Mrs. Grundy. (Tracy City, Tenn.) 1903-1930, 1921-09-22

| ciareu, ana II ndQ OSCn uohC ~ 80,
purpose of saving Dale's life. Ban
had been In the act of playing cow
ardly trick; he had killed man ID
North Carolina by just such q trick
and he had boosted of it.
| The attorney for the state mace
rejoinder that almost favored the de-
PENDANT. Then the court charged the
jury. and the twelve good men retired.
The jury was out not more than
twenty minutes, but to Elizabeth Lit
tleford 1t was an age of torture.
The twelve men filed slowly In and
faced the Judge. who turned austere
eyes upon them and asked:
Gentlemen of the jury, have you
reached a verdict"
They had. Elizabeth Littlefords
head swan as she bent forward to
catch the foreman's words
.Not guilty"
! A wild shout rose from the leathery
throat of the happy By Heck. The
Morelands and the Littlefords cheered
until they were hoarse Sheriff Tom
Flowers had difficulty in quoting the
tumult. Bill Dale shook hands until
his shoulders ached. The Balls and
their relatives, bitter with resentment
and hatred, stole out, were given their
rifles, and went toward the big hills
with the eye Of the militia hard upon
them.
| Then the Morelands and the Little
fords and the Hecks, with Dale and
his mining man Hayes, came out, and
| they, too, started for the big hills.
Dale had hired horse and side
saddle for Ben LittlefOrd's daughter,
and the two rode In each others COM
pany on the journey home. When they
were well into the mountains, Dale
drew his horse over close to that of
his companion.
"As soon as can build and furnish
-" he began, when Elizabeth inter-
rupted:
"We're ridin' too fast We're too
much ahead o. the others. One o then,
Balls might try to pick you off with
his rifle gum"
mot much danger of that" Dale re-
piled. 1.-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, BabeT'
She faced him sadly. He saw In
her hazel eyes the same queer light
of tragedy that he had seen there q
day or two before; and now, as then,
he wondered what it could mean.
"Tell me, Babe "
} 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
EMMY 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 q
wrist.
| is it Jimmy Fayne?" he demanded
holly.
| She gave him a 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 linn
now. The great wave of anger hat
passed.
| Il guess you are too good for me,
he said. There was Weakness in hi.
voice, and 1t was the first weakness.
she had ever known In him.
"Will you always think Of me a,
the finest and most beautiful woman
Il in the world?" she asked.
"a always"
"lt's the best can hope for" muir
INJURED Elizabeth.
ID what do you meanf"
r IT'S the best can hope for" Eliza
ID beth repeated as though she were talk
te ing to herself.
They rode on in silence.
j.