The Aberdeen weekly. [volume] (Aberdeen, Miss.) 1878-1933, 1919-04-11

Lean at the desk, waiting"
| MaeLean was not there, either!
| I'VE are all ready" she cried.
Mrs. Hatfield and Mr.. Richard cannot
come" Not for worlds would she give
in TO her desire To call the whole
grim affair off: let them think she
was disappointed, not she. Though
the world blew away, she would go.
| She found herself distributing slips
of mangled quotations. The white
| slips went to the women: the green
bits of pasteboard TO the men. She
held certain green card In her
| glove: Leads on TO fortune" Rick
ard might come dashing in ar the last
| moment, the ideal mans way; n Spe-
cial, perhaps; it did not seem credible
that he would deliberately stay away
without sending her word.
In a burst of laughter. the COM
pany discovered then that the guest
| of honor was also absent. Mrs.
Hardin hurried them out TO the walt
ing buggies.
Drearily. they drove down the fly
| ing street. The wind was ar their
| backs, but it tore at their hats. pulled
at their tempers- Their eyes were
full of street dust
a flash of light as they were leav-
ing town frightened the thick dust
clouds. what was that?" cried Gerty.
She was ready for any calamity now.
mot lightning?" Again. the queer
light flashed across the obscured sky.
Tom reused himself to grow1 that he
[ In Il IsD.
farce went on.
lines partner was young Sutcliffe,
the English Zanjero. He was in the
quicksand of comparison between
English and American women, Innes
miSchievously coaxing him into deeper
waters, when there was a blockade
OF buggies ahead of them.
The \ Il c ranch" cried InneS,
peering through the veil of dust at
the queer unreal outlines of fences
and trees. It's our first stop"
''Oh, l say, that's too bad" began
Sutcliffe. InneS was already on the
road, her skirts whipped by the wind
into clinging drapery.
Gerty's party found itself disorgan-
lied. Partners We're trying to find
or lose each other. Get in here! :"
Innes heard the voice of Estrada be-
hind her. He had Il top buggy. She
hailed a refuge
Splendid she cried. what
relief" Climbing in. she said: Il
hope this isn't upsetting Gerty's ar
rangement."
arrangement, Look at them :"
The women were fastening out of the
dust swirl into any haven that Of
fered. With little screams of dismay,
they ran like rabbits to cover.
Gerty found herself with Blinn. AT
the next stop there was block of
buggies. mo use changing again"
She acknowledged herself beaten.
Let's go on. What are they stopping
for?" Dismal farce it ali wasl
She was pushing back her disheart-
ened curls when the beat of horses
h.,ofs heck of them brought the blood
back into hef wind-chilled cheeks.
"Rickard :" she thought. He must
have come in a special - The gloom
suddenly disgorged MacLean.
Hardin Where is hep"
Whats up?" yelled Blinn. as 1t
the river?" MacLean's face answered
him. His ranch secured again-"God
Almightyi"
1.-The riveri" screamed the women.
The men were surrounding MacLean,
whose horse was prancing as if with
the Importance of having carried
Revere. THE levee," called Mac
Lean where's Hardin?" He spurred
his mare toward Hardin. who was
blacker than Napoleon at Austerlitz.
You're needed. They're all need
ed The other voices broke in, the
men pressing up. This threatened
them all. Blinn's ranch lay in the
ravaged sixth district. Nothing would
save him. Youngberg belonged to
water company number one; their
bitches would go. HOLSTER and Will
son of the Palo Verde saw ruin ahead
of them. Each man was visualizing
the mad onward sweep of that de-
stroying power. Like ghosts. the
women huddled in the dust-bIowr
road.
where is it now?" demanded Blinn /
Its here, right on us. You're all /
needed at the levee." bawled Mac I
Lean.
The levee! There was a dash for
buggies, scraping of wheels, the +.
whinnying of frightened horses. Some +!
one recalled the flashes of light they
had seen on leaving town. wv hat +
were those lights-signalsT
From the water-tower" MacLeans /
voice split the wind. The wires are /
all down between the Crossing and the /
towns Coronel was on the tower-he /
got the signal from the Heading-he's |
been there each night for q week !" /
This was a great night-for his chief, |
Richard
Gerty Hardin caught the thrill of |
his hero-worship. How splendid, how |
triumphant
Innes found herself in her brothers |
buggy. His hor7e. under the whip, |
dashed forward Suddenly he pulled |
1t back on its launches, narrowly /
averting jam. where's Mac |
Learn
The boy rode back. Who's call |
ing me?'
'Give me your horse" demanded /