Cottonwood report. [volume] (Cottonwood, Idaho) 1893-1901, 1894-02-16

smile ut her imprisonment in the majors
study that she rang the bell and turned
to the window. A man whom she rec
egnized as one Of the ranch laborers was
standing hundred feet away in the gar
den looking curiously at the house. He
saw her face as she tried to raise the
sash, uttered an exclamation I'D ran
forward.
But before she could understand vhat
he said the sash began to rattle in her
hand, the jarring recommended, the floor
shook beneath her feet, hideous sound
of grinding seemed to come from the
walls, thin seam of dust like smoke
broke from the ceiling, and with the noise
Of falling plaster dozen books followed
each other from the shelves in what in
the frantic hurry of that moment seemed
a grimly deliberate succession; picture
hanging against the wall to her dazed
wonder swung forward and appeared to
stand at right angles from it; she felt
herself Keeling against the furniture. a
deathly nausea overlook her. and as she
glanced despairingly toward the window
the outlying fields beyond the garden
seemed to be undulating like sea.
For the first time she raised her voice,
not in fear, but in a pathetic little cry of
apology for her awkwardness in tum-
bling about and not being able to grap-
pie this new experience, and then she
found herself near the door, which had
once more swung free. She grasped it
eagerly and darted out of the study into
the deserted passage. Here some in
stinct made her follow the line of the
wall rather than the shaking balusters
of the corridor and staircase; but before
she reached the bottom she heard shout.
and the farm laborer she had seen COM
ing toward her seized her by the arm,
dragged her to the open doorway of the
drawing room and halted beneath its
arch in the wall. Another thrill-but
lighter than before-passed through the
building, then all was still again.
sits over, ! reckon; that's all just
now" said the man coolly. sits quite
safe to cut and run for the garden now
through this window" He half led,
half lifted her through the French win
uOW W tAC NCldlut anu bu0 BIouuut
and locking her arm in his ran quickly
forward hundred feet from the house,
stopping at last beneath large pos.
oak where there was rustic seat, into
which she sank. you're safe now,
reckon" he said grimly.
She looked toward the house. The
sun was shining brightly. A cool breeze
seemed to have sprung up as they ran.
She could see quantity of rubbish lying
on the roof. from which dozen yards
of zinc gutter were perilously hanging,
the broken shafts of the farther cluster
of chimneys, a pile of bricks scattered
upon the ground and among the battered
down beams of the end of the veranda; ba.
that was all. She lifted her now whitened
face to the man, and with the apologetic
smile still lingering on her lips asked:
What does -it~all.mean? What has
happened"
The man stared at her. "D'ye mean
to say We don't know"
"How could |? They must have all
left the house as soon as it began. was
talking toto M. L'Hommadieu, and he
suddenly left"
The man brought his face angrily
down within an inch of her own. "D'ye
mean to say that them id French half
breeds stampeded and left yer there
alone9"
She was still too much stupefied by
the reaction to fully comprehend his
meaning, and repeated feebly, with her
smile still family lingering, But you
don't tell me what it WASP
IAN earthquake, said the man rough
ly; land if it had lasted ten seconds
longer it would have shook down the
whole shanty and left you under it. Yer
kin tell that to them if they don't know
it, but from the way they made tracks
to the fields reckon they did. They're
coming now"
Without another word he turned away
half surlily, half defiantly, passing scarce
fifty yards away Mrs. Randolph and hel
daughter, who were fastening toward
their guest.
"Oh, here you are," said Mrs. Ran
dolph, with the nearest approach to etfu-
sion that Rose had yet seen in her man
ner. 1--WE were wondering where yor
had run to and were getting quite con.
cerned. Emile was looking for yor
everywhere"
The recollection of his blank and alb
ject face, his vague outcry and blind
fight. came back to Rose with shocl
that sent flush of sympathetic shame
to her face. The ingenious Adele
noticed If and dutif,11v 1,inched he,
mothers arm.
Emile" echoed Rose family, ''Icok
ing for me?"
Mother and daughter exchanges
chances.
"Yes," said Mrs. Randolph cheerfully
"he says he started to run with you, bu
you got ahead and slipped out of tn
garden door-or something of that kind,
she added, with the air of making lgh
of Roses girlish fears. "You know on
scarcely knows what one does at sucl
times, and it must have been all fright
fully strange to you-and he's been quit
distracted-lest you should have war
dered away. Adele, run and tell hir
Miss Mallory has been here under tn
OAK all the time"
Rose started, and then fell shopelessl
back in her seat. Perhaps it was true
Perhaps he had not rushed Off with tina
awful face and without word. PEI
haps she herself had been half frightene
out of her reason. In the simple wea
kindness of her nature it seemed les
dreadful to believe that the fault wa