Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1908-06-18

stood out, as so often 1t did in his
infiamed mind from the smoke and
the steam; Of a woman who had
wronged him g~rievously. And there
was another-the policeman.
He took a step nearer.
"You-save her." he Kissed, and the
sound of his voice sounded strange
even to himself, save her, and get
the glory. That's your graft. Come,
I'll help ye." And he caught the po-
liceman by the arm.
There was that about the fireman
which frightened the man. With his
recovered strength he resisted the
toward the window. But
the strength of ten men seemed Knee
lands.
AS the two forms staggered into the
indistinet light from the street, fire.
men outside we're raising a ladder to
an upper floor. Slowly it warped up
ward, then rested on a ledge of an OPP
posite side, and a man carrying a
hose in his hand ran quickly up.
Across the area-way the forms of
two men met his view. One, in police
mans uniform, seemed struggling
back from the window; the other, a
fireman, urged him forward. They
locked in an embrace, and the fire
man threw the other across the sill.
A stream of water, hard as rubber,
smote Kneeland full in the chest and
rolled him against the wall. The
fireman on the ladder had turned his
hose on the strugglers.
Choking and battered by the deluge
which threshed in upon them, Knee
land caught at the sill. In the mo-
ment ne had been at the window the
feet and skirts of a woman hanging
from the ledge above had met his Wis
ion. The instincts of the fire-fghter
were once more supreme.
THE woman!" he called, painting,
to the policeman. Quick, help mel"
The stream of water had ceased to
pour through the window. The fire.
man ON the ladder also had seen the
woman and had turned his hose into
the room, from the ledge of which
the oma chung desperately by her
hands to escape the suffocation of
smoke and flames.
Kneeland thrust a leg out of the
window.
Hold this one" he shouted to the
policeman, kicking the other against
the floor to help the words. Now,
yer arm around my waist. steady"
AS the policeman took hold of him
he felt the fireman suddenly relax
in his grasp. He saw Kneeland look
up at the woman with staring eyes,
mouth opened. He heard him mutter
a name; then seem to sink away from
him, as though he would slide back
into the shelter of the window.
Suddenly the fireman became rigid
once more as a steel bar. The opened
mouth closed tightly over the snap
ping teeth. In a voice low and hoarse
but steady, he gave the directions.
Let CO." he called to the figure
overhead, I'll catch yer"
The policeman felt the body he held
sway outward with the sudden impact
His muscles strained, as they gripped
at the waist which bent over till il
was level with the ledge, but the mus
cles of the fireman seemed of iron
For a few terrible seconds the forms
I,,,,r oIyo Tho opnn md II, thn oJi ~
strain of the bodies, eyes grew blood
shot and the faces distorted with
swollen veins. Then, slowly the fire
man and his charge gained back to the
ledge, clutched it, and rolled into the
room.
Clouds of smoke still poured through
the Quilted tenement, but thu
fires Roadway was checked. From
the floors overhead the men of the
hook-and-ladder truck, their work
there done, came struggling down the
stairway.
where's K~neeland% the captain
asked, and the next moment he saw
the three at the window. "Hello!"
But the voice did not reach the
fireman. They lifted him unconscious
and took him away to the hospital
The woman and the policeman fol
lowed downstairs and both spoke witt
the captain.
Mother O. Moses!" exclaimed the
latter. "You'll-you'll-' but the
woman shook her head and wen
away.
Guess it'll be ours to off oul
hats to Kneeland when he gets back
sociable or no %sociable," said Burke
on the ride home. 81 always gave
him credit for havin' the right sort o
stuff, anyhow. An that cop chap wa,
the same as claimed his rescue il
the morning. S'pose he was goin' tel
try the same game again"
eyer wrong" said the captain, "ht
was after a chance to redeem himself
Sergeant was down on him, an HI
wasn't gettin' any show or the force
-leastwise he thought so-an' tina
was why he tried to steal the credit
He was sorry afterward."
AN the woman this last time, thu
one We were talkin' WITH"
"She was Kneeland's wife-once,
said the captain.