The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1915-01-07


like a hunted hare. and without tho
least warning came upon liarcus aud
Judith, dismoun,od Barcus bending
over his cycle and tinkoring With its
motor
For one manipulating instant COLI.
sion seemed unavoidable Barcua ana
Judith and the motorcycle occupied
most OF the width OF the road there
was little room between them and tho
declivity. less between them aud tho
forest To Try TO pass them on tho
latter side would be- only to dash hla
brains out against the trees while to
make the attempt on the outside would
be to risk leaving the road altogether
and dashing on into space
And Il was impossible TO stop tho
eyele-so brief Vas all his warnlug
In desperation Alan chOsc tbs outside
OF the road. and for the space of a
single Heartbeat thought that he might
possibly make H. but with the next
realized that be would noi--seeing the
front wheel swing on over the llp Of
the slope.
AT this he acted sharply and upon
sheer instinct IA the cycle left tbs
road altogether he risksd a broken
knee BY releasing bis grasp Of the
handlebars and STRENGTHENING out his
leg and drsvi' Il down forcibly
against the roadbed. The effect Of this
was to Mt him bodily from the aad.
die: the machine shot from beneath
him like some strange proIectiIs
hurled from the bore OF a great gun.
and Rose crashed against him in the
same fraction Of a second
Headlong they plunged as one down
the hillside. struck lts shelving sur.
face a good twenty fee, from tho brink
OF the road. and dying apart tumbled
their separate ways down the 70
mainder Of the drop aud into tho
friendly shelter Of the underbrush.
Something nearly miraculous saved
them whole Beyond q iew sratehes
and bruises and a severe shaking up.
they oscased unharmed. And thor
were picking themselves up and re-
gaining their breath and recollecting
their scattered Wits when. with i'm.
petus no less terrific than their own
had been. the pursuing motor car
swung round the bend and hurled It.
self directly AZ the Two who remained
upon the road above
Sacrifices.
But Tom Barrus hadn't failed 10
profit by the warning implicit In Alans
accident
Alan. he told himself shrewdly.
would never have run his cycle at 10
foolhardy a pace without good rea.
son; and under the circumstances good
reason was synonymous solely with
pursuit.
He was therefore on the alert. quick
20 see the racing automobile when II
came hurting round the bend. aud In
the very nick Of time grasped Iudith's
arm and swung her bodily with him
back out OF harms way. amid the
tees that bordored tho inside OF the
road.
OF necessity his motorcycle suffered.
Abandoned In the middle OF tho road,
IL was struck BY the buffers Of the
motor car and flung aside az II II had
been nothing more ponderable than q
truss OF STRENGTHENING halfway down
the einbankment, a hopeless tangle Of
shattered tubing and twisted wire.
Al first blush the circumstance
seemed surprising, that the car did
not stop. But then Barcus reminded
himself that Marrophat and Jimmy
could not possibly have witnessed tho |
accident involving Alan and Rose. who.
together with the wreck OF their ma.
chine. remained wellcloaked by the
underbrush at the bottom Of the can.
yon. In all probability. then. the az.
sassins had assumed that Alan had
hurried on. and since their own FIRST
business was concerned exclusively
with them. they had done likewise.
reasoning that they could return aud
deal with his unfortunate friend az
their convenience after oyerhanlIng
their quarry. whose life they most
coveted
As for Rose and Alan-heaven alone
knew what had happened to them. SO
Barcus set himself TO find out what
ever Providence knew without more
fCauf IN naxt naOal