Cleveland County herald., 1919-10-02
CHAPTER VI.


 The appearance of Miss Lucy Nor gan the next day, as she sat in Georges fast cutter proved so charm ing that her escort was stricken to soft words instantly and failed to con- trol poetic impulse. You look like" he said. "Your face looks like-it looks like a snowflake on a lump of coal I mean a-a snowflake that would be a rose-leaf too p
 Perhaps you'd better look at the reins," she returned. "We almost up- set just then"
 George declined to heed this advice. Because there's too much pink in your cheeks for a snowflake" he con tinued. What's that fairy story about snow-white and rose-red-"
 Were going pretty fast, MT. Nina ferl"
 'Well, you see, I'm only here for two weeks"
 "I mean the sleighl" she explained. We're not the only people on the street, you know"
 "Oh, they'll keep out of the way"
 That's very patrician charioteeer- ing, but it seems to me horse like this needs guidance. Pm sure he's going almost twenty miles an hour."
 That's nothing" said George; but he consented to look forward again. He can trot under three minutes, all right" He laughed. T suppose your father thinks he can build a horseless carriage to go that fast!"
 ''They go that fast already, some times."
 "Yes," said George; "they do-for about hundred feet! Then they give a yell and burn up."
 Evidently she decided not to defend her fathers faith in horseless car riages, for she laughed and said noth- ing. The cold air was polka-dotted with snowflakes, and trembled to the loud, continuous jingling of sleigh bells. Boys and girls, all aglow and panting jets of vapor, darted at the passing sleighs to ride on the runners or sought to rope their sleds to any vehicle whatever, but the fleetest no more than just touched the flying cut ter, though a hundred soggy mittens grasped for it, then reeled and whirled till sometimes the wearers of those daring mittens plunged flat in the snow and lay a-sprawl, refecting.
 But there came panting and chug ging up that fiat thoroughfare a thing which some day was to spoil all their sleightime merriment-save for the ,o oShect ond most dicohndiapt It xyoS vaguely like topless surrey, but cum brous with unwholesome excrescenceS' fore and aft, while underneath were | spinning leather belts and something | that whirred and howled and seemed | to stagger. The ride-stealers made no | attempt to fasten their sleds to a con- | trivance so nonsensical and yet so | fearsome. Instead they gave over their | sport and concentrated all their ener- gies in their lungs, so that up and | down the street the one cry shrilled | increasingly: "Git hoss! Git hoss | Git hoss Mister, why don't you git | hoss?" But the mahout in charge, | sitting solitary on the front seat, was | unconcerned-he laughed, and now |
 
 losing any of his good-nature. It was | MT. Eugene Morgan who exhibited so | cheerful a countenance between the | forward visor of a deer-stalker cap | and the collar of a fuzzy gray ulster. | "Git a hoss!" the children shrieked, | and gruffer voices joined them. "Git | hossi Git hoss Git hossi"
 George Minafer was correct thus | far; the twelve miles an hour of such | a machine would never overtake | Georges trotter The cutter was all | ready seurrying between the stone pill | lars at the entrance to Anderson ad- | dition.
 That's my grandfather's," said | George, holding toward the Anderson mansion.
 T ought to know that !" Lucy ex- claimed. We stayed there late enough | last night: papa and I were almost the last to go. He and your mother and Miss Fanny Minafer got the mu- sicians to play another waltz when | everybody else had gone downstairs | and the fiddles were being put away | in their cases. Papa danced part of | it with Miss Minafer and the rest with | your mother. Miss Minafer's your aunt, isn't she?"
 "Yes; she lives with us. That's our house just beyond grandfather's," He waved sealskin gauntlet to indicate