Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1917-07-06

they could ard took the chance-a
chance that more nearly than any that
had gone before, cost them their
lives.
The nutterings above the noun
tains now grew rapidly louder, and
willis the two lowered over the fire,
a thunder squall. rolling wildly down
the eastern slope, burst owe, the gap.
Nan knew even better thai her COM
panion the tickle nature of range
storm. and understood uncomfortably
well how a sudden shift mi Sht, at any
moment, lay their entire path open to
its fierceneSs She warned De Spain
they must be moving aUd, freshened
by the brief rest, they set out toward
FL Captain.
They had covered more than half
the distance that separated them from
the cliff, when a second thunderstorm
seeming to rush in from the desert
burst above their heads. DrenChet
with rain, they were forced to draw
back under a projecting rock. In an
other moment the two storms, meet
ing in the gap, rushed together AS il
an unseen hand had touched a thou.
sand granite springs above the gap,
every slender crevice spOuted
stream that shot foaming out from
the mountainsides. The sound of NOV.
ing waters rose in a duh, vast roar,
broken by the unseen boom Of distant
falls, launching huge masses of water
into caYerns far below. The storm
laden wind tore and swirled among
the crowded peaks, ana above all the
angry Sky moaned and quivered in the
rage of the elements.
1t was only the lulls between the
sharp squalls that enabled them to
cover the trail before daylight. When
! they paused before El Captain the
fury of the night seemed largely TO
have exhausted itself, but the over
charged air hung above the noun
tains, trembling and mounting like
bruised and stricken thing. Light
ming playing across the inky heavens
blazed in constant sheets from end
to end of the horizon. Under it all
the two refugees. high on the noun.
tainside. looked down on the flooding
gap.
Their flight was almost ended Only
the sheer cliff ahead blocked their
descent to the aspen grove. Hardly
moment passed after they had
started until the eastern sky lightencd
before the retreating storm, and with
the first glimmer of daylight the two
were at the beginning Of the narrow
foothold which lay for half a mile be
tween them and safety.
The face Of El Captain presents,
midway, sharp convex. Just where
| it is thrown forward in this keen
angle, TIE trail runs out almost to Il
knife-edge, and the mountain is SC
nearly vertical that it appears TO
overlang the floor Of the valley.
They made half the stretch of this
angle with hardly a misstep, but the
advance for part of the way was
a climb, and De Spain, turning once
to speak to Nan, asked her for her
rifle, that he might carry 1t with his
own. What their story might have
been had she given It to him, none
can tell But Man. holding back, re-
fused TO let him relieve her. The
dreaded angle which had haunted de
Spain all night was safely turned on
hands and knees, and. as they round
ed it toward the east, clouds scudding
over the open desert broke and shot
the light of dawn against the beetling
arete.
De Spain turned in some relief to
point to the coming day. AS he did
so a gust of wind, sweeping against
the sheer wall, tipped him sldewise,
and he threw himself on his knees to
avoid the dizzy edge. His rifle, which
lay under his hand on the rock,
slipped from reach. In the next in.
slant he heard II bouncing from sock
to rock, five hunured feet below.
Greatly annoyed and Inundated. he
regained his feet and spoke with
laugh 20 reassure Nan. Just as she
answered not to worry, q little sing
ing scream struck their ears; some
thing splashed suddenly close at hand
against the rock wall: chips scattered
between them. From below, the
sound Of a rifle report cracked against
the face Of the cliff. They were SO
startled, so completely amazed, that
they stood motionless.
De Spain looked down and over the
uneven floor Of the gap. The ranch
houses, spread like toys In the long
perspective, lay peacefully revealed In
the gray Of the morning. lie could
discover no sign of life around any of
the houses. But in another moment
the little singing scream came again,
the blow of the heavy slug against the
splintering rock was repeated, the dis
tant report Of the rifle followed.
"Under fire" muttered De Spain.
He looked at Nan. WED better keep
moving" he said. Come whoever is
shooting can follow us hundred
yards either way" In front Of De