Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-03-21

The Silent Barrier
Continued from page 10

The effort thus demanded from heart and lungs
might bring back the blood to face blanched
with deadly fear.
Karl was stocked with "reminiscences of
Stampa. Il remember the time when people
said Christian was the best man in the Bernina,
he said. He would never 60 back to the Valais
after his daughter died 1t was strange thing
that he should come to grief on cowherds
track like that over Corvatsch. But Ettas
affair."
CCHWEIGEr' snarled Bower, Strengthening
- himself suddenly. His dark eyes shot such
a CLEAN of lambert fury at the porter that the
mans jaw fell. The words were frozen on his
more effectually had he come face to face with
one of the horrihc sprites described IN the folk
lore of the hills.
Helen was surprised. What had poor Karl
done that he should be hidden so flercely to
hold his tongue? Then she thought that Bower
must have recalled Stampa' history, and feared
that perhaps the outspoken peasant might en-
ter into piquant account OF some village scan
dial. A chambermaid in the hotel, questioned
about Stampa, had told her that the daughter
he loved SO greatly had committed suicide.
Really she ought to be grateful to her COM
panion for saving her from passing embarrass-
ment. But she had the tact not TO drop the sub
ject too quickly.
4" If Barth and you agree that roping is I'M
necessary of course haven't word to say IN
the matter" she volunteered. 1T was rather
absurd of me to mention it in the first instance.
mo, you were right. l have never seen
Stampa; but his name is familiar 1t occurs IN
most Alpine records. Barth, fix the rope before
we go farther. The fYdnLein wishes il"
The rush of color induced by physical effort
effort of tensity that Helen was wholly I'm
aware of-was ebbing now before a numbmg
terror that had come to stay His face was
drawn and livid. His voice had the metallic
ring in it that the girl had detected once already
that day. Again she experienced sense OF be-
wilderment that he should regard trivial
thing SO seriously. She was not child. The
world of to-day pulsated with far too many
stories of tragic passion that she should be
shielded so determinedly from any hint OF an
episode that doubtless wrung the hearts core
of this quiet valley one day in August sixteen
years ago. In some slight degree Bowers par
oxysm of anger reflection on her own good
taste; for she had unwittingly given rise to 1T.
Nevertheless, she felt indebted to him. TO
extricate both Bower and herself from an aWk-
ward situation, she took keen interest IN
Barth's method of adjusting the rope. The
man did not show any amazement at Bowers
order. He was there to earn his fee. Had these
mad English told him to cut steps up the gentle
slope in front he would have obeyed without
protest, though it was more than strange that
this much travelled voyageur should adopt such
a needless preCaution.
A S matter of fact, under Barth's guidance
= a hobbng cripple could have surmounted
the first kilometer of the Forno glacier. The
track lay close to the left bank of the mora1ne.
1t curved slightly to the right, and soon the ex-
quisite panorama of Monte Roseg, the Gina di
Rosso, Monte Sissone, Piz Torrone, and the
Castillo group opened up before the climbers.
Helen was enchanted Twice she half turned
to address some question to Bower; but on
each occasion she happened to catch him IN the
act of swallowing some brandy from flask.
Governed by unaccountable timidity, she pre-
tended not to notice his actions, and diverted
her words to Barth who told her the names of
the peaks and pointed to the functions OF minor
ice fields with the main artery of the Forno.
Bower did not utter a syllable until they
struck out toward the center of the glacier. A
crevasse some ten feet in width, and seemingly
hundreds of feet deep, barred the way; but a
bridge of ice covered with snow offered safe
transit. The snow carpet showed that num-
Der of climbers had passed quite recently in
both directions. Even Helen, somewhat awed
by the dimensions of the rift, understood that
the existence of this natural arch well
recognized by Alpinsts as Waterloo Bridge is
known to dwellers on the south side of the
Thames
Now Miss Wynton, you should experience
your first real thrill said Bower. This bridge
forms here every year at this season, and an
army might cross in safety. 1t is the genuine
article, the first and strongest of series. Yet
here you cross the Rubicon A mixture of
metaphors is allowable in high attitudes you
know"
Helen, almost startled at first by the unaffec-
ted naturalness of his words, was unfeignedly