The Washington times., 1937-03-25


rich fasteners newly acquired
ranch. Eustace hadn't known that
anyone was growing neW-rich the
last years. But it appeared this
man was an exception.
EuStace only met the owner
once, and suspected him at first
glance of being gangster. He
had no chance to modify that
opinion, because the owner LETT
for the East and Europe, after an
nouncing that he had a string Of
horses arriving, and he expected
they'd need fancy care, for the
fancy price they cost him.
/ That casual speech had not pre-.
pared Eustice for the type of
horses which arrived, in shock
ingly bad condition from the jour-
ney through the heat, at the rail-
road station 40 miles from the
ranch. They we're Eastern thor
oughbred racing stock, and any
one who'd ever ridden in the deS-
ert country would know they were
no earthly use there. Where his
employer had picked them up, he
wondered, though he guessed the
blood lines of several of them we'll
enough. He supposed some owner
/ of a small string had streak OF
bad luck and had to sell them.
Eustace spent the happiest week
since April, taking the best care
of them he could; and he fell in
love with big black gelding who
had only impressed him casually
the day he arrived with the others.
Carefully, in the very early
morning, in the late evening when
it grew cool, he tried the horse out.
It was a shame, in a way, to use
him for a saddle horse, but a
worse shame, once one felt his
speed, to let him sweat in a stall.
He wired his employer on the
eve of his sailing: How do you
want the horses trained?" and re-
ceived the incredible answer:
Broken in for my friends to ride"
Eustace grinned, for the first
time in months. He doubted very
much if this example of the newest
kind of money had any friends
who could sit the worst of the
string, two minutes. But he had
his instructions.
When he was a little boy, he had
had a horse named Dark Lad, his
first horse. He named this horse
for that one.
No pedigrees had arrived with
any of the string, and so no
names. II was ell absurd enough.
He had never owned a better
horse than this Dark Lad. He did
not dare risk its legs on desert
riding, but he found a path that
was fairly smooth, leading from
the ranch to a cluster of barren
hills on the deserts edge. He rode
Dark Lad back and forth that
path daily. the ride was the
single bit of his day that was
comforting. For the rest, he held
brief conversation with the cheer
full cowboys who made up his
staff, and thought about Felicia,
waited for a message from Felicia
that never came
He had told his employer that
it would be necessary for him to
make short trip East that sum.
mer, and had been told: Get
things organized, and then go
when you want"
He had wanted to sort out the
stored furnishings of his and Fe-
licia's home, so that he could keep
for her whatever he thought she
might want and sell whatever else
was clearly his. For he had some
small debts that worried him.
Throughout his marriage, he had
let Felicia spend all he had, but
he had always paid his bills.
Besides, he meant to see Keith
Sheldie. He had decided to see
Keith, long before he started
West. But at that time he had
learned that Keith was not suf
ficiently convalescent to see any.
one. BY now, he probably would
be.
With the most careful instruc-
tions to his foreman as to the care
of Dark Lad, he started East.
On the plane. he thought over
and over what he meant to say
to Keith, while a young actress
returning from Hollywood in the
seat opposite. flung admiring
glances at his healthy blondness,
and he never saw her at all.
Keith said to him, How are
you?" and thought: "He doesn't
look well. He is haggard, for all
his tan"
EuStace said: Sorry to intrude."
Not at ALL"
Keith sat in long chair fac
ing the garden. Eustace stood
facing him.
1--WE come about Felicia"
"I supposed So"
''It'S an odd visit. There've
been so many hours when I've
wished you dead" That, he had
not planned to say. But confront
ing him whom she wanted-she
who had not wanted himself-he
was desolate. There Sheldie sat,
in his dark slendernesS, looking
mocking as-aS Felicia looked
sometimes.
ITO he ronfiuuoSN