The Tupelo journal., 1909-08-27

Utuu ldhC. IL uou OSSOlhO oSpoA atOu
from the main channel of the Crawling
Stone by a high, narrow barrier in the
form of a bench deposited by the re
ceding waters of some earlier flood
and added to by sandstorms sweeping
among the willows that ~overspread 1t
Without an effective head or definite
system of work the efforts of the men
at the Stone ranch were of no more
consequence than if they had spent
their time in waving blankets at the
river. Twenty men riding in together
to tell Lance Dunning that the river
was washing out the tree claims above
Mud lake made no p~erceptible differ
ence in the event. Dicksie, though an
inexperienced girl, saw with helpless
clearness the futility of it all.
Terror seized Dicksie. She tele.
phoned in her distress for Marion,
begging her to come III before they
should all be swept away; and Marion,
turning the shop over to Katie Dan
cling, got into the ranch-wagon that
Dieksie had sent and started for the
Crawling Stone.
At noon Marion arrived. The ranch
house was deserted, and the men were
all at the river. Puss stuck her head
out of the kitchen window, and Dick
sic ran out and threw herself into
Marion's rms Late news from the
front had been the worst; the cutting
above Mud lake had weakened the last
barrier that held off the river, and
every available man was fighting the
current at that point.
Marion heard it all while eating a
luncheon. Dicksie. beset with anxiety,
could not stay In the house. The man
that had driven Marion over, saddled
horses in the afternoon and the two
women rode up above Mud lake, now
become through rainfall and seepage
from the river a long, shallow lagoon.
For an hour they watched the shovel
ing and carrying of sand-bags, and
rode toward the river to the very edge
of the disappearing willows, where
the bank was melting away before the
undercut of the resistless current.
They rode away with a common feel
ing-a conviction that the fight was a
losing one, and that another day would
see the ruin complete.
"Dicksie," exclaimed Marion-they
were riding to the house as she spoke
Til tell you what we can do" She
hesitated a moment. Il will tell you
what we can do! Are you plucky?"
D:a1-:a 1o11,al ~ Nfo,or -o+Lo+
ically.
eff you are plucky enough to do it,
we can keep the river off yet. l have
an idea. l will go, but you must come
along"
Marion, what do you mean? Don t
you think l would go anywhere to
save the ranch? l should like to know
where you dare go in this country
that | dare mott"
"Then ride with me over to the rail-
road camp by the new bridge. We will
ask Mr.. McCloud to bring ome of his
men over. He can stop the river; he
knows how"
Dicksie caught her breath. ooh,
Marion! that would do no good, even
I could do it. Why, the railroad has
been all swept away in the lower val
ley"
How do you know"
$50 every n says"
"Who is every one?"
Cousin Lance, Mr.. Sinclair-all the
men. | heard that a week ago."
.Dicksie, don't believe it. You don't
know these railroad men. They under
stand this kind of thing; cattlemen,
you know, don't. If you will go with
me we can get help. l feel just as
sure that those men can control the
river as | do that l am looking at you
that is, if anybody can. The question
is do you want to make the effort?"
They talked until they left the
horses and entered the house. When
they sat down, Dicksie put her hands
to her face. "Oh, l wish you had said
nothing about it! How a / go to
him and ask for help now-after Cous-
in Lance has gone into court about the
line and everything? And of course
my name is in it ALL"
"Dicksie, don't raise specters that
have nothing to do with the case. II
we go to him and ask him for help he
will give it to us if he can; if he
can't, what harm is done? He has
been up and down the river for three
weeks, and he has an army of men
camped over by the bridge. I know
that, because MI. Smith rode in from
there a few days ago."
What, Whispering Smith? oh, if
he is there I would not go for worlds!"
pray, why not?"
why, he is such an awful mani"
"That is absurd, Dicksie."
Dicksfe looked grave. Marion, no
man in this part of the country has
a good word to say for Whispering
Smith"
Perhaps you have forgotten, Dick
sic, that you live in a very rough part
of the country" returned Marion,
coolly. mo man that he has ever
hunted down would have anything
pleasant to say about him; nor would
the friends of such a man be likely
to say a good word of him. There are
many on the range, Dicksie, that have
no respect for life or law or anything
else, and they naturally hate a man
like Whispering Smith"
"But Marion, he killed
st know He killed a man named