Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1921-10-21
:, he began, when Elizabeth inter

much ahead O. the others. One O. them
Balls might try to pick you off with
his rife gum
mot much danger of that, Dale re-
piled. '"The Balls have already been
warned about sniping; your father told
them that their very name would be
secured off the earth If there was any
sniping. Besides, By Heck is acting
as advance guard somewhere. ahead OF
u.s.
He continued, "As soon as can
build and furnish little house out
near the mine, / want you to marry
me. Babe. Will your
Elizabeth Littleford seemed not to
have heard.
"Will you, Babe?'
She faced him sadly. He saw in
her hazel eyes the same queer light
of tragedy that he had seen there a
day or two before; and now, as then,
he wondered what it could mean.
''Ten me, Baber
Her head fell forward The sunlight
found glints of gold in her thick chest
nut-brown hair. She was silent for a
moment; then her voice came duly:
"Td better not marry you, Bill Dale"
Dale sat up straight and rigid in
his saddle and stared hard at her sol
emnly beautiful profile. He could
hardly believe that he had heard cor
rectly. He knew she loved him. She
had told him that she loved him. Then
why wouldn't she marry him? He
tried to reason it out, and the attempt
made his brain ache; he was unable
to reason. He knew only that she was
all of the future to him, all of the
world to him, and-that she had re-
fused to marry him.
When they were within two miles
Of home, Dale went suddenly white
and caught her almost rudely by a
wrist
rs it Jimmy Fayne? he demanded
holly.
She gave him reproachful glance
and said nothing. He flung her hand
from him angrily.
Dale did not speak again until they
had entered the broad valley that was
home to him. Somehow he felt limp
now. The great wave Of anger had
passed.
II guess you are too good for me, =
he said There was weakness in his
voice, and it was the first weakness
she had ever known in him.
"Will you always think of me as
the finest and most beautiful woman
in the world?" she asked.
always"
'.It's the best / can hope for MUIR
INJURED Elizabeth.
"What do you mean?"
'sIt's the best l can hope for" Eliza
beth repeated as though she were talk
| ing to herself.
They rode on in silence.
.
There was no sleep for Bill Dale that
night. The sweetness Of his liberty
had all been taken away by Babe Lit
| tleford's refusal to marry him. He
became bitter toward her again. She
had been exceedingly unfair to him
while she really loved him, she was
going to marry Jimmy Fayne because
| he had so much money. She was I'M
| grateful to him: it was through him
| that she was being educated, being
| lifted out of her uncOuth and Hitter
ate self end set on higher social and
! intellectual plane. All he had ever
heard Of the so-called unfathomable
mystery of womankind he now be-
lieved, and more. All this, of course,
was unworthy. But Bill Dale was in
| tensely human. and to be human is
to be unworthy.
It turned cold that night. A little
before noon of the next day, By Heck
stepped into the Moreland Coal com
pany's Office.
Dale looked YEARLY up from his lit
tered desk.
II am very much obliged to you for
shooting Adam Ball, By"
"It's hi, Bill, amt it?"
| ''What?"
Heck leaned over and rested his
| knotty hands on the muzZle of the in
evitable rifle.
whatever it is you're agrievin'
| about, o. course. Babe Littleford she
went back to yore home town this
mornin'. Bill. Sort o. quare, thought
| at you never went with her over to
the switch. Sort o. quare, too, AT
she never rid over on the little ingyne
instid O. waikiki. But mebbe she was
afeard O. gittin' her fine city clo'es all
snutted up. Say, Bill, old boy,
wisht | may drap dead in my tracks
eff you don't look like id corpst,
igod. It hat to be HI, or you
wouldn't grieve about it. 'Smatter!
| Babe?"
Dale rose and glared at BY Heck.
"I'm going to have the truth, BY;
now get that. Did you, or did you not,
kill Adam Ball to save me?"
By Heck realized that he would have
to be very cunning if he evaded the
question now. Bill Dale, his god,
would not be put off longer.
SO By Heck answered: 81 wisht !
may drap dead this minute and turn
into a cross-eyed mink with a green
tail and pink eyes; wisht the devil
may take me and spend ten thousand
etarnities a-sticking' red-hot, pepper
coated pitchforks in me and not let
me have any tobacker; | wisht may