The Topeka state journal., 1908-12-10
THE EVENING Story
WON by q Turnout.
(By Ruth CampbeIl.l

Won by Turnout.
(By Ruth Campbell)
With a derisive honk the car shot
past the pedestrians and vanished in a
garded it angrily, and stamped her
foot.
That's the third time he's done
that thing. I believe he's doing it on
purpose. If he passes US again, I'll
What she would do was not told, for
at that instant there sounded another
warning and now a gray car shot past
in pursuit of the red.
''They have a right to the road, /"
defended Lawrence Mayling indulsent-
iy. He could afford to be generous to
defeated foe, since Dolly had eschew-
ed automobiles and had taken to pe-
deStrianism.
Mayling had no car, but he was a
good walker and the holder of the dis
tance championship which was con-
tested every Saturday.
The Marathon races had reused the
local love of athletics, wherefore the
distance runner and the distance
walker were the local heroes.
This had given Larry Mayling his
chance with Dolly, for his long legs
carried him over the ground at a
far behind
All summer, with Dudley Blount and
Paul Frazer contending for Dolly's
favor, he had seen little of her. She
had loved the swift, easy motion Of
the high powered cars, and she had
been unable to resist their charms;
but since the athletic fad had struck
Chesterton the owners of cars were de-
cidedly out of 1t.
Not alone were they regarded as
persons too lazy to use natures own
means of locomotfon, but in addition
they got themselves very much dis
liked by speeding past pedestrian par
ties and raising a dust that made
walking unpleasant.
They should be kept off the course,
at least" said Dolly severely. THE
roads are for the people and not merely
for a few selfish persons who have
money enough to buy cars"
Mayling smiled, but said nothing. Not
so long ago Dolly had protested against
the deliberate fashion in which pedes-
trians occupied the road to the annoy
ance Of autoists.
Now the shoe pitched the other foot.
and she had changed her opinions.
There might, after all. be a chance to
win her hand before the walking fad
died.
The situation was not due to the fact
that Mayling cared for Dolly while she
did not care for him, but Stephen
Stanford, Dolly's father, had made
fortune in Chesterton, and Mayling ar
gued that the easiest way to win
fortune was to marry one.
With the coming of the athletic craze
he had seen his opportunity to win and
Now he was training Dolly for the la
dies race which was to be a feature
of Thanksgiving afternoon, and he was
making the most of his opportunities.
Blount and Frazer. whom he chose to
regard as his disappointed rivals,
persisted in running their cars over the
triangular course on which the races
were to be tried, and Dolly waxed more
and more angry each time the cars
passed them with the "honk" that was
1fe nf a
What made it worse was that she
really cared for Dudley Blount and
she was both hurt and angry at the
calm fashion in which he had aban-
doned all effort to win her favor when
she had decided that walking was the
thing.
Dolly had expected that he would
make some fight against the new fad,
but instead he had laughed when she
urged him to take up the exercise.
"You would do well to leave the
car in the garage for WHILE she
walking is good for you"
ST get plenty of that when the car
breaks down. he reminded her.
guess I'll stick to wheels, Dolly and let
you do the walking"
Dolly had shrugged her shoulders
to show her Indifference, but she was
none the less ,shurt and angry, and
proceeded to show marked interest in
Mayling in order to teach Blount |
he seemed too Indifferent |
AS Frazer's red car passed them for
about the tenth time in their circuit |
of the course, Dolly had sudden in
spiration.
"Mr. Blount in his gray car cannot
be far behind" she said. Let US pre-
tend that we do not hear and make |
him take the side of the road in
stead"
"Do you think that he will?" asked |
MaVlin2 uneaSily.
'sOf course he will turn out" said /
Dolly confidently. "He won't try to /
run us down, and when he sees that |
we do not intend to move out he will |
nave to turn"
She smiled radiantIy at the idea,
put found no answering smile on her
escorts face. Mayling went white to
he lips at the thought of what might
happen were the plan to miscarfY.
He did not think of the girl, only OF
himself for Mayling. despite his
athletic prowess, was no moral hero.
He was not afraid to fight; indeed,
lie rather welcomed the opportunity,
or he was reasonably certain to
mes back to an auto and to dare a
ival to keep on. were not at all to his
liking.
When the faint humming of the
acer. Dolly smiled delightedly.
signs of a bolt on the part
f her companion, as the frantic
ounding of the horn told that Blount
Tas near. she caught at his coat.
In an ecstacy of fear Mayling threw
If her hold and dashed for the side
f the road just as Blount. to avoid |
n accident, took chances on the road
Ide.
Mayling ran directly into the path of
ne auto, and then with another quick
visit of the steering wheel, Blount
1rew the car at the stone fence. 8
The next instant there was the sound j
exploding tires and the driver was
lrown heavily to the frozen ground. ,
He lay still and white, and with a lit !
e cry of terror Dolly ran to his side.