red to other matters.

"It's locked, Judson, it's locked, and nobody knows the combination;
and there aren't any burglars here," he said. I knew he was talking
about the safe in the room below.

We all did what we could for him, which was little enough. The doctor
had gone away weeks before. He grew worse during the night. The train
had come in that day, and I asked Burrdock if he did not think it
would be best to send him away on it in the morning to his friends at
St. Paul, where he could get proper care. Burrdock agreed to this
plan. Toward morning the old gentleman fell asleep, and we covered him
very carefully and carried him over to the train on his bed. He roused
up a little in the car and seemed to realize where he was.

"Take care of the bank, Judson, take good care of it," he said in a
sort of a feeble way. "You must be banker as well as hotel-keeper
now."

I told him I would do the best I could, and he closed his eyes again.

It was cold and blizzardy when the train left at nine o'clock. Tucker
and West were not the only ones of our little colony who took the
train; there were five others, making, with Mr. Clerkinwell, eight,
and leaving us six, to wit: Tom Carr, the agent; Frank Valentine, the
postmaster; Jim Stackhouse; Cy Baker; Andrew, the Norwegian, and
myself, Judson Pitcher.

After the train had gone away down the track in a cloud of white
smoke, we held a mock mass-meeting around the depot stove, and elected
Tom Carr mayor, Jim Stackhouse treasurer, and Andrew street
commissioner, with instructions to "clear the streets of snow without
delay so that the city's system of horse-cars may be operated to the
advantage of our large and growing population." The Norwegian grinned
and said:

"Aye tank he be a pretty big yob to put all that snow away."

[Illustration: READING THE OUTLAWS' LETTER, DECEMBER SIXTEENTH]

In a little while the new street commissioner and I left the others at
a game of cards and started out to go to the hotel. There was a strong
northwest wind, and the fine snow was sifting along close to the
ground. I noticed that the rails were already covered in front of the
depot. The telegraph wire hummed dismally. We were plowing along
against the wind when we heard a shout and looked up. Over by the old
graders' camp there were three men on horseback, all bundled up in fur
coats. One of them had a letter in his hand which he waved at us.

"Let's see what's up," I said to Andrew, an