m, here in the Cumberland, for years. Sometimes they have
really bloody battles with them, when they try to make a raid."

"How terrible!" said Barbara, and shuddered carefully. She looked again
at Lorey, who, conscious that he was the subject of their conversation
and resentful of it, stared back boldly and defiantly. "And do you think
that he--that very young man there--can possibly have ever actually
_killed_ a man?"

The engineer laughed heartily. "That he may _possibly_ have killed a
man," said he, "there is no doubt. I don't know that he has, however,
and it is most improbable. I don't even know that he's a moonshiner."

Among the others who had left the train, which, now, had been switched
off to a crude side-track, the cars left there and the locomotive
started at the handling of dirt-dump-cars, were two tall, sunburned
strangers, whom Miss Alathea, who had noted them as she did everyone,
had classed as engineers or surveyors, but who had not, when they had
arrived, mingled with the other men employed on the construction of the
railroad. While the young man and Barbara were talking about
moonshiners, one of them had drifted near and he gave them a keen
glance at the first mention of the word. Now he turned, but turned most
casually, to follow with his own, their glances at Joe Lorey. Then he
sauntered off, and, as he passed Holton, seemed to exchange meaning
glances with him.

Soon afterward Lorey turned away. The day was getting on toward noon.
The long tramp back to his lonely cabin in the mountains would consume
some hours. The sight of all these strangers, all this work on the new
railroad worried him, made him unhappy, added to and multiplied the
apprehension which for weeks had filled his heart about Madge Brierly
and young Layson. He battled with a mixture of emotions. There was no
ounce of cowardice, in Joe. Never had he met a situation in his life
before which he had feared or which had proved too strong for him. All
his battles, so far, and they had been many and been various, as was
inevitable from the nature of his secret calling, had resulted in full
victories for his mighty strength of body or his quick foot, certain
hand, keen knowledge of the mountains and the woods resource and wit
that went with these; but now things seemed to baffle him. His soul was
struggling against acknowledgment of it, while his mind continually told
him it was true. Everything seemed, now, to be against him.

He kne