Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-06-06
DAILY NOVELETTE,
THE CALL OF THE
MOUNTAINS
BY Mary w. Ford
0NIOW this is peculiar" thought
~ Gladys Dorman. "Ihave travelled

"N1OW TINS is peculiar, tnoughI
~ Gladys Dorman. "I have travelled
over this very. trail year after year,
and now am at loss as to how to
proceed from here, And she pulled her
can closer over her ears, as the winds
were bowling and it was cold. 'Well,
here goes; 1 am going to follow this
trail; it surely should bring me back
to the hotel before sunset" she thought
inwardly.
Jack Dorman and his daughter had
been coming up to the mountains for
some years now, and it was trip that
they both looked forward to very much.
After hiking for some hours a heavy
mountain fog set in, and the entire
mountainside was enveloped in dark
and threatening cloud. 1t was useless
for one to proceed until it passed over,
and, as a rule, it would last but few
minutes. But today it heightened into
an hour.
Sitting on a huge rock, Gladys sat
there looking at the heavy mist, Won
dering when the clouG would leave this
side of the mountain, when suddenly out
of the mist voice spoke.
Hello. what have here?" exclaimed
the invisible some one, which sounded
very much like a masculine voice to
Gladys. "Well, I declare--it is
boot" and a hearty laugh could be
beard near Gladys, but the fog was so
dense she could not see who it was.
Then some one gave Gladys's boot a
vigorous pull, and for a moment she
thought she was going to slide off the
rock.
"Thundcr and Mars" exclaimed the
masculine voice again. IT'S girl 3
boot | was pulling at" and again that
hearty laugh rang out, echoing down
the mountainside. At that moment the
cloud disappeared and the sun was
struggling to come out from behind
another cloud, and finally succeeded.
Then Gladys looked down and almost
at her feet was a young man looking
up at her in an amused sort of way.
which at the time provoked her, and
still he continued staring, smile play
ing around his lips, but not word
could he utter.
''Please don't stare at me in that
fashion-you look as though you were
hungry bear and wanted to eat me, +"
and Gladys smiled in spite of herself
at was surely amusing" she thought,
and at that moment she made move
ment as though she was about to rise,
when the young man jumped up almost
instantly and exclaimed, "Oh, | say,
please don't co. in pleading voice.
And l do want to apologize" and
again he smiled pleasantly, but a ques-
tioning look was in his eyes and his one
thought was, would she stay-if only
for few minutes"
"Well, Mr.. Man, seeing that you
have recovered your voice and that you
are not going to eat me UP after all,
I'll stay for few minutes then as
though n second thought presented it
self, ''I'm almost starving for some
thing to eat-what say you?"
"Say, I'm $50 hungry, little girl,
could almost eat you right now," he
cried eagerly.
Every well then, it's high time for
me to be going when you want to eat
me up-but / simply have to eat and
that's all there is to it, so please don t
eat me up yet" she smiled.
Gladys spread hearty lunch on the
rock. and while munching away at the
delicious sandwiches that she herself
had prepared. they talked and laughed
, between mouthfuls, and soon she learned
from him that he too like herself visited
the mountains every year. and that he
, was Fred Anderson, former we'll
known coach at MOuntford, and very
good friend of her fathers. 1t seemed
strange to them both that they had never
met, but it was due to the fact that
they both were away at school during
. the fall. and Immediately when vacation
time set in they both left the city She
also learned that he had just been dis
! charged from the service.
When they arrived at the hotel Mr.
Anderson's eyes nearly stuck out of hi,
, head with surprise-"Well Of all things
] Ted, when did you get back"
"Got discharged about two month,
ago, and then beat it for the noun
tains." and at the same time they botl
shook hands heartily.
r Ted was stopping at mountain hu
some distance away, but he decided tha
a it was very necessary that he shoult
q stay at the same hotel as the Ander
i, sons, and needless to say that Glady
n and he developed a strong friendship
Il which later ripencd into love.
At sunset one evening shortly befor
it was time to return to the city, the