The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-07-05

dlOHS his arm anu ulppinS the WdCef IRON
her fingers.
Bobs eyes were fixed in front, and whil
she was wondering why he did not answe
and seemed so quiet, a sudden gust o
wind tore her hat from her head and in al
instant whirled it out of sight into the all
surrounding gray.
With a short Stand quite still, please,
he hurried after it.
How odd it was to be there all alonel
There was someSfS5;a sosolemn, so awful
| in the silence, the isolation and the som
berness of the placel To be able to see ant
feel nothing save the rocks at her feet and
the noiseless mist floating by; to hear moth
ing but the moaning of the wind, to real
lie that she might be within a few feet o.
a precipice and not know it!
1t was like standing upon impaIpable
air and grasping at it helplessly with the
world slipping away into the distance!
! Madge shuddered, and there must have
been something in the look that she turned
upon Bob, who had appeared out of the
! gloom at her side so suddenly and noise
| lessiy as to almost startle her, that showed
| the relief she felt in having him with her
again, for his face, that was set and seri-
Gus, softened into a reassuring smile, and
the swift, eager glance of the eyes that she
had noticed once before during the after
noon might have warned her that he, at
least, was on dangerous ground. But il
only caused a strange little fluttering of
her heart as she replaced her hat and took
his arm without a word
In utter silence they traversed now what
seemed TO Madge to be long distance.
1t had been but a short time since the
change had taken place, but already the
wind-had risen to a gale, and the gloom
had deepened into a black wall around
them, while in the distance could be heard
the roar and rattle and crash of the ap-
preaching storm, that was already heralded
by few wandering fakes of snow that
were whirled along too fast to find a rest
ing place.
Their pace had uncOnsCiously slackened,
and now they were simply cropping their
way over the logs and stumps, around the
powders and between the swaying pines
that arose one after another through the
mist like struggling column of retreat
ing soldiers, when suddenly Bob uttered a
surprised exclamation and stood still. Not
five feet in front of them arose a solid wall
of perpendicular rock, its boundaries lost
in the mist.
Madge's glance of interrogation revealed
to her the perplexity, anxiety and irrita-
ton outlined in Bob's face and caused her
to ask earnestly:
why, Mr.. Barker, have you lost your
way?"
Her only answer was a jagged, quivering
glare that seemed to enyelop them from
every side, frightening up the scarped cliff
in front and showing them upon its surface
the cold, dank tufts of dark green moss be-
tween which the moisture was slowly trick
ling to the base. The very earth under
them trembled, the air recoiled in terror,
and the mountain seemed to split to its
base with the almost simultaneous crash
that followed
The storm had overtaken them!
Madge tried TO smile after she had relin-
pushed her hysterical grasp of Bob's arm,
but there was no answering smile from
him, and vague fear swept over her.
Il don't recognize this rock" he NUT
tered in low Tone II seem to have lost
the trail. Let's work our way along the
face of this little"
Once more the slow and hesitating march
was resumed.
The futtering fakes eff snow had changed
to tiny hailstones that were rapidly whiten-
ing the ground. The first grand rush of
the wind was over, and it had quoted
down into a sullen moan that was merely
an undertOne to the great orchestra of
heaven whose reverberating notes were
ringing from peak to peak and rolling ma
down the valleys.
Faster and faster beat the hail, now
rapidly changing back to snow; colder and
colder moaned the wind as they YEARLY
and silently picked their way along in the
shadow of the dreary cliff
Madge shivered perceptibly, and Bob,
turning quickly, tore off his coat, and with
a peremptory Put it on, please threw it
over her shoulders and buttoned it around
her neck, paying no attention to her mild
She did not persist in it, for his manner
and voice allowed no refusal She felt by
this time that they were in some danger,
though she could hardly tell how or why.
True, it was growing very cold and was
showing heavily, but such a combination
was not new to her, although she was
,ather lightly dressed. And what if they |
mad temporarily lost their way? The storm
would probably soon be over, even if they /
lidn't find the trail before then. She [
night catch a very bad cold. And that |
would have been about the extent of her |
anxiety if it had not been for her compan-
on's actions
She had never before seen him so quiet
md preoccUpied. Heseemed to avoid look
ng at her, which was certainly very I'M
usual for him. His almost constant smile
vas gone and his mouth firmly set He
eemed TO be watching and listening like
IN animal who knows there are enemies
head. If he would only talk to her reas-
uringly it would remove this vague I'M
asiness.
She could stand it no longer, and she
sked, rather timidly for her, who had
'een used to the most childlike frankness
nd di, rctness with him:
MIR Barker, is there much danger, do
on think?"
He did not turn his head, but answered
With 4 deliberation which only increased
er anxiety:
Not at present: but we are certainly lost
Or the moment, and | am afraid we are
imply making a circle and returning to
ne spot we started from | hope to find
ne trail again in moment"
How can you find it when the snow is
overlng it all Up?'
The question came from her impulsivelv,
nd somehow she felt sorry the moment
he asked it.
Poor Bob!
He had not deliberately lied to her, but
e hadn't told the whole truth; and she had
wen utterance TO the very question that !
as in his own mind.
81 think l could easily find my way by
if the cloud would lift, he an
vered evasively.
She suspected now that he was conceal
2 the truth from her, and her temper and
,urage rose with the crisis. She said en-