Newspaper Page Text
—•— I - ——* .11-
nHn ®-
fepSWR I£ ®Wf ifoiiViO
■ COPYRIGHT. 1896 t BY J B LIPPINCOTT COMPANY )_\
CHAPTER VII.
A CHANGE OF BASE.
Wp did not reach Flagstaff till 7, and
I told the stagelcad to take possession
of their car, while I went to niv own.
It took me some time to get freshened
up, and then I ate my breakfast, for aft
er riding 72 miles in one night even the
most heroic purposes have to take the
sidetrack. I think, as it was, I proved
my devotion pretty well by not going to
sleep, since I had been up three nights,
with only such naps as I could steal in
the saddle, and had ridden over 150 miles
to boot. But I couldn’t bear to think of
Miss Cullen’s anxiety. When I had fin
ished eating, I went into 218.
The party were all in the dining
room, but it was a very different look
ing crowd from the one with which
that first breakfast had been eaten, and
they all looked at me as I entered as if
I were the executioner come for victims;
“Mr. Cullen,” I said, “I’ve been
forced to do a lot of things that weren’t
pleasant, but I don’t want to do more
than I need. You’re not the ordinary
kind of road agents, and, as I presume
your address is known, I don’t see any
need of arresting one of our own di
rectors as yet. All I ask is that you give
me your word for the party that none of
you will try to leave the country.”
“Certainly, Mr. Gordon,” he re
sponded. “And I thank you for your
great consideration.”
“I shall have to report the case to our
president, and I suppose to the postmas
ter general, but I shan’t hurry about Ci
ther. What they will do I can’t say.
Probably yon know hoW far you can
keep t hem quiet. ’ ’
“I think the local authorities are all
I have to fear, provided time is given
me.”
“I have dismissed the sheriff and his
posse, and I gave them- SIOO for their
work and three bottles of pretty good
whisky I had on my car. Unless they
get orders from elsewhere, you will net
hear any further from them.”
‘‘You must let me reimburse what
expense we have put you to, Mr. Gor
don. I only wish I could as easily repay
your kindness. ”
Nodding my head in assent as well
as in recognition of his thanks, I con
tinued, “It was my duty as an official
of the K. & A. to recover the stolen
mail, and I had to do it. ”
“We understand that,” said Mr. Cul
len, ‘ ‘ and do not for a moment blame
you. ’ ’
“But,” I went on, for the first time
looking at Madge, “it is not my duty
to take part in a contest for control of
the K. & A., and I shall therefore act
in this case as I should in any other lots
of mail. ”
“And that is”— asked Frederic.
“I am about to telegraph for instruc
tions from Washington,” I said. “As
the G. S. has tied up some of your
proxies, they ought not to object if we
do the same, and I think I can manage
so that Uncle Sam will prevent those
proxies from being voted at Ash Forks
on Friday. ’ ’
If a galvanic battery had been applied
to the breakfast table, it wouldn’t have
made a bigger change. Madge clapped
her hands in joy. Mr. Cullen said
“God bless you!” with real feeling.
Frederic jumped up and slapped me on
the shoulder, crying, “Gordon, you’re
the biggest old trump breathing,” while
Albert and the captain shook hands with
each other in evident jubilation. Only
Lord Bailes remained passive.
“Have you breakfasted?” asked Mr.
Cullen when the firs: joy was over.
“Yes,” I said. “I only stopped in on
my way to the station to telegraph. ”
“May I come with you and see what
you say?” cried Fred, jumping up.
I nodded, and Miss Cullen said ques
tioningly, “Me too?” making me very
happy by the quesion, for it showed
that she would speak to me. In a mo
ment we were all walking toward the
platform. Despite Lord Ralles, I felt
happy, and especially as I had not
dreamed that she would ever forgive me.
I took a telegraph blank, and. put
ting it so that Miss Cullen could see
what I said, wrote:
Postmaster General, Washington:
I hold, awaiting your instructions, the three
registered letters stolen from No. 3 Overland
Missouri Western express on Monday, Oct. 14,
loss of which has already been notified you.
Then I paused and said: “So far,
that’s routine, Miss Cullen. Now comes
the help for you. ” And I continued:
The letters may have been tampered with,
and I recommend a special agent. Reply Flag
staff, Arizona. Richard Gordon,
Superintendent K. and A. R. R.
“What will that do?” she asked.
“I’m not much at prophecy, and we’ll
wait for the reply,” I said.
All that day we lay at Flagstaff, and
after a gen'd sleep, as there was no use
keeping the party cooped up in their
car, I drummed up some ponies and took
the Cullens and Ackland over to the In
dian cliff dwellings. I don't think Lord
Ralles gained anything by staying be
hind in a sulk, for it was a very jolly
ride, or at least that was what it was to
me. I had to tell them all how I had
settled on them as the criminals. To
hear Miss Cullen talk one would have
inferred I was the greatest of living de
tectives.
“The mistake we made, ” she said,
“was not securing Mr. Gordon’s help to
begin with, for then we should never
have needed to hold the train up, or,
if we had, we should never have been
discovered. ”
What was more to me than this ill
deserved admiration were two things
she said on the tva-V back when we two
had paired off and were a bit behind the
rest.
“The sandwiches and the whisky
were very good, ’ ’ she told me. “And I’m
so grateful for the trouble you took. ”
“It was a pleasure,” I said.
“And, Mr. Gordon,” she continued,
and then hesitated for a moment, “my
—Frederic told me that you—you said
you honored me for”—
“I do,” I exclaimed energetically as
she paused and colored.
“Do you really?” she cried. “I
thought Fred was only trying to make
me less unhappy by saying that you
' did. ’ ’
“I said it, and I meant it,” I told
her.
“I have been so miserable over that
lie,” she went on, “but I thought if I
let you have the letters it would ruin
papa. I really wouldn’t mind poverty
myself, Mr. Gordon, but he takes such
pride in success that I couldn’t be the
one to do it. I ought to have known you
i would help us. ’ ’
I thought this a pretty good time to
make a real apology for my conduct on
the trail as well as to tell her how sorry
I was at not having been able to repack
her bag better. She accepted my apology
very sweetly and assured me her be
| longings had been put away so neatly
that she had wondered who did it. I
i knew she only said this cut of kindness
\ and told her so, telling also of my strug
| gles over that pink beribboned and be
laced affair in away which made her 1
laugh. Iliad thought it was a ball gown
i and wondered at her taking it to the
, canyon, but she explained that it was a
; dressing sack. That made me open my
eyes, thinking that anything so pretty
I could be used for the same purposes for
which I use my crash bath gown, and,
while my eyes were open, I saw the fol
ly of thinking that a girl who wore such
. things could ever get along on my sal
j ary. In that way the incident was a
| good lesson for me, for it made me feel
that even if there had been no Lord
Ralles I still should have had no chance.
On our return to the cars there was a
telegram from the postmaster general
: awaiting me. After a glance at it, as
■ the rest of the party looked anxiously
on, I passed it over to Miss Cullen, for
I wanted her to have the triumph of
reading it aloud. It said:
Hold letters pending arrival of Special Agent
Jackson, due in Flagstaff Oct. 20.
“The election is the 18th,” Frederic
laughed, executing a war dance on the
platform. “The G. S.’s dough is cook
ed.”
“I must waltz with some one,” cried
Madge, and before I could offer she took
hold of Albert and the two were whirl
ing about, much to my envy. The Cul
lens were about the most jubilant road
agents I had ever seen
After consultation with Mr. Cullen,
We had 218 and 97 attached to No. 1
when it arrived and started for Ash
Forks. He wanted to be on the ground
a day in advance, and I could easily be
back in Flagstaff before the arrival of
the special agent.
I took dinner in 218, and they toasted
me as if I had done something heroic
instead of merely having sent a telc-
vl
W v-sL. I "S
T * ; 4 wOCao 5
They toasted me as if I had done some
thing heroic.
i gram. Later four sat down to poker,
i while Miss Cullen, Fred and I sat on
the platform, and Madge played on her
guitar and sang to us. She had a very
sweet voice, and before she had been
singing long we had the crew of a
I “dust express”—as we jokingly call a
i gravel train—standing about, and they
‘ were speedily re-enforced by many cow
boys, who left the saloons to listen to
her, and who, not being overcareful in
the terms with which they expressed
their approval, finally by their riotous
admiration drove us inside. At Miss
Cullen’s suggestion we three had a sec
ond game of poker, but with chips and
not money. She was an awfully reckless
player, and the luck was dead in my fa
vor, so Madge kept borrowing my chips
till she was so deep in that we both lost
account. Finally, when we parted for
the night, she held out her hand, and,
! in the prettiest of ways, said:
“I am so deeply in your debt, Mr.
Gordon, that I don’t see how I can ever
repay you.”
I tried to think of something worth
saying, but the words wouldn’t come
and I could only shake her hand. But,
I duffer as I was, the way she had said
| those words, and the double meaning
she had given them, would have made
me the happiest fellow alive if I could
only have forgotten the existence of
Lord Ralles.
CHAPTER VTH.
HOW DID THE SECRET LEAK OUT?
I made up for my three nights' lack
of sleep by not waking the next morn
ing till after 10. When I went to 218, I
found only the chef, and he told me the
party had gone fcr a ride. Since I could
not talk to Madge, I went to work at
my desk, for I had been rather neglect
ing my routine work. While I still
wrote I heard horses’ hoofs, and, look
ing up, saw the Cullens returning. I
went out on the platform to wish them
good morning, arriving just in time to
see Lord Ralles help Miss Cullen out of
her saddle, and the way he did it, and
the way he continued to hold her hand
after she was down, while he said some
thing to her, made me grit my teeth
and look the other way. None of the
riders had seen me, so I slipped into my
car and went back to work. Fred came
in presently to see if I was up yet and
to ask me to lunch, but I felt so miser
able and downhearted that I made an
excuse of my late breakfast for not join
ing them.
After luncheon the party in the other
special all came out and walked up and
down the platform, the sound of their
voices and laughter only making me
feel the bluer. Before long I heard a rap
on one of my windows, and there was
Miss Cullen peering in at me. The mo
ment I looked Up she called:
“Won’t you make one of us, Mr. Mis-=
anthrope?”
I called myself all sorts of a fool, but
out I went as eagerly as if there had
been some hope. Miss Cullen began to
tease me over my sudden access of ener
gy, declaring that she was sure it was
a pose for their benefit, or else due to a
guilty conscience over having slept so
late.
“I hoped you would ride with us,
though perhaps it wouldn’t have paid
you. Apparently there is nothing to see
in Ash Forks. ’ ’
“There is something that may inter
est you all,” I said, pointing to a specif I
that had been dropped off No. 2 that
morning.
“What is it?” asked Madge.
“It’s a G. S; special,” I said, “and
Mr. Camp and Mr. Baldwin and two
G. S. officials came in on it.”
“What do you think he’d give for
i those letters?” laughed Fred.
“If they were worth so much to you,
I suppose they can’t be worth any less
to the G. S., ” I replied.
“Fortunately there is no way that
he can learn where they are,” said Mr.
Cullen.
“Don’t let’s stand still,” cried Miss
Cullen. “Mr. Gordon, I’ll run you a
race to the end of the platform. ’ ’ She
said this only after getting a big lead,
and she got there about eight inches
ahead of me, which pleased her mighti
ly. “It takes men so long to get start
ed, ’ ’ was the way she explained her vic
tory. Then she walked me beyond the
end of the boarding to explain the work
ings of a switch to her. That it was
only a pretext she proved to me the mo
ment I had relocked the bar by saying:
* ‘ Mr. Gordon, may I ask you a ques
tion?”
‘ ‘ Certainly, ’ ’ I assented.
“It is one I should ask papa or Fred,
but I am afraid they might not tell me
the truth. You will, won’t you?” she
begged very earnestly.
“I will, ” said I.
“Supposing, ” she continued, “that it
became known that you have those let
ters? Would it do our side any harm?”
I thought for a moment and ther
shook my head. “No new proxies
could arrive here in time for the elec
tion, ” I said, “and the ones I have will
not be voted. ’ ’
She still looked doubtful and asked,
“Then why did papa say just now,
‘Fortunately?’ ”
“He merely meant that it was safer
they shouldn’t know. ”
“Then it is better to keep it a secret?”
she asked anxiously.
‘‘ I suppose so, ” I said, and then add
ed, “Why should you be afraid of ask
ing your father?”
“Because he might—well, if he
knew, I'm sure he would sacrifice him
self, and I couldn’t run the risk. ”
“I am afraid I don’t understand?” I
questioned.
“I would rather not explain,” she
said, and of course that ended the sub
ject.
Our exercise taken, we went back to
the Cullens’ car and Madge left us to
write some letters. A moment later
Lord Ralles remembered he had not
written home recently, and he, too,
went forward to the dining room. That
made me call myself—something, for
not having offered Miss Cullen the use
of my desk in 97. Owing to this the
two missed part of the big game we
were playing, for barely were they gone
when one of the servants brought a
card to Mr. Cullen, who looked at it
and exclaimed, “Mr. Camp!” Then,
after a speaking pause, in which we all
exchanged glances, he said, “Bring
him in. ”
On Mr. Camp’s entrance he looked
as much surprised as we had all done a
moment before. “I beg your pardon for
I intruding, Mr. Cullen,” he said. “I
was told that this was Mr. Gordon’s
car, and I wish to see him. ’ ’
“I am Mr. Gordon.”
“You are traveling with Mr. Cul
len?” he inquired, with a touch of sus
picion in his manner.
“No,” I answered. “My special is
the next car, and I was merely enjoy
ing a cigar here. ’ ’
“Ah!” said Mr. Camp. “Then I
i won’t interrupt your smoke, and will
only relieve you of those letters of
■ mine. ”
I took a good pull at my cigar and
blew the smoke out in a cloud slowly
to gain time. “I don’t think I follow
you,” I said.
“I understand that you have in your
possession three letters addressed to
me. ”
“I have,” I assented.
“Then I will ask you to deliver them
to me. ”
“I can't do that. ”
‘‘Why not?” he challenged. “They’re
my property. ’ ’
I produced the postmaster general’e
telegram and read it to him.
“Why, this is infamous!” Mr. Camp
cried. ■‘What use will those letters be
aftt r the 2<)th? It's a conspiracy. ”
“I can only obey instructions,” I
said.
“It shall cost you your position if
you do.” Mr. Camp threatened.
As I've air adv said, I haven't a good
temper, and when he told me that I
couldn't help retorting:
“That's quite on a par with most G.
S. methods. ’ ’
“I’m not speaking for the G. S.,
young man,” said Mr. Camp. “I speak
as a director of the Kansas and Arizona.
What is more. I will have those letters
inside of 24 hours.”
He made an ailgry exit, and I said to
Fred: “I wish you would stroll about
and spy out the proceedings of the ene
my’s camp. He may telegraph to Wash- I
ington, and if there’s any chance of the
postmaster general revoking his order I
must go back to Flagstaff on No. 4 this
afternoon. ’ ’
“He shan't do anything that I don’t
know about till he goes to bed,’’Fred
promised. “But how the douce did he
know that you had those letters?”
That was just what we were all puz
zling over, for only the occupants of No.
218 and myself, so far as I knew, were
in a position to let Mr. Camp hear of
that fact.
As Fred made his exit he said,
“Don't tell Madge that there is a new
complication, for the dear girl has had
worries enough already. ’ ’
Miss Cullen not rejoining us, and
Lord Ralles presently doing so, I went
to my own car, for he and I were not
good furniture for the same room. Be
fore I had been there long Fred came
rushing in.
“Camp and Baldwin have been in
consultation with a lawyer, ’ ’ he said,
“and now the throe have just boarded
those cars, ” pointing out the window
at the branch line train that was to
leave for Phenix in two minutes.
“You must go with them,” I urged,
“and keep us informed as to what they
do, for they evidently are going to set
the law on us, and the G. S. has always
owned the territorial judges, so they’ll
stretch a point to oblige them,”
.“Have 1 time to fill a bag?”
“Plenty,” I answered him, and, go
ing out, I ordered the train held till I
should give the word.
“What docs it all mean?” asked Miss
Cullen, joining me.
I laughed and replied, “I’m holding
up a train all by my lonesome. ”
“But my brother came dashing in
just now and said he was starting fcr.
Phenix. ’ ’
“Let her go,” I called to the con
ductor, as Fred jumped aboard, and th a
train pulled out.
[to be continued.]
Gent.
This slang word seems to have
come in at first as a mere written
contraction. I have found the word
laygents in law reports of the sev
enteenth century, particularly those
of Popham and of Davis. In Sir
John Northcote’s “Note Book, ” Dec.
2, 1640, Lord Gray is described as
saying of one Hallford or Holford
“that he is no gent; that in mem
ory of divers he kept hogs. ” The
cognate word gemman can be traced
about a century earlier.—Notes and
Queries.
Wanted a Change.
On the one excursion north of Ma
son and Dixon’s line which John
Randolph of Roanoke permitted
himself in the course of his life ho
ordered the waiter at a tavern to
“change his cup.” The man in
quired whether be desired tea or
coffee. “If this,” he said, indicating
with his scornful forefinger the bev
erage already served to him—“lf
this be tea, bring me coffee. If this
be coffee, bring me tea. I want a
Eczema
All Her Life.
Mr. E. D. Jenkins, of Lithonia, Ga.,
says that his daughter, Ida, inherited a
severe case of Eczema, which the usual
mercury and potash remedies failed to
relieve. Year by year she was treated
with various medicines, external appli
cations and internal remedies, without
result. Her sufferings were intense,
and her condition grew steadily worse.
All the so-called blood remedies did not
seem to reach the dis
ease at all until S.
was g‘ ven > v?hen
agL— jgjs an improvement
uv S was at once noticed,
xj* .--W The medicine was
2“\ continuecd with fav-
ora ble results, and
jhirL now s^e * s cured
y sound and well, het
'TWriWrSear and
-f I | ‘ “J z she has been saved
from what threat
ened to blight her life forever.
S.S.S. {guaranteed purely vegetable')
cures Eczema, Scrofula, Cancer, Rheu
matism, or any other blood trouble.
It is a real blocd remedy and always
cures even after all else fails.
A Real Blood Remedy.
Take a blood remedy for a blood disease;
a tonic won’t cure it.
Our books
on blood and
skin diseases
mailed free to
any address.
Swift Specific
Co., Atlanta,
Ga.
W. ft. Gokef & Go.
19 & 2! BROAD ST. ROME, GA.
THE GREAT CUT PRICE HOUSE.
Offer Bargains and Prices That
None Dare to Compete!
To the buyer—Seeing, you will buy. To the look
er—We invite you to give our goods a close inspec
tion and we are satisfied that you will become our
customer. Each department is full to overflowing
and each department is a store within itself.
Dress Goods and Notions.
A FULL AND COMPLETE STOCK OF BEAUTIFUL
GOODS.
Dudine Suitings, per yd. 10c.
22c per yd. will buy the latest no
velty suiting.
Swandown Flannel
Klondike Plaids, only 35c yd. I
Gold and silver cassimere, 25c yd. I
50c per yd will buy Thibet cloth
all colors, 40 inch wide.
Plain and brocaded brilliantine
black and colors, 25 to 75c per yd.
36 inch all wool serge 25c
50 inch all wool serge 50c
40 inch cocheco cloth 65c
36 meh Woolen brocades 15c
30 inch India Cassimere 10c
Ready made skirts brocaded and
Clothing, H'ats and Gaps.
A SPLENDID STOCK IN THIS DEPARTMENT.
Our $2.50 suit is an eye opener. $3 50 will buy a suit that
others want $5 00
$5.00 will buy a nice clay worsted suit that is worth $7.50.
$5 00 will buy a plaid suit that you can’t match for $7.50
Our $8 00 business man’s s lit is a trade winner and looks it
should cost $12.50
SIO.OO buys the best imported clay worsted suit in the city.
Boys clothes, knee pant suits and long pant suits.
We can sell you at a price that will satisfy your pocket book
and the boy’s pride. We have every color —green, brown,
black and grey and sell them at SI.OO up to $6.00.
Hats, hats! Watch our local on hats. We are the hatters
fitters.
BEAUTIFUL FOOTWEAR!
Shoes, Shoes! Fly When you see our Prices.
$1 10 will buy a Ladie’s Dongola
Estelle Shoe.
$1.35 will buy 7 a Cincinnatti cus
tom made shoe. Call for the Jew
el or Trilby.
We have them for $2 for which
others want $3 Remember that
they are Cincinnati custom made
Misses, children’s and babies shoes
all grades and prices, from 25c to
WE LEAD INTH IS LINE!
As Gents Furnishers We Lead and Let Those Follow Who Can.
Laundered Shirts that others want 40c for we sell at 25c.
83c buys a $1 shirt at our store.
Our 50c line of shirts equal any 75c line in the city.
Collars, cuffs and neckwear are our hobby and we make the
prices that sell them.
Half hose, the grey southern knit 5c per pr.
Seamless black and tan extra splice heel and toe, 10c,
Hermsdorf’s best half hose, 15c per pr.
50c will buy a very good umbrella.
' 75c will buy a fair Umbrella.
$1 will buy the $1.50 kind.
Remember this department is full of everything that you want.
W. H. COKER & COMPANY.
Broad street, Rome, Ga.
plain brilliantines $1.25, $2 and
$2.50 each.
Feder Busch Braid, the greatest
invention of the age, all colors,
10c the yd.
50c will buy an extra long waist
corset.
25c will get you a very good corset.
A corset, the $1 kind, for 75c.
10c to 25c for belts, all colors.
5c will get you a nice skirt sup
porter.
10c buys jersey gloves.
Baby caps, prices and colors to
suit the baby.
$1.50 the pr.
Gents’ shoes, buff, ba ’., or congress
at 90c the pr.
( lone calf shoes, $1.75.
$2 the pr. buys a Scotch calf.
We have the green and tan shoes
made by the leaders of fine shoes,
Stacey & Adams Co. Wesellthem
from $4.50 to $6.50.