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"They shall not shoot him!" she cried aloud. "They shall not shoot him while I live

to prevent it!"

Again her head was up and her shoulders squared. Tying the hackamore about

her waist, she took a single deep breath of reassurance and stepped out into the

river. For a dozen paces she found no difficulty in following the ford. It was broad

and straight; but toward the center of the river, as she felt her way along a step at

a time, she came to a place where directly before her the ledge upon which she

crossed shelved off into deep water. She turned upward, trying to locate the

direction of the new turn; but here too there was no footing. Down river she felt

solid rock beneath her feet. Ah! this was the way, and boldly she stepped out, the

water already above her knees. Two, three steps she took, and with each one her

confidence and hope arose, and then the fourth step--and there was no footing.

She felt herself lunging into the stream, and tried to draw back and regain the

ledge; but the force of the current was too much for her, and, so suddenly it

seemed that she had thrown herself in, she was in the channel swimming for her

life.

The trend of the current there was back in the direction of the bank she had but

just quitted, yet so strong was her determination to succeed for Billy Byrne's sake

that she turned her face toward the opposite shore and fought to reach the

seemingly impossible goal which love had set for her. Again and again she was

swept under by the force of the current. Again and again she rose and battled,

not for her own life; but for the life of the man she once had loathed and whom

she later had come to love. Inch by inch she won toward the shore of her desire,

and inch by inch of her progress she felt her strength failing. Could she win? Ah!

if she were but a man, and with the thought came another: Thank God that I am

a woman with a woman's love which gives strength to drive me into the clutches

of death for his sake!

Her heart thundered in tumultuous protest against the strain of her panting

lungs. Her limbs felt cold and numb; but she could not give up even though she

was now convinced that she had thrown her life away uselessly. They would find

her body; but no one would ever guess what had driven her to her death. Not

even he would know that it was for his sake. And then she felt the tugging of the

channel current suddenly lessen, an eddy carried her gently inshore, her feet

touched the sand and gravel of the bottom.

Gasping for breath, staggering, stumbling, she reeled on a few paces and then

slipped down clutching at the river's bank. Here the water was shallow, and here

she lay until her strength returned. Then she urged herself up and onward,

climbed to the top of the bank with success at last within reach.

265

The Mucker