Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1924-02-01

In the
White Water
By AUSTIN FLEET
ny LIH

|$+%%%%%%%%*%%%% %%%%%%%%|
20. 1924. Western Newspaper Union)
THE end was come. Andy went
= down under hail of blows from
the fists Of his opponent Red Multi
gan. 1t was tough on Andy. Every
one sympathlzed with the boy, but he
had no right to challenge Red, even
If Red had said that about the girl.
1t wasn't as IL Andy and Mllly were
regularly engaged to be married.
Red swung a mighty fist and Andy
took the count. He was carried to his
bunk. Red turned away with a sheer
No one sympathlzed with Red, the
bully of the camp.
you shore put up good fight
Andy" said his friend Jake Knowles.
Don't take 1t SO hard, Andy"
faint that. It's what he said
about him and her It's a lie. I'll
tell him so again."
"Shore it's lie Andy All Of us
knows that. No need to tell him."
But Andy brooded over 1t all that
night. He knew Red had been lying,
but the lie was poison in him. He
knew Milly was as good as any girl
on earth, and that when Red perse-
cuted her she had threatened to go
to the manager. That put an end to
Red, who, in his jealousy of Andy,
spat out the words at him.
OF course 1t was lie, but somehow
Andy felt that that lie had become Il
living Shiny. crawling thing that had
to be killed. Somehow he must make
Red take back that lie.
The gang was riding the logs next
day, marshallng them into the dam.
The river was in spate, the boom had
broken once that season, and If the
flood continued there would be immi-
nent danger Of repetition Of the catas-
trophe. Every hour a fresh accumu-
latlon of Ice was jammed up against
1t. The logs must be started, taking
advantage of the Hood.
The men skipped from log to log
with their heavy caulked shoes. There
was murder in Andy's heart as he
watched Red moving about One
thrust of his peayy, and Red would be
swept down to his death in those ley
waters.
Suddenly shouts were raised: "My
God, she's going Git ashore, boys
Git ashore !"
Next instant, with roar like a
thunderclap, the boom had parted.
The wedged logs were on the verge
Of "A breakup. The men ran for the
shore. Andy saw Red In front Of him
stumble-the next instant the bully
had gone headlong into the ice-laden
stream.
He disappeared under the logs amid
shouts of horror from, the bank. Andy
was the only other man on the logs
He hesltated perhaps fraction of u
second, then dlved
Down into the Icy water, roaring and
boiling round the logs, down TIL he
found Red, and grasped him by the
hair. Red was no swimmer. He
clutched at Andy convulslvely in the
way drowning man will, and Andy
felt them both being swept along by
the raging current.
And then began furious struggle
for life. With one hand grasping Red,
whose arms were round Andy in u
stranglehold, drawing him down, Andy
fought Upward toward daylight. He
reached It, drew In a chestful of air
and saw the raging waves sweeping
the logs about as II they were straws
and the Ice foes grinding and churn-
Ing up the river surface. One blow
and he would go down with Red, to
be swept down TO the cataract below.
Near him he saw that part of the
dam that had not brOken--a proJec-
ton Of piles extending from the shore.
He was nearing II fast, but he would
be swept through the opening over the
cataract. And with last effort he
flung himself and Red toward II.
He missed 1t Missed But shouts
attracted him. Men on The bank were
filnging noOsed rope. Just as he was
being swept past the dam he man
aged to get one arm through. A strug-
gle, dozen men hauling on the bank
against the current--and Red and
Andy were in still water and being
drawn ashore. And Andy tainted.
He recovered to find himself In his
blankets In the bunk house. And that
form, smiling at his sde-was that
Red MuIllgan?
He turned away In WEAKNESS. He
had remembered the lie. He had for
poffau that ba had naariy Olyan hia
life for Red.
sandy" Red sniyeled. that thing
told you about Mllly-that was a lie.
Reckon | was Off my head with jeal.
ousy."
Andy put out his hand, and he and
La. "a