again;
"Howdy, Mr. City Man; howdy. Mighty proud t' meet up with you;
mighty proud, you bet!"

The giant whirled his captive toward the mill. "See that feller
yonder? I'm goin' t' lick him some day. Make a face at him."
Catching Ollie by the nose and chin, he tried to force his
bidding, while the man in the wagon made the valley ring with his
laughter. Then Wash suddenly faced the helpless young man toward
Sammy. "Now ladies and gentlemen," he said in the tones of a
showman addressing an audience, "this here pretty little feller
from th' city's goin' t' show us Hill-Billies how t' spark a gal."

The bully's friend applauded loudly, roaring at the top of his
voice, "Marry 'em, Wash. Marry 'em. You can do hit as good as a
parson! You'd make a good parson. Let's see how'd you go at hit."

The notion tickled the fancy of the giant, for it offered a way to
make Sammy share the humiliation more fully. "Git down an' come
here t' yer honey," he said to the girl. "Git down, I say," he
repeated, when the young woman made no motion to obey.

"Indeed, I will not," replied Sammy shortly.

Her tone and manner angered Gibbs, and dropping Ollie he started
toward the girl to take her from the horse by force. As he reached
the pony's side, Sammy raised her whip and with all her strength
struck him full across the face. The big ruffian drew back with a
bellow of pain and anger. Then he started toward her again. "I'll
tame you, you wild cat," he yelled. And Sammy raised her whip
again.

But before Gibbs could touch the girl, a powerful hand caught him
by the shoulder. "I reckon you've had fun enough, Wash Gibbs,"
remarked Young Matt in his slow way. "I ain't interfering between
man and man, but you'd best keep your dirty hands off that lady."

The young woman's heart leaped at the sound of that deep calm
voice that carried such a suggestion of power. And she saw that
the blue eyes under the tumbled red brown locks were shining now
like points of polished steel. The strong man's soul was rejoicing
with the fierce joy of battle.

The big bully drew back a step, and glared at the man who had come
between him and his victim; the man whom, for every reason, he
hated. Lifting his huge paws, he said in a voice hoarse with
deadly menace, "Dirty, be they? By hell, I'll wash 'em. An' hit
won't be water that'll clean 'em, neither. Don't you know that no
man ever crosses my trail an' lives?"

The other returned easily, "Oh, shucks! Get in