New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1918-04-30
News For 1hedfer80erS and Women Readers

(By Adele Carlson

wood on the side Of the road and Sc
GREETED myself in order to watch the
horseman in the distance than the
absurdity of my behavior over
Whelmed me The bizarre happen
ings in which I had become involved
since my entrance under Iillian'S
leadership into the service evidently
had SO wrought upon my nerves as
to make me suspect an enemy in
every pedestrian, equestrian or mo-
torist whose path CHANGED to pass
mine.
TIL be hiding from my own shad-
ow next, Pete" I Whispered to the
bull terrier with me, and his lips
curled back from his teeth in the
hideous grin which only his breed
can give.
That's right, Pete, laugh at me;
I deserve it," J answered whmsically,
and then, getting up from my crouch
ing position and shaking my skirts,
I added:
Como along. old fellow, We'll
strike out through these woods and
never bother our heads about our
fellow Travellers
He gave one of his short. crisp
banks and then ran on a little way
ahead of me, investigating several
matters that interested him. But he
always looked around him from time
to time to be sure that I was within
| sight. Poor old William hadn't eX-
aggerated the fidelity of the animal.
Pete evidently meant to make thor
ough job of the task of looking after
me.
We had gone but little way into
the woods when I heard the rapid
galloping of a horse along the road
which we had left. Evidently the
horseman had conquered his mounts
curvetings and was making up for
lost time. I smiled again at my own
timorous actions of a moment before.
How amused the unknown horseman
would be could he know the alarm
he had caused in one feminine heart!
Plans to Perplex.
But the smile faded from my lips
a moment later when the sound Of
the galloping feet ceased. For l
realized that the cessation of the
sound wasn't the gradual dying away
of the galloping in the distance, but
sudden stop, as if the rider had
refined his mount suddenly.
My unreasoning fears returned.
Why should the man have stopped
his horse within a few feet of the
place where Pete and l had entered
the wood? The many plausible ex-
plantations of his actions [ put aside.
I was obsessed with the idea that the
man was pursuing me.
For horrid, nerve-racking mo-
ment l debated whether I should
boldly return to the road and face
the man--if he were indeed coming
;Y,fc he aft II n ba1
T should hurry along the path I had
already entered as far as I could,
hoping to elude him because of the
many vines and clumps of trees anT
wild berry bushes.
1t didn't take me many seconds to
decide to go ahead instead of back. [
knew the paths through this piece Of
woods perfectly, knew that but q lit
tie way ahead OF mo lay the brook
which I loved SO well, and already a
plan had leaped into my brain for
misleading the man pursuing me.
Seeing But Unseen.
For my bizarre fears had been JUS !
titled; the horseman was. pursuing me |
or at least he had turned into the |
wood at almost the same place | had !
entered. | could hear the steps Of his !;
horse, and / Judged although I had |
no good reason for the Inference, that |
he'd dismounted and was leading his |
horse.
The sounds made a wild thing of |
me- With a whispered admonition to |
Pete to make no noise, [ fairly flew |
along the path to the brookSide, |
Pete's almost noiseless footsteps pat |
tering after. The brook, shallow |
enough in most places, was at this !
particular spot too deep to wade !
across unless I wished to go UP to my !
armpits in the water. But [ knew |
that only a little way down the !
stream there was narrow and shall |
low channel, and that opposite it the
underbrush was very dense.
With frantic trembling fingers I |
tore off my shoes and stockings, gath
cred my skirts around me, and
stepped into the water. | waded down
the brook close to the bank until | |
came to the shallow water, Pete, evil
IDENTITY mystified but game, following
after me through the water.
Crossing the shallow water, |
plunged frantically into the thicket
and, sinking down into a fragrant
hollow in it's center, dried my feet
replaced my shoes and stockings and
waited with long, SnuddeflnS, panic
stricken breaths which [ couldn't con-
troll for whatever was to come.
The man and the horse came down
the path I had followed and stopped
at the brookside where I'd first en-
tered the water. There, of course,
all trace of my footsteps was lost, and
the man, evidently nonplussed, stood
entirely motionless for a long mo-
ment.
To nv relief he didn't attempt to
cross the brook. But he turned down
the side of it and walked slowly along