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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Heart of the Blue Ridge, by Waldron Baily
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Heart of the Blue Ridge
+
+Author: Waldron Baily
+
+Release Date: March 30, 2009 [EBook #28454]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HEART OF THE BLUE RIDGE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Roger Frank and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+Heart of the Blue Ridge
+
+
+
+
+The Illustrations Shown in this Edition are Reproductions of Scenes
+from the Photo-Play of "Heart of the Blue Ridge," with Clara Kimball
+Young as the Heroine, Under the Direction of Lewis J. Selznick, to whom
+The Publishers Desire to Express Their Thanks and Appreciation for
+Permission to Use the Pictures.
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+PLUTINA.]
+
+
+
+
+HEART OF THE BLUE RIDGE
+
+BY
+
+WALDRON BAILY
+
+ILLUSTRATED WITH SCENES FROM THE PHOTOPLAY,
+WITH CLARA KIMBALL YOUNG AS THE HEROINE,
+UNDER THE DIRECTION OF LEWIS J. SELZNICK
+
+[Illustration]
+
+NEW YORK
+
+GROSSET & DUNLAP
+
+PUBLISHERS
+
+
+
+
+Copyright, 1915, by
+
+W. J. WATT & COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+TO
+
+Irving Bacheller
+
+WITH THE APPRECIATION OF THE AUTHOR
+
+
+
+
+Heart of the Blue Ridge
+
+
+
+
+HEART OF THE BLUE RIDGE
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+
+Where the trail bent over a knoll, Zeke halted, and put down from his
+shoulder the hickory cudgel with its dangling valise of black
+oilcloth--total of baggage with which he was faring forth into the
+world. Then, he straightened himself, and looked back over the way he
+had come.
+
+There, to the east, the dusk of night still lay somberly, hardly
+touched by the coming dawn. Through the shadows, the mountain masses
+loomed formidable and mysterious, vaguely outlined against the deeper
+gloom of valleys. The melancholy of the scene seemed a fit setting for
+the cottage that rested invisible within the forest, a half-mile
+distant from him. In imagination, he saw the withered old woman, his
+mother, still standing on the threshold, looking toward him, even as
+he looked toward her, her heart warm with love, her every thought a
+prayer for his happiness. It was borne in on Zeke once again that she
+would be very lonely in her desolate home, where death had spared to
+her only this son.... And, now, he was gone from her! A poignant
+sorrow welled in him.
+
+Zeke thrust the emotion away, lest it unman him. He faced about,
+drearily enough, and stood with downcast, unseeing eyes, in anxious
+pondering. And then, presently, assuagement was granted him. He lifted
+his gaze, and behold! here was another world, all of soft splendors,
+of throbbing radiance.
+
+The eager beams of the unrisen sun shimmered above the mountain ranges
+of the horizon, and streamed toward the zenith in a panoply of
+harmonious hues, colorful promise of the May morning's joyous mood. Of
+a sudden, under the soothing influence, the watcher became listener as
+well. His ears noted with delight the glad singing of the birds in the
+wood around about. His glance caught the white gleam of the tiny
+belled blossoms that clustered on a crooked sour-wood by the path, and
+the penetrant perfume of them stirred to life a new and subtler
+emotion. A flame of tenderness burned in the clear hazel of his eyes,
+as he stared out over the trail before him. Under the increasing light
+his gaze could distinguish the line of the valley a mile further on,
+in which the Siddon cottage lay hidden. His firmly-set lips relaxed
+abruptly into a smile of wistful softness. He swung stick and bag
+across his shoulder once again, and set off briskly down the slope of
+the knoll. His thoughts were no longer gray over the mother who
+mourned his going: they were roseate with anticipations of beholding
+the girl he loved. Now, the mood of the morning danced in his blood.
+The palpitant desire of all nature in the spring thrilled through his
+heart. His mind was filled with a vision of her gracious young
+loveliness, so soon to be present before him at their meeting....
+Their meeting--their parting! At thought of that corollary, a cold
+despair clutched the lad, a despair that was nothing like the sedate
+sorrow over leaving his mother, a despair that was physical sickness,
+wrenching, nauseating, but passed beyond the physical to rack the
+deeps of being. For the first time, jealousy surged hideous in him,
+born of the realization that she must be left exposed to the wooing of
+other men--she, the utterly desirable! In a fierce impulse of mingled
+fear and rage, he stopped short, and cried out:
+
+"I'll be damned if they kin steal her! She's mine. She done told me
+so, and Plutiny wouldn't lie!"
+
+From an ambush of laurel bushes close beside the path, a tall, slender
+form stood forth, the lissome figure of a girl in the budding charm of
+womanhood. There was a lithe, curving beauty in the lines that the
+scant homespun gown outlined so clearly. The swift movement by which
+she revealed herself was instinct with grace. As she rested
+motionless, with arms extended in a gesture of appeal, there was a
+singular dignity in the pose, a distinction of personality that was in
+no wise marred by bare feet and shapeless gown; not even by the
+uncouthness of dialect, when she spoke. And winsomeness of form and
+bearing was crowned by the beauty of her face, in which the insipidity
+of regular features was redeemed by exquisite coloring of rose and
+white, and by the dusk brilliance of the eyes. The tender lips were
+wreathed to playful reproach, as she addressed the lover for whom she
+thus waited at the dawn:
+
+"Zekie--oh, Zekie! Ye hain't a-cussin' o' me, be ye?"
+
+The young man, surprised, started, and regarded the girl in confusion.
+The red that had suffused his tanned cheeks deepened to a burning
+blush of embarrassment, as he realized that his outburst had been
+overheard by her who had been the cause of it. But his eyes met her
+quizzical glance with candid directness. After a moment, he spoke. All
+the harshness was gone from his voice; its soft drawl was vibrant with
+tenderness.
+
+"No, Honey, I hain't a'cussin' o' you-all. I was jest a-mentionin'
+some folks. But I hain't a-feared. Nobody hain't a-goin' to steal yer
+love from me."
+
+"Nobody--never, Zeke!" the girl answered, simply. There was an
+infinite honesty, an unalterable loyalty, in the curt words.
+
+As he listened, the flush died from the lover's face; contentment
+shone in his expression.
+
+"I knowed hit, Honey--I knowed hit all the time. I know when I come
+back I'll find ye waitin'."
+
+"Ye'll come back, I reckon, with fool idees 'bout what yer women-folks
+ought to wear, like them furriners down below." Her face relaxed into
+a genial smile, which brought a dimple to shadow the pink bloom of her
+cheek. But there was a trace of pensiveness; the vague hint of
+jealousy in the slow tones:
+
+"Yes, I'll be a-waitin' till ye come, Zekie. An' if the wearin' o'
+shoes an' stockin's 'll make ye any happier, why, I guess I kin stand
+'em--an' them ladies' straighteners, too. Yep, I'd wear 'em, if they
+did squeeze me fit to bust."
+
+Since Plutina had thus come to meet him, there was no need that he
+should follow further the trail toward the Siddon cabin, which lay out
+of his course. At the girl's suggestion that she should accompany him
+a little way on the first stage of his journey out into the world, the
+two turned back toward the broader path, which led to the southwest
+until it met the North Wilkesboro' road. The two walked side by side,
+along this lovers' lane of nature's kindly devising. They went
+sedately, in all seeming, for the mountain folk are chary in
+demonstrations of affection. Yet, beneath the austere mask imposed by
+convention, their hearts were thrilling with the rapture each found in
+the near presence of the other. The glamour of romance was like a
+golden mist over all the scene, irradiating each leaf and flower,
+softening the bird-calls to fairy flutings, draping the nakedness of
+distant rugged peaks, bearing gently the purling of the limpid brook
+along which the path ran in devious complacence. Often, indeed, the
+lovers' way led them into the shallows, through which their bare feet
+splashed unconcerned. The occasional prismatic flash of a leaping
+trout in the deeper pools caught their eyes. So, presently, the girl
+was moved to speak--with visible effort, very shyly, for the
+expression of her love in words was a thing unfamiliar, difficult.
+
+"I sha'n't have nobody to make flies fer now," she said dully. "I jest
+hain't a-goin' arter the trout fer fun no more till ye comes back."
+
+Zeke would have answered, but he checked the words at his lips, lest
+the trembling of his voice might betray a feeling deemed inconsistent
+with manliness. They went forward in silence, a-quiver with desire
+each of the other, yet mute with the forced repression of custom. Now,
+too, the sorrow of the parting so close at hand, colored their mood
+more and more, so that the golden glamour first dimmed and then
+changed into a sinister pall which overhung all the loveliness of the
+morning. At a turn in the path, where it topped a rise, before
+descending a long slope to the highway, Zeke came to a standstill. The
+girl paused obediently beside him. He fumbled in a pocket awkwardly,
+and drew forth a tiny square of coffee-colored stone, roughly lined,
+which he held out toward his companion. The tracery of the crystal
+formed a Maltese cross. The girl expressed no surprise. She accepted
+the token with a grave nod as he dropped it into her palm, and she
+remained gazing down at it with eyes hidden under the heavy white lids
+and long, curving lashes of shadowy brown.
+
+Zeke spoke, very earnestly:
+
+"Hit's fer good luck, Tiny--fer good luck to he'p ye while we're
+apart. Mebby, hit 'll git in hits work by softenin' the hardness o'
+yer gran'pap's heart agin me."
+
+In truth, the concentration of his thought on the fragment of stone
+had been enough of itself to give a talisman occult potence. That
+concentration of desire for the girl's well-being was not merely of
+this moment. It had been with him constantly during long hours of
+tedious clambering yesterday, when he followed the channel of Garden
+Creek through its tortuous course among the ravines of the Blue Ridge,
+through the narrow defile of the Devil's Garden, sunless, strewn with
+rubble of boulders, with a chaos of shattered rock masses--debris,
+superstition said, of cataclysm--of the Crucifixion, when the mountain
+crests tore themselves asunder, and cast their pinnacles into the
+abyss for rage and grief. The searcher had climbed on and on, until he
+reached the nook sacred to the crystals. For concerning these, also,
+the superstition had its say, and told that the little pieces of
+stone, with the cross marked on each, were, in fact, the miraculously
+preserved tears shed by the fairies of these fastnesses in the dread
+hour of the Saviour's anguish. The lover had sought long for a crystal
+that should be perfect. Now that it lay within the girl's hand, he was
+content of his toil. Surely, whatever the truth concerning its origin,
+it was a holy thing, for the emblem it bore. It would serve to shield
+her against aught evil that might threaten--even the grandfather's
+enmity against him, which set a barrier between them and happiness.
+The crystal would abide with her in sign of his love's endurance,
+strong to save her and to cherish her against any ill. He sighed with
+relief, when she raised the crystal, and dropped it within her
+bosom.
+
+Still, as always, fearful of showing emotion too openly, Zeke hastened
+to introduce a new topic. He took from a pocket a book of twelve
+two-cent postage stamps, to secure which he had trudged the four miles
+from his mother's cabin to the Cherry Lane post-office. The book, in
+its turn, was proffered to Plutina, who accepted it in mild
+bewilderment.
+
+The lover explained:
+
+"Honey," he said, without any embarrassment over the fact, "ye knows
+my ole mammy hain't edicated, an' I want ye to write for her once a
+month, arter I write to tell ye whar I'll be."
+
+The girl nodded tacit acceptance of the trust, and consigned the
+stamps to a resting place alongside the crystal. And then, after a
+little, she spoke heavily:
+
+"I reckon as how you-all better be a-joggin', Zeke."
+
+For answer, the lad caught the girl in his arms, and gave her a kiss
+on either cheek--the hearty, noisy smacks of the mountaineer's
+courting. But, in the next instant, he drew her close in an embrace
+that crushed the two warm bodies to rapture. His lips met hers, and
+clung, till their beings mingled. Afterward, he went from her
+voicelessly. Voicelessly, she let him go.... There could be no words
+to comfort the bitterness of such parting.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+
+When he was come within view of Joines' mill and store on Roaring
+River, Zeke halted again for a final look back toward the wild home
+land, which he was now leaving for the first time. The blackness of
+his mood after parting with the girl had passed, though melancholy
+still made him its own. The resilience of youth was turning his
+spirits again toward the hopes that had inspired this going forth from
+his own familiar little wilderness into the vast and unknown
+wilderness of the world beyond. As he stared out at the scattered
+peaks, reared like conning towers over the sprawling medley of ridge
+and valley, a throb of fondness shook his heart. It was not sprung
+from esthetic appreciation of the wild and romantic landscape, though
+this had been sufficient to justify the stir of feeling. His
+sensibility was aroused by the dear friendliness of all the scene,
+where hollows and heights had been his constant haunts through all the
+days of childhood and adolescence until this hour. Of a sudden, he
+realized as never before a profound tenderness for this country of
+beetling crags and crystal rivers, of serene spaces and balsamic
+airs. Hitherto, he had esteemed the neighborhood in some dull,
+matter-of-course fashion, such as folk ordinarily give to their native
+territory. But, in this instant of illumination, on the eve of
+separating himself from the place, love of it surged within him. This
+was his home, the dwelling of his dear ones. He felt toward it a quick
+reverence as for something strangely sacred. His eyes went to the
+great bulk of Stone Mountain, which jutted just before him to the
+east, its league of naked rock lying like some monstrous guardian of
+the place. Somehow, the dignity of the massive curving cliffs soothed
+him, heartened him anew. The immutability of the huge mound of stone
+was a prophecy. Through the ages, it had maintained its ward
+steadfastly. So it would remain. A gush of confidence washed away the
+last of the watcher's depression. He could go on his way undismayed.
+These things here that were so dear to him would abide his return. The
+old mother and Plutina would rest secure against his homecoming. The
+time, after all, would not be long. Meantime, there was the great
+adventure. Zeke whirled, and trudged blithely onward.
+
+Opportunity had come to Zeke Higgins, and he had not hesitated to
+seize it. His desire for a larger life than that of the tiny, scrabbly
+mountain farm had been early excited; it had persisted; it had
+increased steadily, though the possibility of its realization had
+seemed remote. Stark poverty demanded that he remain to coax a scant
+living from the soil for his mother. Yet, his determination was fixed.
+He got some smattering of education, along with Plutina, from a kindly
+Quaker who came among the "Boomers" of the Blue Ridge as a missionary
+school-teacher. Thus, Zeke learned surprisingly much. His thirsty
+brain took up knowledge as a sponge takes up water. So great was his
+gratitude to this instructor that, when the stranger was revealed as a
+revenue officer questing illicit stills, Zeke, despite inherited
+prejudice, guided the hunted man by secret trails over the mountains
+into Virginia, and thereby undoubtedly saved a life. Indeed, the
+disappearance of the officer was so well contrived that the
+mountaineers themselves for a time did not suspect the fact of the
+escape. There is a great basin in the rock on the north side of Stone
+Mountain. It has been hollowed out through centuries by the little
+stream that comes leaping madly down the ledges. The cauldron has a
+sinister repute. It is deemed the sepulchre of more than one spy, cast
+down into the abyss from the mountain's brim. It was generally
+believed that the false school-teacher was of the number.
+
+Somehow, long afterward, report had it that the man was alive. Rumor
+implicated Zeke as having had a share in the fellow's escape. Old
+Dick Siddon, Plutina's grandfather, heard. He had hated the
+"revenuers" always. Since the death of his only son at their hands,
+his hatred had become a mania. He was a strong man, fierce in anger.
+When he bade his grandchild dismiss her favored suitor, she feigned
+obedience. She, and Zeke as well, knew the futility of fighting the
+old man's prejudices. But, with the optimism of youth, the lovers
+hoped for happiness. A little older, they might at least defy the
+hostile guardian. In the meantime, Zeke was determined to attain
+material prosperity during the period of waiting.
+
+Then, Richard Sutton came into the mountains of the Blue Ridge. He
+chanced on Zeke, made use of the lad as a guide. Soon mutual liking
+and respect developed. Sutton was a manufacturer of tree-nails--the
+wooden pins used in ships' timbers. Here in the ranges was an
+abundance of locust timber, the best for his need. And there was much
+talk of a branch railway to come. His alert business imagination saw
+that a factory located at the source of supply would be advantageous.
+He saw, too, the capacity for development in his young friend. Zeke's
+familiarity with the region might be valuable--more valuable still his
+popularity and the respect accorded him in the community. Sutton
+suggested to the young man that he should come to New York presently,
+there to learn the details of manufacture, with the prospect of
+return, later on, to manage the business in the mountains. Naturally,
+the project was splendid to Zeke's ambition. His only fear had been
+lest his departure be delayed by lack of money, for pride would not
+let him confess his extremity to Sutton. There must be some cash in
+hand for his mother's support, until he should be able to send her
+more. Then, as he fretted, opportunity favored him anew, for a
+surveying party came to run a railroad branch north to Stone Mountain.
+He was employed as ax-man and assistant cook. His wages solved the
+difficulty, so far as his mother's need was concerned. For the rest,
+he took only a small sum to his own use, since he was minded to work
+his way north on shipboard from Norfolk. It was in accord with such
+high hopes that this May morning found him tramping, barefooted, into
+Joines' store, with the black oilcloth valise slung from his
+shoulder.
+
+The halt here was a necessary feature in Zeke's itinerary. On a
+previous visit to the store, he had purchased a pair of serviceable,
+if rather ungainly, shoes. Since he would have no occasion for their
+use at home, he had saved himself the trouble of carrying them to and
+fro.
+
+"I reckon I'll take them-thar shoes o' mine," he said to the grizzled
+proprietor, after an exchange of friendly greetings with the few
+loungers present. These were well aware of his planned departure,
+though ignorant of his definite aims.
+
+"Ye hain't a-goin' to put 'em on yit, be ye?" the storekeeper
+inquired, solicitously.
+
+"Not till I git to North Wilkesboro'," Zeke answered, to the obvious
+relief of the assembly, as he opened the bag. While he was busy
+stowing the shoes, the onlookers commented cynically on the follies of
+fashion.
+
+"An' I've hearn tell," one concluded, "that durn-nigh everybody done
+war shoes in the city, all year roun'."
+
+Perhaps the young man felt a pleasant glow of superiority in
+reflecting on the fact that such following of city fashion would soon
+distinguish him. But his innocent vanity was not to be unduly
+flattered.
+
+"Ca'late to stay away till ye've made yer fortin, in course, sonny?"
+one of the older men suggested. He enjoyed some local reputation as a
+wag, the maintenance of which so absorbed his energies that his wife,
+who had lost whatever sense of humor she might once have had, toiled
+both indoors and out.
+
+"Why, yes, o' course," Zeke replied unsuspectingly.
+
+"Better kiss we-uns good-by, sonny," was the retort. "You-all 'll be
+gone quite some time."
+
+The sally was welcomed with titters and guffaws. Zeke was red to the
+ears with mortification and anger, as he shut the valise, shouldered
+it, and strode to the door. But even in the time of that passing, he
+mastered his mood in a measure. He had no wish to make his farewell to
+these neighbors in bitterness of spirit. So, at the door, he turned
+and grinned amiably on the group.
+
+"I want pleasant things to remember hyarabouts, all thet-thar long
+time I got to be away," he said, with a quizzical drawl; "so I kain't
+be a-kissin' o' ye none. My stomick hain't none so strong nohow," he
+added, with the coarseness that usually flavored the humor of the
+countryside.
+
+Then, abruptly, the smile left his lips; the lines of his face
+hardened; the hazel eyes brightened and widened a little. His low,
+slow voice came firmly, with a note of tense earnestness. It was as if
+he spoke to himself, rather than to the slouching men, who regarded
+him curiously.
+
+"I hain't leavin' all this-hyar 'cause I don't love hit," he declared.
+"I do love hit, an' I aim to come back by-an-bye--I shore do!"
+
+Forthwith, embarrassed anew by this unmeditated outburst, he hurried
+off, amid an astonished silence which was broken at last by the
+storekeeper.
+
+"Thet-thar Zeke Higgins," he ventured, somewhat indistinctly through
+his matting of whiskers, "I swow if he hain't got right feelin's, fer
+all he's so durn peart." And his cronies nodded assent.
+
+As he pressed onward, the adventurer quickly regained his poise. The
+novelty of the situation thrilled him agreeably. His thoughts were
+crowded with imaginings of the strange things to come. Ambitious
+vision of himself successful among the city's throngs made his pulses
+beat faster. He felt that he had within him the power to achieve
+something worth while in the world. Certainly, he would not fail for
+lack of striving. But no triumph elsewhere could ever wean him from
+his love for the Blue Ridge--for his home country. Yes, it was as he
+had said there in the store: He would come back. He would come back to
+the cabin in the "cove" under the shadows of Stone Mountain--back to
+the old mother, back to Plutina. A warmth of exquisite tenderness
+vibrated through him, as his hope leaped to that homecoming, to the
+time when once again the girl should rest clinging on his bosom. And a
+great peace lay under all his joy of anticipation. His love knew no
+doubt. She had given her heart to him. Through his every wandering,
+whatever might betide, her love would be with him, to comfort him in
+sorrow, to crown him in happiness. A bird's song recalled the lilt of
+her laughter. He saw again the tremulous curving of her mouth, red
+against the fine warm pallor of her face at parting. Passion welled in
+him. He halted yet once again, and stood with face suffused, gazing
+back. It was as if he were swayed by a sudden secret sense that
+warned him of her misery in this hour of his exaltation--her misery
+where she lay prone under the tangle of laurel by Garden Creek,
+sobbing out that anguish which is the penalty woman must pay for
+love.
+
+Zeke's eyes fastened anew on the rounded bulk of Stone Mountain's
+cliffs. The immutability of them, and the majesty, relieved the
+tenseness of his mood. He resumed his way serenely.... But Plutina
+wept on, unassuaged.
+
+When he drew near to North Wilkesboro', where he proposed to make a
+first essay in railway journeying, Zeke seated himself under the shade
+of a grove of persimmon-trees by the wayside, there painfully to
+encumber his feet with the new shoes. As he laced these, he indulged
+in soliloquy, after a fashion bred of his lonely life, on a subject
+born of his immediate surroundings.
+
+"I hain't noways superstitious," he mused complacently, "but this
+grove ain't no nice place, bein' as it must be a nigger cemetery.
+Uncle Dick Siddon says they's always niggers buried whar they's
+persimmon-trees, an' he says the niggers come first. An' Uncle Dick,
+he ought to know, bein' he's eighty-odd-year old. Anyhow, it seems
+reasonable, 'cause niggers do swaller the stuns when they eats
+persimmons, an' so, o' course, jest nacher'ly the trees 'll spring up
+where the niggers git planted. So they'd be ha'nts like's not. But I
+hain't superstitious--not a mite. Mr. Sutton, he said such things as
+ha'nts an' witch-doctors an' such was all plumb foolishness. Still, my
+mammy has seen--"
+
+He fell silent, recalling old wives' tales of fearsome things seen and
+heard of nights. The shoes adjusted, he took from the black bag a
+holster, which sheltered a formidable-appearing Colt's revolver.
+Having made sure that the weapon was loaded and in perfect order, Zeke
+returned it to the holster, which he put on snugly under the left
+arm-pit. These final preparations complete, he got up, and hastened
+into the town.
+
+One bit more of his musings he spoke aloud, just before he entered the
+main street:
+
+"No, I hain't superstitious. But, by crickey! I'm plumb tickled I giv
+Plutiny thet fairy cross. They say them stones is shore lucky."
+
+At the railway station, Zeke asked for a ticket to Norfolk.
+
+"Want a return-trip ticket?" the friendly station-agent suggested. He
+supposed the young mountaineer was taking a pleasure excursion to the
+city.
+
+But Zeke shook his head defiantly, and spoke with utter forgetfulness
+of his experience in Joines' store.
+
+"No," he declared stoutly, "I hain't a-comin' back till I've made my
+fortin."
+
+"You'll be a long time gone from this-here State o' Wilkes," the agent
+vouchsafed dryly. He would have said more, but his shrewd eyes saw in
+this young man's expression something that bade him pause, less
+sceptical. The handsome and wholesome face showed a strength of its
+own in the resolute curving nose and the firmly-set lips and the
+grave, yet kindly, eyes, with a light of purposeful intelligence
+glowing within their clear deeps. The tall form, broad of shoulder,
+deep of chest, narrow of hip, though not yet come to the fulness of
+maturity, was of the evident strength fitted to toil hugely at the
+beck of its owner's will. The agent, conscious of a puny frame that
+had served him ill in life's struggle, experienced a half-resentment
+against this youth's physical excellence. He wondered, if, after all,
+the boast might be justified by the event.
+
+"Train in ten minutes," he said curtly, as he pushed out the ticket.
+
+So, presently, Zeke, found himself seated for the first time on the
+red plush seat of a railway carriage. The initial stage of his journey
+was ended; the second was begun.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+
+The right of way from North Wilkesboro' to Greensboro' runs through a
+region where every vista delights the eye with wild and romantic
+scenes. The rails follow the course of the upper reaches of the Yadkin
+River, with swift succession of vicious curves and heavy grades. The
+twistings of the road-bed, so advantageous for presenting the varied
+loveliness of the wilds, were by way of being a real torture to the
+young adventurer, who sat in seeming stolidity near the rear door of
+the smoking-car, with the black bag between his feet. Even experienced
+travelers found the lunges of the train trying to their nerves as it
+shot at speed around "hairpin" bends, or hurled itself to the fall of
+a steeper descent. To Zeke, who for the first time knew the roar and
+jolt of such travel, this trip was a fearsome thing. To sit movelessly
+there, while the car reeled recklessly on the edge of abysses, was a
+supreme trial of self-control. The racking peril fairly sickened him.
+A mad impulse of flight surged in him. Yet, not for worlds would he
+have let anyone guess his miserable alarm.
+
+Nevertheless, one there was who apprehended in some measure the ordeal
+through which the mountaineer was passing--happily, a kindly observer.
+An elderly man, across the aisle from Zeke, regarded his fellow
+passenger with particular intentness. It seemed to him that, in some
+vague way, the clean-cut face was familiar. His curiosity thus
+aroused, he perceived the tenseness of expression and attitude, and
+shrewdly suspected the truth. It was with benevolent intent, rather
+than for the gratification of inquisitiveness, that he finally got up
+and seated himself in the vacant place alongside the younger man.
+
+Zeke's perturbation caused him to start nervously at this advent of a
+stranger, but a single glance into the wrinkled, yet hale, face of the
+man reassured him. The visitor's amiable character showed plainly in
+his dim blue eyes, which twinkled merrily. Moreover, there was a sure
+witness of worth in the empty sleeve, pinned to his left breast, on
+which showed the cross of honor. The humor lurking in the eyes was
+grotesquely manifested in his first address:
+
+"This-hyar railroad hain't no fitten one fer beginners," he announced,
+with a chuckle. "Hit's plumb likely to make a squirrel into a nut."
+
+Zeke smiled, somewhat ruefully. He understood the play on words since
+"boomer," the mountaineers' own name for the red squirrel, is often
+applied to themselves. But the distraction afforded by the garrulous
+veteran was a relief. A new spur was given to their mutual interest
+when, after telling his name, it was discovered that his father had
+been a company-mate with Seth Jones, the veteran, in the Twelfth North
+Carolina Volunteers. The old man's curiosity was highly gratified by
+this explanation of the inherited likeness that had puzzled him, and
+he waxed reminiscent and confidential. The diversion was welcome to
+his listener, where doubtless many another might have found the
+narrative of by-gone campaigns tedious in this prolix retelling.
+Ultimately, indeed, the youth's sympathies were aroused by Jones' tale
+of misfortune in love, wherein his failure to write the girl he left
+behind him had caused her first to mourn him as dead, and eventually
+to marry her second choice.
+
+"But I've jest got scrumptious news," he exclaimed, his rheumy eyes
+suddenly clear and sparkling. "Seems as how Fanny's a widder. So, I'm
+a-goin' to try my luck, an' no shelly-shallyin', now I've got her
+located arter a mighty lot o' huntin'. Yes, sir, sonny," he concluded,
+with a guffaw, "old as I be, I'm a-goin' a-courtin'. If I ever see ye
+ag'in, I'll tell ye how it comes out. I s'pose I seem plumb old fer
+sech foolishness to a boy like you be, but some hearts keep young till
+they stop. I'm pretty spry fer my age, too, if I do say so as
+shouldn't."
+
+Zeke was not so surprised by the old man's hopes as he might have
+been, were it not for the example of Plutina's grandfather, who,
+somewhat beyond four-score, was still scandalously lively, to the
+delectation of local gossip. But, though after the departure of Jones
+at a junction, Zeke reflected half-amusedly on the rather sere
+romances of these two ancient Romeos, he was far from surmising that,
+at the last, their amorous paths would cross.
+
+There was still further harrowing experience for Zeke after reaching
+the Southern Railway's terminal on the pier at Pinner's Point, in
+Virginia, for here he was hurried aboard the ferry-boat, and was
+immediately appalled by the warning blast of the whistle. Few bear
+that strident din undismayed. This adventurer had never heard the
+like--only the lesser warning of locomotives and the siren of a
+tannery across twenty miles of distance. Now, the infernal belching
+clamor broke in his very ears, stunning him. He quivered under the
+impact, stricken to the soul for seconds of shock. But the few
+careless eyes that chanced to scan the mountaineer noted no faltering
+in face or form. He stood to all appearance serenely, easily poised,
+his attitude replete with the grace of physical power, his mouth
+firmly closed, his widely-set eyes unwavering. Even the cudgel, and
+the black bag still dangling from it, could not offset a certain aloof
+dignity that masked distress by stern effort of will.
+
+Nothing further occurred for a little to afflict the traveler's
+unaccustomed nerves, and he soon found himself pleasurably absorbed in
+contemplation of the novel surroundings. The boat was nearing the
+Norfolk landing when his eyes fell on a dog, held in leash by a young
+woman. Both the beast and its mistress commanded his instant
+attention, in which wonder was the chief emotion. The dog itself was a
+Boston bull-terrier, which was a canine species wholly strange to the
+mountaineer's experience, limited as it had been to hounds and
+mongrels of unanalyzable genealogy. The brute's face had an uncanny
+likeness to a snub-nosed, heavy-jowled "boomer" whom Zeke detested,
+and he eyed the creature askance by reason of the resemblance.
+
+"Hit's plumb man-faced," was his verdict. "I shore prefer 'em jest
+plain dawg." His eyes went then from the leash to the girl holding it,
+and he hardly restrained a gasp, in which admiration was mingled with
+amazement. The ordinary observer would have seen only a pretty girl,
+of the fluffy blond type, smartly tailored in blue serge, with the
+skirt decorously slit. But Zeke saw a vision from another world than
+that of the slatternly mountain women, whose toil left them neither
+opportunity nor ambition for nicety in dress, which, indeed, was
+finally prohibited by ignorance as well as poverty. This girl stood
+out in startling relief, marvelous revelation from the new world he
+was entering. Slowly, with concentration, the young man scrutinized
+the vision, noting every detail, from the natty turban with its
+swaying feather wand to the daintily pointed ties, above which were to
+be glimpsed trim silk-clad ankles. Yet, the novel charm of her failed
+utterly to disturb the loyalty of his heart. His hungry soul found
+exquisite satisfaction in the spectacle of feminine refinement thus
+presented for the first time, but his devotion to the roughly garbed
+mountain girl was in no wise imperiled. On the contrary, his
+imagination busied itself with an effort to picture Plutina thus
+splendidly arrayed.
+
+"I 'low she's plumb handsome," he meditated. "But, shucks! Tiny beats
+her holler. In them duds, she'd have her skun a mile.... But thet-thar
+man-faced dawg! I'd shore hate like pizen to be found daid along with
+thet ornery pup."
+
+As he mused, no hint came out of the future as to the time when, in
+very truth, he would be close to death, and that same dog an actor in
+the drama, one to be deeply esteemed, not contemned. But that time was
+not yet. In fact, the immediate future was not destined to remove his
+prejudice against the bull-terrier. On the contrary!
+
+The fixity of Zeke's staring penetrated the girl's consciousness. She
+turned abruptly, and her blue eyes met his in a cool glance that
+seemed to pass through him and on, as if he were something quite
+invisible, altogether beneath notice. Zeke felt the rebuke keenly,
+though innocent of intentional offense. The instincts of gentlemanly
+blood from which he was somewhere distantly descended made him realize
+his fault in manners, though he had had no guidance from experience.
+The ready blush burned hot on brow and cheeks; he dropped his gaze
+confusedly to the dog.
+
+Even the beast, he perceived, reprobated his conduct. It was staring
+up at him fiercely from red eyes, and the hackles stood erect, though
+it did not growl. Evidently, it resented undue attention to its
+mistress.
+
+There was a movement forward of the passengers, as the ferry-boat drew
+into its slip. Zeke advanced with the others, following close behind
+the girl and the dog, which strained at the leash in order still to
+stare menacingly at the young man. Then, without warning, the action
+became swift and violent. The ferry-boat crashed against the yielding
+walls of the slip. Zeke, unprepared for the shock, was thrown from his
+balance. One of the heavy new shoes smashed down on a paw. The dog
+sprang and snapped. The jaws missed, because the girl tugged at the
+leash in the same second. Zeke instinctively kicked at the brute in
+self-defense. His foot took the animal fairly in the jaw, and lifted
+it from the floor, just as the girl turned. She cried out in shrill
+anger at this rough stranger's wanton attack on her pet, for so she
+interpreted the event. She maintained her hold on the leash bravely,
+lest worse follow. But her strength was insufficient to restrain the
+creature of fighting breed. It lunged forward with such suddenness
+that both its mistress and its enemy were taken unawares. The girl was
+dragged in tow. Zeke would have leaped aside, but he was too late to
+escape the encounter, though he mitigated it. The iron jaws clanged
+shut, but in the slack of the victim's sturdy jeans, instead of in the
+flesh. The massive mouth was locked vise-like. Because of the cloth's
+sturdiness, the dog swung clear of the floor. The girl still strove
+frantically, though vainly, at the leash, shrieking commands which
+were unheeded. Zeke, confused, chagrined, ashamed, wrathful, shook
+himself violently to be free, without avail. The other passengers
+scurried forth, with a panic cry of "Mad dog!"
+
+Zeke's wrath mounted. He had had little training in self-restraint,
+and his passions were of the primitive sort. Now, abruptly, the lesser
+emotions were overwhelmed by the might of his rage. He was conscious
+only of the humiliating fact that this hideous man-faced dog had
+fastened itself on him, and there hung. Zeke bent and twisted, his two
+hands on the creature's jaws. Then he set himself to wrench them
+apart. His strength, great as it was availed nothing against that
+remorseless grip. The resistance goaded him to fury. He gave over the
+effort to prise the teeth apart, and put all his might into a frenzied
+pull. There were instants of resistance, then the hissing noise of
+rending cloth. A huge fragment of the stout jeans was torn out bodily.
+Zeke hurled the animal violently from him. The leash was snapped from
+the girl's hands. The dog's body shot across the cabin, hurtled
+against the wall. The indomitable brute tumbled to the floor, and lay
+there stunned. But even in defeat, he carried down with him between
+rigid jaws the blue-jeans banner of victory.
+
+With a bound, the girl crossed the space, and fell on her knees beside
+the inert form, crooning over it pitifully. In the same moment, the
+gust of anger in Zeke ended. He stood motionless, except for his
+quickened breathing, with eyes fast on the girl. Remorse stabbed him
+as he realized her distress, for which he was responsible. He went
+toward her hesitatingly, forgetful of bag and stick, which had fallen
+at the outset of the melee. He ventured to address her, stammering
+confusedly.
+
+"I 'low he hain't daid, nor nothin' like thet," he said; "jest takin'
+a nap-like." His wrath gave a final flicker, as he looked down at the
+ugly face cushioned within the girl's hands. "An ornery critter like
+thet-thar pup ought to be kept shet-up," he concluded spitefully.
+
+The girl lifted a face in which blue eyes were flaming.
+
+"It's you ought to be shut up, you horrible man!" she cried. "And you
+will be. I'll see to that."
+
+"Now, don't be plumb foolish," Zeke expostulated. "The varmint hain't
+hurt none--not a mite, ma'am."
+
+"Beast!" the girl ejaculated, concisely.
+
+Zeke retorted with high indignation.
+
+"I jest nacher'ly hain't a-goin' to stand still an' say 'Thank ye!'
+while I'm bein' et up piecemeal by no dawg--specially one with a face
+like his'n."
+
+He would have said more, but paused with mouth agape, eyes widening,
+his expression horror-stricken. For, just then, the bull-terrier
+snorted loudly, and unclosed its red eyes. The clenched jaws, too,
+relaxed. Thus released, the broad strip of jeans fluttered to the
+floor. Its movement caught Zeke's gaze. He recognized the cloth. The
+ghastly truth burst in his brain. In an agony of embarrassment, he
+clasped his hands to that portion of his person so fearfully
+despoiled. Moved by his sudden silence, impressed perhaps by some
+subtle impact of this new and dreadful emotion on his part, the girl
+looked up. She, too, had noted subconsciously the fall of the cloth
+from the dog's jaws. Now as she saw the young man's face of fire and
+observed his peculiar posture, she understood. Her own crimson cheeks
+rivaled those of the afflicted one. She turned and bent low over her
+reviving pet. Her shoulders were shaking, Zeke was shuddering.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+
+The conventions of dress are sometimes pestilential. If any doubt this
+truth let him remember the nightmares wherein his nudity made torment.
+And, while remembering the anguish such lack of clothing has
+occasioned in dreams, let him think with pity on the suffering of Zeke
+whose plight was real. It was in sooth, a predicament to strain the
+_savoir faire_ of the most polished courtier. Perhaps, the behavior of
+the mountaineer was as discreet as any permitted by the unfortunate
+circumstances, and could hardly have been improved on by the Admirable
+Crichton himself. He simply retained an immobile pose, facing the
+girl, with his whole soul concentrated in desire that the earth should
+split asunder to engulf him. The tide of his misery was at its flood,
+so that it grew no worse when some deck-hands thrust the forward doors
+open, and a policeman bounded into the cabin, drawn revolver in hand.
+
+But the bull-terrier was to escape the fate unjustly inflicted on so
+many of its fellows. The girl, crouching over the dog, barred the
+policeman's purpose.
+
+"Get away from him, miss," the officer directed. "He ain't safe, even
+if he's quiet. I know mad dogs. A bullet's the only medicine."
+
+"Chub isn't mad in the least," the girl snapped; "though he's been
+through enough to make him crazy--and so have I. If you're so anxious
+to do your duty, officer," she added, bitterly, "why don't you arrest
+that horrid, hulking man over there?" She pointed a neatly gloved,
+accusing finger at the motionless Zeke, who was staring fixedly at the
+point where he hoped the abyss might yawn.
+
+"What's he done?" the policeman inquired gruffly. He was miffed over
+this lost opportunity. The slayer of a mad dog is always mentioned as
+a hero in the newspapers.
+
+The girl stood up. The dog, at the end of the leash, also stood up,
+and shook itself. It had, to all seeming, recovered fully. It regarded
+Zeke intently from its red eyes. But it did not growl. It was plain
+that the bull-terrier was thinking deeply, and that Zeke was the
+center around which thought revolved. But, if the dog did not growl,
+its mistress showed no lessening of hostility. She explained
+succinctly to the representative of the law:
+
+"He assaulted my dog--with his feet and his hands."
+
+"And maybe he bit him, too!" the policeman suggested, with heavy
+sarcasm. He could not forgive this pretty girl for foiling his
+heroism.
+
+The girl did not heed. Her white brow was wrinkled in a frown. She was
+recalling, with an effort, her somewhat meager knowledge of legal
+terms.
+
+"I shall charge him with homicidal assault," she announced firmly.
+
+"I hope you'll tell that to the sarge," the officer chuckled, his
+pique forgotten in appreciation of the girl's naive announcement.
+"I'll take this chap to the station-house. You'll appear against him,
+miss?" The girl nodded emphatically. He turned on Zeke, frowning.
+"Come on quiet, young feller, if you know what's good for ye." His
+practiced eye studied the young mountaineer's physique respectfully.
+
+Zeke made no movement, nor answered nor lifted his eyes. The policeman
+attributed this demeanor to recalcitrancy. He put the revolver in his
+pocket, drew his club and took a step forward. Yet, he sensed
+something unfamiliar in the situation; the stiff posture of the arms
+and hands of the culprit attracted his attention. He felt vaguely that
+something of a painful nature was toward. He stopped short, puzzled,
+and spoke:
+
+"What's the matter with ye, anyhow?" he demanded fiercely. "Hain't ye
+got any tongue?"
+
+Then, at last, Zeke raised his eyes. They went first to the forward
+door, to make sure that the girl had vanished. There were only two
+mildly interested deck-hands in the cabin, beside the policeman,
+though soon the place would be filled with newly arriving passengers.
+He looked at the officer squarely, with despair in his expression:
+
+"Hit ain't my tongue--hit's my pants!" he said huskily. "Hit's the
+seat of my pants. Hit's--hit's thar!" He nodded toward the strip of
+jeans left on the floor by the dog.
+
+The policeman stared at the fragment of cloth, then his gaze returned
+appreciatively to the victim's hands. He threw his head back and
+bellowed with laughter, echoed raucously by the deck-hands. Zeke
+waited grimly until the merriment lessened a little.
+
+"I hain't a-stirrin' nary a step to no jail-house," was his morose
+announcement, "unless somebody gits me some pants with a seat to
+'em."
+
+The policeman liked his ease too well to fight needlessly, and he had
+an idea that the thews and sinews of the boomer might make a good
+account of themselves. Moreover, he was by way of being a kindly soul,
+and he apprehended in a measure the young man's misery.
+
+"Can you dig up a pair of jumpers?" he asked the deck-hands. "You can
+have 'em back by calling at the station to-morrow."
+
+In this manner, the difficulty was bridged. Clad in the dingy and
+dirty borrowed garment, the burning shame fell from Zeke, and he was
+once again his own man. Nevertheless, he avoided looking toward the
+piece of torn cloth lying on the floor, as he went out with the
+policeman. He only wished that he might with equal ease leave behind
+all memory of the lamentable episode.
+
+Zeke's tractability increased the favorable impression already made on
+the officer by the mountaineer's wholesome face and modest, manly
+bearing. It was evident that this was no ordinary rake-helly boomer
+come to town. There was, too, the black bag to witness that the
+prisoner was an honest voyager. On the way to the station, the
+constable listened with unusual patience to Zeke's curt account of the
+misadventure, and the narrative was accepted as truth--the more
+readily by reason of some slight prejudice against the dog, which had
+failed as an exploiter of heroism. In consequence, the policeman grew
+friendly, and promised intercession in his captive's behalf. This was
+the more effective when, on arrival at the station-house, it was
+learned that the girl with the dog had not appeared. Nor was there
+sign of her after a period of waiting. The sergeant at the desk
+decided that there could be no occasion to hold the prisoner. But he
+frowned on the deadly weapon, which the usual search had revealed.
+
+"'Twon't do for you to go totin' that cannon promiscuous," he
+declared. "You shore don't need a gun--you shore do need breeches.
+What's the answer?... Hock the gun, and buy some pants."
+
+Thus simply did an alert mind solve all difficulties of the
+situation.
+
+So in the end, Zeke issued safely from his first bout with mischance
+and found himself well content, for his dress now was more like that
+of the men about him. The new trousers were full length, which the
+jeans had not been, and the creases down the legs were in the latest
+style. The salesman had so stated, and Zeke observed with huge
+satisfaction that the stiffness of the creases seemed to mark the
+quality of the various suits visible in the streets. And his own
+creases were of the most rigid! Zeke for the first time in his life,
+felt that warm thrill which characterizes any human integer, whether
+high or low, when conscious of being especially well dressed.
+
+Followed an interval of loitering. The sights of the town formed an
+endless panorama of wonder to the lad's eager vision. Though he was a
+year past the age of man's estate, this was his first opportunity of
+beholding a town of any size, of seeing face to face things of which
+he had heard a little, had read more. His fresh, receptive mind
+scanned every detail with fierce concentration of interest, and
+registered a multitude of vivid impressions to be tenaciously retained
+in memory.
+
+And ever with him, as he roamed the streets, went a tall slender girl,
+barefooted, garbed in homespun, with great dark brown eyes that looked
+tenderly on him from beneath the tumbled bronze masses of her hair. No
+passer-by saw her, but the mountaineer knew her constant presence, and
+with her held voiceless communion concerning all things that he
+beheld. His heart exulted proudly over the bewildering revelations of
+many women, both beautiful and marvelously clad in fine raiment--for
+this girl that walked with him was more radiantly fair than any
+other.
+
+It was late afternoon when, finally, Zeke aroused himself to think of
+the necessities of his position. Then, after a hasty and economical
+meal at a lunch counter near the water-front, he made haste to the
+pier, where his attention was at once riveted on an Old Dominion
+Liner, which was just backing out into the river. He watched the great
+bulk, fascinated, while it turned, and moved away down the harbor, to
+vanish beyond Sewall's Point, on its way toward Hampton Roads.
+Immediately afterward, his attention was attracted to a much smaller
+steamer, which drew in on the opposite side of the wharf. There
+chanced to be no one else near, and, as the boat slid into the slip, a
+man in the bow hurled a coil of rope toward Zeke, with an aim so
+accurate that it fell across Zeke's shoulder.
+
+"Don't dodge it, you lubber!" the man roared, in answer to the
+mountaineer's instinctive movement. "Haul it in, an' make fast to the
+punchin'."
+
+Zeke obeyed readily enough, hauled in the hawser, and made the loop
+fast over the piling. At the same moment, he saw two negroes, blacker
+from soot and grime than nature had made them, who leaped down from
+the deck, and scampered out of sight. He heard the captain in the
+pilot-house shouting down the tube.
+
+"There go your----nigger stokers on the run."
+
+Zeke could both see and hear the man in the engine-room, who vowed
+profanely that he would ship a pair of white men, to sail before ten
+that night. It seemed to the listener that the situation might develop
+to his advantage. When, presently, the captain descended to the dock,
+Zeke made bold to accost that red-faced and truculent-appearing
+person. Much to his surprise, his request for work met with an amiable
+reply. The captain verified what Zeke already knew, that the engineer
+had need of men, and bade the inquirer get aboard and offer himself.
+
+In the engine-room, the harried chief scowled on the intruder.
+
+"What the devil do you want?" he cried harshly.
+
+But Zeke's purpose was too earnest to be put down by mere
+ungraciousness.
+
+"Work," he replied with a smile.
+
+Something in the applicant's aspect mitigated the engineer's
+asperity.
+
+"Ever fire a boiler?" he questioned, more affably.
+
+"Yes, an' no," Zeke answered; "not any real steam b'iler. But, when
+hit comes to keepin' a hick'ry fire under a copper kittle, an' not
+scorchin' the likker, wall, I 'lows as how I kin do hit. An' when it
+comes to makin' o' sorghum m'lasses, I hain't never tuk off my hat to
+nobody yit. Fer the keepin' o' proper temp'rature folks says, I'm
+'bout's good's anybody in Wilkes."
+
+"Humph!--boomer," the engineer grunted, and there was silence for a
+moment. When next he spoke, his manner was kindly.
+
+"Those niggers of mine skedaddled 'cause they're lazy and worthless.
+But the stoke-hole is hell, all right. It ain't no place for a
+youngster like you. I'll hustle round to the gin-mills an' get hold of
+a pair of tough guys. But there's something else," he went on, as
+Zeke's face fell. "If you can make sorghum molasses and moonshine
+without scorchin' 'em, you'll fill the bill, I reckon. We cruise off
+the coast for menhaddin--fat backs--for the oil in 'em. We carry
+steam-jacket kettles. I've got a green man now who's no good. I'll
+fire him and take you on. Thirty a month and your board--more
+by-and-by, if you suit."
+
+Zeke, elated at this opportunity, felt, nevertheless, that honesty
+required of him some further explanation. But the engineer dismissed
+consideration of the future.
+
+"A month will give you enough for your fare to New York. If you ain't
+pressed for time, a voyage will do you good. But don't let the captain
+get a sight of that black bag, or it'll go overboard. Sailors are
+afeared of 'em," he chuckled. "_The Neuse_, my old ship, ran into _The
+Blanche_ off Creek Beacon, in a fog, and sunk her. We rescued officers
+and crew, but the captain--Smith, his name was--couldn't stop cussin'
+'cause he'd allowed a nigger mammy to go aboard as a passenger along
+with her old black bag, which was the why of the wreck, 'cording to
+his way of thinking. Took his friends nigh onto a year, to convince
+him that _The Neuse_ was to blame for the collision. I suspect he'll
+always have it on his conscience that he did finally collect damages
+off our owners." The engineer chuckled again. "Stow your bag under
+your bunk in the fore peak before the captain comes aboard."
+
+_The Bonita_ was a stanchly built and seaworthy craft with a draft of
+less than twelve feet under full cargo, which made possible her use of
+the shorter and smoother inland water-way from Norfolk to Beaufort,
+North Carolina, where was the factory. Zeke, who would remain idle
+until the first catch of fish, went early to his bunk the first
+evening aboard, wearied by the long and exciting day. He had, indeed,
+scarce time to contemplate a guardian vision of Plutina ere his senses
+were locked in slumber, and his next consciousness was of a dim
+morning light struggling into the gloom of the stuffy peak, and the
+jolting rhythm of the engine, which announced that the voyage was
+begun. When he hurried on deck, he was at first disappointed to learn
+that the boat was still some distance from the open sea, for which he
+longed with all an inlander's curiosity over the mystery of endless
+waters. _The Bonita_ was now working forward slowly through the old
+Dismal Swamp Canal, to reach the Pasquotank River and Albemarle Sound.
+Zeke's astonished eyes perceived in every direction only the level,
+melancholy expanse of the swamp. His sensitive soul found,
+nevertheless, a strange charm and beauty in the scene. There was space
+here, even as in the mountains. Yet this calm was not of strength, he
+felt vaguely, like that he had known, but the tranquillity of nature
+in another, a weaker, less-wholesome mood, apathetic, futile. The
+thickly dotting cypresses and junipers, bedecked with streaming
+draperies of Spanish moss, touched the vistas with a funereal aspect.
+The languid movement of the festoons under the breeze was like the
+sighings of desolation made visible. The dense tangle of the
+undergrowth stretched everywhere, repellent, unrelieved by the vivid
+color flashes of the mountain blossoms. Stagnant wastes of amber-hued
+water emphasized the dreariness.
+
+Zeke's spirits were too exultant to suffer more than a fleeting
+depression from this first survey of the waste. He realized how unjust
+his impressions might be when he learned that this seemingly filthy
+water was highly esteemed. The deck-hand, filling the water barrel
+from a pail let over the ship's side, explained the swamp water's
+virtues.
+
+"All the capens fill their barrels with it. Juniper water cures chills
+an' fever, an' keeps 'em off if ye hain't got 'em. Some says it's
+better 'n gin for the kidneys." But the deck-hand looked doubtful.
+
+Zeke, still suspicious because of the unlikeness of this liquid to the
+crystal-clear element of the mountains, essayed an experimental
+swallow, then spat disgustedly.
+
+"Hit may be all right fer med'cine, or yarb tea," was his verdict,
+"but it needs real water to wash it down."
+
+The progress was tediously slow, for a strong southwest wind had come
+on, which lowered the water in the canal, so that _The Bonita_ often
+went scraping along the bottom, and betimes stuck fast in the mud.
+When they were come to the Lake Drummond region, Captain Lee decided
+to tie up until a change or falling of the wind, with its consequent
+rise of water in the channel. At the point where they finally made
+fast to the bank, there was an old trail, a woods road long abandoned,
+running off into the jungle. Zeke promptly set off to explore this,
+and almost at once espied a wild turkey; a plump gobbler, feeding in
+the path before him. There could be no doubt as to the acceptability
+of such food aboard and Zeke hastened back to _The Bonita_, where the
+captain gladly loaned him a rifle. Thus equipped, Zeke returned to the
+wilderness trail. He was not surprised to find that the turkey had
+vanished, nor disheartened, for he was sure that a little patience
+would bring him in sight of game, and there was leisure a plenty since
+an interval must elapse after a change in the wind before the
+deepening of the water. Within a half-hour, he shot a turkey from its
+perch in a cypress. With much satisfaction, Zeke swung the gobbler,
+which was big and fat, over his shoulder, and set out to return.
+Almost at once, however, his steps were arrested by the faint baying
+of a hound. As he listened, the sound grew louder, as if the dog drove
+its quarry toward him. The instinct of the chase dominated the
+mountaineer. He cast down the turkey, and waited, hopeful that a deer
+or bear might cross the path within range.
+
+Soon, he heard a noisy crackling of underbrush a little to his right,
+but near at hand. With the rifle in readiness Zeke peered from the
+concealment of a cypress trunk. But it was neither the lithe leaping
+form of a deer, nor the uncouth shambling bulk of swamp bear that
+broke from the cover a moment later. Instead, there lurched into view
+a huge negro. The fugitive's clothing hung in shreds, witness of the
+cat's-briar claws; his face, from the same cause, was torn and
+bleeding. The breath wheezed loudly through the open mouth; the sweat
+ran in streams from the face; the eyes rolled whitely. There was
+terror in his expression. He carried a thick club. Now, as he came to
+a halt, it was plain to the watcher that the runner's fear had at last
+driven him to make a stand, when he could flee no further. Zeke had no
+difficulty in understanding the situation sufficiently well. The negro
+was undoubtedly a criminal who had fled in the hope of refuge from the
+law in the swamp's secret lurking places. Now trailed by the dog, he
+was brought to bay. Zeke determined, as a measure of prudence, to
+remain inactive until the issue between man and dog should be
+adjusted. Otherwise, he might find himself engaged against both man
+and beast with only a single bullet to his aid.
+
+The querulous cries of the dog here and there showed that the scent
+had been lost where the negro had splashed through some pool. Then,
+abruptly, a sharp volley announced recovery of the track. A minute
+later a huge black-and-tan body catapulted from the thicket into the
+open space of the trail. From his cover, Zeke watched excitedly. The
+negro, who had stood with club swung back ready for the blow, was
+caught at disadvantage by the pursuer's emergence at an unexpected
+point. The branches of the thicket projected to prevent a blow. The
+dog, silent now, hurled itself straight at the man's throat. But the
+negro, alert to the peril, avoided the charge by a swift spring to the
+side. Zeke heard the great jaws of the beast click shut as it shot
+harmlessly past its foe; he heard the savage growl with which it
+whirled to renew the attack. As it leaped a second time the negro's
+club fell true in a mighty stroke--caught the creature fair on the
+skull, stopped it in midair, dropped it dead to the ground.
+
+Zeke's turn in the action was come, at last. Even as the negro stood
+gloating over his victory, the mountaineer, with leveled rifle,
+stepped from the concealment of the cypress, and cried a sharp
+command:
+
+"Drop thet-thar club, an' stand still whar ye be, if ye don't want to
+be kilt!"
+
+The effect on the exultant negro was almost pitiful. Where had been
+the assurance of final escape was now the certainty of capture. The
+shock of contrasting emotions was too much for the fellow's strength,
+coarse-fibered and hardened as he was. He stared at Zeke with
+protruding eyes, his face grown gray. His thrilling joy in the slaying
+of the dog was lost in the black despair of defeat. The club fell from
+the trembling fingers, and in the next moment the man himself sagged
+to the ground and crouched whimpering, whining, in a child-like
+abandon to fatigue and grief. Then, presently, while the captor
+watched in some perplexity, the moaning ceased. In its stead came a
+raucous rhythm--the sleep of utter exhaustion.
+
+A sound of footsteps on the path caught Zeke's ear. He turned, and saw
+close at hand a short, stockily built, swarthy-complexioned man of
+middle age, who came swinging forward at a lope. The newcomer halted
+at sight of the mountaineer.
+
+"Seen anything of a big nigger or a hound passing this way?" he
+demanded.
+
+Zeke nodded, gravely.
+
+"Ye'll find the two of 'em right thar." He raised the rifle, which
+the other man now observed for the first time, and with it pointed to
+where, beyond the cypress-tree, the negro huddled, breathing
+stertorously, beside the dead body of the dog.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+
+Dun clouds of tragedy, crimson-streaked with sinister romance, shadow
+the chronicles of the forty-mile square that makes the Dismal Swamp.
+Thither, aforetime, even as to-day, men fled into the labyrinthine
+recesses to escape the justice--or the injustice--of their fellows.
+Runaway slaves sought asylum within its impenetrable and uncharted
+mazes of thicket and quaking earth, of fetid pool and slithering
+quicksands. Such fugitives came no more after the emancipation.
+Instead of slaves, there were black men who had outraged the law, who
+fled into the steaming, noxious waste in order to evade the penalty
+for crime. For a time, these evil-doers were hunted through the
+tortuous trails in the canebrakes with blood-hounds, even as their
+predecessors had been. But the kennels of the man-hunting dogs were
+ravaged by the black tongue, soon after the ending of the Civil War.
+Poisoners, too, took toll of the too intelligent brutes. The strain
+rapidly grew less--became extinct. Whereat, the criminals of Dismal
+Swamp rejoiced in unholy glee. Their numbers waxed. Soon, they came to
+be a serious menace to the peace and safety of the communities that
+bordered on the infested region.
+
+One sufferer from these conditions so resented the depredations of
+marauders that he bought in England two splendid stag-hounds, keen of
+scent, intelligent, faithful to their task, strong enough to throttle
+their quarry, be it deer or man. By the aid of these creatures, many
+criminals were captured. Their owner, by the intrepidity of his
+pursuit, was given a nickname, "Cyclone" Brant. The speed and force
+and resistlessness of him justified the designation. Together with his
+dogs, Jack and Bruno, he won local fame for daring and successful
+exploits against the lurking swamp devils. It was this man who now,
+canvas-clad, with rifle in hand, looked in the direction indicated by
+Zeke. He was dripping wet, plastered with slime of the bogs. For a few
+seconds, he stood staring in silence. Then a little, gasping cry broke
+from his lips. He strode forward, and fell to his knees beside the
+body of the dog. He lifted the face of the hound gently in his two
+hands, and looked down at it for a long time.
+
+There was a film of tears in Brant's eyes when, at last, he put the
+head of the dog softly back on the earth, and stood up, and turned
+toward the mountaineer. He made explanation with simple directness.
+The negro was a notorious outlaw, for whose capture the authorities of
+Elizabeth City offered a reward of five hundred dollars. Half of this
+sum would be duly paid to Zeke.
+
+This news stirred the young man to the deeps. To his poverty-stricken
+experience, the amount was princely. The mere mention of it made
+privations to vanish away, luxuries to flourish. He had roseate
+visions of lavish expenditures: a warm coat for the old mother,
+furbelows for Plutina, "straighteners" even, if she would have them.
+The dreamer blushed at the intimacy of his thought. It did not occur
+to his frugal soul that now he need not continue on _The Bonita_, but
+might instead go easily to New York by train. He was naively happy in
+this influx of good fortune, and showed his emotion in the deepened
+color under the tan of his cheeks and in the dancing lights of the
+steady eyes.
+
+"I'm shore plumb glad I kotched him," he said eagerly, "if thar's a
+right smart o' money in hit. If he's as right-down bad as ye says he
+is, I'm powerfully sorry I didn't wing 'im 'fore he got yer dawg."
+
+Brant shook his head regretfully.
+
+"It's my fault," he confessed. "I oughtn't to have taken the chance
+with Bruno alone. I should have had Jack along, too. With more than
+one dog, a man won't stand against 'em. He'll take to a tree." He
+shook off the depression that descended as he glanced down at the
+stiffening body of the beast. There was a forced cheerfulness in his
+tones when he continued: "But how did you get into the swamp? I take
+you to be from the mountains."
+
+Zeke's manner suddenly indicated no small pride.
+
+"I'm a sailor, suh," he explained, with great dignity. "I'm the
+cookin' chief on the fishin' steamer, _Bonita_."
+
+Brant surveyed the mountaineer with quizzically appraising eyes.
+
+"Been a sailor long?" he questioned, innocently.
+
+"Wall, no, I hain't," Zeke conceded. His voice was reluctant. "I was
+only tuk on las' night. I hain't rightly begun sailorin' yit. Thet's
+how I c'd come arter thet gobbler." He pointed to the bird lying at
+the foot of the cypress. Abruptly, his thoughts veered again to the
+reward. "Oh, cracky! Jest think of all thet money earned in two
+minutes! Hit's what I come down out o' the mountains fer, an' hit
+'pears like I done right. I'd shore be tickled to see all thet-thar
+money in dimes an' nickels, n' mebby a few quarters thrown in!"
+
+"You're tied up near here?" Brant inquired.
+
+"'Bout a mile over," was the answer. "Will ye take yer nigger thar
+first?"
+
+"Yes, I know Captain Lee. He'll give me a chance at your gobbler, and
+then passage to Elizabeth City."
+
+That same afternoon, _The Bonita_ continued her voyage. The captain
+obligingly made a landing at Elizabeth City, where Brant lodged his
+prisoner, and where the gratified Zeke stowed in his wallet ten times
+as much money as he had ever before possessed at one time. Naturally,
+he was in a mood of much self-complacency, for, in addition to the
+money gain, his adventure had notably increased his prestige aboard
+ship, where Brant's praise for his prompt and efficient action was
+respectfully accepted. Yet, despite his contentment, the mountaineer
+found himself strangely troubled as he lay in his bunk, after the ship
+had got under way. It may be that his perturbation had a physical
+cause, at least in part, for there was more movement now as the vessel
+slid through the waves of Pamlico Sound. It was while he tossed
+restlessly, troubled over this unaccustomed inability to sleep, that
+there came a memory of the black bag:
+
+"I plumb fergot the dum hoodoo!" Zeke muttered, in huge disgust. "An'
+the chief said I must git another the first chance." Then he grinned
+vaingloriously into the darkness of the fore-peak. "But I reckon hit
+hain't put no cuss on me yit--seein' as how I got a job an' a peck o'
+money right smack off." Presently, however, his nervous mood suggested
+a sinister possibility. "P'rhaps, it don't work on land--only jest on
+the sea, or mebby jest whar it happens to be at. Hit wa'n't 'long
+with me when I ketched the nigger. I 'low I ought to 'a' got rid o'
+the pesky thing like the chief said."
+
+Zeke realized that sleep was not for him. If he had had any hope
+otherwise, it was ended when the fog-horn of _The Bonita_ wound its
+melancholy blasts, and other trumpetings began to sound over the waste
+from near and far. Already, by dint of many inquiries, Zeke had
+acquired enough information to know that the mournful noise was the
+accompaniment of a fog. Curious to see, he rose, and felt his way to
+the small port-hole, through which he sought to peer out into the
+night. His vision compassed no more than a few fathom's distance;
+beyond, all was blackness. The port was open, and the cold mist
+stealing in chilled him. Zeke shivered, but an inexplicable
+disturbance of spirit kept him from the warmth of the blankets. He
+chose rather to slip on his trousers, and then again to gaze blindly
+out into the mysterious dark of this new world. He found himself
+hearkening intently for the varied calls of warning that went wailing
+hither and yon. The mellow, softly booming, yet penetrant notes of the
+conch-shells blown by the skippers of smaller craft, came almost
+soothingly to his ears. All the others, harsher, seemed tocsins of
+terror.
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+THE LOVERS ON STONE MOUNTAIN.]
+
+Standing there at the port, with the floating drops of mist drenching
+his face, Zeke fell into a waking dream. He was again clambering over
+the scarped cliffs of Stone Mountain; beside him Plutina. His arm was
+about her waist, and their hands were clasped, as they crept with
+cautious, feeling steps amid the perils of the path. For over the
+lofty, barren summit, the mist had shut down in impenetrable veils.
+Yet, through that murk of vapor, the two, though they moved so
+carefully, went in pulsing gladness, their hearts singing the old,
+old, new, new mating song. A mist not born of the sea nor of the
+mountain, but of the heart, was in the lad's eyes while he remembered
+and lived again those golden moments in the mountain gloom. It seemed
+to him for a blessed minute that Plutina was actually there beside him
+in the tiny, rocking space of the fore-peak; that the warmth of her
+hand-clasp thrilled into the beating of his pulses. Though the
+illusion vanished swiftly, the radiance of it remained, for he knew
+that then, and always, the spirit of the girl dwelt with him.
+
+The mountaineer's interval of peace was rudely ended. A wild volley of
+blasts from _The Bonita's_ whistle made alarum. Bells clanged
+frantically in the engine-room close at hand. A raucous fog-horn
+clamored out of the dark. To Zeke, still dazedly held to thought of
+the mountains, the next sound was like the crashing down of a giant
+tree, which falls with the tearing, splitting din of branches beating
+through underbrush. An evil tremor shook the boat. Of a sudden, _The
+Bonita_ heeled over to starboard, almost on her beams' ends. Zeke
+saved himself from falling only by a quick clutch on the open port.
+From the deck above came a contusion of fierce voices, a strident
+uproar of shouts and curses. Then, _The Bonita_ righted herself,
+tremulously, languidly, as one sore-stricken might sit up, very
+feebly. The sailors in the fore-peak, with a chorus of startled oaths,
+leaped from the bunks, and fled to the deck. Zeke followed.
+
+Clinging to a stanchion, the mountaineer could distinguish vaguely, in
+the faint lights of the lanterns, the bows of a three-masted schooner,
+which had sheared through the port-side of _The Bonita_. The bowsprit
+hung far over the smaller ship, a wand of doom. The beating of the
+waves against the boat's side came gently under the rasping, crunching
+complaint of timber against timber in combat. The schooner's sails
+flapped softly in the light breeze. Zeke, watching and listening
+alertly, despite bewilderment, heard the roaring commands of a man
+invisible, somewhere above him, and guessed that this must be the
+captain of the schooner. He saw the crew of _The Bonita_ clambering
+one after another at speed, up the anchor chain at the bow of the
+destroyer. He realized that flight was the only road to safety. But,
+even as he was tensed to dart forward, he remembered his treasure of
+money under the bunk pillow.
+
+On the instant, he rushed to the fore-peak, seized the wallet and the
+black bag, and fled again to the deck. At the moment when he
+reappeared, a gust of quickening breeze filled the schooner's sails.
+The canvas bellied taut. The grinding, clashing clamor of the timbers
+swelled suddenly. The schooner wrenched herself free, and slipped,
+abruptly silent, away into the night and the mist. Ere Zeke reached
+the rail in his leap, the schooner had vanished. For a minute, he
+heard a medley of voices. Then, while he stood straining his eyes in
+despair, these sounds lessened--died. The mountaineer stood solitary
+and forsaken on the deck of a sinking ship.
+
+Finally, Zeke spoke aloud in self-communion. The words rang a little
+tremulous, for he realized that he was at grips with death.
+
+"Hit's what I gits fer fergittin'," was his regretful comment. "I
+reckon, if so be I'd ever got onto thet-thar schooner with this-hyar
+damn' bag, she'd 'a' sunk, too. Or, leastways, they'd have chucked me
+overboard like Jonah, fer causin' the hull cussed trouble with this
+pesky black bag o' mine."
+
+Zeke perceived that the doomed vessel was settling by the head. He
+surmised that time was short. Nevertheless, he took leisure for one
+duty he deemed of prime importance. With all his strength in a vicious
+heave, he cast the black bag from him into the sea.
+
+"I hain't superstitious," he remarked, sullenly; "thet is, not
+exzackly. An' I reckon I'm gittin' rid o' that conjure satchel a mite
+late. I guess hit's done hit's damnedest a'ready."
+
+Inquiries during the leisurely voyaging through the canal had given
+Zeke knowledge concerning the life-belts. Now, he buckled one of them
+about his body hastily, for even his ignorance could not fail to
+interpret the steady settling of the vessel into the water. The strain
+of fighting forebears in the lad set him courageous in the face of
+death. But his blood was red and all a-tingle with the joy of life,
+and he was very loath to die. His heart yearned for the girl who loved
+him. His desire for her was a stabbing agony. The thought of his
+mother's destitution, deprived of him in her old age, was grievous.
+But his anguish was over the girl--anguish for himself; yet more for
+her. The drizzle of the fog on his cheeks brought again a poignant
+memory of the mist that had enwrapped them on the stark rocks of the
+mountain. A savage revolt welled in him against the monstrous decree
+of fate. He cried out roughly a challenge to the elements. Then, in
+the next instant, he checked the futile outburst, and bethought him
+how best to meet the catastrophe.
+
+The instinct of flight from the rising waters led Zeke to mount the
+pilot-house. The lanterns shed a flickering light here, and the youth
+uttered a cry of joy as his eyes fell on the life-raft. The shout was
+lost in the hissing of steam as the sea rushed in on the boilers. All
+the lights were extinguished now, save the running lamps with their
+containers of oil. Quickly, the noise from the boiler-room died out,
+and again there was silence, save for the occasional bourdoning of the
+horns or the mocking caress of the waves that lapped the vessel's
+sides--like a colossal serpent licking the prey it would devour
+betimes. In the stillness, Zeke wrought swiftly. He wasted no time
+over the fastenings. The blade of his knife slashed through the hemp
+lashings, and the raft lay clear. He made sure that it was free from
+the possibility of entanglement. Then, as the boat lurched
+sickeningly, like a drunken man to a fall, Zeke stretched himself face
+downward lengthwise of the tiny structure, and clenched his hands on
+the tubes. There was a period of dragging seconds, while _The Bonita_
+swayed sluggishly, in a shuddering rhythm. Came the death spasm. The
+stern was tossed high; the bow plunged for the depths. Down and
+down--to the oyster rocks of Teach's Hole, in Pamlico Sound. As the
+vessel sank, the raft floated clear for a moment, then the suction
+drew it under, buffeted it--spewed it forth. It rode easily on the
+swirling waters, at last. As the commotion from the ship's sinking
+ceased, the raft moved smoothly on the surface, rocking gently with
+the pulse of the sea. Zeke, half-strangled, almost torn from his place
+by the grip of the water in the plunge, clung to his refuge with all
+the strength that was in him. And that strength prevailed. Soon, he
+could breathe fully once again, and the jaws of the sea gave over
+their gnawing. After the mortal peril through which he had won, Zeke
+found his case not so evil. The life was still in him, and he voiced a
+crude phrase of gratefulness to Him who is Lord of the deep waters,
+even as of the everlasting hills.
+
+Near Teach's Hole, Ocracoke Inlet offers a shallow channel between the
+dunes from Pamlico Sound to the open sea. Here the varying tides rush
+angrily, lashed by the bulk of waves behind. To-night, the ebb bore
+with it a cockle-shell on which a lad clung, shivering. But the soul
+was still strong in him for all his plight. He dared believe that he
+would yet return safe to the mountains, to the love that awaited him
+there.
+
+Once the castaway smiled wryly:
+
+"I hain't superstitious none--leastways, I dunno's I be," he muttered,
+doubtfully. "But hit's plumb lucky I got rid o' thet-thar dum black
+bag jest as I did, or I'd 'a' been a goner, shore!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+
+The days dragged heavily for Plutina, after the departure of her
+lover. She endured the period of tense waiting as best she might,
+since endure she must, but this passive loneliness, without a word
+from the man of her heart, was well-nigh intolerable. She did not
+weep--after that single passionate outburst while yet her lips were
+warm from his kiss. She was not of the weak fiber to find assuagement
+in many tears, nor had she nerves that needed the chemical soothing of
+flooded eyes. She had, indeed, strength sufficient for the trial. She
+bore her sorrow bravely enough, but it pierced her through and
+through. She knew her lover, and she knew herself. Because of that
+knowledge she was spared the shameful suffering of a woman who fears,
+with deadly fear, lest her lover be untrue. Plutina had never a doubt
+as to the faith of the absent one. A natural jealousy sometimes leaped
+in her bosom, at thought of him exposed to the wiles of women whom she
+suspected of all wantonness. But she had no cowardly thought that the
+fairest and most cunning of them could oust her from the shrine of
+Zeke's heart. Her great grief lay in the failure of any word from the
+traveler. The days became weeks; almost a month had gone since he held
+her in his arms, and still no message came. This was, in truth,
+strange enough to justify alarm. It was with difficulty that she drove
+back a temptation to imagine evil happenings. She went oftener the six
+miles to the Cherry Lane post-office.
+
+When she descended the trail toward Thunder Branch this morning, she
+saw Zeke's mother standing in the doorway of the cabin on the far side
+of the stream. The bent figure of the old woman rested motionless,
+with one hand lifted to shade her eyes from the vivid sunlight, as she
+watched the girl's approach.
+
+"Mornin', Tiny," she said tenderly, as the girl crossed the clearing.
+"On yer way to the Lane, I reckon?"
+
+"Mornin', Mis' Higgins," came the cheery answer. "Yes, I 'lowed as how
+ye'd love to hear, an' I c'd git away. The corn's laid by; the sorghum
+cane's done hoed. Alviry's gone to he'p Gran'pap with a bee-tree.
+Hit's a big yaller poplar, up 'twixt Ted Hutchins' claim an' the ole
+mine-hole. Gran'pap 'lows as how hit 'll have to be cut an' split, an'
+wuth hit--over a hundred pounds, all sour-wood honey, 'cept 'bout ten
+pounds early poplar. Gran'pap's right-smart tickled. I told Alviry to
+watch out he don't go an' tote half of it up to thet-thar Widder
+Brown. You-all must come over an' git what ye kin use o' the honey,
+Mis' Higgins, afore the widder gits her fingers in the jar."
+
+"Ye don't opine thet-thar gran'pap o' your'n aims to git hitched ag'in
+at his age, do ye, Tiny? Hit'd be plumb scand'lous--an' him eighty
+past. At thet age, he's bound to have one foot in the grave, fer all
+he's so tarnation spry an' peart in his carryin's on."
+
+"Lord knows what he'll do," the girl replied, carelessly. "He's allers
+been given credit fer havin' fotchin' ways with women. I hope he
+won't, though. They say, folks what marry upwards o' eighty is mighty
+short-lived."
+
+The topic led Zeke's mother to broach apprehension of her own:
+
+"Tiny, ye don't have no idee thet our Zeke's gone daffy on some o'
+them Evish-lookin' critters down below, like ye showed me their
+picters in the city paper oncet?"
+
+"Naw, no danger o' thet," was the stout assurance. "Zeke's got too
+much sense. Besides, he hain't had no time to git rich yit. The paper
+done said as how them kind's arter the coin."
+
+As she went her way, the girl's mind reveled in thoughts of the days
+to come, when Zeke should be rich in sooth, and his riches for her.
+She swung her sun-bonnet in vigorous slaps against her bare legs, to
+scatter the ravenous mosquitoes and yellow flies, swarming from the
+thickets, and she smiled contentedly.
+
+"P'r'aps, them women's got more edication 'n me," she mused aloud,
+complacently, "but I kin fill them silk stockin's plumb up." Her face
+grew brooding with a wistful regret in the sudden droop of the tender
+red lips. "I 'low I jest orter 'a' swung onto thet-thar neck o' his'n
+an' hollered fer Parson, and got spliced 'fore he went." She shook her
+head disconsolately. "Why, if he don't come back, I'll be worse nor
+the widders. Humph, I knows 'em--cats. They'll say: 'Tiny Siddon
+didn't never have no chance to git married--her disperzition an' her
+looks wa'n't compellin' 'nough to ketch a man.'"
+
+The great dark eyes were clouded a little with bitter disappointment,
+when, two hours later, the girl came swiftly down the steep slopes
+from Cherry Lane, for once again there had been no letter for her.
+Despite her courage, Plutina felt a chill of dismay before the mystery
+of this silence. Though faith was unshaken, bewilderment oppressed her
+spirit. She could not understand, and because she could not
+understand, her grief was heavy to bear. Then, presently, she chanced
+upon a new mystery for her distraction--though this was the easier to
+her solving.
+
+As she descended into a hollow by Luffman's branch, which joins
+Thunder Branch a little way above the Higgins' clearing, Plutina's
+alert ears caught a sound that was not of the tumbling waters. Through
+all the noises of the stream where it leaped and sprayed in miniature
+falls over cluttering bowlders and fallen pines, she could distinguish
+the splashing of quick footsteps in the shallows. Some instinct of
+caution checked the girl's advance. Instead of going forward openly,
+she turned aside and approached the bank where crowding alders and ivy
+formed a screen. Here, she parted the vines stealthily, and peered up
+the water-course.
+
+A man was descending the run with hurried strides, wading with bare
+feet, or springing from rock to rock where were the deeper pools. A
+Winchester nestled in the crook of his left arm; two huge bear-traps,
+the jaws wickedly fanged, were swung from a rope over his right
+shoulder; a short-helved ax was thrust within his belt. He wore only a
+cotton shirt open at the neck, dirty throughout, patched jeans
+trousers, and a soft hat, green from long use. Beneath the shading
+brim showed a loutish face, the coarse features swollen from
+dissipation, the small black eyes bleared, yet alert and penetrating
+in their darting, furtive glances. It was Dan Hodges, a man of
+unsavory repute. The girl, though unafraid, blessed the instinct that
+had guided her to avoid a meeting.
+
+There were two prime factors in Plutina's detestation of Hodges. The
+first was due to his insolence, as she deemed it, in aspiring for her
+favor. With little training in conventional ideas of delicacy, the
+girl had, nevertheless, a native refinement not always characteristic
+of her more-cultured sister women. There was to her something
+unspeakably repugnant in the fact that this bestial person should dare
+to think of her intimately. It was as if she were polluted by his
+dreaming of her kisses, of her yielding to his caresses. That he had
+so aspired she knew, for he had told her of his desire with the coarse
+candor of his kind. Her spurning of the uncouth advances had excited
+his wrath; it had not destroyed his hopes. He had even ventured to
+renew his suit, after the news of an engagement between Plutina and
+Zeke had gone abroad. He had winced under the scourge of the girl'
+scorn, but he had shown neither penitence nor remorse. Plutina had
+forborne any account of this trouble to her lover, lest, by bad blood
+between the two men, a worse thing befall.
+
+The second cause of the girl's feeling was less direct, though of
+longer standing, and had to do with the death of her father. That
+Siddon, while yet in his prime, had been slain in a raid on a still
+by the revenue officers, and that despite the fact that he was not
+concerned in the affair, save by the unfortunate chance of being
+present. Plutina, though only a child at the time, could still
+remember the horror of that event. There was a singular personal
+guiltiness, too, in her feeling, for, on the occasion of the raid, her
+grandfather had been looking out from a balcony, and had seen the
+revenue men urging their horses up the trail, the sunlight glinting on
+their carbines. He had seized the great horn, to blow a warning to
+those at the secret still on the mountain above. Plutina could
+remember yet the grotesque bewilderment on his face, as no sound
+issued--then the wrath and despair. The children, in all innocence,
+had stuffed the horn with rags. The prank had thus, in a way, cost two
+lives--one, that of "Young" Dick Siddon. The owner of the raided still
+had been Dan Hodges, and him Plutina despised and hated with a
+virulence not at all Christian, but very human. She had all the
+old-time mountaineer's antipathy for the extortion, as it was
+esteemed, of the Federal Government, and her father's death had
+naturally inflamed her against those responsible for it. Yet, her
+loathing of Hodges caused her to regret that the man himself had
+escaped capture thus far, though twice his still had been destroyed,
+once within the year.
+
+[Illustration:
+_Claudia Kimball Young under the direction of Louis J. Selznick._
+A MOUNTAIN "STILL."]
+
+A high, jutting wall of rock hid the stream where it bent sharply a
+little way from Plutina's shelter. Presently, she became aware that
+Hodges had paused thus beyond the range of her vision, and was busy
+there. She heard the blows of the ax. General distrust of the man
+stirred up in her a brisk curiosity concerning the nature of his
+action in this place. On a previous day, she had observed that the
+limpid waters of the brook had been sullied by the milky refuse from a
+still somewhere in the reaches above. Now, the presence of Dan Hodges
+was sufficient to prove the hidden still his. But the fact did not
+explain his business here. That it was something evil, she could not
+doubt, for the man and his gang were almost outlaws among their own
+people. They were known, though unpunished, thieves, as well as
+"moonshiners," and there were whispers of more dreadful things--of
+slain men vanished into the unsounded depths of the Devil's Cauldron.
+The gorge of the community--careless as it had been of some laws in
+the past, and too ready to administer justice according to its own
+code--had risen against the vicious living of the gang that accepted
+Hodges as chief. It seemed to Plutina that duty conspired with
+curiosity to set her spying on the man.
+
+The espionage, though toilsome enough, was not otherwise difficult.
+Toward the bend, the banks rose sharply on both sides of the stream,
+forming a tiny canon for the channel. The steep slope on the east
+side, where the girl now ascended, was closely overgrown with laurel
+and little thickets of ground pine, through which she was hard beset
+to force her way--the more since she must move with what noiselessness
+she might. But her strength and skill compassed the affair with
+surprising quickness. Presently, she came to the brim of the little
+cliff, and lying outstretched, cautiously looked down. Already, a
+hideous idea had entered her mind, but she had rejected it with
+horror. What she now saw confirmed the thought she had not dared to
+harbor.
+
+Within this bend of the brook, the lessening volume of the channel had
+left a patch of rich soil, heavily overgrown with lush grasses and
+clusters of flowering weeds. A faint trace of passing steps ran across
+the bit of dry ground, the path of those that followed the stream's
+course. Fair in this dim trail, near the center of the plot, a stake
+had been driven deep. At the moment, Hodges was driving into the
+ground a similar stake, a yard further down. It was evident that the
+stakes had been previously left here in readiness, since he had not
+carried them in his descent, and the iron rings bound to them must
+have been attached in a forge. The two massive traps were lying
+half-hidden in the luxuriant growth close by. As Plutina watched with
+affrighted intentness, the man finished driving the second stake. He
+lifted one of the traps, and carried it to the upper stake. With the
+aid of a stone for anvil, he succeeded in clumsily riveting the trap's
+length of chain to the ring on the stake. The like was done with the
+other trap at the lower stake. Then, the man undertook the setting of
+the traps. The task was accomplished very quickly for both, though the
+strength of the jaws taxed his muscles to their utmost. Finally, he
+strewed leaves, and bent grass, until no least gleam of metal betrayed
+the masked peril of the trail. Plutina, sick with the treacherous
+deviltry of the device, heard the grunt of satisfaction with which
+Hodges contemplated his finished work. Forthwith, he picked up his
+rifle, thrust the ax-helve within his belt, and set off up the gulch.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+
+There could be no doubt. Those massive traps, with their cruel teeth
+of steel, meant by the makers for the holding of beasts, had been set
+here by Hodges for the snaring of men. The contrivance was fiendishly
+efficient. From her coign of vantage on the cliff top, Plutina could
+see, on a height above, the brush-covered distillery. A thin, blue
+column of smoke rose straight in the calm air, witness that the kettle
+was boiling over hickory logs, that a "run" of the liquor was being
+made. Plutina recalled that, in a recent raid against Hodges, the
+still had been captured and destroyed though the gang had escaped.
+Such loss was disastrous, for the new copper and worm and fermenters
+meant a cost of a hundred dollars, a sum hard to come on in the
+mountain coves. Usually, the outfit is packed on the men's backs to
+hiding in the laurel, afterward shifted to another obscure nook by
+running water. It was plain that Hodges had grown more than ever
+venomous over the destruction of his still, and had no scruples as to
+the means he would employ to prevent a repetition of such
+catastrophe. No need now to fear lest sentinels be not alert. The
+natural path to the still was along the course of the stream. The
+unwary passer over the tiny stretch of greensward on which the girl
+looked down, would follow the dim trail of footsteps, and so
+inevitably come within the clutch of the great jaws, which would hurl
+themselves together, rending and crunching the flesh between. The
+victim's shrieks of anguish under the assault would be a warning to
+the lawless men above. They would make ready and flee with their
+possessions, and be lost in the laurel once again. Yes, the device was
+simple, diabolically simple, and adequate. It required only that its
+executant should be without bowels of compassion.
+
+Plutina, strong-nerved as she was, found herself shuddering as she
+realized the heinousness of this thing. The soft bloom of the roses in
+her cheeks faded to white; the dark radiance of the eyes was dimmed
+with horror; the exquisite lips were compressed harshly against their
+own quivering weakness. For Plutina, despite strength of body and sane
+poise of soul, was a gentle and tender woman, and the brutal project
+spread before her eyes was an offense to every sensibility. Then, very
+soon, the mood of passive distress yielded to another emotion: a lust
+for vengeance on the man who would insure his own safety thus,
+reckless of another's cost. A new idea came to the girl. At its first
+advent, she shrank from it, conscience-stricken, for it outraged the
+traditions of her people. But the idea returned, once and again. It
+seemed to her that the evil of the man justified her in any measure
+for his punishment. She had been bred to hate and despise a spy, but
+it was borne in on her now that duty required of her to turn informer
+against Dan Hodges. There was more even than the inflicting of
+punishment on the outlaw; there was the necessity of safeguarding the
+innocent from the menace of those hidden man-traps. Any "furriner"
+from down below might wander here, whipping the stream; or any one of
+the neighborhood might chance on the spot. The Widow Higgins' heifers
+sometimes strayed; the old woman might come hither, seeking them.
+Plutina shuddered again, before the terrible vision of the one who was
+like a mother to her, caught and mangled by the pointed fangs waiting
+amid the grasses below.
+
+The question as to her right conduct in the affair remained with the
+girl, as she descended from the cliff, and made her way slowly
+homeward. She temporized by a precautionary measure. At the widow's
+cabin, she secured the old woman's promise not to go beyond the
+clearing in quest of the cattle. But the difficulty as to her course
+was not abated. Inclination urged her to advise the authorities
+concerning the locations of still and traps, and inclination was
+reinforced by justice. Yet, over against this, there were the powerful
+influence of her upbringing, the circumstances of her environment, the
+tragedy of her father's death, the savage resentment of her
+grandfather, already virulent against her lover--all forces to inspire
+enmity against the representatives of a law regarded as the violation
+of inalienable rights. True, there was growing an insidious change in
+the sentiment of the community. Where all had once been of accord, the
+better element were now becoming convinced that the illicit
+liquor-making cursed the mountains, rather than blessed. Undoubtedly,
+some effect of this had touched the girl herself, without her
+knowledge, else she had never thought to betray even such a miscreant
+as Hodges. There was, however, an abiding hate of the informer here,
+as always among decent folk, though along with it went reprobation of
+the traffic in moonshine. Plutina felt that she could never justify
+her action in the sight of her people, should she bring the revenue
+men into the mountain. Her own grandfather would curse her, and drive
+her forth. His feeling had been shown clearly in the case of Zeke. So,
+in her period of uncertainty and stress, there was none of whom the
+girl could take counsel. But, in the end, she decided that she must
+give warning to the United States marshal. The task demanded care. On
+absolute secrecy depended, in all likelihood, her very life.
+
+The trove of honey had come opportunely, since the sale of a portion
+afforded Plutina plausible excuse for her trip to Joines' store.
+There, a telephone had been recently installed, and it was the girl's
+intention to use this means of communication with the marshal. That
+the danger of detection was great, she was unhappily aware, but, she
+could devise no plan that seemed less perilous. So, early in the
+morning of the day following her discovery, she made her way along the
+North Wilkesboro' road, carrying twenty pounds of the sour-wood honey.
+At the store, she did her trading, and afterward remained loitering,
+as is the custom of shoppers in the region. The interval of waiting
+seemed to her interminable, for trade was brisk. There was always
+someone near enough the telephone to overhear, for it was unprotected
+by a booth. But, finally, the customers lessened. The few remaining
+were in the front of the store, at a safe distance from the instrument
+which was on a shelf at the back. Plutina believed that her
+opportunity was come. She knew the amount of the toll, and had the
+necessary silver in her hand to slip into the box. Then, just as she
+was about to take down the receiver, her apprehensive glance, roving
+the room, fell on Ben York, who entered briskly, notwithstanding his
+seventy years, and came straight toward her. Plutina's lifted hand
+fell to her side, and dread was heavy on her. For Ben York was the
+distiller in Hodges' gang.
+
+The old man had a reputation almost as notorious as that of Hodges
+himself. The girl felt a wave of disgust, mingled with alarm, as she
+caught sight of the face, almost hidden behind a hoary thicket of
+whiskers. The fellow was dirty, as always, and his ragged clothes only
+emphasized the emaciation of his dwarfed form. But the rheumy eyes had
+a searching quality that disturbed the girl greatly. She knew that the
+man was distinguished for his intelligence as well as for his general
+worthlessness. In the experience of years, he had always escaped the
+raiders, nor had they been able ever to secure any evidence against
+him. He was, in fact, as adroit of mind as he was tough of body. He
+had lived hard all his days, either in drunken carouse or lying out in
+the laurel to escape the summons of the courts. Where, alas! a holier
+man might have been broken long ago, the aged reprobate thrived, and
+threatened to infest the land for years to come. Now, he greeted the
+girl casually enough, made a purchase, and took his departure. He
+seemed quite unsuspicious, but Plutina felt that his coming on her
+thus was an evil omen, and, for a moment, she faltered in her
+purpose.
+
+A hand went to her bosom, and touched the tiny leather bag that hung
+from a cord about her neck inside the gown. Within it was the fairy
+crystal. The touch of it strengthened her in some subtle fashion. It
+was as if to her weakness there came miraculously something vital,
+something occultly helpful in her need, from the distant lover. The
+superstition, begotten and nourished always in the fastnesses of the
+heights, stirred deeply within her, and comforted her. Of a sudden,
+courage flowed back into her. She took down the receiver.
+
+After all, nothing was accomplished. The marshal was not in his
+office, but absent somewhere in the mountains. Plutina would not risk
+giving information to any other than the officer himself, whom she
+knew, and respected. Disconsolate, she abandoned the attempt for the
+time being, and set out to get a bag of wheat flour from the mill
+close by, on the other side of Roaring River.
+
+As Plutina, with the bag of flour on shoulder, was making her way back
+from the mill, across the big sycamore trunk that serves as a foot
+bridge, a horse splashed into the ford alongside. The girl looked up,
+to see the very man she sought. Marshal Stone called a cheery
+greeting, the while his horse dropped its head to drink.
+
+"Howdy, Plutina?"
+
+"Howdy, Mr. Stone," she answered. Her free hand went again to the
+talisman in her bosom. Surely, its charm was potent!
+
+"All's well as common, at home?" Stone continued. His critical eyes
+delighted in the unconscious grace of the girl, as she stood poised
+above the brawling stream, serene in her physical perfection; and
+above the delicately modeled symmetry of form was the loveliness of
+the face, beautiful as a flower, yet strong, with the shining eyes and
+the red lips, now parted in eagerness. The marshal wondered a little
+at that eagerness. He wondered still more at her hurried speech after
+one quick glance to make sure that none could overhear:
+
+"I mustn't be seed talkin' to ye, but I got somethin' to say 'll he'p
+ye arn yer pay. Kin ye meet me in an hour by the sun, at the ole gate
+on the east end o' Wolf Rock?"
+
+The marshal's answer wasted no words:
+
+"Go on, gal--I'll be there."
+
+Wolf Rock, a huge, jutting mass of barren cliff, though tiny beside
+the bulk of Stone Mountain, which overshadows it, lies between Garden
+Creek and Thunder Branch, a little to the north of where these streams
+flow into Roaring River. Its situation, nearly midway between the mill
+and the Siddon Cabin, made it a convenient point for the meeting
+between Plutina and the officer. Its loneliness lessened the element
+of danger. Both were prompt to the rendezvous. Well under the hour,
+man and girl were standing together within a bower of newly blossoming
+rhododendrons. Above them, the naked rock bent sharply, its granite
+surface glistening in the hot noonday sun. They had withdrawn some
+score of yards from the old wooden gate that barred the lane here,
+lest a chance passer-by see them together. Plutina opened her mind
+without hesitation. The decision once made, she had no thought of
+drawing back.
+
+"I 'low I kin trust ye, Mister Stone," she said simply, and the
+sincerity of the lustrous eyes as they met his confirmed her words.
+"Afore you-all's time in the revenue service, raiders done kilt my
+daddy. I kain't never fergive them men, but they's out o' the service
+now, er I wouldn't have come to ye. Gran'pap says they's a better lot
+o' revenuers now 'n what used to be an' he says as how Marshal Stone
+don't do no dirt. Thet's why I'm a-trusting ye, so's ye kin kotch the
+pizen-meanest white man a-makin' likker in the hull Stone Mountain
+country--him an' his gang an' his still."
+
+The marshal's eyes sparkled.
+
+"I reckon you're talking about Dan Hodges," he interjected.
+
+Plutina nodded her head in somber acquiescence.
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+JOINES' MILL.]
+
+"Then you needn't have any scruples about giving information," Stone
+continued, urgently. "He and his gang are a menace to the peace of the
+settlement. I'll keep you out of it, of course, to save you
+embarrassment."
+
+"Ye'd better," Plutina retorted, "to save my life. I don't know's I
+mind bein' embarrassed so much, but I don't feel called to die yit."
+
+"No, no; there won't be anything like that," the marshal exclaimed,
+much disconcerted. "I'll see no trouble comes to you. Nobody'll know
+your part."
+
+"'Cept me!" was the bitter objection. "If 'twas anybody but that
+ornery galoot, I wouldn't say a word. Ye know that."
+
+"I know," Stone admitted, placatingly.
+
+In his desire to change her mood, he blundered on:
+
+"And there's the reward for getting the 'copper'--twenty dollars for
+you Plutina. If we get Hodges, I'll give you another fifty out of my
+own pocket. That'll buy you a nice new dress or two, and a hat, and
+some silk stockings for those pretty legs of yours."
+
+Plutina flared. The red glowed hot in her cheeks, and the big eyes
+flashed. The mellow voice deepened to a note of new dignity, despite
+her anger.
+
+"I hain't come hyar to gas 'bout rewards, an' money outten yer pocket,
+Mister Stone, or 'bout my clothes an' sech. I'm an engaged woman.
+When I wants to cover my legs with stockin's Zeke Higgins' money'll do
+the payin', an' he won't need no he'p from no damned revenuer."
+
+Stone, realizing too late the error in his diplomacy, made what haste
+he could to retrieve it. His smile was genial as he spoke. He seemed
+quite unabashed, just heartily sympathetic, and his manner calmed the
+girl's irritation almost at once.
+
+"Oh, you little mountain hornet! Well, you are telling me news now.
+And it's the kind to make any old bachelor like me weep for envy.
+Lucky boy, Zeke! I guess he knows it, too, for he's got eyes in his
+head. About the money--why, you've a right to it. If Dan Hodges and
+his gang ain't rounded up quick, they'll be killing some good
+citizen--like me, perhaps."
+
+Plutina had recovered her poise, but she spoke no less firmly:
+
+"No, suh, I won't tech the money. I kin show ye how to kotch the hull
+gang, but not fer pay, an not fer love o' no revenuer, neither. Hit's
+jest fer the good o' this country hyarbout. Dan Hodges has done sot
+b'ar-traps to kotch you-all. An' anybody might walk plumb into 'em,
+but not if I kin he'p hit."
+
+Forthwith, she made the situation clear to her eager listener.
+
+"Kin you-all meet me, an hour by the sun in the mornin', on the trail
+to Cherry Lane post-office jest beyond the Widder Higgins' clearin'?
+I'll take ye to the place, whar ye kin see the still, an' the traps."
+
+"I'll have to move lively," the marshal answered, with a somewhat
+rueful laugh. "Twenty miles' ride to North Wilkesboro', and back. But
+I'll do it, of course. I wouldn't miss it for a good deal. I'll have
+my men waiting at Trap Hill. If things shape right, I'll make the raid
+to-morrow night."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+
+Marshal John Stone was a mountaineer of the better sort, who had the
+respect and admiration of the law-abiding citizens in his district,
+and the hate of the evil-doers. He stood full six feet in his socks,
+and he was broad and muscled in proportion. His gray eyes were of the
+sort to harden to steel against an enemy, to soften wonderfully for a
+friend. The mouth, half-hidden by the thick mustache, was very firm,
+yet prone to smiles. To an excellent intelligence had been added a
+fair amount of education. Since he respected both himself and his
+work, and had developed a veritable passion for the capture of
+malefactors, he was more than usually successful. His zeal, tempered
+with discretion, had won the appreciative attention of official
+superiors. There could be no doubt that promotion would shortly remove
+him to a higher plane of service. The fact would have been most
+agreeable to Stone, but for two things. He desired beyond all else,
+before going from the mountains, to capture Dan Hodges, who had so
+persistently flouted the law, and himself, its representative; the
+second unsatisfied ambition was to come on the long-lost Burns'
+still.
+
+The Scottish poet's poverty was almost equal to his genius. On that
+account, Robert Burns was glad to secure the stipend of fifty pounds a
+year to which he became entitled on his appointment as exciseman in
+1788. It may be that his convivial habits made his official position
+particularly acceptable, since doubtless his perquisites included the
+keeping of his own jug filled. And there were moonshiners among the
+Scottish hills in those days, as perhaps there are to-day. On
+occasion, the poet made a gift of a captured still to some discreet
+friend. One recipient emigrated to America, and bore into the
+wilderness that has become North Carolina the kettle and cap of copper
+on which Burns had graven his name, and the date, 1790. Afterward, as
+the years passed, the still knew many owners, mostly unlawful. It won
+fame, and this saved it from the junk-heap of its fellows, when seized
+by the Federal officers. Three times, it was even placed on public
+exhibition. As many, it was stolen by moonshiners. For years now, it
+had remained in secret. Marshal Stone yearned to recapture the Burns
+still. There was no reason whatsoever for believing it to be in the
+possession of Hodges, yet it might as easily be with that desperado as
+with another. There was at least the possibility. The marshal, as he
+rode north before the dawn next morning, felt a new kindling of hope.
+It seemed to him almost certain that the opportunity was at hand to
+satisfy one ambition at least by putting Hodges behind the bars. For
+the other, it was on the lap of the gods.
+
+The officer was at pains to use every precaution to avoid being
+observed while in company with the girl, whom he duly met at the
+appointed place while the sun was yet low on the eastern horizon. The
+two made their way with what quiet they could through devious paths to
+Luffman's Branch. The dew lay heavy on the laurel leaves of the
+thickets, and the breeze was perfumed with the penetrant fragrance of
+many blossoms. The day was thrilling with the matins of the birds. The
+balsamic air was a wine of life. The rugged mountain peaks seemed to
+stand as an impregnable barrier against the confusions and evils of
+the larger world. But the man and the girl recked nought of these
+things as they went forward, with cautious steps and watchful eyes.
+They knew that the tranquil scene masked wickedness close by them,
+which would not hesitate to destroy. The discovery of the marshal in
+that vicinity would mean for him the bullet of an assassin from out
+the screen of leaves, and the same fate--or worse--for his companion.
+The corpses would be lost in the Devil's Cauldron. Men would whisper
+grim surmises, and whisper low lest the like come upon them. And that
+would be all.
+
+They reached the cliff top overlooking the little canon, and Plutina
+pointed out the location of the traps on the strip of dry ground
+below, and the huddles of brush that disguised the buildings of the
+still. Then, the girl went her way. She had done her part. The man
+remained to study the scene above for hours through his glasses, and
+to map out the night's campaign into the enemy's country.
+
+A delicate moonlight fell over the mountains, when, in the evening,
+Stone led his men from the rendezvous at Trap Hill. The six were
+heavily armed and well mounted. Their course at the outset led them
+along the Elkin road to Joines' store, where they swung into the trail
+over which Zeke and Plutina had walked the day of their parting. The
+cavalcade rode swiftly. There was no conversation; only the pounding
+of hoofs and the jangling of accoutrements. When, at last, they
+reached the edge of the Widow Higgins' clearing, they turned sharply
+to the eastward, following the path toward the Cherry Lane
+post-office. Presently, at a low word of command from the leader, they
+halted and dismounted. The horses were left to the care of one man in
+a near-by thicket, and the remainder of the party continued the
+advance on foot.
+
+The marshal, during his watch on the still that day, had planned his
+attack in every detail. He hoped to make his capture of the gang
+without unnecessary casualties, for in this particular he had achieved
+an enviable record, on which he prided himself. At first, he had
+thought of ascending along the course of Luffman's Branch, after
+springing the traps, but had given over the plan as one offering more
+chance of the raiders being discovered prematurely. Instead, he had
+decided on taking his men up the mountainside by a round-about route,
+likely to be free from watchers. His men were already instructed in
+every point, so now they followed him rapidly and almost noiselessly,
+as he forced his way through the thick growths of the wooded slopes.
+The darkness added to the difficulties of the progress, but the posse
+were inured to hardships, and went onward and upward resolutely.
+Despite the necessities of the detour, they came surprisingly soon to
+a height from which they looked across a small ravine to the level
+space where the still perched by the stream. A few whispered words
+from the leader, and the company crept with increased care across the
+ravine. From the ridge beyond, three of the men passed forward to make
+ambush--one above, and one below, and one on the far side of the
+still. Stone and a single companion remained, hiding behind the
+clumps of rhododendrons.
+
+It was with huge satisfaction that the marshal recognized Hodges
+himself, plainly revealed by the firelight. The "kettle" was running
+at full blast. The seasoned hickory logs, in the rough stone furnace
+beneath the kettle, were burning fiercely, and the blue and gold of
+their flames lighted all the scene into vivid relief against the
+background of shadows. Stone, even at his distance, could see
+distinctly the tiny stream of colorless mountain-corn whiskey, as it
+flowed out from the worm into the keg placed to receive it. The leader
+of the gang was seated at ease on a stool just outside the brush
+enclosure that masked the buildings. The villain was evidently in a
+mood of contentment, untainted by remorse over the havoc his traps
+might wreak on any passing through the gorge below. Rather, doubtless,
+the memory of those sinister sentinels gave him a sense of safety, on
+which his serenity was founded. In his lap was a banjo which he
+thrummed vigorously, with rhythmic precision, if no greater musical
+art, and head and body and feet, all gave emphasis to the movement. At
+intervals, his raucous voice rumbled a snatch of song. It was evident
+that the moonshiner was mellow from draughts of his own potent
+product.
+
+Others of the gang were busied here and there, bulking grotesquely as
+they moved about the fire, seeming disheveled demons of the pit. Like
+some master imp torturing a pigmy over the flames, old Ben York was
+kneeling close beside the blaze, holding to the coals a hickory stick,
+which served as spit for the roasting of a squirrel. The brilliance
+shone full on the frowsy gray whiskers, and, above them, the blinking,
+rheumy eyes, so intent on the proper browning of the game. None of the
+outlaws had a weapon in his grasp--a fact noted with satisfaction by
+the chief of the raiders, who knew that these men would not scruple
+against bloodshed to escape arrest. There were arms at hand, of
+course; Hodges' rifle was visible, leaning against a ground pine
+within his reach. But Stone hoped that the surprise would be such that
+the gang could not avail themselves of their weapons.
+
+Hodges had just completed a strident rendering of "Cripple Crick," and
+had thumped out the opening bars of "Short'nin' Bread," when the
+marshal gave the signal for attack--a single flash of his electric
+torch. In the same second, the raiders' rifles crashed out. The big
+bullets struck true to aim in the ground of the open place before the
+fire. A shower of dirt and pebbles spat back viciously. Some of the
+flying fragments struck the men, terrifying them with the thought of
+bullet wounds. Hodges, as the reports sounded, felt the bruise of
+stones on his bare legs, and shrieked in panic fear. His instinctive
+recoil carried him over backward, from the stool to the ground. The
+banjo jangled discordant triumph over his fall. When, dazed by the
+suddenness of it all, he would have struggled up, he found himself
+fast in the clutches of two raiders, who locked manacles on his
+wrists. Stone grunted joyously as he surveyed the captive. The others
+of the gang, except Ben York, had contrived to slip away into the
+laurel, whither it would avail nothing to follow them, save useless
+risk of being killed from ambush. But the marshal cared little for the
+escape of the lesser malefactors. He had succeeded in taking prisoner
+the most notorious criminal of the mountains.
+
+Ben York had failed to effect his usual flight, because of being at a
+disadvantage on his knees. Before he could scramble up for a plunge
+into the thickets the enemy was upon him. Yet, even in this moment of
+shock, the old scoundrel's cunning sought and found a ruse. He stood
+swaying for seconds, and then tumbled limply headlong to the ground,
+in a drunkard's fall, familiar to his muscles by experience through
+three-score years. So he lay inert, seemingly sodden from the kettle's
+brew. His captors, if resolved to hold him prisoner, would be forced
+to the arduous task of carrying him through the dark, down the rough
+slopes. It would be strange, he mused complacently, if in the course
+of the journey, their vigilance did not relax a little. And a very
+little would suffice him! Then, though to all appearance in a drunken
+stupor, he sighed. He was unhappily aware that the revenue men would
+not be gentle in their efforts to arouse him to consciousness. Whether
+they believed him shamming or not, they would use no doubtful
+measures. But, whatever might come, he must endure it for the sake of
+escape.
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+AFTER THE RAID.]
+
+The raiders realized the need of haste, for they must be done with
+their work here, and down the steeps of the mountain into the open
+road, ere the fugitives should have time to arm themselves, and waylay
+the posse from the thickets. So, with due watchfulness of the two
+prisoners, the men set about that task of destruction which their duty
+required. The fermenters, huge tubs holding the mixture of meal, malt
+and water making ready for the still, received first attention. Since
+York had fallen before these, the men rolled him roughly to one side,
+without arousing him to any sign of consciousness. Stone knew the man
+to be shamming, since there had been no show of even incipient
+drunkenness before the moment of the raid. He resolved to try a test
+at least, for he was alert to the hindrance the limp form would prove
+in the descent of the mountain. He thrust the body forward with his
+foot, close to one of the great "stands" of the mixture, and bade an
+appreciative assistant apply the ax to the slippery-elm hoops that
+bound the staves. As the bands fell and the great volume of liquid
+gushed forth, the raiders leaped aside from the flood. But York never
+stirred. The down-rushing tide fell fairly on him, engulfed him. He
+made no movement, no outcry. Even Stone himself was led to a
+half-remorseful wonder whether he had been deceived concerning the
+fellow's state. Then, after a few seconds, the bald head rose,
+glistening from the pool of the "beer." The thin wisps of gray hair
+hung in dank strings; the jungle of beard seemed strangely thin; there
+was something curiously unlike Ben York in the lineaments. The marshal
+guessed that the metamorphosis was wrought by the swirling mess, which
+had scrubbed the weazened face almost clean for the first time in the
+memory of living man. As the dilapidated head emerged, it showed the
+grotesque caricature of a Neptune, whose element was not the waters of
+ocean, but the shattered hogsheads of "beer." Even now, however, Ben
+clung to his role. Once his face was clear, he continued to sit
+placidly, though the surface of the viscous pool was at his neck. For
+better effect, he blinked vacuously, and gurgled. Perhaps, memory of a
+bath in infancy inspired him. He had had none since. He beat his
+scrawny hands in the "beer," and cackled. It was admirable art, but
+wasted.
+
+The eight fermenters were broken and emptied, the whiskey stores, both
+"singlin's" and "doublin's," were poured out on the ground, which
+drank them as thirstily as did ever law-scorning "boomer." Then, the
+raiders turned to the chief spoils, kettle, cap and worm. Stone and
+his men took the copper worm from the cooling barrel, removed the cap,
+drew the fire from the furnace, and finally pulled down the kettle. In
+the varied excitement of the night, the marshal had almost forgotten
+his second great ambition, in the accomplishment of his first. Almost,
+not quite. Now, the memory of it jumped within him. He thrust the cap
+where the glow of the fire would light it clearly, dropped to his
+knees, and peered closely. His stern face relaxed abruptly to
+joyousness.
+
+"By the Lord, boys," he shouted, "it's the Bobbie Burns' still!"
+
+Nevertheless, Stone wasted no time in exultation. He merely ordered
+his men to carry the copper utensils along, instead of destroying them
+on the spot. Then, he addressed Ben York, who grinned idiotically from
+toothless gums, where he crouched in the diminishing puddle. The
+marshal's voice rasped.
+
+"You're going with us, Ben. It's for you to say how. If we have to,
+we'll carry you all the way. We'll snake you down the mountains
+without being too almighty careful of that rum-tanned hide of yours,
+and then we'll sling you across the roughest-gaited horse we've
+got--face down across the saddle and roped snug. That's the way you'll
+do twenty-odd miles, Ben, if we have to tote you down a single rod.
+Make up your mind--now! It'll be too late to change it, in a minute.
+You're plumb sober, and I know it. Get up, you old fox!"
+
+And Ben York, shivering in his sticky, drenched rags, recognized the
+inevitable, and scrambled to his feet, snarling curses.
+
+"Hit was thet-thar damned gal!" he mumbled venomously. But none
+heard.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+
+It is a far cry from the savagery of the illicit mountain still to
+that consummate luxury of civilization, an ocean-going steam yacht.
+Yet, in actual space, the distance between these two extremes was not
+great. _The Josephine_, all in snowy white, save for the gleam of
+polished brass-work, and flying the pennant of the New York Yacht
+Club, glided forth from Norfolk Harbor in serene magnificence on the
+same day that _The Bonita_ chugged fussily over the same course. The
+yacht was setting out on the second stage of her leisurely pleasure
+voyage to Bermuda. The skipper had been instructed to follow the coast
+southward as far as Frying Pan Shoals, for the sake of rounding
+Hatteras. Afterward, since the weather grew menacing, the craft
+continued down the coast to Cape Lookout, where anchor was dropped in
+the Harbor of Refuge.
+
+The island that lies there is a long, narrow, barren strip of sand,
+dotted thickly with dunes. Only a coarse marsh grass grows, with
+dwarfed pines and cedars. In this bleak spot live and thrive droves of
+wild ponies, of uncertain ancestry. It was these creatures that just
+now held the attention of two persons on the yacht.
+
+Under the awning in the stern, two girls were chatting as they dawdled
+over their morning chocolate. The younger and prettier of these was
+Josephine Blaise, the motherless daughter of the yacht-owner; the
+other was Florence Marlow, her most intimate friend.
+
+"Dad told me I could have the runabout ashore," Josephine was saying,
+with a sudden access of animation. "We'll go along the beach, as long
+as the going's good, or till we scare up the ponies."
+
+"I do hope we'll see them digging holes in the sand, so as to get
+fresh water," Florence exclaimed.
+
+But Josephine was quick to dissent:
+
+"They don't dig for water," she explained, with a superior air. "They
+dig the holes in the beach when the tides out, and then the tide comes
+in and fills the holes, of course. When it ebbs, the ponies go around
+and pick out the fish, and eat them."
+
+Florence stared disbelievingly.
+
+"Oh, what a whopper!" she cried.
+
+"Captain Hawks told me himself," Josephine asserted, with confidence.
+"He knows all about them--he's seen them wild on the island and tame
+on the mainland."
+
+"Same ones, probably!" was the tart retort. "I thought the doctor
+lied ably, but he's truth itself compared with that hairy skipper of
+yours."
+
+Josephine tossed her head.
+
+"We'll run 'em down and observe their habits, scientifically, and
+convince you."
+
+A glance shoreward showed the car awaiting them. As they descended the
+ladder to the launch, a yelp sounded from the deck, and a bull-terrier
+came charging after. Florence regarded the dog without any evidence of
+pleasure.
+
+"Does the pest go, too?" she asked, resignedly.
+
+Josephine pulled the terrier's ears fondly, as it cuddled close
+against her skirt.
+
+"Chubbie deserves an outing after the bump he got from that horrid man
+yesterday," she said.
+
+The girls exchanged glances, and laughed over some secret joke. When,
+presently, they were seated together in the runaabout, with Josephine
+at the wheel, the bull-terrier squatted in dignity on the small back
+seat. The level sand formed a perfect roadway, and the car darted
+smoothly and swiftly between the twin barren spaces of land and sea.
+As they swept forward, the girls watched alertly for a glimpse of the
+ponies among the dunes, but there was nowhere any sign of a living
+thing, save the few hurrying gulls. They had gone perhaps twenty
+miles, and were beginning to fear disappointment, when, without
+warning, a drove of the horses came galloping over the crest of a
+little rise, a half-mile beyond. As the car ran forward, along the
+ribbon of sand below the higher ground, the ponies suddenly perceived
+it, and halted with the precision of a troop of cavalry. Near at hand,
+now, the girls could note details, and both observed with interest the
+leader, which stood a little in advance of his troop, at the end near
+the approaching machine. He was a handsome creature, with lines as
+suavely strong as an Arabian's. He stood with head held high, tail
+streaming, a fore-hoof pawing challengingly at the sand. Only the
+thick, shaggy bay coat showed the barbarian, rather than the
+thoroughbred. The mares, a score of them in one orderly rank behind
+him, were crowding and lashing out nervously, as they watched the
+strange monster racing so fast on the ocean's edge. Some of them
+nickered curiously. But the stallion rested silent, until the
+automobile halted, hardly fifty yards away. Then he tossed his head
+proudly, and blared a great trumpet-note of defiance. Josephine
+instinctively answered with the horn. The mechanical cry broke
+harshly, swelled and wailed. The eerie response terrified the mares;
+it perplexed and alarmed their lord. But he showed no dismay. For a
+moment still, he remained motionless. His noisy challenge rang forth
+once again. Since the invader on the sands below kept silence, nor
+made any movement toward attack, the leader seemed to feel that his
+prestige was safe enough; that prudence were now the better part. He
+sounded a low call, and set off at a gallop along the ridge top. The
+rank of mares pounded obediently at his heels.
+
+"Oh, after them, Josie!" Florence cried.
+
+In a moment, the car shot forward. The horn clamored again. The
+fleeing horses looked back, then leaped to new speed before the
+monster that threatened them with unknown terrors. As the car
+increased its pace, the ponies strove the harder. Their strides
+lengthened, quickened. The stunted marsh grass beat on the low
+bellies. Despite their desperate striving, the runabout drew closer
+and closer, reached abreast of them. The excitement of the chase was
+in the sparkling eyes of the girls. The dog, scrambling up and falling
+in its seat, yelped madly. Here, the beach broadened to a sharper
+ascent of the ridge. Josephine shifted the wheel. The car swung in a
+wide curve and drove straight toward the panic-stricken troop, as if
+it would soar up to them. Fear took pride's place in the leader's
+heart. He sounded a command. The flying drove veered, vanished from
+the ridge top. The muffled thudding of hoofs came faintly for a minute
+against the sea wind. Then, as the car came to a standstill, the girls
+listened, but heard no sound.
+
+"It was bully fun!" Josephine said. "I'm sorry it's over."
+
+"After that run, they may be thirsty enough to dig for water,"
+Florence suggested, with a laugh. "Let's climb up, and take a look
+round from the ridge."
+
+But a glance from this point of advantage made it clear that the
+peculiarities of the ponies in drinking or fishing were not to be
+explained to-day. They were visible still, to be sure, but a mile off,
+and the rapidity with which the moving mass diminished to the eye was
+proof that they were still in panic.
+
+"We might as well get back to the yacht," was Josephine's rueful
+comment. "There's not another single thing to see, now they're gone."
+She ran her keen gaze over the dreary waste of the island with a
+little shiver of distaste. Then her glance roved the undulant expanse
+of sea. She uttered a sharp ejaculation of surprise.
+
+"There is something, after all," she called out, excitedly. "See--over
+there!"
+
+Florence looked in the direction marked by the pointing finger.
+
+"It's a canoe," she hazarded, as her eyes fell on the object that
+bobbed lightly in the surf, two hundred yards from the shore. "I can
+see the man in it. He's lying down. Funny!"
+
+But Josephine, wiser from much experience on shipboard, now saw
+clearly, and the sight thrilled.
+
+"It's a life-raft," she declared, with a tremor in her voice; "and
+there's a man on it. It's a--real--castaway. Come!"
+
+With that, she set off running down the steep slope of the ridge
+toward the sea. Behind her came Florence, startled and alarmed. The
+dog barked exultantly once, then leaped ahead, only to return and
+circle the slower playfellows joyfully. They came to the water's edge,
+and halted, perforce. Josephine saw the raft, as it rode on a breaking
+wave. It was perceptibly nearer. She dared hope it might be brought
+within reach. With deft motions, the flannel skirt was tucked within
+her belt, leaving her legs free. Florence, somewhat reluctantly, made
+the like adjustment. The bull-terrier, disheartened by this
+immobility, sat on its haunches, and regarded the two doubtfully,
+perhaps prudishly disapproving. From time to time the raft showed for
+a few seconds; only to vanish again behind the screen of spume. But it
+advanced shoreward, steadily. The body of the man was distinct--prone,
+motionless. The girls watched and waited in palpitant eagerness. The
+dog, sensing the tension of the moment, began to hasten to and fro,
+snuffing and whining. Suddenly, the two cried out in the same moment.
+They saw the raft floating fast and smoothly toward them on the crest
+of a breaker. They dashed forward, knee-deep, to meet the charge. The
+huge mass of the wave pounded upon them, almost swept them from their
+feet. The angry waters boiled about them. It was up to their waists
+now. The flying spray lashed their faces and blinded them. When, at
+last, their vision cleared, the raft had vanished. They caught sight
+of it again, presently. It was floating from them, already fifty yards
+distant.
+
+Nevertheless, the girls, though discouraged, did not give over their
+hope of rescue. Not even when another wave thrust the raft fairly upon
+them, so that their hands clutched the tubes, then tore it ruthlessly
+from their puny grasp, and flung it afar. The dog, accustomed to
+sporting in the surf with its mistress, rushed to seize this flotsam,
+but the powerful jaws could find no hold. As the dog approached,
+swimming, Josephine put her hand to its collar, and so supported it
+while they waited anxiously for the raft's return.
+
+It came more quickly than before. It was, indeed, as if fate finally
+relented, for the raft was borne this time on a smaller wave, almost
+with gentleness, as it seemed. Yet, the gentleness of appearance was
+only mockery. When the two girls laid hands on it with all their
+strength it swerved violently, wrested itself from their clutch.
+Josephine cried out in despair. She saw the dog, released by her
+effort, plunging forward. A rope dragged in the raft's wake, a remnant
+of the lashings. The dog lunged viciously, and its jaws locked on the
+rope. Immediately, then, the bull-terrier began swimming toward the
+shore. There was no progress. But the going of the raft was
+momentarily stayed. Josephine saw the opportunity and shrieked to
+Florence. The two sprang, and caught the raft again. It rested
+passively in the grasp of the three. The dog continued swimming, its
+face set resolutely shoreward. The girls, up to their breasts in
+water, stepped forward, tugging lustily. The three advanced slowly.
+The raft moved with them.
+
+It was a struggle that taxed the strength of each to the uttermost.
+Those three puny creatures fighting against the might of the ocean for
+the body of a dead man! Dead the man seemed, at least, to the girls,
+who, after one glance into the drawn and ghastly face of their burden,
+dared not look again. The undertow writhed about their legs, jerked at
+them wrathfully. Waves crashed upon them with shattering force. Once,
+Florence was hurled from her footing, but her hands held their grip on
+the raft. The wrenching shock was sustained by Josephine and the dog.
+They gave a little, but with fierce, stubborn resistance. Florence
+regained her feet. The rout was stayed. The pitiful combat between
+pigmies and Titans was on again. There was good blood in the three. A
+fighting ancestry had dowered them with the courage that does not know
+defeat when it is met. Their strength was exhausted. Yet, they battled
+on. A great comber smashed against them. It snatched the raft from the
+weakened hold of the girls, threw it far up on the sand. The dog shot
+in a wide arc through the air. They could hear its grunt as it fell.
+But the jaws were still locked. In the same instant, the beast was
+firmly set, hauling at the rope. The raft was held for a little by the
+dog alone, against the waters as they sucked back. Then, the girls
+tottered to aid. They fell to their knees in the shallows, and clung
+frantically. The waves hissed away from them.
+
+They feared the coming of a larger breaker to undo their work.
+Josephine perceived to her astonishment that the man was not fastened
+to the raft, except by the vise-like gripping of his big hands. And,
+too, she saw now that he was living. She guessed that he was stupefied
+by exhaustion, yet not swooning. She shrieked to him to unclench his
+fingers. It may be that his dulled brain understood in a measure; it
+may be that he was come to the very end of his strength. Anyhow, as
+she put her fingers to his, there was no resistance. The grasp that
+had withstood the sea's fury, yielded at once to the soft pressure of
+her touch. The two girls summoned new energy to the task. The dog let
+go the rope, and, whining curiously, caught a trouser leg between its
+teeth, and aided. Somehow, the three contrived to roll and push and
+pull the inert form to a point of safety. Then, they sank down,
+panting.
+
+Josephine stirred first. With a gasping sigh, she struggled to a
+sitting position. The dog at once stood up, and shook itself with
+great violence. The drops splashed over the face of Florence, and she,
+in turn, opened her eyes, groaned deeply, and sat up, with a wry smile
+of discomfort.
+
+"What'll we do with the corpse?" she inquired, in an undertaker's best
+manner.
+
+The funereal suggestion, so sincerely offered, provoked Josephine to a
+weak peal of laughter.
+
+"Better wait to worry over that till he's dead," she answered briskly,
+if somewhat incoherently. "And he will be, if we don't watch out.
+There should be a flask in the motor. Run and get it, Flo. I'll chafe
+his hands."
+
+"Run!" the other exclaimed. "If I can crawl it, I'll be proud."
+Nevertheless, she got to her feet, stiffly, but readily enough. "And
+sprinkle water on his face," she called over her shoulder. "It might
+cheer him anyhow, after having had it all over him by the ton." Both
+girls in the first reaction from the stress of their war against
+death were brimming with joyousness, notwithstanding fatigue.
+
+While Josephine rubbed the rough hands as strongly as she could
+between her own tender ones, the dog drew near. When the girl looked
+up, she saw that her pet was licking the man's face. She called out in
+sharp rebuke. At the same moment, the castaway's eyes unclosed. For
+long seconds, he stared, unblinking. Then, abruptly, his voice sounded
+in a low drawl of wonder:
+
+"Hit's thet-thar damned man-faced dawg!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+
+The castaway's gaze went to the girl kneeling beside him.
+
+"An' the furrin woman!" he muttered.
+
+Florence came running with the flask, which was full of brandy.
+
+"Quick!" Josephine urged. "He's better, but he's raving crazy. Thinks
+I'm a foreigner."
+
+But, as Florence could have filled the cup of the flask, Zeke
+interposed, with more animation than he had hitherto shown.
+
+"If so be that's likker, an' ye 'lows to give hit to me, if hit don't
+make no p'tic'lar diff'rence to you-all, I'd like to drink hit right
+smack outen thet-thar new-fangled bottle, jest as we be a-used to
+doin' in the State o' Wilkes."
+
+"As you wish, of course," Florence replied, soothingly. "It will make
+a new man of you."
+
+Zeke promptly sat up and put his lips to the mouth of the flask, and
+held them there while the rhythmic movement of his adam's apple
+visibly witnessed thirstiness. The girls regarded him with
+astonishment, which quickly merged in dismay, for they could not
+guess the boomer's capacity for fiery drink. As a matter of fact,
+Zeke, while he drank, lamented the insipidity of the draught, and
+sighed for a swig of moonshine to rout the chill in his veins with its
+fluid flames. He, in turn, was presently to learn, with astonishment,
+that a beverage so mild to the taste had all the potency of his
+mountain dram, and more. Chilled as he had been by the long hours of
+exposure to the night air of the sea, while drifting the fifteen miles
+from Ocracoke Inlet, and worn in body and mind by the peril of his
+situation, Zeke found himself almost at once strengthened and cheered
+by the generous spirit. He was, in fact, another man than the
+exhausted castaway, as the girl had promised; he was himself again. He
+was still weak and shaken; but his splendid vitality was asserting
+itself. The gray, drawn face was colored to golden tan; the clear eyes
+were shining with new appreciation of the joy of life. He had not
+thought much after the very first, during those long, racking hours of
+tossing on the sea. His brain had become numb. His fancies had run to
+tender memories of moments spent with Plutina. Often, he had felt her
+presence there with him, in the dark spaces of the sea. But the idea
+that most dominated his mind had sprung from the lusty instinct of
+self-preservation; he must cling to the raft. It had been the one
+thing that he could do toward safety. His whole will had centered in
+the clutch of his hands on the tubes.
+
+Seeing the man thus recovered, the girls withdrew toward the runabout
+to adjust their clothing, and to find some garment for the man, since
+he wore only shirt and trousers. But the bull-terrier, for a wonder,
+did not follow its mistress. Instead, it sat on its haunches close to
+the mountaineer, and muzzled his hand. Zeke pulled the dog's ears
+gently.
+
+"That thump I gin ye must 'a' struck plumb down to yer heart, an' made
+a right-smart change in yer affections. Ye wa'n't so dummed friendly
+when ye tuck thet-thar hunk out o' my pants."
+
+The dog whined an answer, and crept fawningly into the mountaineer's
+lap, where it nestled contentedly. It was thus that the girls,
+returning with a rain-coat, found the two, and they stared in
+surprise, for the bull-terrier was none too amiable with strangers.
+
+"I never knew Chubbie make friends like that before," Josephine
+exclaimed. She looked in fresh curiosity upon the wholesome face with
+the regular features, rather stern in repose, but now softened by a
+smile. "It must be because he helped us pull you out. We couldn't have
+done it without him. That makes you belong to him, in a way."
+
+Zeke stared at the dog, with new respect.
+
+"The darned son of a gun!" he ejaculated, gravely. "I reckon," he
+continued after a meditative pause, "the little cuss felt like he owed
+me somethin' fer sp'ilin' my jeans. That crack I gin him put the fear
+o' God into his bosom, so to speak. 'The more ye beat 'em, the better
+they be.'"
+
+Josephine started at his words. Without a hat, the dark curls had
+given a look so different to the face that, until now, she had not
+recognized the man of the ferry-boat.
+
+"Why," she cried, "you are the one!" She turned to the bewildered
+Florence. Her blue eyes were flashing; her voice was hard. "He's the
+creature that almost killed Chubbie. And to think we troubled to save
+him!"
+
+"That hell-fired pup o' your'n took a holt on me first," Zeke
+protested wrathfully, forgetful of his reconciliation with the dog.
+Then, a plaintive whine recalled him. He smiled whimsically, as he
+patted the bull-terrier's head, which was lifted toward him fondly.
+The anger died out of his face, and he smiled. "I've hearn these-hyar
+dumb critters git things 'bout right by instinct, somehow. Yer dawg's
+done fergive me. Won't you-all, mum?"
+
+Josephine hesitated. The ingenuous appeal touched her. Only pride held
+her from yielding.
+
+"An', besides," Zeke went on, "ye was a-sayin' as how the dawg kind o'
+felt I belonged to him like, bein' he he'ped pull me out o' the
+ocean, an' so he had to like me. Thet-thar argyment goes fer you-all,
+too, mum. So, I 'low ye gotter fergive me--specially kase yer dawg
+begun hit."
+
+Josephine relaxed with a ripple of laughter. The mountaineer both
+interested and pleased her. To her inevitable interest in one whom she
+had helped to save from death, there was now added a personal
+attraction. She perceived, with astonishment, that this was by no
+means the hulking brute she had deemed him when her pet had suffered
+at his hands. The dog's attitude toward him impressed her deeply.
+Moreover, she saw that he was intelligent, as well as naive. She
+perceived that he had humor and quickness of feeling. His
+responsiveness to the dog's advances pleased her. She was greedy of
+experience and knowledge, easily bored by familiar things, likely to
+be vastly interested, for a brief season, in the new and strange. She
+realized that here, ready to her hand, was a type wholly novel. She
+felt that it was her prerogative to understand something of the nature
+of this singular being thus cast at her feet by fate. Certainly, it
+would be absurd to cherish any rancor. As he had said, the dog's
+action sufficed. Besides, she must be friendly if she would learn
+concerning this personality. Every reason justified inclination. She
+rebelled no longer. Her blue eyes gleamed with genuine kindliness, as
+she spoke:
+
+"I'll take Chubbie's word for it." Her voice became authoritative.
+"Now, if you feel equal to standing up, we'll have this rain-coat on
+you, and then run you down to the yacht. We'll attend to landing you
+somewhere after you've rested and had something to eat."
+
+Already Josephine's brain was busy, scheming to her own ends, but of
+this she gave no hint.
+
+Zeke pushed away the reluctant dog, and rose up stiffly. The
+stimulation of the brandy stood him in good stead.
+
+"I 'low I'm havin' a right-smart lot of experience," he remarked,
+chuckling. "What with steam-cars, an' boats, an' wrecks, an' now one
+o' them ornery devil-wagons. I hain't a-feared none," he added,
+musingly, "but I hain't a-pinin' neither. I reckon I kin stand
+anythin' what gals an' a dog kin. I'm plumb nervous or hungry--I don't
+know which. Both, like's not!"
+
+He rejected the offer of support, and walked firmly enough to the
+machine, which he eyed distrustfully. Florence took the rear seat, and
+Zeke established himself beside Josephine, the dog between his feet.
+After the first few minutes, he found himself delighting in this
+smooth, silent rush over the white sands. In answer to Josephine's
+question, he gave a bare outline of his adventures in the three days
+of his absence from the mountains.
+
+"I was a-hankerin' arter experience," he concluded, "an' aimin' to
+make my everlastin' fortin. I been doin' pretty peart, so fer."
+
+"You've certainly had more than your share of experience in the time,"
+Josephine agreed; "though I don't know about the fortune."
+
+"Started right-smack off at the rate of more'n seventy-five thousand
+dollars a year," Zeke rejoined, complacently. He laughed joyously at
+the bewildered face the girl turned to him.
+
+"I done figured hit out las' night, not havin' much of anythin' to do
+on thet-thar raft, 'cept to stick." He gave an account of the capture
+of the negro outlaw, for which he had received a reward. "I'm only
+a-jokin', of course," he went on with new seriousness. "I hain't
+pinin' fer no foolishness. All I want is enough so's not to be
+hog-pore. An' I got a chance to learn somethin', an' to make
+somethin', an', arter all, go right on livin' in my own country. An'
+that's what Plutiny wants, too. An' I'll have enough to buy her
+straighteners, if she wants 'em, by cracky!"
+
+"Oh--straighteners?" Josephine repeated, mystified. Vague memories of
+a visit to a hospital suggested an explanation. "Then, this person you
+speak of, Plutina, is deformed?"
+
+"Deformed!" For an instant, Zeke could only repeat the word,
+helplessly.
+
+"A curvature of the spine, I suppose," Josephine continued, without
+interest. She had her eyes on the ribbon of sand now, and guessed
+nothing as to her companion's disturbance, until his voice came in a
+burst of protest that made her jump.
+
+"Plutiny--deformed!" he exclaimed, harshly. Then, his voice softened
+wonderfully, though it shook with the tensity of his feeling. "Why,
+Plutiny's better'n anybody else in all the world--she is, an' she
+looks hit. Plutiny--deformed! Why, my Plutiny's straight as thet-thar
+young pine tree atop Bull Head Mounting. An' she's as easy an'
+graceful to bend an' move as the alders along Thunder Branch. There
+hain't nary other woman in all the world to ekal my Plutiny.
+Plutiny--deformed! Why, mum, you-all talk plumb foolish."
+
+The girl was too astonished before this outburst to take offense.
+
+"But you spoke about straighteners for her," she protested.
+
+Zeke stared for a moment, then grinned understandingly.
+
+"Thet's what we-uns call 'em," he said. "You-all call 'em corsets."
+
+Yet, the effect of this conversation reached beyond the humorous. In
+some subtle fashion, it provoked the girl to keener interest in the
+young man. She was perhaps, though she would have denied the
+suggestion hotly, a little piqued by the exaltation with which he
+praised his rustic sweetheart. Josephine was an exceedingly attractive
+young woman, and she was accustomed to having men show their
+appreciation of the fact. It was new to her thus essentially to be
+ignored, and not quite agreeable. There could be no tender interest
+between herself and this handsome barbarian. The idea even of
+flirtation was quite inconceivable. Nevertheless, it was strange that
+he should be so imperceptive of her charms. Doubtless, his eyes were
+blind to the refinements of beauty. They should be opened. It would be
+dreadful if the fellow should grow away from the girl who was waiting
+for him. And yet--Josephine checked her thoughts, and blushed a
+little. But a plan matured.
+
+That plan was followed diplomatically when she secured a private
+interview with her father, after the return on board the yacht.
+
+"Daddy, dear," she said, with a manner as casual as she could
+contrive, "let's keep this Mister Higgins on board. He's bound for New
+York, but in no particular hurry. We'll get him there in about ten
+days."
+
+Mr. Blaise, who was a plethoric, fussy little man, adamant to all the
+world save his only child, regarded her now in perplexity, his shrewd
+eyes a bit mischievous.
+
+"I don't imagine it's to be the stereotyped romance, just because you
+dragged him out of the sea," he said. "The chap has the makings of
+considerable of a man in him, and he's good-looking enough to catch a
+girl's fancy; but he's not your sort. So, why?"
+
+"Besides," Josephine retorted, smiling, "Florence has the same right
+in him as treasure trove. That would make the romance too
+complicated."
+
+"Why?" Mr. Blaise repeated.
+
+"I've never met anyone like him," the girl explained, with truth, if
+not all the truth. "He's unique. I want to study him. Such knowledge
+is broadening--better than books."
+
+"Bosh!" was the comment. "You mean, he's just a freak to you, and
+you'd like to look him over a little longer. There's no harm in that,
+if it amuses you. But don't be silly about broadening yourself." He
+regarded his daughter critically. "And leave out the deserts. They're
+too broadening, if you like. You're getting plump."
+
+Josephine accepted this meekly, in her satisfaction over having her
+way as to the new guest.
+
+"I'll go and invite him, right away," she exclaimed. "He'll liven us
+up."
+
+But her father wrinkled his brows in doubt.
+
+"What about the effect on the young fellow, himself?" he demanded.
+"It can't do him any good, Josie. That sort of thing's unsettling, you
+know."
+
+Josephine attempted no reply, as she went on her way. Her father could
+not see the flush that touched her cheeks.
+
+Through such devious ways did it come to pass that the mountaineer
+entered a world of which he had never even dreamed. His own complete
+ignorance of social conditions prevented him from appreciating the
+marvel wrought by fate in his behalf. In the simplicity of his
+character, he accepted the change as a perfectly natural event in the
+world that he had set out to explore. It was this simplicity, which
+kept him from undue self-consciousness, that carried him safely
+through what must otherwise have been an ordeal. He accepted what had
+befallen thankfully, and sought to learn what he best might from the
+novel environment. His interest was conspicuously in others, not in
+himself. He was greedy of information, lavish in liking. By a benign
+miracle, there were no snobs in the yachting party, which included
+also two young men, and two of the owner's age, besides Josephine's
+aunt. This chaperon was a motherly soul, and, in sheer kindliness of
+heart did much to make the situation easy. The informality of the
+party, too, was a tremendous advantage to the young man, though he
+never guessed it. On the contrary, he accepted things as they were
+enthusiastically, with never a thought of dismay. In flannels loaned
+him by the largest guest, which fitted too snugly, he presented an
+appearance so excellent that Mr. Blaise was moved to pinch his
+daughter's ear, while reminding her of the stereotyped romance.
+
+Such was the cause of Plutina's wearisome waiting for the letter that
+did not come. Zeke found, to his distress, too late that an interval
+of a week or more must elapse before a letter posted in Bermuda could
+possibly reach the mountains. But, beyond that, there was nothing to
+disturb the girl who loved him. The heart of the lad amid the luxuries
+of life on the yacht was unchanged in its devotion. It was, indeed, as
+if he saw all things as a frame for her. He was forever thinking how
+Plutina would look here or there, in connection with this or the
+other. The gowns of the three women, were viewed critically in
+relation to the mountain girl. He would imagine her loveliness
+enhanced by the sheen of silk, by the films of lace, by the lusters of
+jewels. Josephine thought once when she appeared in a dainty evening
+frock, not too daring, that she had penetrated his armor of aloofness,
+for he blushed hotly as his eyes went to her neck, and his gaze fell.
+She was deceived. He remembered in that moment, how he had once kissed
+the soft whiteness of Plutina's throat, where the homespun gown lay
+open. Now, memory of the warm bliss of that kiss sent the blood
+racing and tingling.
+
+That self-deception was as near as Josephine ever came to triumph.
+
+Florence understood, to some extent, at least, the mood that
+influenced her friend. A feminine intuition inspired in her a like
+ambition to pierce this young savage's reserve. Through her own
+feeling, she readily divined that of Josephine. Thus, the two became
+unconfessed allies in the employment of their wiles against an
+unsuspecting victim. It was, indeed, the lack of suspicion on his part
+that irritated them to the point of exasperation. He was so utterly
+innocent of their manoeuvers against his peace! Both of the girls were
+attractive beyond the average. Josephine, a plump blonde, ingenuous of
+manner, sophisticated, capricious, yet not spoiled, egotistic, but
+winsome, full of electric vitality; Florence, taller and darker, with
+an air more sedate, yet doubtless capable of deeper and more enduring
+emotions. Each possessed excellent features, and the fascinations of
+radiant health, sufficient culture, and the most exquisite refinements
+of personal detail. They deserved the humble admiration of any man.
+They expected tender adulation from most, and from most they received
+it. At the outset a certain impassivity on the part of this wild
+mountaineer excited their astonishment, then, quickly, their
+dissatisfaction. They were moved to a caprice against his calm,
+against this indifference that was an affront. They had no wish to
+work him serious harm, but his disregard was intolerable. Since the
+heart of neither was engaged, there was no jealousy between them in
+the affair. Since each was secretly ashamed of her motives, there was
+no confidence between them.
+
+Their failure, in the lazy days and evenings of voyaging and of
+rambling in the Bermudan islands, was undeniable. It was the more
+aggravating since the young man patently admired them. Even, his
+admiration was excessive, almost reverential, at times. Yet, it was
+altogether impersonal. They came eventually to know that this
+mountaineer regarded them with warm friendliness, with a lively
+gratitude, with a devoted respect, with a certain veneration. But that
+was all. No dart from their quiver of charms touched to the passionate
+heart of him--nor ever could. From whichever side the shafts were
+thrown, always they were shattered against a white shield, and fell
+harmless. That shield was Plutina.
+
+One night, as the yacht neared New York, Josephine and Zeke sat
+together, watching the scud of clouds across the moon. The mountaineer
+spoke softly, after an interval of silence.
+
+"The clouds is runnin' thar jest as I've seen 'em lookin' out across
+the valley from Stone Mounting--with Plutiny." There was a caress in
+his voice.
+
+Josephine checked an ejaculation of impatience. The savage was
+incorrigible--quite! Him, and his everlasting Plutina! Perverse
+curiosity overcame discretion. Perhaps, too, after all, he only needed
+guidance. She tried to believe, though vainly, that only shyness
+prevented him from improving an opportunity any other man would have
+coveted.
+
+"Tell me," she said softly, with a sympathetic lure in her tones, "is
+Plutina so very beautiful?"
+
+The lure was effective. Zeke turned to her with the hazel eyes darkly
+luminous in the moonlight.
+
+"Tiny's beautiful," he answered tenderly; and there was music now in
+the slow drawl. "I 'low she's the most beautiful woman in the world."
+
+"I'm afraid you're prejudiced," Josephine objected, with a disarming
+laugh. "Of course, you ought to think so, but, really you know, you
+haven't quite seen all the beautiful women in the world. Now, have
+you?"
+
+"All I need to," was the confident assurance. "Why," he continued with
+an apologetic smile for his boldness. "I done seen you-all, Miss
+Blaise, an' I reckon you-all are about as beautiful as a woman kin
+be--'ceptin' Plutina."
+
+The tribute was potent from its very unexpectedness. It eased the
+chagrin from which vanity had suffered. Evidently, her charms were not
+disregarded. It was simply that this lover had given his heart, and
+that he was loyal. The girl sighed a little enviously at the
+realization. She knew too well that many, perhaps most, in her world
+were not loyal, even when their hearts were given. She wondered if, in
+truth, there awaited her the boon of a like faithfulness. Yet she
+persevered in her probing.
+
+"Out in the world," she said musingly, "where things are so different
+from up in your mountains, you may change. It may be you won't want to
+go back, to the hills--to Plutina."
+
+A flush of wrath burned in Zeke's cheeks, visible in the gloom.
+
+"Hit ain't fittin' fer you-all to say no such thing, Miss Blaise. But
+I kin fergive ye, kase ye hain't seen our mountings. They hain't no
+other place more beautiful. Mister Sutton done told me so, an' he's
+been all over the hull world. An', besides, hit's home. A man what
+don't love his home country better'n any other--why, mum, he's jest a
+plain skunk.... An' Plutiny, she's the best part o' home. There
+hain't no land so beautiful, nor no woman. No, mum, I sha'n't
+change--never! I kain't!"
+
+And Josephine knew that it was so, and once again she sighed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+
+Uncle Dick, as he was universally known in the mountains, had
+celebrated his eightieth birthday before his granddaughters, Plutina
+and Alvira, by leaping high in the air, and knocking his heels
+together three times before returning to the ground. There was, in
+fact, no evidence of decrepitude anywhere about him. The thatch of
+coal-black hair was only moderately streaked with gray, and it
+streamed in profuse ringlets to his shoulders. His black eyes were
+still keen; the leathery face, with its imperious features, was ruddy.
+He carried his six-foot-three of bone and muscle lightly.
+
+As of the body, so of the heart. The springs of feeling in him showed
+no signs of drying up. On the contrary, they threatened to gush forth
+in a new flood over the Widow Brown, on whose plump prettiness, hardly
+dimmed by her three-score years, he looked with appreciative and
+ardent eyes. Indeed, his conduct justified the womenfolk of his
+household in apprehensions, for witness to the seriousness of the
+affair was afforded the morning after the raid on Dan Hodges' still.
+He demanded of Alvira that she burn the grease from an old skillet
+with great care.
+
+"If they's a mite of hit, hit makes a scum, an' floats off the gold on
+hit," he explained.
+
+The sisters regarded each other in consternation, but forebore
+questioning. When he had mounted his mare, and ridden away, Plutina
+spoke with bitterness:
+
+"I reckon Mis' Higgins done hit the nail on the haid 'bout Gran'pap
+an' the Widder Brown."
+
+Alvira nodded.
+
+"Yep. Hit means business, shore, if he's a-gallavantin' over to
+Pleasant Valley to pan gold. Hit means he's aimin' to marry her." She
+waxed scornful, with the intolerance of her sixteen years. "Hit's
+plumb ridic'lous--at his age."
+
+"Seems like he was 'most ole enough to git sense," Plutina agreed.
+
+"Mebby we're mistook 'bout his intentions," Alvira suggested,
+hopefully. "O' course, he git's a heap of enjoyment settin' to Widder
+Brown. But he hain't got to be plumb foolish, an' marry her. I guess
+as how hit's fer you-all he's arter the gold kase Zeke'll be comin'
+home by-'n'-bye."
+
+Plutina shook her head dubiously. It was the custom of the lover
+himself to seek, in the gold-bearing sands of the tiny mountain stream
+to the west, for the grains from which to fashion a ring for his
+sweetheart. Many a wife of the neighborhood wore such proudly on
+forefinger or thumb. The old man was not fond enough of toil to
+undertake the slow washing out of gold there unless for a selfish
+sentimental reason. And her fears were confirmed that afternoon by
+Zeke's mother whom she visited.
+
+"They hain't nary chance to save him no more," the old woman averred,
+lugubriously. "Hit's allus been said hyarbouts as how a feller allus
+gits his gal shore, if he pans her a ring in Pleasant Valley."
+
+"Huh--girl!" quoth Plutina.
+
+Yet this amorous affair was of small moment just now to the
+granddaughter, though she voluntarily occupied her thoughts with it.
+She hoped thus to keep in the background of her mind the many fears
+that threatened peace, by reason of her part in the night's work. She
+knew that she could trust the secrecy of Marshal Stone, but there was
+the possibility of discovery in some manner unforeseen. There was even
+the chance that suspicion against her had been aroused in Ben York.
+She could not bear to contemplate what must follow should her betrayal
+of the still become known. It was a relief to be certain that the two
+men she chiefly dreaded would be in jail, and unable personally to
+wreak vengeance. It was improbable, she thought, that persons so
+notorious and so detested could secure bail. But, even with them out
+of the way, the case would be disastrous on account of her
+grandfather's hatred of the revenue officers, and more especially, of
+those among his own people guilty of the baseness of informing. Should
+her deed come to his knowledge, it would mean tragedy. She dreaded the
+hour when he should hear of the raid, and was glad that he had gone
+away, for in all likelihood he would have the news before his return
+and the first shock of it would have passed.... So it fell out.
+
+Uncle Dick rode briskly toward the little stream that tumbles down the
+mountain west of Air Bellows Gap, where long ago men washed for gold
+in feverish desire of wealth. Now, none sought a fortune in the branch
+grit, where a day's labor at best could yield no more than a dollar or
+two in gold. Only devoted swains, like himself, hied them there to win
+wherewithal for a bauble with which to speed their wooing. Uncle Dick
+chose a favorable spot, and washed steadily until the blackened old
+copper skillet itself shone like the flecks of gold he sought. When he
+ceased he had a generous pinch of the precious dust carefully disposed
+in a vial. He hid the skillet to serve another day, and set out on his
+return. Before he crossed Garden Greek, a neighbor, whom he met on the
+trail, told him of the raid. Eager for all particulars, Uncle Dick
+turned his mount into the high road, and hurried to Joines' store.
+The single-footing mare carried him quickly to this place of assembly
+for neighborhood gossip, where he found more than the usual number
+gathered, drawn by excitement over the raid. The company was in a
+mixed mood, in which traditional enmity against the "revenuers" warred
+against personal rejoicing over the fate fallen on Dan Hodges, whom
+they hated and feared. From the garrulous circle of his acquaintance,
+Uncle Dick speedily learned the history of the night. The account was
+interrupted by the coming of a clerk to the store door. He waved his
+hand toward the group on the steps to command attention.
+
+"You, Uncle Dick!" he called. "No'th Wilkesboro' wants ye on the
+telephone."
+
+Wondering mightily at the unexpected summons, the old man hurried to
+the instrument.
+
+"Hello! Hello!" he roared, in a voice to be heard across the miles.
+
+"Be that you-all, Uncle Dick?" the question came thinly.
+
+"Yep. Who be you?"
+
+"Hit's Dan Hodges. I reckon you-all done hearn 'bout last night."
+
+"Yep. I shore have hearn a heap," Uncle Dick acquiesced, sourly. "I
+tole ye to quit, the officers air gittin' so a'mightly peart. They
+hain't no more chance fer a good set o' men to make a run--to say
+nothin' of a wuthless gang like your'n.... What ye want o' me?"
+
+The reply was explicit enough.
+
+"The hearin' 's to-morrer 'fore the United States Commissioner.
+Marshal Stone says the bail'll be two thousand dollars, cash or land.
+They hain't nobody kin put hit up, 'cept you-all, Uncle Dick. An', if
+ye don't, Ben an' me'll have to lay in jail till Fall. If ye'll he'p
+me, Uncle Dick, ye know Dan Hodges won't never fail ye."
+
+"That's what I'm afeared on," Uncle Dick retorted, glumly. "I 'most
+know 'twas you-all an' yer gang kilt thet-thar heifer o' mine in cold
+blood. Now, the ole man ye've treated dirt is yer las' chance. Wall,
+cuss ye! I'll come down t'-morrer an' bail ye out--not kase I love ye
+any, but kase I'm again the revenuers. An' listen 'ere! I'm some old,
+but I'm some spry yit, ye bet! You-all stop round these parts whar I
+kin keep an eye on ye till Fall Cote. If ye don't, damn ye!--wall, my
+ole rifle's bright an' 'iled, an' I'll git ye! Jest remember thet, Dan
+Hodges: I'll git ye!" And with this grim warning, Uncle Dick slammed
+the receiver on its hook, and stalked out of the store.
+
+On the following day, he journeyed duly to North Wilkesboro', where,
+despite the protest of his lawyer, he put up his land as security for
+the appearance of the two malefactors. Uncle Dick was a consistent
+conservative. Had the accident of birth made him an English squire, he
+would have been a stanch Tory, would have held the King's commission
+on the bench of justices, and would have administered the penalties of
+the law with exceeding severity against poachers. Having been born in
+the Blue Ridge Mountains, he staked his property in behalf of two
+scoundrels, for the sake of an inherited feud against the Federal
+authority.
+
+Nevertheless, his personal distrust of the men he had thus relieved
+was made manifest when, immediately after the commitment of the two
+before the Commissioner, he betook himself to a hardware store, where
+he bought a forty-one caliber Colt's revolver, with a holster and a
+box of cartridges. He had given up the habitual carrying of weapons on
+his seventy-fifth birthday, as unseemly and unnecessary for one of his
+patriarchal years. Now, he reverted to the use as a measure of
+prudence.
+
+"The damned dawg's done me dirt, an' he hain't above doin' hit ag'in,"
+he muttered, as he strapped the holster beneath his left arm.
+
+To his womankind, Uncle Dick spoke of the affair casually, concealing
+his apprehensions. Neither of the granddaughters ventured
+remonstrance, though Alvira's pretty face was mutinous, and Plutina
+felt a sickening sense of calamity rushing upon her. It seemed to her
+the irony of fate that her own relation should thus interfere to
+render abortive the effect she had risked so much to secure. She
+realized, with a shrinking misery, that the sufferers from her act
+were now at liberty to inflict vengeance upon her, should suspicion be
+born in them. For the first time in her life, Plutina experienced a
+feminine cowardice, bewailing her helplessness. There was none to whom
+she might turn for counsel; none, even, in whom she might confide. It
+was no mere chimera of fear that beset her. She was far too sensible
+and too strong for hysterical imaginings. But she knew that her peril
+was real and grave. In the face of it, she felt suddenly a new longing
+for the absent lover. Hitherto, her fondness had been tender and
+passionate, touched with the maternal protectiveness that is
+instinctive in every woman. Now, a new desire of him leaped in her.
+She yearned for rest on his bosom, secure within the shelter of his
+arms, there to pour forth all the story of her trouble, there to hear
+his voice of consolation, there to be at peace. She touched the fairy
+crystal that lay between her breasts, and she smiled, very sadly, and
+very wistfully.
+
+"Zeke will shorely come," she whispered, "if I need him--bad enough."
+
+There was a tremor in her voice, but it was not of doubt.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+
+Early in the morning following his trip to North Wilkesboro' Uncle
+Dick Siddon rode off to Pleasant Valley, there to prosecute his
+sentimental labors for the pleasuring of the Widow Brown. Alvira fared
+abroad on some errand to a neighboring cabin. Plutina, her usual
+richness of coloring dimmed by a troubled night, was left alone. In
+the mid-forenoon she was sitting on the porch, busy over a pan of
+beans, which she was stringing for dinner. As she chanced to raise her
+eyes, she saw Dan Hodges coming up the path. At sight of the evil
+lowering face, repulsion flared hot in the girl. The instinct of
+flight was strong, but her good sense forbade it. She felt a stirring
+of unfamiliar terror in the presence of the man. She scorned herself
+for the weakness, but it persisted. Her very fear dictated the
+counsels of prudence. She believed that in dissimulation lay her only
+possibility of safety. The thought of any intercourse with the
+moonshiner was unspeakably repugnant, yet she dared not risk needless
+offense. Nevertheless, the first effect of her resolve was a
+self-contempt that moved her to wrath, and made her opening speech
+more venomous even than it had been otherwise.
+
+"Howdy, my little honey?" Hodges called out as he shambled to a halt
+before her. His coarse features writhed in a simper that intensified
+their ugliness. His coveting of this woman was suddenly magnified by
+sight of her loveliness, flawless in the brilliant light. The
+blood-shot eyes darted luxuriously over the curving graces beneath the
+scant homespun garment.
+
+The girl sensed the insult of the man's regard. It, rather than the
+insolent familiarity of address, provoked her outburst.
+
+"Shet yer mouth, Dan Hodges," she snapped. "I've done told ye afore,
+ye kain't 'honey' me. If ye wants to pass the time o' day, jest don't
+fergit as how hit's Miss Plutiny fer you-all."
+
+Hodges gaped bewilderedly under the rebuke. Then he growled
+defiantly.
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+BAD BLOOD BETWEEN RIVALS.]
+
+"Wall, I'll be dogged! Quite some spit-fire, hain't ye? Reckon I know
+what's a-bitin on ye. Ye're mad kase Uncle Dick tuk the mounting land
+ye gals look to heir to, to bail me and Ben." He stared at the girl
+ominously, with drawn brows. His voice was guttural with threatening.
+"So be ye mout hev to eat them words o' your'n. Mebby, when I've done
+tole ye a thing er two, ye'll be a-askin' of me to call ye 'honey.'
+Mebby, ye'll want to hover yer ole 'hon,' arter I let's ye know a
+thing or two 'bout the doin's o' you-all an' thet damned little runt,
+thet reportin' dawg sweetheart o' your'n--Zeke Higgins."
+
+The girl was stricken. She understood the outlaw's reference. Somehow
+he had gained certain knowledge of Zeke's part in saving the
+Quaker-school-teacher spy. She realized that the criminal gang would
+not hesitate at the murder of one who had thus foiled them. For the
+moment, she gave no heed to the danger that menaced herself as well.
+Her whole concern was for her lover. The single comfort came from the
+fact of his absence. Much as she had been longing for his coming, her
+prayer now was that he should not return until these men were
+imprisoned.
+
+With a fierce effort toward bravery in the face of catastrophe,
+Plutina stood up, and drew herself proudly erect. Her dark eyes
+flashed wrathfully. She spoke with disdain:
+
+"Ye wouldn't dast say that to Zeke Higgins' teeth. Mebby, he hain't so
+thick through as you-all, and he hain't so thick-headed, nuther. An'
+he hain't no runt, as ye'd find quick 'nuf, if so be's ye dast stand
+up to him, man to man, 'stid o' with a gun from the laurel. He's a
+man--what you-all hain't. He hain't the kind to layway from the
+bushes, ner to be a-stealin' his neighbor's cattle an' hawgs. An'
+what's more Dan Hodges, ef ye say as how Zeke ever reported ary still,
+ye're a hell-bustin' liar!"
+
+Her jibes were powerless against the coarse-fibered brute. He grinned
+malevolently as he jeered at her.
+
+"Thar, now! Hain't it a pity to have a sweetheart what hain't brave
+'nuf to stand 'is ground, an' runs off, an' leaves 'is gal to fit fer
+'im." Then, abruptly, the moonshiner's expression changed to one meant
+to be ingratiating. "Wall, now, Miss Plutiny, I shore likes the way ye
+stan's up fer the pore cuss. But, arter all, hes' done up and left ye.
+An' he hain't comin' back. Hit wouldn't be healthy fer him to come
+back," he added, savagely. "An' what's more, ye hain't a-gwine to jine
+'im whar he's at. The Hodges' crowd won't stan' fer no sech! He's been
+writ, Zeke Higgins has, with the sign o' the skull an' the cross--the
+hull thing. Ye know what thet means, I reckon."
+
+Plutina blenched, and seated herself again, weakly. It was true, she
+knew the fantastic rigmarole, which made absurd the secret dictates of
+these illiterate desperadoes. But that absurdity meant death, none the
+less--death for the one she loved. In her misery, she listened almost
+apathetically as Hodges went on talking in his heavy, grating voice.
+
+"Zeke Higgins knows as how the Allens give us the word 'bout 'is
+crossin' Bull Head with the spy. He knows thet, if 'e shows up in
+this-hyar kentry ag'in, the Devil's Pot'll have 'im fer a b'ilin'. An'
+thet's 'nuf fer Zeke's case. Now, we'll jest chin a mite 'bout
+your'n."
+
+There was a little interval of silence, in which the girl stared
+unseeingly toward the splendors of the blossoming rhododendrons that
+fringed the clearing. The apathy had passed now, and she listened
+intently, with self-control to mask the despair that welled in her
+heart. It seemed to her that here was the need for that dissimulation
+she had promised herself--need of it for life's sake, however hateful
+it might be, however revolting to her every instinct. So she listened
+in a seeming of white calm, while the flames shriveled her soul.
+
+The man straightened his great bulk a little, and regarded the girl
+with new earnestness. Into his speech crept a rude eloquence, for he
+voiced a sincere passion, though debased by his inherent bestiality.
+
+"Plutiny Siddon, I've knowed ye, an' I've craved ye, this many year.
+Some way, hit just seemed as how I couldn't he'p hit. The more ye
+mistreated me, the more I wanted ye. Hit shames me, but hit's true as
+preachin'. An' hit's true yit--even arter seein' yer bare futprint
+tracks thar on the Branch, alongside them of a man with shoes--the
+damned revenuer what got us. Ye showed 'im the place, Plutiny
+Siddon--cuss ye, fer a spy!... An' I craves ye jest the same.... An'
+I'll have ye--right soon!"
+
+At this saying, terror mounted high in the girl. The thing she so
+dreaded was come to pass. She forgot, for a few moments, the threats
+against her lover. Despair crushed her in the realization of
+discovery. Her treachery was known to the man she feared. The peril
+she had voluntarily risked was fallen upon her. She was helpless, at
+the mercy of the criminal she had betrayed--and she knew that there
+was no mercy in him. She shrank physically, as under a blow, and sat
+huddled a little, in a sudden weakness of body under the soul's
+torment. Yet she listened with desperate intentness, as Hodges went on
+speaking. She cast one timid glance toward him, then dropped her gaze,
+revolted at the grotesque grimaces writhen by the man's emotions.
+
+"Harkin to me, Miss Plutiny!" he pleaded, huskily. "Harkin to me! I
+knows what I'm a-doin' of. They hain't nothin' ye kin do to stop me.
+Kase why? Wall, if ye love yer gran'pap, ye'll hold yer tongue 'bout
+all my talk. Yep! He's done pledged his land to keep me an' Ben out o'
+the jail-house till cote. If ye tells 'im I'm a-misusin' o' ye, he'd
+cancel the bond, an' try to deliver me up. I knows all thet. But he
+wouldn't cancel no bond, an' no more he wouldn't do any deliverin' o'
+me up. Kase why? Kase he'd jest nacherly die fust. Thet's why. The
+land'd be good fer the bond jest the same till Fall. Thet'd give me
+an' Ben a heap o' time to git ready to light out o' this-hyar kentry.
+They hain't nary pusson a-goin' to bother us none. They knows hit's
+healthier a-mindin' their own business. I been dodgin' revenuers
+fifteen year, an' I'll dodge ag'in, an' take my savin's along, too.
+An' they's quite some savin's, Plutiny."
+
+Hodges paused, as if to give greater impressiveness to the conclusion
+of his harangue. His voice as he continued held a note of savage
+finality.
+
+"So, ye understand, Plutiny, I hain't afeared none arter what I done
+told ye'll happen, if so be ye talk. I knows ye love yer gran'pap, an'
+hain't a hankerin' fer 'im to be murdered. Now, I'm gwine to leave ye
+till t'-morrer, to git kind o' used to the idee as how ye're gwine to
+leave this-hyar kentry with me arter I pays yer gran'pap the money fer
+the bail. If you-all is so plumb foolish as to say no, hit 'll jest
+leave yerself an' yer kin in the hands o' we boys to reckon with. Do
+as I'm a-sayin' on, an' I'll shore fergit 'bout yer reportin' the
+still. I'll jest 'low to myself as how ye was only a gal, an' used
+damn' poor jedgment. I hold hit were powerful unkind o' you-all,
+seein' as how we-uns hain't never wronged ye none. I suspicion ye had
+hit figgered out as how Zeke could come back 'ere a'gin if ye had me
+kotched. Wall, little missy, Dan Hodges air jest a mite too cunnin'
+fer ye." The boaster gloated over his cowering victim, malice
+sparkling in his lustful eyes.
+
+It seemed to the girl that she was in truth hopelessly ensnared by
+fate. Her harried thoughts ran in a circle, dizzily. She could find no
+loophole for escape from the net. The mesh of the outlaw's deviltry
+was strong; her flutterings were feeble, futile. She found one ray of
+comfort in Zeke's absence. She forgot it in distress for the danger to
+her grandfather. Then, horror for herself beat upon her spirit. But a
+memory of her first resolve came to her. From stark necessity, she put
+her whole reliance on an effort to temporize. She felt that her only
+recourse in this emergency must lie in deceiving the ruffian who thus
+beset her. Much as she abhorred him, she had no choice. There was none
+to whom she could appeal for succor. She must depend absolutely upon
+her ability to beguile him. She must hide the revulsion inspired by
+his mere presence. She must arm herself with the world-old weapons of
+her sex, and by wiles blind him to the truth of her feeling, gain time
+for--something, anything! At least here was room for hope, uncertain,
+absurd even, yet hope. A little color crept to her pallid cheeks. If
+she could but manage the deceit to secure delay until the Fall.
+
+She raised her eyes furtively toward the adversary, an appraising
+glance, as if to judge his gullibility. The brutish passion of the man
+showed in the pendulous lower lip, thrust forward a little, in the
+swinish lifting of the wide-flaring nostrils, in the humid glowing of
+the inflamed eyes. A nausea of disgust swept over her. She fought it
+down. Then, with hypocrisy that amazed herself, she met his ardent
+stare boldly, though with a pretense of timidity. She spoke with a
+hesitant, remonstrant voice, as if in half-hearted protest,
+
+"Hit's dangerous to talk hyar, Dan," she said. She assumed a pose of
+coquetry. "If I agrees to save Gran'pap an' 'is land, an' takes ye,
+have ye got money 'nough fer us to git along among the furriners down
+below?" A pleased smile showed. "An' could ye buy me purty clo's an'
+sech-like? Don't ye dast lie to me, Dan Hodges, fer a woman wants
+plenty o' nice fixin's. An' if ye means hit all, like ye says, I'll
+meet ye at Holloman Gate t'-morrer at twelve, an' give ye yes er no."
+
+The moonshiner received with complacence this evidence of yielding on
+the girl's part. He had, indeed, the vanity that usually characterizes
+the criminal. It was inconceivable to his egotism that he must be
+odious to any decent woman. Plutina's avaricious stipulation
+concerning money pleased him as a display of feminine shrewdness. He
+was in nowise offended. The women of his more intimate acquaintance
+did not scruple to bargain their charms. From such trollops, he gained
+his estimate of the sex. The sordid pretense by Plutina completed his
+delusion. The truckling of familiars had inflated conceit. He swelled
+visibly. The finest girl in the mountains was ready to drop into his
+arms! Passion drove him toward her.
+
+Plutina raised her hand in an authoritative gesture. She could feign
+much, but to endure a caress from the creature was impossible.
+Somehow, by some secret force in the gesture, his advance was checked,
+he knew not why.
+
+"Not now, Dan," she exclaimed, sharply. She added a lie, in
+extenuation of the refusal: "Alviry's in the house. Besides, I got to
+have time to think, like ye said. But I'll be at the gate t'-morrer."
+
+Hodges accepted her decree amiably enough. He was still flattered by
+her complaisant attitude toward his wooing.
+
+"Ye're talkin' sense, Plutiny--the kind I likes to hear. I'll be thar,
+waitin' fer ye, ye kin bet on thet." Then his natural truculence
+showed again in a parting admonition: "An' don't you-all try fer to
+play Dan Hodges fer a fool. If so be ye does, ye'll wish to God ye
+hadn't."
+
+With the threat, he turned and went lumbering down the path, to vanish
+quickly within the shadows of the wood.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+
+After his day of toil in Pleasant Valley, Uncle Dick Siddon sprawled
+at ease on the porch, smoking his pipe, and watching with mildly
+sentimental eyes the rosy hues of the cloud masses that crowned Stone
+Mountain. His mood was tranquilly amorous. The vial in his pocket was
+full of golden grains. Presently, he would fashion a ring. Then,
+heigh-ho for the parson! He smiled contentedly over his vision of the
+buxom Widow Brown. Her placid charms would soothe his declining years.
+A tempestuous passion would be unbecoming at his age. But the
+companionship of this gentle and agreeable woman would be both fitting
+and pleasant. Really, Uncle Dick mused, it was time he settled down.
+One should be sedate at eighty. But he sighed.
+
+A horseman appeared over the brow of the hill. The horse traveled
+slowly, as if wearied by many miles. A single glance at the erect,
+soldierly figure made known to Uncle Dick that this was a stranger,
+and he watched intently. As the rider came nearer, he hesitated, then
+guided his mount toward the clearing. Uncle Dick perceived, of a
+sudden, that the left sleeve of the stranger's coat, which was pinned
+across the breast, was empty. At the sight, a great sadness fell on
+him. He guessed the identity of the horseman. His soul was filled with
+mourning over a shattered romance. He fairly winced as the rider drew
+rein before him, with a cheery, "Howdy?"
+
+There was a curious constraint in Uncle Dick's voice, as he made
+hospitable answer.
+
+"Howdy, yerse'f, Stranger? 'Light, an' come in."
+
+"I hain't time to 'light," the traveler declared. "Jones is my name.
+What mout your'n be?"
+
+Uncle Dick descended the steps, regarding the visitor intently. There
+was a perceptible aloofness in his manner, though no lack of
+courtesy.
+
+"My name passes fer Siddon. I 'low ye hain't familiar round these-hyar
+parts?"
+
+"I'm right-smart strange, I reckon," was the admission. "But I was
+borned forty-mile south o' here, on the Yadkin. My father owned the
+place Daniel Boone lived when he sickened o' this-hyar kentry, kase it
+wa'n't wild 'nough. I'm kin ter Boone's woman--Bryant strain--raised
+'twixt this-hyar creek an' Air Bellows."
+
+"Wall, say ye so!" Uncle Dick exclaimed, heartily. "Why, I knowed ye
+when ye was a boy. You-all's pap used to buy wool, an' my pap tuk me
+with 'im to the Boone place with 'is Spring shearin'. Thet makes
+we-uns some sort o' kin. Ye'd better 'light an' take a leetle
+breathin' spell. A drink o' my ole brandy might cheer ye. An' ye
+know," he concluded, with a quick hardening of his tones, "hit's
+customary to know a stranger's business up in these-hyar mountings."
+
+The horseman took no offense.
+
+"I rid up to the balcony jest to make inquiry 'bout a friend what I
+hain't seed in a right-smart bit, an' who I learnt was a-livin' a
+lonely widder's life on Guarding Creek. Could you-all direct me to the
+abode o' one Widder Brown? I hev some private an' pussonal business
+with the widder. Hit's a kind what don't consarn nary human critter
+but me an' her."
+
+Uncle Dick sought no further for information, but issued the requested
+direction, and moodily watched the horseman out of sight. Then, with a
+sigh that was very like a groan, he moved away toward a small
+outbuilding, in which was a forge. Here when he had set the forge
+glowing, he took from his pocket the vial of gold dust, and emptied
+the contents into a ladle. When the metal was melted, he poured off
+the dross, and proceeded to hammer the ingot into a broad band.
+Eventually, he succeeded in forming a massive ring of the virgin
+gold. But, throughout the prosecution of the task, there was none of
+that fond elation which had upborne him during the hours while he
+gathered the material. On the contrary, his shaggy brows were drawn in
+a frown of disappointment. He cursed below his breath from time to
+time, with pointed references to one-armed veterans, who dast come
+back when they hadn't orter. He was still in a saddened and rebellious
+mood, when he returned to the porch, where he found his granddaughters
+seated at some sewing. His face lightened a little at sight of them.
+
+"Guess I got my han's full 'nough o' women-folks, anyhow," he
+muttered. "Fine gals they be, too!" He regarded them attentively, with
+a new pride of possession. "I 'low I hain't a-kickin' much of any. I
+reckon like 'nough I be settled down right now, only I didn't know
+'nough to know it." He chuckled over this conceit, as he seated
+himself, and became uncommonly sociable, somewhat to the distress of
+Plutina, who found it difficult to conceal her anxiety.
+
+Dusk was falling when the horseman reappeared. This time there was no
+hesitation, as he turned from the road into the clearing. Uncle Dick
+rose, and shouted greeting, with labored facetiousness.
+
+"Wall, Mister Jones, I 'lowed as how ye mout be the tax-collector,
+arter the widder's mite, seein' how long ye was a-hangin' on up thar.
+Me an' the gals'd feel a right-smart consarn to lose Fanny Brown fer a
+neighbor, if she was pushed too hard fer her debts."
+
+"Mister Siddon, suh," the stranger answered promptly. "I opine you-all
+hain't half-bad at a guess. I be a tax-collector, so to speak, a
+debt-collector. Hit's a debt contracted fifty-year agone. Fanny Brown
+done tole me as how you-all been good neighbors o' her'n, so I don't
+mind tellin' ye she's willin' fer me to collect thet-thar debt o'
+mine." There was an expression of vast complacency on the veteran's
+face, as he stroked the tuft of whisker on his chin, and he smiled on
+his three auditors half-triumphantly, half-shamefacedly. "I got
+cheated o' her oncet by being too slow. I hain't goin' to do no sech
+foolishness ag'in. T'-morrer, if the clerk's office is open, I'll git
+the satisfaction piece an' Preacher Roberts'll tie the knot good and
+proper--amen!"
+
+Uncle Dick sighed audibly at the announcement, but his chagrin was
+given no further expression as he invited the victorious rival to
+dismount and partake of his hospitality. Alvira received the news with
+bubbling delight, which showed gaily in her sparkling black eyes and
+dimpling cheeks. Even Plutina was heartened by the discovery that her
+grandfather's folly, as she deemed it, must end, though there could
+be no gladness in her by reason of the fear.
+
+It was after the supper was done, when the visitor's horse stood at
+the door, that Uncle Dick took a sudden resolve.
+
+"Alviry," he ordered, "you-all come hold this-hyar hoss, a leetle
+minute, whilst me an' 'im has a confab."
+
+He led the puzzled veteran to a bench beneath a locust, out of earshot
+of his granddaughters, who regarded the proceeding curiously, and not
+without apprehension since they knew the violent temper of the old man
+when thwarted. They were relieved to perceive that his demeanor
+remained altogether peaceable.
+
+"Hit's jest this-away, Seth Jones," Uncle Dick began at once, after
+the two were seated side by side on the bench. "Ye see, I knew
+you-all, an' yer name an' yer business, soon's I sot eyes on ye. Hit
+were thet-thar danglin' sleeve o' your'n as ye rid up the path what
+done hit. I knowed then as how my fate was sealed, s' fur's the Widder
+Brown's consarned. Fanny done told me about you-all an' yer
+disapp'intment. She allers said, arter her man died, as how ye'd be
+a-comin' 'long, though I was hopin' ye wouldn't--cuss ye! Excuse
+me--no offense intended. The widder an' me has been clost friends, an'
+I told her from the first as how I respected the claims of this-hyar
+Jones galoot, if so be he turned up afore we got hitched. An' now hyar
+ye be--dang hit!"
+
+The veteran cleared his throat apologetically. His own happiness made
+him exaggerate the injury thus wrought by his reappearance. He
+ventured no remark, however. He could not say that the woman in the
+case was hardly worth troubling over, and, for the life of him, he
+could think of nothing else in the way of consolation. He discreetly
+cleared his throat a second time, and maintained a masterly silence.
+But the garrulous old man at his side needed no encouragement. He
+quickly resumed his discourse, with a certain unctuous enjoyment,
+distinctly inconsistent with his love-lorn pose.
+
+"Seth Jones," he announced solemnly, "if you-all an' me was young
+ag'in, an' fired by the passion o' youth, thar wouldn't be no
+love-feast hyar jest now like this un. No, sirree! Hit'd shore be war
+a-twixt we-uns--with hell a-poppin' at the end on't fer one, mebby
+both. But my blood don't git het up now the way hit use' to did. I'm
+thinkin' fer the widder's sake hit's good ye're younger ner me, an'
+got more years to give 'er. So, Mr. Jones, when all's said an' done,
+I'm glad ye come to Guarding Creek."
+
+Then, Uncle Dick, in his turn, displayed some slight symptoms of
+embarrassment, and cleared his throat in a manner to shock a
+drawing-room.
+
+"An' now I got jest one leetle favor to ax o' ye, Seth Jones. You-all
+knows as how the gals in this-hyar kentry air partic'lar proud to have
+a weddin' ring made from the gold washed out o' the soil in Pleasant
+Valley by their sweetheart. Wall, I talked a heap 'bout hit to Fanny,
+an', when she showed signs like she'd give in to me, I went an' panned
+the gold fer the ring. Fanny'd be right-smart disapp'inted not to have
+a lover-made ring, I reckon. So, bein' as you-all only got one arm, I
+wants ye to take this-hyar ring, an' wed her proper with the blessin'
+an' best wishes o' Uncle Dick Siddon."
+
+He offered the ring, which was gratefully accepted, and the two old
+men parted on excellent terms.
+
+                  *       *       *       *       *
+
+At eleven o'clock the next morning, Uncle Dick was sitting on the
+porch, when he saw a horse passing over the trail toward the south. In
+the saddle was the erect, spruce figure of the one-armed veteran, Seth
+Jones. And, on a blanket strapped behind the saddle to serve as
+pillion, rode a woman, with her arms clasped around the man's waist.
+It was the Widow Brown, dressed all in gala white.
+
+It was, indeed, heigh-ho for the parson!
+
+Uncle Dick stared fixedly until the two had vanished beyond the brow
+of the hill. Then, at last, he stirred, and his eyes roved over his
+home and its surroundings wistfully. He sighed heavily. But he himself
+would have been hard put to it to tell whether that sigh held more of
+regret, or of relief.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+
+While her grandfather was still on the porch, and her sister was out
+of the house, Plutina possessed herself of the new revolver, with its
+holster, which, after slipping down her gown from the shoulder, she
+attached under the left arm-pit. The looseness of the ill-fitting
+garment concealed the weapon effectually enough. For ready access, the
+upper buttons to the throat were left unfastened, in seeming relief
+against the heat of midday. Thus equipped, the girl stole out through
+the back way, unobserved by her relations, to keep tryst with the
+desperado.
+
+As she followed a blind trail that shortened the distance between the
+Siddon cabin and the Holloman Gate to a short two miles, Plutina was
+torturing a brain already overtaxed in the effort to devise some means
+whereby she might wreck the projects of the villain, without at the
+same time bringing ruin on herself, or those she loved. Always,
+however, her thoughts went spinning toward the same vortex of
+destruction. She could, indeed, contrive nothing better than the
+policy of cajolery on which she had first determined, and to this
+course, as it seemed to her, she must cling, though her good sense was
+well advised of its futility. She knew that a scoundrel of Hodges
+unrestrained passions could not long be held from his infamous
+purposes by any art of hers. At the best, she might hope perhaps to
+delay the catastrophe only by hours. In her discouraged state, she
+admitted that it would be quite impossible to restrain him until the
+law should come to her aid. She was determined none the less to employ
+every resource at her command, in order to postpone decisive action.
+One thing was at once her chief reliance and her chief source of fear:
+the outlaw's passion for her. In his brutal fashion, the man loved
+her. That fact gave her power over him, even while it exposed her to
+the worst peril at his hands.
+
+The presence of the revolver comforted her mightily. From time to
+time, she moved her right hand stealthily across her bosom, to
+reassure a failing courage by feeling the stiff leather of the holster
+under the gown. She was experienced in the use of weapons. Her rifle
+had often contributed to the cabin larder. Muscles that knew no tremor
+and a just eye had given her a skill in marksmanship much beyond the
+average, even in this region where firearms were forever in the hands
+of the men, and familiar to the women. Once, her moving fingers felt
+the little bag hanging from its leathern thong about her neck, in
+which was the fairy crystal. The hardness of her expression vanished
+on the instant, and in its stead was a wonderful tenderness. A world
+of yearning shone in the dark lustres of the eyes, and the curving
+lips drooped in pathetic wistfulness. Her soul went out toward the
+distant lover in a very frenzy of desire. She felt the longing well in
+her, a craving so agonized that nothing else mattered, neither life
+nor death. Had the power been hers then, she would have summoned him
+across the void. The loneliness was a visible, tangible monster,
+beating in upon her, crushing her with hideous, remorseless strength.
+Her man must come back!
+
+It was the mood of a moment, no more. Even as she thrilled with the
+anguished longing she lifted her eyes, and halted, aghast at the scene
+before her. There, close at hand to the southeast, Stone Mountain
+upreared its huge and rugged bulk. It loomed implacable, with the
+naked cliffs staring grotesquely. It overhung her like immutable fate,
+silent, pitiless. There was sinister significance in its aspect, for
+just before her lay the cavernous shadows of the Devil's Cauldron. The
+girl's gaze went to the verge of the precipice far above. It followed
+down the wild tumblings of the little stream, fed from lofty springs.
+It descended in the last long leap of the waters into the churning
+pool. And she had a vision of the man she loved, bound, and
+helpless--dead perhaps, shot from behind--and now thrust out from the
+verge into the abyss, to go hurtling into the mist-wreathed depths....
+No, Zeke must not come back. The hardness crept again into her face,
+as she went forward. She held her eyes averted from that gruesome
+cavern high in the mountain's face.
+
+The girl came soon to the Holloman Gate, which swung across the trail
+near the west end of the mountain. Tall poplars and spruce made an
+ample shade, but a glance toward the sun showed it at the zenith. She
+was prompt to the rendezvous; it was the lover who was laggard. She
+wondered a little at that, but with no lightening of her mood. She was
+sure that he would come all too speedily. She stood waiting in misery,
+leaning listlessly against the fence, her gaze downcast. The geranium
+blossoms touched the sward richly with color; the rhododendrons
+flaunted the loveliness of their flowering round about the spot. A
+delicate medley of birds' songs throbbed from out the thickets; a tiny
+stream purled over its pebbled bed in the ravine that entrenched the
+trail. Plutina gave no heed. She saw and she heard, but, in this hour,
+she was without response to any charm of sight or of sound. Yet, that
+she was alert was proven presently, for her ear caught the faint
+crackle of a twig snapping. It was a little way off--somewhere along
+the line of the brush-grown fence, on the same side of the trail. She
+peered steadily in the direction of the noise. When her eyes became
+accustomed to the shadows, she made out the figure of a man, crouched
+in a corner of the fence, behind the screen of a bush. He was no more
+than three or four rods from her. She was sure even that she
+recognized him--Gary Hawks, one of the most vicious of the Hodges
+gang, but notorious for cowardice. She was puzzled for only a moment
+by the presence of the fellow. Then, she realized that he doubtless
+was acting under his leader's orders. It was another menace against
+her own safety. The fingers of her hand went once again for
+encouragement to the holster beneath her arm.
+
+Plutina gave no sign that she had discovered the lurking man's
+presence. But, after a minute, she retraced her steps a little way
+along the trail, until she came to a point where there was a clear
+space on either side, which was out of hearing from the fence line.
+She had scarcely reached the place, when Hodges appeared, his bare
+feet trudging swiftly. His head, too, was bare. In the hollow of his
+left arm lay the long rifle. He was approaching from the east, and
+halted at the gate, without having observed the girl beyond it. He
+whistled a soft note as a signal if she should be anywhere about.
+
+Plutina called out softly in answer.
+
+"Hyar, Dan!" As he looked toward her, she beckoned him to approach.
+
+Hodges shook his head in dissent, and, by a gesture, bade her come to
+him. But, when she showed no sign of obeying, he moved forward,
+scowling, ferociously. The girl seemed undaunted. She spoke curtly in
+rebuke:
+
+"'Pears to me, Dan Hodges, like ye hain't very prompt, seein' as how
+I've been a-waiting hyar a quarter-hour fer ye. When a man loves a
+gal, he gen'rally gits to the place sot ahead o' her. Ye hain't
+a-startin' right to win me, Dan, an' so I'm a-tellin' ye fair."
+
+"You-all orter have more sense than hang out hyar in the sun. Come
+back to the gate, under the shade o' the sarvis bushes." He turned
+away, but paused as the girl made no movement to follow. "What in
+hell's the matter on ye?" he demanded, angrily. "This place in the rud
+hain't fitten fer talk, nohow."
+
+"Hit's fitten 'nough fer me," Plutina retorted, quietly. A mellow
+laugh sounded. "Seems to me this-hyar bright sunshine orter warm yer
+love up some, Dan. We'll stay hyar, I reckon. I'm afeared o' snakes
+an' eavesdroppers an' sech critters thar in the shade."
+
+The man was racked by many emotions. He had come swiftly under the hot
+sun, and the haste and the heat had irritated him. The sight of the
+girl moved him to fierce passion of desire. He was aflame with
+eagerness to take her within his arms, there where were the cool
+shadows. Her indifference to his command exasperated him; her final
+refusal infuriated him. In the rush of feeling he lost what little
+judgment he might otherwise have had. He had meant to placate her by a
+temporary gentleness, to be offset by future brutalities. Now, in his
+rage, he forgot discretion under the pricking of lawless impulse. He
+reached out and dropped a huge hand on Plutina's shoulder, and twisted
+her about with a strength she was powerless to resist. The clutch of
+his fingers cut cruelly into her flesh, firm though it was, and she
+winced. He grinned malevolently.
+
+"Git back thar as I done tol' ye," he rasped; "afore ye git wuss."
+
+With a deft twist of the body, Plutina stood free. The face, which had
+paled, flushed darkly. The eyes blazed. The head was uplifted in
+scorn. Her aspect awed the man, and he hesitated, gaping at her. Yet
+her voice was very soft when she spoke. The tone surprised her
+listener, rendered him strangely uneasy, for some reason he could not
+understand.
+
+"Thet ten minutes ye was late was more'n I had need fer, Dan Hodges,"
+she said. "I promised ye yer answer hyar, an' I'm a-goin' to give hit
+to ye right now."
+
+She lifted an arm, and pointed to where the Devil's Cauldron blotched
+the cliffs of the mountainside ... It was her left arm that she
+lifted.
+
+"Look, Dan! See thet-thar big hole in the wall. I been a-lookin' at
+hit, Dan. I 'low you-all don't dast look at hit. Mebby ye're afeared
+o' seein' the bones o' them hit holds--bones o' dead men--what you-all
+an' yer gang hev kilt an' slid into the pot, to lie hid till Jedgment.
+Hit's thar ye're aimin' to put my Zeke. Why, a haar o' his head's wuth
+more'n the hull caboodle of sech murderers as yew be."
+
+She stepped closer to the outlaw, and spoke with unleashed hate. He
+flinched at the change.
+
+"I was skeered o' ye back thar on the piazzy yist'-day, an' I lied to
+ye, kase I was skeered. I wasn't a-likin' the look in them pig eyes o'
+your'n. An' I was a-feared o' Gran'pap's hearin' how I reported the
+still. Wall, now I hain't skeered no more. I promised ye yer answer at
+the gate. We'll move over thar, an' I'll keep my promise."
+
+Before he could guess her purpose, before he could shift the rifle
+from the hollow of his arm, the fingers of Plutina's right hand had
+slipped within the open bodice. The Colt's flashed in the sunlight.
+The level barrel lay motionless, in deadly readiness. For the girl,
+though not yet quite sure, was almost sure that she would kill Dan
+Hodges.
+
+The idea had not come to her until this meeting. In all the racking
+hours of thought, this simple solution of the difficulty had never
+entered her mind. Now, at its coming, she welcomed it with infinite
+relief. It offered a means of escape so simple and so sure--escape for
+herself and for those she loved. It was the touch of the man that had
+wrought the miracle of revolt. She had felt herself polluted by the
+contact. On the instant, the hypocrisy of cajoling was no longer
+possible. But there was more in the effect than that. The savagery of
+the outlaw aroused the savagery in her. She became, in the twinkling
+of an eye, the primitive woman. There was little in the sentiment of
+her people to dam the outburst. Her kin had followed the lex talionis.
+They had killed their fellows for the sake of their proper pride. The
+blood-feud was familiar to her, and she knew no shame in it. Why
+should she not slay this creature who outraged her self-respect, who
+threatened her every hope? Her finger on the trigger of the revolver
+tensed ever so slightly.
+
+The man felt the vibration of her impulse and cringed. He was in a
+daze before this violence of attack, where he had expected only supine
+yielding. In his creed, the beating of women marked manliness. The
+drabs he had caressed crept and fawned under his blows, like whipped
+curs. He could not realize this challenge by the girl with his own
+method of might. But he saw clearly enough through the haze of fear
+that the blue barrel was trained exactly upon him, that the slim hand
+held it rigid, and he knew that, in this instant, he was very, very
+close to death. The red of his face changed to a mottled purple. He
+felt himself trembling.
+
+Plutina perceived the abject terror of the man. It mitigated her wrath
+with scorn, and so saved him for the moment. She cried out to him
+fiercely, her voice rough with abhorrence.
+
+"To the gate fer yer answer, ye cowardly houn'. Move quick, er I'll
+drap ye in yer tracks, ye murderin' wolf. Do as I say!"
+
+She moved another step toward him. Her voice rose shrill:
+
+"Drap thet rifle-gun!"
+
+The weapon slipped from Hodges' nerveless fingers, and fell on the
+turf with a soft thud.
+
+"Put up yer han's!"
+
+Cowed, the man thrust his long arms to their length above his head.
+
+"Now, turn round, an' march to the gate!"
+
+There was no faltering in the obedience.
+
+The hulking bully knew that he was in mortal peril. For his life's
+sake, he dared neither word nor gesture of resistance to the girl's
+will. His only hope was that the hidden ally might somehow come to his
+aid. But the hope was feeble. He knew the other's craven spirit.
+
+Plutina, too, knew it. As she drove her captive to the gate, she
+peered, and saw the crouching figure still in the shadows behind the
+bush. The Colt's cracked. Even as Hodges shuddered, imagining the
+tearing of the bullet through his own flesh, there came a shriek of
+pain from beyond him. The hidden man leaped forth, his right arm
+dangling clumsily. He scrambled into the cover of the spruces and
+vanished. The noises of his flight lessened, died.
+
+"I've scotched a snake," Plutina said, malignantly. "Hit's about time
+to kill the dawg, I reckon. Turn round." Then, when he had obeyed, she
+went on speaking. "Now, hyar at the gate, I'll tell ye somethin'.
+You-all 'lowed ye could git me with money. If ye had all they is in
+the world, hit wouldn't be enough. An' ye thought I tuk money fer
+reportin' the still. Wall, I didn't. I reported thet-thar still o'
+your'n kase I seed ye a-settin' b'ar-traps fer humans, an' hit made
+me hate ye even wuss 'n I done hated ye afore."
+
+Somehow, the flame of her fury was dying. The girl felt this, and
+bitterly resented it, yet she was powerless. It seemed to her that
+with all the strength of her nature she was desirous of killing this
+enemy. He stood cowering before her in dread. Her finger on the
+trigger needed only the slightest flexing to speed the death he
+merited. And, for some occult reason, the will to slay failed her. She
+was enraged against her own weakness of resolve. Nevertheless, she was
+helpless. Her mood had reached its climax in the impulsive wounding of
+the other man. Now, her blood was losing its fever. With the slowing
+pulse, the softer instincts prevailed to thwart her purpose. Despite
+an anguished eagerness, she could not kill this trembling wretch. She
+loathed her frailty, even as she yielded to it. She must let him go
+unscathed, a foe the more dangerous after this humiliation. Of no use
+to threaten him, to extort promises. There was no truth in him. He
+must be left free to work what evil he would. Oh, if only the wrath in
+her had not died too soon!
+
+"Put yer han's down, an' march up the trail," she commanded,
+presently. Her voice was lifeless. The man drew new hope from the
+quality of it. He ventured no resistance to the command, but went
+padding softly through the dust. Behind him, Plutina followed, her
+bare feet padding an echo. Her right hand hung at her side, but it
+retained the revolver, ready for instant use. As she came to Hodges'
+rifle, she picked it up, and threw it far down into the ravine. At the
+clattering noise of its fall, the outlaw started, but he did not pause
+in his stride, or turn. The girl's whole soul was convulsed with
+longing that he should make some effort of revolt--anything. Then, she
+would shoot and kill--oh, so gladly!
+
+But the instinct to live guided the man. He trudged meekly. There was
+no excuse against him. So, they came at last near to the Siddon
+clearing, where a little path ran through the wood toward the house.
+Here, Plutina paused, without a word. She was ashamed of herself,
+grievously ashamed of this softness of fiber that had spared a life.
+Without a word, she watched him pass along the trail, up the slope,
+and out of sight beyond. Her face was drawn and white, and the great
+eyes were brooding with bitterness, when, finally, she stirred, and
+moved forward in the path. She slipped the revolver into its holster.
+Then, her fingers went to the bag that held the fairy cross to her
+breast. She fondled it tenderly. She was longing as never before for
+the giver of the talisman.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+
+Plutina had no sleep the night following her encounter with Dan
+Hodges. Throughout the dragging hours, she was tortured by sinister
+imaginings. She exhausted her brain in futile strivings for some means
+of escape from the mesh of circumstance. It was not until the gray
+twilight of dawn shone through the curtains that a possibility of
+relief stirred in her mind. It was out of desperation that the idea
+sprang. She felt herself so utterly forlorn and helpless in her
+loneliness that the despair was overpowering. It was then, at last,
+that the inspiration came to her: She would confess everything to her
+grandfather!
+
+Though she quailed before the prospect, she rejoiced as well. The old
+man was strong and resourceful. He would know how to meet and overcome
+the outlaw's villainy. Moreover, now that her decision had been made,
+Plutina was surprised to find her alarm over such confession greatly
+lessened from what she had supposed possible. She began to realize
+that some intangible change in her grandfather himself was responsible
+for this. She became convinced that the new gentleness had had its
+origin in the unselfish abandonment of his marital hopes. It was as if
+that renunciation had vitally softened him. Perhaps, in this strange
+mood, he would be less intolerant of her fault in turning informer.
+His prejudice could find no excuse for her treachery, she knew, yet
+the peril in which she had involved herself, and him, might arouse his
+pity. Assuredly, he would be moved to instant action for both their
+sakes. For that reason alone, if for no other, she must tell him her
+story without a moment of unnecessary delay.
+
+In the course of the morning, Plutina took advantage of an
+opportunity, whilst her sister was busy in the garden, and went to her
+grandfather, who was taking his ease on the porch. She was encouraged
+by the mild and benignant expression on the old man's face, which had
+been more often fierce, as she remembered it through the years. She
+seated herself quietly, and then proceeded immediately to confession.
+There was no attempt at palliation of her offense, if offense it were.
+She gave the narrative of events starkly, from the moment when she had
+first seen Hodges descending Luffman's Branch to the time of her
+separation from him at the clearing, on the yesterday.
+
+Throughout the account, the listener sat sprawled in the big willow
+rocker, his slippered feet resting on the porch rail. The huge body
+was crumpled into an awkward posture, which was never changed, once
+the history was begun. The curved wooden pipe hung from his lips,
+black against the iron gray cascade of beard, but he did not draw at
+it again, after the opening-sentences from his granddaughter's lips.
+Plutina, looking down, perceived that the folded hands, lying in his
+lap, were clenched so strongly that the knuckles showed bloodless.
+Yet, he made no movement, nor offered any word of comment or of
+question. When the girl had made an end, and sat waiting distressedly
+for his verdict, he still rested mute, until the silence became more
+than she could endure, and she cried out in pleading:
+
+"Kain't ye fergive me, Gran'pap?"
+
+Uncle Dick turned, and looked reproachfully at the distraught girl. A
+great tenderness shone from the black eyes, in which age had not
+dimmed the brilliance. As she saw the emotion there, a gasp of
+rapturous relief broke from Plutina's lips. The stern restraints of
+her training were broken down in that moment. She dropped to her knees
+by the old man's side, and seized his hands, and kissed them, and
+pressed them to her bosom. He released one of them presently, and laid
+it gently on the dusk masses of his grandchild's hair in silent
+blessing. His voice, when at last he spoke, was softer than she had
+heard it ever before.
+
+"Why, Tiny, ye mustn't be afeared o' yer ole gran'pap. I thinks a heap
+o' my kin, an' ye're the clusest. I loves ye gal--more'n anythin' er
+anybody else in the world, though I wouldn't want Alviry to hear thet.
+I hain't mindin' what ye done none. I'd stan' by ye, Tiny, if he had
+the hull cussed Gov'ment at yer back. I hain't got no likin' fer
+revenuers, but I got a heap less for Dan Hodges."
+
+He paused for a moment and lifted his hand from the girl's head to
+stroke the gray beard thoughtfully, before he continued:
+
+"I been thinkin' a right-smart lot o' things jest lately. I 'low I'm
+a-gittin' old, mebby. An' I opine as 'tween the revenuers and Dan
+Hodges, I hain't so much agin the Gov'ment as I was."
+
+Again, he fell silent, as if in embarrassment over an admission so at
+variance with the tenets of a lifetime. Then he spoke with sudden
+briskness:
+
+"But ye'd orter a-killed the critter then an' thar, Tiny!"
+
+"I jest somehow couldn't, Gran'pap. I'm shore sorry." The girl felt
+poignant shame for the weakness thus rebuked.
+
+"I 'low I hain't likely to have no sech feelin's a-holdin' o' me
+back," Uncle Dick remarked, drily. "Hit's my foolishness bailin' 'im
+out got us in the pizen mess. I 'low I'll cancel the bond. But, fust,
+I'd have to take the skunk to the jail-house, dead er alive. He'll
+stan' some urgin', I reckon."
+
+"Ye'll be keerful, Gran'pap," Plutina exclaimed anxiously, as she
+stood up.
+
+"Now, don't ye worrit none," Uncle Dick ordered, tartly. His usual
+rather dictatorial manner in the household returned to him. "You-all
+run along. I want to think."
+
+The girl went obediently. The reaction from despair brought
+joyousness. Of a sudden, she became aware of the blending perfumes of
+the wild flowers and the lilting of an amorous thrush in the wood. Her
+lids narrowed to dreamy contemplation of the green-and-gold traceries
+on the ground, where the sunlight fell dappled through screening
+foliage. Fear was fled from her. Her thought flew to Zeke, in longing
+as always, but now in a longing made happy with hopes. There might be
+a letter awaiting her from New York--perhaps even with a word of
+promise for his return. She smiled, radiant with fond anticipations.
+Then, after a word of explanation to Alvira, she set off at a brisk
+pace over the trail toward Cherry Lane.
+
+The girl went blithely on her way, day-dreaming of the time when Zeke
+should be come home to her again. She stopped at the Widow Higgins'
+cabin, to receive felicitations over the escape of Uncle
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+"WHEN ZEKE COMES HOME AGAIN."]
+
+Dick from Fanny Brown. Plutina was not minded to harass the older
+woman with the tale of Dan Hodges. The outlaw's threats against Zeke
+would only fill the mother's heart with fears, against which she could
+make no defense. Otherwise, however, the tongues of the two ran busily
+concerning the absent one. And then, soon, Plutina was again hurrying
+over the trail, which the bordering wild flowers made dainty as a
+garden walk. Once, her eyes turned southward, to the gloomy grandeur
+of Stone Mountain, looming vast and portentous. The blur of shadow
+that marked the Devil's Cauldron touched her to an instant of
+foreboding, but the elation of mood persisted. She raised her hand,
+and the fingers caressed the bag in which was the fairy crystal, and
+she went gaily forward, smiling.
+
+                  *       *       *       *       *
+
+Uncle Dick, meantime, was busy with sterner thoughts, and his task was
+harmonious to his musings, for he was cleaning and oiling his rifle
+with punctilious care. He did not hasten over-much at either the
+thinking or the work. The shades of night were drawing down when,
+finally, he hung the immaculate weapon on its hooks. He ate in
+solitary silence, served by Alvira, who ventured no intrusion on this
+mood of remoteness with which she was familiar from experience. The
+old man had determined to go forth and seize, and deliver to the
+custody of the law, the person of Dan Hodges. At the best, he would
+surprise the outlaw, and the achievement would be simple enough; at
+the worst, there would be a duel. Uncle Dick had no fear over the
+outcome. He believed himself quicker and surer with the rifle than
+this scoundrel of half his years. At grips, of course he would have no
+chance. But the affair would not come to grips. He would see to that.
+He went to bed contentedly, and slept the peaceful sleep of wholesome
+age, undisturbed by any bickerings of conscience.
+
+It was while he was dressing, next morning, that a measure of prudence
+occurred to Uncle Dick. During the period of his absence, it would be
+well for Plutina to avoid risk by keeping in the cabin, with her rifle
+at hand. There was no telling how audacious the moonshiner might
+become in his rage over the ignominy to which the girl had subjected
+him.
+
+At the breakfast-table, he spoke sharply to Alvira, as she placed the
+plate of fried ham and eggs before him.
+
+"Tell Tiny, I'm a-wantin' her."
+
+"Tiny hain't hyar yit," was the answer. "Hit's time she was."
+
+"Whar's she gone!" Uncle Dick demanded, gruffly. He detested any
+interruption of his plans.
+
+"Tiny stayed over to the Widder Higgins's las' night," Alvira
+explained. "Hit's time she come back."
+
+Uncle Dick snorted with indignation.
+
+"She didn't say nothin' to me 'bout stayin' over thar," he said
+crossly.
+
+"Nor to me, nuther," Alvira declared. "She never does beforehand. When
+the Widder Higgins kind o' hangs on, Tiny jest stays, an' comes back
+in the mornin'. She orter been 'ere afore now."
+
+Uncle Dick pushed away the plate of food, half-eaten. Dread had fallen
+on him suddenly. He tried to thrust it off, but the weight was too
+heavy for his strength of will. Perforce he yielded to alarm for the
+girl's safety. A great fear was upon him lest it be too late for the
+warning he had meant to give. He growled a curse on his own folly in
+not guarding against immediate attack by the outlaw. It was with small
+hope of finding his apprehensions groundless that he set forth at
+once, rifle in hand, for the cabin of the Widow Higgins. There, his
+fears were confirmed. The old woman had seen nothing of Plutina, since
+the short pause on the way to the post-office. Uncle Dick groaned
+aloud over the fate that might have come on the girl. He told enough
+to give the Widow Higgins some understanding of the situation, and
+bade her go to his own house, there to remain and to comfort Alvira.
+For himself, he would first search over the Cherry Lane trail for any
+trace of his vanished granddaughter, and thereafter raise the
+hue-and-cry to a general hunt through the mountains for the capture or
+killing of the villain, and the recovery of the girl, dead or alive.
+Not for an instant did the old man doubt that Hodges had done the
+deed.
+
+Uncle Dick had no more than passed Luffman's Branch on his way over
+the Cherry Lane Trail, when a joyous hail caused him to lift his eyes
+from their close scrutiny of the beaten earth. Descending the trail, a
+little way in front of him, appeared the slender, erect form of the
+one-armed veteran. The bridegroom moved with a jaunty step, and his
+wrinkled features radiated gladness. But, as he came near, his face
+sobered at sight of the other's expression. His voice was solicitous.
+
+"I 'low somethin' air wrong," he ventured.
+
+Uncle Dick in his distress welcomed the note of sympathy. Somehow, he
+felt curiously drawn to this successful rival, and he was sure that
+his feeling was returned. Between the two men there was a curious
+mutual respect, as if each relied on the entire good sense of one who
+had loved Fanny Brown. The older man craved a confidant; he was avid
+for counsel and every possible assistance in this emergency. He told
+the facts as concisely as possible, while Seth Jones, wedded raptures
+forgot, listened in growing sorrow and dismay. At the end, he spoke
+simply:
+
+"I'll take a look 'long with ye, Mister Siddon. I done a heap o'
+trackin' in my time, out West. Perhaps, I kin he'p ye some."
+
+Uncle Dick put out his hand, and the two palms met in a warm clasp,
+witness of friendship's pact. Forthwith, they gave themselves to
+minute examination of the trail for any sign of the missing girl.
+
+For a time, their patient search went unrewarded. But, about a
+half-mile beyond Luffman's Branch, they came on an area still affected
+by one of the small showers so frequent in the mountains. Here, the
+veteran's alert eyes distinguished a footprint outlined in the damp
+dust.
+
+"Yer gal was barefut, I reckon," he said. He pointed to the imprint
+just before where he was standing.
+
+"Yep," Uncle Dick answered. There was a little mist over his eyes, as
+he glanced down. "Yep; hit's her'n."
+
+The veteran went forward confidently now.
+
+"She was a-steppin' plumb brisk," he declared; "feelin' pretty peart,
+I 'low; feet kind o' springy-like."
+
+Uncle Dick shivered at the words. He had a ghastly vision of Plutina
+moving at this moment with painfully dragging steps somewhere afar in
+the fastnesses of the mountains. But he said nothing of the worst
+fears to his companion. He only followed on, watching closely lest
+something escape the other's survey. Almost, he found himself hoping
+they might come on the girl's dead body. Death is not the worst of
+evils.
+
+After a mile, or a little less, the area of the shower was passed.
+Uncle Dick could hardly distinguish any sign of the footprints in the
+heavy dust of the trail, but he accepted without question the
+veteran's assertion that they were easily perceptible to the trained
+sight. Suddenly, Seth Jones halted, and peered intently, stooping low.
+Uncle Dick, too, bent to look, but the faint markings in the dirt were
+without significance to him. The veteran moved to the roadside and
+searched on hands and knees over the yard of grass between the trail
+and a thicket. When he stood erect again, he regarded his companion
+inquiringly.
+
+"They seem to be the tracks o' some mighty-big, hefty cuss, what come
+out o' these-hyar bushes, an' tuk along arter her. Kin ye make a guess
+who hit mout be, Mister Siddon?"
+
+Uncle Dick's face grew black with a rage that was the more frightful
+because it had no object on which to vent itself.
+
+"Hit's him!" he mumbled thickly, choking over the effort for
+self-control. Abruptly, he abandoned the attempt. His big voice
+boomed forth in a torrent of blasphemous imprecations. When, finally,
+he rumbled into silence, and stood panting for breath, the veteran,
+who had appeared to listen with great interest and perhaps some
+pleasure, spoke soothingly:
+
+"You-all was shore some eloquent, an' I 'low the ornery critter
+deserves every mite on hit. An', anyhow, I reckon ye done saved
+yerse'f a stroke. Ye was a-lookin' like ye'd bust, but ye let off the
+steam a-cussin' 'im out. Now, let's see." He went back to the trail,
+and advanced very slowly, for the markings were faint even to his
+skilled eyes. Uncle Dick, trembling a little from the violence of his
+outburst, followed faithfully, but he could no longer detect traces of
+the passing of either man or girl.
+
+Thus, in slow progress, they came at last to the fork of the trail.
+This is at the extreme easterly slope of Bull Head Mountain, which
+rises from the north side of the valley as if in sullen rivalry of
+Stone Mountain below. In the division of the trail here, one branch
+ascends toward Glade Creek, across the mountain, while the other keeps
+on straight to Cherry Lane. Within the fork of the trails lies a
+fallen giant of the coves, a huge yellow poplar, almost hidden along
+its length by the embowering thickets. Toward this, in an advance
+tediously slow, the veteran made his way. When, finally, he was come
+up to the great bole, he stood quietly for minutes, gazing everywhere
+round about. Uncle Dick, emulating his companion, peered earnestly,
+and soon he, too, perceived the evidences that something out of the
+ordinary had occurred just here. Over a considerable space next the
+trunk there were signs of a struggle. Broken branches showed on some
+of the bushes; leaves from the poplar shoots were lying on the grass;
+the turf was freshly torn here and there. The veteran bent over, and
+picked up an object from the ground, which he held out. Uncle Dick
+gave one glance, and uttered a cry of despair. He recognized it as a
+button from the dress Plutina had been wearing the day before.
+
+The further search of the veteran achieved little. He was able only to
+make sure that the footprints led off through the forest toward the
+south. But, now, the impressions were no longer of one following the
+other. Instead, it was revealed that the two walked side by side.
+Uncle Dick groaned as his companion told him of this. Plutina had been
+attacked; she had fought; she had been overcome--and she was still
+alive!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+
+With the news of the event, a flame of wrath swept through the coves.
+Everywhere, the men gathered in parties, to hunt, rifle in hand, for
+some trace of the outlaw. There was none to give him favor, save the
+outcasts numbered among his dependants. The usual sympathy for the
+illicit distiller ceased utterly, destroyed by hatred for the
+criminal's final offense. For the first time in the history of the
+mountains, there was no voice raised to protest--nor any rifle pointed
+in the laurel--against the Federal officers, who wandered at will in
+the wild places. In execration of Dan Hodges for his sin against the
+peace and dignity of the community, the people forgot for the nonce
+their ancient enmity against the Government. With one accord, the folk
+of the mountains joined in abhorrence of Hodges, sullenly anxious to
+bring about his punishment, to avenge his victim at least, if too late
+to save her.
+
+Seth Jones turned from the joys of the belated honeymoon to give every
+aid in his power. His counsel and the comfort of his presence were
+boons to Uncle Dick. The veteran had learned from his bride
+concerning the disfavor in which Zeke was held, and the reason for it.
+It seemed to him the part of wisdom, in this crisis, to feign
+ignorance, and he blandly suggested, on the return of the two from the
+fallen poplar, that they should ride to Joines' store in the evening,
+there, over the telephone, to dispatch a telegram to Zeke in New York.
+It was the psychological moment for success. There was not even a
+flicker of resentment aroused. Uncle Dick remembered that the Quaker
+school-teacher spy had been saved by Zeke from Dan Hodges. In his new
+mood, that fact was enough to overcome all rancor against the lad.
+Moreover, he realized the tragedy of Plutina's fate to her lover, and
+he was moved to compassion. He accepted the veteran's suggestion
+without a word of remonstrance.
+
+It was Seth Jones, too, who broke down the old man's last prejudice by
+persuading him to summon Marshal Stone. Uncle Dick yielded with an odd
+mingling of emotions--shame and relief: shame over such trafficking
+with the "revenuers," whom he had consistently fought and despised
+through three generations; relief that he had gained the strong arm of
+the law to his side. He had been greatly heartened when Stone answered
+over the wire that he would set out with a posse at midnight for the
+Siddon cabin, so that, after a conference there, the active work of
+searching could be begun promptly at dawn.
+
+Thus, it came about that, for the first time in history, Uncle Dick
+Siddon welcomed the sound of hoofbeats pounding up the trail through
+the darkness. Where, aforetime, he would have leaped to wind a blast
+of warning to the moonshiners above against the coming of the
+"revenuers," the old man now hastened to the cabin door, and flung it
+wide, and went forth on the porch to give grateful greeting.
+
+When a council had been held, three parties set forth. Seth Jones was
+the guide for one, which went to the northeast, through the Bull Head
+Mountain region, whither, in all likelihood, the outlaw would make his
+way, if he meant to escape out of the country. The marshal, with one
+companion, skirted Stone Mountain. Uncle Dick led two of the posse to
+the yellow poplar where the struggle had occurred, after which they
+would follow the general direction of the tracks. The marshal expected
+to make a circuit of the mountain rapidly enough to effect a junction
+with Uncle Dick's party by noon, at the Woodruff Gate. The veteran and
+his two men, who would have by far the roughest going, were not to
+report until sundown at the Siddon cabin.
+
+From the poplar, Uncle Dick and the deputies were able, with great
+difficulty, to follow the tracks of the outlaw and his prisoner toward
+the south for a full mile. But at this point, an expanse of
+outcropping rock baffled them completely. Search as they would, there
+was no least sign of footsteps anywhere. After an hour of futile
+questing, they gave up in despair, and hurried to the rendezvous at
+the Woodruff Gate.
+
+The marshal and his men had already reached the gate, and Stone had
+wherewith to give the distraught grandfather new hope.
+
+"I came on their tracks a mile below where you lost them," he
+explained. "They still keep to the south. We followed as far as the
+sand bar below Sandy Creek Falls."
+
+"Come on!" Uncle Dick cried, fiercely. "Let's arter 'im this-yer
+minute."
+
+The marshal shook his head at the old man's enthusiasm.
+
+"We're not much better off yet," he declared. "We found the place
+where he camped last night. 'Twasn't far. I reckon the girl made his
+going as slow as she could. She naturally would." Uncle Dick nodded
+somberly. "But the trouble is, the trail ends at the sand bar--ends
+absolutely."
+
+"We'll find hit ag'in," Uncle Dick exclaimed, stoutly. "We jest got to
+find hit. Come on!"
+
+The marshal urged the other to rest in preparation for the hard
+climb--down the ridge, and then up the sharp slopes and ledges of the
+mountainside. But the old man would have none of it. So, straightway,
+the two moved off, leaving the others, less hardy, to repose, and in
+due time they came to the bar below Sandy Creek Falls.
+
+High among the embattled cliffs of Stone Mountain's eastern end, Sandy
+Creek races in tumultuous course. The limpid stream cascades in
+vertical sheen of silver from ledge to ledge. It writhes with
+ceaseless noisy complainings through the twisting ways of
+bowlder-strewn gorges. Here and there, in some placid pool, it seems
+to pause, languid, resting from its revels of flight. Such a pool lay
+at the foot of the longest fall. A barrier of sand circled from the
+cliff as the brim for this bowl of the waters. To this point, Marshal
+Stone and Uncle Dick were now come. The tracks were plainly
+discernible in the sand, along the edge of the pool. There were the
+huge misshapen outlines of the outlaw's bare feet, deep-sunken from
+the heavy weight of the man. Beside them showed the slender prints
+made by the captive, lightly pressed. These tracks followed the
+curving bar, along the water's edge. They reached to the foot of the
+cliff, close to where was the outer edge of the cataract. There they
+ceased.
+
+The marshal, already familiar with the mystery, and baffled by it,
+searched again perfunctorily. Uncle Dick hunted hither and yon with
+feverish activity, at first confidently, then doubtfully, finally in
+despair. He, in his turn, could find no further clue. He gave over his
+efforts eventually, and stood silent beside the marshal, staring
+bewilderedly. About the amphitheatre formed by the pool, pines grew in
+a half-circle, save where the narrow channel of the stream descended.
+But between the barricade of the trees and the basin of water lay the
+smooth stretch of sand, slightly moist from out-flung spray of the
+falls. Upon that level surface, the tracks showed forth--undeniable,
+inexplicable. They marched without deviation straight to the base of
+the great cliff. There, within a little space, they grew confused, as
+from much trampling. But they did not return; they did not go
+elsewhere. There was a clear distance of a rod over the sand to the
+rocky ground where the trees grew. On the other side lay the deeps of
+the pool. Before them reared the impassible wall of the precipice. And
+there the tracks ended.
+
+Uncle Dick knew the place well, and on that account the mystery was
+the greater. He could find no possible explanation, however wildly
+improbable, of that disappearance. The broad sheet of the falls fell
+close to the cliff's face. The rock was unworn by the torrent, without
+recess or cavern. And that precipice, twice the pool's width, mounted
+sheer a hundred feet, the height of the cascade. The front was
+unbroken save by tiny rifts and narrow ledges, where dwarfed ground
+pines clung precariously. With a muttered curse, the old man turned
+from his vain contemplation of the cliff, and let his troubled eyes
+rest on the pool. Suddenly, he started. He remained motionless for a
+moment, then, with nervous haste threw off his shirt, and trousers.
+Marshal Stone, chancing to look that way, was astonished to see his
+companion naked, poised at the water's edge. He had time to note with
+admiration the splendid figure, still supple and strongly muscled
+despite the four-score years. Then Uncle Dick leaped, and dived. It
+was long seconds before he reappeared, only to dive again. He paid no
+attention to the marshal's remonstrances. Only when he was convinced
+of the uselessness of further search in the pool's depths, did he give
+over the task, and cast himself down on the sand to rest, panting and
+trembling a little from fatigue.
+
+"They hain't thar," he said, with grim conviction. Then he voiced the
+question that hammered in his brain: "Whar be they?"
+
+But the marshal had no answer.
+
+As they made their way drearily back toward the Woodruff Gate, the
+officer broke a long silence:
+
+"Only a blood-hound can trail them!"
+
+The gloom of Uncle Dick's expression did not lighten.
+
+"They hain't nary one in the mountings," he answered, heavily.
+
+"None nearer than Suffolk, Virginia," the marshal said. "Cyclone Brant
+has a couple of good ones. But it would cost a lot."
+
+The old man flared.
+
+"Fer God's sake, git thet-thar feller an' his dawgs. I hain't axin'
+what hit 'll cost. Hit was my money got thet-thar damned cuss out o'
+the jail-house. I hain't likely to begrudge anythin' hit 'll cost to
+git him kotched. An' Plutiny!--why, money don't matter none, if I can
+save Plutiny!"
+
+"I'll send for Brant to-night," the marshal promised, with new
+cheerfulness. "Let's hope he's not off somewhere. They send for him
+all over the country. If the dogs start day after to-morrow, they'll
+still find the scent."
+
+Uncle Dick groaned.
+
+"An' her a-lyin' out with thet-thar wolf all thet while," he mumbled,
+in despair. "Mebby, this very minute, she's a-screamin'--callin' to
+her ole gran'pap to save her. My Plutiny!" He walked with lagging
+steps; the tall form, usually so erect, was bowed under the burden of
+tormenting fears. The marshal, understanding, ventured no word of
+comfort.
+
+It was late afternoon when the dispirited searchers reached the Siddon
+clearing on their return from the fruitless day's work. There, they
+were astonished to see the Widow Higgins come down the path toward
+them, at a pace ordinarily forbidden by her rheumatic joints. She
+waved a paper in her hand.
+
+"Hit's a telegraph," she called shrilly. Her voice held something of
+the awe with which remoter regions still regard that method of
+communication. But there was a stronger emotion still that thus sent
+the old woman dancing in forgetfulness of her chronic pains. It was
+explained in her next sentence, cried out with a mother's exultation
+in the homecoming of her beloved. Almost, in joy over seeing her son
+again, she forgot the misery that was bringing him.
+
+"Hit's from Zekie! Zekie's comin' home!"
+
+Uncle Dick could not share the mother's delight. The lover's coming
+could hardly avail anything toward saving the girl. Nevertheless, he
+took the sheet of paper, which carried the message sent on by
+telephone from North Wilkesboro' to Joines' store. He read it aloud,
+that the marshal might hear:
+
+                                                      Suffolk, Va.
+
+    Richard Siddon,
+        Joines' Mill, N. C.,
+            Via Telephone from North Wilkesboro'.
+        Arrive to-night with bloodhound.
+
+                                                          Ezekiel.
+
+Uncle Dick's voice faltered a little in the reading. The black eyes
+were glowing with new hope beneath the beetling white brows, as he
+lifted his gaze to the mountain peaks. For the first time, he felt a
+thrill of jubilation over the young man whom he had rejected, whom now
+he accepted--jubilation for the fresh, virile, strength of the lad,
+for the resourcefulness that this message so plainly declared. The old
+man's lips moved in vague, mute phrases, which were the clumsy
+expressions of emotions, of gratitude to Providence for the blessing
+of another's energy, on which to lean in this time of trial. There had
+been desperate need of haste in getting the hounds on the trail. Now,
+they were coming--to-night. Zeke was bringing them. Perhaps, after
+all, an old man's declining years would know the fond tenderness of a
+daughter's care--and a son's. Thank God that Zeke was coming!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+
+Zeke, in his new life, found little leisure for loneliness, though
+nightly he fell asleep with an ache of nostalgia in his heart, longing
+for the mountains of home and the girl who dwelt among them. But his
+days were filled with various activities that held his whole
+attention. With a mind keen and apt to receive impressions, and hungry
+for knowledge, he gave himself joyously to learning the details of
+Sutton's tree-nail manufacture. The processes were, in fact, simple,
+and he mastered them with ease. Then, he was instructed more broadly
+in business methods, with the purpose of making him competent when he
+should become a manager of the projected factory in the Blue Ridge
+region. His time was thus so fully occupied that he had neither
+opportunity nor inclination for social pleasures.
+
+He spent a week-end in his employer's Long Island home, and surprised
+that gentleman mightily by the propriety of his manners, which he had
+acquired on the yacht. On this occasion, Sutton spoke definitely of
+his plans. The railroad branch north from the main line was now a
+certainty, and the construction would soon start. At that time, Zeke
+would return to North Carolina, and set about securing options on the
+best available timber. A mill would be built, and the manufacture of
+tree-nails carried on. Zeke, in addition to an adequate salary, would
+receive a certain share of the profits. The prospect was one to
+delight any ambitious young man, and Zeke appreciated it to the full.
+But most of all he rejoiced that his success should come to him in the
+place he loved, where the girl waited.
+
+Zeke had a companion, who shared with him the tiny hall-room, and kept
+at his side in long evening rambles through the city streets. It came
+about in this wise:
+
+It was one afternoon when he had been in New York for a week, that a
+visitor entered, unannounced, the office where he was listening
+intently to Sutton's crisp explanations of business routine. Zeke
+looked up at the sound of the opening door. Then, his jaw dropped, his
+eyes widened. Next moment, he sprang to his feet, his face radiant
+with welcome. His phrases, in the excitement of this meeting, were the
+mountaineer's idioms, which new associations were beginning to modify
+in his ordinary speech.
+
+"Why, hit's shorely Miss Josephine!" he cried, as he advanced upon
+her, with outstretched hand. He saw the dog, straining toward him on
+the leash. "An' thet-thar man-faced dawg!"
+
+There was a little interval of confusion, while greetings were
+exchanged amid the demonstrative antics of the bull-terrier. Sutton
+was called away presently, and then the girl explained the object of
+her visit.
+
+"You never noticed it," she said somewhat pettishly; "but one time on
+the yacht, I came up on deck with Chubbie. You were over by the rail.
+You snapped your fingers to him. I ordered him to stay with me. He
+wouldn't mind. He went to you. Well, I decided right then what I'd
+do."
+
+"Why, shucks, Miss Josephine!" Zeke exclaimed, in much distress. "He
+jest nacherly didn't mean nothin' by thet."
+
+"He showed something by it, though," was the retort. "He showed that
+he belonged to you, and not to me. So, here he is." She held out the
+leash to Zeke, who took it doubtfully, only half-comprehending. As he
+was about to speak, a gesture checked him.
+
+"I'm not really a bit generous in giving him to you. My dog must like
+me better than anyone else in the world. That's why I really don't
+want Chubbie any longer. You're first in his heart, and I'm second.
+And, though I'm quite selfish about it, I know I'm doing him the
+greatest favor in the world--that is, if you're willing to take him."
+
+"I'd shore be tickled to death to have him," Zeke admitted. "But it
+don't seem right."
+
+"Providence seems to have arranged it that way, anyhow," Josephine
+declared, airily. "Perhaps, if a surgeon operated on him for the dent
+you put in his skull, he might cease loving you. But nothing else
+seems likely to stop him."
+
+The dog, thrusting its cold muzzle against Zeke's palm, whined assent.
+Josephine regarded her disloyal pet a little regretfully.
+
+"He's a good dog," she said, softly. "He deserves to be happy."
+
+"Plutiny'll be plumb tickled to see the critter I've wrote sech a heap
+about," Zeke remarked. His eyes were suddenly grown dreamy.
+
+"You and your Plutina!" she railed. But her voice was very kindly.
+When she had learned of the young man's prospects and the nearness of
+his return home, she uttered a remark that puzzled Zeke.
+
+"You don't need to envy anyone." There was a light almost of jealousy
+in the blue eyes.
+
+"Why, I never thought o' sech a thing!" he answered indignantly. "Why
+should I?"
+
+"Why, indeed?" Josephine repeated, and she sighed. She sighed again on
+taking leave, when she observed that the bull-terrier made no
+movement to accompany her, but stood steadfastly by Zeke's side.
+
+                  *       *       *       *       *
+
+Into the happy, busy routine of Zeke's life in New York, Uncle Dick's
+telegram came with the crash of catastrophe. It was merely with
+innocent wondering that he opened the yellow envelope, which a
+messenger delivered in Sutton's office on a pleasant summer afternoon.
+It was the first missive of the sort in Zeke's experience, yet he felt
+no slightest chill of apprehension. His mood was too firmly joyous to
+be easily shaken. He merely wondered, and felt no fear whatever, as he
+pulled out the sheet of flimsy paper, and unfolded it, while his
+employer sat looking on curiously, himself already suspicious of
+trouble. Zeke read the typewritten words through stupidly, under the
+first shock uncomprehending. Then, he repeated the message aloud, as
+if challenging its meaning.
+
+"Plutina been stolen," ran the summons. "Dan Hodges done it. Need
+help."
+
+The name of Richard Siddon as the sender in itself told how desperate
+must be the situation, else Uncle Dick would not have summoned the
+suitor he had rejected. Zeke stared pitifully at Sutton. His eyes had
+the pathos of a stricken animal's. For a little, he seemed dazed by
+the unexpectedness of this evil. Then, very soon, rage mounted
+blackly. Sutton, listening, could not repress a shudder before the
+deadly hate in Zeke's voice.
+
+"I'll kill Dan Hodges!" was the promise. The voice was low and even,
+but it roared in the ears of the listener. There was something
+terrifying in the stark savagery that showed in the mountaineer's
+tones and in the drawn, pallid face.
+
+But, after the one outburst, Zeke maintained an appearance of
+hypocritical calm. Only in the tremulousness of his voice when he
+thanked Sutton did he betray the depth of his feeling.
+
+In truth, he had new reason for gratitude in this emergency to the man
+who already had so befriended him.
+
+"You'll want to start at once, of course," Sutton said.
+
+Zeke nodded assent.
+
+"Well, I think I'll go with you. Perhaps, I might help. It'll be
+better for you with somebody along."
+
+Zeke offered a protest, but it was disregarded.
+
+"I know Plutina," Sutton said, earnestly, "and I know you, Zeke. I
+want to help. Now, I wonder--"
+
+He fell silent for a space, thinking deeply. When he spoke again it
+was with curt decisiveness:
+
+"It's hurrying things a bit, but not too much. I'll have you stay down
+there, Zeke, and get after the timber as soon as you have Plutina
+back."
+
+Then, as the young man regarded him in bewilderment, he explained
+fully:
+
+"I've just heard a rumor that Grearson and Company are going to send a
+man down there. I'll beat them to it. I meant to start you off in a
+month or so. But you've learned all you need to here, and it's better
+to hurry, so as not to run any risk of my competitors getting in
+ahead. We'll get away on the train to-night."
+
+So it came about that the two reached Norfolk late in the afternoon of
+the following day, after what had seemed to the tortured lover an
+eternity of listless crawling toward the mountains. Now Zeke felt no
+longer dismay over the rapid flight of the train, as in his first
+journeying, but only a fierce longing to cover the miles more swiftly.
+For he appreciated how great was the crisis. Plutina had written him
+of her part in the raid on Hodges' still, and she had expressed in
+some degree the apprehensions she felt. Zeke was sure that, somehow,
+Plutina's betrayal of the still had become known to the outlaw, and on
+this account the man had sought vengeance. The lover sickened at the
+thought of the form that brutal vengeance might take. Often, Sutton,
+covertly watchful, averted his glance that he might not see the
+despair on the mountaineer's face.
+
+The two travelers were on their way to the ferry in Norfolk, when
+inspiration came to Zeke: He bethought him of Cyclone Brant, and the
+stag-hound, Jack. A few words sufficed for explanation of the matter
+to Sutton, who welcomed the idea of securing such assistance for the
+search.
+
+"I kin git 'im, if he's home," Zeke declared, eagerly. "He lives in
+Suffolk, 'bout twenty miles toward Wilkes. I'll try an' git 'im on the
+'phone."
+
+In this, he was successful, and he was greatly cheered by the anxiety
+displayed by Brant to be of assistance. But the detective was
+distressed over the delay of twelve hours that must ensue before they
+could get a train to North Wilkesboro'. Sutton removed this difficulty
+by ordering a special, which should be made up at once, and should
+stop at Suffolk to take on Brant and his dog. So, within the hour, the
+three men and the hound were rushing at rocking speed along the
+tortuous river course that led into the mountains. Instructions had
+been sent ahead, by Brant's suggestion, to have an automobile and
+driver in readiness for the arrival of the party at the North
+Wilkesboro' station.
+
+The three men talked but little during the trip. The tenseness of
+suspense held them in thrall, and, for the most part, they sat in grim
+silence, staring out of the windows at the swiftly flitting panorama
+of moonlit landscape, wherein the fertile level areas changed to
+narrowing valleys, and these, in turn, to wild gorges, where the
+river ran in bellowing riot beneath lofty ramparts of stone. Sutton's
+thoughts veered from pity for his young friend to keen calculation of
+profits to come from the locust timber of the slopes. Cyclone Brant
+mused on his past adventurings in these wilds. From time to time, he
+pulled at the ears of the stag-hound, which sat on its haunches in the
+aisle, balancing its big bulk elastically against the erratic joltings
+of the car, and regarding its master with patient adoration in the
+reddened eyes.
+
+Zeke, too, had the single comfort of a dog's faithful fondness. The
+bull-terrier crouched on the seat beside its master. The
+squat-featured face was thrust forward, with the heavy jaw resting on
+Zeke's lap. Often, the dog whined, with a soft, whimpering note. It
+was as if the creature knew its master's grief, and wished to tell its
+sympathy. There was a curious help to the young man's courage in the
+eager, caressing thrusts of the cold nose against his palm. And he had
+need of every help, even the least, for, in this period of inactivity,
+the spirit within him was near to fainting. Because he knew fully the
+depraved nature of Hodges, he could not blind himself to the frightful
+peril of Plutina in the outlaw's power. The girl's plight was one to
+inspire horror in any decent breast; to the lover, worshiping her as
+something ineffably holy, the possibility of her pollution by the
+brute who had stolen her away was a thing too monstrous for belief,
+yet not to be denied. He strove to drive the hideous thought from his
+mind, but, ever, it crept again into his consciousness. The sickness
+of his soul found its only relief in bursts of fury against the cause
+of this wickedness. His manhood asserted itself in a primitive lust to
+torture and to destroy.
+
+There were intervals of softer emotion, when he lived again the sweet
+raptures of hours alone with Plutina in the mountain solitude. But the
+moods of retrospection were short, perforce. They weakened him too
+greatly. The very heart seemed to flow from him like water, as
+memories crowded. The contrast of the present was too hideous for
+endurance. Again, the ghastly despair--the black rage, the whining of
+the dog, and the thrust of the cold muzzle to distract for a moment.
+Then, once more, the agonizing round.
+
+The grinding of brakes, as the train drew to a standstill at North
+Wilkesboro', came as a poignant relief to the three travelers. Even
+the dogs seemed to relax from strain, and a covert hostility, which
+had marked their first meeting, vanished while they sniffed at each
+other in inquisitive, friendly fashion.
+
+The automobile was in waiting. Zeke jumped in beside the driver. The
+bull-terrier was held firmly between his legs. Sutton, Brant and the
+hound established themselves in the tonneau. Within a minute after
+the stopping of the train, the car was rolling rapidly over the
+highway toward Joines' mill. The chauffeur made the best speed
+possible under Zeke's urging, and the run was short.
+
+Beyond the mill, the trail branching off the main road was rough and
+narrow, traversed only by horsemen and the clumsy vehicles of the
+mountaineers. No automobile had ever passed over it, and the party had
+planned to secure mounts at the mill, and to continue the journey on
+horseback. Zeke, however, realized the advantage in continuing by
+machine, were this possible, and he suggested it to the driver. The
+man was doubtful, but, too, he was an enthusiast in his work, and the
+opportunity of thus climbing the mountains, where no other car had
+been, appealed strongly to his ambition. In the end, he consented,
+with a prudent stipulation concerning possible damages. So, without
+pause, the automobile shot forward past mill and store, and went
+clambering along the trail toward the northern coves. The driver ran
+cautiously enough, despite Zeke's impatience, but, at the best, the
+trip was a strain on the men and on the mechanism that bore them, for
+the car lurched and bounced over the uneven surface, and more than
+once was near to being overturned. Their ultimate safety was due, in
+great measure, to Zeke himself. Familiar with every foot of the way,
+he was able to advise the chauffeur of the more dangerous points.
+Neither Sutton nor Brant had uttered a word of protest against
+undertaking the perils of this final stage, but both breathed a sigh
+of relief, when, at last, the car stopped in the clearing before the
+Siddon cabin, and the journey was safely done.
+
+The wooden wheels of the poplar clock in the cabin were whirring for
+the striking of midnight, when their noise was overborne by the
+grotesque, unfamiliar honkings of an automobile horn. With the second
+of the three blasts, the cabin's door swung open, and in the light of
+it was silhouetted the tall form of Uncle Dick.
+
+"Zeke!" he called; and his voice was a little broken.
+
+Then, with instinctive delicacy of feeling, he stepped aside, as the
+young man sprang up the steps, and he stood silent, while mother and
+son were folded in each other's arms, murmuring endearments. But, when
+Zeke at last turned to face the old man, Uncle Dick's hand went out to
+a powerful clasp that told how profoundly he was moved.
+
+"I'm glad ye've come, boy," he said, simply. And Zeke knew that the
+old distrust and suspicion were gone forever, and in their stead were
+come affection and faith.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+
+Zeke was astounded when he looked around the living-room and
+recognized Marshal Stone, together with the members of the posse. He
+suddenly became aware that the change in Uncle Dick was even greater
+than he had supposed. There had been a radical readjustment of the old
+man's' attitude toward life, which disposed him not only to acceptance
+of Zeke with affection and confidence, but also to toleration of, and
+alliance with, the "revenuers," whom he had so consistently hated
+through a long lifetime. Zeke refrained however, from any open
+expression of his amazement, and at once joined the other men in
+devising a plan of operations to be begun at dawn.
+
+It was decided that Uncle Dick should accompany the marshal and Brant,
+with the stag-hound, to the tracks of Hodges and Plutina on the north
+face of Stone Mountain, near Sandy Creek, where the dog could take up
+the scent, in the hope of solving the mystery that had baffled the
+human searchers.
+
+Then Uncle Dick interposed a suggestion that suited Zeke well.
+
+"If so be," he exclaimed abruptly, "as how Dan Hodges is atop
+thet-thar mounting, an' he gits the dawg nigh the precipice, he might
+throw the critter over. He's powerful strong, Dan is, an' desprit."
+
+"Yes, the fellow's capable of it," Stone agreed.
+
+"I'm a-thinkin' as hit mout be well fer Zeke to git atop the mounting
+fust off," Uncle Dick continued, "an' watch out fer Hodges. Hit's
+pretty open up thar, and easy to waylay a body."
+
+"I'll go," Zeke declared, with eagerness.
+
+The marshal directed the men of the posse to scatter to various points
+on the railway lines.
+
+"Hodges'll probably try to get out of the country, the minute he hears
+the hound after him," Stone explained. "All of my men have seen him,
+and they'll be able to stop him, if he manages somehow to cover his
+scent from the dog, and get off."
+
+Sutton, much against his will, was forced to remain inactive at the
+cabin as he was not physically fitted for the hard tramping over the
+mountains.
+
+Zeke was the prey of emotions too deep to permit much interest in a
+stranger, but he had a friendly, if wan, smile for the veteran, whom
+he remembered from their single meeting. He attempted a display of
+attention on hearing of the marriage so recently achieved, but the
+effort failed pitifully. Seth Jones, however, took no offence, since
+he understood how great must be the young man's misery. On the
+contrary, his sympathies were deeply stirred, and he essayed a few
+words meant to comfort.
+
+"An' I reckon I'll go 'long with you-all, Zeke, in the mornin'," he
+concluded.
+
+But Zeke shook his head at the offer.
+
+"I got to cross over home fer my rifle-gun," he explained, vaguely.
+
+"I clean fergot to tell ye," Uncle Dick cried. "Yer rifle-gun's hyar,
+Zeke. I done fotched it over fer ye."
+
+"Thank ye, Uncle Dick," was the grave response. But the young man did
+not rescind his refusal of the veteran's company.
+
+Uncle Dick offered a share of his bed to Brant and the marshal, but it
+was refused by both. There were blankets spread for the men on the
+floor of the porch, where the smoke gushed from a smudge kettle to
+keep off the mosquitoes. There, presently, the company stretched
+themselves for the brief dreamless sleep won by the day's fatigues.
+
+Even Zeke fell into a sound slumber, with the bull-terrier nestled at
+his breast. He had not thought to sleep, only to lie quiet for a
+little rest, and then, long before the dawn, to issue forth alone.
+Nevertheless, his repose was profound for two hours, or more. Perhaps,
+the stirring of the dog awoke him; perhaps, his own determination,
+subconsciously exerted. Anyhow, he straightened up suddenly, and
+stared about him stupidly, reluctant to believe that he had actually
+slept thus, while Plutina cried out for succor. He was relieved when
+he perceived that there was not yet even a trace of dawn in the east.
+He realized that it was as well, for though he had lost little time,
+he felt vitally refreshed, with new vigors to battle in behalf of the
+girl he loved. It was but the work of a minute noiselessly to possess
+himself of his rifle, and to descend the steps. The bull-terrier kept
+close at his heels. With the dog still following, Zeke, pressed
+forward through the darkness toward Stone Mountain.
+
+The other sleepers were aroused by Uncle Dick as the first gray light
+was flushing to the rose of dawn over the eastern mountains. There was
+some astonishment at finding Zeke already gone, but it subsided
+quickly, for all understood how great must be his anxiety. The men of
+the posse duly took their departure for the railway points designated
+by the marshal. Seth Jones set out in pursuit of Zeke. Stone, with
+Uncle Dick and Brant, made ready for the actual hunting of the
+outlaw.
+
+"I've seen Jack more than once pick up a cold trail three days old,"
+the hound's master declared, with a manifest pride in the creature's
+prowess; "and run down his man. Can we get hold of something to give
+him the scent--an old shoe, or cap--anything?"
+
+"Got jest the thing fer ye," Uncle Dick replied, leading the way from
+the cabin toward one of the out-buildings. "Hit's an ole coat. Dan
+left hit one hot day when he stopped in at my forge, to tinker the
+rivets to the cap o' the still. Hit was dum hot thet day, an' he left
+'is coat. 'Twa'n't wuth comin' back fer. I 'low the smell's about all
+thet's left to hit."
+
+Brant showed the tattered garment to the stag-hound, and bade the
+animal smell it. The dog sniffed obediently a few times, sneezed as if
+in disgust of the odor, regarded its master understandingly, and then
+walked away.
+
+"That's all that's necessary," Cyclone Brant declared. "The dog and I
+are ready."
+
+Forthwith, the three men, with the hound, set forth toward the
+southeast, to cut the track of the outlaw near Sandy creek. They
+followed the trail to a point some distance beyond the Woodruff Gate,
+and then left it to ascend the precipitous slopes near the eastern end
+of Stone Mountain. They were not far from Sandy Creek Falls, when the
+marshal halted, and pointed out the remains of a camp-fire.
+
+"This is where Hodges stopped to cook his supper the first night," he
+explained. "I followed the tracks on to the creek, and up it to the
+falls, where I lost them. Now, it's up to the dog."
+
+A growl from the hound caused the three to look up, startled. There
+was an exclamation from Uncle Dick, and the rifle leaped to his
+shoulder.
+
+"No, no--don't shoot!" Stone ordered. He, too, had seen and recognized
+Garry Hawks, as the fellow, evidently disconcerted by their presence
+there, slipped stealthily into the laurel. "He'll be more useful to us
+alive presently," he explained to Uncle Dick, who had obeyed
+protestingly.
+
+"Thet's so, likely," the old man conceded grudgingly. Then he chuckled
+harshly, for the first time since Plutina's disappearance. "Got his
+right wing slung up! Did ye see hit? Tiny done hit--pore gal! Purty
+peart at shootin', Tiny is. Thet-thar--"
+
+"There's a fresh track here made by Hodges," the marshal exclaimed,
+interrupting. He pointed to a plain imprint on the dirt covering of a
+flat rock.
+
+Brant brought his dog to the spot, pointed to the footprint, and
+slipped the leash. The hound lowered its head, snuffed at the ground,
+and gave tongue. In the same second, it was off at speed, running with
+muzzle low, with the continuous whining yelps that told of a warm
+scent. It did not vanish into the coverts as all had expected, but
+followed through the open place that led to the northward, skirting
+the wood. As the men hurried after, they caught a final glimpse of the
+dog two hundred yards beyond, just disappearing over a ridge. They
+followed the sound of its baying with what haste they might, yet
+slowly, by reason of the difficult going. The dog's cries guided them,
+much to the surprise of Uncle Dick and the marshal, straight toward
+Sandy Creek Falls, whither the first tracks of the outlaw and the girl
+had led, and where they had been so mysteriously lost. As the three
+scrambled up a steep ascent, scarcely a hundred yards from the
+sand-bar, there came to their ears from the hound a high, melancholy
+howl.
+
+"It means that Jack is at fault, somehow," Brant explained in answer
+to a grunt of inquiry from Uncle Dick. "Something puzzling him for a
+minute."
+
+The two listeners looked at each other with grave faces. Was it
+possible, they wondered, that the hound would be baffled, even as they
+had been, there at the pool? But their expression lightened the next
+moment, for two sharp, harsh barks came from the dog, which was
+evidently still in the neighborhood of the falls, and its master
+interpreted:
+
+"Jack's treed his game, sure's you're born!"
+
+The three topped the ridge, and broke into a run down the slope, their
+rifles at the ready. Within the minute, they leaped from the thicket
+into the open place below the falls. Then, with one accord, they
+stopped short and stood staring bewilderedly.
+
+The hound continued its deep-chested baying. It stood erect on its
+hind legs, almost to a man's height. It was supported by its fore-paws
+extended as far up as they would reach against the wall of the
+precipice, a little to the left of the waterfall. As it barked, the
+dog held its muzzle pointed straight upward. There could be no doubt,
+if the sensitiveness of the brute were to be relied on, that its
+quarry had, in some incomprehensible fashion, contrived to mount the
+sheer surface of the cliff. That the hound was sure, was made plain by
+the rigidity of its posture, by the fierce, challenging ululations,
+which pealed forth incessantly.
+
+The three men went forward presently, their gaze wandering aloft from
+the dog, over the inaccessible expanse of vertical cliffs. They came
+down to the sand-bar, and followed it around the pool, still in
+silence, and still with their puzzled eyes roving hither and yon for
+some clue to understanding of this thing. But, of a sudden, Uncle Dick
+shouted:
+
+"I see how 'tis! I shorely kotch on. Looky thar!"
+
+The marshal and Brant followed the direction of his pointing arm, but
+they saw nothing to make the matter clear--only a tiny ledge, fifty
+feet above them, along which grew a few bushes and clumps of ground
+pine. It offered no hiding-place for a child even, hardly footing for
+the outlaw's heavy bulk. But Uncle Dick shook his head to rebuke their
+lack of comprehension, then explained:
+
+"Dan's a keen un, all right," he said, with grudging admiration. "But
+this-hyar time he's done left 'is mark fer my ole eyes to see. Now,
+you-all jest throw yer eyes o' vision up the side o' the cliff ag'in.
+If ye looks cluss, ye kin see a streak o' dampness on the rock. Hit's
+jet as if a mounting rattler mout 'a' dove down the rock right thar.
+But 'twa'n't thet. Thet-thar streak is the mark of a wet rope--er
+mebby a grape-vine. Thet's the way them devils git up an' down. I'll
+bet every stick o' my mounting timber them cusses got a cave up thar,
+offen the ledge. P'rhaps Garry Hawks jest got up, since we-uns seen
+'im. An' the rock hain't had time to dry from the rope, er vine,
+a-gittin' wet in the falls. Dan Hodges thought he had a mighty cute
+place to lay out in. But he's kotched jest the same--damn 'im!... Good
+dawg!" The change in Uncle Dick's voice as he spoke the last two words
+was startling.
+
+The two listeners accepted the old man's solution, but they did not
+share his enthusiasm. On the contrary, they were very grave, for the
+task before them appeared formidable, if not impossible, of
+achievement. As they continued silent, gazing upward with frowning
+faces, Uncle Dick regarded them at first in perplexity, then in
+rapidly-mounting apprehension.
+
+"What's a-bitin' on ye?" he demanded, at last.
+
+The marshal replied.
+
+"There's no way of getting them out of there. They're armed and not
+particular about murder. They can hold that fort till kingdom-come.
+Dan could alone. There's nothing for it but to starve 'em out--if
+they're there."
+
+"And the trouble about that is," Brant added, "that they've got the
+girl for hostage. It seems to me that this Dan Hodges has the
+whip-hand."
+
+For a little, Uncle Dick, who had paled under the tan, stood silent,
+looking helplessly from one to the other of his companions. Then he
+groaned aloud. But in the next instant, he straightened to his full
+height. His face grew convulsed with rage, as he faced the cliff, and
+his great voice volumed above the clamor of the cataract:
+
+"God A'mighty damn ye, Dan Hodges! Damn ye--damn ye!"
+
+And then again:
+
+"Damn ye, Dan Hodges, ferever an' ferever!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+
+Plutina's treatment of Hodges had had a curious effect on that lawless
+character. The humiliation to which he had been subjected had indeed
+filled him with vicious rage, but, too, it had inflamed his passion
+for the girl. Her scorn and her fierce mastery of him had made her
+more than ever desirable. He was fascinated by the strength and
+courage she had displayed. Brutal and evil as he was, Hodges was
+strong physically, and, in his own wicked way, strong of will. Because
+he was stronger than his fellows, he ruled them. Strength was, in
+fact, the one thing that he could admire. The revelation of it in
+Plutina at once set her apart from all other women, and gave to his
+craving for her a clumsy sort of veneration. But that veneration was
+strangely modified by resolve to be avenged for the insult she had put
+upon him. Thus, it had come about that he planned to satisfy his
+varied feelings toward the girl by the abduction. He swore to master
+her, to change her insolence to fawning submission, to abject
+fondness.
+
+Hodges wasted no time. His sluggish brain began its scheming the
+moment a turn in the trail hid him from view, after the ignominious
+march from the Holloman Gate. At sunrise, next morning, he was lurking
+on the borders of the Siddon clearing, spying on the movements of the
+family. He even witnessed Plutina's confession to her grandfather, of
+which he guessed the purport, and at which he cursed vilely beneath
+his breath. When Plutina set forth for the Cherry Lane post-office, he
+followed, slinking through the forest at a safe distance from the
+trail. He was not quite certain as to where or when he should attack
+the girl, but he meant to seize the first favorable opportunity,
+whether it came sooner or later. It came, as a matter of fact, very
+soon, and it was given by Plutina herself.
+
+There at the fallen poplar, the girl found a comfortable nook on the
+big trunk, where her back was supported by a limb. The serenity of the
+scene soothed her over-wrought nerves. The sense of relief that had
+come from confession to her grandfather was less vivid now. In its
+stead was a blessed peacefulness. She watched lazily the visible
+details of forest life around about her. Her attention centered
+finally on a yellow-hammer, which was industriously boring the trunk
+of a dead chestnut. From the nest near-by, the callow young thrust
+naked heads, with bills gaping hungrily. Then, in a twinkling, birds
+and forest vanished, and she was standing on the mist-strewn steeps
+of Stone Mountain, and Zeke's arm was about her, and her hand was
+clasped in his. So, she slept, and smiled a little in her dreams, for
+the touch of the breeze on her cheek seemed the caress of her lover's
+lips. From his lair in the laurel, Dan Hodges, watching, knew that his
+opportunity was come. The outlaw laid down his rifle, and drew from a
+pocket a stout leash of cowhide, a yard long. Glancing from time to
+time at his intended victim, to see that she still slept, he hastily
+fashioned a slip-noose at either end of the thong. This done, he began
+moving forward with the utmost caution, taking advantage of the cover,
+that he might remain invisible should the girl awake. He held the
+leash in his two hands ready for instant action. A slight detour
+brought him around the stump of the poplar, just behind Plutina.
+Advancing with even increased carefulness now, he approached until the
+girl was easily within his reach. As she reclined on the tree-trunk,
+her left hand hung at length on the side next to him. The right arm
+was bent along the supporting branch, and the hand pillowed her cheek.
+After a moment of doubt, Hodges decided that he would attempt to
+secure the free wrist in a noose of the leash without awakening her.
+It would be easy then to catch and bind the other wrist. In the
+confusion of sudden rousing from sleep, she would make no effective
+resistance. The capture would be very simple.
+
+It was, in truth, tragically simple, yet not so simple as the outlaw
+had anticipated. From dreams of tenderness, Plutina was suddenly
+started to hateful realization by the scarcely perceptible touch of
+this being so repugnant to her every instinct. She was confused,
+indeed, but not too confused for frantic resistance. It needed no more
+than recognition of the man's brutal face so close to hers to inspire
+her. She fought him with every ounce of her strength. The left hand
+was useless, held down by his on the thong, with the noose drawn taut
+about the wrist. But the outlaw, though he contrived to get the other
+noose over her right hand, failed somehow to tighten it at once. She
+was able to strike at him again and again. Her blows fell on his face,
+and they were sturdy blows. Hodges made no effort to avoid them, nor
+struck back--only busied himself with the effort to tighten the noose.
+It was evident that he disdained her attack. A certain virile pride
+forbade defense against this onslaught of a girl. Finally, he brought
+his left hand to aid in adjusting the second noose. In the few seconds
+of liberty, Plutina abandoned blows, and resorted to savage clawing at
+the evil face. Her ten nails streaked the coarse features with blood.
+But still he seemed absolutely indifferent to such wounds as she
+could inflict. Then, the noose slipped to tightness. The girl's hands
+were brought close together behind her back, where she stood beside
+him. He knotted the slack of the leash, and holding the loop, grinned
+triumphantly at his captive. His bloody face was a mask of malice.
+
+"Ye damned little wildcat," he growled, yet with an unmistakable note
+of admiration in his voice, "if I sarved ye 'cordin' to yer earnin's,
+I'd shorely tap ye over thet-thar purty haid o' your'n, an' pitch ye
+over into the Devil's Kittle, to wait fer yer runt lover to come arter
+ye." He twisted her about viciously. Despite her strength, unusual in
+a woman, Plutina was powerless in his grip. Holding her close, face to
+face, he contemplated the girl's pitiable distress with gloating eyes
+in which there was no faintest suggestion of pity. The prisoner met
+the malignant gaze for an instant. Then, her eyes fell, and she stood
+trembling. She was panting, partly from terror, partly from the
+violence with which she had struggled. Hodges chuckled, well content
+over the impression he had made. He would show her how a woman should
+be tamed! But the thing must be done in full accord with a plan he had
+made. Now that the captive had duly learned her first lesson in
+submissiveness, he might relax a little from his severity for a time.
+Besides, too much fright might leave her helpless on his hands, which
+would be highly inconvenient, since there was a rough journey on foot
+before them. When he next spoke, he tried, without much success, to
+make his voice conciliatory.
+
+"Thar hain't no call fer ye to be so dum skeery--leastways, not yit. I
+hain't a-hurtin' ye none--not yit--only jest a-tyin' yer han's to keep
+'em out o' mischief. But I reckon as how ye'll hev to eat them words
+ye spoke to me at the gate yistiddy. I 'low ye done forgot the warnin'
+I gin ye 'bout playin' Dan Hodges fer a fool. Ye're lookin' mighty
+sorry ye ever tried hit." He chuckled again, as he meditated a
+humorous effort: "Ye know thet pore feller what ye winged yistiddy?"
+He shook his head reprovingly. "You-all shore hadn't orter never 'ave
+done no sech thing. Garry wa'n't a-bitin' on ye none. He's hurt bad,
+Garry is, an' he needs a nuss the worst way, Garry does. An' so I come
+an' got ye." He guffawed over his wit. "If ye'll behave I'll let loose
+o' ye a mite, an' we'll stroll along a matter of a few mile to whar
+Garry's waitin' awful impatient."
+
+Suddenly, unreasoning fear surged up in Plutina, brimmed over in a
+torrent of pleading words. She knew the uselessness of appeal to this
+callous wretch. But the instinct of terror in her horrible situation
+mastered the girl, so that she forgot pride, and besought his mercy.
+She was ghastly pale, and the dilated eyes were almost black, with a
+stricken look in their clouded depths. Her voice was shaking.
+
+"Lemme go Dan--lemme go. Ye've done got even with me now fer yistiddy.
+Lemme go--I ax it of ye, Dan. I done ye dirt yistiddy, 'cause I was
+scared o' ye. An' I'm scared o' ye now, Dan. Lemme go home, an' I
+won't never tell nobody how ye kotched me."
+
+She had raised her eyes beseechingly. Now, as she saw the smug mockery
+on her captor's face, she fell silent. The futility of any pleading
+was too plain. Her eyes shifted to the ground again. But the first
+wild fear was past, and she began to think with some clearness. At
+once, it occurred to her that she must guard her strength jealously.
+She had already wasted too much in vain physical struggling and in
+vainer emotional outbursts. She must save her energies henceforth both
+of body and of mind, that she might have wherewith to contrive, escape
+and wherewith to accomplish it, or wherewith to fight against a
+lustful brute to the very death.
+
+Hodges spoke approval.
+
+"Ye're gittin' sense. Better save yer breath to cool yer porrich, stid
+o' wastin' hit a-whinin' to me. But I shore admire fer to hear ye
+squawk. Ye hain't quite so damned uppitty as ye was yistiddy."
+
+"I 'low I must do what ye says," Plutina agreed, listlessly. She felt
+very weary, now that the reaction was upon her. At whatever cost, she
+must have an interval in which to recover from this weakness.
+
+"Thet's the ticket!" Hodges exclaimed, with a jovialty meant to be
+winning. He went behind her, and loosened the knot he had last tied,
+so that her wrists, although still fast bound, had a little play. The
+length of the loop allowed him to move by her side with it over his
+arm. "You-all jest mosey acrost to thet-thar birch clump," he
+directed, pointing. "I got a rifle-gun yender, what I kain't noways do
+without."
+
+Plutina walked obediently at his side in the direction indicated, and
+stood passively while he picked up the weapon. Then, in response to
+his command, she set off with him through the tortuous forest paths to
+the southward.
+
+For the time being, Plutina's dominant emotion was a vast depression.
+It bore down on her like a physical burden, under which she had hardly
+the power to go forward with slouching steps. It was as if the end of
+the world were come, with the loss of everything good and clean and
+happy. The only reality was this foul creature to whom she was bound,
+from whom there was no escape, who had but to speak and she must obey,
+who had the authority to compel obedience. She was sick with horror
+of the man's nearness. She felt defilement from the avid eyes, which
+moved over her in wanton lingering from head to foot, and back again.
+But she had no resource against him. She could only endure for the
+present, awaiting the return of strength. She could see no glimmer of
+hope anywhere. Yet, she strove numbly against this enveloping despair.
+She told herself again and again that, somehow, relief would come
+before the dreaded crisis. The words were spiritless; they brought no
+conviction. Nevertheless, she kept repeating them mutely to herself,
+as she trudged drearily beside Hodges toward Stone Mountain.
+
+"I'll git clar o' him somehow--I will, I will! Gran'pap'll kill 'im!
+Zeke'll come! He will!"
+
+It was incredible that her lover could come, that he could even know
+of the evil, until too late to save her. Yet, the thought of his
+coming subtly cheered her. It persisted in defiance of all reason. And
+the affrighted girl clung to it with desperate tenacity, as a drowning
+man to the life line. She kept repeating to herself, "Zeke'll come! He
+will, he will!" as if the phrases were a spell for the soothing of
+terror. She wished that her hands were free to touch the fairy crystal
+in her bosom.
+
+The outlaw, after uncouth efforts at conversation, which met with no
+response, relapsed into sullen silence, and he mended the pace until
+the girl was hard put to it to keep up with his stride. On the first
+slopes of Stone Mountain, he halted, evidently at a spot where he had
+camped on other occasions, for presently he produced a skillet and
+coffee-pot and materials for a rude meal from their concealment in the
+bushes. But his first care was to place the prisoner on a log, where a
+sapling at her back served for attaching the loop of the leash. He
+then busied himself with making a fire and preparing the food, from
+time to time jeering at the helpless girl, who watched him with
+smouldering hate in her eyes.
+
+"Hit's you-all orter be a-doin' these-hyar chores," he declared, with
+a grin. "An' they's a good time a-comin' when ye'll be plumb tickled
+to death to wait on yer Danny boy. A good time comin', cuss ye!"
+
+He devoured his food ravenously, washing it down with the coffee.
+Finally, he brought slices of bread and bacon to Plutina, and laid
+them in her lap. He loosened her right hand and so permitted her to
+feed herself. It was her impulse to refuse the offering, but she
+resisted the folly, knowing the necessity of food, if she would have
+energy for the ordeal before her. So, she gulped down the bread and
+meat, and drank from the dipper full of coffee. Then, her bonds were
+tightened again, and the two renewed their march.
+
+The going was harder here, up and down the rock-strewn slopes. Fatigue
+lay very heavy on Plutina, after the strains of the two days. Only her
+hate of the man at her side bolstered up pride, so that she compelled
+herself to keep moving by sheer force of will. It was already dusk,
+when, at last, they issued from the wood and went forward over the
+shore of the pool at Sandy Creek Falls.
+
+"Wall, hyar we be!" Hodges cried loudly. There was satisfaction in his
+voice.
+
+That satisfaction aroused Plutina from the apathy into which she had
+fallen, during the last half-mile of difficult scrambling, made more
+toilsome by the constraint of her bound wrists. Now, puzzlement
+provoked interest in her surroundings. She had expected that the
+outlaw would bear her away to the most convenient or the most
+inaccessible of the various secret retreats with which rumor credited
+him. But here was neither cave nor shack--only the level space of
+sand, the mist-wreathed pool, the rushing volume of the falls, the
+bleak wall of the cliff which towered above them where they had halted
+at its base. She knew this place. There could be no cavern at hand.
+Her eyes searched the space of the inclosure wonderingly. Then, they
+went to the man, whom she found regarding her bewilderment with a
+smirk of gratification.
+
+"Hyar we be, right on the door-step, so to say," he bellowed. "If ye
+kain't see the door-step yit, ye will mighty quick, unless thet pore
+feller ye shot has gone an' died a-waitin' fer you-all to come an'
+nuss 'im.... Yep, he was a-watchin', all right," he added briskly.
+"Hyar hit comes!"
+
+Plutina's eyes followed her captor's and, far above, she made out
+something that dangled from the slight break in the cliff. It
+descended slowly and jerkily, with haphazard gyrations. As its end
+drew closer, she perceived that it was a rudely constructed
+rope-ladder, with wooden rungs. She watched it fascinated, shivering
+with new fears.
+
+When the flimsy means of ascent hung at its full length, Hodges bade
+the girl climb. Unnerved as she already was, the ordeal of such a
+progress to the mysterious height above seemed too terrible. She
+refused mutely, shaking her head, and cowering away from the outlaw as
+far as the thong permitted. But the man had no pity for her
+timorousness.
+
+"You-all kin jest nacherly crawl up thet-thar ladder," he announced,
+"or we'll sling ye on the end of a rope, an' h'ist ye. Thet'll tumble
+ye round an' bump ye agin the rocks quite some. But ye're the doctor.
+If ye'll climb up, I'll leave yer han's loose, an' foller cluss behind
+ye, so ye kain't fall. Hit's shore wobbly, but hit's safe. Dan Hodges
+hain't aimin' to git his neck broke--ner to let the law break it fer
+him!" he added, in a lower tone to himself.
+
+But Plutina caught the words. She made nothing of them at the time;
+afterward, she realized their significance, and thanked God for them.
+
+In the end, the prisoner yielded to necessity and ventured to mount
+with reluctant slowness. She found, to her intense relief, that the
+strength was returning to her body. She no longer felt the pervasive
+lassitude. The physical improvement reacted on her mind to restore
+confidence in her powers. She realized that probably the only danger
+lay in her own faltering, and she resolved to overcome her natural
+dread, to bend all her energies to a safe performance of the task.
+Despite her hatred of the man, she found unspeakable comfort in the
+sight of his great hairy hands clutching the ropes on either side of
+her at the height of her waist. But, as she mounted, the space beneath
+grew fearsome to her, and she raised her eyes and held them steadily
+on the distance above, as she had learned to do in clambering with her
+lover.
+
+Somehow, now, the thought of Zeke heartened Plutina. Swinging dizzily
+in the abyss, with the arms of her jailer about her, there flowed into
+her soul a new courage. It was without reason, an absurdity, a folly,
+but, oh, what a solace to her spirit! Under the stimulus of it, she
+ascended more rapidly. The pinched, ugly face of Garry Hawks,
+glowering down at her from the ledge, did not dismay her, even though
+the thought flashed on her brain that now this man whom she had
+wounded could hurl her to destruction by a touch. She had no fear of
+him; only pressed upward steadily. In another moment, her head passed
+above the level of the ledge. She took the hand Garry Hawks held out
+and climbed upon the narrow support, where she shrank back against the
+cliff, after one glance into the gulf yawning at her feet. The level
+space was a scant yard in width here, and lessened on the side away
+from the falls, until it ceased entirely. In the other direction, it
+ran, broadening a very little, to where a tiny cleft showed in the
+precipice. Plutina guessed that this marked the entrance to a cavern.
+Despite the bravery of her changed mood, the eerie retreat daunted her
+by its desolate isolation. Then, Hodges climbed upon the ledge, and
+she heard his shout, coming faintly to her ears above the roar of the
+cascade which fell just beyond the cavern's mouth.
+
+"Welcome, home, Honey!" he bawled, with his detested jocularity.
+"They hain't nobody a-goin' to butt in on our love-makin' up hyar."
+
+Tittering and leering, he seized the girl by the arm, and led her,
+unresisting, to the cranny that was the door of the cave. A glance
+over her shoulder showed Garry Hawks on his knee, hauling up the
+ladder. She knew that with its disappearance there would remain nought
+by which the searchers could guess whither she had vanished, or how.
+Once again, courage went out of her. In its place was despair.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+
+The cave into which Plutina now entered was a small, uneven chamber,
+some three yards in width at its highest point. It extended back for a
+little way, but the roof sloped downward so sharply that only in the
+central space could the girl stand upright, and even there Hodges had
+to stoop. On the far side was a hole in the rocky wall. It was hardly
+a yard in height, but the faint glow that marked it was proof that it
+reached to the daylight outside. At the best, it could serve as a
+passage-way only to one creeping on hands and knees. So much Plutina
+perceived in the first curious survey of her prison. The inspection
+was rendered possible by the murky light of a tallow candle, fixed in
+its own grease to a fragment of stone near the center of the cavern.
+
+As the outlaw released his hold on her arm, the girl sank down
+listlessly on a part of the wall that projected like a bench near the
+entrance. She leaned back against the cold stone, and her eyes closed.
+She felt a terrifying weakness, against which she battled with what
+strength she could summon. She dared not swoon, and so leave herself
+wholly helpless within the power of this man. She was white and
+trembling, but by force of will she held herself from falling, though
+her muscles seemed fluid as milk, and blackness whirled before her
+eyes.
+
+Nevertheless, Hodges was not minded to have a fainting woman on his
+hands. His prisoner's appearance alarmed him, and he hurried to a
+corner of the cave, whence he quickly returned with a cup half-full of
+whiskey. This he held to Plutina's lips. She accepted the service, for
+she could not lift a hand, so great was her weakness. She swallowed a
+part of the draught, and the strong liquor warmed and strengthened
+her. She was so far restored soon as to understand Hodges' closing
+sentence, for he had been mumbling at her.
+
+"Ye hain't so damned skittish as ye was yistiddy," he jeered.
+
+Plutina had no spirit to reply. She could only sit in abject
+lassitude, content to feel the glow of the stimulant creeping through
+her veins. For a time, her thoughts were stilled by the bodily torpor.
+She welcomed the respite, glad to rest from the horror of her plight.
+She heard the raucous voice of the outlaw booming in her ears, but she
+paid no heed. She saw Garry Hawks come into the cavern, waddling under
+the burden of the rope-ladder, which he carried clumsily by reason of
+the wound in his arm. She observed that the outlaw said something to
+his minion, putting his lips close to the fellow's ear, lest he be
+overheard. But she felt no curiosity as to the purport of this secret
+utterance, nor did she take interest when, immediately afterward, she
+beheld the wounded man get down on all fours and crawl out of sight
+through the hole in the opposite side of the cave.
+
+Little by little, the prisoner's forces came back to her. Of a sudden,
+she aroused with a start, as though she had been asleep, albeit
+without any consciousness of having slept. She felt a new alertness
+now through all her members, and her brain was clear. Along with this
+well-being came again appreciation of the dreadfulness of her case.
+She grew rigid under the shock of dire realization, tensing her
+muscles, without volition, as if to repel attack. Her eyes went
+fearfully to Hodges, who sprawled at ease on a heap of spruce boughs
+across the cavern from her. The man was puffing lazily at a corncob
+pipe. The rank, acrid smell of the tobacco-smoke came to her nostrils,
+strangely home-like in this weird prison cell, aloft within the crags.
+She perceived, with infinite relief, that for the moment he appeared
+absorbed in his thoughts, disregardful of her presence. At least, she
+would have opportunity to fortify her spirit against the fear that
+beset her. She must ape bravery, even though she sickened with
+terror. Thus only could she hope to daunt the creature that threatened
+her. She had only moral strength with which to resist him. Physically,
+she would be as a child in his grasp, notwithstanding her quick, firm
+muscles. In a bodily contest, there could be but the single issue, her
+vanquishment. It would be hardly more than sport to him, the utmost of
+her frenzied strugglings. She saw the bloody marks of her fingers on
+his face, and remembered his stolid seeming of indifference to her
+fury. He had scorned her strength then. So, he would continue to scorn
+it--with reason, since it could by no means avail against him. No, she
+must have recourse to strength of will rather, to awe and intimidate
+him. She knew the folly of such means against the brutal desire of the
+man. But she clung to it as a meed of hope, because she had naught
+else to which to cling. Without a hope, even the falsest, she must
+have gone mad.
+
+One thing seemed favoring for the time. The man was evidently sober.
+Plutina wondered at that, for Hodges was not often sober, and excess
+of liquor was an accustomed part in all his pleasures. His abstinence
+now puzzled her, but it relieved her, too, since it promised some
+postponement of his worst advances. Thus encouraged, she set herself
+to review the situation in detail, in forlorn attempt to come on a way
+of escape. But a half-hour of effort left her distraught. She could
+devise nothing to suit her need. Only one thought remained for
+tragical comfort in her wretchedness: In her last extremity, she might
+cast herself from the cliff. Better a thousand times clean death than
+defilement.... Plutina remembered her grandfather's regret over her
+having spared the outlaw. Now, with her finger on the trigger, there
+would have been no faltering, only joy and thanksgiving.
+
+The defenseless girl watched furtively. When, at last, Hodges stirred
+from his indolent sprawl, knocked the dottle from his pipe, and looked
+up at her, she shrank visibly. The blood rushed back to her heart in a
+flood, leaving her pallid, and she was trembling. Even in the feeble
+light from the guttering candle, Hodges could perceive her
+disturbance. It gratified him, and he laughed, in sinister glee over
+her emotion.
+
+"I 'low ye're gittin' some tame since yistiddy," he exclaimed. He got
+to his feet slowly, whereat Plutina looked toward the entrance cleft,
+ready if the need came, to fly from him to the more merciful abyss.
+But Hodges moved toward the back of the cave where he brought out a
+stone jug from its niche, and returned to the bed of boughs. Seated
+again, he filled the tin cup full of spirits, and drank it down. With
+the pipe recharged and burning, he continued to sit in silence,
+regarding the girl with an unswerving intentness that tortured her.
+At short intervals, he replenished the cup and quaffed it thirstily.
+He was rapidly compensating for his earlier abstinence. Plutina,
+studying him covertly, noted the beginnings of drunkenness and its
+various stages. There was gruesome fascination in her scrutiny; for
+she knew that her honor rested on the hazard of a sot's whim.
+
+Suddenly, the girl knew that the peril was very close upon her. Hodges
+was staring at her from his reddened eyes with a rampant lustfulness
+that was unmistakable. Again, she measured the distances, to make sure
+that the last desperate means of escape from his embraces lay open
+still. She meant, in the final crisis, to spring to the crevice,
+before he could approach within reach of her. There, with the verge of
+the cliff only a step away, she would make her plea, with death in the
+gulf as the alternative of failure, the ultimate safeguard of honor.
+
+There could be no doubt concerning the imminence of the danger. The
+usually red face of the outlaw was mottled purple, congested by the
+stimuli of liquor and passion. The thick under-lip hung slackly,
+quivering from time to time in the convulsive tremors of desire that
+ran over him. A high light fell on the man's neck, where the open
+shirt left it bare. Plutina's gaze was caught by the slight rise and
+fall of the flesh above the artery. The movement was made
+distinguishable across the cavern by the effects of light and shade.
+The girl found herself mechanically counting the throbs. The rapidity
+of them amazed her. They witnessed the fever raging in his blood--the
+fever that clamored for assuagement from her. The galloping pulse
+enthralled her with horror. It made visible the vile fires raging in
+him. So swift the rhythm grew that a hideous hope sprang up in the
+watcher--hope that an apoplexy might stretch the man dead at her
+feet.
+
+Hodges reached for the jug, and poured from it into the cup, and
+drank. The girl perceived that, in the few seconds, his mood had
+changed utterly. The purple of his face was dingy with gray. He was
+trembling now. His eyes moved restlessly, as if fearful of something
+to issue from the darkness. Not once did they rest on her. She
+remembered the racing pulse in his throat, and looked for it. To her
+astonishment, it was no longer to be seen, though the light fell on
+the place as before. She knew then that the fever had died, and she
+marveled mightily. But she recognized more, for she was unharmed
+still. The changed mood of her enemy promised immunity, for a time at
+least.
+
+Yet once again, the outlaw drank. Then, without a word to the
+prisoner, or so much as a look in her direction, he got down on his
+hands and knees, and crawled out of sight through the hole in the
+wall.
+
+For what seemed to her ages, Plutina waited for his return, dreading a
+new, obscene mood. But the time dragged on, and there was no sign of
+his coming. The candle flared and smoked, went out. The girl huddled
+in the dark, listening now, for her eyes could not pierce the
+blackness. The roar of the waterfall filled her ears. The noise
+dismayed her, for it must inevitably cover all lesser sounds, even
+those close at hand. Any evil might leap on her without warning, out
+of the darkness. She felt her helplessness multiplied, intolerable,
+thus blinded and deafened. She longed to shriek, pitting shrill clamor
+against the bass thunders of the cascade. She began to fear lest
+madness seize her if she remained longer thus supinely crouching amid
+the terrors of this place. Obeying a sudden impulse, she got up, and
+gropingly, with shuffling, cautious steps, moved across the cavern.
+When she reached the opposite wall, she got down on hands and knees,
+and crawled until her searching fingers found the emptiness of the
+hole through which the men had passed. Then, she drew back a little,
+and sat with alert ears, sure that none could issue into the cavern
+now without her knowledge.
+
+The relief afforded by the action soon waned. Terrors crowded on her
+again in the second period of waiting. In desperation, she determined
+to explore the hole itself. She tried to examine the project carefully
+and found nothing to stay her purpose. Joy leaped in her at the
+thought that a way of escape even might be ready to her hand. She
+believed it more likely, however, that the passage led merely to
+another chamber in the cliff. If such should be the case, and either
+or both of the men were sleeping there, she could probably ascertain
+the fact readily without being herself discovered, since here the
+sound of the falls was muffled. Forthwith, she crept slowly within the
+opening.
+
+The progress was snail-like. The rough rock of the floor cut into her
+knees cruelly, but she disregarded the pain, and went forward. She
+tested each inch of the way by feeling over the stones with her hands,
+on either side and along the floor. The narrowness of the passage,
+which was hardly more than its height, rendered thorough examination
+easy. She found no lateral openings, nor did the space grow
+perceptibly larger. It suddenly occurred to her, after having advanced
+steadily, though very slowly, for five minutes, that she could not
+turn around. To return, she must back out. The idea appalled her, and
+she meditated retreat. Then, while she was yet undecided, the hand
+groping in front of her touched on stone above the floor level. A
+short investigation proved that here the passage was barred. She could
+feel space between the edges of the tunnel and the mass of stone that
+closed it. Since there was no other point of egress, both men must
+have passed through. Afterward, the opening had been closed by rolling
+a heavy rock before it. She put her strength in pressure against the
+stone, without avail. It was too heavy for her muscles. She realized
+that by this simple means she was shut within her prison. It was
+almost with relief that she began to creep backward--to be astounded
+by the shortness of the way. It was scarcely a minute before she was
+in the chamber again. To guard against surprise in the darkness, she
+pushed the couch of boughs a little way along the wall, so that it
+projected across the mouth of the tunnel. This done, she seated
+herself on the branches, assured that no one could enter the cavern
+without giving her warning. Even should she sleep, the thrusting away
+of the boughs from the orifice must surely awaken her.
+
+Nevertheless, Plutina did not expect the boon of sleep, though she
+longed for it with aching intensity. In spite of this temporary
+respite, she could see no way of escape from the outlaw's power,
+except by death. The vagaries of a drunken mood had saved her
+to-night: they could not save her for long. And, then, even while she
+mourned the hopelessness of her case, oblivion fell on her, and she
+slept the reposeful, dreamless slumber of utter exhaustion.
+
+A violent shaking of the bed of boughs startled the prisoner back to
+consciousness. For the fraction of a second, her mind was chaos. Then
+remembrance came, and rending fear. But there was one comfort--day had
+dawned: she could see. There was no one with her in the chamber. The
+moving branches warned that the intruder was still in the tunnel.
+There was time for her to gain the crevice, where she could forbid any
+approach, where if her command failed, she could throw herself from
+the cliff. She darted across the width of the room, and stood in the
+cleft, strained back against the rock, her eyes staring affrightedly
+toward the opposite wall. All her woman's terrors were crashing upon
+her now. She felt Death clawing at her over the brow of the ledge,
+fierce to drag her into the depths. One of the hands clutching at her
+bosom touched the fairy crystal, and she seized it despairingly, and
+clung to it, as if the secret spell of it might hold her back to
+life.
+
+Abruptly, a broken cry of relief fluttered from her lips, for she saw
+the shock head of Garry Hawks thrust from the tunnel's mouth. Toward
+him, she felt no fear, only contempt. In the reaction, she trembled
+so that she could hardly stand, and for a few moments her eyes closed.
+Only the rock against which she leaned saved her from crumbling to the
+floor. The weakness passed very quickly, however, and she was again
+mistress of herself by the time Hawks had scrambled to his feet.
+
+The fellow had little to say, answering surlily the questions put to
+him by Plutina. He plainly cherished animosity against the girl who
+had wounded him, which was natural enough. As plainly, he did not dare
+vent his spite too openly against the object of his chief's fondness.
+He brought with him a bag containing bread and a liberal allowance of
+cooked slices of bacon, and a jug of water. His information was to the
+effect that Hodges would not return until nightfall. He left in the
+fashion of his coming, by the tunnel. Plutina immediately replaced the
+boughs, and, when she had eaten and drunk, again seated herself on the
+rough bed. From time to time, she went to the crevice, and stared out
+over the wild landscape longingly. But the height gave her a vertigo
+if she stepped forth upon the ledge. For that reason, she did not
+venture outside the crevice after a single attempt, which set her
+brain reeling. She remained instead well within the cleft, where she
+was unaffected by the height, while able to behold the vast reaches of
+sunlit space before her. The area about the foot of the precipice
+was, however, cut off from her vision. So it came about that, though
+she went twice to the crevice and looked out during the intervals
+while the marshal, first with his men and afterward with her
+grandfather, was searching about the pool, she knew nothing concerning
+the nearness of aid. She could not see the men, and the din of the
+falls covered their voices.
+
+Occasionally, the girl lapsed into a quietude that was half-stupor and
+half-sleep, the while she reclined on the boughs. These were blessed
+periods of rest for the over-strained nerves, and she strove to
+prolong them--always in vain. For the most part, she hurried about
+with febrile, aimless movements. She found herself wondering often if
+to-day were to be the last of her life. She could see no other issue.
+The night would bring Hodges, and the crisis of her fate. She could
+not hope for a second escape through a drunken vagary. There would be
+only the leap from the ledge to-night. As she stood in the crevice,
+and looked out on the smiling sylvan glory of the scene, as the soft
+summer breeze caressed her cheeks, and the balsamic air filled her
+bosom with its gently penetrant vigors, she realized as never before
+the miracle of life, its goodness and sweet savors. She cried out
+against the hideous thing that was come upon her. The every fiber of
+her being flamed in revolt against the idea of death. Every atom of
+her clamored for life and love. And there were only shame and death
+for her choice. She took out the fairy crystal, and prayed to the
+sacred sign it bore, beholding it dimly though scalding tears. But
+faith flickered and went out. Her soul sickened.... For her, there was
+nothing else--just shame and death. No--only death.
+
+Plutina would have tried escape by the rope-ladder, but she found its
+weight too much for her strength, so sorely over-tried by racking
+emotions. Even had she been able to carry the burden it would have
+availed nothing, for the dizziness attacked her whenever she drew near
+the verge. In her desperation, she even crept the length of the tunnel
+a second time, on the faint chance that the exit might now be less
+secure. She found the rock barrier immovable as before, though the rim
+of light showed that here was, in very truth, the way to freedom, and
+she pushed frantically at the obstacle until utterly exhausted.
+
+It was when evening drew down that, at last, there sounded the noise
+of a writhing body within the tunnel, and, from her point of refuge
+close to the crevice, she saw the outlaw crawl out of the passage, and
+stand before her like a demon of the darkness, leering at her
+fatuously.
+
+"You-all is shore makin' quite a visit," he remarked, with heavy
+sarcasm.
+
+"An' it kain't he'p ye none, Dan," Plutina retorted. "I hates ye, an'
+yer keepin' me hyar hain't goin' to do ye no good. If ye goes fer to
+lay a finger on me, I'll go over the cliff. I'm worse scairt o' yer
+touchin' me than I be o' the rocks down thar, Dan." Her voice was
+colorless, but an undertone of finality ran in it.
+
+The outlaw regarded her sharply from his inflamed eyes. It may be that
+her sincerity impressed him. Yet, he betrayed no feeling as he
+answered, carelessly:
+
+"Hain't no call fer ye to be so damned ornery. I hain't a-goin' to
+tech ye--yit. We'll be together quite a spell, I reckon--till I gits
+sick o' havin' ye round. If I wanted ye I could jump ye easy from
+hyar. I'm some spry, if I be big. But ye needn't be skeered, I'm
+tellin' ye. I hain't a-goin' to tech ye--yit."
+
+The final monosyllable was charged with sinister import, but the man's
+assurance of her present safety was, somehow, convincing, and she
+accepted it with the emotional gratitude of one sentenced to death who
+receives a reprieve. She sank down on the stone bench near the
+crevice, and watched her jailer with unwavering attention, while he
+produced a candle from his pocket, and lighted it, and had recourse
+again to the stone jug of whiskey, which had remained by the bed of
+boughs.
+
+To-night, the fiery drams made him garrulous, and he discussed his
+affairs, his hopes, and plans, with a freedom that showed how complete
+was his expectation of retaining the girl in his power. Thus, Plutina
+learned of the search being made for her, which was now the active
+cause in changing the outlaw's purpose in the immediate disposal of
+his prisoner.
+
+"I was aimin' to lay low with ye right hyar," he explained, after his
+fourth sup of the spirits. "But I reckon hit's a goin' to be a heap
+safer to skedaddle. I ain't a-wantin' no damned dawgs fer to chaw me
+up. So I'm goin' to mosey over Bull Head t'-morrer. You-all 'll go
+'long, nice an' peaceable--er ye'll be drug." He spoke with a snarl
+now. "Ye'll know hit, when I once git ye cross the state line--cuss
+ye! Ye'll find I hain't so damned shy, arter all!"
+
+Plutina cowered before the savage threat in the words. There was no
+mistaking the expression in the lustful eyes burning on her. His
+regard was in itself contamination. It was the prophecy of worse, of
+the final wickedness, to come. The afflicted girl thrilled with
+loathing before the satyr-like aspect of this man, foul of flesh and
+soul. But, along with abhorrence of the creature who held her in his
+keeping so ruthlessly, there was another emotion--that recurrent
+wonder concerning such delay in the base gratification craved by his
+passion. She could not doubt the fierce longing that seethed in his
+veins. It was like a visible thing flaming from him; and tangible, for
+she felt the impact of those brutal desires thronging against the
+white shield of her own purity, powerless to penetrate, yet nauseating
+her by the unclean impact. What, then, interposed to check him? What
+hidden force held him back from working his will against her? She
+could make no surmise. Certainly, here was no physical restraint to
+stay him. As certainly, no moral reason would be of effect. The thing
+was altogether mysterious. So, she marveled mightily, and was curious
+to understand, even while she thanked God for the further respite. And
+now, too, hope began to burn again. Surely, if she were to accompany
+him on the trails as he had said, there would come the opportunity for
+escape. He could not be on guard ceaselessly. Vigilance must relax on
+occasion. It would not be then as here in this dreadful cavern,
+perched 'twixt earth and sky.... She broke off to listen, for the
+outlaw, having filled his pipe and drained a deep draught of the
+liquor, was become loquacious again. This time, thanks to the drink,
+he waxed confidential, intimate even.
+
+"I kin git away from hyar, an' no damned dawg kain't foller my tracks,
+nuther. Er if he does, he'll drap inter the Devil's Kittle. But I
+knows my way 'bout in these-hyar mountings. An' ye needn't be afeared
+o' losin' me, Honey. I'll hang onto ye good an' tight. When I git ye
+over the line, I'll have a parson, if ye want. I hain't a-keerin' one
+way, or t'other. But I got to have ye, willin' or not willin', parson
+or no parson. I'd hev ye t'-night if 'twan't fer jest one cussed
+thing. Hit's a'mighty hard to hev yer blood a-b'ilin', till ye're like
+to bust jest 'cause of a slip of a gal, what ye could smash in yer two
+han's--an' her so high an' mighty!" The querulous voice ceased, while
+he had recourse again to the stone jug.
+
+When next he spoke, it was evident that his mood had changed. He was
+no longer harshly self-assertive, vainglorious, or brutally frank
+concerning the passion that consumed him. He was, instead, strangely
+reminiscent, with involuntary revelation of the weakness that preyed
+upon him. The girl was grateful for the change in him, but her
+bewilderment increased.
+
+"I seen a feller hung once," Hodges said. His guttural, awed tones
+were hushed almost to a whisper. "They pulled a black cap down over
+'is face, so's he couldn't see nothin' 'bout what he was up ag'inst.
+An' his han's was tied together behind 'is neck, with the knot up
+under his ear--'is left ear, I 'member hit was. I 'member
+partic'lar."
+
+The speaker's gaze had been downcast; not once had he looked at
+Plutina. It was as if he had forgotten the girl's presence there with
+him, and communed aloud with his own gristly memories of the
+death-scene he had witnessed. His huge bulk seemed somehow shrunken--a
+physical shriveling in response to the craven fear in his soul. That
+gray, mottled purple of his face showed again. Plutina wondered, if,
+indeed, this same memory had been in his thoughts the night before.
+But, if so, it only made the thing the more inexplicable. Why should a
+hanging, long-past, thus haunt him? He was no nervous weakling, to be
+tortured by imaginary fears. Yet, now, he displayed unmistakable signs
+of terror, in his voice, his eyes, his whole mien, in the shaking
+haste that spilled the half of the drink he poured out.
+
+"I seen 'im hung," he repeated, abjectly. "They let the trap drap from
+under his feet--an' 'im all tied, an' thet-thar black cap pulled down
+over 'is face to blind 'im. Hit were plumb awful fer to see 'im drap.
+An' then the rope stopped 'im right in the air. Hit were a drefful
+yank he got. They say, hit broke 'is neck, so's he didn't feel nothin'
+more. But I dunno. Hit looked like he felt a heap, fer he kicked an'
+squirmed like hell. Hit weren't purty fer to see. I've seen a big
+bull-frog what I've speared kick an' squirm jest like 'im. No, hit
+weren't purty. I'd shore hate fer to have my neck bruk thet-thar way.
+Damn the law, anyhow! They hadn't orter treat no white man thet-thar
+way. Hit must feel awful, a-standin' up thar, with thet-thar cap down
+over ye, shuttin' out everythin'--ferever; an' with thet-thar noose
+round yer neck, an' the knot a-ticklin' yer ear--yer left ear. I
+'member specially. An' a-knowin' the noose is a-goin' to tighten, an'
+cut off yer breath--fer always. An' a-standin' on thet-thar trap, an'
+a-knowin' hit's goin' to drap--a-knowin' the bottom's a-goin' to drap
+right out o'--everythin'! I don't never want my neck bruk no sech
+way's thet. Hit hain't right."
+
+Plutina, staring wide-eyed, saw to her stupefaction that tears
+trickled from the eyes of the maudlin man; she heard him whimpering.
+Once more, he poured himself a drink. He mumbled unintelligibly for a
+little. Then, of a sudden, his voice rose in a last flare of energy,
+before he rolled on the boughs in sodden slumber.
+
+"Damn the law in this-hyar state! Hit hain't right, nohow. Jest 'cause
+a feller loves a gal--to hang 'im! I hain't afeared o' nothin' else,
+s'fur's I knows, but I'd hate fer to have my neck bruk like his'n was.
+I hain't a-takin' no chancet o' thet. I'll wait till I'm over the
+line. But hit's hell to crave a woman!"
+
+Raucous snores told the girl that the man slept, that again she had
+passed through the ordeal in safety. And now, at last, she knew the
+cause of her escape thus far. The mystery that had baffled her was a
+mystery no longer. Out of the creature's own mouth had come the
+explanation. Driven on by gusty passion as he was, a yet stronger
+emotion triumphed over lust. Of imagination he had little, but he had
+seen a man hanged. His memory of that death had been her salvation,
+for such is the punishment meted to the violator of a woman in North
+Carolina. In Dan Hodges, that master emotion, lust, had met a
+mightier--fear. Because he was a coward, he had not ventured even the
+least caress, lest passion seize him and make him mad--forgetful of
+how that other man died so horribly. She had been spared because
+between him and her a scaffold loomed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+
+The full-throated baying of a hound. Men, far in the valleys below
+Stone Mountain, looked up, and listened, wondering. But those on the
+mountain heard and understood: Dan Hodges was being run to earth.
+
+The clew offered by the wet place on the cliff had sufficed for the
+three men who accompanied the stag-hound. They had marked the spot
+carefully in memory by its distance from a certain stunted pine
+growing above it and a rift in the precipice to one side. Then they
+had ascended a furlong to the north, where the ascent was gradual and
+broken. When they had made sure that they were at the proper level,
+they searched for an approach to the desired ledge. The dog found the
+scent by the tunnel, but Brant did not loose the animal. Stone's eyes
+caught traces of where a bowlder had been moved. A little more
+searching revealed the opening covered by the stone, which they rolled
+aside.
+
+"But he's not there, now," Brant declared, as he restrained the eager
+dog. "Jack is wild to be off, and he wouldn't take a back track."
+
+Uncle Dick, eager to make sure, would have attempted the passage, but
+Stone interposed.
+
+"I'll go," he declared. "It's my right--my prisoner, you know. Anyhow,
+it'll be a snug-enough fit for me, and I'm smaller than you, Uncle
+Dick."
+
+The old man grudgingly admitted the fact, and made way for the
+marshal. In five minutes, Stone was back.
+
+"Nobody there," he announced.
+
+"Then it's up to Jack," Brant exclaimed, and slipped the leash.
+
+The hound shot forward in full cry. The men hurried after at top
+speed. Almost immediately, the dog vanished among the thickets. There
+came a clatter of sliding stones, as the big beast went galloping up
+the rise toward the crest of the mountain. The men followed as best
+they might, guided by the baying. Uncle Dick listened with
+bloodthirsty hopefulness for the crack of Zeke's rifle, which he would
+recognize.
+
+The fugitive himself heard the hound's sonorous summons, and wasted
+breath in cursing. He cursed his potations over-night, which had led
+him to sleep beyond the sunrise. But for such drunken folly, he would
+have had the trailer hopelessly at fault. Now, at best, it would be a
+close race--and there was the girl to hamper and hinder. She was
+running at his side, obedient to the pressure of his hands. He had
+replaced the cowhide thong, with her hands in front of her, and with
+play enough for free movement. So far, she had made no resistance to
+his commands. But the barking of the dog would warn her. If she should
+turn balky--
+
+What the outlaw feared, came to pass. The hoarse baying sounded to
+Plutina's ears like sweetest music. The first note told her that
+friends were at hand for a rescue from the monster by her side. Her
+heart leaped in the joy of it. A new courage surged in her--courage to
+defy this creature that held her in thrall.
+
+They were come already across the most of the plain of naked rock that
+is the top of the mountain. They had rushed without pause through the
+little grove of dwarf pines that grows near the Devil's Slide, above
+the Cauldron. They were come, indeed, to the very edge of the Slide
+itself before Plutina acted. After all, it was not the new courage,
+but a newer fear, that forced her. She had one swift glimpse of the
+valley spread a thousand feet below, the giant trees like tiniest
+saplings, so far away--that dear, adorable valley, where were home and
+peace and love. But, between her and it, the precipice fell; between
+her and it, the Devil's Pot boiled; between her and it was this man,
+who drove her with curses. She looked away from the beloved valley
+into the loathsome face, and she saw the fear in his eyes--fear, and
+something else that terrified her. She realized suddenly that she was
+on the very verge of the Slide, where none might venture and live.
+There, just beyond, was the darkened surface of the rock where the
+shallow stream went slithering down into the Cauldron. An hysteria of
+fear gripped her, as he dragged her forward, out upon the sloping
+stone that dipped toward the abyss. She believed that he meant to hurl
+her from the height. Thus, there would be left no evidence of his
+crime. His passion for her was nothing now--only his passion for
+life.
+
+"Quick, damn ye!" Hodges rasped. "I know the way in the dark. Ye
+needn't be skeered none with me."
+
+He meant it; but the girl did not believe. She thought it a ruse to
+get her closer to the edge. She shrieked in despair, and sprang away
+from him. His clutch on the thong checked her. He jerked her back to
+him, hardly pausing in his stride. She struck at his face furiously,
+but he dragged her on toward the brink, mouthing at her with foul
+oaths. She fell to her knees, and hung, screaming, a dead weight. The
+baying of the hound sounded closer. Hodges threw a glance over his
+shoulder, and saw the dog charging from the grove. He would have
+fired, but the girl was in the way. With a final blasphemy, he dropped
+his rifle, and struck at her--full in the face. She sank down limply,
+unconscious. Her body slid away slowly, yet with a quickening
+movement, toward the gulf.
+
+Hodges gave not even a look to his victim. He heard the challenge of
+the hound, now fairly upon him. There was no time to shoot. He used
+cunning instead. A mighty jump carried him over the moist surface
+where the stream flowed. He alighted on the dry rock. His bare feet
+clutched and held on the sloping surface.... No instinct warned the
+hound. Its leap brought it down in the wet run-way. Its feet shot from
+under. The force of its rush finished the work. The outlaw turned just
+in time to see the hound disappear over the cliff.
+
+Before he had time for exultation over this victory, before he could
+look to see how fared the girl whom he had struck down so ruthlessly,
+before he guessed the new peril, another enemy was upon him.
+
+Zeke, too, had heard the baying of the hound. Trembling with
+eagerness, where he lurked behind a screen of bushes at the south of
+the grove, he knew that the dog was hot on the trail. He went racing
+toward the sound, with the bull-terrier at his heels. He had just
+entered among the trees, when he saw the hound careen past him. He
+followed, and, as he issued into the open, saw the man and the girl
+struggling on the edge of the precipice. He sickened at the spectacle,
+but there was no faltering. With every atom of energy in speed, he
+darted down the slope. He saw the blow that crumpled Plutina to the
+rock. He saw it through a veil of red. What he did not see was the
+low, stealthy, yet quickening, slide of her body toward the brim of
+the abyss. So, all unconscious of that peril to the one he loved, he
+sprang to attack his enemy. He saw the hound's fate, and understood
+the cause of it. He, in turn, cleared the treacherous wet surface by a
+mighty leap. That leap brought him full on the outlaw's back. The two
+men went down together.
+
+The crash of Hodges' head on the rock had well been enough to crack an
+ordinary skull. But his was strong, and the unkempt thatch of hair
+cushioned it, so that he got no serious hurt. A little dazed by the
+blow, and by the unexpectedness of the onslaught--nothing more. And he
+had the bravery of triumphant physical strength. In the instant of
+attack, he fought back viciously, with blind thrust and clutch. A
+long, powerful arm writhed around Zeke like a band of steel, and held
+the assailant immovable. Lying there on his back, the outlaw looked up
+into Zeke's face, and recognized it, and cursed this unexpected foe
+obscenely.
+
+Zeke wasted no energy in words. He was mad with rage against the man
+he hated. His one desire was to kill. He twined his fingers in the
+tangled hair, and beat the head upon the stone floor again and again.
+But the leverage of his arms was cut down too much. He could not even
+stun the outlaw, much less kill. He could not reach his rifle, which
+he had dropped when he sprang to the attack. He could not draw his
+revolver by reason of the encircling arms. He could only hammer his
+enemy's head on the rock, with a cruel lust for slaughter that availed
+nothing except to madden him by its futility. His strength, great
+though it was, was not enough against the man he fought.
+
+Hodges proved the fact presently, for by a tremendous effort, he
+turned, and pinned Zeke underneath. The force of the impact under the
+outlaw's heavy weight laid the lad unconscious. The fingers unclenched
+from his adversary's hair; he lay limp. Hodges rose to his feet, with
+shambling haste. But, if he meant to kill, fate thwarted him. One foot
+was placed on the treacherous dampened rock. It slid from under him.
+He was thrown from his balance, and sprawled at length. He scrambled
+on all fours toward the other side of the run-way with desperate
+haste. He did not attempt to rise. A moment later, he slipped slowly
+over the brow of the cliff.
+
+Seth Jones, just issuing from the grove, saw the vanishing of the
+outlaw, but, at the distance, he could not distinguish the man's
+identity or that of the other, lying motionless on the sloping rock.
+For the instant, however, he gave no heed to either for sheer horror
+of something else he saw--the unconscious girl, moving so inexorably
+to her doom. He shouted in despair, as he raced toward her. But he
+knew he must be too late. He was powerless to stay her fall--as was
+the bull-terrier, which had seized her skirt and still clung, only to
+be dragged down with her into the void. Before he was come to the
+beginning of the Slide, girl and dog had traversed it--had shot out
+into the emptiness of space.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+
+The veteran gazed down at the sloping expanse of stone that curved to
+the sheer drop of the precipice. He was absolutely helpless in the
+face of the catastrophe he had witnessed. A man, a girl and a dog had
+gone to their death in this frightful place within the minute.
+Already, the corpses were stewing in the Devil's Pot half-a-thousand
+feet below, he reflected grimly. There was nothing to be done for them
+now, or ever. He felt a whirl of nausea within him, but fought back
+the weakness. He shuddered, as he thought of the man behind him, lying
+senseless on the edge of the Slide. Was it Hodges whom he had seen
+plunge into the depths, or was it--Zeke? It was with fearful
+apprehension that he turned at last to learn as to which remained.
+
+A little cry of relief escaped him, for at a glance he recognized
+Zeke. He sprang forward, and, in a moment, had assured himself that
+the young man was not dead, was not even seriously wounded. He guessed
+that a fall on the rocks had merely stunned. As best he could with one
+hand, he got out his pocket-flask, and finally managed to force a
+little of the liquor between the clenched teeth. Presently, it took
+effect. The color came back into Zeke's face, and he stirred, and
+groaned. Then he sat up, resting against the veteran's arm.
+
+Before there was time for any interchange of words between the two, a
+shout aroused them to look toward the grove. They saw the marshal
+dashing down the slope. Close behind him ran Cyclone Brant. Uncle Dick
+lagged a little, the burden of years pressing too heavily at last. The
+three came swiftly and gathered about the two on the edge of the
+Slide. Dismay was writ large on their faces. The silence of the hound,
+Zeke stricken and alone with the veteran, aroused their suspicion of
+disaster.
+
+"Where's Jack?" Brant demanded. His heart was in the question. The
+fate of the others was of less concern to him than that of the animal
+he loved.
+
+Zeke answered, strongly enough, for now energy was flowing back into
+him.
+
+"The hound went over," he said, regretfully. "I saw him. He slipped
+an' fell, an' was gone like a flash."
+
+Brant turned away to hide his distress.
+
+But in Zeke recollection welled. He clutched at the marshal, and drew
+himself to his feet, where, after an instant, he stood firmly. His
+eyes went searchingly over the barren surface of the Slide. They
+dilated. Fright lined his face--then, horror. He stared wildly, his
+gaze roving over all the mountain-top, once and again--and again. When
+words came, they were broken, surcharged with the horrid fear that was
+on him.
+
+"Whar--whar is she--Tiny?"
+
+His look went to the four men in turn, piteously pleading. Each of the
+three met the look and answered it by a shake of the head. But the
+veteran could not endure the anguish in the lover's eyes. His own
+dropped. He did not shake his head. Zeke strove for courage.
+
+"Whar is she?" he demanded, at length. His voice was more composed
+now, but his eyes were flaming.
+
+The veteran answered very softly, but without any attempt at evasion.
+
+"I saw her go, Zeke--over the cliff. Thet little dawg o' your'n had a
+holt on her skirt. But he hadn't the heft to keep her from goin'. The
+dawg did the best he knew how. But 'twa'n't no use, an' he went, too.
+I was too fur off to grab her. I reckon she fainted. She didn't
+scream, ner move none to save herself."
+
+There was a little period of silence. These men were schooled to the
+concealment of deepest emotions. There was no frantic outburst from
+the bereaved lover, from the afflicted grandfather. There was not
+even comment or further questioning. Of what avail? The thing was
+done. The girl was lost forever, dead. But the other men looked away,
+lest they see the agony in Zeke's face.
+
+Abruptly, the young man started walking down the slope. He wore shoes,
+and they slipped a little on the smooth stone. Straight down toward
+the brink he strode. The curve of the dome made every step more
+perilous. It was a natural, an irresistible impulse to look on the
+precise place where the loved one had perished, but it appeared as if
+he walked to his death. Indeed, his danger was grave, for he had
+forgotten the shoes he wore.... Or, perhaps, he did not care! Uncle
+Dick uttered an oath, and leaped in pursuit. It was only a matter of
+seconds to overtake the young man, seize him, turn him about and march
+him back with fierce expostulations that were a welcome vent to
+emotion.
+
+Zeke obeyed readily, aware of his momentary folly. Then, as he
+rejoined the group, hate flared again. Memory of the fight was
+confused by the blow on his head. He questioned Seth Jones harshly,
+with a single word:
+
+"Hodges?"
+
+The veteran permitted himself a faint smile. The cruelty of the
+soldier, accustomed to violent deaths, was in it. There was, too, a
+curious smugness, a secret complacency.
+
+"I 'low yer wits are some shook up yit, bein' as how ye disremember,"
+he remarked easily. "Ye trun Hodges over the cliff, Zeke, jest as ye
+went down. Hit were nip an' tuck atween ye, an' ye bested 'im." The
+kindly veteran believed the lie would be a life-long source of
+satisfaction to the lad, who had been so fearfully despoiled. Now, his
+belief was justified by the fierce pleasure that showed for a moment
+in Zeke's pain-drawn face.
+
+"I kain't seem to remember," he said, perplexedly. "But I'm shore glad
+I killed him."
+
+Then, again, silence fell. There could be no triumph really over the
+death of Hodges, because it had involved the destruction of Plutina as
+well. The five men stood about awkwardly. The solemnity of death lay
+like a pall over them. In the stress of suffering, Zeke had moved on
+from youth to the full stature of manhood. Uncle Dick had added a
+score of years to his apparent age. Brant grieved much, if less
+seriously. Only the veteran and the marshal had escaped personal loss,
+though they, too, mourned deeply. None ventured to suggest leaving the
+doomed spot. It seemed as if a sinister spell held them there, vaguely
+expectant, though wistful to flee.
+
+Rather, perhaps, it was their sadness that made seem sinister a spell
+actually benignant. For, of a sudden, while they still stood mute,
+Brant raised a hand to command attention, and pointed toward the verge
+of the precipice.
+
+"Hark!" he commanded.
+
+They listened intently. Then, all heard a faint, tremulous, whimpering
+note, long drawn-out, querulously appealing. Zeke started and stared
+in the direction of the sound with an incredulous frown. Brant shook
+his head sorrowfully: it was not the voice of Jack. The others were
+merely bewildered by this unexpected development.
+
+The whining continued, grew louder. Came a plaintive yelp. Out of the
+abyss was thrust a clinging paw, another. The squat face of the
+bull-terrier peered at them from over the top of the cliff. Next
+instant, the dog had scrambled safely on the Slide. It raced to Zeke
+with shrill cries of delight, leaped high to its master's breast,
+where it was caught and held closely. The slavering tongue lavished
+caresses. Zeke felt a warm glow of comfort in the creature's return.
+Yet, it did but render more frightful the loss of that being so
+infinitely more precious. He hardly heard Uncle Dick speaking.
+
+"Hit's dum curi's," the old man said, lowering on Seth Jones. "I
+thought as how ye said the pup was a-hangin' on to Tiny's dress."
+
+"It was so," the veteran answered. "I 'low the dawg must 'a' let loose
+when hit got in the air."
+
+"Hit's dum curi's," Uncle Dick repeated, and turned to regard the
+bull-terrier with bent brows.
+
+Zeke himself put a term to the mystification that had gripped him as
+well as the others. He raised a hand to the dog's throat, to restrain
+the too eager demonstrations of affection. At the collar he felt
+something unaccustomed. He looked, idly enough, and saw that a
+leathern thong had been tied firmly in the ring. To the thong was
+attached a little leather bag. The things were strange to him, yet
+they moved him profoundly. He found himself trembling--why, he knew
+not.
+
+He fumbled at the draw-strings of the pouch, loosened them. He thrust
+a finger within the opening, and touched something smooth and hard. It
+seemed to him that he already knew what this thing must be. He turned
+the bag upside down over his hand. In his palm lay a small
+coffee-colored piece of stone. It bore in darker shade the clear
+tracery of a cross. Zeke, looking down, saw the sacred symbol subtly
+effulgent, a holy promise of safety for her whom he loved. He lifted a
+radiant face to the others, who had crowded about with marveling
+exclamations.
+
+"Hit's the fairy cross I give Tiny," Zeke cried. His voice was joyous
+now, though throbbing with anxiety. "She hain't dead. She's kotched
+somehow thar on the rocks. She kain't climb up. So, she sent the cross
+by Chubbie, to show she was alive. I'll go down fer her."
+
+The listening group readily understood the wonder that had befallen.
+Whatever her present peril, whatever her injuries, Plutina still
+lived. The blessed fact stirred them to joy and to orderly action.
+
+"Ye kain't he'p Tiny none by fallin' into the Kittle yerself," Uncle
+Dick declared, with the voice of authority. "Jest hold yer hosses, an'
+we'll he'p ye git 'er up safe an' sound. They's grape-vines 'nough in
+the grove. I suspicion she hain't so fer down. Mebby we could hear 'er
+if the wind wa'n't blowin' to the no'th."
+
+They dared not take time for descent into the valley after rope.
+Moreover, Uncle Dick was confident that his knots would hold securely
+the weight of a single person. With all speed, strands of vine were
+brought and spliced most carefully. In a surprisingly brief time,
+there were some seventy-five feet in readiness. More would be added,
+if this length should not suffice. When the rope was completed, an end
+was securely fastened about Zeke's body with knots that would neither
+tighten nor slip.
+
+The young man had removed shoes and stockings, and now walked boldly
+down the sloping surface toward the brink. Behind him went Uncle Dick,
+who was to advance as far as his foothold should be secure. On the
+level above the Slide, the three other men held the rope, ready to pay
+it out, or to haul it in. Uncle Dick's duty was to save it, so far as
+might be, from being frayed on the rocks. It was to be let out to its
+full length, or until the lightened weight showed that Zeke had found
+support. It was to be pulled in, in the latter case, after three tugs
+on it by him. Zeke went boldly, it is true, but now, since he had
+appreciated Uncle Dick's warning, he went with painstaking carefulness
+as well. He realized that on his care might now depend the life of the
+girl he loved. So, he moved downward with increasing slowness, as the
+curve of the rock grew more pronounced. At each step, he made sure
+that his feet still clung. Then, when still two yards from the edge,
+he found the footing too precarious for further walking, even with the
+rope. A glance over his shoulder showed that Uncle Dick had halted a
+rod above. He looked closely and saw that the brim of the cliff was
+smooth a little to the right. To save the rope as much as possible, he
+moved in this direction, Uncle Dick above making the like change.
+Then, he seated himself on the rock and, while the men above paid out
+the vine, he went gently sliding downward toward the abyss.
+
+Presently, his feet reached the brow of the cliff, passed beyond it,
+hung in space. The men watching from above, let the rope slide still
+more slowly. Now his middle was at the brink. He held to the rope with
+his right hand. With his left he fended himself from the cliff. He
+looked down. For an instant, accustomed though he was to the high
+places among the mountain crags, his senses reeled before the
+impression of unsubstantial vastness. Out beyond him was nothingness
+for what seemed endless distance. Straight below was the sheer wall of
+the precipice, with hardly a rift for five hundred feet. There a ledge
+showed dimly. Then, again, a half-thousand feet of vertical rocks to
+the valley.
+
+But the vertigo passed in that single instant. His vision cleared. And
+he saw her. He heard her, too, in the same moment. Here, the cliff was
+not quite perpendicular. She had slid, rather than fallen, to a
+resting place. She was not seriously injured. It was hardly a score of
+feet from the top of the cliff to the tiny shelf of rock on which she
+lay. This was less than a yard in width. A bit of pine shrub jutted
+from it courageously, held by its roots burrowing in secret fissures
+of the rock. A log, rolled down by some amusement-seeker on the crest,
+had lodged on the outer edge of the shelf. The miniature pine held
+one end of it; the other was wedged in a crack of the precipice. The
+log lay like a paling to the narrow shelf. Within that meager shelter,
+Plutina crouched. Beyond her the ledge narrowed, and ascended to where
+the cliff was broken. Thus the dog had mounted.
+
+The girl's face was uplifted, pallid, with burning eyes fast on the
+lover who descended to her. Her expression showed rapture, but no
+surprise that this rescuer should be her beloved. The fairy crystal
+was competent to work any wonder. Zeke, spinning slowly with the
+twisting vine, thus swinging in the void between heaven and earth,
+felt, nevertheless, the thrill of passionate adoration. She was even
+more beautiful than he remembered her.
+
+The shelf, though narrowing, ran toward him. Soon, his feet touched
+it. At the relief from his weight, the rope was no longer paid out,
+though held taut. With its aid he traversed the ledge, and reached the
+shelf where the girl knelt. He knelt beside her, and, without a word,
+their lips met and clung. There, amid the perils of the precipice,
+they were in heaven.
+
+For that matter, little speech passed between them afterward. They
+needed none. Zeke adjusted the rope about her, kissed her, and gave
+the signal to haul away.
+
+With his heart in his eyes, he watched the swaying form rise, and was
+inexpressibly relieved when he saw her clear the brim safely. There
+was a short interval. Then the rope came dangling down, and drew him
+back to safety. Again the lovers were in each other's arms. The terror
+and the agony were forgotten. The bliss remained.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+
+Marshal Stone and Brant were to return together to North Wilkesboro'
+where the latter would take the train for home. Uncle Dick had offered
+them horses for the ride. The two men, somewhat in advance of the
+remainder of the party after the descent of Stone Mountain, had come
+near the Higgins' cabin, when the marshal spoke with a display of
+embarrassment:
+
+"I've got to go a little out of our way. It's a chore I oughtn't ever
+to have put off for a minute, but I plumb forgot it."
+
+"What is it?" Brant asked indifferently.
+
+But his interest was aroused as the marshal hesitated before
+answering, and exhibited an increasing confusion.
+
+"I'm right ashamed to tell of it," Stone said, finally. "There's no
+excuse for such carelessness. Plutina got into all this mess because
+she was afraid something dreadful might happen, and it might have--on
+account of my forgetfulness."
+
+"What's it all about?" Brant demanded, now distinctly curious.
+
+"It's bear-traps!" was the morose answer.
+
+"Bear-traps?"
+
+The marshal nodded.
+
+"Those infernal traps Hodges set along Thunder Branch--that made
+Plutina turn informer.... Well, I just naturally forgot all about
+'em."
+
+Brant uttered an ejaculation of dismay.
+
+"You mean, they're still there, and set?"
+
+Stone nodded.
+
+"Just that. I took Hodges and York down another way. I've never
+thought of the traps since, till to-day."
+
+"Risky, of course," Brant admitted. "But nobody got caught, or they'd
+have been missed," he added comfortingly. "Nobody in the
+neighborhood's disappeared, has there?"
+
+"Not that I've heard of," Stone replied. "But it's luck, not my
+deserts, if no harm's been done."
+
+"I'll go along with you," Brant offered. "We'll have that trouble off
+your mind in a jiffy."
+
+So, the two men turned, and took the trail past the Higgins' clearing
+and on until they came to Thunder Branch, where Plutina had made her
+discovery. They followed the course of the stream upward, the marshal
+in the lead. As he came to the bend, where the rocky cliffs began,
+Stone turned and called over his shoulder:
+
+"They're just beyond." Then, he went forward, with quick, nervous
+strides, and disappeared beyond the bend. A moment later, a great cry
+brought Brant running.
+
+It was, in truth, a ghastly scene that showed there, lighted
+brilliantly by the noontide sun. In the midst of the little space of
+dry ground bordering the stream, where the lush grass grew thick and
+high, the body of a man was lying. It was contorted grotesquely,
+sprawling at length on its face, in absolute stillness--the stillness
+of death. Brant, himself horrified, looked pityingly at the white,
+stricken face of the marshal, and turned away, helplessly. He could
+find no words to lessen the hideousness of this discovery for the man
+through whose fault the tragedy had come.
+
+Then, presently, as Stone seemed paralyzed by the disaster, Brant went
+closer to examine the gruesome thing.
+
+The victim had been caught by both traps. Evidently, he had stepped
+fairly into the first. Then, as the great jaws snapped shut on his
+leg, he had lurched forward and fallen. His arms were outspread wide.
+But his head was within the second trap. The jaws of it had clamped on
+the neck. The steel fangs were sunk deep into the flesh. Blood from
+the wounds was caked black on the skin.
+
+"He didn't suffer any to speak of," Brant remarked, at last. He
+observed, with some surprise, that his voice was very thin. He was
+not a squeamish man, and he had seen many evil sights. But this--
+
+With repugnance, he set himself to the task of releasing the trap that
+held the dead man's head. He had the delicacy not to call on his
+distressed companion for aid. The task was very difficult, and very
+gruesome, for it required harsh handling of the head, which was in the
+way. Finally, however, the thing was accomplished. The savage jaws
+were freed from the flesh they had mangled, and were locked open.
+Then, Brant turned the body over, and gazed curiously, with strong
+repulsion, into the ugly, distorted dead face.
+
+"Providence picked out somebody who could be spared," he mused
+grimly.
+
+There came another cry from Stone. In it were wonder, incredulity,
+relief.
+
+Brant regarded the marshal in amazement. The man was transformed. The
+motionless figure of desolation was become one of wild, quivering
+excitement. The face was suffused with blood, the eyes shining
+fiercely.
+
+"What the devil!" Brant demanded, aghast.
+
+Stone looked toward his questioner gravely, and nodded with great
+emphasis. His voice was low, tense with emotion.
+
+"It is the devil!" he answered solemnly. He paused, clearing his
+throat, and stared again at the dead man. Then, his eyes went back to
+Brant, as he added:
+
+"It's Hodges."
+
+There was a little silence. Brant could not understand, could not
+believe this startling assertion flung in his face.
+
+"But Hodges was thrown over the precipice," he said, at last.
+
+The marshal shook his head. There was defiance now in his
+aspect--defiance, and a mighty joy.
+
+"It doesn't make any difference about that," he announced. "This is
+Hodges!"
+
+Then, his exultation burst in words:
+
+"Hodges caught in his own traps! His neck broken, as it should have
+been broken by the rope for the murders he's done! It was my
+carelessness did it, yes. But I don't care now, so long as it's Hodges
+who's got caught. Hodges set those traps, and--there he is!... I read
+about something like that once in a story. They called it 'poetic
+justice.'"
+
+"He don't look like a poem," Brant remarked. He turned from the gory
+corpse with a shudder of disgust.
+
+"Thank God, it was Hodges!" the marshal said, reverently. "Anybody
+else would have haunted me for life. But Hodges! Why, I'm glad!"
+
+                  *       *       *       *       *
+
+The affair was easily explicable in the light of what Plutina had to
+tell. Hodges, undoubtedly, had knowledge of some secret, hazardous
+path down the face of the precipice past the Devil's Cauldron, and on
+to the valley. He had meant to flee by it with Plutina, thus to escape
+the hound. By it, he had fled alone. Perhaps, he had had a
+hiding-place for money somewhere about the raided still. Or, perhaps,
+he had merely chosen this route along Thunder Branch on his way to an
+asylum beyond Bull Head Mountain. What was certain was that he had
+blundered into his own pitiless snares. Naturally, he would have had
+no suspicion that the traps remained. In his mad haste, he had rushed
+heedlessly upon destruction. The remorseless engines of his own
+devising had taken full toll of him. By his own act, he paid with his
+life the penalty for crime. There was propriety in the marshal's
+reference to poetic justice.
+
+A certain vindictiveness showed in Plutina's comment concerning the
+death of the man at whose hands she had so suffered.
+
+[Illustration:
+_Clara Kimball Young under the direction of Lewis J. Selznick._
+THE COMING OF PEACE.]
+
+"His bein' so afeared o' thet-thar thing kep' 'im from hurtin' me,"
+she said, reflectively. "He was shorely sot ag'inst havin' 'is neck
+bruk, an', arter all, thet's jest what he got." She smiled,
+contentedly. For Plutina was a primitive woman, strong in her love,
+and strong in her hate.
+
+                  *       *       *       *       *
+
+It was a day of early autumn. The timber rights had been secured to
+the satisfaction of Sutton. The tree-nail factory was being built.
+Zeke was become a man of importance in the region.
+
+The lover's wedding-day was less than a month distant. To-day, Plutina
+had been for a visit to the Widow Higgins, and now Zeke was walking
+home with her. They paused at the place where had been their meeting
+on the morning of the lad's first adventuring into the world. Memories
+flooded them, as they looked across the valley to the bleak cliffs of
+Stone Mountain, which rose in aged, rugged grandeur, softened in this
+hour by the veils of haze, warmed with the lambent hues of sunset.
+
+In answer to Plutina, Zeke shook his head perplexedly.
+
+"I kain't quite stomach thet-thar yarn o' Seth Jones's," he said. "As
+I remember, Dan Hodges threw me--hard!" He grinned wryly at the
+recollection. "I don't see how I could have thrown him off the
+Slide."
+
+"But of course you did!" Plutina asserted, with great spirit. "Pooh!
+Ye could lick Dan Hodges any day in the week. An' Seth saw ye--that
+settles hit!"
+
+"I suppose so," Zeke conceded. "But Dan Hodges was a powerful fighter.
+After all, I didn't do anything much for ye, Tiny," he added, with
+regret in his voice.
+
+The girl was all indignation.
+
+"Why, Zeke!" she cried. "The idea! Ye did hit all. Ye banged the love
+o' ye into thet-thar dawg, what hung on to me an' brung up the fairy
+cross fer a message." Chubbie, as if understanding, leaped to lick her
+hand. "An' ye give me the cross, Zeke. Mebby, thet's what saved me,
+all the time--thar on the precipice, an'--an' back thar--in the
+cave--with him. An' then ye threw Dan Hodges right offen the mounting.
+Seth Jones seen ye do hit!"
+
+It seemed to Zeke that he must perforce accept the heroism thrust upon
+him, though a doubt still lingered. Still, his memory of the fight was
+confused. Perhaps, after all, he had--.
+
+Zeke broke off, and drew the girl close. Their lips met gently,
+tenderly, with the clinging of passion. What mattered the history of
+evil days? They were past. Before them lay the future, radiant with
+rosy promise. In this blessed present, they were together. Love
+thrilled exquisitely on their lips; more exquisitely in their souls.
+That love was, and it would remain, a noble and precious thing, great
+and very beautiful, as mighty and firm as the mountain looming yonder
+in immutable serenity and strength, as loyal, as enduring.... They
+walked on together, infinitely content.
+
+
+
+
+Underwood Typewriter
+
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+
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+
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+
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+
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+
+
+
+
+JOHN FOX, JR'S.
+
+STORIES OF THE KENTUCKY MOUNTAINS
+
+May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset and Dunlap's list.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+TRAIL OF THE LONESOME PINE.
+
+Illustrated by F. C. Yohn.
+
+The "lonesome pine" from which the story takes its name was a tall tree
+that stood in solitary splendor on a mountain top. The fame of the pine
+lured a young engineer through Kentucky to catch the trail, and when he
+finally climbed to its shelter he found not only the pine but the
+_footprints of a girl_. And the girl proved to be lovely, piquant, and
+the trail of these girlish foot-prints led the young engineer a madder
+chase than "the trail of the lonesome pine."
+
+THE LITTLE SHEPHERD OF KINGDOM COME
+
+Illustrated by F. C. Yohn.
+
+This is a story of Kentucky, in a settlement known as "Kingdom Come." It
+is a life rude, semi-barbarous; but natural and honest, from which often
+springs the flower of civilization.
+
+"Chad," the "little shepherd" did not know who he was nor whence he
+came--he had just wandered from door to door since early childhood,
+seeking shelter with kindly mountaineers who gladly fathered and
+mothered this waif about whom there was such a mystery--a charming waif,
+by the way, who could play the banjo better that anyone else in the
+mountains.
+
+A KNIGHT OF THE CUMBERLAND.
+
+Illustrated by F. C. Yohn.
+
+The scenes are laid along the waters of the Cumberland, the lair of
+moonshiner and feudsman. The knight is a moonshiner's son, and the
+heroine a beautiful girl perversely christened "The Blight." Two
+impetuous young Southerners fall under the spell of "The Blight's"
+charms and she learns what a large part jealousy and pistols have in the
+love making of the mountaineers.
+
+Included in this volume is "Hell fer-Sartain" and other stories, some of
+Mr. Fox's most entertaining Cumberland valley narratives.
+
+Ask for complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction
+
+GROSSET & DUNLAP, 526 WEST 26TH ST., NEW YORK
+
+
+
+
+STORIES OF WESTERN LIFE
+
+May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list.
+
+RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE, By Zane Grey.
+
+Illustrated by Douglas Duer.
+
+In this picturesque romance of Utah of some forty years ago, we are
+permitted to see the unscrupulous methods employed by the invisible hand
+of the Mormon Church to break the will of those refusing to conform to
+its rule.
+
+FRIAR TUCK, By Robert Alexander Wason.
+
+Illustrated by Stanley L. Wood.
+
+Happy Hawkins tells us, in his humorous way, how Friar Tuck lived among
+the Cowboys, how he adjusted their quarrels and love affairs and how he
+fought with them and for them when occasion required.
+
+THE SKY PILOT, By Ralph Connor.
+
+Illustrated by Louis Rhead.
+
+There is no novel, dealing with the rough existence of cowboys, so
+charming in the telling, abounding as it does with the freshest and the
+truest pathos.
+
+THE EMIGRANT TRAIL, By Geraldine Bonner.
+
+Colored frontispiece by John Rae.
+
+The book relates the adventures of a party on its overland pilgrimage,
+and the birth and growth of the absorbing love of two strong men for a
+charming heroine.
+
+THE BOSS OF WIND RIVER, By A. M. Chisholm.
+
+Illustrated by Frank Tenney Johnson.
+
+This is a strong, virile novel with the lumber industry for its central
+theme and a love story full of interest as a sort of subplot.
+
+A PRAIRIE COURTSHIP, By Harold Bindloss.
+
+A story of Canadian prairies in which the hero is stirred, through the
+influence of his love for a woman, to settle down to the heroic business
+of pioneer farming.
+
+JOYCE OF THE NORTH WOODS, By Harriet T. Comstock.
+
+Illustrated by John Cassel.
+
+A story of the deep woods that shows the power of love at work among its
+primitive dwellers. It is a tensely moving study of the human heart and
+its aspirations that unfolds itself through thrilling situations and
+dramatic developments.
+
+Ask for a complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction
+
+GROSSET & DUNLAP, 526 WEST 26TH ST., NEW YORK
+
+
+
+
+B. M. BOWER'S NOVELS
+
+Thrilling Western Romances
+
+Large 12 mos. Handsomely bound in cloth. Illustrated.
+
+CHIP, OF THE FLYING U
+
+A breezy wholesome tale, wherein the love affairs of Chip and Delia
+Whitman are charmingly and humorously told. Chip's jealousy of Dr. Cecil
+Grantham, who turns out to be a big, blue eyed young woman is very
+amusing. A clever, realistic story of the American Cow-puncher.
+
+THE HAPPY FAMILY
+
+A lively and amusing story, dealing with the adventures of eighteen
+jovial, big hearted Montana cowboys. Foremost amongst them, we find
+Ananias Green, known as Andy, whose imaginative powers cause many lively
+and exciting adventures.
+
+HER PRAIRIE KNIGHT
+
+A realistic story of the plains, describing a gay party of Easterners
+who exchange a cottage at Newport for the rough homeliness of a Montana
+ranch-house. The merry-hearted cowboys, the fascinating Beatrice, and
+the effusive Sir Redmond, become living, breathing personalities.
+
+THE RANGE DWELLERS
+
+Here are everyday, genuine cowboys, just as they really exist. Spirited
+action, a range feud between two families, and a Romeo and Juliet
+courtship make this a bright, jolly, entertaining story, without a dull
+page.
+
+THE LURE OF DIM TRAILS
+
+A vivid portrayal of the experience of an Eastern author, among the
+cowboys of the West, in search of "local color" for a new novel. "Bud"
+Thurston learns many a lesson while following "the lure of the dim
+trails" but the hardest, and probably the most welcome, is that of love.
+
+THE LONESOME TRAIL
+
+"Weary" Davidson leaves the ranch for Portland, where conventional city
+life palls on him. A little branch of sage brush, pungent with the
+atmosphere of the prairie, and the recollection of a pair of large brown
+eyes soon compel his return. A wholesome love story
+
+THE LONG SHADOW
+
+A vigorous Western story, sparkling with the free, outdoor, life of a
+mountain ranch. Its scenes shift rapidly and its actors play the game of
+life fearlessly and like men. It is a fine love story from start to
+finish.
+
+Ask for a complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction.
+
+GROSSET & DUNLAP, 526 WEST 26TH ST., NEW YORK
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Heart of the Blue Ridge, by Waldron Baily
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