Adventure, January 20, 1922 — page 85: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Partners For answer the red-faced man turned to the man who had acted as guide. “Vou’d better tell the committee what happened at the Tin Dipper last night,” he said. “Well,” said the man, after taking a chew of tobacco, “‘there ain’t a heap to tell. I was standing at the bar talking with Slim when the cussin’ broke loose. I turned round just as this stranger shot down Tex. The bar-keep let a bottle fly at the lamp and Slim fetched this fellow over the head. That’s as far as anything went.” The old man blinked his baby-blue eyes and stared at the speaker. “Did you go over to see how Tex was coming on this morning?” asked the red- faced man. “Oh, he’s doin’ pretty fair,’ -was the drawling reply. “He was just winged in the shoulder. The boys got him fixed up as good as new.” “Well, you’ve heard the: report of this member of the committee. What have you to say?” said the red-faced man, turning to the prisoner. “Well, as I mentioned afore, I ain’t got a very clear memory of just what did happen last night. I reckon, though, that I didn’t do any shootin’.”’ “What makes you think that?” was the sharp question. “W-ell,”’ drawled the old man, “in the fust place they didn’t give me time—an’ in the second place this gent you call Tex would have been beyond any ‘fixin’’ if I’d took the notion to shoot at him!” The red-faced man opened a drawer in the table and lifted out a huge, old-fashioned Colt’s revolver. “Ts this your gun?” he asked sharply. The old man glanced at it and nodded. “You had it when you were at the Tin Dipper?” was the hext question. Once more the old man nodded. “T guess that’s all this committee needs to know,” said the red-faced man, with a grunt. “This gun has one empty chamber and there was only one shot fired last night at the Tin Dipper. You can be mighty thankful that Tex is in shape to be ‘fixed.’ As it is, this committee will give you a fine of three hundred dollars—and twenty-four hours to get out of Canto!” The old man blinked several timesand slid one hand into a pocket of his new overalls. He found one lonely ten-dollar gold piece. oe \ an’ him has been 83 “T guess you'll have to give me time in jail,’ he said slowly. “I dropped all my stake except this at the Dipper.” The members of the committee scowled and looked at each other. The red-faced man wiped the sweat from his face; the little room was almost like an oven. After a moment he rose to his feet, and, turning to the others, said: “T appoint Jones, Sims and Hodge as a committee of three to decide what shall be done,” he said. ‘“They may use my bed- room to talk it over.” Three men seated along the wall clam- bered to their feet and made their way into an adjoining room. IN A very short time they returned. One of them talked to the red-faced .man in a low voice. The red-faced man nodded and, turning to the old man, he pointed to the door. “You can now go,” he said. ‘“‘We give you twenty-four hours to get out of Canto. We have decided to take your horse and saddle instead of a cash fine.” The tall form of the old man suddenly straightened. “VYou—you don’t mean to say you’re goin’ to take Old Slob?” he cried. “Why— him an’ me has been pards for years!” “We give you twenty-four hours to get out of Canto!’’ repeated the red-faced man sharply. ‘The stage goes through at noon. You’d better go out on that. If we see you after twenty-four hours—or see you trying to take your horse—we will do the shooting! We've had enough of you outsiders drifting in here and trying to run the place!” “Gents,” the old man said slowly, his baby-blue eyes searching the faces before him, ‘‘I ain’t so blind but what I can see how the land lays with you boys. You got to hold some one for this shootin’—an’ I’m the stranger. But it ain’t quite square to take away an old man’s only partner. Me an’ Old Slob has stood by each other for ten years—an’ thinks a heap o’ each other. We’ve faced death together in the desert, an’ starvation in the hills. I’m an old man an’ he’s the only pard I got. Me Pp) “You still got twenty-four hours to scare up the three hundred dollars,” broke in the red-faced man harshly. ‘You had better be at it if you think so much of that old crow-bait!”’ Go NOOK = A (C@