The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-02-21
CHAPTER xx.
WITH THE AID or THE PRES

CHAPTER xxx.
 WITH THE AID or THE PRESS.
 V FEE VIRGINIA was now living a
 romance stranger and more star tling than any she had ever
 A read. In imagination she was able to look back and down upon the Fork as if she had been carried into another world-a world that was at
 once primevai, yet peaceful; a world of dreaming trees. singing streams and
 silent peaks: a realm in which law and order reigned, maintained by one determined young man whose power was derived from the president him. self. She felt safe-entirely safe-for just across the roaring mountain tor
 rent the two intrepid guardians of the forest were encamped. One of them. 1t is true. came of Swedish percentage. and the other was a native of Eng land, but they were both American in the high sense of being loyal to the federal will. and she trusted them more unQuestioningly than any other men in all that west save only Red. field She had no doubt there were others equally loyal. equally to be
 trusted, but she did not know them. She rose to complete understand ing of Cavanagh's love for ''the high country and his enthusiasm for the cause. a cause which was able to bring together the student from Yale and the graduates of Bergen and of Oxford and make them comrades in preserving the trees and streams of the mountain states against the en- croachments of some of their own citi-
 Eens. who were openly. shortsightedly
 and cynically bent upon destruction. spoliation and misuse.
 She had listened to the. talk Of the forester and the supervisor, and she had learned from them that Cavanagh was sure of swift advancement now that he had shown his courage and
 his skill, and the thought that he might leave the state to take charge of another forest brought her some uueasiness. for she and Lize had plan
 ned to go to Sulphur City. She had
 to her the possibility Of occasionally
 seeing or hearing from Cavanagh. But the thought that he might go away al- together took some of the music out of
 the sound of the stream and made the
 future vaguely sad.
 For the next two days Cavanagh slept but little. for his patient grew steadily worse. As the flame of his fever mounted, Wetherford pleaded
 for air. The ranger threw open the
 doors. admitting freely the cool. sweet mountain wind He might as well
 die of draft as smother" was his
 thought. and by the use of cold cloths he tried to allay the itching and the pain.
 With the coming of the third night Wetherford was unconscious and un- recognizable to any one who had
 tnown him in the days of ''the free 1 range" He was going as the wild west was going. discredited. ulcerated, poi
 soned. incapable of rebirth, yet carry ing something fine to his grave. He had acted the part of a brave man; that shall be said of him. He had
 gone to the rescue of the poor Basque tnstinctiyely. with the same reckless 1 disregard of consequences to himself 1 which marked his character when as | COW boss on the range he had set
 aside the most difficult tasks for his
 own rope or gun His regard for the
 ranger into whose care he was now about to commit his wife and daugh-
 ter persisted in spite of his suffering.
 In him was his hope, his stay. Once 1 again. in lucid moment. he reverted | to the promise which he had drawn | from Cavanash.
 eff I go you must take care-of my | girl-take care of Lize too. Promise | me that Do you promise?" he insist 1 ed.
 'I promise-on honor." Ross repeat 1 ed, and, with a faint pressure of bis hand ,so slender and weak. Wether- | ford sank away into the drowse which ! deepened hour by hour. broken now
 and then by eonvulsions, which wrung the stern heart of the ranger till his
 hands trembled for pity.
 l The day was well advanced when the sound of rattling pebbles on the hill l back of his cabin drew his attention, 1 and few moments later a man on a ! weary horse rode up 70 ais door and dropped heavily from the saddle. He l was a small. dark individual. with spectacles. plainly of the city. l Beware! Smallpox" called Ross as his visitor drew near the door. CTo Be Continued)
 TO PREVENT THE GRIP.
 LAXATIVE PROMO QUIN1NE re-