OUTLAND BY MARY AUSTIN [Illustration] BONI AND LIVERIGHT NEW YORK 1919 COPYRIGHT, 1919, BY BONI & LIVERIGHT, INC. _Printed in the U. S. A._ CONTENTS PAGE I. CONCERNING THE TRAIL AT BROKEN TREE 9 II. I MEET THE OUTLIERS IN THE WOOD AND HERMAN COMES TO FIND ME 24 III. I HEAR OF THE TREASURE AND MEET A FRIEND OF RAVENUTZI 44 IV. THE MEET AT LEAPING WATER 67 V. THE LOVE-LEFT WARD 94 VI. IN WHICH I AM UNHAPPY AND MEET A TALL WOMAN IN THE WOOD 114 VII. HERMAN DEVELOPS HIS IDEA 137 VIII. IN WHICH HERMAN’S IDEA RECEIVES A CHECK 157 IX. HOW THE KING’S DESIRE WAS DUG UP, AND BY WHOM 177 X. THE LEDGE 197 XI. HOW THE OUTLIERS CAME UP WITH THE FAR-FOLK AT A PLACE CALLED THE SMITHY, AND HERMAN CAME BACK TO RIVER WARD 217 XII. HOW AN OUTLIER SAW A TALL WOMAN FOLLOWING A TRAIL AND MANCHA MET THE SMITH AGAIN 236 XIII. HOW THEY FOUND THE RUBIES, AND THE SMITH’S ACCOUNT OF HIMSELF 258 XIV. THE KING’S DESIRE, AND WHAT BECAME OF IT 276 XV. HOW HERMAN AND I CAME BACK TO BROKEN TREE 295 OUTLAND I CONCERNING THE TRAIL AT BROKEN TREE The trail begins at the Broken Tree with the hawk’s nest. As often as we have talked of it since, Herman and I, and that is as often as the ceanothus blooms untimely for a sign of rains delayed, or there is a low moon and a following star, or a wind out of the south with the smell of wild honey in it, we have agreed together that the trail begins at Broken Tree. There were some other landmarks I was quite as sure of at the time, but the creek makes so many turns here I could never find them again, and the second time of Herman’s going in, he had altogether other things to think about. So as often as we have occasion to talk of it, we end by saying that it begins at Broken Tree.