Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1917-02-15

land, miles in the heavy timber, she
had dismounted, there where the high
est loop in the road commanded its
breath taking sweep Of country, and
was sitting cross legged upon the trunk
of fallen tree at the road edge.
Then suddenly Stephen O'Mara in
the flesh appeared before her astride
Ragtime and leading her roam, which,
contentedly cropping the bush tops,
had disappeared a full quarter of an
bour before.
The girl gasped at the suddenness
| Of his coming. She half started to rise
| before Sic remembered the instability
Of her perch and then crouched even
lower than before when she saw that
he was not yet aware of her nearness.
She waited, eyes gleefully bright, until
he was almost opposite her before she
coughed, ever so family. Then she
tilted her nose aloft in enchanting
mimicry of his lean and forward thrust
| face.
eve never speak," she confided dole
fully to the empty air in front Of her
He whirled So swiftly that it took
her breath he was out of the saddle
and across the road and standing knee
deep in the underground beside her
Only his profile had been visible to her
at first Now the white line of his
| jaw and the light in the eyes that
| searched hc- face chilled her even as
they sent the blood singing in every
vein. Only few hours before she
had seen that same cold fear in Miriam
BurrelPs eyes, and yet not the same
either, for hers had been a panic OF
| lost hope, and the CLEAN in the mans
eyes was already only partly dread Of
| disaster and partly great and unmiS-
! taxable glow Of thankfulness. Bar
bara remembered then, with a twinge
| of guilt that she could have forgotten
it so completely, the black Nbed figure
that had gone laundering off On the
same mount which Stephen O'Mara
was riding now She half lifted both
hands to him apprenhensively.
"You aren't going to tell me, are
YOU" she asked, that anything dread
Dumbly, but most reassuringly, Steve
shook his head. From the top of her
hatless, wind tossed, brown crowned
| head to the tips Of the absurdly small
boots tucked up beneath her he scan
ned her slim body. Barbara realized
| that he was trying to speak and find
ing the effort hard. Slowly he remov
ed his hat and passed one hand across
his forehead.
Man." he calculated fcrvidly to him
| self "but that's the longest hundred
yards you've ever Travelled on foot Or
a-hOrseback." and abruptly, accusing
ly to her, do you know that I've been
months and years and a@es rounding
that bend toto find you a little crum
pied up heap in the rOad?"
I'm sorry" she murnured humbly
I'm sorry to-disappoint you: but, you
see, | didn't know
She laughed ct him. Her lips curled
petal-like, in a gurgling peal Of enjoy
ment at his shamefaced grin.
81 found your horse rolling,a he eX-
planned and his gravity was logged in
the face of her brightness. How
! knew it was yours | don't know, but
I did Just the same I thought she had
thrown you. I'd already MADE up my
mind, if there was one scratch on your
body, to take that mares head between
my hands and break her neck. You
see, I believed l knew already just
what it would mean to me if anything
ever happened to you. But it's a lot
different imagining the world without
you-and-and facing the actual posi-
| bility Of it. Was fairly tragic?"