280 A HILL TRAGEDY 



at his brigand trot, and had scarcely set foot on the 

 bridge when a distant roar struck his ear. 



' Ha,' thought he, ' the boat-express for Stranraer ; 

 most exemplary punctuality. Really,' he muttered, as 

 he picked his footsteps between the rails, ' these railway 

 engineers are most thoughtful, though I doubt if they 

 were thinking much of my convenience when they 

 built this nice bridge. That water would have been 

 most disagreeable this gusty morning.' 



The roar grew louder in the gloom behind him. 

 Looking over his shoulder, Todd, for that was the 

 outlaw's name, saw the lights of the express tearing 

 towards him. In a moment it flashed upon him that 

 he would be overtaken on the single line. It was too 

 late to turn back; had he time to dash forward and 

 gain the other side, fully three hundred yards distant ? 

 He started to run ; age and stiffness were forgotten ; he 

 was as fleet of foot as of yore ; terror added wings to 

 his heels, for life was sweet, oh ! so sweet, among those 

 Galloway hills. 



The end came within fifty yards of safety ; painless, 

 probably, because so violent silent certainly, because 

 none of his race were ever known to utter a sound in 

 the death struggle. A surfaceman passing at sunrise 

 found his body on the line, not sorely mangled, but 

 stiff and cold a fine old hill fox, who thus paid the 

 penalty for a long career of crime. 



