The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1911-03-22
Che Hingdom Of
Slender 3Words
Copyright, Bobbs-Merrill Company
CHAPTER l..
A Race With Dawn.

hung the saving of human lives-tht
covering Of shame to his own ma
tion-the turning away OF foul allie
cation from the repute of friendly
empire. He knew that minutes were
valuable.
On the long, dimly lighted roadway:
where the flying hoofs beat their furl
GUS tattoo, few carts were ast1r, ant
the trolleys had not yet appeared or
the wider thoroughfares. The rali
had washed the air clean, the vino
was dustless and sweet, and the stars
were palely bright. Once policeman
signaled and the driver momentarlly
slackened speed-then on as before
The horses were white with foam
when they reached the parade ground
Here Daunt leaped down and wrench
ed both lamps from the carriage. &c
home" he said to the betto, and run
ming through a clump Of trees, struck
across the waste.
The Japanese stared after him mys
tilted, then with a philosophic objur
cation, turned and drove the horses
home at walk.
Daunt ran to low door in the long
garage. The key was on a ring in his
pocket. He went in, locking the door
behind him. There were no electric
lights-he had been there heretofore
only by day-and the carriage lamps
made only a subdued glimmer that
was reflected from the polished metal
of the great winged thing resting on
its carrier. He threw off his evening
coat and set feverishly to work. After
its single trial the new fan propeller
had been unshipped for slight alter
alton, and the fianges had not yet been
reassembled. There were delicate ad-
justments to be made, Wire rigging
to be tautened, score of minute tests
before all could be safe and sure.
At length the last attachment was in
place, the final bolt sent home and one
of the lamps dashed close in the angle
of the wind screen. He took his
place and the engine started it's famil-
lar double rythm: pst-pst-pst-pst-
pst-pst, as the explosive drop fell fast
er and faster. He leaned and broke
the clutch which held the big double
doors of the building. They swung
open and he threw on the gear.
And suddenly, as the propeller be-
gan to spin, in the instant the Glider
started in it's rush down the guides,
Daunt was aware that some one had
darted through the doors. He had a
flashing view of white, disheveled
face, heard a cry behind him-then
the Prov of the Glider tilted abrupt
ly, the air whistled past the screens,
the great fiat field sank away, and he
was throbbing steeply upward, against
the sweep of the wind.
bubble in the spirit-ievel chung to the
top of it's tube. Rapidly he warped
down the elevation vanes till slowly
slowly, the telltale bubble crept to the
middle of the level. What was the
matter? The engine was working
well, yet there was sense of heavi-
ness, of sluggishness that was unac-
countable. He looked to either side,
before him, behind him.
His fingers frightened on the clutch
es. Just forward of the whirling pro-
pellor he made out the figure of a
man, lying fiat along the ribs of the
elders body, clutching the steel guys
Of the planes, looking at him.
For a moment he stared motionless.
1t was this extra weight that had sent
the Glider reeling prow-up-had made
it unresponsive to control. The man
who chung there had aimed to prevent
the flight! Daunt leaned to let the
full beam of the f1aring lamp go past
him. A quick intuition had told him
whose were the eyes that had gilt
tered across the throbbing fabric; but
the face he saw now was infuriate
with new look that made him SILVER.
1t was incarnate with the daredevil of
terror. Phil had been a drunkard; he
was drunk now with the calculate
madness of overmastering fear. AS
he gazed, fitting, irrelevant memory
crossed Daunt's mind, of a day at col
lege, years before, when by person
al appeal he had saved Phil from the
disgrace of expulsion. And now it
was hil!-clinging there, with
desperate, hooked fingers, struggling
to consummate crime that must sink
him forever
-pst-pst-pst-pst; on, on the
Glider drove. With fierce effort,
Daunt crushed down the sense of I'M
reality and swiftly weighed his po-
sition.
The other was directly in front of
the nrOnellOr a DerilOuS place ONLY