The Yale expositor. (Yale, St. Clair County, Mich.) 1894-current, 1916-03-23
CQoX?IClFT OF DCLD WEAD AND CCIHTNNY

the land and heaven was not. Fire
encompassed the world. Its increased
roar changed to the thunder of the
spheres. IL appalled, the hearts OF
men. stayed their hands in fright All
throughout the darkness of rolling
smoke wherein they worked between
the raging torrent and the East Belt
that mighty voice commanded cessa-
ton.
Instantaneously, without orders. as
one man where there was no commu-
nication save between those a few feet
apart, they dropped their spades. their
tattered blankets, their axes. They
Strengthened from their labor, leaving
the cross.cuts in the trunks. Here and
there, above the solemn thunder
hoarse voices began to call. 1t was
the time to quit and they realized II
instinctively.
Out! Out! Quit" they cried to
each other in the dusk Get out!
Get out!"
Walter Sandry, working near the
apex of the pushing line, saw men be-
ginning to run past him back along the
trench and the cutting. He lifted des-
perate eyes TO the ridge whose dim
crest he could see between the boles,
so near had they won TO victory. Only
few more big pines, dozen saplings.
scant few yards of trench and IL
would be done-the long lane Of safety
stretched across the neck of the East
Belt!
stop! Stop! Stop" he cried with
great voice that came from the very
depths of his lungs with borrowed
power Stand by me, men! For God 8
sake stand BY"
He saw dim shapes falter. half turn
toward him and start on. Again he
| raised his stentorian cry and flying
! figures halted a moment. stopped
against their will by its compelling
| power
I'm Johnny Eastern, all right, but
I'm going to stay! Who'll stay with
me?"
Out of the dense obscurity came Cot
Inns. huge, fantastic figure, and stood
! DGbluG llLl hlluOul NOlus III NhV NNb
sion of the time Sandry reached out
a hand and gripped the giants shout
der.
"A dozen men and we've won!" he
cried.
He saw the hating shapes turn,
gather another and another, retrace
their steps and spring back into the
darkness. Every man of them was
western born and the taunt had gone
home He leaped himself for the
handle of a saw sticking out from the
bole OF a l50-foot sugar pine and the
whining song of the cross-cuts rose
again under the dwarfing roar.
Fourteen men had heard and an
swered that call, and they were alone
in the purgatory of heat and smoke
All the rest were running for their
lives down the cleared fall toward the
valley beyond the dip.
From time TO time Sandry glanced
upward at the increasing light. The
sugar pine fell with a rending roar
and with Harris, who, he saw for the
first time. had been pulling with him
he ran TO the next.
He saw as he ran that one of the
men, working like a fury to fell the
saplings, was Murphy. who had greet
ed his pompous "Dilnngworth" with
such grinning irony in the old days.
He had a moments vague wonder al
this odd stripe OF humanity that could
hold such prejudice, fight with Hamp
den's men in savage enmity. to joiI
their ranks later with happy irrespon
sibility at the call of gold, and wa.
still willing to turn back to fight will
him on deaths brink, because be haC
returned their taunt of East and West
One by one, in silence. in a tension
that drew the skin tight on their faces
they saw the Last remaining monarchi
fall. the kindling saplings laid OIL
earth. the trench. much narrower ant
shallower, creep upward TO the ridge
Against time. against heat tina
scorched their bare arms and torture,
their starting eyeballs. against sti
fling atmosphere that drove then
nearer and nearer to the earth 70
breath. they drew the last blade. sen
the last big pine crashing toward tn
north.
The ridge was clear in the increas
ing glow.
"Now!" cried Sanjry with the trt
umph OF a general ON a victoriou
field. now for the ridge and overt"
But even as he dropped his saw an,
ran, calling his men. Collins big voic
, came through the rolling smoke wit
, the calm of finality.
, Amt no over It's ninety-foo
drop on to hard rock beyond tina
ridge"
, Sandry stopped in his tracks. hi
! head cleared as IL with a Whit OF sal
I air by that call.
The men had closed In with the In
stinct OF their kind to be together 4
4 danger. as IL so the danger were LEI
o sened
n But the Fastener was undaunted.
"Then well take to the East Belt.