The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-07-21
EoeningS Story
A Romance of Mud.

Unions heart sank as he realized the
imperative fact. Cicely's mind was
set on going to the golf tournament by
the road that ran past Banksbush,
where abode her dearest enemies
and he knew actually by yesterdays
experience that the road was unfit for
any civilized tires to press. Storm
waters had channeled it deeply, rip
ping up the surfacing and laying barc
big powders left carelessly in the bed.
Further the bitches were quagnnires,
crawling in stretches with sticky mud,
in other stretches utterly stagnant and
flooding the road surface, If surface it
could be called. Yet when he had
tried to tell Cicely all about 1t she
had shifted. and said, looking straight
ahead: I've heard you say often a
real chauffeur could go wherever he
had mind, unless it were up a brick
wall"
The brick wall might be safer. exc
easier, Linton had thought, but had
not dared to say Affairs betwixt him
and his sweetheart were in a hair,
trigger state. He had a hated rival
two of them indeed, also the rivals
were ahead of him in the good graces
of Mrs. Gray, Cicely's widowed moth
er. AS an offset, both were so near to
poverty their leve-making had al
ways been careful. not to say thrifty.
Nobody could say they had made he
roic efforts to 'Iove where money
was"
Cicely had gcads of it-worse luck
Tor DETERMINATIONS he was
we'll nigh as rich as she. 1t was hard
work living down his fortune-he did
not despise money in the least-but
oh, how he hated what its possession
wrought in half those he encountered.
Supple fawnings, flattery absolutely
barefaced or pseudo-roughness mask
ing as independence were hard to en-
0Irl. He got all fhnCn thinerz
men of sorts; but enduring them was
less irrftant than the knowledge that
men and women he-would have cared
to make friends with passed by on the
other side, in fear of being ranked
with the fawners.
Cicely ignored her money, any
hody's money, in a way that ap-
preached high art. 1t was indeed al
most her greatest charm. Further,
she chose her friends as Mrs. Pfim-
rose did her wedding gown. for quail
ties that would wear well. Witness
the McGraine twins and their blind
father-real gentlefolk with barely
enough to live on. But in choosing
enemies she was reckless-otherwise
she would not have been so high and
naughty with the Bankses each and
several, who at first eager to know
her, now missed no chance of serving
her i'll. They had come near to 'sepa-
rating her from Linton. With two
daughters out and two others crowd
ing their elders, the Bankses pater
ana mater, felt it the part of social
duty to let no rich man escape.
Sophie, eldest of the flock, had been
specially aimed at Linton. She might
possibly have hit the mark had she
been less obviously thrown at his
head. Lulu, younger and, less
turning the trick. Linton, sore and
angry with Mamma Gray, jealous in
evitably of the brilliant paupers for
ever. in Cicely's train, had reused to
his danger barely in time to escape
the toils---and then only at the price
of winteriEg in Egypt. =
Hence he understood and, after a
sort, sympathized with Cieely's deter
minationA to- fIaunt him in Banks
faces, roads to. the contrary notwith-
standing. The price of the car didn't
matter-it was the vehicle itself. He
had had it built to order. putting in
several features specially designed for
Cicely's pleasure, also for setting off
her charms. He had been days pic
turing their arrival at the country
club. mAll their world would be there
for the final golf fixtures. He wanted
to roll>up, spotless, noiseless. sitting
high and serene as god from Olym-
pus, with Cicely beside him at her
aueenliest best. To get there drab-
bled, limping, maybe too late for
everything, would be a blow, but
nothing compared to the risk. Sup
pose there should be danger-any-
thing might happen win the road sur
face wholly unknown! Suppose they
stuck past moving and had to wade
out thru mud midleg deep! Suppose
also skidding, NblowoutS-aD the worst
in the auto calendar of harms? But
Banksbush, so he headed into it, his
teeth set, his heart pumping like a
trip hammer.
Roads, exc women are full of guile
This special road had nothing worse
than mudflal1es all thru the first mile
A quarter more and Banksbush would
be past. Linton breathed freer, not
withstanding he knew the worst was
to come. A hundred yards further on
the washouts had barred many sharp
boulders, to get past which he must
dare the clay ooze spread by a choked
ditch. One ditch bank was mushy,
the other reasonably firm. It might
here the need was not caution but
power. So he braced himself firmly,
muttered, Hold hard!" to Cicely and
set his beauty car straight at it. To
his amazemeHt the vehicle shot thru
the earthly welter as tho mud were
beneath consideration. He would cer-
tainly have made it but for the dog.
ahead of them barking furiouslys stuck
fast-was half buried in sheeted mud
thrown off by the wheels that stopped
dead. two inches from its duivering
body.
Lulu upon the lawn saw everything
and began crying, wrfnging hands.
saying: "Brutei oh, you brutei'' Sophie
ran down from the piazza between the
two brilliant paupers, all talking at
once, and berating the heartless mo-
torist.
S why, it's Mr.. Linton. And Cicely
with him." Sophie cried honiedly, pre-
tending to recognize the luelxless pair
What can we do to help, Send for
an airplane. That looks to be the only
way of getting you out"
"Thank you for nothing" Linton
shouted back as he climbed from the
car. sank almost thigh deep in the
ooze, seized the terriers head, held it
up. and tried to unearth the body.
Cicely called to her sometime wooers.
stWhy don't you come help? You
won't drown heing taller than aoor-