FEPPEPE000000400000000 304000009 Copyright, By The Dobbs CHAPTER XV se 2 (he 8ix-Gun Persuasion, In the church of which he had long been the chief support the funeral of the dead money-lender was held. In spite of his grasping and domi- neering ways, the rugged worth of the man, to say nothing of his wealth, had made him widely known. Now Joined to thls was the mystery of his death. People came from far and near, and the church was packed, while many were forced tb remaln out- side, grouped about the open door and windows. The Reverend clated, It was the first time the Flatwoods had heard him preach, because of the fact that the day before, though Sun. day, the church had remained closed out of respect for its leading member sleeping his last sleep at the red- roofed cottage, Standing well back among the silent group at the door, Jack Warhope watched the preacher go through his ordeal. Nerve he must he never could have carried it through Caleb Hopkins offi face there doubtless raged a tempest, but it did not seem to retare his flow of thought or mar his oratory, Little enough can be said over a dead woods, taph; Simon Colin had written that he showed the sense of a wiser fan, - Most the crowd lingered the cemetery for a time, even after the last solemn rites had been performed, as if to realize that a ’ 01 slow man 1 $0 of the little community, had with such suddenness that and power for the mean and voiceless walls of the grave, Immediately on the death of banker, the preacher had, for the sake « of appearances, moved to the parson- age. He had returned from the fu- meral and had been for some pacing back and forth, or dropped room upstairs—the former minister's study—whén he was very much sur- on Graylock, dismount, throw bridle rein over the hitch-rack come striding up the yard. He sprang from his chalr, opened one of his satchels, snatched out the holster with the Ivory-handled revolver sticking In it; hurriedly buckled it on under his vest, where it was concealed by the somber frock coat, and tiptoed back to his chair. A knock disturbed the sanctimoni- ous quiet of the study door. “Come In.” The knob turned, with a force and decision that somehow suggested the power of the hand lald upon it, and Jack Warhope entered: carefully closed the ddor; stood coolly looking the other over, The preacher slowly rose from his chair; slipped his hand down along the front of his frock coat and loos- ened it against his side, The, motion was not lost upon the Woodsman. His eyes had narrowed “Butt First, Parson,” Came the Cold Incisive Command Over the Steady Barrel, to slits In his face; his lips were tight. ened to a straight hard line. He dropped a quick look at the preacher's feet, ™ “Ther' ain't another pair o' boot heels In the Flatwoods like them, Mr, — opkins.” The brows of the other lifted In po- lite surprise, & CLP PPPPPRPPE PIPL TPPPILLO DBD “I found the print ¢’ them heels on the dusty floor boards there by Pap Simon's desk, where they couldn't 'a’ be'n made till after the rug was drug back.” The preacher peered at him through his huge spectacles; a subtle premo- nition of what was coming reached him, “I may have stepped there when I came out of my room. That was a most distressing scene, Mr, Warhope.” “But the board was scratched where the heel had slipped and dug Into It under strain. How come j'u slipped 7 The affable, benevolent smile weak- ened; the premonition of what was coming deepened. “Really, you must not expect me to remember every small detall of so dis- tressing a moment, Mr. Warhope.” “That” trick of removin’ the brim- stone from the caps on the shotgun was what I call downright smart. It took a good head t’ think o' that. But ain't It queer that a master hand lke that would unlock the door after the murder, instld of b'fore, and leave The studious pucker around the eyes was fast smoothing out, and the breathing fast. His hand fumbling the lapel of the frock “What You the do you mean? are not accusing me of of my old friend? “I mean,” rasped the woodsman, his of on hand stealing down the edge of the frock coat, “that night b'fore last 1 iald in the ttle and heard what was surely murder slits eves the Like lightning the under the was, creeping hand frock jut he the ivory-handled was not quite out of the holster when the heavy six-gun of the woddsman leaped up and covered him. coat. over the steady Hopkins stood’ Just as the gun had him—motionless; poised the flat of one foot forward. Reckless though he was, a man who held the world at bay, and keen-witted as a dog fox. he slowly over the revolver- irst, the Ivory butt The woodsman snatched it: removed the caps from the tubes and stuck it coat, “And now I'll jist trouble y'u f'r that parlor-door key." Hopkins scowled; whipped a black look at the steady muzzle of the six- gun; dragged the key out pocket and passed it over. der,” and collected as If there had been no interruption, at the same time drop- ping the key into his pocket “T'o doin’ y'u the honor t' think s'u hain't quite fell that low-—bein’' y'u didn't want 'is death, nohow, No. y'u wanted Im t' live, so's you could slip out all the good bills y'u dast every night and leave counterf'it bills In their place, “You'd jist got through changin’ the money that night when 'e rushed out on y'u. He tried t' shoot—both bar'ls—but you fixed the caps so's they wouldn't go off. Then foller'd the struggle, and no doubt you was bad flustered when "e fell back aerosst the chair, dead of heart disease. Then ¥'u unlocked the door t' head off sus r ¥'u wouldn't ‘a’ key." Hopkins was bowed forward, star ing hard through his glasses. The woodsman glanced at him. “Ther's jist one p'int I ain't quite clear on—did 'e know It was you?” The question caught the other off guard. “My God, yes! Oh, his dead face there In the coffin—In the black night it's before me.” He shuglered; gripped his hands till the knuckles turned white: stiffened after a moment and pulled himself to gether, “Mr.~Calebh Hopkins"-—a peculiar twist had slid Into his velee that brought a quick look from the man addressed—*1 ‘low y'un didn't alm rr kill Pap Simon, but the Flatwoods ain't big enough any more t' hold you and me both. The Milford stage from down the river Is leavin’ the post office f'r the city In a few minutes, You're goin’ t' be a passenger-—and ¥y'u ain't comin’ back.” Hopkins winced; Involantarily dropped his hand to the butt of his six-gun, before remembering ff was useless ; snapped out a muttered curse and stood glaring about him. A grin, hard and dangerous, crawled out of the woodsman's eyes and twist. ed his face, “I "iow we'll be startin’—now,” he rasped, Hopkins swore agaln—an artistiv left blood on the THE call “split hie'ry"-—stamped across the floor; picked up his two satchels and brought them back to the desk. “Empty 'em,” the hard volce com manded, “D—d If IT will,” the other snarled, his eyes like live coals In his face, “Y'u will, 'r y'u'll face Jerry Brown —and I ain't carlin’ a dern which.” The other glared around ; appeared to meditate some desperate move; seemed to realize his helplessness: finally slammed the satchels on the desk with a snarl and snatched out | thelr contents, One of them contalned some cloth- Ing and a few personal belongings ; the other a number of thick bundies | of money-<real money: the face of | Hopkins left no doubt of that very lm- | portant fact, The woodsman's eyes trifle, “Lord, parson, y'u cut some swath —f'r a preacher! How much did yu' | have when y'u struck the Flatwoods real money?" “Five hundred.” “I'm takin’ y'ur word f'r that? Peel | off that many and put the rest back." Hopkins picked up one of the bun. | dfes; counted off bills—all tens and twenties—to the amount of five hun- dred dollars; and dumped the with the other bundles back In satchel. The long arm of the woodsman un- | expectedly stabbed across the desk and snatched the satchel Hopkins | widened a | rest the They Totaled Exactly Three Thousand Five Hundred Eighty Dollars. whirled to spring at him: faced the muzzle of the steady six-gun: flinched With exasperating deliberation the woodsman stored away the bundles of bills In the capaclions pockets of his hunting snapped the shut, dropped it to the floor and slid it toward the other with his foot “You'll go ahead o' me downstairs ™ directed, crisp and cold. “Make whatever excuse y'u please t' Mis’ Ma. son, 'r anybody else we run onto, We'll stand out there at the hitch-rack til the stage comes along. When It does. you'll board It, fist like nothin’ had happened. I'm aimin’ t' trall ¥'u on Graylock. Make one false move, and ~~the next move will be mine.” He backed to the stair door, threw blouse : satchel he revolver, stood aside, The eyes of Hopkins behind his viper. but he dared not disobey the command. He strode through the door. The woodsman dropped the six-gun back In its holster and followed. Mrs. Mason was at the back of the house when they came down, go they escaped encountering her. The same good luck held at the hitch-rack, for the stage was just pulling out from the post office as they reached the gute. The woodsman waved his hand: the driver drew up; Hopking stepped aboard and it rattled away. { * * * » - » -» Twilight bad put the woods to sleep when Jack Warhope rode back to the homestead from trailing the stage, He cabin. Before lifting the latch he stopped a moment and, with a slow sweep of his eyes, sifted the fathering shadows, The foothills away across on the plains were already hiding under the sable wings of the south: a sinuous lighter streak marked where the river rimmed the bottoms; the red flare of the spent day faintly spangled tle west ; the woods breathed softly : hare ly a pulse stirred the apple blossoms ; out of the silence came the tinkle of the spring under the cliff lapping down the sulphurstalned gutter on its way | to the barn-lot and cattle pens, He filled his lungs full of the serene evening ; entered the door: closed and fastened It with unusual care; drew the blinds of the two small windows and lighted his candle, What to do with the bundles of mon. ey? A key to the dead banker's safe he did not have, even If he could have found the chance to open It and put them back. He took tue thick bundles out of his blouse pockets and began to count them. They totaled exactly three thousand fivé hundred eighty dollars one hundred seven twenties #ad one hundred forty-four tene. The woods man's eyes lifted at the amount. Such a sum In five nights-—it showed what Hopkins might have done In Ume (TO BR CONTINUED) You respect a man's prejudices, if he thinks a good desl of you Sports Duds Now Emphasize Colors White Is Relieved by Win- some Shades; Novelty Flannel Is Chic. 8 —— White unrelieved by any color Is evidently not In the mode, according to the designers of sports clothes, Bays u fashion writer In the New York That those put out for use In the South settled many points in this department of the wardrobe does not deter the makers from expressing many new Ideas and detalls which are decidedly interesting. That color com- with white shall be part of designed for country wear, Hke to dally. The sleeveless jacket 1s one of the used to introduce the re and pipings and responsible for another Contrary to cus- hat Is more fre. the color used as are the and last wvenr, white of bright color. It must be ad- this ruling is that the white hat Is An effective one seen is White flannel, seemingly a material The novelty flannel Is so delightful that it merits a description by Itself It Is a form of the tufted material which has been seen In one tone and used for winter sults and coats Heavy crgpes which are belng used extensively for sports and country — | au _— SE 3 > Distinguished in Line and Material Is This Sports Costume of Novelty Tufted Flannel, White With Red, Blue and Yellow. frocks are seen with matching jackets, sleeveless usually, In knit wool weaves, One can imagine that this will be popular and lead to further devel opment than the few charming exam- ples already noted In the shops and by sketches from abroad mode For Library Table For the library table a pair of shears incased In a dark red leather case will be found most useful. Another case of brass contains a paper knife of gener. ous proportions, Gray Whipcord Cloth and Henna Embroidery Rejuvenated Prominent retired merchant ‘says he feels like new men since Tanlac relieved him of his trou- bles. Can now outwalk men 20 years younger. R. E. Boyd, 5000 Fourteenth St, W. Washington, D. C., for forty. eight years prominent hardware tere retired, lends his name to further the “Indigestion and stomach weakness This charming new overblouse suit | for spring shows a gray whipcord with | embroidery of henna and gold thread. | Alpaca and Satin in Spring Fashion List | for earliest Fabrics spring, as evidenced in the openings, indicate a sea- son of brilliant satin aud alpaca, the latter so fine grained and supple that it more nearly ibles crepe than reser Ve The Rodier fabric charmellaine | which, us {ts name implies, is a woolen fabric with the texture und surface of feature with all the | leading Paris houses for their spring reflective surface bas found wide favor for p great many | fashionable frocks of the springtime, | employed to display both | surface, is another | being thoroughly | odier repoitts a great de | moire both In borders and | is a models, The highly Crepe satin, its dull material which and clire is exploited iH for cire colors surface with mand plain Oriental liouse is featuring. and designs Skirts Shorter Than Ever for Paris Women | received by New turers confirms that skirts are season much shorter. early to be the knees” ork resident buyer with an office in Paris. sald, however, that American styles this spring will pet follow the French designs too closely. Panel effects will make shorter skirts necessary, he added, but the American be too extreme. “bafely below A New Y models will not Swagger Stick Fashion lense of life and Is seen with models in sports clothes and tallored suits. It must be sald that its pres it Is not a foolish little club now, | with no apparent purpose but to hold in the hand; It is quite the size of a man's walking stick, and has at least a useful appearance : Many Chic Belts Are Among Spring Styles Belts are assumed to presuppose ghirtwalsts and the old-time waistline. | But these are now almost obsolete, | and a belt has become a part of the! one-piece frock, to hold In ever so slightly the straight coat dress, | chemise dress or coat dress, Some | most artistic belts have been fashioned | of leather, hand-painted and iHuml- | to represent the coat of a serpent. Other leather belts are stitched in! silks or wools, or studded with steel, ! Jet or colored china and glass beads, Some are of silk, prettily embroidered, some are all of beads in Oriental pat- the newest extravaganza, straw, em broidered with woolen flowers, is quite the rage, Attractive’ Overblouse With Short Sleeves Quite attractive for afternoon wear is an overblouse with short sleeves, iike the bertha cut in one with the frock. The edge of the sleeves, two sands of the embroidery down the front and a girdle are all embroidered with gold and green beads on the pelge crepe background. : Allover tucked blouses are aiso used, tucks perpendicular and sometimes edged with a plcot; or, again, In the same effect with ribbon sewed only at one side, the idea copled probably a model gown very popular Inst . son. Crimped ribbon—or, as the French eall ir. crinated—is another manner of trimming seen In the geor. gette models, A green suede cloth model has cute * out motifs, with yellow gold taffeta | lining showing through the spaces. The fronts of the blouse are fastened at the neck lime and at the bottom, | only allowing a narrow strip of lin. | ing to show between, One jarge motif Is used on each sleeve and at the bottom of the walst in front. Except In the more elaborate of the | overblouses the sleeves are long, and | even In some of the satin models the | length is retathed. A number of these sleeyes are gathered into a narrow | wristband, giving a loose, easy line | above, and a few are cut sharply out i from the wristband or turnback euff into a point and attaln practically the | same effect, Pale Yellow and Green Among Spring Colors | Pale yellow, green In a wide range | of tones and all shades of pink and | rose are the colors chosen again and again for lovely frocks of chiffon that as the season advances will supplant the more formal velvets and brocades. They possess a springtime fresh ness and daintiness that Is most ap- pealing. Especially lovely are models that exploit a clever combination of two or three shades of a single color. One unusually beautiful frock has three flounces, each a different tone of rose, Attractive Top Coat There is something undeniably fas cinnting about the black top coat of sumptuous material which has for fts only ornament a big cont of arms in white embroidery on the left side of the front. The sole ornament Is #0 quaint and so splashy that it is ex tremely effective, me for several months prior to last October fifteenth,” sald Mr. Boyd, re cently, “but since that date the Tanlae treatment has made a new man of me. of Indigestion, sleep like a log, and get up mornings feeling lke an athlete. Today I can outwalk men twenty years Younger. Tanlac alone put me in my present fine physical condition, en- abling me to get more real pleasure than ever before out of meeting snd mingling with friends. Taniac has re Juvenated me completely, so to speak. It's the finest medicine I ever ran across.” Tanlae is for sale by all good drug gists. Accept no substitute. Over 40 fllion bottles sold. Take Tanlac Vegetable Pills. for Thousands afflicted with na. sal catarrh have found Zon. ite highly efficacious as treat- ment for it. Spray the nose morning and night accord. ing to directions on bottle. Tones up the mucous mem- branes and kills germs with. out injuring body tissues. Doesn't irritate or burn and is positively non-peisonous. KILLS GERMS pg Cuticura Seap to Cleanse Ointment to Heal Absolutely Nothing fetter - — — - The most difficult part of a drinking A Standard External Remedy of known value—safe and effective, It's “Allcock's"—the original and gene uine porous plaster.—Advy, Prudery Is a wig often used to cover a bald character, Wr seph’s NOVI UWS oH BCG RTE AE Jhe BIG 25¢ CAN
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