Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1934-07-14

fever. herself, only q month ago.
Please have her drink q Quart Of
milk every oay Get it frusn sam
Barrett. he has his COWS tested.
Ay love-
Jessie
For g long minute more Cass Odom
knelt there not e word, not 3 0ues-
ton concerning tfs sun maehinei Jes-
sic never ha6 belsesed Ia e because it
was not shT0ug enough 10 pump water
like windmill. OK run q circular saw
for cutting flrswuad.
Now came fierce longing. heart ache
for the wenan he had never ceased to
love. Shame, too. Anguished. arrepres-
Sible hope for success. Tor g fav0rable
report from the damn ankee enQin-
eer who had promised 70 examine the
machine
If he could only patent It and sen ftl
Made on q grand scale. he figured that
it could furnish power ct little cost.
boon 10 an regions devoid Of natural
waterpower.
Cas- Odom had no dream Of wealth.
no longing for it--except as 1t might
redeem him in the eyes OF his wife.
Eleven days TIL the promised visit
to Stratton, the damn Yank engineer.
Through that length Of time Nancy
would have to make the best Of things,
for Jessie's sake. And, good Lord, Jes-
sic herself IN g smelly ward OF some
charity hospitaIl Evidently Jessie had
not been able to go TO a private in
Urinary Since the war the pay Of
railroad stenographers had dropped and
dropped. Even Jessie, an expert at her
job. probably had not been making
more than fourteen or fifteen dollars
week
Blindly Cass Odom prayed that he
might be able TO realize something up
on the sun machine, an amount which
at the very least would suffice to keep
Jessie in comfort through convalesc-
ence
Nancy eyed the implanted shack with
wondering disfavor The tiny room up
at Montgomery used by her mother and
herself had been in q big brick building \
with many windows This looked like
a decrepit barn.
IT'S not fixed up-sorry," said Cass
gruffly
Nancy entered The bare, disheVeled
interior snote her as an actual shock.
She fell back step toward the open
door. Fer lip quiVered.
20, daddyl" she cried, appalled,. do
Moms-come from-ever 1--we
here?"
Eyes, both Of us-honey." Strange,
how difficult It was to utter term Of
Just you sit down now
and rest. The bed in there is the one
youn have I'm rig up cot or some
thing out here"
Mechanically the little girl obeyed,
hanging her sailor hat on the only
chair and taking q faltering step to-
ward the bedroom. Then her blue eyes
filled. HomesickneSs and loneliness
Tor Mons swept over her.
Cass Odom scowied, though not at
The child. He failed to notice Nancy's
surrender to tears Remembering an
Of Jessie's letter, he snatch
ID I'D a tin pail, rinsed 1t from another
bucket, and strobe out OF the door.
In the bare. CRASHES yard he moved
liEnIessly, an odd furttveness coming
nto his manner. MIX for Nancyl In
he pocket Of his overaIls lay exactly
light cents, his entire capital. Pos
dbIy this might provide one days ra-
ion; but then would come another day,
nd another
He knew, however, that Sam Bar
EFT had a fresh COW over In the south
,asture. One quart day never would .
le missed. Sinking like a convicted ,
elon, Cass Odom made for the brushy
heller of the branch and the pasture
eyond.
nav followed day and each vas