CanÌƒon City record. [volume] (CanÌƒon City, Colo.) 1883-192?, 1906-08-30
AN
ELEVATOR
CUPID
BY CARROLL WATSON RANKIN.

The inhabitants were chary of entrust
ing themselves to the elevator in th
Bailey Building, for it was connected
with an electric motor of such unstabl,
character that the initiated had lost al
confidence in it as a means of transporta
ton.
katherine, however, was not an inhabi.
tant. In her own town elevators pur-
sued the even tenor of their way without
vagarles of any sort; so, when her busl-
ness with the photographer on the tor
floor was completed the young woman
with every reason to expect swift and
uneventful journey to the street, stepped
confidently into the elevator.
At the fourth floor the elevator stopped
to admit a second passenger, man
named Westcott. Westcott differed from
| Katherine in that he entered the cage
like apartment with full knowledge of its
treacherous tendencies, but Westcott was
that morning in frame of mind to court
disaster. He assured himself as he
\ stepped in that it was matter of COM
plete indifference to him whether the ele-
vator shot suddenly upward and crashed
through the skylight or dropped without
warning into the basement.
The elevator, however, did neither of
| tiiSSS tilISS. SliuSl tiIS SuiudiSC "a d
chubby, blue-eyed youth, it pursued its
downward career until it reached the
space between the first and second floors
there it stopped.
| At the sight of her fellow passenger
| Katherine had turned pink with embar-
rassment. The man had muttered some
thing under his breath and bowed frig-
| idly; for, before courting disaster, he had
courted Katherine-apparently it had
amounted to the same thing. They had
parted forever only the evening before,
and the ring she had worn for three
months was at that moment in Westcott's S
trousers pocket, where he had thrust it
savagely at the end of their quarrel
why are we stopping here" asked
Katherine, turning to the elevator boy OF
cherubic countenance.
Cause we can't go or" returned the
boy, producing bag of peanuts and a
dime novel, ard proceediro to make him
sell comfortable. The blamed powers
off"
Has it ever-does it often go of like
this ?"
"Oh, yes" replied the boy checrfully
There's nothin' to be scared of. Some
times she runs all right for as much as
week; then, again, she won't bulge
for six or seven hours at stretch
"Six Or seven hours!' gasped Kath-
crime.
"Yep," replied the boy, settling himself
more comfortably on his stool. .'Once
it was longer, but gn'rally they get her
goin in an hour or two. There's no dan
ger at all, miss"
The boy gently discouraged further
conversation by burying himself in his
| book. Katherine moved to the end OF
the long, leather-covered scat Westcott,
at the extreme other end, stared gloomily
at the wall. ... ..-.--..
Katherine looked at her watch. It was
already past luncheon time, and she had
been too miserable to eat much break
fast. Still-she frightened At the thought
she should not starve for she had with
her box of chocolates she was taking
home to her sisters children.
She looked at her watch again. Only
four minutes had passed, but pangs of
hunger were becoming uncomfortable The
chubby boy munched peanuts with appar-
emily no thought OF his fellow sufferers
Katherine united the pink string that
bound the candy box, unfolded the paper
lifted up the lid and ate a chocolate
When she had eaten three she glanced
wall. The walls in elevator shafts are
seldom interesting. This one was tinted
with bilious green-a color that West
colt abhorred.
How he must hate me-" thought Kath-
crime, eating another chocolate, when
he'd rather look at wall than at me
| wonder what / ought to do? If we
were utter strangers, cast away on dcs-
ert isle and he had one biscuit and three
| drops of water, ] should think him hor-
rid if he didn't offer me half. / suppose
| ought to offer him some of these choco-
| lates, even II we're not on speaking
| terms"
Katherine, sitting very straight, and
with her eyes straight ahead, pushed
the box along the seat. Westcott paid
no attention.
"Wil you have a chocolate?" asked
| Katherine, somewhat unsteadily.
WestcOtt was so sure that he was
dreaming that he did not make any an
swer
THE lady spoke to you," prompted the
elevator boy.
,Westcott looked inquiringly at Kath-
crime
"Will you-will you have chocolate ?"
No, thank you" replied Westcott, re-
turning to the contemplation of the green
wall
There was another long pause. The
neglected box remained half way between
the suspended passengers.
81 think you're very-tngentlemanly :"
said Katherine, at length
$50 you said last night" responded
Westcott coldly.
| "G oure more so to-day"
GLOW SOP"
"You-you know I'm too polite to ea.
those chocolates and let you go hungry
and I'm fairly starving"
| "ac+rot+ r,;,l ,.