Evening star., 1932-07-10
The Valley of Missing Menu

before them. The plane shivered. stopped
and nosed with a sickening crash among the
rocks.
Sunlight coming through slitted sides of a
heavy curtained window the first sensa-
ton Paul had Of being on earth again. His
sense of realities came back He turned to
wonder, to speculate on the mystery as he
heard Nose groaning feebly beside him.
He rose to his feet, swaying dizzily. The
rock-hewn sides of the room swayed and
played strange tricks like the cabin of plane.
Funny he thought-he was used to rocking
planes. But this swaying made him sick, and
he lay down again. Trying again, he rose
from the bed and staggered toward a slit of
light, placed his hand on the curtain to draw
it aside. 1t was fur-the skin of some animal.
Drawing it back slightly he glanced out
world Of snow greeted him and air rushed in
that was desperately cold. He held 1t open to
admit light, the better to see the room he
was in. The walls were of hewn rock, the
floor OF the same hewn rock, neatly swept; the
bed he had risen from was a neat pile Of the
same gray hewn rock covered with furs.
Nose was babblng. AS Paul pulled the
cover back he saw that of his old
friend was tightly bound with coarse gray
cloth; on his right leg a larger pack was
bound from which he could see splints stick
ing downward from the binding Nose had
a broken arm and leg.
What tn heil's wrong?" his weakened voice
ears.
Reckon we cracked up" grimaced Paul as
he brought ard offered drink to Nose Nose
tried to lift his head, Paul supported it. He
drank eagerly.
That's fine water; best ever tasted. Gee
it's COOL" said Nose. AS he lay back he asked
Where we?"
st dunno: just came to: reckon we were
both knocked out. Some one brought us here
an fixed us up. don't reckon we walked
don't remember anything after the wheels
struck the earth, or whatever it was, an we
started to up-end"
You say you just came to-woke up?"
eyes, I had just walked to the opening and
looked out. This is rummy dump; all seen
a treeless. snow-covered place out there,
an a steep wall. I've not tried the door yet;
reckon it's fur, too. Funniest cloth they done
us up in I ever seen or felt.
'Its a rummy dump, all right, an darn
cold. I'm going to dress and look the town
over; see where we are. You rest easy bit"
When he stepped out, the bright, binding
glare of the sun on snow stopped him. Shading
his eyes he stepped forward.
"Ugh!"
The cultural utterance at his elbow startled
him Starting quickly he turned and looked
into the face of smiling, red man.
Dressed in skins, each skin neatly and pa
tiently joined and skillfully cut, was an Indian.
He was smiling at Paul in the friendest of
manners. The smile broke from the mouth of
the Indian and ran over his face; two black
wells of eyes were friendly. He held his hand
toward Paul in a friendly manner. Paul
grasped it.
You startled me-" said Paul. "I was just
going out to look around"
The Indian continued to smile He shrug-
ged his shoulders. From his lips rolled mu-
sically some words Paul did not understand.
Silently Paul followed the friendly stranger
from the stone, one-room house toward the
middle of the canyon, where a roadway ran.
Along the sides were many rock-hewn houses,