“Finding that this kind of life was unbearable, I appealed to our neighbors and even to the courts for protection, but my enemy was a man of great influence, and after many vain attempts, I found that I could not obtain a hearing; that nothing remained for me to do but to fight my own way.  And I did fight it.

“Out of my father’s safe I purloined a sum of money sufficient to defray our expenses for a while, and then, taking Anita with me, I fled from the home of my youth.  I came first to Fort Laramie, where I spent a year in the service of a fur-trader.

“My guardian, during that year, sent three men out to kill me, but they had the tables turned on them, and their bones lay bleaching even now on Laramie plains.

“During that year my sister met a gay, dashing young ranger, who hailed to the name of Justin McKenzie, and of course she fell in love with him.  That was natural, as he was handsome, suave and gallant, and, more than all, reported tolerably well to-do.

“I made inquiries, and found that there was nothing against his moral character, so I made no objections to his paying his attentions to Anita.

“But one day a great surprise came.

“On returning from a buffalo-hunt of several days’ duration I found my home deserted, and a letter from Anita stating that she had gone with McKenzie to Cheyenne to live; they were not married yet, but would be, soon.

“That aroused the hellish part of my passionate nature.  I believed that McKenzie was leading her a life of dishonor, and it made my blood boil to even think of it.  Death, I swore, should be his reward for this infidelity, and mounting my horse I set out in hot haste for Cheyenne.

“But I arrived there too late to accomplish my mission of vengeance.

“I found Anita and took her back to my home, a sad and sorrowing maiden; McKenzie I could not find; he had heard of my coming, and fled to escape my avenging hand.  But over the head of my weeping sister, I swore a fearful oath of vengeance, and I have it yet to keep.  I believe there had been some kind of a sham marriage; Anita would never speak on the subject, so I had to guess at the terrible truth.

“And there’s where you made an accursed mess of the whole affair!” cried McKenzie, stepping into the cabin, and leading Anita forward, by the hand.  “Before-God and man I acknowledge Anita Harris to be my legally wedded wife.  Listen, Edward Harris, and I will explain.  That day that you came to Cheyenne in pursuit of me, I’ll acknowledge I committed an error—­one that has caused me much trouble since.  The case was this: 

“I was the nearest of kin to a rich old fur-trader, who proposed to leave me all his property at his death:  but he was a desperate woman-hater, and bound me to a promise that I would never marry.

“Tempted by the lust for gold, I yielded, and he drew up a will in my favor.  This was before I met Anita here.