Smyrna times., 1931-01-28
Callie's Quick Wit
Saved His Dad
DROF. AARON WILTSHIRE wor,
By CHARLES SLOAN REID

with the aid of his glasses, else he
would not have scaled the rail fence
that inclosed the small meadow
where Bumgarner's shorthorn bull
had his exclusive range. There
were not more than four acres in
the little pasture; and the professor
might have gone around the fence
with little loss of time, and with
considerably more safety. But he
had chosen to cut across the
meadow toward the BuZZard-Roost
rock where he hoped to find some
| mineral specimens which might
prove worthy of his attention. Bum
gamers bull had no more respect
for a college professor than for a
belligerent poodle, and the aged
man had not reached the middle of
the pasture before the shOrthOrn
had charged down upon him from
the shade of a single oak which
grew a short distance from the
fence at the right.
Just behind Professor Wiltshire,
as he had come down the trail to-
ward the meadow fence, had come
Callie ThaXter. Callie was eight
cen, with a face as sunny as a
May-day morning, with her glowing
cheeks, white, even teeth, and eyes
of the warmest brown. Callie had
paused, with a quick intake Of
breath, when she saw the professor
mount the fence. Once she was on
| the point of shouting a warning TO
him; but it occurred to her that he
must have known the bull was
there, and doubtless had his own
| ideas about evading an OnruSh.
| Then, when she saw the huge ami
NAL preparing for the charge, she
realized that Mr.. Wiltshire could
not have known of the animals
presence. She shouted with all of
4 her lung power. The professor
looked about him. At that instant
a terrific roar fell upon his ears
and he saw the avalanche of horns,
heels and animal bulk bearing
down upon him. The old man
turned about to make as hasty a re-
treat as possible.
Lord" exclaimed Callie, "hit's
thet nice young mans dad, as stays
over to fuckers"
Young Wiltshire had talked to Cal
/ lie a few days before, for a long
while, about birds and butterflies,
trees and flowers. Now, the nice
i young mans father was in danger.
A stout hickory pole lay few feet
away from Callie. 1t had been cut
for a wagon brake stick. and evil
IDENTIFY thrown away for a better
/ one.
Callie's gaze lighted upon the
stick in the first instant of her
sweeping search for some cudgel
with which to 60 to Professor
Wilshires rescue. With the club
| in her hands she was over the fence
in an instant of time, and with the
| improvised weapon upraised in her
stout young hands she sprang for
ward to meet the OncOming torrent
/ of eighteen hundred pounds of ami
NAL viciousness. There was a whir
/ in the air, as Callie's cudgel de-
scribed a circle above her head.
! The next instant the rough and
heavy end of it had come directly
across the muzzle of the enraged
animal.
From the side Of Black Rock, half
a mile away. Tom Wiltshire had
| been training his field glass upon
the 1.-THE figure Of Callie Thaxter.
as she made her way toward Bum
garner's bull pasture.
"A pure mountain lily" he ex-
claimed. .'innOcent of every vile.
and pure as the air she breatheS.
Why deny myself the JOY Of loving
her? With little coaching in her
English and in the art Of dress, she
would grace a palace"
So Tom was musing, when the
field of his vision suddenly devel-
oped new features. Tragedy had
stalked in. The whole situation of
ii had been revealed in one sweep
of the lenses. He had seen the girl
leap the fence with the club in her
hands. and had seen her deliver the
blow upon the bulls nose. The
glass cIattered from Tom Wilshire's
hands, and he fed down the noun
tainside in long leaps. His heart
seemed striving to escape through
his throat. The most maddening
fears assailed him, and most of
these were not on his fathers ac-
count.
AS Tom leaped from among the
shrubbery adjacent to the meadow
fence, he found an old man, trem-
bling from shock, sitting upon some
moss outside the fence. A young
girl stood beside him apparently
unruffled by her very narrowing ex-
perience.
Il reckon yuh'll be all right time
yuh rest up bit" she was say
ing; IAN thet varmint'll remember
that whack he got for a long time.
Yuh see, eff yuh can land a crack
like thet right across a bulls nose,
it'll make him sick enough TO die
for awhile"
Tom Wiltshire halted in front of
Callie Thaxter. Suddenly he seized
her hands. My dad owes his life
to you, girl !" he cried. Already, /
was in love with you. Now,
want you to be my own !"
Callie found herself half smoth-
cred against Toms shoulder. Pro
fessor Wiltshire staggered to his feet
and came forward.