The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1922-09-21
THE CROSS-CuT

! Red-faced, she pushed him away
and slapped his cheek plnyfully; II
was like the tap Of light breeze
against granite. Then Harry turned.
Ave you looked nt the miner"
| The question brought back to Fair
child the happenings Of the morning
| and the memory of the man who had
! trailed him. lie told his story. while
Mother Howard listened her arms
| crossed. her head bobblng. and while
Harry, his big grin stlll on his lips.
took in the details with avldity. Then
the grin faded.
les go up there" he said quietly.
This time the trip to Kentucky
| gulch was made by skirting the town;
soon they were on the rough. narrow
roadway leading into the mountains.
| A long time they walked, at last To
| stop In the shelter Of the rocks where
| Fairchild had shadowed his pursuer.
and to glance carefully ahead. No
one was in sight. Harry jabbed out
a big finger.
"That's it, he announced, straight
n'endw
They went on Falrchild Nith grip.
| ping AT his throat that would not
down. This had been the hope Of his
| father-nnd here his father had met
what? lie swervcd quickly and
stopped facing the bigger man.
Harry" came sharply, 81 know
that ] may be violating an unspoken
promise TO my father. But ! simply
can't stand II any longer. What hap
pened here? There was some sort Of
| tragedy"
Harry chucklcd in concealment.
FalrchIid thought, Of something he
! did not want to tell him.
81 should think so The tlmbers
gave way and the mine caved lnm
"Not that NJ father ran away
from This town. You and Mother
| Howard helped him. You didn't come
back. Neither did my father Even.
tually II killed him"
"So| Harry looked seriously and
studiously at the young man. AZ
/ didn't write me of'en."
"lle didn't need To write you. You
were here with him--when It hap
pencd."
NO" Harry shook his head 81
was in town. What's Mother Howard
told you?"
"a lot--and nothing"
81 don't know any more than she
does"
"But--"
Friends didn't ask questions IN
those days" came quietly 81 might
ave guessed II I'd wanted to-but |
didn't want. to-"
'1}ut II you had?"
Harry looked at him with quiet, blue
eyes.
"What would you guessY"
Slowly Robert Fairchid's gaze went
to the ground There was only one
possible conjecture: Sissie Larsen had
been impersonated by woman. Sis
sic Larsen had never been seen again
in Ohudl.
Il would hate to put II into
words" came finally. Harry slapped
him on the shoulder.
"rhen don't. II was nearly thirty
years ago. Let sleeping dogs lie Take
look around before we go into the
| tunnel"
They reconnoltercd, first on one
| side then on the other. No one was in
sight. Harry bent 10 the ground, and
! finding ptchy pine knot, lighted Il.
They started cautiously within, blink.
ing against the darkness
The outlines OF n rusty hoist" with
its cable leading down into n slanting
hole in the rock, showed dlmly before
thcm-a massive. chunky. deserted
! thing In the shadows. The timhers
We're rotting one after another. they
had cracked and caved beneath the
weight of the earth above giving the
tunnel an eerie aspect, uninvIting,
dangerous Harry peered ahead
at ain't as bad as II looks" came
after moments survey. ITS only
right ere AZ the beginning that it's
cavcd, But 'hat doesn't do us much
| good"
! why notT" FairCbild was staring
| with him, on toward the darkness Of
| the farther reCessss. "If II isn't caved
in farther back, we Sught to be able
to repair this spot"
But Harry shook his head.
"We didn't go into the vein ERE"
he explained. I'VE figured we 'ad to
ave a shaft anyway, sooner or later
You can't do under'and stopping in
mine-go down on vein, you know.
You've always got TO 20 up-you can't
| get the metal out IL you don't. That's
why we dug this shaft-and now look
| at Itw
lie drew the fllckerlng torch TO the
edge of the shaft and held It there,
| staring downward, Fairchild beside
him. Twenty feet below there came
the glistening reelection Of the farlng
| flame. Water Falrchid glanced
toward his partner.
81 don't know anything about IT," he
said at last. but should think that
would mean trouble"
"Plenty" agreed Harry lugubrlous-
ly. THAT shafts two 'unnerd feet
| deep and there's a drift running off II