Evening Star Newspaper, May 10, 1940, Page 30

s takes Anne to the d Blx men thsot b up st ; o They’ 18arn Anne s ‘inside. -, Jim By lP';Il Pa 'h.?n ?‘n 's Ene Jud Igu::fllud his older 1 _d 16 iing Mose uge 20 g warne By e the M3} Y explo o mite harmiessly. Su he is in love with {ust met Josse hat she eloped with He deserted her ghe never wants CHAPTER XVIII. Already Silcott’s mind was work- ing in stabbing brain flashes. One of the ambushers had fired too soon, forced to it by the dog's dis- covery of them. Otherwise he would have been killed at the first blast. His opinion was that the wound in his leg was not too bad. No artery had been hit, though the leg of his boot pressed soggy trousers to his flesh. He was back of pretty good cover. ‘The enemies would have to come out from the pass to get him, unless they waited where they were to peck at him whenever he showed his head. If he could stop the blood flow he might be able to hold his own for a while. The situation might have been worse. Except for his wound and the disparity in numbers he was as well off as the Hat T men. They held him prisoner where he was, but by the same token they could not easily leave the rocky fort where they were hidden at least not to move forward and attack. One advantage more they held over him. In case they decided to ride away without finishing the job, they could do so undiscovered. But Jim did not expect them to go. They must know he was wounded. They would stay and do their best to rub him out. His guess was that they would very likely succeed. But not, he thought grimly, with- out paying a price. ‘There was a chance, but a slender hope to rely upon. A frightened horse has the homing instinct. Blaze might make a beeline for the Longhorn Corral. I} so, Rufe Jelks would immediately organize a search party. He would probably call up Anne Eliot, who knew he was going to take the cut off. Given the breaks, Silcott might look for help in about three hours. Jim Rehurns Fire. Jim drew the boot from his wounded leg. The bullet had passed through the leather of the upper part of the boot and the flesh of the calf, A nice clean wound, if infection did not set in from lack of attention. In his pockéi he found a cord. Using & splinter of rock for the screw, he made and fastened & tourniquet to his leg. Around this he wrapped the bandana taken from his neck. While doing this, he had peeked around the edge of his shelter every few moments to make sure th t his foes had not come into the open to charge him. A bullet flattened itself on the rock slab. Jim thought it time to let the Hat T men know he was alive and still active. He fired a shot at the rock pile where they were concealed. Pixie had vanished into the brush. Now the collie reappeared and trotted down the slope. Somebody in the Gap took a shot at the dog. A spurt of dirt to the front and a little to the right of Pixie showed where the lead struck. Jim whistled sharply to the pup, which barked joyfully and came frisking across the open toward his master. Again a rifie cracked. The dog leaped or was flung into the 8ir, turned heels over head, and landed hard on the ‘ground. He moved once, feebly, then collapsed into a lifeless huddle. Wings One Attacker. Resentment blazed up in Jim. He had not expected three killers to give him a chance. But the shoot- ing of a little collle pup out of sheer wantonness was something else. The fellow had probably done it in exasperation, because the little dog had been the means of frus- trating in part the surprise. A man slipped out of the Gap rifle in hand, and made for a sand hummock 50 yards away. Jim fired at him and missed, took a second shot, and the rifie fell from the man’s hand. He clutched at his forearm, turned and scuttled back to the Gap. Meanwhile the guns of his companions had been at Silcott. Sand spurted at the right of Jim. Bullets spatted against the slab, The Diamond Slash man grinned wryly. His leg was painful but this how they try to outflank me again,* he l:mmund aloud. S h ng shadows began reach | ang from the rocks toward the left.| oot g from The sun was far on its way down. | to another. The In a couple of hours darkness/interfere with thel ol i, e e T ] s ey would crawi out from the Gap ant o “ be surround him. A!urthnthmom Ch!pl ot would be a short sharp battle, and| "Rufe nodded agreement. “I'm they would ride away to_report| gonna make a sprint for the rocks,” victory to Russell Mosely. But not | he said, “You boys cover me, in_case all of them. Jim did not mean to - pla; possum.” pass-out of the picture slone. i m&,&?czflmefi down to them. “I “ Rufe rode with a heavy heart, n‘]'nflnk they have hit the trhil, boys, had 1o doubt that Silcott had been | P don't take any chances. ambushed and shot from the saddle. Yet he traveled fast. There was no need to cut trail. Better head straight for Rabbit Ear Gap and '|Tead sign there. If Jim, had not reached the pass they could ride back and try to pick up news of him between there andtown. When they found the place where he had unhorsed the story of what had cccurred would be found written in the surrounding terrain. The rescue party left the gun- barrel road not far from the spot where Silcott had deflected from it. All three of the riders were old- timers, though young in years, and they guessed Jim had not followed the trail to the Gap but had taken to the brush in a short cut where he would be safe until he reached Rabbit Ear, This was what they would have done under similar cir- cumstances. Not until they came to the long stiff climb to the pass did they find evidence that their judgment had been good. Here and there they picked up.tracks that Blaze had made while laboring up the steep mountainside. “Look!” Rufe cried out. Find Horse’s Tracks He dismounted, as did his com- panions. They examined fresh tracks of a horse headed downhill. The length of the stride showed ;hus: the animal had been going “Blaze on his way home,” one of the men commented. “And hell bent to get away form here in a hurry.” Jelks looked up at the sharp slope at the Gap, and a chill fore- boding swept over him. Not far from here his friend had been shot down from cover. His face set ly. 4 “They waylaid Red form the Tocks,” the third man said. He was & cowboy in shiny leather chaps and a polka-dot bandana. “That’s right, Chips. Red never had a chance.” Rufe said nothing. A lump had choked up into his throat. He looked away, so that the others would not see his face. The crack of a rifle snatched them from the-gloom settling over them. They looked at one another. “Some one shooting, and not at us,” Chips said. Again a gun roered, this time from the slabs of sandstone to the left of the trail above them. His friends did the last 30 yards in.a rush. Jim ‘was sitting on the ground, his back against the stone wall. “Better light, stranger,” he sald with a grin, “and if you have a spare cigarette feed it to me.” Jelks did not speak for a moment. He was still panting from the run uphill. With a look of disgust he masked the apprehension that fear — 8T Rufe let out a yell of relief. “Red’s .. alive! They haven't got him yet. e At iy 6 Sourr B Sl 0400, Mother’s Day CANDY GIFTS 2-b. Box Miniature Chocolates and Bon- ® 2-Ib. Rayon Satin Gift Box __ -\ @ Schrafft's Chocolates, 60c and $1 @ Other Mother's Day Candies ____5% to $4 The Palsis R Cendy ... Fl::’t"flon Metronome R.oom presents Reg. $5.95 Spun Gabardine ; SLACK SETS Relax in slacks! Hers is the smoothest play en- semble of the season! Flawless spun gabardine fashioned- iv;t:.’ a icm g with wide, deeép pocl and comfortable short sleeves . . . and figure fitting slacks that are sure to flatter. Your cAh;iu :{f Dusiy,‘Pow.kr, ua, Navy and Beige. The Palals R e THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. ¢, FRIDAY, niquet. “But the patient is resting comfortably,” he added with s wry grin. “And I got one of them in the arm. So W's even steven. How about that cigarette?” “Hmp! You don't deserve it” Rufe's voice was sharp, s reaction from his great relief. “Of all the durned crazy gallots I ever saw you take the cake. One of these days the Hat T warriors will bump you off slick as a whistle, and we'll pat you down with a spade where we won't have to worry about you any more.” ‘He tossed a sack of smoking tobaceo and a book of papers at the wounded man, then wigwagged the news to the two men below that all was well, after which he gave his attention to the'leg, washing the wound with water from his canteen. The others of the rescue party arrived and watched operations. “You were lucky, Red,” Chips said. A taken place. Chips ‘'was watching the pass above for signs of the enemy, It was geiting dark and the sharp outline of the rocks was blurring to a more vague black mass. “They have done lit out, don‘t you reckon?” he said. Rufe Goes for Rifle. Silcott thought they had. . “Soon as they saw you fellows, after firing two-three shots at you as a warning not to crowd - them. Oouldn’t afford to be identified, But I think we'd' better not in- vestigate too closely. Some of them might be there. No use for us to get on the prod.” “How about that rifie the buzzard coyotes, “He was a good little scout,” Jim said, his voice empty of feeling. “If it hadn’t been for Pixie I would have been ready for burial myself. “The little cuss got a bullet they had been saving for me.” (To be continued.) } Ca 5 Crystals, 25¢ and 35¢ Let Us Test Your Watch on Our Time “’Micrometer”’. Charge Watch Repair . . . First Floor % falain Ryat [340°S PALM BEACH SUITS . . HERE TODAY HAND-SELECTED IN MODELS WASHINGTON MEN WANT. 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