more coffee, Ma?"

But Margaret was not eating. Her face was pale and her eyes were starry
with unshed tears, and she waited in patient but breathless suspense for
the vagaries of the story to work out to the finish.

"Yes, it certainly was something fierce, that cabin," went on the
narrator. "Why, Ma, it looked as if it had never been swept under that
cot when we hauled the Kid out. He was tied all up in knots, and great
heavy ropes wound tight from his shoulders down to his ankles. Why, they
were bound so tight they made great heavy welts in his wrists and
shoulders and round his ankles when we took 'em off; and they had a
great big rag stuffed into his mouth so he couldn't yell. Gee! It was
something fierce! He was 'most dippy, too; but Jap Kemp brought him
round pretty quick and got him outside in the air. That was the worst
place I ever was in myself. You couldn't breathe, and the dirt was
something fierce. It was like a pigpen. I sure was glad to get outdoors
again. And then--well, the Kid came around all right and they got him on
a horse and gave him something out of a bottle Jap Kemp had, and pretty
soon he could ride again. Why, you'd oughta seen his nerve. He just sat
up there as straight, his lips all white yet and his eyes looked some
queer; but he straightened up and he looked those rascals right in the
eye, and told 'em a few things, and he gave orders to the other men from
Lone Fox Camp what to do with 'em; and he had the two women
disarmed--they had guns, too--and carried away, and the cabin nailed up,
and a notice put on the door, and every one of those men were
handcuffed--the sick one and all--and he told 'em to bring a wagon and
put the sick one's cot in and take 'em over to Ashland to the jail, and
he sent word to Mr. Rogers. Then we rode home and got to the
school-house just when you was playing the last chords of the ov'rtcher.
Gee! It was some fierce ride and some _close shave_! The Kid he hadn't
had a thing to eat since Monday noon, and he was some hungry! I found a
sandwich on the window of the dressing-room, and he ate it while he got
togged up--'course I told him 'bout Jed soon's we left the cabin, and
Jap Kemp said he'd oughta go right home to camp after all he had been
through; but he wouldn't; he said he was goin' to _act_. So 'course he
had his way! But, gee! You could see it wasn't any cinch game for him!
He 'most fell over every time after the curtain fell. You see, they gave
him som