Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1920-07-16
THE WHITE CANOE
BY DORA NOLAN.


on the banks of the beautiful Sc
gatchie river, has heard The tradition
of the white canoe.
Now the tradition runs thai Snow.
bird, an Indian maiden was murdered
close by the shores Of The river In
the moonlight. then SCI Hdrift In her
own canoe. long before HE eve of "A
white man first fell ON tie Sr.atchie.
Ever since her ghost has appeared
from time 70 ti'u", to mortal eyes
so goes the legend Md always has
The coming foretod Ike sudden and
violent departure Of un0hnr soul.
Cecil Horton was dye when she
spent her first summer On the Sc.
gatchie; she had passed her twentieth
birthday when the events here re-
corded took place
1t was the tenth of September. The
Horizons were TO return to She city
on the fifteenth. Cecil was planning
dance for the evening of the twelfth.
! the last of a series in the Horton boat
house. Dick Harvey sat beside her on
| the penthouse steps
Evidently the girls thoughts were
not bearing fruit for she turned to
| her companion. "Oh Dick" she
pleaded. "do try and think up some.
| thing unique for the feature of my
! last Understanding exciting; some
thing thrillingr
Dick seized hopefully upon his
opportunity You might announce
| our engagement" But the hopeful
ness died a-bOrning as he glimpsed
the quick frown above his compan-
! ions eyes and he continued. in tragic
moroseness. "Or we might stage n
murder; I'd be glad to help YOU out
In that"
II have it. Dick!" she CALCULATED
"the white canoe"
Followed nearly an hour of eypIa-
nations, pleadings and overriding of
Dicks objections by Cecil, and finally
reluctant consent from Dick. But
he made it conditional. "Now. re-
member he stipulated. mot single
dance with that PerrOne crook while
I'm away pulling the fadeaway Indian
| maiden stuff"
"Of course, Dick; l promise But
| you've no business to speak of him
that way just because you don't know
every bit of his past history Why do
you?"
"Shifty eyes" was Dicks laconic re-
ioinder.
| nj Of ho
all too soon for Dick at least, came
eleven O'Clock, the time agreed upon
for him to absent himself and take
up the spectacular role of "Snowbird"
The full moon carried out Its part
of the program. At half after eleven
Cecil. pleading fatigue seated herself
by the broad river-front doorway, pre-
pared to jump up at any instant and
announce to the guests, with becoming
dramatic effect, that the Indian maiden
was abroad in her canoe.
But she waited fruitlessly. The
minutes passed; no white canoe
appeared. Midnight, and yet nothing
stirred on the broad bosom of the
Segatchie. Disappointed, little angry,
Cecil yielded at last to the pleading
OF the fascinating Perrone and danced
three times In succession with him.
Dick Harvey did not appear again
that night and next morning, when he
came over to the Horton place. he gave
most unsatisfactory answers to CeciTs
peremptory questions Also he wore
an inscrutable, self-satisfied expression
that enraged the young lady. She
let him know 1t. Yet Dick went off
whistling. Which affected Miss Hor-
ton so extremely little that at mid
night she was still awake.
Suddenly. as her distracted gaze
turned to the farther shore. a shiver
ran through Cecil's frame. From out
the shadows of the forested bank
giided a tenuous, filmy something that
while she strained her eyes in awe.
took clearly, individually, as II crossed
the pathway Of the moon, the form OF
white canoe. silently padded by a
girlish figure In white, crowned by
snowy feathers.
Cecil started from her seat. She
would call some member of the sleep
ing household to witness this awesome
sight.
Then from the balcony roof out
side. close by her, came whisper. II
was Dick Harvey's voice.
There's burglar inside, Cecil. The
officers have gone in Keep still, don't
move. If he opens your door can
see him from here In this light
| Sh-sh-sh."
Slowly, without sound, the door
opened. dark figure wns vaguely
! outlined on the threshold. Even In
the semi-darkness II looked strengely
familiar to Cecil. From the window
Dick Haryey's slacatto baritone
snapped: That's fur enough, YOU
stand still I"
There was CLINT of steel as the in
| truder flung hack. Hold up your
| hands and keep"
In the open window a shot dashed
and roared. BY the door there was