Lincoln County times. (Jerome, Idaho) 1911-1919, 1918-12-05

anything quite like this and he thought
he must be wounded. 1t greatly sur
prised him to find that he could strug-
gle upward through the brambles, even
though 1t was hard work. Men were
fighting all around and below him,
meanwhile, and he wondered vaguely
what made them kill one another when
he and his negroes were all dead or
dying. 1t seemed very strange-of a
things-and 1t troubled him not a lit
tie. One Of his arms was useless, he
discovered, and he realized with curl
Gus shock that 1t was broken. He was
bleeding, too. from more than one
wound. but he could walk, after a
fashion.
He was inclined to stay and finish
the fight, but he recollected that Rosa
would be waiting for him and that he
must 20 to her, and so he set out
across the fields, staggering through
the charred cane stubble. The night
was not so black as 1t had been, and
this puzzled him until he saw that the
plantation house was ablaze. Flames
We're belching from its windows. cast
Ing abroad lurid radiance; and re-
membering Pancho Cueto, Esteban
laughed.
BY and by, after he was well away.
his numbness passed and he began to
suffer excruclating pain. The pain had
been there all the time. so IL seemed;
he was simply gaining the capacity TO
feel It, he was ready to die now. he
was so i'll; moreover. his left arm
dangled and got In his way. Only that
subconscious realization OF the neces-
slty to keep going for Rosa's sake sus-
tanned him.
Daylight came at last to show him
his way. More than once he paused.
alarmed, at voices In the woods, only
to find that the sounds issued from his
own throat.
1t had grown very hot now, so hot
that heat-waves obscured his vision
and caused the most absurd forms to
take shape. He began to hunt aimless-
ly for water, but there was none. Evl.
tShtiJ lAAo meat hlQ PditutQ Tic iuiQf
dried up the streams. and set the
stones atire. 1t was incredible, but
true.
Esteban reasoned that he must be
near home by this time. for he had
been travelling for days-for years. The
country, indeed. was altogether unfa-
miliar; he could not recall ever having
seen the path he trod. but for that mat
ter everything was strange. In the
first place he kneV that he was going
west, and yet the morning sun persisted
In beating hotly into his face That
alone convinced him that things had
gone awry with the world. He could
remember a great convulsion of some
sort, but just what 1t was he had no
clear idea Evidently, though, 1t had
been sufficient to change the rotation
Of the earth. Yes, that was II; the
earth was running backward upon It's
axis; he could actually feel 1t whlrling
under his feet. No wonder his Journey
seemed so long. He was laboring over
gigantic treadmill. balancing like an
equilibrist upon a revolving sphere.
Well. 1t was simple matter to stop
walking, sit down, and allow himself
to be spun backward around to the
place where Rosa was waiting. He
pondered THE Idea for some time. I'M
I'll Its absurLty became apparent. I'm
doubtedly he must be going out OF his
head; he saw that 1t was necessary TO
keep walking until the back-spIn of
that treadmill brought Rosa to him.
But the time came when he could
walk no farther. He tried repeatedly
and failed, and meanwhile the earth
spun even more rapidly, threatening to
whirl him of into space. 1t was a ter
rible sensation he lay down and
Rugged the ground, cIInging to roots
and sobbing weakly. Rosa, he knew.
was just around the next bend In the
trail he called to her. but she did not
answer, and he dared not attempt 10
creep forward because his grip was
FALLING ~ could feel his fingers Clip
ptng-siirning. Ills last thought. as he
went whlrling end over end through
space, was OF his sister. She would
never know how hard he had tried to
reach her.
ITO De Continued