Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-05-14

can kind OF goats than all the fancy
foreign trash you could hand OUT"
so much Obliged for your opinion"
said Dick Sweetly, for he was pro-
voked.
The stage crashed away down the
hillside. and Dick let himself through
the wire barred gate in the high wire
fence he had caused to be made around
the pastures and turned into the path
that led across the newly blazed land.
Here and there he saw n dropping
specimen of his handsome herd of
goats, and lie felt growing resent
ment against Beaver, who had wrongly
stated the trouble with the beasts. IL
Dick had only known he would have
made a change in the fences unless
the goats really were dying from in
compatibility Of climate and environ
ment He knew they were considered
rather delicate animals, and he mar
veled at his own stupidity In jumping
at Lawyer Smiths careless suggestion
TO make this use OF Arrowface noun
tain. 80 ---s,a
"All my profits for a year, thrown to
the Winds" he groaned. besides all
the hard work. ! guess I'll leave old
Arrowface alone and let my heirs di-
vide it among themselves. I'll turn
it into a BURBERRY playground and
thus earn the good will of the neigh
bors, who call me loony' now"
At the log cabin on the hilltop he
found confusion. Mrs. Beaver was
running around wringing her hands,
while the small Beavers were roaring
in sympathy. The husband and father
was not in sight.
what is the matter?' cried Dick,
running forward.
Its Tirzy Ann-she's lost on the hill
side, and one of the mad goats is down
there. She'll be horned; know she
will!' walled Mrs. Beaver. II can't
leave the children or
where's Ernest?" he demanded.
/ HE went down to the mill"
"Where did Tirzy goa"
Down on the west slope, and the
mad goat is
Dick took up Beavers shotgun from
| its rack inside the door, made sure II
was loaded and then disappeared over
the brow of the hill toward the west.
| Here the trees had been entirely cut
away, and halfway down on the scar
! red face of the mountain he saw a
touch of bright blue fleeing before a
| jumping patch of black and white.
| The bright blue was Tirzy, and the
black and white patch must be the
mad goat. Dick took the hill in great
leaps, trying to recollect as he did so
which of the Beaver children belonged
to the name of Tirzy Ann. He gave II
up presently, for ponder as he might
he could not make Tirzy Ann fit into
the Beaver family, for he had seen the
three Beaver children weeping around
their maternal parent at the log cabin.
Tirzy and the goat had disappeared
in patch of timber, and as he reached
the trees he heard the cracking crash
of broken branches and shrill sObbing
cry.
He collided with tree trunks as he
shouted out word of encouragement,
but he was unconscious of n skinned
nose or bruised shoulders for life lay
in the balance.
Suddenly he came upon them, touch
of blue and patch of black and white.
Ie ulue EONn was CEOGCHtu III tue
branches of low growing spruce tree.
while at its foot there stamped and
paved red eyed, bleating Angora
goat. The goat reared itself, and Il
hoof caught the hem of the blue gown.
and the girl screamed again.
Dick Hayden's shot rang out sharp
", decorating across the valley. The
goats bleat ended in a sharp cry, and
the animal tumbled TO the ground,
where it lay dead. From the spruce
tree came the sound OF soft crying.
Don't Ire afraid. Tirzy Ann" said
Dick softly. The goat cannot hurt
you now. He's dead as doornail, if
you know how thoroughly dead that
is. Come on down, that's good girl"
He stood aghast as the good girl"
turned toward him and revealed a
frightened but lovely face, not that of
a ten-year-old child, as he had i'm
agined, but the face of a girl In her
late teens pink tinted. blue eyed. red
Tipped and charming
y thought you were a little girl" he
} said lamely as she jumped lightly
down 10 the ground with the aid OF
his hand. They said Tirzy Ann was
lost and ! concluded that Tirzy was
one OF the little Beavers"
I'm boarding with the Beavers"
she explained as they went up the
mountain path. II used to know them
in Connecticut and spent many pleas
ant days ut their farm. so when |
wrote and asked if ] might come TO
their new home they were delightful
enough to say yes. But didn't know
was coming into the country of mad
goats"
cit will be a country OF dead goats
tomorrow said Dick declslvely. IF
the Beavers want to stay on they can
go into chicken raising. Do you know
today is the frst bit OF good luck I've
had with this mountain of miae?
Tirzy Ann did not know. and she did
not seem to understand 1t took Dick
Hayden six months of wooing 90 dem.
onstrate this fact to the girl he had
saved froIa the mad goat