through the space given, rode slowly, her skirt almost brushing
Rome, looking neither to the right nor to the left; and when she
had gone quite through them all, she wheeled and rode, still
slowly, through the open fields toward the woods which sheltered
the Lewallens, while the crowd stood in bewildered silence
looking after her. Yells of laughter came from the old court-house.
Some of the Stetsons laughed, too; some swore, a few grumbled;
but there was not one who was not stirred by the superb daring of
the girl, though she had used it only to show her contempt.

" Rome, you're a fool; though, fer a fac', we can't shoot a woman;
'n' anyways I ruther shoot her than the hoss. But lemme tell ye, thar
was more'n sump'n to eat in that bag! They air up to some dodge."

Rufe Stetson had watched the incident through a port-hole of the
cabin, and his tone was at once jesting and anxious.

"That grub won't last more'n one day, I reckon," said the drunken
mountaineer. We'll watch out fer the gal nex' time. We're boun' to
git 'em one time or t'other."

"She rid through us to find out how many of us wasn't dead drunk,"
said Steve Marcum, still watching the girl as she rode on, toward
the woods; "'n' I'm a-thinkin' they'll be down on us purty soon now,
'n' I reckon we'll have to run fer it. Look thar boys!"

The girl had stopped at the edge of the woods; facing the town, she
waved her bonnet high above her head.

"Well, whut in the--! "he said, with slow emphasis, and then he