The evening world., 1916-08-03
msnshss e. ~. ,.a.i

her hrsahfssi pas finished she pro.
essdsd ~ M. sofss ana looked ss@Is
uDon the shelter ohsai had made shs
felt he would never return.
Not Tor Ions, however. oouia Juiith
remain here IN idlenessL Dressed
again 5000. and bothered anew BY
Ne uncontrolled strands o. her hair.
especially those which trsiisd down
her forshsad and Into her syss, she
tore . tots from q ~rllo~. wound her
front locks upon II. and suddenly
conceived = plan Tor Kidding herself
" these tresses entirely shs could
burn them OF.
The operation. with JUdith. ~ss a
brief anair. Returning 10 her cave.
sho blew upon certain OF the smoldsr.
Ing smbers OF her brcAkfsAt-f IRE, aud
thus secured q number Of twss
glowing hot for an inch or 90 Of
their length. With two Of thess KEEP,
alive In her hand she FASTENED once
more 10 the spring. In one still pool
~ which she had previously ssen her
face reflected
II was the work Of y moment only
20 catch up tho stray. nyins strands
that annoyed her 80 constantly and
wind them tightly on a stick. Thus
held In q Irm. tidy manner close up
to her scalp. the locks were reaty
for the brand. She causht UP n
Of the twigs with red IRE aglow upon
It's end. leaned out again over the
mirroring pool OF water. and drawing
the hot coal straight along the twiB
on which her hair was rolled. burned
It of In "A clean straight line IA
neatly as IA barber could have cut H.
She climbed the slope and. pro-
cecding TO the shelter. stood with
folded arms disdainfully looking II
over. There lay the cordage he had
fetched from the valley. and there
lay his bow. unstrung. with n number
OF arrows beside II. The ashes OF his
former fires lay In a small gray heap.
at the edge OF which were bones half
burned and greasy. For q moment
she thought OF taking the bow. for
which she felt certain she could
readily fashion additional arrows.
Then a scorn for anything and
everything that a Client had made
or handled brought a hard compress
sion on her lips and a light OF con-
tempt TO her eyes. The things could
nil lIe here and rot! When she
-. IT, ,At,ll VNnEA nnA
She turned to the spring. A GER
tain sense Of freedom stole upon her'
especially now that Clients shelter
had been visited. There could be no
restraint upon her actions. She was
all alone. The trip OF greenery was
hers: the spring. the sunlight-eVery-
thing wns hers. She stripped on her
clothing and bathcd In the water
that trickled down Its channel from
the well. She shook down her nair
and tried to comb 1t with her ringers
II was hopelessly tangled. yet de-
spite its condition, 1t was a glorious
mantle to her shoulders. She was
superb-a natural creature In a
natural environment
Against the hunger that returned
once more with the waning or tne
'dov there was no fresh captive In
Inc trans that Judith visited. She
went TO bed h%ungry--and once again
the down-creep OF the night banished
MI her spirit of dominion. all her
sense of ownership and freedom IN
the strip, and In It's place came tho
,houchts of her utter loneliness In the
Gcsolation sanctified to silence.
That this sense OF her isolation
would tend to increase upon her dairy
she was made aware on the following
morning when again she gazed across
the gorge to Clients rude shelter in
the rocks and beheld It still unten-
anted.
A hundred times she went to the
spring that day. and as often re-
turned to her cave. Her work could
not fastcn her attention. She made
no confession to herself that John
Client was on her mind, troubling hcr
unaccountably; she would not adlni
that she wished him back, much as
she must hate him should he come;
nevertheless, 1t was not for the water
that she climbed the gorge so many
times, nor to make an inspection OF
her traps.
There vas nothing to tell her that
out in the glare of the valley. to the
north, a half-crazed nan was stag
gerinS painfully home. nevertheless.
unrest was In her bosom, and she
wandered back and forth at random.
The sun went down AT length upon
the blistered world Of rock and noun
tain. Once again, at dusk, as she had
SO many times all afternoon, she as
ccnded. the silent ravine TO a point in
the alders from which she could look
straight downward at the spring.
There was nothing there.
About 10 turn and leave the place.
she started abruptly and strained a
little forward, her breath coming
short and rapidly, for no earthly
reason that she knew, A moment
later ono Of the clumps OF Willows
above tho spring OF water swaycd as