WILD AND I ;
WOOLY ;
By STANLEY CORDELL i
C A»ocl»t*d N.WIPWII*
\VNU Bervlc*. C
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IT WAS hard to believe that the v
thing was actually happening, t
The Lee MncKeadys. who had 1:
never been West before, though 1
*uch dramas only occurred lu tic- t
tlon. Mrs. Maclleady uttered a t
little suppressed scream of fright
and pointed toward the gap. • Lee! ,
They're going to hold up the stage! i
Oh, why did you ever Insist on 1
leaving the main automobile road i
and driving Into this dreadful t
country?" ..... 1
“Because,” said Lee, ‘ nothing ©X
citing was happening on the main i
automobile road and we came West i
looking for atmosphere, didn't we!" .
He tried to sound Jovial, but his i
lips were white.
Above them and to the right nn
old-fashioned Concord stage coach,
pulled by four horses and with two
men perched on the box, had rocked
Into view and was descending the
slope. Beyond, to the left, a band
of horsemen, shouting and flourish
ing guns, had dashed from behind
the shelter of a pile of boulders
and was racing madly to Intercept
the Tehlcle’s progress.
Mrs. MacKeady screamed when
one of the men aboard the stage
fired toward the approaching horse
man. The driver began whipping
up his horses ns answering shots
came from the bandits. The stage
swayed precariously as It swept
flown the slope.
Mrs. MacReady grasped her hus
band’s arm and squeezed fiercely.
“I.ee!" she screamed. “We’re
right In the way! The stage Is
heading for the road, and we’ll
likely he shot. Hurry!”
But Lee didn’t need to be urged.
He bad estimated the spot where
the final showdown would take
place, slightly to the rear of where
they were now located. His foot
bore down on the accelerator and
he bent grimly orer the wheel. Bnt
speed was something to be wished
for and not attained, for the road
was nnpnved and rutty, much nfore
salted to shod hoofs than rubber
II res.
They went bouncing at what
seemed a terrific pace, yet couldn’t
have been more than 20 mllea nn
iney went Bouncing at What
Seemed to Be a Terrific Pace, the
Stage Tearing Along Almost at
Their Rear Bumper.
hour because the stage, having
gained the roadway, was tearing
along almost at their rear bumper.
Behind the stage came the bandits,
shouting furiously for the coach to
bait and emphasizing their de
mands with volley after volley of
shots.
Looking hack, Mrs. MucReady
suddenly said tensely: "Lee 1 Some
thing's gone wrong. There’s an
other band of horsemen following
after the bandits!”
“Probably the sheriff and his
posse 1” Lee replied. Abruptly his
face brightened. “There’s a townl”
be cried. “We’re safe!”
“Maybe,” bis wife answered. “If
that’s a posse the bandits are
caught between two fires and we’re
In the thick of It."
Lee didn’t reply. He had jammed
home the accelerator, risking brok
en springs and axles in order to
gain the sanctity of the huddle of
buildings which loomed ahead, be
fore a careless bullet pierced him
between the shoulder blades.
The town was alive with men, all
carrying guns and all rushing about
aimlessly. As the MacReadys
swept down the street, puffs of
smoke began to Jet out from win
dows and behind doors. The sound
of shooting mingled with the shouts
of men, the roar of the MacReady
motor and the rumble of the stage,
was deafening.
T AA Annf A aI » l. .. A -A. J IITTaA.I It
--- **"*'•*»
and skidded to n stop. “Quick. In
side! It looks ns though this fight
has just begun !’•
They raced up the steps. A door
opened and they ran for It. Inside
a bearded man, holding a rifle and
with six-shooters strapped about
Ms waist, grinned at them. “Just
made It, eh?"
“Ca-can you hide us?” Mrs. Mac
Heady asked.
The man with the beard eyed
them uncertainly a moment. “O.
K. Come with me.”
He led the way up a flight of
stairs. “You’ll be O. K. In here,"
he said, opening a door.
The MacReadys looked around.
They were In a scantily furnished
hotel bedroom. Two windows faced
on the street, and from beneath
them came a bedlam of sounds. Al
ready It had begun to grow dark,
and tbe flashes of rifles and six
guns were plainly visible.
WrlwM •iw' ,h* '"*—**”
Le« said, "I’ll close the blinds." Be
crept across the floor, reached up
and palled down the ahades. Then
he wriggled back to a position be
side his wife. Terrified, clutching
at each other, they huddled on the
floor there. Honrs passed, or a
period that seemed like hours. Out
side the shooting continued, but as
darkness settled It grew less In
tense and finally ceased. There
was the sound of running feet and
much shouting. The MacKeadya
heard someone say: “LynchersI”
And the cry was Immediately ta
ken up and repeated by a dozen
throats.
Minutes later a dull glow showed
against the curtain. Lee crawled
across the floor and peeped out.
“They’ve hung three menl" he re
ported. ills face was white “And
they’ve hullt a Are and are cele
brating !’’
Mrs. MacReady gasped and
slumped forward. Lee picked her
up and carried here to the bed.
After a while she regained con
sciousness, but was too weak to
move. I.ee lay down beside her
and did what he could to be a com
fort. A long Interval passed, and
then the red glow grew faint and
died. The sound of shouting di
minished and presently there was
stillness. For the first time Lee
relaxed. He lny for a long time,
expecting to hear footsteps ap
proaching their room, or a re
newal of the hubbub In the street.
At length, overcome by complete
exhaustion, the MacRendys slept.
Day had come when they awoke'.
Lee climbed off the bed and timidly
lifted up the curtain. It was some
what of a shock to discover a
quiet, unassuming and peaceful
country; hard to believe that the
horrors of the night before had
actually taken place here. A hun
dred yards up the street three
limp bodies swung In the breeze.
Lee shuddered and turned away.
“Come on," he said. “Let’s get
out of here."
Delow stairs a pleasant-faced
young man was standing behind
the difck. It was only when he
■poke that the MacReadys recog
niied their host of last night, wlth
OOt his beard. He smiled at them.
“Enjoy our little celebration?" he
ISked. “I gave you the only front
room we had left, so you could get
• good view."
Lee merely stared. “Celebration?”
he said, sounding ridiculously like
: an echo.
Jhe young man nodded. Or
i coarse, being from the East, you
wouldn’t know about Dusty Rem
brandt. Worst bandit this section
of the country ever had. Twenty
fire years ago today he was cap
tured and hung with two of his
bencluuan. We celebrate tile event
every year by staging a pageant
exactly as It happened on that
{nomorahle day. Those dummies
you see banging In the square rep
resent Rembrandt and his lieuten
ants. The old stage is the one used
to bait the outlaws into town. Sher
iff Wells, the man who made the
capture, led yesterday’s posse.” The
young man laughed. “It's a great
t day 1 ere. All the men grow
, beards and the women wear calico
( dresses. The affair winds up with
a bontlre and then a dance at the
Circle It ranch."
! Lee gulped and stared at his
; wife. Mrs. Maclteady said: “Then
. —then it wasn't real?”
, The young man shook his head.
» “Looked almost real, didn't It?”
bo said proudly.
‘ An hour later the MacRendy*
bump* ! out of town In their car
’ and On their faces were expressions
difficult to describe. Presently they
• came to a crossroad and Lee
; pulled up. "We’d better turn here,”
be said, “and get back to the main
i automobile route. It'll be easier
i driving and I guess things of ex
’ citing nature are just as apt to
bappeo there as any place.”
’ Mrs. Maclteady nodded sadly,
i There was disappointment In her
i face. "I guess so," she said.
1 Science Seeks Enduring
i Paint Used by Indiana
’ Mysterious Indian “spirit” pic
ture* have given n clew to a paint
which can withstand exposure to
weather for hundreds of years,
states a Washington Press corre
spondent.
i The Smithsonian institution re
cently announced that Dr. John P.
Harrington, entomologist, will visit
southern California to study the
i basic Ingredients used in Indian
drawings on mountain cliffs which
Still retain their original luster 150
year* after they were painted.
According to Indian legends, the
picture* "ere painted by spirits
of the dead, investigation revealed
that the work was done at night by
medicine men.
On sn expedition among the Mis
sion Indians of southern California
last fall. Doctor Harrington found
that *n 4,11 pressed from the seeds
of a rare species of wild cucumber
was used In mixing the paint.
Doctor Harrington will try to find
enough of these cucumber seeds to
obtain a supply of oil for experi
mental purposes. From n chemical
analyst* it may be possible to find
out tbe remarkable element which
enabled the crude Indian paintings
to la*( through more than a cen
tury'* diverse weather conditions.
Tbe Indians obtained the oil
through the simple process of
crushing it out of tbe seeds with
a stone pestle. Formerly, these cu
cumher plants were fairly common
sll over tte United States, but now
n gown by tbe reserve officer* und<
FINNEY OF THE FORCE Tribute
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