280 A HILL TKAGEDY 



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. Keally,' 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. 



