The Delta independent. [volume] (Delta, Colo.) 1886-19??, 1897-06-23
ny NIhhIAN r. NICHOLS.
..Covyrisht. ,ss.. BY }. 3. upeIneou ConrGy

shown by one or two OF her frienos on
occasions when the moving cause was
nothing more weighty than chahce 10
disPiay Prowess as whP. ohiortuh-
ately Tor her, she had seldom heid the
reins over anything more sprHeu thAh
the lazy animals occasionally hireu oy
her aunt on specinc guarantee that IN
no way could they be started out OF a
slow trot' hardly iaster than 'he walk
Tor whlch all OF tnem esiheed strong
preference; ahu' aithougn she h,'n
gained very iair UNDERSTANDING OF tne
idiosyncrasies OF the roans'er IN Iront
OF her, her knowledge had the drawnack
OF being for the most part theoretical.
Stiil, she hnd not bcgun the journey
without duly considering its conditions,
and, on the whole. they were favorable
to novice The road was good, though
here and there very narrow, as is some
times the case with rural highways;
there were no sharp pitches of the kind
to shake unframed nerves; and the
horse, SO far Us she knew, was utterly
unacquainted with the equine joys of
bolting. Not to press him at first
that was her plan, for much haste
might mean little speed in the end.
For the first half-mile she drove al
most leisurely, but when she had
reached the top of the ridge which Dor.
dered the lowlands along the shore she
frightened the reins little, and felt in
stantly the roadster's response to the
summons. He settled down to the
work before him as il he liked il, with
the long telling strides which covered
ground with such deceptive ease. A
quarter of mile ahead was a buck
board bearing two passengers and
drawn by q horse which, she saw Us
she came closer, was trotting steadily.
IL surprised her to observe how rapid-
ly she overhauled the other conveyance.
even when the driver, after a look over
his shoulder, piled his whip with the
evident intention of giving her chase.
A few hundred yards showed him the
hopelessness of the contest, and, with
native courtesy and perhaps a shrewd
yuess that his own wheels would be
the safer by allowing the stranger q
generous share of the road, he pulled
his vehicle we'll out of the way as nhe
sped by him. She caught u look of Gu
riosity on his face a. she turned in her
scat to watch her swift progress.
There was just the tinge Of excite
nent in the ride TO make her forget
for time the sorry cause Of II. The
upon the land. although the sun WIS
still well above the horizon. and what
little breeze was stirring blew in her
face. On she went, now across plain.
now surmounting q gentle acclivity,
now winding along . valley among the
low hills. but always with the same
smooth motion. as steady as IL was
fleet. An old weather-stained farm
She remembered that IL was counted as
hiarking the halfway point OF the
road. A glance at her watch showed
that, even with her slow start. she had
covered little more than five miles
in "a minutes. With is or 16 miles yet
tc be traversed this might be doing too
much; and on the next rising grade
she set herself to the task of slacken-
ing the speed. There was somewhat
Of n struggle between horse and driver.
but at last she won. More than once
was the test repeated before Bassett-
vile WAS reached, but when she turned
into the main street Of the town her
watch told her that less than so min
utes had eufficed TO cover the last haif
Of the trip.
a pretty little woman was sitting on
DR.. Fowler's doorstep as the fair mes
senger drove up. She came briskly
to the gate, and. leaning upon II, lis
tened intently to the girls brief &C.
count Of the accident. and the urgent
need of surgeons services.
but the doctors away" the little
woman said. "He has gone to Trent,
and 1 don't expect him back before
Didnight-Tm Mrs. Fowler. you know"
'But can't we catch him by telc-
graph? Dorothy asked anxiously. "Is
there no way? The case il no desperate.