The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1937-03-11

headed the pony up the mountain.
The summit had never seemed so
hard to reach but, painting and ex-
hausted, the pony carried Jane to-
the summit, and she rode out on the
table to look. The scene below was
terrifying. Huge clouds of smoke bill
lowed and spread, only to boil up
anew and race on the wind. It SEEM
ed as if the whole country were in
flames. Here and there tongues of
fire shot from the rolling smoke.
Weary, at length, and depressed,
Jane turned her pony's head to ride
home. Gunlock itself might be in
danger.
Even the pony took the downward
trail reluctantly. Jane could not tell
why until, rounding a shoulder of
the Knob, she saw below her a fire
sweeping across the trail she was
following Worse than that, the fire
was squirting through the brush, up
the mountain, in front of her. The
pony baked. Thoroughly frightened,
Jane turned him up the narrow trail
and headed for the summit.
Even the few moments she had
been away from the top had chang
ed the scene. Overwhelmed with
CONSERVATION, she began to think
anew of her own safety. She urged
the pony swiftly down the trail
again, hoping family to find some
hidden bypass. Her path was block
ed. The hot air of the fire below was
catching at her throat; gusts of
smoke burned into her. eyes. She
refined about to return, despairing,
to the summit
Once again the level rock afford
ed her temporary refuge She dis
mounted. The pony was growing un-
flung his head up and down and
chewed frantically at his bit. Hope
deserted her. She sank to her knees
and fell forward, covering her face
with her arms.
For moment her mind was a
blank. She heard nothing of a fran
tic calling of her name, when a sing
ed and blackened horseman spurred
and dashed his pony toward her,
sprang from the saddle, and caught
her up in his arms.
"Jane!' he cried, as he looked into
her face and shook her in his effort
to restore consciousness. "Jane! Open
your eyes! Speak to me! It's Bill,
Jane, Bill! Can't you hear me?
Speak," Her eyes opened; she look
ed in a daZe at him. cts Bill, JaneP'
She threw her arms convulsively |
around his neck. ooh, Bill, Bill! |
What can we do? Must we die, Bill,
in this horror"
"No!" he exclaimed. "We can get |
through. But we mustn't lose min
ute, not second. Comet"
He half carried her to an edge of
the summit, where a rock crevice
gave a slight footing a few feet be-
low. Into this he lowered himself
and raised his arms to Jane.
"But the horses, Bill?" she cried.
Leave them," he called back. |
''They may escape. There's no foot
ing for horses where we're going. |
Quick, Jane! Jump!" He caught her
in his arms, steadied her, showed her
how to secure herself in the precari- |
Gus footing, and lowered himself to
another slender ledge to brace him
self, babe her spring, and caught her
again in his arms.
Her heart beat so violently, he
seemed to feel it as she Rugged close
to him. There was barely room for
the two to stand. keep cool, Jane.
We can make it, but be very, very
careful of your footing, darling
Jane. The fire hasn't touched this
side of the mountain yet, but if you
fell it would be hundred feet"
Spurned to superhuman effort,
Denison achieved the almost impos-
sible, and by sliding, clinging with
fingers, hands and arms, and by
carefully using his lariat, he man
aged to bring Jane down unframed
to the foot of the precipitous wall
that had given him the bare chance
to save her life. He held out his
arms to catch her for the final jump.
"Bill!" she exclaimed, breathing
hard and looking up in sheer amaze
ment at the precipice down which
he had brought her. "HoW did we
ever get down there alive?"
He was still very anxious
wrinkled veins of his smoked fore
head plainly mirrored that. She
waited for orders. eve must run
through that grove of quaking asp
and try to get away from the Knob.
This will all be burning in a few
minutes. Are you able to rum"
''I'll bet I can run faster than you,
Bill. 1.-THE laughing tone of her words
thrilled and cheered him. He knew
better than she what still lay be-
tween them and safety. They hast
ened on through the light timber;
then, running broad shoulder, they
saw vast panorama of smoke, light
ed in places by flames.
Denison hurried on, Jane briskly
keeping pace with him. But when
they neared the smoking pine, she
felt dismayed.
BILL, it's all on fire, yet-look at
the little blazes. See the ground
pine, and the trees are smoking and
burning vet. Bill See the deer rum