Evening star., 1939-10-22

laughter IN her eyes. Suddenly he saw
the firm little chin set and a faint
flush creep up her cheek. ED? l
haven't seen him for more than a
year."
"You mean." he faltered. that you
didn't - You aren't .. ?"
Ruth held out her hand, slim.
strong hand Drowned by the sun. 1t
bore no ring. mo, Haley" she told
him. ED and l were never married.
We decided it was better not to. He
went away year ago last spring"
Haley groaned. Three years before.
when he fled Galway. it had been a
choice between himself and Ed "a
choice which had taken months to
make. Then, through a succession of
events. he had become convinced that
Ruth no longer favored him. Both
stubborn. they had fought, and finally
in despair Haley had packed his bag
and left.
Unconsciously he found himself
comparing Ruth with Wilma
blonde, capricious Wilma. who amused
him yet somehow could not win his
love. The contrast was intense. Then
he realized that Ruth was speaking
again.
"There've been loads of changes at
the station since you left," she de-
clared. taking up the conversation
adroitly. Particularly special features.
We have a real live special-features
department now. OF course this'll be
the first big story I've ever had to
cover"
You'll do swell job, Ruth"
Universal has offered deal with
us. They'll take anything special on
the flyers we can arrange" There was
another pause.
I'm flying out tomorrow in one of
the search planes" Ruth went on. Il
think maybe we'll even have a sur
prise for you big league broadcasters."
Then she smiled and rose lightly to
her feet.
1t was after midnight when the first
news of the Valkyrie reached Galway.
From tiny hamlet thirty miles inland
came report that the monoplane had
been sighted, mass ofwreckage, half
way up the side of mountain. Fires
on the slope had attracted the atten-
ton of foresters at dusk; they we're
investigating. Apparently. at least, one
if not both of the flyers had survived.
Beneath the low. dark ceiling of the
Galway police station, with equip
ment set up on scattered benches and
chairs, both radiomen and reporters
sprang into action. Frantically over
the "PL" Haley Mackerson demanded
network air from the head production
man in New York. He got it at once.
At opposite ends of the small room,
both network commentators spoke
with low and earnest voices into their
microphones. Newsmen fought to file
copy first with the emergency tele-
graph operator. Townspeople pressed
around the barred windows and peered
in amazement at the shambles within.
Haley went into huddle with his
crew. Whit Michaels was to install the
short-wave relay transmitter in the
amphibian and be ready for take-off
early the next morning. A word pic
ture of the wreckage could be radioed
to Galway from the plane, then piped
over the wireline to New York.
A doctor and few of the more
adventurous newsmen we're rushing
from Galway over forest roads toward
the lonely spot where the plane had
been reported. At 2 AM. Haley tuned
in on midget receiver, heard his net
work close down for the night. He
could do no more until daybreak, and
so he curled up on desk top amid the
litter of paper left by the growing
horde of newspaper men. Through the
light, tossing sleep into which he tum-
bled the face of Ruth Emerson ap-