Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1914-03-10

began, mounted on his mare Aquarelle,
he was posted near the head Of the
slope, not twenty yards from the hur-
die, to be at hand in any contingency
When Harry's horse bolted, one touch
put Aquarelle into motion. Like q
line of brown light she dashed at right
angles to the runaway-a line drawn
to intercept the line of Black Hawks
fight. There was silence over the
field-one second-two seconds-the
lines shot to the angle'~then it came
the shock they awaited.
Black Hawk, rushing, saw the other
coming and swerved at the last mo-
ment-too late. The animals collided,
not with full force. yet for a moment
it looked like nothing but death for
riders and mounts. Harry Hampton
was thrown backward to the level
field: Black Hawk galloped of, frantic
and unhurt, across it; Aquarelle, one
saw, lay on the very edge Of the drop
and was scrambling to her feet with
liveliness enough to assure her safe
ty; of Francois there was no sign. In
half minute the breathless still
crowd was in an uproar, and hun
dred men were jostling one another
to reach the scene of the accident.
1t was two minutes, perhaps, before
Caperton Bayly, with negro boy at
his heels, with Jack Littleton and
Harry Wise and a dozen other lads
racing back of him, had plunged over
the drop of land where Francois had
disappeared. Two minutes are enough
sometimes for large event. In that
two minutes Lucy Hampton, without
conscious volition, by an instinct as
simple and imperative as BIRDS in
stinct to shield her young, had slipped
from her horse Bluebird and flown
across the level and down over the
steep bank till she found herself hold
ing Francois dark head in her arms
and heard her own voice saying words
she had never said even to herself.
Il love you, love you," she said,
and if all the world heard she did not
know or care. There was no world
for her at that minute but the man
lying with his head against her heart
dead it might be, but dead or alive,
dearest. Il love you-love you-love
you." she repeated, as if the soul were
rushing out of her in the words.
With that the luminous great eyes
opened, and Francois was looking at
her, and she knew that he had heard.
And then the training of lifetime, of
centuries, flooded back into her, and
womanly reticence and maidenly
shame and the feelings and attitude
which are not primeval, as she had
been primeval for that one mad mo-
ment. She drew back as she felt him
trying to lift himself, and left him free
and was on her feet, and then with a
shock she was aware of another pres
ence; turning she looked up into the
angry glow of her cousins eyes. He
was not looking at her, but at the man
who, dazed, hurt, was trying painfully
to pull himself up. Harry Hampton
glared at him.
I'VE will settle this later" he
brought out through his teeth. Il hope
| can kill you" And Lucy cried out:
"Shame!" she cried. He has just
saved your life!'
Damn him!" said Harry Hampton.
II do not want my life at his hands.
hate him more for saving me. Damn
him.
And Francois, clutching at a bush,
things Keeling about him unsteadily,
looked up. friendly, wistful, at the boy
cursing him.
With that there was an influx of
population; the whole world, appar-
emily, tumbled down the steep bank,
every one far too preoccupied with
help for the hero to remark Harry
Hampton's grim humor.