The Coconino sun., 1927-11-25

Then, all at once, we heard a sharp
metallic click, and in another instant
| a hard, rasping sound, and we knew
| that our sprocket chain had parted.
An automobile always gets discour-
aged and quits when the sprocket
chain parts.
Three hours later the chain was
mended. 1t was now nearly IL O'Clock
at night We were out on the open
plain. The night was bitter cold, and
| the wind blew right up under our coat
tails. Doyle reckoned there was a
bunch of cedars about four miles
ahead where we could find shelter. We
could see dark fringe away off in
the dim horizon. The kerosene oil in
our side lamps was exhausted, and
| they shed pale, sickly light only a
more, with two of us walking ahead
to discover the way, we pulled into a
| bunch Of cedars which Doyle had
! two huge campfires, and after a
hearty supper of vain regrets and
some delicious thoughts of home we
laid down to sleep. AT least that was
what we intended to do. What we did
was to shiver for half an hour or so
and then get up and pile more wood
on the fire, and smoke.
At daylight, we were up and ready
for breakfast. For breakfast we
each had look at the automobile and
smoke. Not one of us said any
thing about being hungry or even
| thirsty. There was a little dirty ice
in the bottom of the tank and we
melted some of it, but it didn't taste
good so soon after breakfast, so we
took another smoke and let it go at
that.
The inspection Of the automobile
revealed the fact that there was just
a little gasoline left in the tanks and
little water in the boiler. Doyle
reckoned it was about eighteen miles
to Pete Berry's.
We started the fire under the boil
ers and finally got up little steam.
Chauffeur Lippincott worried the auto
along for about two miles and the rest
Of US walked Finally, at the end Of
two miles we were obliged to aban
don the machine.
We were again in a great pine for
est. We had no trail to follow, but
depended on Doyle. He reckoned he
could get US there. We had discarded
every bit of clothing that weighed
anything worth considering, and were
plodding along, saying very little.
Eighteen miles isn't such long walk
But we were hungry and thirsty and
weak from lack Of sleep and other
things.
At noon we sighted SINNERS cabin.
1t is an old log cabin, with a legend
attached to it that man by the name
of Skinner built it, years ago. Skin
ner must have been crazy. There isn't
any more call for cabin there than
there is for a department store. On
the cabin was sign which set forth
that it was 3-8 miles to the Grand
Canyon. The man who put up that
sign ought to have been killed with a
dull hatchet. Two members Of the
party, Chauffeur Lippincott and
Journalist Chapman, were petered out.
They could go no further. Doyle and
myself agreed to make the remaining
distance to Berry's and send out a
relief expedition. Earlier in the day
Lippincott had stated positively that
he would give $5 for drink of water.
BY degrees he had raised the amount
until it now stood at $500. Chapman
had offered $50 for ham sandwich,
with no takers, and Doyle reckoned
he'd be willing to give more than that
for a good steak, if he had it.
Doyle's stomach wasn't acting right.
1t probably thought his throat had
been cut, or something of that sort.
The two of us had covered scarcely
half a mile when he collapsed utterly,
and gave I'D the struggle.
Now it was after / o'clock and
was hungry; also thirsty; also tired
oh, so tired! / lay down on little
pile of nice soft Jumps of lava to rest
for just minute, and fell asleep. |
dreamed that | was at home at the
dinner table. There was a big fat
turkey before me, with dressing and
cranberry sauce. 1t was terribly real
istic. | was just going to feed my
self with very generous piece of
white meat when Doyle awoke me.
| left him there by the lava rocks,
wrestling with his stomach, and went
on alone. The way was still through
the great forest. The silence was OPP
pressive. | could hear the murmur
of distant voices now and then and
the ripping of brook far away. OF
course there was not any voices or any
brook. There wasn't anything but
trees and the blue sky.
Once l heard bear coming behind
me. / hated to be bothered with bears
at that time, but I resolved to sell my
life as dearly as possible, and decided
to wait until he was real close to me
and then take my jack-knife in my
hand, thrust it quickly into the bears
, mouth and cut his throat from the in
side Luckily for me, however, it
turned out not to be. bear at all;
simply pine cone dropping from
tree.
After / had gone about eight miles
/ happened to think of that sign on
SINNERS cabin, "six and three
eighths miles to the Grand Canyon"
What the deuce did the man want to
be exact for. If he was going to lie
about it, why didn't he lie in round
numbers, at least? If he had said
"six miles to the Grand Canyon, or
"about six miles to the Grand Can
yon," l might have felt differently to-
ward him, but for him to be so con-
foundedly exact about it, when he
knew that it wasn't an inch less than
twelve miles, with the chances bet