Beth Norvell

Brown roughly jerked his gun from out its holster, holding the shining

weapon up into the starlight.

"No, he didn't; not that one," he growled fiercely, his glance falling

again upon the upturned features of the dead girl. "I saw him out thar

runnin' toward our shaft-hole; h-he's up t-ter more d-deviltry. Y-you

take k-keer o' her." His voice broke, then rang out strong. "By

G-God, I 'll git the murderer!"

He pushed past between the two, shouldering them aside as though

failing to see them, and, with the leap of a tiger, disappeared in the

night. Each man had caught a glimpse of his face, drawn, white, every

line picturing savagery, and shrank back from the memory. It was as if

they had looked upon something too horrible for thought. A moment they

stared after him, clutching their rifles as though in an agony of fear.

Hicks first found words of expression.

"He 's gone mad! God pity him, he 's gone mad!"

Winston drew himself together sharply, one hand grasping the other's

arm.

"Then leave it to him," he said, quickly. "Whoever did this deed

deserves his punishment. Let us do what he bade us--look to the body

of this poor girl."

They turned back, dreading their task, moving still as though half

dazed. As they advanced, a dark body just beyond suddenly rose to its

knees, and began crawling away. With a bound Hicks succeeded in laying

hands upon the fellow, and flung him over, face upward to the stars.

With gun at his head he held the man prostrate, staring down upon the

revealed features in manifest astonishment.

"Damn me!" he cried, a new note of surprise in his voice, "Winston,

look yere!"

"What is it?" and the younger man pressed forward, his rifle ready.

"Ain't that Burke? Ain't that the same feller they had you pinched fer

murderin'?"

The helpless man lying upon the ground frowned savagely up at them, a

dirty bandage bound about his head giving him a ghastly, unnatural

appearance. For a long moment the startled engineer gazed down at him

in incredulity, unable to distinguish the features clearly, his own

heart beating rapidly in suspense.

"I half believe it is. Are you Jack Burke?"

The man attempted a grin, but there was little of merriment in the

result.

"Oi think loikely ye 're as liable as any wan to know. Ye 're the lad

that put this head on me, but that other divil it was that broke me

arm. Let me up from here. Begorry! Oi 've had 'nough fightin' fer

wan toime."

"Did you know I had been put under arrest on the charge of killing you?"

Burke grinned, this time in earnest.

"Divil a bit did Oi know anything about it. Farnham he tould me to

keep damn quiet in the bunkhouse, out o' sight, but whin they wanted

for to set this fuse off, it seems Oi was the only lad that could do

the job, an' so they brought me out here along wid 'em. It 's a busted

head an' a broken arm Oi 've got for me share o' the fun. Be the

powers, now, let me git up!"