Omaha Daily Bee Newspaper, September 24, 1916, Page 31

3D THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: SEPTEMBER 24, 1916. Evil” —_"—__—L"'—_‘——fl E==S=SSS Author of “The Wings of the Morning,” “The Pillar of Light,” “TI Surrender,” ‘“Number 17, Ete. B)- LOUIS TR A CY Nonliudb;n. l.l.:o Siril:l":f‘ l;lnt:,lny- of the Same Name. el y Pathe. Copyright, 1916, by Louis Tracy. ‘The Grip of Eleventh Episode---=Mammon and e Moloch CAST OF CHARACTERS. CAPTAIN RICHARD F. MARK- HAM — Commander Troop B. ‘Twenty-first United States’ cavalry. SMITHSON—Troop sergeant-major, Toop B. B8—C Troop B. iggAsnft?" fl'néfi%_m" of | Mexican bandits. JO!;N%MON—TCMII Lord Cas- tleton, once a r steelworker, who is conmllg’: . owner of a s partner and manager. MRS. MADGE KERR—An alleged victim of Pancho’s and later news- aper correspondent. ]LrAgl'lTA—A half-caste Mexican girl, in love with Pancho, Chapter XXI. t Intervention—In the Open. Captain Richard F. Markham, com- manding Troop B, Twenty-first United States cavalry, emerged through the flap of a field-service tent, straightened his well set-up frame, and searched with careful eyes the far-flung vista presented by an open valley of the Rio Grande. The blue hills of Mexico were already steeped in shadow, but the setting sun was still high enough in the heavens to flood with light the waters of the river and the gentle slope on the American side of the frontier to which clung that quaint mixture of pictures- que adobe huts and ugly modern buildings, known as the town of San Jose. To say that San Jose was “known"” on that day of March, 1916, is, per- haps, not strictly in accordance with | P actual fact. It might be found on the most recent maps of Texas; its existence was undoubtedly recognized by a section of the inhabitants of the border state, and it was beyond all question the cause- of some anxiety to the .commander-in-chief--of = the United ~ States ~ troops = scattered throughout the vexed . region. But the notoriety of San Jose began and ended theres No one in the wide world—least of all. the . handsome young cavalry officer now turning his back on its crudities, ahd scanning the undulating country’ which fell away toward the river—might have sus- pected that world-wide fame was about to be thrust upon it. The camp lay athwart a rough road which led from the town to the river, and reaching Mexican territory by u trestle bridge. Certain signs of a.- tivity ‘were toward. Some of the troopers were groomin% their horses and distributing forage for the night's feed, others were cleaning their arms, others were drawing rations. Field kitchens smoked and pipes were alight. Soon the horses would be ficketed and the men gathered in ively groups, eating their evening meal. A trumpeter was blowing the first call to mess. Indeed, the cheer- ful notes had brought Dick Markham from his tent, time having Stoleén a march on him while preoccupied with regimental accounts. A gaunt-looking troop sergeant-ma- jor; whose appeararice suggésted that steel springs and leather had replaced bones and: flesh in his anatomy, noted the officer’s attitude. He strode near. “No news of the patrol yet, sir?”| he inquired, halting'at the salute. “None, Smithson,” said Markham. “They ought to be showing up soon. Have a cigarette.” : -- A ‘certain silent constraint endured for.a ,minute while the two blew wreaths of smoke into the thin air. The same thought dwelt in both minds, and neither cared to give ut- terance to it. That placid, brooding landscape was deceptive. At any in- stant red-fanged war might spring ¢rom some hidden lair. They had to be prepared for it daily, hourly—pre- pared in the pitifully inadequate way passible to one depleted troop of a regiment charged with guarding 100‘ miles of the frontier. “All the others are in,” said the officer at last. He was not asking a question, but merely stating a casual item of the day’s doing. Captain Markham need- ed no information as to anything that happened within the bounds.of his small command. “Yes, sir,” said Smithson, sweeping | a wide amphitheater of hills, river and valley in one comprehensive glance. “I have ehanged the guard at the bridge, and your orders as to the sentries are being carried out. Each post on the flanks is advanced quar- ter of a mile, and pickets are station- ed at the most convenient points.” Clearly this weatherbeaten soldier was talking for the sake of saying something which * would conceal a gnawing doubt, “I wonder what has become of that Mexican push,” murmured Markham, looking again at the jumbled mass of the, hills. “The general's informa- tion sounded quite definite. This new rebel, Sebastian Pancho, is known to have come north from Chi- huahua.” “I have no use for those Mexican Pandits, sir, takin’ ’‘em as such” growled the sergeant-major, “but I must admit that they are first-rate movers. They are here today, and 50 miles away tomorrow. If they could fight as well as they can change location, they'd be a mightly tough proposition.” | And then as the sergeant-major thought of the bureaucrats in Wash- ington and the crying needs of the army that were neglected, he con- tinged: “Wish I had 2 bunch of them ‘Washington fellers in the recruit squad! TI'd like to see a secriterry on guard on a dark night, when every rock looks like a crawling Mexican, and each rustle in the sage makes him believe that a long, sharp knife is about to be buried in his gizzard!” The officer smiled. “Ah, ‘well,” he said, “if it came to a real showdown, neither you nor I would change ovr job for the tallest stool in the war department., . Here comes the patrol ‘now,” and, try as he ‘might, Dick ‘Markham could not conceal the new note of relief in his voice. The two men chatted about regi- mental matters until a corporal and three troapers walked their tired horses up the slope from the bridge Lhe small party dismounted at a ttle distance, and the ‘corporal came om alone. He saluted, and stood at attgntion. “We made the full round sir,” he said, “and we were delayed an hour or more bi-'oinvenigning the story of a peon wito said that a strong body of rebels came north yesterday after- noon. They broke camp, however, about four o'clock and disappeared through the Carroya canyon.” “The Carroya,” repeated Markham in a puzzled tone, and is eyes and the sergeant-major’s forthwith sought the same gap in the serrated moun- tain ridge. “That leads due sou'- west?" “Yes, sir,” said the corporal. “There's no doubt about it," he added. “We followed their track a little ways.” At that he grinned, and the ghost of\a smile flitted over the face of each of his hearers. There are times on the frontier when neither officer nor trooper is too communicative. As viewed . from . the standpoints Washington and Mexico City, the Rto Grande offers an impassable bar- rier, but upon men charged with safe- guarding the lives and property of American citizens who may be ex- posed any day to outrage and mur- der at the hands of robber halfcasts holds more elastic opinions as to scouting areas. “You are quite sure, Jonmes?' in- quired Markham gravely, after a slight pause, “Quite sure, sir.” “Then that's all right . . . Ser- geant-major, see that this patrol is relieved from duty for the next twen- ! ty-four hours, if practicable.” The second mess call rang out, and the camp assumed an even busier as- ect. arkham’s practiced eye took in ev:r{ detail. Things were going smoothly, so he turned and looked up the main street of San Jose. In front of the hotel, a pretentious building horribly at variance with the Mexican aspect of the majority of the town's buildings, had gathered some of the leading citizens. In half an hour he was due to dine with the bank manager and a couple of tanch- ers. His friends awaited him alrdady. He knew quite well that they'had noted the return of the patrol, and would read the signs of an undis- turbed evening in prospect. With a sigh, for he hated the dull routine of office work, he dived under the flap of the tent and plunged into figures once more. Suddenly, as though Medusa's teeth had been sown in that arid soil, the earth seemed to vomit forth a horde of galloping, yellingf‘ death-dealing Mexican outlaws! hey came, not from the river, an impossible direc- tion in the circumstances, but from a deep gully on the Texas side of the stream, through which a trail led to a strip of barrén country on the northwest. Shouting like madmen, and in an uncontrollable frenzy, in- spired partly by rye whisky and part- ly by hatred of the “gringos,” the murderous band swept down on town and tamp. 3 Each”alike was doomed, San Jose numbered only 300 inhabitants, -all told, and of these barely two score men_ were armed or physically ca- pable of ‘self-defense, while the sol- diers, as has been seen, were taken at-a- disadvantage, and might easil, be cut to pieces before they could of- | fer organized resistance, There could be no shadow of doubt that if the assailants had obeyed the first law of wmilitary operations and rushed the opposing force before giv- ing vent to their predatory instincts, the story of the raid on San Jose might have been told only by the troopers. on duty at the bridge, al- ways provided, an unlikely thing in itself, that they mounted forthwith and rode off at top speed. But, by one of those miracles which often come' to the aid of civilization in its age-long ‘struggle against barbarism, the Mexican bandits were attracted irresistibly by the sight of the de- fenseless town, with its rich loot of a bank, hotel, some stores and pri- vate residences. They were thieves, one and all. This attack on an American com- munity wore the thin disguise of pa- triotic motive, but its true purpose was revealed by the action of every marauders, both leaders and rank and file, in not losing a second before beginning the congenial tusk of plun- der. True, their recognized chief, none other than Sebastian Pancho in person, contrived to urge on some of his followers in a swift dash on the camp. No doubt, out of the tail of his eye he marked for condign pun- ishment those rebels who thought more of loot than of immediate vic- tory. Even so, Pancho's innate sav- agery showed itself as he rode past a small store from which an elderly man was escorting a screaming woman carrying a baby in her arms. Raising- a revolver, the Mexican fired point blank, and the old man fell, writhing in agony. The woman stumbled over his body, shrieking in mortal terror, yet striving to shield the child; the accident undoubtedly saved her life, because one of the band, galloping close behind Pancho, | fired at her with a rifle and missed! Markham, astounded by the tor- nado of yells and musketry, grabbed a revolver and rushed bareheaded in- to the open. He took in the situation at a glance, and his soldier's heart quailed momentarily in the natural belief that the watch and ward his troops maintained over the district had failed most lamentably. But he was made of stern stuff. No matter what the prime cause of the disaster, his duty now was to try to rectify it. He noted at a glance that the en- emy had _given him a few most pre- cious seconds of respite. Not more than 100 men were racing down on the camp, whereas five times that number were available, and could have swept the small body of Ameri- cans into eternity before they could even reach their piled arms and am- munition. belts. Already the startled troopers were assuming some sem- blance of order, and Markham’s voice reached them in high, clear notes. “Number 4 section will prevent the horses from being stampeded! The remainder will form on their section leaders! Aim low! stop this first rush!” He was obeyed to the letter, for these hardy American boys were al- ready veterans in frontier warfare, and knew instinctively how to act for the best, even in the trying con- ditions of .a surprise attack. ' While* Markham- was running to' of | | manity, were innocuous as dust in a reach the center of the line, he no-| ticed that. the rebels were already setting fire to the hotel, The main street had cleared as though by magic, except for a number of bodies, both Americans and Mexicans, some lying ominously still, while others were dragging painfully to the shel-| ter of a building or an inclosed yard. From doorways and windows came scattered shots, The men of San ose were at least striking a blow ;p defense. of their homes and fami- ies. It was a singular moment to think of poetry, yet four lines of one of' Kipling's jingling ballads hammered on Markham's brain with- a curious | insistency: A foray In & border station, A gallop down a dark deflle: Two thousand pounds of educatjon Drop to a ten-rupee jezall, But it was no antiquated rifle these Mexican cut-throats carried. Mark- ham recognized at once that they were armed with a thoroughly up- to-date weapon, equal if not superior to the cavalry carbine, and he found | himself wondering vaguely how it was possible that a gang of nondescripts could have obtained such a servicable equipment, And now the United States troop- ers took a deadly toll of the oncoming enemy. Pancho quickly found him- self advancing alone. An incompar- b able horseman, he swung a hardy mustang almost at a rightangle as he changed his course. He must have borne a charmed life, since bullets! passed through his hat and jackct,‘ and lodged repeatedly in the heavy Mexican saddle, without inflicting an serious wound on either man or ani- mal, Thenceforth, of course, discipline established its superiority. The cav- alrymen advanced in open order, and a machine gun detachment brought a withering fire to bear along the main street. The savage pandemonium passed away almost as speedily as it com- menced. Soon San Jose was quiet, save for the weeping of women and children and the groans of the wounded, while the rebel band fled over the hills, closely pursued by the infuriated troopers. y Markham's side rode the stern-visaged sergeant- major. They drew rein for a mo- ment when they came upon a crump- led body lying in the scrub. It was the sentry who should have given warning of the enemy's approach. He had been stabbed between the shoulder blades. Creeping snakelike through the sage, some Mexican out- law had flung himself on the unsus- Kectmg soldier and murdered him ere e could utter a cry or fire a single shot! : A desultory fight went on till dusk fell. Scattered units of flying rebels and infuriated Americans crossed the Rio Grande by a ford and passed far into Mexican territory on the right bank of the river. At last, when darkness set in, Markham recalled his men by long-drawn trumpet blasts. A hasty roll call revealed that there were no stragglers. The ranks of the little company had been sadly de- glcted, but every missing man could e accountéd for only too accurately, On the way, back to the town the young officer ascertained the facts of the raid from a prisoner, He was im- mensely relieved to find that the re- port brought by the patrol was cor- rect in every detail. Pancho had dou-J bled back from the frontier, only to turn again under cover of the night, and cross the river at a point well above the line for which B troop was responsible. Then, well served b, spies and traitors among the half- breeds claiming American citizenship, he secreted his fcl:e in a_canyon un- til the hour seemed ripé for the as- sault on San Jose. The plan was boldly laid. It mis- carried only at the last moment, and then merely because of Mexican cu- pidity and the sheer lust of murder- ing unarmed people. Save for its dead and its dying, the little town recov- ered its sang-froid with singular rapidity. It was not San Jose but the remainder of the United States which seethed with indignation next day. Khrkham, fully exonerated from the slightest shadow of blame when his commanding officer had investi- gated the affair, not only confessed that he and his men had enjoyed the time of their lives, but was openly en- vied by every officer in the regiment. Another man, young as Markham, en- thusiastic as he in love of country, ready as he to spend and be spent in that country’'s cause, glowed with righteous wrath when he read the news flashed in a faraway eastern city. ohn Burton, tenth marquis of Castleton, had never been so angry in his life. All that had gone before, the ‘insults and rebuffs he encountered in a vain struggle against the evil which seemed to ‘be inherent in hu- summer gale compared with the lash of this national indignity, American men, women and children had been slain, an American town given over to ruthless brigandage, merely be- cause a few statesmen in Washing- ton allowed common sense to be overruled by Utopian dreams. John Burton read, and his stern face whitened with rage and determina- tion. He picked up a telephone. “That you, Rogers?” he said, ad- dressing the manager of a manufac- turing plant in which he had a con- trolling interest. “Yes, Mr. Burton,” came the an- swer, for John had forbidden the use of his title, “Do you know of this scandalous affair in Texas?” “Why, yes,” and the voice almost chuckled. “Haven't I been trying for weeks to persuade you that some- thing must be done? During my trip to Chihuahua three months ago, I saw on every hand signs of the fate in store for us if the nation wasn't aroused.” “You were right,” said John grimly. “Count on me for the utmost support in future. Arrange a ‘preparedness’ meeting for tomorrow night. Spare no expense. Someone must raise the fiery torch! Let it be lighted here and now!” CHAPTER XXIIL Intervention—From the Inside. Burton, a worker in metals during some of the happiest years of his life, had gone back to his old love. A local manufacturing plant, dealing with automobiles and bicycles, had been driven into bankruptcy by bad management and lack of capital. A JOHN ACCUSES {aDGE OF HER MANY FALSIFICATIONS, oung and energetic man, that same ogers who spoke over the telephone, had persuaded Burton to buy the con- cern in conjunction with several other notables of the iron and steel trades. The reconstruction had come too late, however, to share in the first boom resulting from the European war, Very unwillingly, John had been coerced by his colleagues on the board of directors into equipping the works for the production of munitions. He was overborne by the argument that the allies were in desperate need of these aids to civilization, which would be imperiled if American manufactur- ers did not get busy. By reason of his money, Burton was ippointed president, but he little {reamed how thoroughly Rogers, the nanager, had manipulated matters. Zuropean orders for arms and ammu- ition had already been gobbled up »y hundreds of old-established works in all parts of the country. A new- comer found it difficult to obtain any share of the trade, Purchasing agents demanded the warranty of experience and unquestioned excellence in the finished article, so Rogers had to run the works at their maximum output, yet bide his time ere picking up any art of the golden shower coming ?rom Europe. Obviously, if America itself caught the craze for armament, the trick would be done, and the Bur- ton & Rogers Iron and Steel company ‘'put on the solid base of pros| eri{{. e Rogers looked only to the end. was absolutely unscrupulous as to the means of obtaining it Rogers was a.man of mystery. He called himself a cosmopolitan, and said that he was a citizen of the world. When asked what nationality he was, he always evaded the question. While he livelr and carried on his business in the United States he never voted, John passed a full day prior to the meeting in the convention hall, Some- how, his name figured prominently in the new movement, and telegrams poured in on him from all parts of the country. A few sane people ap- pealed for restraint and the exercise of reason, but the vast majority de- manded the prompt raising of an army of 100,000 men and the piling up of sufficient stores to insure victory in the threatened war. In spite of himself, lJt:shn was car- ried bodily on the tide. ‘He hated war, but ever before his eyes lay the picture of desolated San Jose and 1ts hapless victims. These things were not war but murder, and the grmin of American citizens savored more o police protection than militarism. Before the meeting began he was met by Rogers, who introduced an unknown lady as one deeply inter- ested in the capture and punishment of Sebastian Pancho, In the hurry of the moment John gathered only that she was a Mrs. Madge Kerr, whose husband had been killed during a small frontier afray which took place long before San Jose loomed into such prominence. She was a very good-looking wom- an, rnung, attractively dressed, and notably elegant in her movements, Had gur!on given a thought to the matter, he would have decided that such an exotic must have been re- markably out of place on a ranch. In literal fact, she was a clever but hitherto disappointed actress, whom Rogers had chosen to play a leading part in a drama of real life. The astute manager guessed that the simple-minded president of the company would syrely invite Mrs, Kerr to share his box at the meeting, and that very thing John did at once, none of his disastrous experiences having uprooted his fixed belief in the finer qualities of womanhood. Rogers proved a most effective or- ator. Retaining a well-conceived ad, dress until the psychological mo- ment, he swept a crowded meeting off its feet by an impassioned plea that every man and woman in America should unite in upholding the flag. His words raised the audience to a delirium of enthusiasm. When he sat down, cheer after cheer rang through the great building. At last silence was restored. The chairman was about to call on an- other speaker, who would second the ‘preparedness” resolution proposed by Rogers, when Madge Kerr at- tracted every eye by rising and lean- ing well over the front of the box which she shared with Burton and some of his co-directors. Her beauti- ful face was pale with emotion, her fine eyes were ablaze with tragic fire. “I, a weak woman, have a menufie for you men men of Americal” she cried, her well-trained voice reaching every ear and its pathos touching every heart. “It is brief, but very much to the purpose, Get Pancho! Get Pancho! Get Pancho!” Thrusting a-hand into her bodice, she produced a small American flag and held it aloft! That supreme moment gave Madge Kerr the chance of her life, and she seized it with magnificent abandon, Her success was instantaneous. Never again would she be compelled to fawn on theatrical agents or pes- ter managers already bewildered by the ever-increasing mob of applicants for stage honors. Now they would hunt her in droves. She had become a notability. That cry, “Get Pancho!” was destined to become the slogan of a great party in the state, a party o which Madge Kerr, the actress, was recognized as at once the mouthpiece and the prophetess, Truly, she did then look inspired. Small wonder if men shouted them- selves hoarse, and well-balanced minds forgot the dictates of common sense. Apparently overcome = with emotion, she sank back out of sight. Burton imagined ;that a frail woman had bent under too great.a strain. He little drearned that the incident had been planned beforehand, and its ef- fect calculated to a nicety. He was so concernied about her that she played up to him with a skill she had seldom displayed in her profes- sion. At the close of the meeting he insisted _on drivin? her home in his car. With well-feigned hesitation she told him her story—how she and her husband lived happily on a ranch in Chihuahua, until the day when Pancho rode up to their homestead, shot Mr. Kerr at sight, and offered a helpless woman the vilest indignity his depraved mind could conceive. This thrilling story provided the last straw so_far as John Burton was concerned. He entered heart and soul into a political campaign de- signed to bring about the introduc- tion of American law and order into disturbed Mexico. He backed the project with all his energies and accu- mulated wealth. At his own cost he recruited and equipped a cunapany among his fellow workers, and his services were recognized by the gov- ernment by the bestowal of a tem- porary commission, 3 Thus, the whirligig of life saw John Burton, the philanthropist, the social worker, a man essentially devoted to the arts of peace, become a khaki- clad warrior. Yet never did knight embark on deeds of daring do with truer sense of high purpose than this young millionaire. ke was convinced that his crusade against racial law- lessness was a holy one. It was, he thought, only one of the accidents of an extraordinary situation that the foundry should now be coining money by producing rifles and bayonets. Such fearsome implements offered the sole effective means yet devised by mankind whereby crime might be avenged and the guilty punished, Never before had he been so sure of rectitude of purpose. With him, traveling west on a troop train, were Rogers and Madge Kerr, the latter now the acredited corres- pondent of a ring of important news- apers. She had contrived to make fierself one of the leading figures in the punitive expedition. While the country was arming, her rall, ing cry, ‘Get Pancho!” had never failed to secure recruits or flog waning enthus- iasm. What more natural than that she should be chosen to record for the waiting millions the story of that expedition’s prowess in the field and its ultimate success? Very natty she looked in a° work- manlike outfit devised for the cam- paign. While on the train she obeyed convention by wearing a short skirt, but as soon as the frontier was reach- ed, she appeared in khaki blouse and breeches, with stout leather riding boots, pistol belt and bandoleer, “Geel" cried Rogers appreciateively, when first he and John saw her in this soldierly rig, “Madge is some girll No wonder you fell for her at once, Mr. Burton.” John could hardly do other than agree. He had not exactly “fallen for” the lady, but it would be churlish to begrudge full tribute to her daunt- less spirit. This is not a record of war but of suffering, so the main incidents of the f | ard! campaign may be passed over without comment. It is one thing to whoop | up “preparedness” in a public meeting, | but quite another to lead against the enemy. Burton had a great deal to learn and much to oc- cupy his mind, and many a day of hard routine work had to pass before a stony-eyed general adjudged him and his men adequately fitted to stop a gap in the fighting line. | Even then there was neither sight the pleasant way of Mexican bandits --who are ever ready to swoop down on defenseless communities, but van- ish into thin air as soon as the serried ranks of American regulars appear on the skyline. Still, there was scout- ing to be done, with the conscious- { ness that the unexepected might hap- pened and any narrow cleft in the hills produce a veritable enemy. One day, a day differing in no re- spect from many others which had gone before, John was asked to sanc- tion a bit of scout work along a moun- ! tain track leading well into the in- Iterior. An experienced sergeant was anxious for the duty, but, to the young { conmmander's open dismay, Madge Kerr was wishl’ul1 to accompany him, The sergeant promised that the lady would not be zllowed to run any needless risks, so, against his better. judgment, John gave the re- { quisite permision. In so doing he quite unwittingly fired a train which metaphorically blew up a powder magazine, because Madge and the sergeant were captured, and by no less important a person than Sebas- tian Panchg himself! It was a singular fact that when the pair was brought into the outlaw's camp, and Pancho discovered that one of his prisoners was a woman, there could not be the slightest doubt that the two had never met before! The sergeant was treated roughly, and bound in merciless cowhide thongs, but Pancho affected an almost chival- ric air in addressing Madge. “You are not engaged in woman's work, snora,” he said, sweeping off his sombrera with a flourish, but far be it from me to offer the slightest troops | a incivility to one of iour beauty. And now that I can look at you closely, let me congratulate you on being a most charming. soldier!” He ran a-bold e‘{e over her fault- less lines, but Madge did not flinch. Here was a man, a mere male crea- ture whose untamed passions and un- pleasant attributes were very much on the surface, and well she knew how to handle him. : She smiled de- fiantly, “Your repute has gone before you, senor,” she cried. 0 one has ever imagined that you make war on wo- men!” Assuredly, the situation was match- less in its irony. Here was Madge Kerr, the new Joan of Arc who had enflamed her country with her cry of “Get Panchol” telling that arch villain himself that he was regarded by his opponents as a sort of Chevalier Bay- And here was the man who had wronged her quite evidently the will- m%n ave of an unknown goddess! here was only one tent in the tum. bledown camp, and the rebel leader indicated with a fine gesfure that it was wholly at the senorita’s djsposal. With much ceremony and florid words he lifted the flap and bowed her within, - Madge did not know that Pancho's fatuous admiration had been witnessed with acute disfavor by a handsome half-caste girl who approached while these courtesies were being ex- changed. Had Rogers been present he could have warned her, because Pancho and Rogers had become very intimate during the latter's visit to Chihuahua, and everyone knew that the vividly ?retty Juanita was deeply enamored of the bandit. Meanwhile, Burton was not only much worried by the failure of the sergeant and Mrs. Kerr to return, but aad been given further cause for dis- comfiture by a regrettable discovery made that day. A neighboring picket had surprised a small group of rebels and captured several of them, These men were brought in, and their arms were examined with interest. Then rifles, very serviceable weapons, were marked with the letters “B” and “R,” inclosed in a diamond-shaped device, In a word, they were the output of the Burton & Rogeru foundry! How had these guns reached Mex- ico? It was a question hard to an- swer. When John put it to his man- ager, thc latter professed the utter- most bewilderment. He counseled reticence, however, “There’s no use in making a song about it,” he said doggedly. “Gun running is nolhin! new on this fron- tier, and our stuff may have passed through many hands before it reached those of Pancho.” Perforce, {ahn had to remain cpn- tent, but he knew in his heart that the explanation was a lame one, and de- termined to sift the matter to the ut- most at a more convenient period. Strong patrols were sent out, but no news of the missing pair was received until the sergeant himself rode in at sunset on the second day. He told an exciting story. | “Mrs, Kerr has managed to get into the good graces of Pancho,” he an- nounced. “But she's in a nastier fix than she guesses, because Pancho's girl, Juanita, is mad with jealousy, and even let me escape so I might guide troops to the camp, By that means she counts on getting square with Pancho and the lady!” This statement, unsavory in many respects, could have but one out- come. A strong force was gathered hastily, and struck the trail with the sergeant as guide. It was deemed expedient to march by night and en- deavor to rush the outlaw’s camp at dawn. As the sergeant had traversed the route twice in two days, he made no mistakes, and brought the rescuers to an excellent Fonitiun, a gap in the hills where the last dispositions could be made quietly, and the final whis- pered instructions conned again and again, until all chance of error was eliminated. The attack began at dawn, and de- veloped rapidly into a battle of some magnitude, since your true Mexican outlaw sleeps in his clothes and is never parted from horse or rifle. The sergeant, who had noted the ground well during his captivity, warned Bur- ton that the bandits would attempt to escape by a certain path through the shills, which, however, could be ap- proached in its turn by way of a lat- eral canon, thus exposing the enem to a successful flank attack. The af- fair progressed exactly along the exs pected hines, and the Mexicans, caught between two fires, fought like rats 1 pit. Oddly enough, Pancho himself could have escaped, as he headed a strbng contingent which contrived to smash its path along the selected line of retreat. But he discovered that Madge Kerr had been left behind, and, literally daring everything for her sake, rode back into the camp, | or sound of the foe, because such is| where a hot fight was now reaching its inevitable end. Groups of Mex= icans, deprived of their horses by the first batch of their compatriots, were selling their lives dearly, or surrens dering when any notice was taken their frenzied signals. The ring of steel and lead was fast closing in, “ct Pancho did not fly, but continued his search. At last he found her cowering behind a pile of empty ammunition boxes. “Come with mel” he cried passions ately, “I.love you! I can save you In a few months I will make you a queen!” She refused, whereupon the Mexe ican, rendered frantic by the thought that he would probably lose her fore ever now, clasped her to his breast. She uttered a choking appeal that he would save himself, and the infatue ated man interpreted the words as Icum-eying a hint that she returned his ove. So he relaxed his grip, and, wrenche ing herself free, the girl angrily badé him go, since the American troops were now within a few yards of her, At that instant a Mexican woman, none other than Juanita, came from some hiding place in the camp, and, noting the imminent danger of her one-time lover’s position, sped swiftly to his rescue. Pancho leaped to re« ain his horse, but was brought down gy a bayonet thrust, which inflicted a serious though not vital wound. His assailant shortened the rifle for ane other stab, but the unhappy Juanita fl“"f herself on Pancho’s body, and received the steel intended for him, The battle was now ended. Burton was overjoyed at finding Madge Kere safe and sound. But his delight was shortlived. In the confusion Rogers drew near, b “Pancho is not dead,” wiispered the manager. “None of the men has rece ognized him. Let him be to h'i_s own people on a safe cone “Pancho?” cried Burton, looking at the wounded man in amazement. “Is this he?” v “Of course it is." _“But how comes it that you know “Why shouldn't I know him? He must be allowed ‘to ‘escape, I tell you, he dies, our concern will never get the money for the rifles I sold him.” “You infernal traitor!” roared John. He saw-red, and would have struck his companion, but Ro’ren fumbled in a pocket and produced a sheet which he thrust viciously before his eyes. 7 “You fooll" he muttered. ‘“Don’t think you are not as d'ff in the mud as I am. Look at this! Even in the stress of the moment, John forced himself to read. The does ument was brief. It ran: { March 2, 1916.' Received of Messrs. Burton and Rogers two thousand dollars in pays ment for my services in the campaign for intervention and for myself in pere suading John Burton to finance it. (Signed) MADGE KERR, The woman herself had witnessed ithe scene between the two men and was fiow striving to assume an air of indifference. “Is this true?” demanded John brokenly, holding out the accusing aper. “Why shouldn't it be?” she retorted with sullen brazenness, “One has to live somehow.” A new light dawned on her unhappy hearer. “Had you ever met Pancho before the last two days?” he inquired. “No,” she said. “You had better have the straight tale now. This trouble needed engineering, and you were too easy,” . | Burton groaned aloud. He almost reeled as he put a hand to his eyes in a vain effort to shut out the horrible reality. All, all; were false—friends, patriotic motives, even the most sa« cred name of womanhood. In that mortal hour how could he fail to be- lieve that Humanity was in the Grip of Evil? / (END OF ELEVENTH EPISODE) GIVES RULES FOR HAPPINESS. Say “Good Morning” As ' i You I(u:nm}‘t‘,'Advllumm Milkman. . Recipes of Charles Johnson, milke . man, for a happy life. Get up at 6 o'clock. Say “good morning” to everybody as if you mean it, ] Smile. Get some kind of work that you like and stick to it. Charles Johnson, whose round, ruddy, cheery face and frendly eyes have lightened the back door olv many a home on frosty winter mornings, or in summer, xprln% and fall, has ‘been twenty years on the job of delivering milk and never missed a day. ] Mr. Johnson is not only a man among men, but he is a milkman among milkmen, For two decades he has been making -the rounds, seven days in the week, and on Fourth of July, Labor day, Christmas, Arbor day, St Patrick's day, Lincoln's, Washington's; yes, Johnson's birth- dag. too, and every other day. ome day Mr. Johnson is going to take a vacation. But not yet. Too many people need the milk delivered and he cannot get away. Charles Johnson is 52 vears old. with a wife and four children, “The simple life is the best” is Johnson's condensation of his philo- sophy. "I do not drink, smoke, chew or gamble. I don't want to, and be- sides, I haven't time. “The simple life would make many men happy. Every morning of the year I jump out of bed at 6 o'clock and go to work. It is fun to work when: you like to do it. “My customers all know me and all are my friends. It is a pleasure to take the milk around to them. Getting up in the morning is a healthy habit. People who lie abed until late miss the best part of the day.”—Minne- apolis Journal. Persistent Advertising Is the Rosd to Success.