The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1914-02-21
THE LADDER
nv CHARLES G u ROBERTS

hut NhihH'lfht aii thAhlHk WIN
terrible excitement Hut when Wa
came 20 Badly and Antonio SHE
looked scared and slipped behind
my arm.
They're friends. says 70
/ her. This Satisfied her.
Come on. then come quick =
she painted. and started TO dras
mo away AS n TO get me out OF
the canyon. but wouldn't stir
"'No'' says l. Not that way
yet. We have come 20 get the
gold. I've saved you. Wen fight
for you. but you must show us how
TO get the gold
Ssh. seemed terribly frightened
AZ this and foil ON her knees and
begged mo 60 take her away NJ
once or we'd all be killed. She
made kind OF signs 10 show NJ
that we'd be tortured and ahs
poured out such n string ~ stuff
about the injuna having Just muir
dercd her mother. and hhvlne
condemned hor 10 death for a
kind OF witch-and about how
shed tell us all about the gold. By
and by. so M wo could come back
/ with a lot of soldiers and got =,
aud all such crazy childish stuff
Badly aud Antonio. not under
standing her lingo. got impat~nt
and Badly began to Erumble some
thing usiy. but. says |. shut
Ian. naidy. who's running this
show Then. says TO the Eiri
/ In her own EibbcriEh No. ms
girl, that won't so. We're aftsi
that gold. we've helped you and
will stand by you. and YOU must
help M. No NOR. talk. VIII you
or won't YOU
Well. at that time. she got up
gind os proud and straight. and
Their her eyes began TO blaze. and
she said that mas be. with her "a
guide us. and being brave mcn ~
we were. wc might perhaps. man
asa a. with that ans fell 10 nut
tefsnK to herself sbod, revenge
aud seemed to forget all heou'
/ hew scared she'd beef two nsH
utes before.
Mex, minute she lined hei
head and listened sharply. though
40 couldn't hear anything. ,hcr
quick as lightning she turned
'iier plan was this She was r
lead Va along tHe face o. the cir
BY . ledge she knew. tiii we came
10 tho place whorp the ladder wa'
kept. With this we'd mount from
ledge 20 ledge. pulling the laddei
up after US In IN. cave nj ihs
top, was not the mine. she said
but tho tribes ,reasur. chambe'
there was always a guardian
sleeping. lie was a Kind ri
luua,ic. she said. and regarded BY
the tribe as very t~rrlblt. an
sacred, and under tho pfotecii1r
OF tho gods: so that no inlun'
would ever dare 20 interfere with
him. lest his curse should bias
them. hut shs was not an iniun
nh. declared. with her chin In IN.
air. Sh. did not fear him. Fur
thrrmore abe reckoned II was b.
that had marked her and hei
mother for witches And she has
me give her one OF mr. two
knives. which did very willingly
1T wasn't moro than full dari
when the Girl started us moving
because we'd want all the tim'
there was before sunrise. sh,
knew what she was about. at
right. She led the way through
thickciH black an soot. me clos,
nt her little he,is and keepini
hold OF her all the time. Will,
Badly and Antonio kept touch be
hind me the same way We wcr.
so quiet we could hear things rus
Ting TO get out OF our way
snakes. maybe. or maybe onlj
those biz lizards they have dowi
there.
1T seemed an age We wen
crawling along that ledge. Away
rounding the tremendous buig.
of the cliff. And toll yol
We moved M n our foe
were egg shells We wero might
afraid Of breaking Then we cam,
to n deep. narrow fiHsure. and thor,
the girl showed us the ladder. hid
den.
III was mighty long ladder
strongly built. and heavy. w.
had To carry 1t maybe fifty yard
along that ledge. and that WASH
any Joke. what with tho twistinI
OF the ledge and the darkness ant
the necessity OF being always a
quiet as shadows. We saw Jus
how helpless we'd have been I
We hadn't had the girl Whei
we came 10 tho place where W,
had to climb TO the next ledge
she cautioned wa not TO let IN,
ladder CRATE on tho rock. tel
you n was Job. hoisting tina
heavy ladder up TO It's place with
out letting II bump or slide. y,
the time II was done YOU couli
have wrung us out like dish
rags. But that girl wouldn't le
us rest second. The lndde
was almost straight. but up II sh,
went, light as cat.
AN safe. I'm holding ~,
came her whisper down the fac,
OF the rock through the dark.
sent Badly up first, not wantinl
10 leave Antonio n minute alon
with the girl. and he went pluck,
enough, but clinging so flat 4
the ladder you'd have though
he'd scrape his face Off on tn
rungp.
Antonio followed. also clinp
Ing flat was going 10 wait III
ne was all the way up before
started. but the girls whlspe
I a
urgent. so ] came along Jus
about ten feet behind Antonio.
flattened myself just as flat a
, away. up there into the dimness
and the ladder was 80 straight
, felt as II | was going TO pull
: over backward.
r we pulled the ladder III
, noiselessly. after us. and imms
diately hoisted II to the mex
ledge This climb was ahortc