Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1919-03-21

relief" Climbing in, she said: I'll
hops 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 a block of
buggies. mo use changing again !"
She acknowledged herself beaten.
lets go on. What are they stopping
for?' Dismal farce it all was!
She was pushing back her disheart-
ened curls when the beat of horses
hoofs back of them brought the blood
back into her wind-chilled cheeks.
"Rickard!" she thought. HE must
have come in a special !" The gloom
suddenly disgorged MacLean.
81 lardin! Where is he?"
"NVhat's up" yelled Blinn. "Is it
the river| MacLean's face answered
him. His ranch secured again-"God
Almi ighty!"
"The riverw screamed the women.
The men were surrounding MacLean,
whose horse was prancing as if with
the Importance of having carried a
Revere. "The leveer' called Mac
Lean. where's Hardin?" He spurred
his mare toward Hardin, who was
blacker than Napoleon at Austerlitz.
"Iou're needed. They're all need
ed The other voices broke in, the
men pressing up. This threatened
the! all. Blinn's ranch lay in the
raw 5ed sixth district. Nothing would
save him. Youngberg belonged to
water company number one; their
bitches would go. Hollister and Wit
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-blowr
road.
"Where is it now?" demanded Blinn.
"It's here right on US. You're all
needed at the levee," bawled Mac
Lean.
The levee! There was dash for
buggies. a scraping of wheels, the
whinnying of frightened horses. Some
one recalled the flashes of light they
had seen on leaving town. ''What
/, were those lights-signals?"
From the water-tower." MacLeans
voice split the wind. ''The wires are
s.n IL IL.
towns. Coronel was on the tower-he
got the signal from the Heading
been there each night for a week r'
This was a great night-for his chief
Rickard!
Gerty Hardin caught the thrill oi
his hero-worship. How splendid, how
triumphant!
Innes found herself in her brothers
buggy. His horse, under the whip
dashed forward. Suddenly he pulled
it back on its launches, narrowly
averting jam. where's Mac
Lean~
The boy rode back. who's call
ing met"
"Give me your horse" demanded
Hardin. You take my sister home
Gerty Hardins party was torn lik,
bow Of useless finery. Facing tn,
wind now, no one could talk; no on,
! wanted to talk. Each was threshin,
out his own thoughts; personal ruiz
stared them in the face. Every mai
was remembering that reckless ez
posed cut of Hardin's; pinning thei
hope to that ridiculed levee. Th
, horses broke into a reckless gallon
!, the buggies lurching wildly as the.
lodged one another. The axle
creaked and strained. The wind tor
away the hats of the women, rem
their pretty chiffon wells.
The dusty road was peopled witt
dark formless shapes. The signal
+ had spread the alarm; the deser
, world was fiocking to the gorge of tn
. New river. to the levee.
. The women we're dumped withou
, ceremony on the sidewalk, under tn
screened bird cage of the Deser
6 hotel. Shivering her pretty teet
chattering. Gerty Hardin ushere
them into the deserted hail. TIL
: Chinese cook snored away his vigil il
!. an armchair by the open fire. TIL
men had rushed away to the levee.
/. women must watt" Gerty's laug
: was hysterical. "We can do no goo
: down there" She threw herself, cor
: scious of heroineship, into the ordea
of her spOilt entertainment.
1t was always an incoherent drea1
: to Innes Hardin, that wild ride home
: ward; the lurching scraping buggie'