Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1912-01-04
A Mad
Race
An Up to Date Story of an
Elopement
BY HENRY T. ARCHIBALD

By HENRY T. ARCHIBALD
Copyright by American Press Assoc
citation. 1911

and destroying people," said citizen
/ of Colorado. reminds me Of case of
food out here in this state, OF course
/ the one refer to didn't destroy hun
dr.ds of homes and lots of people, but
to those concerned in 1t it was a
mighty important affair"
What food do you refer to- Sllsby?"
asked wilkins, sitting with his feet on
the iron rail encircling the stove and
intended for foot rest
IF I'm going to tell you the story
4 ri have to bring the different events
| in as they happened" replied Silsby;
otherwise I'd get It all mixed up. TO
| begin with Molly McGregor was the
| prettiest girl in - county. and not
only the prettiest girl but the biggest
madcap But you ought to see her
now She's the quietest little woman
in the world ana afraid OF her own
| shadow She's married and got three
children, the Oldest
"Oh. cut that short!" cried the man
on the other side OF the stove You're
putting in the end before the begin
ming thought you said you were go
ing to proceed in order
IF you can tell the story better
| than
"Oh. go on said the other foot
warmers in one voice.
AS | was saying" continued the
narrator, MOLLY MeGregor was the
merr.est madcap in the county She
had all the men In love with her, from
| the richest runchmun to the meaneSt
cowboy McGregor, her father was a
Scotchman, who was about as hard TO
move when he took position as Pixies
sQk. and the position he took with
| Molly was that she was to marry the
man he selected for her
The old man didn't worry much
about her not doing az he intended
when the time came for she had one
man dangling about her one day and
another the next, and sometimes they
were thick as flies about sugar bar
rel So long as that kind of monkey
shines was going on her father knew
| that there was nothing to fear, and
even If his daughter should fall in love
with some one OF her admirers he had
no idea that Molly would marry any
one except the man he picked out for
| her"
81 thought" interrupted the mqn on
the other side OF the stove. you were
going to tell us something new That
sort OF stuff is TO be found in qine-
tenths OF all the stories in the world.
shut up. wilkins said one OF the
listeners, land let's have the yarn
I'm not going to spoil It for him."
grunted Silsby 1T was old McGregors
confidence that was his updoing, so
far as his daughter was concerned.
But. tell you. my friends, 1t doesn't
do any good to watch a girl You
might as well watch Il soldier on the
field of battle with view of pulling
| him out OF the way from the bullet
that's going to kill him Before you
know it he doubles up. SO does the
girl. A certain fellow gives her a look
and she drops
"The man that looked at Molly Nc
Gregor when she surrendered was Ned
! Deane, who was nothing but a cow
boy. Ned was a very good fellow, but
he had nothing laid up. while the own
err of gold mine that was yielding
81 900 to the ton was dead stuck on
the girl.
First thing Old McGregor knew that
his daughter WIS going to go back on
4. N1a
when Bryant, the mine owning suitor
rode up to the ranch one morning and
said.
Say, old man, | met your daughter
Iust now driving that automobile you
bought her last Christmas, with Ned
Deane sitting beside her. AS they
went by caught sight of valise I'M
der their feet, and l reckon they're
running away
'Whatr exclaimed the Scotchman,
his eyes bullying out Of his head
"'Bet you 500 it's an elopement
! 'McGregor never did anything fast
in his life till that moment 1t wasn't
five minutes before. he was in o1e OF
the autos he kept on the ranch. aud !
tell you the hand on the speed gauge
| Just spun around from zero TO Gtty In
no time at all"
ooh he's going 10 give rs a runaway
couple i'm an auto chased by her father
| In another auto interrupted the crit
] lcal wilkins That's hackneyed
BET you ten that isn't the point of
| the story" said Silsby.
wilkins failed to come up, and Sis
by proceeded
"McGrogor doesn't come into the
story or my version Of IL at all, except
that there was big chase ia tell
you something about that only my
! friend on the other side Of the stove
considers it WORKOUT story material
\ One thing I must mention, and that IS
that while the race was going on the
clouds were thckeuiug and there was
muttering of thunder Just before
/ the lovers reached the turn OF the road
where &c goes down into one Of the
narrowest canyons 10 Colorado they
heard "a report behind them and, look-
ing back. saw that a busted tire had
sent the pursuing auto oft over q level
/ space beside the road IL didn't upset.