The Washington herald., 1919-11-19

groes were all dead or dying. n
seemed very stranEe-of q pieo<
with the general unreality OF things
and Il troubled him not little.
At last he gained the top OF ths
bank and managed TO assume an
upright position. clinging to the
bole of q palm tree. One Of his
arms was useless. he discovered.
and he realized with q curious
bleeding. too. from more than one
wound. but he could walk. after o
fashion.
He was inclined to stay and hnish
the fight. but he recollected that
Rosa would be waiting for him and
that he must go TO her. and 20 he
set out across the nelds. stagger-
ing through the charred cane stub
Bile. The night was not 30 black
as Il had been. and this puzzled
him until he saw that the planta-
tion house was ablaze. Flames were
belching from its windows. casting
abroad q lurid radiance; and re-
membering Pancho cueto. Esteban
laughed.
BY and, by. after he was wei
away. his numbness passed and he
began to suffer excruciating pain
The pain had been there all the
time, SO IL seemed; he was simply
gaining the capacity 20 feel Il. He
was ready TO die now. he was 90 ill:l
moreover. his left arm dangled ana
got In his way. Only that subcon-
scious realization OF the necessity to
keep going for Rosa's sake sustain-
ed him.
After q while he found himself on
forest trail; then he came 70 9th
er fields apd lsbored across them.
Fortune finally led his feet down
into a creek-bed. and he drank
greedily. sitting upon q stone ana
scooping the water up IN his one
useful hand. He was q long time
in ouenching his thirst. and a lonE-'
er time In getting up. but he fnallyi
managed this, and he succeeded
thereafter in keeping on his reef.
Daylight came at last TO show him,
his way. More than once he paused,
alarmed, at voices In the woods,
only to hnd that the sounds issued
from his own throat
It had grown very hot now. % hot
that heat-waves obscured his vis-
ion and caused the most absurd
forms TO take shape. He bagan 10,
hunt aimlessly for water. but there
was none. Evidently this heat had
parched the land. dried up the
streams. and set the stones afire. 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 altogeth-
er unfamiliar; he could not recall
! ever having seen the path he trod.
but for that matter everything was
strange. In the first place he knew
that he was going west. and yet the
morning sun persisted in beating
hotly into his face! That alone con-
WINGED him that things had gone
awry with the world. He could re-
member a great convulsion OF some
sort but just what II was he had
no clear idea! Evidently. though. it
had been SUFFICIENT to change the
rotation OF the earth. Yes that was
it: the earth was running backward
upon its axis; he could actually feel
it whirling under his feet No won
der his journey seemed 80 long. He
was laboring over q gigantic tread
mill. balancing like an equilibrist
upon a revolving sphere. Well, IL
was a simple matter TO stop walk
ing, sit down. and allow himself 20
be spun backward around to the
place where Rosa was waiting. He
pondered this idea for some time.
until its absurdity became apparent.
Und doubtedly he must be going out
OF his head: he saw that IL was
necessary to keep walking until the
back-spin Of that treadmill brought
1Rosa to him.
But the time came when he could
walk no farther. He tried repeat
edly and failed. and meanwhile the
earth spun even more rapidly,
threatening 10 whirl him OF into
space. 1t was q terrible sensation;
he lay down and hugged the ground,
clinging to roots and sobbing weak
ly. 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 to creep for
} ward because his grip was failing.
He could feel his fingers slipping
slipping. 1t was agony. He sum-
moned his last atom OF determination.
/ but to no avail. He gave UP finally
!, and felt himself propelled dtzzily
, outward into immeasurable voids-
His last thought, as he went wnirI-
: ling end over end through space, was
/ Of his sister. She would never know
; how hard he had tried to reach her.
4