Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1916-01-06
THE RED QUILL
BY IzoLA FORESTER.


rying life around him. He did mol
: even feel the first tense agony OF his
J. loss. There only remained a blind
submission to whatever immutaDle
J. laws had caused his ruin. For II was
: that--ruin utter and complete.
He had put every dollar Of his saw
ings into Tate's venture. AND II mad
: been all right, fair and legitimate.
Tate was true to his part OF the bar
gain. The government was t9 take
over the whole thing from him. ne
J had said. He had letters to prove II.
And suddenly here had come the. blow.
| The device had been patented 20
| years before. Not as Tate had i'm
agined n in its entirety, but sufficient
| to kin the project and send Hollo-
ways ten thousand into thin air.
Il wish we're dead" he kept say
ing to himself doggedly. wretchedly.
Ahead of him, as he turned into the
subway entrance, was girl. The red
| gull in her iamty cap held his atten-
ton. It was like the flicker Of color
under an orioles wing He saw Il
again on the crowded platform, and
when they got into the express it was
ahead of him, Red was the hue of
courage, he had read somewhere. II
stood for life and brotherhood, too.
Out OF the dumb despair that bound
him. II was the sole thing that held
his attention. At Fourteenth street
he saw a youngster get on the train
and join her. Above the roar of the
train their low laughter reached him.
Their voices came to him when he
slipped YEARLY into the cross-section
seat beside them.
we don't need fat" she was
saying. You can do lots in a fur
nished room, if you know how. I'd
rather than wait, joe"
Sure" he agreed warmly. About
another month; what do you say?
Money amt everything"
He squeezed her arm and smiled
down at her. Holloway closed his eyes
against the challenge of their happi-
ness.
And then, as the train slipped into
the first local stop, there came the
crash, the grinding of the brakes and
slowly the smell of smoke. Out Of
che sudden darkness and cries around,
the dull sensation of people stamped
| ing for the doors, Holloway felt a
hand on his shoulder. It was the boy
Gould you help me lift her? She's
tainted
He was striving to hold her, but the
crush was terrific. Holloway was tall
and gaunt, sinewy. He lifted the girl
high in his arms and told the boy to
go ahead The smoke was beginning
to sting his throat and nostrils. Once
he realized he was treading on fallen
bodies. Hands touched him out of the
darkness, tore at his clothes and
gripped his legs, but he went on grim
ly. Inch by inch, step by step, and
gradually one after another followed
him, winding sinuously through the
long train. The front car nosed the
end of the platform behind the stalled
local.
|
the boy asked in agony. Laconically
the motorman turned his head.
Whats the matter with you alp
he demanded banteringly. "Youse kin
only die once"
The boy jammed him aside and
pushed the lever that opened the doors.
"Step over the rail-" he called out.
you're all right. Step over the rail-
He was one of the first on the mar
row end of the platform. Holloway
handed the girl to him and turned to
help others. They seemed to well and
gush forth out of the dark body OF
the train, human beings seeking life.
Standing between the train and the
concrete wall, with the third rail in
porilous nearness. he passed them on
from the train to the platform, women
and girls children and men. They
! reached for his hand and he swung
thcm up 10 safety Then came an
other surging wave Of dense smoke
and he lost consciousness.
When he opened his eyes he was up
in the fresh air. They had been using
a pulmotor on him. AS he opened his
eyes he saw the eager faces OF the
crowd and the girl nearest.
"Gee!" gasped a boy. Some hero,
amt be?"
IAN right, now. old man, aren't
you?" asked the ambulance surgeon.
who's your nearest friend?"
Holloway shook his head. The boy
pressed forward, his hat on the back
of his head, his arm around the girls
shoulders.
Il am" he said. eagerly. 'Ill look
out for him. The company'll settle
with him for this. but money amt
everything. He can come home with
me-"
Holloway looked up at the sky,
dark already with the early winter
night. Its stars were dim beyond the
electric lights, but they were there.
| A rIntu aufoldad him Ha