The Benson signal., 1917-10-20


had gone before, cost them their
lives.
The mutterings above the noun
tains now grew rapidly louder, and
while the two lowered over the fire,
a thunder squall, rolling wildly down
the eastern slope, burst over the gap.
Nan knew even better than her COM
panion the tickle nature Of a range
storm, and understood uncomfortably
we'll how a sudden shift night, at any
moment, lay their entire path open to
it's ferceness. She warned De Spaic
they must be moving, and, freshened
by the brief rest, they set out toward
Ell 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. Drenched
with rain, they were forced to draw
back under projecting rock. In an
other moment the two storms, meet
ing in the gap, rushed together. AS If
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 dull, vast roar;
broken by the unseen boom of distant
falls, launching huge masses of water
into caverns far below. The storm
laden wind tore and swirled among
the crowded peaks, and 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 Ell Captain the
fury of the night seemed largely to
have exhausted itself, but the over
charged air hung above the noun
tains, trembling and moaning like a
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 lightened
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 mile be-
tween them and safety.
The face Of Ell Captain presents,
midway, sharp convex. Just where
it is thrown forward in this keen
angle, the trail runs out almost to
knife-edge, and the mountain is so
nearly vertical that it appears to
overhang the floor of the valley.
They made half the stretch of this
angle with hardly a misstep, but the
advance for a part of the way was
climb, and De Spain, turning once
to speak to Nan, asked her for her
rifle, that he might carry it with his
own. What their story might have
been had she given it to him, none
can tell. But Nan, 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 sidewise,
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
stant he heard it bouncing from rock
to rock, five hundred feet below.
Greatly annoyed and humiliated, he
regained his feet and spoke with
laugh to reassure Nan. Just as she
answered not to worry, 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. He 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 a hundred
yards either way" In front Of De
Spain fourth bullet struck the rock.
NNop bo ,,o,,ttorod DIVA Oot Won iDfO