The Jasper news. [volume] (Jasper, Missouri) 1898-1924, 1917-05-31
CHAPTER xxx.
Gambling With Death.

Beyond giving his horse a safe head
way from the shelter, De Spain made
little effort to guide her.
Encouraging the Lady with kind
words, and caressing her in her CROP
Ing efforts as she turned head and tail
from the binding sheets of snow ana
Ice, De Spain let her drift, hoping she
might bring them through, what he
confessed in his heart to be, the mar
rowest Of chances.
He bent low In his saddle under the
unendlng blasts. lie buffeted his legs
and arms to fight off the fatal cold. He
slipped more than once from his seat,
and with a hand on the pommel
tramped beside the horse to revive his
failing circulation, there would come
time, he realized, when he could no
longer climb up again, but he stnved
that issue off to the last possible mo-
ment of endurance, because the Lady
made better time when he was on her.
back.
One by one every thought, rs If con-
gealed in their brain cells, deserted his
mind-save the thought that he must
not freeze to death. More than once
he had hoped the insensate fury of the
blizzard might abate. The Lady hnd
long since ceased to try to face 1t
like stripped vessel before hurrl-
cane, she was drifting under 1t. De
Spain realized that his helpless legs
would not carry him farther. His
hands, freezing to the pommel, no
longer supported him. They finally
slipped from it and he fell PROSTATE In
the snow beside his horse. When he
would cry out to her his frozen lips
could humble no words. 1t was the
fight no longer of man against nn-
ture, but only of an indomitable soul
against cruel, hateful death. He
struggled to his feet only to fall again
more heavily. He pulled himself up
this time by the stirrup strap, got his
hands and arms up to the pommel, and
clung to 1t for few PAGES more. But
he fell at last, and could no longer rise
from the ground. The storm swept un-
ceasingly on. I.
The Lady, checked by the lines
wrapped on his arm, stopped. De
Spain lay a moment, then backed her
up step, pulled her head down by
the bride, clasped his wooden arms
around her neck, spoke to her, and,
lifting her head, the mare dragged him
to his feet. Clumsily and helplessly
he loosened the tugs and the whlffie.
| hi ,,-tfI, T.
otic effort, hooked the middle point
of the whifIletree into the elbow of his
left arm, brought the forearm and
hand against his shoulder, and with
the hitching strap lashed his forearm
and upper arm tightly together around
the whifletree.
He drew the tugs stlflly over the
Lady's back, unloosed the cinches OF
the saddle, pushed ii off the horse and
sinking into the snow behind her
struck with his free arm at her feet
Relieved of the saddle, the Lady once
more started dragging slowly behind
her through the snow n still breathing
human being. Less than an hour be
fore 1t had been man. 1t was hardly
more now, as the Lady plodded on
than an insensate log. But not even
death could part it again from the
horse to which De Spain, alive, had
fastened IT.
The fearful pain from the tortured
arm, torn at times almost from Its
socket, the gradual swapping of strain
ing ligaments, the constant rupture OF
capillares and veins sustained his
consciousness for a while. Then the
torturing pain abated, the rough drag
ging shattered the bruised body less
1t was us If the Lady and the. storm
together were making easier for tn,
slowly dying man his last trail across
the desert. He still struggled to keel
alive, by sheer will power, fllckerinl
sparks of consciousness, and to do 81
concentrated every thought on Nan.
was poignant happiness to summon
her picture to his fainting senses; h,
knew he should hold to- life as lonj
as he could think of her. Love
stronger than death, welled In hi
heart. The bitter cold and the merci
less wind were kinder as he called he
image from out of the storm. Sh
seemed to speak-to lift him on he
arms. Ahead, distant mountains rose
white-peaked. The sun shone. H.
rode with her through green fields, ant
great peace rested on his wear,
senses.
Lady Jane, pushing on and on, en-
lightened by that Instinct before whicl
| A. ,aocon of man 10 yvaak and pitiPul