Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-07-30


hand a bullet tipped by and the girls
| instinctively ducked to the bottom of
| the tonneau. Something struck the
! window in the rear and broken glass
showered them; then over the brow OF
| a hill hey sped and the whine of
missiles no longer was heard.
= \ few miles away the car halted
| long enough for the new chauffeur to
! finish pumping up the tire. the task
! Interrupted by the uhlans: then again
| they were hurting through the night,
| past villages sleeping in ignorance of
what the coming of the gray host
would mean, over highways soon to
be rutted by siege cannon moving TO
demolish the forts at Liege and Namur-
Twice they were stopped while pass
ports were examined, but when dawn
came they were far to the south of
Liege, in a picturesque little village
on the banks of the Meuse, where Bur-
CESS. after considerable trouble, man
aged to obtain a supply of petrol.
Constance had succumbed to weari-
ness and lay curled up in corner of
the roomy tonneau when they stopped.
but Winifred still was awake and alert.
For the first time she had an oppor-
tunity to see what manner of man
Burgess was. He was pouring water
IHlo the car idUidtoI VIGIL SiiS
stepped from the machine, and whis-
Ting over the task, but he stopped
when he noted she was observing him
and his bow was most respectful.
winifred was one of the rarely net
girls who stand close inspection in the
dawn. The morning breeze had fresh
ened her skin and brouSh: the blood
to her checks; her gray eyes were
bright and wisps of dark hair. escaping
from under her ciose-fttlng hat, chung
in delightful tendrils about her tenn
pies 1t was this detail of her APP
pearance Kent had just noticed when
he became aware his glance had be-
come a stare.
For a moment Kent stood silent, his
heart racing. He did not dare speak
lest all the things he wanted to say
would tumble forth. He wanted to
tell her how beautiful she was, to
smooth back tIat vagrant lock of hair,
mis- voice was entirely composed when
he spoke.
Good morning" he said: Il guess
the worst is over. 1t should be clear
sailing from here"
He jerked thumb toward the slug
gish river That's the Meuse" he
said. back that direction is Liege,
where they have been making fine guns
for years, and now are getting chance
is Namur, which is next as they. say
in barber shops in your country
THE road to the right leads to Brus
sels--it's the one that motor tourists
take us to Mons. which is on the road
to scissors. where you want to go, l
believe
Winifred explained the need of
haste, telling of the accident to her
father, and ne produced a road map,
tracing a route with his finger Il can
drive you to that point" he SAID indi-
eating a town near the Franco-Belgian
border, land you can get a chauffeur
there. The rest of the trip will be per-
fectly safe--no more young battles like
/ the one of last night. ] would be glad
to drive you all the way to your desti-
nation. but there are reasons why
must hurry.
Meantime" he went on, Il suppose
you are hungry"
'Famished, you mean" Winifred
corrected him, and Burgess hurried
away.
Already having proven his ability as
chauffeur. Burgess qualified also a
forager. returning with tray of sand
witches and two large goblets of milk.
Then Winifred awakened Constance.
There was a wide contrast between the
capable, self-reiant Winifred and the
other. Constance's wide blue eyes showed
a romantic temperament, and her slim
hands ever seemed to nutter in uncer-
tanty
Her nap and the fact that the danger
zone had been left behind had revived
Constance's spirits, however, and she gig
gled as she ran over the happenings Of the
night.
4 x
lot Cd
| ventures she laughed. "Oh, Winnie,
| what delightful best-seller tales we can
tell when we get home. I'll never for
! get. though / was too scared to see much
of what happened To think of real
pink finger into hole torn by bullet.
| Then her eyes widened and she snatched
at the veil bound around her hat, hastily
| averting her face Winifred turned to see
| what had startled her friend. Burgess
was approaching the car.
I'VE should start at once" he said. 1.-The
| military authorities might take notion
to requisition this car, and the farther
We can get from this particular patch of
territory the better
| Winifred nodded assent, and soon after
ward the car was rolling swiftly away
| from the village.
| In the tonneau was a girl who kept
Ter face muffled behind a veil, who drop
ped listlessly in corner of the wide seat.
who declined to answer the questions OF
her friend.
Also, there was tall young woman
who wrinkled her smooth brow in per-
plexity over Constance's agitation, and
with mystery stimulated interest regarded
| the well shaped shoulders and close-crop-
ped head Of the chauffeur who had come
| to their assistance out of the night.
| Back of the steering wheel Kent
Burgess growled to himself as he studied
the situation. Tough luck, he called it, to
meet the girl-the girl for whom he had
been hunting, seemingly all his life-at
such time. ,Inwardly he rallied against
fate, but his jaw tightened-it was a very
square and determined jaw--and he trod
harder on the accelerator, as though to
emphasize a mentally expressed VOW.
In the dusk of the evening they part
ed in a little town on the border, after
a day of many delays. Of frequent ex-
hibitions of passports, of strenuous ar.
gument with military officers who
looked upon the car with covetous eyes
A man had been hired to drive the