The Tabor independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1913-19??, 1919-05-22
CHAPTER /.

DlOWly Tic udIu IuHiuicu OuI VI IuC
station, gathering speed with every
moment, and leaving behind the friend.
ly faces on the platform.
The girl who had just entered the
car looked about her in dismay at the
rough looking crowd by whom she was
stretch of her journey now, put on the
plains and across the desert, and the
porter of the sleeper had refused to
let her enter the Pullman coach with
out a Pullman ticket. OF course it
would be all right when the conductor
came but-suppose. her brother-in-law
had forgotten to telegraph for the res.
ervation and she should have to spend
the night in this car?
She slipped into the only vacant seat
and sat a~nxiously awaiting the coming
of the conductor, who was not any.
where in sight.
For the most part the people about
her were rough, stolid looking men,
with hard brown faces. Here and there
a IN was huddled YEARLY into a
corner Of the seat trying to sleep.
They were commonplace folk, nearly
all of them, and their very ordinari-
ness brought her some measure of as
surance, yet she ~shuddered at the
thought of spending her night huddled
into a seat, like the other women,
with all those men about, free to gaze
on her as she slept.
She glanced across the aisle where
the seat was turned over and two men
faced each other, an old ma and a
young one. The old man sat Just
across from her, his coarse stubbly
face turned boldly toward her. He
had crafty little eyes that intruded
with their merest glance, windows out
Of which Coarseness, Hate, Cruelty
and Fear alike might look; a sensual,
loose hung mouth, and o whole repul
sive atmosphere Of cunning that made
his face seen utterly evil. Insensibly
she shrank farther away and looked
h%urriedly about to see il ~perchance
there might not after all be another
vacant seat where she could be entire
ly out Of his range. Then her eyes
suddenly met the eyes of his compan
ion who faced her, the young man in
the turned over seat, and che wo.,
dered how she could have failed to no
tice him at C There was some
thing about his face perhaps it was
the splendid gray eyes that were look
ing at her so keenly and respectfully
OF was it the firm chin and almost
stern set of the beautiful lines Of liz
and brow-that gave her confidence il
him at once For there was a strength
and beauty in his face such as one
seldom sees blended in q man, whic,
marked him at one as being different
from others. There was nothing weak
nor womanish about him in spite OF
the perfect modelling CT his features
and the clear coloring of his skin. This
fine golden brown hair that rippled
back from his forehead like a halo
gave the impression of curling out OF
p~erverseness rather than from the
owners wish.
He was tall and lean and wiry, yet
giving the idea of great strength and
fine training. II 1t had not been for
an abnormal gravity and the sternre2s
about his mouth she would have
judged him to be a mere boy, yet there
was an air Of maturity about him that
puzzled her. But his gray eyes met
hers kindly, Understandings, as if he
knew exactly what she was thinking
all her a~nx:cty-and would let her
know that she was safe, that he would
See that she was safe! 1t was with an
almost startled feeling that she met
his eyes a second time as if to be sure
she had not been mistaken, and then
settled back into her seat, somehow
comforted, assured; as If he had
spoken to her and told her not to fear.
1t was really as il something had
looked out Of their two souls and &C.
ton. And yet he had not been obtru.
sive, and almost Immediately his eyes
had been withdrawn from her face as
IL he would not intrude. He was look.
ing now at the dreadful old man, re.
buking him Cor his interest in her ii
"Ouiu SSSu, AOUuhiiB hiOSI GueCludiiy
yet without a word, for the old man
wriggled around uneasily in his seat
and turned his eyes away to look out
Of the window, the hate in his face
getting the uppermost as he cast a fur
tive, fearsome glance at the younger
nan and then turned back to the win,
dow.
They were a curious pair; the young,
err man had the air of being the keeper
Of the older one. The girl wondered
how they came to he travelling togeth.
er, they seemed SO absolutely alien to
each other. 1t was obvious that the
young man had some power over the
other, and this fact gave the girl com
fort.
To these two men the entrance OF
the lovely girl into the monotoay OF
s.