Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-04-29
THARON OF LOST VALLEY
Z BY TINGIE E. ROE
Author Of "The Maid Of the Whispering Hs" "The Heart
of Night Wind" etc.
.,,o,,r,o,t, 1850, bv Dodd. Mead q ooJ
THIS STARTS THE STORY

e5 Lost ~, gasps household. Jim
coMry,,a y for MS skal .totth guns
- has controlled the valley Jor
.,cays Buck Corrtroy seeks 70 nsnre nsp
him. De5sotdla,So &c al,,,o.t u ntslsss S rsder. I'm
So,.ynsn yn"en shot from behind. Botore
hos ,ro,res he 0ives Tharon her last
~ s.,on IN shooting and homds 20 me.
Ks belt Of pistols ,,s,seseg sns seg"S and vo,os
to ,0gbu b,ot the her to e." A rude cross
,na,ts nsast Tm's bprtaI place, Iwo
.se % says, looking TO, to.0Gran botn o"''"''
cross, "juII pay for 70" oo'"'
AVN HERE 1T CONTINUES
x-,rTr snort like a pistol shot Ei
w Raw f,uns up his great head ieaped
,..o tbe air and was gone Around the
~ ~ the adobe house he went. out
a.s the trampled yard, and away
along the open to the soutn, runn,,s mn
80, and free. With the first sink-ano-
80, Tbaron had slipped back run
m. Now she wound her fingers In
go" sr,,te cloud of name that, failed her
w and edged UP inch by inch. When
,,,saa were we'll UP on the huge
"s.,,ders that worked beneath them
",arfu,ly. she gathered the reins, one
.,cb hand, leaned down along the
.,s,retched neck and let the great king
swn The wind sang by her ears In a
Using whine. the green prairie was
sowins sea beneath her, the thunder OF
,,o nounding hoofs was stupendous
.,,.,c Tharon shut her eyes and rode.
.nd for the first time since Jim Lasts
aao,h a sense Of Joy rose in her like
tide
On. had ridden Ell Rey before. many
.,-res She had felt him sail beneath
hnr down the open prairies and always
a. was 10. as II the earth slid by, as II
a.. note of the wind lifted minute by
minute She had wondered often ABOUT
this-how long It would continue TO
.,.s with FL Rey's rising speed. how
,S ,onr before he would reach maximum
shnye which he could not CO.. place
where the singing note would remain
fixed. ,,,,., u.,, .hat
noInt Always he could go faster. AL
ways he had reserves.
Ear out ahead she saw a bunch Of
cattle feeding. They were lazily cir
eiing In q wide arc content under the
beaming sun. Near them sat rider on
Golden. This Golden was one OF the
nrides of Lasts Holding. Bigger than
rrumfire or Redbuck, he ranked next
10 El Rey himself in speed. for his slim
legs, slapped smartly with the dls-
tinsulshing finger marks on the outside
Of the knee. we're long and ,shapely, his
hack short-coupled and strong, his
withers low, his narrow hips high.
Tharon bore hard on El Reys bit. Lean
ed her body to the left, and they swung
in toward Bent and Golden in a beauti-
fu sweeping curve that brought the
cowboy up in his stirrups with his hat
a.wave above him.
Good girl" he yelled with leaping
Good girl! Go to It"
Thar5n loosed a hand long enough to
wave back and was gone. on down the
sloping land toward the country OF the
Black Coulee, her dark skirts futtering
al her knees. the two heavy guns
pounding her thighs at every jump.
II was long time before FL Rey
came down from his sweeping flight.
He had been too long held In
madness. He ran with joy and the
surety of unbounded power.
The rider, left far behind, watched
them anxlously for time thought of
following glanced at his cattle. re-
membered the ginman's heritage and
turned to his business.
The sun was well down over the
western Rockface when Tharon and Bl
Rey came back to Lasts Holding The
riders were bringing In tie cattle, dust
masses From the ranch house came
the snyory smells of cooking.
The stallion was timber as a willow.
He tossed his handsome head and his
eyes were bright as stars set In his
silver face. Life was at high tide in
him, flowing magnifloently.
Tharon, her cheeks whipped into
pulsng. color by the wind and bounding
speed, her tawny name loosed from its
bands and flying In a cloud behind her.
smoothed back from hor face. looked
Wild as an Indian. As she drew up and
sat watching the work of the evening.
she smiled for the first time in many
days. and Jack Masters, passing. felt
mis- heart leap with gladness
When the mistress of Lasts was sad,
10 were her people.
When the last big corral gate had
swung to and the boys turned In to
unsaddle, she touched FL Rey with a
toe and went over among them.
,r Line up the horses, boys" she said,
VI want to see them all together once
more. Somethin' came back in me to-
Gay ,cayIsomethin' l been missing for a
long time. I'll be myself again.
Billy, turned Redbuck to face her,
cropped his rein. Curly rode. up on
uesa matches Bent brought Golden
ana stood him alongside. From far at
Iord and Jack. who came wondering
me me former on Sweetheart, true sister of
~ Rey, almost as big, almost as fast,
almost as beautiful.
Sllver-blue roan silver-pointed, slim.
grhoeful, Springy, she had not a single
aark spot on her except the sharp black
knees
You darlin'" said Tharon as she
wheeled in line.
Then emma IaoIy an Nuo.t,,,I,d opA
" was another buckskin, paler than
noiuen, most marvelously pointed In
Hure chestnut brown. His finger marks
We're brown instead Of black-the only
Eorse at the Holding so distinguished,
lor no matter of what shade or color.
N all the others these peculiar marks
were Were Jet black. Five, splendid crea-
sn sures tney stood and pounded the ring
AZ ~ earth tossed their heads and watt
d., tnough they had all been far that
NaS and It was feeding time.
out IN the horse corrals there were
hmany more of their breed slim, wiry
ho,es' toughened and hardened by long
nOurs and daily work. but these were
'"g Eon nower OF Lasts, the priced favorites.
wa,O sor long time Tharon sat and
%%sitcned them. noting their perfect con-
GiSloh, their glistening skins. their shin
a aug hoofs, many of which were striped
a"ooILher characteristic.
-ha. don't believe" she said at last,
vtnat there's bunch of horses in Lost
va valley TO come nigh 'em. Ironwoods
anything else--rd back tn Finger
"a, 80 would we," said Conford quiet
rur hoGgh we've seen tn Ironwoods
run ,s,, little"
=, That's tn word, Burt" said Curly
p,,W. VINO OF us has ever seen 'Courtrey let
dSt run like he wanted to? Not a
SSarned one. I've, seen that big bay
Sis SSsVi pull till tn blood dripped from