Thorne was
half naked, black an' blue all over, thin as a rail. He looked
mighty sick when I seen him first. That was a little after midday.
He was given food an' drink. Shore he seemed a starved man.
But he picked up wonderful, an' by the time Jim came along he was
wantin' to start for Forlorn River. So was Nell. By main strength
as much as persuasion we kept the two of them quiet till next
evenin' at dark.
"Well, we made as sneaky a start in the dark as Jim an' me could
manage, an' never hit the trail till we was miles from town.
Thorne's nerve held him up for a while. Then all at once he tumbled
out of his saddle. We got him back, an' Lash held him on.
Nell didn't give out till daybreak."
As Ladd paused in his story Belding began to stutter, and finally
he exploded. His mighty utterances were incoherent. But plainly
the wrath he had felt toward the wilful girl was forgotten. Gale
remained gripped by silence.
"I reckon you'll all be some surprised when you see Casita," went
on Ladd. "It's half burned an' half tore down. An' the rebels are
livin' fat. There was rumors of another federal force on the road
from Casa Grandes. I seen a good many Americans from interior
Mexico, an' the stories they told would make your hair stand up.
They all packed guns, was fightin' mad at Greasers, an' sore on
the good old U. S. But shore glad to get over the line! Some
were waitin' for trains, which don't run reg'lar no more, an'
others were ready to hit the trails north.
Pages:
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214