When the procession reached the awakening town he remarked, “I see now! You guys blocked him same as we did at the Landing.”
“Just exactly!” remarked Jim. “We all saw it two hours ago.” As for Howden, he was past remarking anything.
The news of the robbery, of the escape of all but one, and of the dead-capture––and the climax in regard to the identity of that dead robber––caused a tremendous sensation throughout the Valley. It was the talk of the entire country for very many days to follow. A number of respectable citizens, of course, were shocked beyond words; others shook their heads and said it was just what they had expected. But the great fact remained:––Graham Brenchfield, several times Mayor of Vernock, Rancher, Cattle breeder, Wholesale Produce Dealer and Political Boss had been caught red-handed in the biggest bank robbery the Province had ever known.
CHAPTER XXVI
The Dawn of a New Day
Phil was busily engaged going over the day’s mail early one afternoon, on a sweltering day in the month of August of that same eventful year, when his attention was drawn to an envelope addressed to himself and bearing the Government imprint.
He opened it and read the contents of the letter slowly. He laughed softly in the gurgling, boyish way he used to laugh years before. That letter awakened something in him that seemed to have been asleep. And it gave him an irresponsibly happy sort of feeling.
He read the letter over again. It was perfectly plain: