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Show HICIL\ItD II UBOJS. • 24.4 , f all, and our safety ts "y s it mny Lc, but 't' the safest 0 b the wny I s f 'l'hnt must c ' now t~e· single object of Loth o us. Ben; and-'' . 7 You, I think-there's no other, "But who' ll watch for hml . I n't leave him, yon know, to . 'lS he sleeps nt my house, :a, fot, ~ 1 You'll have to do Jt: . nnd for a few mo· take a stanc . t nndmg one' , ' . . f . 'J'hc suggestion was an AS 01 silent. rl'O become h_-msc} <l ts llurdis was puzzled am s no IHtrt of his desire. He men , I b sincss wa · principal actor in suet a u l b't as constitution, to engage 111 was unprepnred , ns well by ~~it~1sclf was the cliicf performer, deeds of violence, where h~ risk Not tllll.t he had any mot:nl though at no sort of pcrsonn .. 'Ve have seen enough of lll.m or humnn scruples in the m:~tm.It was necessary, }Jo';'ever, for a 1t.e a dy to know t.h o reavnedt ..h e. propose d a course to Ill s confcd- 1i 0 him to say somethm~; < . :mel indecisive, and could pro~ s crate which was vnetllatmg. lie could not mustl'r comngo not even n probable ndvant.lgc:t f doing all himst:Jlf', and lookenough to recognise the necessl yo ing his task in the face. 1 him off, and follow him, as yon fol" \V ell, but yon c~ uld et lowed Dick Hurd is.". o 'NelL Bnt when he lmlYes tl~o u Yes, if I knew lns cour_sc ~v where h e'll strike 1 All ".e neighborhood road, who kt~o sW c ar e sure of him then befOIO know is, that he goes ~p~a~ ~nch ' which is but t.cn miles o~ ]Je gets to the 'Croo ·e fo/l!im ~nngly enough , and be sure :t 'l'herc you could watch. il quarter of an hour. B. him from the oppos't te h1ll for ta gboeon t rou< nd him, so as t o g et m it would be impossible for me o_ .' and, after that, who knows fJ·ont, before he reach?s th;,t pomt' . where lle turns }Jis bndle 7 d h tout. You can inqnn·e as "'V ell, Ben, but you mus;, fiu t a you go, and m:n-k lti s.liOofs. . rrhe other shook }us h ead. 's uire. If the fellow S~) S "I'm dubious ab~ut ~hat way, b~ut him, I may be askJ~lg true, t!Jat lle has lns fnendsf ~\\~ aml tllen all's dicky ;v.'t:l about his tracks from on~ o tl l. ·~ ~nly that one wny, w ~c~ both of us. I think, ·~;ru~:~e l:~ \ake the bush at 'Croo c . the safe one. You If''· ~rancht' and do this business yourse . 245 u But I'm not a M1rc sl1ot wi tl1 the rifle, ]Jen; and, to miss, were to knock cvcrytliiug in the hcnJ." ~< 'l'nkc your doul>lc Larrrl; you're a good shot with that. Pnt twenty buckshot in each barrel, nnd give him one nfter the otl1er. He \\'On't know the difference." "lf I sl10uld miss, Ben-" "You can't miss-l10w cnn you 1 'l'hc path's clear-not1J. jng to stop your sigl1t. You're out of his rcacL; you're on the hill. You see ltim coming toward-going round by-you, and you see him for two lnmdrcd yards on a clear track after l1 e's pnsscd you. 'l'!J crc's no chance of llis getting oft~ 'squire; :mel-" " lin! wlir1t's that 1" cried llurdis, as the sound of a pistolshot nrouscd a ll the sleep ing echoes of tl1e wood. The \'Oicc of the emissnry followed, rmd he wns !Jea rcl rtjJproaching them through the Lushes. "Don't be frightened, brothers; but, believing you to have f:tllen nslccp, l th o11ght to rouse you UjJ, for fcnr that you'd take cold . Arc yon most done, for I 'm getting cold myself 1'' 'l'hey were t<~ught by this-which the cmissnry probably desired- that l1e had fi re-nrms, and enough, too, to render tl1e loss of one load a matter of small consequence. "'l'he fellow's getting impatient," said Hurd is, in suppressed tones to Pickett. Then, crying aloud, "'V e will be with you directly," he hmried through the rest of his bloody arr:mgemcnts for the ensuing day. 1Vhen they were about to go forth, Pickett sudcleuly stopped !lis employer. "I had a lmost forgot, 'squire, but do you know Bill Can·ington's got back nlrea.dy. lie gave me a mighty bad scare today, that I llll'n't got over yet." "llow 1'' demanded Ilm·dis, with 1wtural alarm. "I saw h im going from my house-door. lie hadn 't been in it, so Betsy swo1·e to me, though I coulrl almost swear I saw him come out; and witlwnt stop11iug to say what he wanted, he took to the woods, like one more frightened than myself." "Strange! U c hadn't come 1wmc by dinner-time to-day. Did you take after him 1" "Yes, after a 1ittle while I did; but I was too much scared nt first to do anytl1ing quickly-not that I was so much scnred by Bill Carrington, as by another that I saw just nfore him." |
