ght under the limb, with the fragments of rope upon it,
and the witnesses, one of them bearing a piece of rope, approached the
prisoner.

The silence was terrible, and the feelings of all present were greatly
relieved when Bill Bowney--placed on the horse, and seeing the rope
hauled taught and fastened to a bough by a man in the tree--broke into a
frenzy of cursing, and displayed the defiant courage peculiar to an
animal at bay.

"Has the prisoner anything to say?" asked the major, as Bowney stopped
for breath.

"Better own up, and save yourself and reform, and help rid the world of
those other scoundrels," pleaded the New Englander.

"Don't yer do it, Bill--don't yer do it!" cried Caney, of Texas. "Stick
to yer friends, an' die like a man!"

"That's me!" said the prisoner, directing a special volley of curses at
the New Englander. "It's ben said here that I wuz sneakin' an' cowardly;
ther's _one_ way of givin' that feller the lie--hurry up an' do it!"

"When I raise my hand," said the major, "lead the horse away; and may
the Lord have mercy on your soul, Bowney!"

"Amen!" fervently exclaimed the New Englander.

Again there was a moment of terrible silence, and when a gentle wind
swept over the wild oats and through the tree, there seemed to sound on
the air a sigh and a shudder.

Suddenly all the horses started and pricked up their ears.

"Somebody's comin'!" whispered one of the party. "Sheriff's got wind of
the arrangements, maybe!"

"Comes from the wrong direction," cried Caney, of Texas, quickly. "It's
somebody on foot--an' tired--an' light-footed--ther's two or
three--dunno what kind o' bein's they _ken_ be. Thunder an' lightnin'!"

Caney's concluding remark was inspired by the sudden appearance of a
woman, who rushed into the shadow of the tree, stopped, looked wildly
about for a moment, and then threw herself against the prisoner's feet,
and uttered a low, pitiful cry.

There was a low murmur from the crowd, and the major cried:

"Take him down; give him fifteen minutes with his wife, and see she
doesn't untie him."

[Illustration: "TAKE HIM DOWN; GIVE HIM FIFTEEN MINUTES WITH HIS WIFE."]

The man in the tree loosened the rope, Bowney was lifted off and placed
on the ground again, and the woman threw herself on the ground beside
him, caressed his ugly face, and wailed pitifully. The judge and jury
fidgeted about restlessly. Still the horses stood on the alert, and soon
three came through the