fury of his revenge Pasqual Morales saw the sound sense of Moreno's plea. He made 110 effort to check tho men i who ran to do his bidding and were even now with lariats and stalwart arms dragging the props from under the shed and letting its western end come pattering down. Within the eastern room 1 the dense smoke was already finding its way. The sound of falling beams and timber only conveyed to the occupants the idea that already tho shed was in embers and that any instant the roof over their heads would burst into a torrent of fire. Ned Harvey's brave spirit was taxed to the utmost. Unless relief could come, and come at once, nothing remained for him but death, nothing for thoso fair sisters but a fato far worse. At one instant he was 011 tho point of urging tho paymaster to comply with tho outlaw's demand, pledging himself and his father's fortune to mako fnnil tn tVin I'vcrv n-lit fio sacrificed. His father could pay it four times over and would rather sink his last cent than that tho faintest harm should come to those beloved children, but the next moment Feeny's splendid defiance had so thrilled him that ho could not frame the words ho thought to speak, and yet hero was awful peril close at hand. What right had he to further jeopardize the life, the honor of these, his father's fondest treasures? If it were only himself, he would stay and fight it out to the bitter end. But if the robbers could now be content with the money alone and pledge safeguard for the property, was it not his duty, would it not be his father's mandate were he there, to buy the safe and contents from the agent of the general government and pay the ransom levied? . ~ But he little dreamed of the fury of revengo and hatred burning in the soul of Pasqual Morales. lie little fathomed tho treachery and cunning of the outlawed scoundrel. Even as he was revolving these thoughts in his mind, ever and again listening with new hope for tho sound of rallying trumpet, tho neat or reselling noois, tnero resounded through the night the sonorous and ringing voice that so short a time before had called for the surrender of the safe. "Edward Harvey, we pledge safe conduct for you, your sisters and your party. Here is your wagon ready, your team hitched in. Throw your arms out of tho door. Come forth as you please. Put tho senoritas in the wagon. Look neither to the right nor left, but drive away, and God be with you. We have no quarrel with you and yours. Wo war only with these 6oldiers who havo killed our chief." Put yourself in his place. Death for him, perhaps for them?dishonor anyway?was all they could look for if no rescue came. Was it not his duty to his parents, to his sisters, even to God, to accept these terms?to withdraw his little force? Why should ho be periling such precious lives and names in the defense of a government official who had been so wreckless as to part with his guard and put himself and his funds in such a predicament? From the other room, in which tho major now lay, feebly moaning, no word of reinon- ( strain:? came. Even in their extremity, then, tho soldiers of tin government would not urgo that ho stay and encounter further peril in their defense. Ono of the drugged troopers was beginning to regain some atom of sense, and sitting up was miserably asking what had happened, what was tho matter now. '' Go and douse water over your d d worthless head, Mullan," ho heard tho sergeant say. So Feeny was evidently alert as ever and must liavo heard tho proposition from without. At his feet, huddled close to tho floor where tho thick smoko was least distressing, Fan ny and Ruth still clung to one another, the latter trembling at the sound of tho voice from without. Ei'.t Fanny had quickly, eagerly, raised her head to listen. For a moment no reply w;is made. Then came tho impatient query: "Harvey, do you hear? You have no time to lose. You have but u minute in which to answer.'' "Major," ho burst forth at last in an agony of doubt, "you hear what they say, you see how I am fixed. If I were hero alone, you would never need to ask my services?I'd fight with you to the bitter end?but think of my father, my mother, if anything befall my sisters. Can nothing bo done?" From the lips of the stricken paymaster there came only a groan in reply. "I fear ho cannot hold out long, Mr. Harvey," muttered tho clerk. "Idoubt if lie hoard or understood you." "Well, why not let them have tho safo if they'll guarantee tln.t that is all they want ? How much ha>"o you there ? I feel sure my father would make it good." "There's over$25,000, M!r. Harvey." "Well, if it was only 25 cents, Mr. Ned Harvey, all I've got to say is devil a wan of them would they get so long as I could load a shot or pull a trigger. Go you, if you will. Take tho leddies by all means if you think it safer, but beforo I'd trust tho wan sister I ever had?God rest her soul?to the promiso of any such blackguard party as this, I'd bury my knife in her throat." An awful stillness followed Feeny's words. For an instant there was no sound but quick beating hearts, the mntterings and complainings of poor Mullan, staggering about in search of his carbine, tho quickened breath and low moaning ot poor old riummer. Then again camo the loud hail from without: "Once more. Ned Harvey, will you como out and be saved or stay thoro and roast? Surrender now and you're all right; but, by the God of heaven, if you refuse it's the bust chance for you or those you wero fool enough to bring here. Think for your sisters, man. There's no hope for one of you if you delay another minute." And then it was a woman's voice, tremulous but clear. "Ned,wasn't it to save us that Major Plummcr sent his men? Wasn't it for our sake ho gavo up all his escort?" "It was, Fan, yes?at least ho thought so." "And now you would desert him, would you? Leave him to bo murdered by these robbers, the worst gang we ever had or heard of? I say you shall not. I for one will not go into their hands. Ruth cannot go without me. Stay and fight it out, Ned, or you're not your father's son." "FanI Fan! you'ro a trump! God bless your brave heart!" cried Harvey. "It seemed cowardly to go, yet the re. sponsibility was more than I could bear." "May the saints in heaven smile on your purty taco for all eternity!" muttered Feeny in a rapture of delight. "The young leddy is righ:, Mr. Harvey, though it wasn't for me to say it. Shure you can't trust those scoundrels. They'd stab ye in the back, sir, and rob you of your pretty sisters and drag them away beforo your dying eyes. That man Pasqual is a devil, 6ir, nothing less. Shure we'll fight till rescue comes, for como it will. I tell you the boys are spurring toward us, h?11 to split, " * I - - 1 >11 ?V. ~1 ~ irom every siue now, unu we u wuuio these scoundrels yet." Then from without came the final hail: "What answer, Harvey? Now or never." "Go to h?11, you son of an ape and worso than a greaser!" yelled Feeny. "If you had a dhrop of Irish blood in yer veins, yo'd never ask the question. Now, if you think you can take this inonej', here's your chance. No Harvey ever went back on his friends." Even brain muddled Mullan felt a maudlin impulse to cheer at Feeny's enthusiastic answer. Even poor old Plummer gave a half stifled cry. Possibly ho dreamed that rescue was at hand, but there was little time for rejoiciig. Springing back whence ho came, the unseen emissary was heard shouting some order to his fellows. The next instant the rifles began their cracking 011 both sides, and the bullets, with furious spat, drove deep into the adobe of whizzed through the gunnysacks into the barley. The unseen foe was once more investing them on every sido and not a shot could be wasted in return. Once moro the furious cracklo and roar of the flames were heard close at hand, and then the smoke grew thicker, the heat incresised, and poor Ned Harvey, his eyes smarting, knelt, steadfast, at his post and prayed?prayed for the coming of rescue, for the return of the loved father, all the gallant troop at his back?and then, even as though in answer to his prayer, there came a sudden lull in the light. ' <J I" c-V..v?0>/l i??n. P Willing I C?41 WUVV.U JL V.V" ny excitedly. "They see or liear sonicbody sure. Look, Mr. Marvey, ain't that two of their fellows scudding away westward out there?" Surely enough. In the glaro of the burning sheds the besieged caught a | glimpse of two of the gang binding low in their saddles 100 yards away and scudding like hounds over toward the open plain. "Is it rescue? Are our people coming?" was the query that rose to every lip. "God grant it!" Heavens, how hearts were beating! How ears were straining underneath that now blazing roof! Louder, fiercer roared the flames. Furious became the snapping of sun baked branch and twig. Stifling and thick the smoke. "Quick! Come here for a. breath of air," called Harvey to his sisters. "It's safe for a moment at least." And instantly they joined him at the doorway, still clinging close to the floor. Listen! Hoofs! The thunder of galloping steeds! A distant cheer! A soldierly voice, in hoarse command: "Steady, steady there! Keep together, men!" "God bo praised!" screamed Feeny in testacy. "Look up, major, lookup, sir. we to au sare new. ncre come tho boys. Hurroo!" And mad with relief and delight tho sergeant sprang from his lair just a.s a tall trooper m tho Union blue shot into sight in the i full glare of tho llamos, sprang from his foaming steed, waving his hat and yelling: "All right! All safe, lads! Here we arc!'' Down went Harvey's rifle as he leaped out into tho blessed air to greet tho coming host. Down went Feeny's carbine as, with outstretched hand, he sprang to grasp liis comrade .trooper's. With rush and thunder of hoofs a band of horsemen came tearing up to tho spot just as Fecny reached their leader? reached him and went down to earth, stunned, senseless from a crashing blow, even as Ned Ilarvev, his legs jerked from under him bv the sudden /.li,? ,.f > l.ivi!if \V!IS il at racing speed out over tho plain, ! bumping over stick an<l stone, tearing through ca'-tus, screaming vith rago ! and pain, until finally, battered into oblivion, tho last sound that fell upon his ear was the shriek of agony from his sisters' lips, felling him they were struggling in the rude grasp of reckless ; and infuriated men. CHAPTER VI. Harvey could not long have lain unconscious. No hones were broken, no severe concussion sustained in the rapid drag over the sandy surface, and tho awful sense of tho calamity that ha.l befallen him and the dread and doubt , as to tho fate of his beloved ones seemed i 1 to rally his stunned and bewildered faculties and bring him face to face with tho horror of tho situation. Barely able tn lire.ithe. ho found himself rudelv gagged. Striving to raise his hand i to tear the hateful bandago away, he found that he was pinioned by .the elbows and bound hand and foot by the very riata probably that had dragged j him thither. No doubt as to the na{ tionality of his unseen captors here. The skill with which ho had been looped, tripped, whisked away and ; ' bound?the sharp, biting edges, even the j ! odor of dirty rawhide rope?all told him that, though Americans were not lacking in the gang, his immediate an- I tagonists hailed from neross the Sonora ! line. Who and what they were mattered little, however. The fact that | after hours of repulso in open attack the foo had all on a sudden carried their castle by a damnablo ruse was only too . forcibly apparent. Writhing, struggling ; in miserable effort to free himself from | | his bonds, poor Harvey's burning eyes i wcro maddened by the picture before I him only a couple of hundred yards ' away. There in the fierce light of the flames j now bursting from ever}' window and roaring and shooting high in air from : j tho brush heaped roof of Moreno's ranch?thero stood the Concord wagon, : stalwart men clinging to the heads of i tho plunging and excited mules, a big j ruffian already in the driver's seat, ; whip and reins in hand; thero beside it was the paymaster's ambulance, into which three of the gang were just shov- j ing tho green painted iron safe?the j Pandora's Ixjx that had caused all their Borrows?there Moreno's California | | buckboard, pressed into service and being used to carry the wounded, drawn ! by tho extra mules, and then?God of j heaven! what a sight for brother's eyes to see and make no sign!?then one big bruto lifted from the ground and handed up to a fellow already ensconced , 'Xt- - \L\. .1 , wiwnn nit? twvfiuu wuguu mu dciiocicoo, i perhaps lifeless, form of pretty littlo i Ruth, his father's idol. The poor child I i lay unresisting in tho ruffian's arms, but not 60 Paquita. It took two men, 1 strong and burly, to lift , and force her j l into tho dark interior, and one of these, ] I to the uttermost detail of his equipment, was to all appearance a trooper j i of the United States cavalry. There stood his panting horse with ! hanging head and jaded withers, the ; very steed whoso rush they had wel- : corned with such exceeding joy, sad{ died, bridled, blanketed, saddlebagged, lariated, side lined, every item complete j and exactly as issued by the ordnance department. Tho trooper himself wore the field uniform of tho cavalry?tho ' j dark bluo blouse, crossed by tho black j carbine sling, whoso big brass buckle j Ned could even now seo gleaming be: tween tho bread shoulders and gath| ered at tho waist by tho old fashioned j "thimble belt" the troop saddlers used . j to mako for field service before the ; : woven girdle was devised. Even I more. Harvey in his misery remem- j J bered the thrill of joy with which he j ! had noted, as tho splendid rider reined I in and threw himself from the saddle, j the crossed sabers, tho troop letter "C" j i and the regimental number gleaming j at the front of his campaign hat. Who?who could this be, wearing the honorable garb of a soldier of the United States, yet figuring as a ringleader in a | band of robbers and assassins now add! ing rapine to their calendar of crime ? Edward Harvey's heart almost burst with helpless rage and wretchedness i when he saw his precious sisters dragged within tho canvas shelter?saw the tall, uniformed brigand leap lightly after them and heard liim shout to tho rpndv driver. "Now. off with vou!" ; Crack 1 went the whip as the men j sprang from the heads of the frantic mules, and with a bound that nearly wrenched tho trace hooks from the stout i whippletree the Concord went spin- j ning over tho sands to tho south, whirl- j ing so near him that over tho thud of i hoofs and whirl of wheels and creak of spring and woodwork ho could hear j poor Fanny's despairing cry?tho last sound ho was awaro of for hours, for j now in dead earnest Harvey swooned away. Half an hour later, tho rafters of tho j ranch having by this timo tumbled in and turned tho interior into a glowing J furnace, there came riding from tho I west a slender skirmish lino of horsemen in tho worn campaign dress of tho | regular cavalry. With tho advance thero wero not more than six or eight, | I a tall, slender lieutenant leading them on and signaling his instructions. With carbines advanced, with eyes peering out from under tho jagged hat brims, tho veteran troopers camo loping j into tho light of the flames, expectant every instant of hearing tho crack of | | outlaw's riflo or perhaps tho hiss of feathered arrow of unseen foe. Though > some of tho steeds looked hot and wearied, tho big rawboned sorrel that carried tho young commander tugged at his bit and bounded impatiently as though eager for the signal?'' charge." Straight into tho circle of light, straight to tho southern entrance, now a gato of flame, tho soldier rode and loudly hailed "MorenoI" But hissing, snapping woodwork alono replied. Guided by an experienced sergeant, some of the troopers, never halting, rodo on into tho eastward darkness, and thero wero stationed as vedettes to guard against surprise. Returning to where ho had passed his lieutenant, the sergeant dismounted, allowing his weary horse to stand, and then began a minute examination. Fol / c y,. J l J'~ " A '-Vr/'- / I There hi the fierce light of the flames stood the Concord wagon. Inu'inrr tlin freshest hoof trucks, ho found tho young officer riding about , through tho thick Kmoko within tho corral. "Any sign of Moreno or his people, sir?" ho hailed. "Not yet. Just sco what's beyond that doorway. My horse is frightened j at something there and I can't seo for the smoke." Obedient, tho sergeant pushed ahead, bending low to avoid tho stifling fumes. Between tho tumbledown heap of bar- I ley sacks and the crumbling wall lay ! somo writhing objects in tho sand, and | his stout heart almost failed him at tho 1 moan of agony that met his ear. "Help I water I Oh, for Christ's sake, water!" Ono bound carried him out of sight of his superior. Tho next instant, dragging by tho foot a prostrato form, ho emerged from tho bank into tho fresher air of tho center of the corral, i Off camo his canteen and was held to | tho parched lips of a stranger in scorch I ed civilian (Trees, his heard and hair singed by the flames, his legs and arms securely bound. ''Who are you and what's happened? Whoso work is this?" demanded the lieutenant, leaping from saddle to l is aide. The man seemed swooning away, but tho sergeant dashed water in his face. "Quick!?the others!?or they'll burn to death." "What others? Where, man?" ex- ! claimed the soldiers, springing to their feet. "Oh! somewhere in there?the far end of the corrul?or Moreno's west room," was the gasping reply. Another rush into the whirling, eddy- j ing smoke, another search along under the wall, and presently in the flickering light the rescuing pair came upon a ; barrier of barley sacks, burning in places from huge flakes of fire falling from the blazing rafters of the overhanging shed, and behind this, senseless, suffocated, helplessly bound, two other forms. Thrusting the 6acks aside, the troopers Beized and dragged forth their hapless fellow creatures. Jarred by sudden pressure, a burning upright snapped. There was a crackling, crash- i ing sound and down camo the rafters, Bending another column of flame to light up tho features of men rescued not an j instant too soon from tho death that awaited them. "My God!" cried Sergeant Lee,"this is old Feeny?and yet alive." Together tho two raised tho senseless j form, boro it out into tho open space, laid it gently beside their first discovery and ran back for tho next, a big, heavy, bulky shapo in looso and bloodstained garments. It took all their strength to lug it forth. Then tho lieutenant bent by tho side of tho slowly recovering civilian. "Are thero any moro we can reach?" he questioned eagerly, his heart beating madly. "No?too late!?others were inside wnen tno roor ieu in. more water? moro water!" Sergeant Leo sprang to the ollas gleaming thcro in tho firelight and brought back a brimming dipper, holding it to tho poor fellow's parched lips until ho could drink no more, then | slashing away tho thongs with which ho was hound. "This is greaser work," ho cried. "How could they liavo left you alivo? j Whero nro Moreno's people? Who's dono this anyhow?" "Pasqual Morales. Moreno was in it too. 'Twas tho paymaster they were laying for, but they've killed Ned Harvey and got his sisters?old Harvey's children?from Tucson." "What?" cried tho officer, leaping to his feet. "Harvey's daughters here? ?here? Man, aro you mad?" "It's God's truth! Oh, if I had a drop of tho whisky that's being burned in there! I'm nigh dead.'' "Run to my saddlebags, Lee; fetch that flask, quick; then call in tho men and send one back to hurry up tho rest. Whero have they gone? What have they dono with their captives?" "God knows! I could hear them screaming and praying?thoso poor girls! Mullan and the pay clerk picked | up Feeny after ho was stunned, and they rushed him back through here, i whero tho paymaster had dragged J himself, to whero you found him. I That?that's tho paymaster you've got j there. Then they tried to save a drunken soldier while all the gang seemed crowding after tho safe and the girls, but they were shot down inside ! and must have burned to death if they wasn'tkilled. Oh, God, what a night!" i And weak, unstrung, unmanned, the poor fellow sobbed aloud. A ^ 4r>tn tViQ XX 1/ UUO liioiailb LULiU 4VUW tuvv Iiuv > corral a couple of troopers. "Lieutenant Drummond here?" cried one of them. "We've found a man out on the plain to the southeast, gagged { and bound. Shall we fetch him in?" "You go, Quinn, but get some one j else to help you. Patterson, your horse is fresh, gallop back on the trail. Tell Sergeant Meinecko to come ahead for all he's worth. Let the packs take care of themselves. Send Sergeant Lee in hero to me again." Then with trem- 1 bling hands the young officer turned his attention to his other patients. Sever- j ing the cords with his hunting knife, he freed them from their bonds, then dashed water over their scorched and j blackened faces, meantimo keeping up j a running firo of questions. Between his sobs, the young civilian told him that the outlaws had hitched in both teams and taken also tho sparo mules and tho buckboard. They had lifted { tho Harvey girls into tho Concord, tho safo and Pasqual Morales into the pay- | master's ambulance, while the wounded ! men and Moreno's people probably wero put on tho open wagon. Then they | had all driven furiously away to tho south, leaving only two or three men to complete the work at tho ranch. Finding tho paymaster and sergeant well nigh dead, they had contented j themselves with binding and leaving them to their fate, to bo cremated when tho roof of the shed came down. Then one of the gang whom ho had onco befriended in Tucson pleaded with his fellows to spare tho lifo of the only one of the party left to tell the tale. Pasqual and tho Mexicans were gone. Tiioso wno remained were Americana, judging by their speech, though two of them were still masked. "My name i is Woods," said tho poor fellow. "But that bandit had to beg hard. They i were ready to murder anybody connected with tho defense, for Ramon was J killed and Pasqual shot through tho leg. I did that, though they didn't j know it. They bound and left mo i here, but made mo swear I would tell Harvey and his friends when they got i back that it was no use following; they had 30 armed men and three hours' 6tart. They never thought of any ono else getting here first. Oh, my God! who can break it to Mr. Harvey when he does come?" And then Sergeant Lee came hurrying back, ono or two men with him, and together they labored to restore to consciousness tho paymaster, breathing feebly, and old Feeny, bleeding from a j gash in the back of the skull and a bullet hole through tho body. For neurly ; a quarter of an hour their efforts were vain. Meantime Drummond, well nigh mad over tho delay, was pacing about like a caged tiger. Ho set two of tho men to woik to hitch tho bewildered p^j Tim men appeared h:qtjlny between them the ragged form of Edward llnrvcy. litilo burros to ?.lio well wheel and get up several lingo bucketfuls of water against tlio coming of the troop. Ho [ ordered others to rub down his handsome sorrel, Chester, and the mounts of two of the advanced party. At last , after what must have seemed an age. 1 yet could not have been over 30 minutes from the timo of their arrival, a | soldier running in said ho could hear hoofs out on the plain, and at the same instant two men appeared lugging between them, bleeding and senseless, j the ragged form of Edward Harvey. Scratched, torn, covered with blood and bruises and still unconscious though ho was, Drummond knew him at a glance. Tlioy had met tho previous year, and though only onco it was enough. Men with young and lovoly sisters aro not soon forgotten. Kneel- ' in;; liy liis side, (ho lieutenant sought { anxiously for traco of blade or bullet. 1 Rents there wvro many and many a { bloody scratch and tear, but, to his iu- ( finite relief, no serious wound appeared. * Still in deep swoon, his friend seemed i to resist every effort for his restora- 1 tion. The d;ish of water in his face 1 was answered only by a faint shivering sigh. Tho thimbleful of whisky 1 forced lietween his lips only gurgled ( down his throat, and Druminond felt 1 no responsive flutter of pulse. Tho ? shock to his system must indeed havo j 1 heen great, for Harvey lay liko one in , 1 a trance. Drummoud feared that ho i 1 might never again open his eves to 1 ( light and home. 1 And then tho weary troop came trot- 5 ting into view, old Sergeant Meinecko ; 1 in command. Halting and dismount- j { ing at his signal, tho men stood silent 1 and wondering at their horses' heads, 1 while their leader went in to report to 1 his commander. * Drummond barely lifted his eyes from * tho pallid features before him. '1 Unsaddle, sergeant; rub down; pick * out tho best and likeliest horses. I i ' want 20 men to go on a chase with me. ! 1 How soon can tho packs get up?' 1 "They must be fully half an hour be- i 1 hind, sir." I 1 "Sorry for that, sergeant. We've got to take at least four of them; load ( them up with barley, bacon, hardtack, ! t ammunition. Kick off everything else. 1 We'll feed and water hero beforo start- I ' ing, then we've got to ride liko the * devil. Send Trooper Bland hero as 1 soon us ho has unsaddled. I want him ' * to ride with me. He knows all the 1 roads to l!.o south." r Meinecko saluted in his methodical | E German fashion, turned away and pres- ; ? ently could bo heard ordering "Unsaddle," anil then shouting for Private ? Bland. * " Are thero any of our men besides * the farrier who havo any knowledge of ^ surgery ?" asked tho lieutenant of Ser- ^ geant Lee. \ t "They say Bland Ims, sir. I don't E know any one else." * "Well, I've just sent for him. Mr. i " Harvey hero doesn't seem to bo wound- 1 ed, yet it's impossible to bring him to. j 1 Give Woods a little moro whisky and 1 see if you can get a word out of tho ma- * jororFeeny." But efforts with tho half suffocated * men had no effect. Tho whisky with ^ Woods had better results. Ho present- 1 ly ceased his shivering sobs and could 1 answer more questions. Drummond 1 begged for particulars of the capture, ? and these the man found it difficult to give. He was stationed at the back ( door, the corral side, he said, and haid- ! ly saw the i'mal rush. But there was , 1 something so queer about it. There ( had been a few minutes' lull. Then I Harvey and Feeny both began to talk 1 excitedly and to call out that the "road ; \ agents" were running away, and then presently there came the sound of gal- ! loping hoofs and cheering and both the I 1 sergeant nnd Mr. Harvey had shouted : J that the troops were coming and rushed | out to meet them?"And the next thing I 1 1 knew," said Woods, "was seeing Feeny ? flattened ouj on the ground and crawl- j ing on his hands and knees and the room filled with roughs, some Mexi- j j cans, some Yanks, and I slipped into j * the corral and saw one of them shoot fi Feeny as ho was trying to crawl after j me; and while they were swearing and ? searching for the safe and carrying it ! ? out, Mr. Dawes and Mullan managed, ' somehow, to help the paymaster out, 1 and then went in after the other man." 1 Then Woods could tell little more. One thing, he said, amazed and excited j * him so ho couldn't believe his eyes, but : 4 he was almost ready to swear that the ; ' fellow Feeny ran to shako hands with j c was a soldier in uniform, and that he i c held Feeny's hand while another man 1 * camo up behind and "mashed" him ; * with the butt of his pistol, and that : c this fellow in soldier clothes was the c man who afterward shot Feeny as he j 8 was trying to crawl away. 8 Druinmond looked around at the man r incredulous?almost derisive. The story j 1 was improbable, too much so to deserve J even faint attention. Just then Mei- j ? necke came back and, precise as ever, 8 stood attention and saluted. I 8 "Herr lieutenant, Private Bland is 1 not with my party at all, sir." "Did you leave him back with the j 8 packs?" "No, sir; the men say he wasn't with * us all night. Ho rode ahead with tho i lieutenant until we came to Corporal I Donovan's body." * "He's not been with me since," ex- 1 claimed tho lieutenant. '' Sergeant Lee, . N ask if any of tho men have seen him." i 1 Leo was gone but a moment, then x came back with gravo face and troubled 8 eyes, bringing with him a young troop- 1 8 er who was serving his first enlistment. 8 " Private Goss, here, has a queer story i t to tell, sir." | c "What do you know? What have j r you seen?" asked Drummond. 1 "Why, sir, right after Sergeant Lee t caught sight of tho fire and sung out i that it was Moreno's I was back about a ^ couple of rods looking for my canteen. 8 I was that startled when they found > Corporal Donovan dead that I dropped c it, and all of a sudden somebody comes out past mo leading his horse, and I 8 asked him what he had lost, and ho said j * his pipo and passed me by, and I : t thought nothing more about it?only ' t no sooner did he get out into tho dark r T un/i V?i m 1 liojir/1 \ all of a sudden a horse start at full gal- t lop right over in this direction, and c now I think of it it must have been i Bland, for it was him that passed ine, 1 sir?sneaking out like." j t Drummond sprang to his feet. J e "What say you to this, sergeant? Do v you believe?do you thiuk it possible j h that Bland has deserted and joined s these outlaws?" ; 1 "I don't know what to think, sir, I v but I haven't forgotten what Feeny ! e said of him." t "What was that?" ! t "That ho had too smooth a tongue to F havo led a rough and honest life; that 1 f if ho was a Texan as ho claimed Texas | a ])Coj)lo had learned to talk a different I lingo since ho was stationed among j 1' them with tho old Second cavalry before | fi tho war, and that ho wished he'd been t thero at Lowell when tho adjutant ac- t cepted those letters from former officers s of tho regiment as genuine. Bland | 1' would never show them to Feeny. Said ' t ,1 j. < j... i I v 110 llcUl hCllb cm an Hi ma nuuiu in i Texas. That was what made bad blood ! f between them." f "By lieaveu I and now to think that h ono of our troop?G troop?should b havo been engaged in this outrage! s But we'll get them, men," said Drummond, straightening up to his full I height and raising his gauntleted hand A in air. "They can't go fast or far s with those wagons such a night as this, if They'll strike the foot hills before h they'vo gone 10 miles, then they'll 1 havo to go slow. We'll catch them before the sun is up, and, by tho God of v heaven, if Bland is with them, I'll string him to tho highest treo wo can fi find." n "There's inoro than him that'll be d strung up," growled a grizzled old trooper in an undertone. "Tho gang t that murdered Pat Donovan will find : t scant mercy in this crowd." j o "Aye, aye," said another, "and , F there's more than Pat Donovan to bo | ti scored off. Look yonder." For at the d instant ono of tho packers came leading a into tho corral a resisting mule, at sight a of whoso burden many of tho horses ! started in fear. It was tho lifeless body si of Donovan's companion, tho soldier who " had escaped tho assassin's bullet when a Patsy fell only to bo overtaken and cut g down half way to Moreno's. h "ll H Uiu uiuuuiest ingnu a vu kuu\> u p even in Arizona," said Leo to his young J tl leader. "The paymaster and Mr. Har- j si vey ahout as good as dead, old Feeny | dying, most like, the clerk and Mullan t< mil some other trooper of the escort mrned to ashes in that hell hole there, uul Donovan and this last one?somo if our fellows think it is Flynn, from F :roop?shot to death. It's worse than Vpache, lieutenant, and there'll be no i ise trying to restrain our fellows when .vo catch tho blackguards." A quarter of an hour later, leaving lalf a dozen soldiers under an experi- 1 meed sergeant to guard tho packs, the cvounded and the noncombatants at the | imoTdering ruins of tho ranch, with aarelv a score of seasoned trooners at lis back, Lieutenant Jim Drummond ode resolutely out toward the southern lesert, toward the distant line of jagged mountains that spanned tlio far horizon. The falso and fatal blaze at the Picacho had utterly disappeared, ami j ill was darkness at the west. The red jlow of the smoldering embers behind J svas no. longer sufficient to light their path. Straight away southward led i :he wheeltracks, first separate and dis:inct, but soon blending, as though one ivagon had fallen behind and followed ;ho trail of the bolder leader in the ' irst. Straight away after them went :ho ruck of hoof tracks, telling plainly :hat for a time at least the gang had massed and was prepared to guard its plunder. Stop to divido it was evident they i . lared not, for they had not with them :he implements to break into tho safe, md all their searching and threatening lad failed to extract from tho appnrrntly dying paymaster any clew as to ivhat ho had dono with tho key. Stick ;ogether, therefore, they undoubtedly vould, reasoned the lieutenant, and all ;heir effort would bo to reach some lecuro haunt in the Sierras and there send back their demand for ransom, rwenty-five thousand dollars in cash ind Georgo Harvoy's precious daughers 1 It was indeed a rich haul?one ;hat in all tho dread history of the j Morales gang had never been equaled. Sven had they failed to secure tho safe he richer booty was theirs in having leized the girls. But few people in Arzona?as Arizona then was constituted I i ?would make great effort to overhaul j i gang of robbers whoso only victim i vas Uncle Sam and "his liveried hire- i ings." Nobody in Sonora would fail 'i ;o regard them with envious eyes, but i n the deed of rapine that made them I :he captors and possessors of those de- i ftnseless sisters each man had put a j jrico upon his head, a halter round his ( leek, for "gringo" and "greaser," American and Mexican alike, would spring to arms to rescue and avenge. As the rearmost of tho little party i , )f pursuers disappeared in tho darkness ind the wearied pack mules went jog- . jing sullenly after, urged 011 by the goad )t their half Mexican driver, tho ser- j * jeant left in charge of the detachment , it the corral looked at his watch and j , loted that it was just 2:30 o'clock, rhe dawn would be creeping on at 4. i Wearied as were his men, ho uid not 14> 4.1. ~ ?11 4.^ rPL(1 JL'IIll 11 II1UXXX <11 X LU XC9U 1IIU lUUUJLlUll )f his wounded and the instructions left rim by Lieutenant Drummond made it lecessary that they should have constant 1 ittention. It was sore trouble for him :o look at the old paymaster, whose j ife seemed ebbing away, lying there so lallid and moaning at times so pitifuly, but Feeny lay torpid, breathing, yet j leeming to suffer not at all. Both were in desperate need of surgical attendance, but whero could sur- ; ;eon be found? The nearest was at j ' jtoneman, the little cantonment across 1 he Christobal, 30 miles to the east, ind though a gallant fellow had vol- j inteered to make the ride alone through ho Apache infested pass and carry the lispatch that Drummond had hurriedy penciled there was no possibility | I ?f doctors reaching them before the i joming night, and the thought of all hey might havo to suffer through the | 1 ierco white heat of tho intervening I ' lay was ono that gave tho sergeant 1 lecp concern. Then, too, whu could ay whether the solitary trooper would | 1 ucceed in running the gantlet and naking his way through ? Ho was a < esolute old frontiersman, skilled in j ndian warfare and well aware that I ' lis best chance was in the dark, but i peed as he might tho broad light of \ ' lay would be on him long before he ;ould get half way through tho range, i 1 Tho stage from the west would prob- | i ibly come along about sunset, but noth- I ' ng could be hoped for sooner. No ! I roops were nearer than the Colorado ' n that direction except the littlo-signal >ost at tho Pieacho. Corporal Fox and 1 ( wo men had been sent thither to in- j [uiro what tho signal meant, and it < vould soon be time for them to come J | iding in with their report. How he j j vished Wing were here! Wing knew j omething about everything. Ho was ( in expert veterinarian, something of ( i doctor, knew more of mineralogy i . han all the officers put together and j :ould speak Spanish better than any j ( nan in the regiment. When it became < lecessary to have a signal station at j he peak and it was found that no ono ( mew anything about the business, < rVing got ono of the old red manuals, ! ( tudied the system and inside of a week , vas signaling ivitii me expert sent , [own from San Francisco. The interior of the ranch was still a moldering furnace as 4 o'clock drew ! ligh. Woods, weak and exhausted, 1 * lad fallen into an uneasy sleep. The 1 rooper detailed to watch over old Plum- ' uer and Feeuy and batho their faces ' vith cold water was nodding over his ' harge. Here and there under the shed j m tlio north side which the flames had ! 1 lot reached the men were dozing, or in 1 ow, awestricken tones talking of the j 1 ragic events of tho night. Near the i 5 ast gate, reverently and deeply covered ! ( vith tho only shroud to be had, the f ( lewest of the saddle blankets, lay tho | 1 tiffening remains of poor Donovan and 1 lis comrade. Lurking about the west- y vard end of tho inclosure, their beady i yes every now and then glittering in j lie firelight, tho Mexicans, men and ; i toy, were smoking their everlasting ; lapelitos, apparently indifferent to tho i ] ato that had deprived them of homo j ,nd occupation. t One of tho troopers had burrowed a ( 10I0 in the sand, started a little cook ( ire and was boiling some colfeo in a ^ in quart mug. Overhead and far down j o the horizon on every side tho stars t hone and sparkled through the vapor- s ess skies. Eastward toward the Chris- ( obal they were just beginning to pale j L*)i?n n fnitiJ- vnirn was hoard nlpadincr or water. Sergeant Butler sprang I rom his seat and hastened to where lie j ^ iad left Mr. Harvey but a few minutes I s efore, still in deep and obstinate I j woon. ! j "Water, is it, sir? Hero you are! j r 'm glad to see you picking up a little. I J Ir. Drummond left this for you too, ir. lie said you would inayl>o need ' | t." And the sergeant raised the dizzy j lead and-held a little flask to Harvey's j t ips- j g "Where is he?" at last tlio sufferer j ras able to gasp. "Overhauling the outlaws, hand over I st, by this time, sir. Ho has 20 good j 1 aen at his back, and we'll have the la- j c ies safe tonight?see if wo don't." "Oh, God!" groaned the stricken ! ' irother, burying his face in his arms as * ho recollection of the fearful events j ( f the night came crowding upon him. i 1 'or a moment he seemed to quiver and | j rem bio in every mil n, men wmi buu- 1 en effort raised his head and turned ! ( gain, the Mood trickling anew from ' gash in his face as he did so. "Give mo more of that," I10 moaned, ' tretching forth a trembling hand. ' c Moro water too. Lend 1110 a liorso j I nd your carbine. I must go! I must j .1 o!" But thero his strength failed J j im, and grasping wildly at empty air 1 t oor Harvey fell heavily back before ! t 10 sergeant could interposo an arm to j > ive. s "Don't think of it, sir. You'ro far | t xj weak, and you'ro not needed. Nevov fear, the lieutenant and (' troop will do all that men can do. They'll bring tho ladies safely back as soon as they've hang what's left of that murdering gang. Hello! That you. Fox?" ho shouted, springing up as two or three horsemen came spurring in. "It's I?Wing, "was tho answer in ringing tones. '' Fox is coining slower. Quick now. Is it so that that gang has run off the young ladies?" "It's God's truth. Here's Mr. Ned Harvey himself." In an instant Wing was kneeling by the sido of tho prostrate man. "Merciful heaven, my friend, but they've used 3*011 fearfully! They only bound and held 1110 till Jackson got back from Ceralvo's a couple of hours ago. Are }*ou shot?injured?" "No, no." groaned Harvey. "But I am broken, utterly broken, and my sisters are in tho hands of those hounds." "Never worry about that, man. I know young Drummond well. Thero isn't a braver, better officer in tho old regiment if ho i3 but a boy. He'll never drop that trail till ho overtakes them, and by the time ho needs us old Piko hero and I will be at his side. Thank tho Lord, those louts were frightened off and never took our horses. They're fresh as daisies, both of 'em. Cheer up, Mr. Harvey. If hard riding and hard fighting will do it. we'll have }*our sis ters hero to nurse you before another night. Come, Pike," ho cried as ho vaulted into saddle. "Now for tho liveliest gallop of your lazy, good for nothing life. Come on!" to uk continued next wekk. JIUsccUaucouci grading. fkks for exi'krt testimony.?Referring to a recent case of where a physician was imprisoned for refusing to testify as an expert, without proper compensation, The Medical Record says: We all know that law and equity are not synonymous terms; hut it is certainly not justice to compel a man to give for nothing what he spent so much time, money and labor to acquire. If a physician has no right of possession in the special knowledge which has cost him so much to gain, then let us be consistent, and divide up all property. Physicians, in common with other good citizens, submit willingly and uncomplainingly to the law. and cheerfully make every sacrifice to perform their duty as witnesses to facts which may be of service in fathering the ends of justice. But there is a limit to even such services. It is the common belief that judges and lawyers are necessary to the proper meting out of justice to evildoers ; but they are not, on that account, compelled to give their services without remuneration, and there is no justice nor reason in forcing physicians to do so. The Stale has attorneys whom it pays well to prosecute offenders against its laws ; and it should pay the expert witness, if it calls upon him, for the knowledge which he has acquired, and which is as much his own property as are the clothes he has on his hack. ?af" When Daniel Webster, the celebrated statesman and lawyer, visited England after he had attained fame enough to precede him, an English gentleman took him one day to see Lord Brougham. That eminent Briton received Daniel with such coolness that he was glad to get away and back to his rooms. The friend who had taken him at once returned in haste and anger to Lord Brougham. "My lord, how could you behave with such unseemly rudeness and discourtesy to so great a lawyer and statesman? It was insulting to him, and has tilled me with mortification." "Why, what 011 earth have I done, and whom have I been rude to?" "To Daniel Webster of the senate of the United States." "Great Jupiter, what a blunder ! I thought it was that fellow Webster who made a dictionary and nearly ruined the English language." And theu the great chancellor quickly hunted up the American senator, and, having other tastes in common besides law and politics, they made a royal night of it. O&T Sable island is fatuous throughsilt the Canadian maritime provinces for its race of wild ponies. The little creatures were originally placed upon the island in order that they might Furnish food for ship-wrecked marines' Frequently cast away there. The coarse salt grass of the island is cured and stacked in summer time, ntd upon this the ponies feed all winter. It is said that they eat their way leep into the stacks and thus find their >nly shelter from the storms. There s a tradition current that they even ;ai nsu tuat are oast upon tlie shore. Considerable droves of the ponies are aken to the mainland in early autumn md they are sold in the Halifax narket. BST (ieorge?No matter how things jo, the poor always suffer. Jack?Yes, he nabobs who own railroads think lothing of running over a poor man's torse. "Yes, and the man who can aford to own a horse runs down a poor ellow on a bicycle." "Just so. And he man on a bicycle runs down the loor chap who has to walk." "That's t.. And the man who walks stumbles igainst the cripple who goes on rutches." "That's the way. And the . ripple on crutches spends most of his ime jamming his stick down on other leople's corns. It is really a selfish vorld." JEST If you may believe waiters in estaurants such as Deimonico's, in Sew York, times were never before so lard with them. They admit that nen who frequent the places "tip" hem as of old, and perhaps as genernisly in each case, but the trouble is, hey say, that a man who, a couple of rears ago, would go into a certain cafe ivc times a week, now visits it only nice a week. A barber who built himself a little home out of "tips" says hat his "tips" this winter would not mild him a dog-house. fikaT'An exchange aptly remarks that vhen you sec a youth who will do any ;ort of work, no matter how menial it 11'IV lie r-lthfM* fli'lll fi<? iillo frm mill nuke up your mind that fellow iinounts to something. The young nan who would starve before he would lo anything beneath what he conceives o he his dignity is not made of the ight stutr to cut much of a figure in his world. Don't he afraid of any ;ort of work so long as it is honorable. ^ ? ? fiaT' If the expenditures execed the ncome. financial trouble is sure to :ome. If a government follows an exravagant policy, the country must safer. In almost every country this is he question?how to meet vast expenlitures with limited revenues?and alnost every device is attempted except he simple one of reducing expenses, fhe result is no mystery. There is me law for individuals and nations? lankruptcy follows extravagance. ? ? ? fifcaT' This is the Moslem Mu/zen's rail to prayer, as given recently at the doslem colonv in New York in Arabic iii?l English: "God is grout! God is ilmingty! God is merciful! I testify here is no God hut one God. I testify hat Mohammed is the prophet of God. i*e faithful come now to prayers. God great! God is almighty ! God is meriiful! There is no God but one God." 4