STRANGER IN Shady Gulch

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXVIII, Issue 13024, 1 May 1940, Page 3

STRANGER IN Shady Gulch

DENVER BARDWELL

CHAPTKn xxx

v .. 13 infinite contrast. at Then? umc that night, between pandemonium in the home ih e " ! , »nv and the serenity of "'TdTn siienco wl.cre two youns ■ !!r tuM" tto meM l)ri,lli al ” Ve rand. ;i , naWin. in W« now-foil ml [ll , ras lulled into forgetlb. .urn realities to be fa , v-ithia the "ext tew hours .t ljttl [0 succeed in thwarting was miy-s evil schemes. Tll ° ma ! J f . (Ml! ” Arlene whispered, »TVil nic, JjU 1 , ~ ' that you first knew—i was crazy In love with , p ro m the very first word you TOU ,‘ 10 m 3 that afternoon in Shady It liaPPene.l then. When second, I guess, smiling at me, BUI. Just f ye had known each other als you may have looked funny ’‘‘other people in your old clothes. I didn’t see anything about you l pt tluf smile and your eyes. I l-t know for sure, though, what , ia(i opened to me until you failed Jo tneet mo for the vide home. When that hurt, I knew.” . , Radkin stirred and sat up stiaight. Though he wanted to sit on here forever the grim work to be done was prodding him, "I have to be moving on, sweetheart Look yonder in the east. The Jon's a half hour high and we didn’t even see it come up. If I don’t get going quick, I ( inay be too ]ate to do what I have to do. I think I heard my men go by, down there on the road, more than an hour ago." .

'•Bill!” 'Arlene cried suddenly, “Listen!”

They heard galloping hoof beats coming along the road from the direction of Shady Gulch. "That must he Father and the boys,” said Arlene. “Something’s happened, cr they wouldn’t be galloping that way! Let’s hurry down to the house.”'* By the time they rode into the MW yard, the men had already arrived. Scooter and Hattieway were hastily

changing the'saddles from, three mated, winded horses to fresh mounts, caught out of the corral. Mark Waller was ip the house. They could hear him calling Arlene’s name. She called back to him, and he came running, out, carrying his heavy buffalo rifle. Scooter had already blurted out the news of Sheriff Matt Olds’ death, hut Waller began the story all over again.

"Radkin!” he cried excitedly. "Matt Olds is murdered. —bushwhack'd by one of Lally’s sneaking coyotes lust as he was starting out to your flsw. I ,sent Burpee riding to tell •he high sheriff in San Jacinto. The Half Diamond men must have guessed that you told Matt about those cached cowhides—and murdered him e fore he could go out after ’em. Me und my men are ready to ride with l° u - son, to keep ’em away from °se hides till the high sheriff and , ( ry Holccmb get here! ” D a? 31 ' 8 , fine ° £ you ’ Mr Waller,” • a in said, “but who’s gonna stay ere and look out for Arlene and \JJ f aee - No telling what Lally Jo-now, stirred up like 'he is.” lon ! s ° alon & with you, Bill,” Ar- = " ® declared quickly. I i ot J 01 ? WWot!n ’ t! There’s apt to be a J whi<J tling around the Ihr you f, avern ‘ It>s no P lace I halier « e ‘" Radkin turned to : the joh men and * can handle • Waiie r °v uar(^ng those hides, Mr js,} ta . You and y°ur men stay here :■ high a 6 ? are ° f this Place. If the ■ and Jerry Holcomb fisf J* ky way, send ’em on ; *‘ Slong!” ’ ls d wen^ 6 ' 1 tfle flanks of his pony ■ fr ° nt gate at a ■ tf3[ s kear the shouted pro- ’ he hml ‘ ' hood hi- e reached the Bar M, he not hn l6ll awaitin S him, but they V UntrlftH w hiie they waited. ' nil . rides Were being indus- ' !j ° a sortPfi 6 and es ted, ammuni--9 Radkin and a PP° r tioned. 9 a swiff*, Shorty Meeha n there, ' %l of oV anCd around gave him ; , rme >- Meehan. f- \ hannl’ 16 asked Shorty. “Noned ta Stringy i n town, "I ° ne o£ us had to j for u-k He clrawed S > Jess , n V Vas to c °me, and I •: avav \ S . ick tO - ni sht while us M’on kno ' v (> His iuags are awful ' H.” SL Sorry about that, ;;i Thules

“Yeah.. Mrs Thule was sorta disappointed' when she heard you'd took over the Bar M,” Shorty went on. “She said she’d hoped you’d be bnyin’ the HL, so that she could take Jess to California.”

“Maybe we’ll manage that yet, Shorty—providing we win this play with Hally.” Radkin got out his rifle and a plentiful supply of cartridges for both rifle and sizguns. Then he changed his saddle from tired little Tuffy to a long-legged gelding he had bought in San Jacinto. At the first grey signs of dawn, eleven well-armed, determined men rode away toward tlie east mesa and Thumb Creek cavern to face Thomas Hally’s army of gunmen. It was clear daylight by the time they reached the first scalable split in the mesa. There, before they began the steep climb, Scooter and Hattieway caught up with them. “The girl did it, Bill,” Scooter told Radkin. “She made the boss send us to help you. Said if he didn’t she’d hop a saddle and come herself.”

“All right, Scooter,” Radkin said. “You and Hattie turn .right around and go hack!” “’Tain’t no use, pardner,” Scooter insisted. “She’d sure come like she said. You don’t know that girl.” “Listen to me, Scooter, you don’t have to let her know you’re hack. Ride up on the north mesa, right hack of the house. Plant yourselves up there, where you can watch out for devilment. Rally was depending a lot on Mr Waller coming to terms with him. No telling what he will be up to now as a side play against ’em. Hop along!” Reluctantly, Scooter and Hattie obeyed, for battle fever had been glowing in their faces when they had overtaken the cavalcade of armed men. When the band reached the top of the mesa, Radkin led the way southward to where a first glimpse of the terrain in front of the Thumb Creek cavern could be had. (To be continued)