The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1924-02-29

mess had got to be cleared up some
how, cow. before it grew any worse.
THAT'S the way we feel about each
other, all right; there's no getting
away from that. Have from the first
/ guess But II isn't the only way
not with m. anyhow It's nobody's
fault this happened. Just bad luck
And there's no harm. done. yet Its
string W, can't play out. You
don't want to make a fool OF your
husband, and neither do l. And ! dc
want to be friends with you-the 9TH
er way. l want you for friend, for
Beatrice. AND this would spoil all
that. We can't have it both ways
And we can't go halfway and stop
It's got to be all or nothing-with us
I'm not saying it's easy" His voice
rose and his grip on the wheel tight
ened. "It's a HI of thing-the way
ait-jumps on you, out Of the pushes.
But it's not the only thing In the
world"
She turned upon him, now, and the
movement brought his eyes round to
her for the first time since he'd begun
speaking. She was still trembling,
and her eyes were bright. but with
furious anger. "oh. you're-unspeak-
ablel" she cried.
For telling the TRUTH"
"The truth !" Rage mace her al
most voiceless. Il wouldn't have
listened as long as / did if I'd under
stood what you meant. The beastly
thing you meant"
1--WE meant the same thing, for a
minute or two" he told her, bluntly.
at shocked you to realize 1t. Well,
it shocked me, too-though you may
not believe it. And I thought the only
way for us to get back on the other
basis-as friends"
Frantically, she snatched the word
away from him. Friends? With
you? After the-beastly things you've
done-and said"
Its the saying that's the crime" he
commented, grimly. what we did
wouldn't have mattered. to you.
guess, if we'd pretended 1t was moth
ing Aren't you any realer than
thatY'
IF you speak to me again." she de
clared, wildly, "Tll get out of the car.
I'll wade in the mud till l find some
body who'll come back and" She
shrank away from him, leaving the
threat to be guessed at, buried her
face in her hands, and began crying
like child.
He clenched the wheel again, fight
ing down the impulse to take her
up in hts arms again. He knew what
would happen if he did. She'd strug-
gle for a minute, and then go soft
again-and they'd be back where they
were before. The old Adam in him
was grinning at him for fool to have
taken her so seriously. Even a pru-
Dental consideration whispered that
she'd be less dangerous-less trouble
some, anyhow; she couldn't be danger
ous-so dealt with, than as now. But
he sat still, and the wave passed,
leaving him cool, unmoved, as If the
storm had never been.
Outside, the storm was, he finally
decided, thinning. He looked cautious
ly round at Violet. She'd about
stopped crying, too, though her lace
was still buried in her hands. eff you'll
let me out" he said, "I'll see what can
be done about getting started again.
She stepped down into the road
When he came back, twenty minutes
later, with some boards he'd found,
she was at first nowhere to be seen.
but presently he made her out by the
faint daylight that was returning as
the sky cleared, up on the bank lit
tie distance away. looking down the
road. He gave no sign of having seen
her, but when he went to work jacking
up the wheels and sliding the boards
under them she came down and asked
him, composedly enough, If he needed
her help. She remained nearby, just
the same, when he told her he did not,
and even volunteered a remark about
the weather. She suggested taking
the curtains off before they started on
again, and something peremptory in
her voice when she said it was all that
slanted il any way toward what had
happened between them. She took
her place beside him with no appear
ance of hesitation.
They had wild mile or two slither-
ing over those inclined planes of clay
which made what was supposed to be
road. Repeatedly they began sliding
toward one of the bitches or the other,