And every once in a while, after
the surprise of the first rush, they would come thin
little streaks of fire out of the darkness somewheres,
and the sound of shots. And then a gang of riders
would gallop in that direction shooting up all crea-
tion. But by the time the warehouses was all lit
up so that you could see they was no hope of putting
them out the shooting from the darkness had jest
about stopped.
It looked like them big tobacco warehouses was
the main object of the raid. Fur when they was
burning past all chancet of saving, with walls and
floors a-tumbling and crashing down and sending
up great gouts of fresh flame as they fell, the leader
sings out an order, and all that is not on their
hosses jumps on, and they rides away from the blaze.
They come across the square--not galloping now,
but taking it easy, laughing and talking and cussing
and joking each other--and passed right by my
lumber pile agin and down the street they had
come. You bet I laid low on them boards while
they was going by, and flattened myself out till
I felt like a shingle.
As I hearn their hoof-sounds getting farther
off, I lifts up my head agin. But they wasn't
all gone, either. Three that must of been up to
some pertic'ler deviltry of their own come galloping
acrost the square to ketch up with the main bunch.
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