THE
LE OF THE PLAINS
_ ,
AUTHOR Or'My LAjvOf THE SOUTH" JJl
WHEM WILDERNESS WAS Kind CTC.ETC . '
ItLUSTRATISMS By
( Copyright , 'A. C. McClur * & Co. . 19J0. )
14
SYNOPSIS.
Jack Keith , a Virginian , now a bor
der plainsman , Is riding : alone : the Santa
Fe trail on the lookout for roaming : war
parties of savages. He notices a camp
fire at a distance and then sees a team
attached to a wagon and at full gallop
pursued by men on ponies. "When Keith
reaches the wagon the raiders have mass
acred two men and departed. He searches
the victims finding paoers and a locket
with a woman's portrait He resolves to
hunt down the murderers. Keith Is ar
rested at Carson City , charged with the
murder , his accuser being a ruffian named
Black BarL He goes to Jail fully realiz
ing the peril of swift border justice. A
companion In his cell is a negro , who
tells him he is Neb and that he knew the
Keith family back in Virginia. Neb says
one of the murdered men was John
Slbley. the other Gen. Willis Walte. for
merly an officer In the Confederate army.
The plainsman and Neb escape from the
cell , and later the two fugitives become
lost in the sand desert. They come upon
a cabin and find its lone occupant to be a
young girl , whom Keith recognizes as a
singer he saw at Carson City. The girl
explains that she came there In search of
a brother who had deserted from the.
army. A Mr. Hawley induced her to
come to the cabin while he sought to lo
cate her brother. Hawley appears , and
Keith In hiding recognizes him as Black
Bart. Hawley tries to make love to the
Klrl. There is a terrific battle in the
darkened room In which Keith overcomes
Black Bart. Horses are appropriated , and
the girl who says that her name is Hope ,
joins In the escape. Keith explains his
situation and the fugitives make for Fort
learned , where the girl is left with the
hotel landlady. Miss Hope tells that she
1s the daughter of General Waite.
CHAPTER XVI. ( Continued. )
It was a grim picture of depravity
and desolation , the environment dull ,
gloomy , forlorn ; all Miat was worthy
the eye or thought L3ing the pulsing
human element. All about extended
the barren plains , except where on
one side a ravine cut through an over
hanging ridge. From the sePthing
street one could look up to the sum
mit , and see there the graves of the
many who had died deaths of violence ,
and been borne thither In "their
fooots. " Amid all this surrounding
desolation was Sheridan the child of
B , few brief months of existence , and
destined to perish almost as quickly
the center of the grim picture , a mere
cluster of rude , unpainted houses ,
poorly erected shacks , grimy tents
flapping in the never ceasing wind
swirling across the treeless waste , the
ugly red station , the rough cowpens
-filled with lowing cattle , the huge , ungainly -
gainly stores , their false fronts decorated -
rated by amateur wielders of the
'paint brush , and the garish dens o'f
vice tucked in everywhere. The pendulum -
-dulum of life never ceased swinging.
: Society was mixed ; no man cared who
1 his neighbor was , or dared to question.
* Of women worthy the name there
; were few , yet there were flitting fe
male forms in plenty , the saloon lights
revealing powdered cheeks ana paint
ed eyebrows. It was a strange , rest-
fless populace , the majority here to-
'day. disappearing tomorrow cow-
toys , half-breeds , trackmen , graders ,
desperadoes , gamblers , saloon-keepers ,
merchants , generally Jewish , petty of
ficials , and a riff-raff no one could ac
count for , mere floating debris. The
town was an eddy catching odd bits
-of driftwood such as only the frontier
ever knew. Queer characters were
everywhere , wrecks of dissipation , de
relicts of the East , seeking nothing
save oblivion.
Everything was primitive passion
: and pleasure ruled. To spend easily
made money noisily , brazenly , was the
ideal. From dawn to dawn the search
-after joy continued. The bagnios and
dance halls were ablaze ; the barrooms
-rooms crowded with hilarious or
quarrelsome humanity , the gambling
tables alive with excitement Men
swaggered along the streets looking
for trouble , and generally finding It ;
cowboys rode into open saloon doors
and drank in the saddle ; troops of
congenial spirits , frenzied with liquor ,
-spurred recklessly through the street
firing into the air , or the crowd , as
their whim led ; bands played popular
airs on balconies , and innumerable
"ba " : ers" added their honeyed invi
tations to the perpetual din. From end
to end it was a saturnalia of vice , a
babel of sound , a glimpse of the in
ferno. Money flowed like water ; every
man was his own law , and the gun
the arbiter of destiny. The town
marshal , and a few cool-headed depu
ties moved here and there amid the
chaos , patient , tireless , undaunted ,
seeking merely to exercise some
slight restraint This was Sheridan.
Into the one long street just at dusk
rode Keith and Neb , the third horse
trailing behind. Already lights were
beginning to gleam in the crowded
saloons , and they were obliged to
proceed slowly. Leaving the negro at
the corral to find some purchaser for
the animals , and such accommoda
tions for himself as he could achieve ,
.Keith shouldered his way on foot
through the heterogeneous mass to-
vrard the only hotel , a long two-storied
wooden structure , unpainted , fronting
the glitter of the Pinoeer Dance Hall
opposite. A noisy band was splitting
the air with discordant notes , a loud-
-voiced "barker" yelling through the
mproar , but Keith , accustomed to similar -
; lar scenes and sounds elsewhere ,
retrode through the open door of the
feotel , and guided by the noisy , contin
uous clatter of dishes , easily found his
tv > the dining-room. It was crowd-
with men , a few women scattered
here and there , most of the former In
shirt-sleeves , all eating silently. A
few smaller tables at the back of the
room were distinguished from the oth
ers by white coverings in place of oil
cloth , evidently reserved for the more
distinguished guests. Disdaining cere
mony , the new comer wormed his way
through , finally discovering a vacant
seat where his back would be to the
wall , thus enabling him to survey the
entire apartment.
It was not of great Interest , save
for its constant change and the primi
tive manner in which the majority at
tacked their food supply , which was
piled helter-skelter upon the long
tables , yet he ran his eyes searchlngly
over the numerous faces , seeking im
partially for either friend or enemy.
No countenance present , as revealed
in the dim light of the few swinging
lamps , appeared familiar , and satis
fied that he remained unknown , Keith
began devoting his attention to the
dishes before him , mentally express
ing his opinion as to their attractive
ness. Chancing.finally to again lift
his eyes , he met the gaze of a man
sitting directly opposite , a man who
somehow did not seem exactly in har
mony with his surroundings. He was
short and stockily built , with round
rosy face , and a perfect shock of wiry
hair brushed back from a broad fore-
Puzzled at the unexpected recogni
tion , yet realizing the friendliness of
the man , Keith grasped the pudgy fin
gers extended with some cordiality.
"Don't remember me I s'pose don't
think you ever saw me delirious
when I came hate to tell you
what you was talking about gave
you hypodermic first thing behaved
well enough though when I dug out
the lead Minie bullet , badly blunted
hitting the rib thought you might
die with blood poison couldn't stay
to see to damn much to do evident
ly didn't though remember me now ? "
"No , only from what you say. You
must have been at General Waite's
headquarters. "
"That's It charge of Stonewall's
field hospital just happened to ride
Into Waite's camp that night damn
lucky for you I did young snip there
wanted to saw the bone I stopped
that liked your face Imagined you
might be worth saving ain't so sure
of It now , or you wouldn't be out in
this God forsaken country , eating
such grub my name's Fairbaln Jo
seph Wright Fairbain , M. D. contract
surgeon for the railroad working on
the line ? "
Keith shook his head , feeling awak
ening interest in his peculiar com
panion.
"No ; just drifted in here from down
Keith Elbowed His Way Through the Heterogenous Crowd.
head ; his nose .wide but stubby , and
chin massive. Apparently he was he
tween forty and fifty years or age , ex
ceedingly well dressed , his gray eyes
shrewd and full of a grim humor.
Keith observed all this in a glance ,
becoming aware at the same time that
his neighbor was apparently studying
him also. The latter broke silence
with a quick , jerky utterance , which
seemed to peculiarly fit his personal
appearance.
Damn It all know you , sir sure
I do but for life of me can't tell
where. "
Keith stared across ate him more
searchlngly , and replied , rather In
differently :
"Probably a mistake then , as I have
no recollection of your face. "
"Never made a mistake , sir never
forget a face , " the other snapped with
some show of Indignation , his hands
now. clasped on the table , one stubby
forefinger pointed , as he leaned for
ward. "Don't tell me I've seen you
somewhere no , not a word don't
even tell me your name I'm going to
think of it"
Keith smiled , not unwilling to humor
the man's eccentricity , and returned to
his meal , with only an occasional in
quiring glance across the table. The
other sat and stared at him , his
heavy eyebrows wrinkled as he strug
gled to awaken memory. The younger
man had begun on his pie when the
face opposite suddenly cleared.
"Damn me , I've got it hell , yes ;
hospital tent Shenandoah bullet im
bedded under third rib ordinary case
that's why 1 forgot clear as mud
now get the name In a minute Cap
tain Captain Keith that's it shake
hands. "
on the Arkansas , " he explained brief
ly. "Did you know General Walte
was dead ? "
The doctor's ruddy face whitened.
"Dead ? Willis Waite dead ? " he re
peated. "What do you mean , sir ? Are
you sure ? When ? "
"I ought'to be sure ; I burled him
just this side the Cimmaron Crossing
out on the Santa Fe trail. "
"But do you know it was General
Walte ? " the man's insistent tone full
of doubt
"I have no question about It , " re
turned Keith , conclusively. "The man
was Waite's size and general appear
ance , with gray beard , similar to the
one I remember he wore during the
war. He had been scalped , and his
face beaten beyond recognition , but
papers in his pockets were sufficient
to prove his identity. Besides , he and
his companion a young fellow named
Sibley were known to have pulled out
two days before from Carson City. "
"When was this ? "
"Ten days ago. "
Fairbain's lips smiled , the ruddj
coloring sweeping back into his
cheeks.
"Damn me , Keith , you came near
giving me a shock , " he said , jerkily.
"Shouldn't be so careless not sure
my heart's just right tendency to
apoplexy , too got to be guarded
against Now , let me tell you some
thing maybe you buried some poor
devil out at Cimmaron Crossing but
it wasn't Willis Waite. How do I
know ? Because I saw him , and talked
with him yesterday damn me , if 1
didn't , right here in this town. "
CHAPTER XVII.
In the Next Room.
Keith , his eyes filled with undis
guised doubt , studied the face of the
man opposite , almost convinced that
he was , In some way , connected with
the puzzling mystery. But the hon
esty of the rugged face only added to
his perplexity.
"Are you certain your are not mis
taken ? "
"Of course I am , Keith. I've known
Waite for fifteen years a bit intimate
ly have met him frequently since the
war and I certainly talked with him.
He told me enough to partially confirm
your story. He said he had started
for Santa Fe light , because he couldn't
get enough men to run a caravan
afraid of Indians , you know. So , he
determined to take money buy Mexican - |
can goods and risk himself. Old ,
fighting cock wouldn't turn back for ,
all the Indians on the plains once he !
got an idga in his head he was that
kind Lord , you ought to seen the
fight he put up at Spottsylvania ! He
got to Carson City with two wagons ,
a driver and a cook had eight thou
sand dollars with him. too , the damn
fool. Cook got Into row , gambling , cut
a man , and was jugged. Old Waite
wouldn't leave even a nigger In that
sort of fix natural fighter likes any
kind of row. So. he hung on there at
Carson , but had sense enough Lord
knows where he got it to put all
but a few hundred dollars in Ben
Levy's safe. Then , he went out one
night to play poker with his driver
and a friend had a drink or two
doped , probaoly , and never woke up
for forty-eight hours lost clothes ,
money , papers , and whole outfit was
just naturally cleaned out couldn't
get a trace worth following after.
You ought to have heard him cuss
when he told me it seemed to be the
papers that bothered him most them ,
and the mules. "
( TO BE CONTINUED. )
The Test.
Madge I refused Jack eight times
before finally saying "yes. "
Ethel Why did you change your
mind ?
Madge I didn't I was merely seeIng -
Ing if he would change his.
The Worst.
He I shouldn't marry unless the
woman was my exact opposite.
She You'll never find so perfect a
being as that !
Caricatures on the Stage
Appeal to Playwrights to Make Their
Characters a Little More
True to Nature.
At the anniversary festival of the
Royal General Theatrical Fund J. L.
Griffiths , United States consul gen
eral , spoke a word of appeal for some
improvements in the drama. He
would like , he said , to see a play in
which there was a really spiritual
clergyman , an honest barrister , a
straightforward diplomatist and an
American gentleman. Mr. Griffiths'
views have been generally indorsed
by the press.
It is acknowledged that diplomatists
are presented on the stage too con
sistently as creatures of preternatural
cunning , never as men with human
limitations. The popular dramatic
type of clergyman , the muscular , is
more tiring still ; every curate is not
the physical equal of a prizefighter.
An American gentleman would be
very welcome on the English stage.
The type almost invariably presented
is like nothing on earth. He Is neither
a gentleman nor an American. It is
true he no longer ejaculates "By
gosh ! " or "I calculate , " but he con
tinues to be a caricature , and a bad
caricature at that.
Classified Mail.
"Good morning , " the young woman
said as she stepped to the window at
the post office. "Is there a letter for
me today ? '
"I'll look , " the clerk answered.
The young woman blutied a little ,
and she added , "It's a business fctter. "
The man Inside the window took up
a handful of letters and looked them
over hastily. Then he informed the
customer that there was nothing for
her ; and with great disappointment
depicted on her lovely features , she
went away. In five minutes she was
back again this time blushing more
furiously than before.
"I I deceived you , " she stammered.
"It-T-it wasn't a business letter I was
expecting. Will you please see if
there is something for me among the
love letters ? "
1
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