Argosy All-Story Weekly, April 28, 1928 — page 117: what you’re looking at

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

DAMMING HAIRPIN CANON. at _the box car or its occupants, he turned, and with bent head hurried away through the underbrush up the canon. His action gave a sense of grisly ap- prehension to Norman which was not lessened by the air of exultant maley- olence with which the Spaniard came mincing back toward him. “You certainly play in hard luck, Friend Rich.” He lighted a cigarette and tossed away the match into a heap of wreckage. “ Everything goes wrong for you. “You do not know, perhaps, that your Los Chicos County friends have been driven back in a battle we have just had at the dam, and that the Court House Crowd is in full control. Before they can be ousted, State troops now on the way will be here, and the out- break will quiet down of course, and they be back in full power. “Yes,” he continued reflectively, “vou play in hard luck. You have given us quite a run for our money. But in the end you lose everything. “ What good does it do you to escape from me three times, and to fall over White Horse Cliff and still live, when at the last you go out like this.” He blew a puff of smoke from his cigarette and watched it-as it vanished, carried away by the breeze. “Tike that!’ he repeated, with a venomous laugh. ‘‘ There will be no murder proofs, Friend Rich, and your message, which I think is scratched somewhere on this wreckage, will never be found. |For—you see that little blaze creeping up where I flicked my match—the wreckage will not be here. It and you will have vanished in smoke.” It was just about this time that Big Bill, disheveled and downcast and with a bullet scrape across the temple, came in to report to Molly the repulse of the Bill Joneses and John Smiths at the » dam. “Those devils on the other side are fighters, no mistake about that,” he conceded ruefully. “‘ They’ve druv us back, and now they’re intrenched be- hind the concrete of the dam, where we can’t dislodge ’em. If we could only come up the canon, and take ’em in flank, we might do something; but there ain’t no chance of that. “You see,” he explained, “ these ain’t Bridger County boys ‘at all, but trained greaser guerillas, what was hired by our own sheriff and commis- sioners. “Oh, yes,” he replied to her quick glance of inquiry. “‘ We’ve found that out. Fenton and the rest of ’em’s been seen mixing with the men on the other side. Fine note, ain’t it? Hiring greasers to shoot down their own peo- — ple!” 547 Like a flash, Molly had thrown off — the apathy with which she had been lis- tening to him, and sprang to her feet with blazing eyes. “Those assassins! ers!” she exclaimed. “ Are those the people you are fighting against? And you are letting them whip you?” “Can’t help ourselves,’ muttered Big Bill. “‘ Trained soldiers against amachoors.” | But she was paying no heed to him. She was thinking rapidly. “Listen!” she cried. “I’ve got it! Start a feint attack upon these Mexi- cans to keep them occupied, and in the meanwhile bring me here a force of about a hundred picked men, that I can lead up the cafion past White Horse Cliff, and take them in flank.” “Past White Horse Cliff?” Big Bill stared at her. “‘ Good gosh, ma’am! It can’t be done.” “Tt can!’ She stamped her foot impatiently. “JI know a secret path that leads into that pocket below the cliff, and out again. My father showed it to me when I was a little girl. Now don’t stand arguing with me, but get your men.” Ten minutes later in hastily com- mandeered vehicles of every descrip- Those murder- tion the hundred men were hurrying» Gomichbooks eo}