The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1891-02-12
friends there. IT..

ifs deputies there. He has probably
stumbled on traces and is going for
help" He sat and smoked and slipped
his hand back under his coat. easy to
shoot the fellow" he said to himself
"Well, good-by, Stoner," said Warren
suddenly; 81 suppose the beach road is
as good as everY'
Perfectly safe; only when you cross
Toro creek keep on the sandbar It's as
hard as iron. I crossed there today"
Thank you. Adios.'
Simple, smiling speech, those words
OF Stoner's. and yet they were intended
to send Warren to his death more surely
and safely than by bullet of pistol or
pellet Of secret poison.
Stoner took an extra swig of brandy
and went to his rest. Warren rode down
the rugged hill to the bottom of the ra-
vine, then turned seaward and at last
the wide gulch opened broadly to the
shore of the Pacific.
The cliffs were from so to 300 feet
high, and full Of waveworn caves. War
rem drew rein ON the beach, and for fully
ten minutes watched the ocean sway and
rise. His thoughts throbbed with dreams
OF Tessa. He would take her away from
her narrow and hurtful surroundings.
He would force Stoners consent, marry
her and make her happy.
he rode rapidly south, and in half an
hour the mouth of the Toro appeared in
the midst of sand dunes, breakers rolling
In and the steady river rolling out. Here
was the long sandbar. ten feet wide and
stretching across hardly an inch higher
than the water surface.
Warren was beginning to have some
suspicious of Stoner, but not such as to
lead him to doubt the simple directions
he had received. The sandbar looked
safe, but within few days the sea, as
Stoner knew, had swept it nightly,
torn out the long compacted bar and
placed instead quivering mass of quick
sand, SO treacherous that not even a
light footed rabbit could cross with
out being swallowed up and dragged
bodily down. Warren rode swiftly for
ward. He had crossed sandbars hun
dreds of times. Some horses would
have been wiser, but the animal he rode
had been bred in the valley.
The approach to the bar was hard for |
few rods, and he galloped on. Sud-
denly, In one heart breaking, breathless
descent, noiseless, but unutterably dread |
full, Tom Warrens horse went down. |
down, and the soft, Shiny sand came ND
to his name. He shrieked out that |
CHASTITY cry of appeal and agony that a |
desperate. dying horse will sometimes
utter.
Tom knew the peril. He had drawn |
his feet from the stirrups and lifted |
them up at the first downward throb. |
but the sand began to grab at him also.
He threw himself fat ON his breast and |
tore himself loose from the poor animal.
over whose back the mingled sand and
water were running, as it rolled from
side to side in Intellectual struggles to |
escape.
Tom spread himself out over as much |
surface as possible, but slowly, resistless-
~ the mighty force drew him down.
ward. The hard beach was only ten feet
distant, but practically the chasm was
impossible. He felt his horse sink out
OF sight: the sand gripped his own knees
and arms. his thighs and shoulders. Twv
inches more and the end by suffocation
was inevitable. Up to this time he had
not shouted; only his horses wild death
scream had told Of the tragedy. What
was the use? Who would be passing
along that lonely road2 Then he thought
Of Tessa and of life. He raised his voice
in q clear, strong shout for help, again
and again repeated
Far OF along the deep ravine there
came q cry in response, and horses
hurrying feet, and hope awoke in his
heart The margin of life was Eve min
utes now-not longer. Faster, faster. o
fearless rideri e-s'
Tom, where are your
Here, Tessa; don't come too near.'
But the mountain girl knew the dam
ger. Creeping down stairs for q drink
OF water, she had heard her fathers
words to Warren, had thrown q shawl
about her shoulders, and run to the past
ure. Then she caught her pet horse,
sprang upon his unsaddled back, seized
. ratta as she passed the stable, and gal
ioped at the utmost speed down the
ravine, hoping against hope, for many
minutes had necessarily elapsed since
Warren started. IS
She sprang to the ground and tossed
the rawhide rope to the one arm he held
above the sand She folded her shawl
and put it over her horses shoulders and
lied the natta round like collar. Then
she led him slowly away from the quick
sands, and Warren thought his arm
would break, but slowly, reluctantly,
the sand gave up its prey.
"Your father told me to take this road.
Teesa, said the young sheriff
"Yes. ] knew that, and 1 heard one of
the men tell him today that the bar was
swept out" A'
There was long silence between
Them. - ,
'Tesa. go with me to San Luis, said I
Warren, s'and let MS get married"
And Teasa went. I
Old Stoner heard the news a few days
later. Within an hour he had retired
lrom business" The camp was broken
NJ, l,a f,x,~ko~u 1