The Cordova daily times., 1919-09-25
131e Twin Craters
By OTILLIA F. PFEIFFER

d to Alice Leigh. but Wade Porter did not know that. Besides, he resented the idea of asking girl brought up amid wealth and luxury to risk unit ing herself to man without means, and one, too, who had not even demon strated his business abilities.
 'She likes you, Wade" his best friend Neil Wolfson, told him, "and when woman like Alice Leigh fixes her affections they are likely to prove lasting"
 'Then I will not take advantage of her confidence" answered Wade reso- lutely. T believe there is something in me worth bringing out, and when I have proven that, I am going to her like man and tell her sO."
 In a careless moment Neil imparted this information to his sister and she in turn passed it along to Alice The latter was made very happy by the in- telligence. When Wade, all uncon- scious of this, made a call upon her his hope was increased and his am- G in which Alice treated him. He made his preparations to qualify for a posi- tion in another city, when he received letter from an aunt whose husband had recently died and it's contents quite interested and excited him.
 "Your uncle always liked you" wrote the lady, "and it was his will that you should be remembered before he died, but the latter years of his life he had some serious business trOu- bles and did not attend to 1t. Just be- fore he died, however, he asked me to see to it that you were given some mining property he had traded for in Arizona. It is my duty to tell you that after looking up the property he was very much disappointed. Stil] he said that you were young, active ambitious, and that you might make something out of proposition he had grown too old to handle"
 When Wade told his friend Neil Wolfson of his acquisition the latter was fired with enthusiasm. why" declared the latter, "Pd give all have for a chance like that Gold, sill yer, adventure! The very uncertainty of the thing is fascinating" and he of fered to supply the capital to finance the Arizona exploitation.
 It was on the morning of a gloomy, threatening day that the two adven- turers halted their tired steeds at a struggling, dismal looking settlement fitly designated as Last Hope. They had traversed a barren alkaIi stretch of over hundred miles without pass ing single habitati0n. Then had come the mountains. Here at the apex was Last Hope, which was a halfway point between a number of isolated mining camps. The tavern keeper viewed the two young men with pity ing expression of face as they divulged the motive of their coming.
 '1 hope you're not expecting gold or silyer," he observed. T don't sup pose there is a foot of Twin Craters that has not been prospected and not so much as true Assure vein of gold or a specimen of horn silver discOv- cred. Some shrewd specuIators salted it once and palmed it off on a tender foot investor in the East"
 "Well, we will look 1t over, anyway" suggested Neil, which they did and camped on their possession that night, gloomy, uncOngenial duo.
 They were discussing the feasibility of a return to civilization early the next morning when an automobile came numbering towards them. It held half dozen well-dressed, intel Hgent looking men, and was followed by motOrtruck loaded with survey ing and other scientific instruments. A brisk, pleasant-faced young man ap- preached from the automobile first to arrive. He spoke courteously in greet ing and then with a keen, searching glance observed:
 Looking up the old craters, gentle mem"
 "No," replied Wade bluntly, "dis- cuSsing the surest means of getting away from them as far as possible. I l was lured out here thinking that there might be some value to the four hun dred acres of land which a relative of | mine left to me-"
 "Hello You're not the owner of | the craters, are you?" propounded the | stranger eagerly.
 Il am that unfortunate individual" acknowledged Wade, trying to smile.
 "Then you are the very person we l shall be looking for as soon as we | have made a little calculation as to | how much water those extinct craters will hold. My associates wonder are capitalists from the East. They own over two hundred thousand acres of | the most arid, but also most fertile land in Arizona, seventy-two miles away. If science and cement can make those great natural reservoirs leak proof, we can pump up water from the river, lay pipe system to