Evening star., 1926-12-10

glimpSed the dragon, now on her rect
and clinging to the opposite rail with
a tenacity that would have baked st.
George himself He went clear back
to the deckhouse this time. striking
it only moderately. however, for the
ship was rolling anew.
Something that looked like white
cloud swept into his vision. 1t was
possessed of flying feet, but the wheel
chair flew faster. Automatically Trask
opened his arms wide; he was not
crippled there. There was shock, a
gasp and the juggernaut contained an
other passenger.
"Sit tight" yelled Trask.
The goddess in white flannel had no
alternative. She sat tight, partly be-
cause she was too amazed to do other
wise, partly because the invalid on
wheels held her in grip that all her
strength could not have broken. She
had been scooped aboard as abruptly
as a flying mail train picks up
pouch.
The goddess was willowy. but she
was not ethereal. She added con.
siderably to the momentum Of the ir-
responsible runabout. There was not
only an acceleration Of speed, after
the brief check caused by her arrival
aboard. but there was an added power
hat boded adversely for those who
might fail to elude the onrush.
Trask could MO longer see what lay
ahead of him. Strands of dark and
glossy hair blew across his eyes. The
brim Of a white felt hat Seesawed
across the bridge Of his nose. The
soft exclamations Of a startled young
lady fell like music on his ears He
could not watch his course-and he
did not care!
He was unaccountably happy. If
the Gulf Stream had buck jumped at
that instant and heaved the pair Of
them out into the Atlantic, he would
have been fairly content.
Grimly he held fast to the goddess,
no longer giving heed to the chair. To
her credit as an embarrassed young
lady, If not to her wisdom, she StruS.
gled in his grip.
Let me go!'' she painted.
Don't dare!" he shouted. You're
safer here.'
Then stop it,
II can't. Her brakes are busted"
Here, too But what's the use?
Steady now: 1 think we're going to
hit something. Tuck your feet in"
Even If the goddess was panicky
she tucked her feet in.
It was well. The chair fetched an
anchor this time. where that useful
appurtenance was lashed fast to the
deck. The footboard was splintered,
but the feet of the goddess were in
tact.
She did not struggle now, and her
figure lay idly back in the arms Of the
invalid. Trask had ceased to worry
about anything. He was no longer
embarrassed by the performance Of
his sea going automobile. He was
thoroughly enjoying 1t now. The girl
with the sympathetic eyes was in his
safekeeping. 1t occurred to him that
the affair was eminently satisfactory.
He did not care whether the chair
ever stopped
AS it once more began a backsliding
career Trask observed by a sidewise
glance that there was an audience of
flattering size, gathered at a respect
full distance, like a gallery in a golf
match. 1t spread out fanwise, allow
ing him as much as the deck as pos
sible, yet unwilling to yield any dis.
tinct point of vantage.
He and the goddess aimed for the
center of 1t and picked up speed like
racing car. The gallery made way,
and they shot through a narrow lane
of spectators at a number of miles
per hour impossible to estimate. The
goddess shrieked in terror, squirmed
half about and threw her arms around
Billy Trask's neck.