Omaha daily bee., 1921-08-21
THE CYCLONE

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hand on it at the thought.
He looked at the tiny bedroom
IFS walls covered with the cheapest OF
paper-a trailing vine pattern, with
pink and blue flowers. Somehow that
had seemed to belong to. Edna. The
bedsteead and the dresser were OF
the tiniest-they had given up the
wedding at home to pay for that
suite"
It'll look scrumptious when she
gets her little gim-cracks around" he
told himself with smile. As he
moved toward the door he spoke out
loud:
Its convenient and comfortable"
he glanced around once more.
"and she'll make it beautiful! And
it's all paid for-tllere amt any
mortgage, or debt, thank God!
e His thanksgiving was so devout
that he took off his cap and paused,
somber light in. the steady eyes. .
! ,"She shan'ts never work herself to
death the way mother did" he was
; thinking. sits been 1llard-all-fred
/ Hdi loi potii VI US. WditlilSt oO loiS
five years! But I'm glad | stuck
it out Now we are beginning right,
anyway" At this moment he was
surer than ever of that
The fiXity of the frozen plains was
in the sturdy form and strongly
blocked face of the man, as he logged
ever the half-thawed road. Yet his
thoughts were lcaping forward tu-
multuously. Tomorrow. Edna would
step from the train to his arms! To-
morrow, Edna would be his wife
Tomorrow. she would come to the
house he had built for her In this
hour, the past-that had been so long
and painfully prepared-or hindereu
the way for tomorrow. counted for
nothing. Tomorrow, for the first
time, he would begin to live. 81. '
1t was 3 o'clock the next afternoon
before Lon and his bride lett the
Prewitts and started home, her
trunk, sewing machine and big box
in the wagon behind the seat. AS
the scattering houses OF the village
were left behind, Lon put his arm
about Edna and searched her eyes.
AT lastr' His voice shook with
the marvel of it, "Oh, Edna!' ,
Eyes. We are on the way home,
at last" she whispered, her eye-lid;
dropping, to hide tears OF joy and Of
| sadness. H-eA. at ~.
In this moment, the elimination of
so many postponements, of such
scathing delays, they had not many
words to say. They rode on in ST.
lence, while hocks of silver-fiecked
clouds sent shadows chasing across
the wide naked prairie. To the west
ward, black drift hung on the hori-
zon. Once Lon remarked that it
looked like rain.
IF it waits till we get home, we'll
not care--let it rain" Edna's laugh
rippled with new happiness as he
laughed with her. Suddenly she lifted
her head from his shoulder to glance
about and cry, "Why Lon, I Gdn't
know there was a railroad near
herep
"There isn't" Then he, too,
caught the roar and runbling of
mighty train. He turned quickly.
From the west dense, black cloud
was sweeping toward them with the
speed and the scream of a demon
train.
Eyes, it's cyclone" he answered
Edna's gasping word, while he used
both hands to hold his plunging
team. He turned again toward the
hurting mass whose ravening breath
was already brushing their faces.
Get out and lie fat on the ground"
he directed. Before she could obey,
the cloud veered and roared away to
the northeast.
ITS gone over" his voice was
wavery. .....
as it gone toward home?' she
questioned anxiously.
"In that direction" he admitted.
But vagrant twister! like that never
does any harm. It'll.hit the ground
somewhere, or peter out in thin air"
Lon drove more rapidly after this.
He pointed out the Prossers' house
as thty passed. dim light within.
Il must go and see Molly soon,"
Edna said. 81 feel as if I knew her
already-andsthe baby, too"
| AT last the team swung into a
swifter trot of their own accord. 1--WE
are almost there" Baxter spoke
tensely. He had felt all the time
that he should not be sure this was
I his own Edna-the woman of his
hopes and desire-until she had
crossed the threshold of their home,
until he had heard her first words of
understanding and appreciation.
Edna, looking ahead eagerly
through yelling twilight, made out
the bulk of the barn. Then Lon
drew up the horses 50 sharply that
she was almost pitched out of her
seat. Dropping the reins. with an in
articulate sound that made her heart
stop beating, he leaped from the
wagon and ran on ahead. After a
confused, frightened moment, she
climbed down and ran after him. She
stumbled over board: her feet
tripptd on scattered brick.
She stopped beside her husband,
before jumbled heap, above which
Il wavering, broken column was
silhouetted against the sky.
"Oh, Lon,' she breathed, the
house-where is it,"
"Therep He thrust out clenched
fist. There! The cyclone-the cy-
| cfone-the hnf1se Is ronei Orr home