The Long Chance

o Bakersfield arrived at the Hat Ranch. She proved to be a kind middle-aged woman, devoted to her profession and thoroughly competent to do

e was awake when Donna entered the room and greeted her with a weak smile of welcome. It may be that at the moment Mr. McGraw fondly hoped that he might be further rewarded with another kiss; but if so he was disappointed. Donna favored him with nothi

pered, "aren't you goin

hook he

pleaded piteously.

e contingency," she retorted, "so

he could not forbear a little laugh,

," Mr. McGraw protested hoarsely, "is guarant

commanded

he sun-baked adobe wall. As for Donna, the very fact that Bob was still a fighter and a rebel proved conclusively that within a week he would be absolutely unmanageable. This thought was productive of such joy in Donna's heart that she became a rebel herself. In the bright evening she took her guitar and went

hed, as who would not; for all the world l

I believe it has a soothing effect. Mr. McGraw has promised me that he will be very

ecided not to

has change

n she retired, she could not sleep herself for the happiness that was hers; that

and favorable report from both doctor and nurse, Donna decided not to prejudice her position at the eating-house by staying away another day, and accordin

an as he approached, "how

not enough to prevent my going to work

tate I'd declare to-day a legal holiday. How's the

nutriment. Who ever heard of a si

Mrs. Pennycook been down with a plate o' calf's-

ly think she'll come. She hasn't give

e long, now-Bob McGraw's a stranger in town, an' entitled to the kindly services o' the community as

nd enough in her way

t like he

clined to be uncha

ted. "Ain't you been

e been performing one of the works of merc

, an' after the jury decided that it was justifiable homicide, there was nothin' to do bu

appreciate it. The big gambler loved to see her laugh, and the thought that she was courageous enough to enjoy

time it's on San Pasqual. I want to put up a job o

raceful travesty o

ed. "But before you explain your plans, tell me what has poo

d looks o' the deceased an' what you told me-an' what Borax O'Rourke told everybody else before he left town yesterday, I prevailed on Doc Taylor to testify that you weren't in no fit frame o' mind to face the music, so they concluded to bring in a verdict muy pronto, an' let it go at that. They tell me there's been a plague o' hard characters droppin' off here lately, an' anyway, to make a long story short, the boys rendered a verdict on general principles an' there ain't no news for

"and you want to let

to walk away without any assistance, an' all that time don't you let nobody see him. I've got Doc Taylor fixed already, which was easy, Doc bein' a bachelor-an' now if you stand in we'll have 'em

is most unworthy of you. I didn't

my reputation

Pasqual. But I'm afraid I can't ag

y n

unla

nna, I'm

and unusual

Harley P. ferociously. "Better s

s a go, if you

' bringin' their blankets an' three days' rations, an' campin' in front o' the hotel until you arrived. Well, good-by, till supper-time

perfunctory inquiries regarding the condition of her patient, after which, with many premonitory coughs, he ventured to outline his campaign

red face, all ears an' no chin, like the ace o' hearts. That'll be Miss Pickett. She'll have with her, like as not, a stout married l

Mr. Hennage returned to town in a singularly cheerful state of mind

at the eating-house, he stopped at the

uck?" h

I've been dodging questions and t

come over to o

es

y, I suppose Mrs. Pennycook come

as ver

nna thought that beneath the joculari

you heard?"

ly, "that Donna Corblay is harborin

g, Mr. Hennage, I'll tell you the latest-the very la

d. He was fond of Dan Pennycoo

the Silver Dollar saloon this afternoon, an

be calf's-foot, but-" he broke off. "I wish," he said earnestly, "I could get hold of a low-spirited billy goat, Miss Donna, an' tie him to your front gate when Mrs. P. ar

ed his

red, "with some pig's ear and cauliflower on the side. I ai

vious. It almost seemed as if she would never reach the gate that pierced the big seven-foot adobe wall which shut Bob McGraw in from the prying eyes of the townspeople; she felt that her

times pregnant of big things. The big thing, as Bob read it then, was the fact that she had just come home; that she had hurried, for she was breathing hard. Why had she hurried? Why, to see him, Bob McGraw-and in such a hurry was she that she had not waited to remove her hat and gloves. This was all very gratifying; so gratifying that Mr.

whispered. "I worried. Though

ed and tweaked, and declared that she was happy enough to-to-to swear! "I understand-perfectly" said Bob McGraw, and there is no doubt that he did. The idea of a glorious young Woman like Donna swearing was, indeed, perfectly ridiculous. Of course, nerve-racked tired waitresses and be-deviled chefs "cussed e

or do something equally desperate" she told him. "I feel so d

rt on-both sides. Bullet-hole in

n was the most forward person! As if he could eve

o royal chef, safe-guarding the stomach of his monarch against the surreptitious introduction of a deadly poison in the soup, could have evinced a greater interest in the royal appetite than

" she announced, with all th

ek. Then she reached for the salt cellar, dropped a small pinch into the soup, seized the tray and marched out, smiling. She w

ok, true to the gambler's prediction, did favor the Hat Ranch with her bustling presence, and wrapped in a snow-white napkin the said Mrs. Pennycook did carry the hereinbefore mentioned glass of wine jelly for the debilitated stranger in their midst. Donna was at the eating-house when Mrs. Pennycook called, but the nurse re

the wounded man, his personal and family history, Mrs. Pennycook received equally irrelevant and impersonal replies, and when she suggested at length that she "would dearly love to see him for a moment-only a moment, mind you-t

chicken, and armed with this passport to Bob McGraw's heart and confidence, she too, endeavored to run the guard. Alas! The yo

ore conscientious dog that has just been discovered in the act of killing a sheep. Poor Daniel was easy prey for the efficient nurse. He retired, chop-fallen and ashamed, and the day following, two conduct

e note of thanks. This, of course merely served to irritate an already irritated community, without affording them an opportunity for what Mr. Hennage termed "a social comeback." He contracted the habit, during that firs

qual, and the population, generally speaking, soon finds itself absorbed in other and more important matters. Mrs. Pennycook was quick to note that Donna (to quote Mr. Hennage

ion camp conveniently near, swept the Bob McGraw-Donna Corblay episode completely aside. Rumor, fanned by the eager desires of the business element of the hamlet, gained headway, despite the fact that false

en days he was permitted to sit up in bed and talk freely, and a few days later with the assistance of the nurse and Sam Singer he was lifted into a chair and spent a glorious day sitting in the sun in the wind-protecte

ce each that life without the other would not be worth the living. Their wooing was dignified and purposeful; their love was too pure and deep to be taken lightly or tinged with the frivolity that too often accompanies an ardent love affair between two youn

support a wife, the present desperate condition of his finances and the unsettled state of his future plans, promptly saturated his soul in a melancholy which only the arrival of Donna could dissipate. As for Donna, like most women, she was content to linger in that delightful state of bliss which precedes marriage. Never having known real happiness before, she