Devil's River News. (Sonora, Tex.), Vol. 35, No. 1850, Ed. 1 Saturday, May 15, 1926 Page: 4 of 4
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<»' A* m ■
V
1
A Romance of Water
We
Water
Bearer
,1* lim! rente ou! <»f the olll.es of the
Wutel- tomiwny it deserving conqueror
pardonably elated. a bright
.notching ulw.id *f »'"»• N',w ,Ure
vUIum of Ills life were drub. Il"‘l,,r*‘
llou the desire for success, seemed to
hare flowed out of him like water out
of u druln. The reason was !>lum
enough, the fact one Hint he could not
overcome nor set aside. Hetty Cllnt'tn
had gone out of his life and. wlthoOt
her. life hardly seemed worth bother-
tag about. ,
She had given hint less attention .
Than she would have bestowed upon ,
a street beggar. There nt least some
charity would hove shown In her gaze.
Hut for Caleb her eyes had held noth-
ing—*•* H he hnd n,‘v#r existed.
Something had happened within the .
Inst forty odd hours. It was Incon-
r el cable that the ulTalr at the Ve.lder* j
was respmisll.le for the deliberate
slight she Imd put upon him. She hint
heard something, n slander, that had
turned her utterly against him.
And Hint meant llaxter. No one
else. The pointer of Circumstance In
fiilllhlv swung toward him. lie might (
still Imagine that Caleb could have,
loaned him tho money, had deliberate- j
lv deserted hint at the Hu.o when he ,
most needed help. In revenge he Imd
carried n talc to Hetty Clinton. Hut (
what sort of tale was II that she had ,
listened to u|xm so short acquaintance!
Sl„- was not the type to listen readily,
to pass a Imsty Judgment.
He pared up ntid down Ids ,
cttlre. the sweets of victory turned hit- ^
Ter, trying l<> hrlrg logic to hear upon
the situation, without avail. At five ,
o’clock he started for tlie cafe to timet
the stenographer, holding a vague Idea
tlmt she might be aide to throw some
light upon the mailer.
He entered the foyer of the rest all-
-* rant, filled with people coming from
the nmtlneo, nnd mounted the stairs to
meet the deferential enptutn of the
/ waiters. Caleb gave him tils card.
“A In.ly should be waiting for me.
be said.
be said.
thefr plan* nre really dangerous to my
I life rest*-—and to those «f Hie com
P-7 am dentine with you. Mr. Warner
I’ve made rurbonn of the minutes o
the mootings. 1 want your word that
win'll give me the money la-fore I m
away my Information. I'll «* ,u^'
• her." she went on ss she saw hesi-
tancy In Caleb's eyes. "You '“J''*
■ liter liilore-l* limn Jast "I'1' 1
Crystal Springs cruwil. This utTects
those as well."
“Wlmt do you mean?'
She lowered her voice. ^ “YoO are
Interested III Miss Clllitofl
Caleb hardene<l. Hul the ghl wn
staring at him and he fell that some-
how he hud betrayed himself, for sl.e
gave a little sntlslied smile.
| -We'll tenve her out of It,
She shook her head.
| "We cant. I’m another woman.
! Not n man. !'m not saying unylh ntf
l detriment a I to her Hut this touches
her us well us you. Now will you give
me your promise nnd listen ?
Caleb reflected rapidly. Me could
manage the fifteen hundred, ft was a
Mg sum. Kven with Ids attained hun-
dred thousand. Will. Ids promised sal-
ary It still seemed large. He <’"U,J ,
not undo In n ......... the Instincts
due to heredity and training. ',u‘ ,
the girl ban struck the right note, j
He felt that sl.e held the key to Met- |
tv Clinton’s conduct towards hint.
And. a* he realised that, the money ,
lost all value. „ I
••Ml right." he said. "I promise. |
••Vou propose to dam 1lermt.no* |
valley That la a main point In .vour |
plan To hold buck the storm water*. |
II show* on the model and In your (
specllleatlons. Well, yon can't get
llermnnos valley."
••Why not? Public utility rnncom-
nmnil ‘condemnation proceedings.”
"It can't supersede a previous con-
tract to sell.”
falel, stared The girl wn* no or-
ill miry employee. She was clever
enough to have a good Rf-'-P «» •«“
alTalr. lie saw Immediately that. In j
semi conndenllal position of as-,
f'o\'s secretary, she had
to details. She had seen
......... And sl.e hud been Ibe
line to supply »*>“ pnrtles she spoke of,
with tl.elr Information. Maxtor was j
In It. of course.
"What Is this contract? Who holds
It?”
“It Is n year’s option of sale. Rnv- ,
ter holds It.”
Tor a moment Catch snw red but
he controlled himself under the girl’s
wnteliful eyes.
"I’ll fell yon how he got II. fie
■ good girl. I wanted fun—nnd 1 got
It. Hut. If I pa.v. he ll pa.v. * ,n
no! going to live with him.
liar and a cheat. M.v baby
h.rlt that. If It does I hope
“I've got to give up
I'm
He’s a
may lu-
ll dies,
my position
soon the* girls art- beginning to notice
things. Ml P> 'c"n **
other place after Its all over. Hut
I'll not go on Ids money. I'-ven If he
........through. Now. Mr. Warner, have
1 farm....... UN «.’»'•• hundred d'.H-.rsI
-Vou shall have It.” said Caleb
slowly. Ilssentment was aw.ft. mount-
ing to rage, within him but he kept n
grip on himself—until he met llaxter.
“You've earned your money. »ou
shall have It tomorrow."
She snw little muscles bunched
about Id* lower Jaw. the clean. Ilrtm-st
line of II. light like thut reflected from
polished steel It. his eyes. Into her
own eyes udmlratlon entered.
“You've got something up .vour
sleeve," she sold knowingly. ' I d like
to watch .vour session with Natter.
I pou t kill him.” She laughed, off key,
recklessly. , .
••1 won't.” Caleb promised grimly
“How'll I gel the money to you'/''
She took out u pencil
and scribbled.
•'Here’s my address. Send It there.
Now, lei me go away first while you
Kettle the check. It might spoil your
reputation If wo were seen going out
together." she added, bitterly. "Good-
by.’’
She parted the curtains and wn*
gone as Caleb touched the hell. The
heart. If he had bad the In*tnnf "!►
port unity he would have smashed
Maxtor to a pulp or choked him. *•*
swung off uptown, revenge deferred,
anger master of Ills brain
Culet. had no In.mediate means of
tracing Muxter. Hut. sooner or later,
the other must show up st the ..par -
ment-house to change his clothes—«r
latter
shnhhy hat nnd a battered bar he
looked like mi uwwceusful farmer.
The keenness of Ids eyes was dimmed
by yellow-tensed spectacles with Imi-
tation tortoise shell rlin*. lie looked
approvingly at Caleb's rough clothe*.
"That's the Idea. No sense In us
looking llf;e tourists or In tiny way
prosperous or otherwise obiruslvc. I m
falrlv well known over there, too. and.
of friendship. Ton _
more principles than n yellow
m Baiter,
qf through
you In a
eht" hreke
earns gllinmeel
Tve
und a card
her
slstnnt lo
Imd access
the model.
The m m glanced at the card und re- j hnH looking for an acreage to
turned If. receiving In exchange a M|U c,.rtn|., clients who want to lo-
crinkly bill Hint »vas deftly palmed i.n.l nonr here. YAH fold him anrmt
Then he led the way. cat- - .....
vanished.
fooled, down a soft im peled corridor,
stopping before a certain pair of drawn
vrurtuin* nnd touching a bell in thy par-
tition frame.
“It Is monsieur.” he announced, wltn-
Ttreiv nnd glided down the passage.
Caleb entered Hie alcove.
It hud at. arched opening Hint looked
nut over the main floor of the cafe. ^ ^
The opening was partially blocked ^
war* i*l«*v4*r
Hermanns. He thinks hi
to get It out of you. Though I don t
think vou two hud quarreled then.
Hut TOU did. And he wanted to get
even. He met Miss Clinton nnd her
father, lie learned thill Mr. Clinton
Jt
Ths Walter Came Promptly and He
and Started for the
Paid the
Street.
Dill
desire to come face to face
false friend and have u reckoning
with hits. Baxter’* actions had been
deliberate, despicable. Caleb m'-ot
have passed over the land deal " '
contempt. It wn* shyster, underhand-
ed business, hut many might consider
It merely smart nnd consider that
Caleb should have protected his own
Interests. Cut. to treacherously u«o
stolen knowledge from the Water com-
pany to undermine Caleb with Netty
Clinton—her father did not seem to
enter Into the Immediate problem—to ,
proclaim Caleb ns an abuser of hos-
pitality—worse—to make him out a
snotiniirel In the eyes of the girl he
loved—for llaxter to endeavor to gain ,
for himself the love of that girl, was ,
beyond all forgiveness. It clamored ■
for punishment, physical, amply suit-
dent.
Tho recollection of many time*
when he had pulled Baxter out of a
serape. often to his own detriment,
drilled fuel lo the flrfi of Ills resent-
ment. For tlec first time lie saw Ids
friend clearly—selfish, unprincipled,
spoiled—to use Mary Morgan's strong-
er term, "rotten.”
Marlin stopped opposite to hhn and
broke Into his musing*.
“Hinckley wants lo get In touch
with you," he said. “Promised him
pd tell you If I ran across you. He'*
probably home by now."
••All right." Caleb's answer was
apathetic. For the moment business
seemed a dead Issue but ho roused
himself nnd went to the telephone
booths. Hinckley’s voice tunic to him.
euger, stimulating.
“I want to go over the ground with
you right away,” be said. "Just a
preliminary, personal survey We
haven't any time to lose .Will toraor
row morning he convenient?"
Caleb responded to the engineer s
energy.
“Surely," he replied. "Make it
Yioon.”
••Then the Ferry building for tho
one o’clock Broad Gauge boat. It
connect* with the Coyote Canyon
train.”
Caleb went back to Ids seat. The
, clubrooms begun to thin out nnd he
ordered Ids dinner. There was no
1 sign of Baxter. When the meal wus
announced he culled the head boy.
“If Mr. Maxtor comes In, let me
know. 1 shall be nt dinner."
“Me Won’t be In. sir. lie telephoned
n little while ago to tell Mr. Henley
he’d meet him at ten o’clock. They
■ • -ni.i fi.rt noil uieei linn in itu .....
waiter came promptly anil m P bad fl|) appointment outside.'
bill and Blurted for the street. Ilenlev was n man pntterned to Bax-
As Caleb entered Ihe foyer tne cn|„>pr Cn|cb lmd met him and
apt to soar Immediately
ways the i-lamce of Oakville learning
something und suspecting more.
"There's u big h>! nf watershed we'll
have to accuiuulal’u to Insure purity.
And you’ve got to he canny. Your role
Is that of u foolish young Kusterner |
with money on whom land worth cum- |
punitive!)' Ihlle limy lie unloaded nt u
fair price. A price they will ihiuk big
until the project Is complete.
••It's fair enough all round," he went
on. "We’ll pay 'em more than market
value because at present there Is no
actual market for their land. Ini«n t
been for years, uot likely to he. the
bout's In."
Through the waiting room windows
they could see tlte trans-hsy passen-
gers filing past to the exits. Caleh, re-
leased from attention lo lllnckle} s
talk—they had stood apart from the
crowd—suddenly caught Ids brerfth.
I.ess than ten feet from him. In front,
were Hetty t'llnton and her father.
They were going hack to Kl Nldo. I hat
was evident and It suited Caleb. Be-
fore he returned to Golden he could
carry out Ida’Intention of seeing them
llaxter could wait. So he dallied until
Clinton's spare figure found a wn"
through the thinning crowd that tailed
onto the Ferry apt-on and. with Betty
following, climbed the stairs to the
upper deck. Hinckley went forward to
ihe open end with Caleb. They wore
among the first off the ferry, first
through the gates to their train.
Hinckley and Caleb took room* nt
ihe same hotel that Caleb bud patron-
ized. Hurt of their trip wu* to be
mode In u ear shabby enough lo pro-
,-luile any Idea <*f wealth for Its occu-
pant*. part In a buggy, on horseback,
and iifniit.
I'nleh took the lead nnd conducted
Hinckley up llermnnos canyon. Into
the r.oen-Bluiii-a valley, to the source
,,f Gulillnn and around about the Sink
Itself. The third day was given up to
an Inspection of the foothills that
bound the Sink and n checklng-up of
Caleb's demonstrations In proof of the
clay that underlay the gravel and
lined Its sides.
“1 uni entirely satisfied, so far.' said
Hinckley when they returned to their
lintel after this last trip. ‘‘This I*
Saturday. I’d like lo call a halt until
Monday. I always aim nt spending the
week-end In the bosom of my family.
If I can compass It. We have done
fatuously I can confirm your findings
with enthusiasm, my sun.”
Hinckley nodded at the young man
with a smile that radiated health and
good nature. They had got along won-
tag hour s. Kl Nldo. It wss five when ' rag. - —......... — **
be set out and this should bring hint any
to the Junction of v.lley nnd canyon cur You -
In the early evening. A pipe to lop 1 haven t.
off his cold supper und tie would arrive The «".*£ -----
at the ram hhouse soon <'f“’r ‘hu ( "R“ln- where you thought you
the heat chance of finding both Betty
and her father at home, would l*e apt
to find Hinton In congenial mooil.
The darkness deepmed to premature
gtitfull a* Culeli readied nild-c
The trull was dim and water.
were so almighty smart, you BtWit
You went sneaking around you™'*-
friendship and pretending
to a girl, ao that you.
trailing on
to in-ike love
nt the club. Caleb went to the hitter fair y wen snow.. r ‘ ‘’ ViVnsi the The darkness deepened to premature I" . ’ " wullted about!
ssa:n-t
reservoir.
^X^.m^ fratn^ siortm Vou trWa to
hail rendered the track slimy
treacherous, slackening up his pm-e.
He filled his pipe and lit It.
tire howl was glowing evenly there
hood-
^.rTnmon-trnd . OU. and-
IWfore saved him Hags of friendship? *oU
,W " "ended •« he my best “lend and.
when It eu.no to a atauwdowi. you IM
to me nnd said you didn’t have any
money. Why? Because you lucked
the hui'klione to eouia ‘,0‘ V*4*
bemuse you were *► d“Yankee,
afraid you might Imm a penny
A luruli of th® brld*o,
wrench. A chilly wave nioipied over
the boards. It fiowe.1 about the unklwi
of both »f them. Oaleb Stood wltb
one hand free. *>* o«*r on the hand-,
fonc. bolanclng hlmrelf. whipped W
fury hr each word of Baxter. But h
did not Interrupt him. He was wait-
ing for tho light to get Stronger. Ho
could see the other but illnily. his facA
forward, shooting out
a sudden
hltr
to make them sting
Ha Filled Hla Pips and Lit It.
from the south, the
imri'hoen thinking of selling, but with swinging doors fro... "Tneve/cared to press the acquaintance. , derfully In ;,,e‘r“
“.................... r ; "’ti:: ~
Automatically, without thought, h“ )pv>g wn g,,P(.|n| flume. Tonight
raised Ids hat. Hetty Clinton was
looking It. his direction and she did
ranch nnd the place where nil the
Hintons were burled. That gave him
Idea. Oh. lie’s smart enough. At
With artlfielul orange tree*, the frutt t)P last wanted t<> He hp
represented by sninll electric hulhs. , vn„)iy to „pi|P you and ruin your
- Hie iWMinUm- »•»'---- -----
Tly MW* — -— ----- —
from below, angled In the corner be j
hind ihe curtains, sat the stenographer.
The glow from the mock oranges gave
the oval of her face a weird qualify. I
II robbed her of nil benefit from
rouge and powder and turned Iter fea-
ture* to n tragic mask of weariness
and rtrnin. She wn* only n shadow
*.f the blooming picture Hint lmd once
held the "place nf present honors" on
Maxtor’s bureau.
••You will have to order something,"
said Ihe girl. Her voice was tomdesa.
Pbe lmd made no motion since ho en-
tered. lie touched a bell and a sleek
Walter almost Instantly tapped and
appealed.
"A sandwich.” mild Ihe girl lan-
guidly. “Flili-kcn sandwich, Knllle—
Some ten—strung- III u cup. Kims
sign relies, straw tips."
•‘.lust lea for me," said Caleb.
“Yes sir. In a cup, sir?"
“Of course."
II was plain Hint the girl lmd been
In the haleiitiy sleeve* at Haight * be-
fore. The fact was more evident when
(lie ten—“strong. In u cup." arrived.
It whs Scotch whisky. After she hail
alppcil It down a little sparkle came In
lior eye*. She look a cigarette, tupped
Its end and Ht H- i
"If you don't mind I'll smoke before ,
we talk?' she said and Inhaled avidly
It seemed to restore her animation
somewhat. She folded her long lilt-
geretl hands on Ihe cloth mnl looked
directly at Caleb. I
"Toil Baxter Is a great friend or
yours. I supposeY’
There was a sneering quality to Iter
voice that made It hitrsh. The sparkle
In Iter eyes had chunged to a sternly
glitter.
“We have been friends for a great
many years." Caleb answered. ^ 1
Site gave a low. short laugh. Kvl-
dently she knew about the quarrel.
• I tiuie come here to sell you some-
thing." She said "A* I told you. It I*
to your interest to listen to ni“. I
want money enough to leave Golden,
to go Hast f»r a while. You can
Imagine why. It’ll lake fifteen hun-
dred dollars. My Information should
be worth ninny limes that."
"Knowing I am u friend of Baxter’s,
why rio you apply to me for the
Tnoiie) ? Isn't he the one In supply It
for that puipiw? I meant he In
tend In?"
"I don't know whether he d >es or
pot. You know all about Ids mother |
and the stuck deal? lie's broke, l-.vcn
If lie puts oier his land deal he'll net'll
It sit to square Ills thrills of honor.”
Her voice was nclil with satire.
“Suppose we leave him out of this
for a hit.” she sold utmost fiercely. ,
“This affair I* between you and uic.”
“What to Itr
Pbe eyeil him narrowly, lighting an-
other i-lgurette. With Ills- curious
cadmium tint of the mock orange
globes on her face, the spark nf the
clgnretfe »* she Inhaled It. the glitter
In her eye*, her attitude, she appeared
Juried, over worldly, cynlcnl. riipnrlou*.
"If I should t“H you that there nre
parties who plan In block your plans
with the Water company. If I should
fell you who they are, what knowledge
they posses*, how they expect to use
It. will you give me the moneyT”
“It depend* upon whether tKV InfUr-
P«iimi la vuluublu enough. Wbatkdt
|iinns by setHwK ft to hi* “Bents. But
this opened something more. A chance
to put von In nlisoliitely wrong with
the Clintons, with Hetty Clinton, lie
knows you are In line with her. And
so Is he!”
Her face blazed dull crimson, the
glitter In her eyes concrntrntcd to
flames of Jealousy. Here was the
real reason—aside from mercenary In
lores!- for tier revelation.
"How do you know ho Is In love
with her?”
“How do I know?” She laughed
scorn fully "Beenuse 1 ntn it woman.
Because' I know Ted Baxter Be
cause I know that he never loved me,
has never loved any girl. We’ve been
amusements Tor him. But he's In love
now He couldn't deny It when 1
In xml him with It.
“Baxter's rotten, clean through.
I'll toll you what your 'lies, friend'
did Not heenuae yon wotildn I lend
iyin monov or couldn't. But because
be saw *. chance to do away with you
ns n rival and n chance lo make
money at the snine time. He couldn't
rrslHt Mint coitiblinHnn.
“So he told her and her father nil
about your schemes, that you hud
made friends with them In cover your
vour iurvi\vn
plintournpliltiR
X stealing up from neck to brow,
saw her eyebrows contract In nnnoy-
landloril
nf the hotel came nut upon the ver-
meant some 'similar expedition. U j nndnh where ChI.-I. and Uli.i-Uley were
prohnhly meunt aUo that Hnxter would ! eliattlng. Haiti had fallen heuvll) an
get drunk.
was far from
Clinton
and your
.............. B seems Hint one of
tltelr men. a Mexican. Imd heen watch- !
lug you He saw you early one morn-
ing where you had been testing rock,
lie reported to Mr Clinton mid that
made Clinton suspicious. The girl !
stuck up for you nt first. But now—
you know hotter than I do Hie kind of j
man Clinton Is. But he was furious.
H„ says you abused Ids hospitality, j
that you Intended to desecrate tho
grave* of Ids dead. lie called you a
Yankee spy. And lie gave Ted Baxter
n purchase option for agricultural
purposes. I’llnclpnlly. of course, as
n protect Inn for himself against cun
dointmthrtv.
••Now Ted Is laughing ill you Ihe
representative of the colony Is In
town Ted takes him to Hermann*
valley tomorrow. And you tiro the
font. Cutes* . . •"
"Cnless wlmt?"
“Baxter thinks lie Is going lo marry
Hint girl. I don't know what kind nf
41, t.(,| she is. She may take him on
Ihe rebound, If she was In love with
you. But she Won’t marry him. Bax-
ter I* going to marry me."
•*l ihnn.ht you were tiolng away."
“After lie marries me. After he
makes our child honest " The flume
leaped iigaln In her eyes, "lie dared
__be dared lo pretend Hint he was not
the father of my baliy And ho knows
- oh. lie knows different. I ""is a
little find w hen 1 met him but—1 was
lips ns he replaced his Hal furl.-w at
ht* action yet not certain Hint ha
would not have repeated It. lie wm
unconscious of anything that he had
done tlmt should cause him to retriut
courtesies towards the Clintons. To
rto so would he at. acknowledgmentI of
a slmtnefacedness he
feeling.
“Go on and Join Rnxter.
said in a low voice to his daughter
She went through the open door held
for he. hv nn nttemlant. Baxter had
heen with them, lie had gone ahead
to the car. Baxter must have been
sitting beneath Ihe alcove where
Caleb nnd Mary Morgan had held
their Interview. And Betty < Union
had seen the pale face nnd shrinking
figure of the stenographer on tbe
stairs behind r'nlcb. lie was Wire o
that ns Clinton advanced toward him
threateningly while the thoughts shut-
tied swiftly through
faced Clinton coolly.
••You nre Impudent, sir
ten Ills breath almost 1
the temper he held In uncertain leash
“I have only one arm left, sir,' went
I on Clinton, “but. If >'"« ''live tho Im-
pertinence to again salute nio or my
daughter. I shall find It sufihrient to
horsewhip you. you sneaking t nnkee
Caleb did not flinch. IBs voire
Ids brain. Il«
said Clin-
fuming with
Cr*"You will apologize to me some day.
lt« numbed tils dinner with a cigar
and walked up to Semaphore bill.
There were a few unimportant letters
waiting for him. nnd a small package.
He opened It. The Jade pendant wu*
inside, the sign of Pisces, returned
front Hetty Clinton without a word.
He held It for u little In the paint of
his hand, his thoughts hitter, before ho
put the trinket away tu his desk
drawer, which he locked.
Baxter did not materialize. Caleb
was up before the night man wont off
nnd made certain of thut fact. After
he had taken Ills bag to the office nnd
added to It what he needed, he dropped
In at the club before he went to the
hank. And he met Doctor Fields com-
ing up from the dining room. The phy-
sician stopped hint.
"Suppose you know about BnxterT
••No. What T"
"Nothing serious, though this might
ho n good chance to nmke him Brink
so You shnre a suite with him, don't
you? And he didn't show up last
night? For cause. Henley brought
I,Ini home from the beat'll poisoned—
that's the only word for It. They nro
selling the crudest kind of stuff out nt
the resort. IF* got to lie stopped.
Baxter arrived literally blind drunk,
Highly eight per cent crude alcohol
with glvcerln. a little carbolic acid
give It the Idle, burnt sugar for color-
ing.
"\nd I’m going to try nnd put the
fear of God nnd whisky Into his henrt |
_nr Id* iHer—while he’s here In the j
club under my eye. I-et Ted Baxter
bold tbem Indoors to cheek over Ihi*
notes und maps they hud made. Now
was clearing tip.
protest Ingly'nnd \'he ^reze^blcp*
down the trail. Heaves and twigs
came fluttering down In the Ju9k-
Caleb put on his slicker. Thick
though the leafy screen above him
was. ho felt sure that n heavy down
pour was Imminent. The first drops
„f it spatted heavily on the green
thatch before he lmd gone n hundred
yards. Then, suddenly, effectively, ns j
if the bottom of some aerial cistern
had given away, the rain drove down,
beating through the trees In verttcnl
lines, plumping Into the ewnltat creek
hissing In continuous spouts thn flat-
tened thicket* and pitted the soft soil,
rattling on Caleb’s oilskin like o dis-
charge of small shut, with force
enough to lie distinctly fell.
There was little nctnnl danger
Caleb could easily scramble through
tbe brush to Immunity nt any moment
And he pushed on. He could see he
path fairly xvell though this was the
twilight, hastened by the ' °
cast sky. He trudged on at the bo. t
pace he could muster over tbe sll .-
porv red soil but. when he came to
ihe final bend, the neck of Hte bottle.
It was so dark Hint lie could only
make out the suspension bridge by
Its silhouette where It crossed the gut
of surging torrent, close to the foot-
boards. Soon it would he over It.
Caleh doubted whether the bridge
was clearing up. i eaten unuim-u — -
••I'm going to Golden on the four | wml)d Rtnni| nny great resistance to
said Hinckley. “Be hack Mon j w(|,ep pro„R„re. He remembered lis-
ten. ,
day. Mr. Warner—are you coming
with me. Warner?’’
“I think not. I’ll do a little fishing
Maybe take a shot at those quail we
saw on Gahllttn. You'll find me here
waiting for you.”
"Cloudburst up country.” said the
hotelkeeper. "This here local rain
was the tag of It. Crick's rlsllt' fast.
Black as sin over Gulillnn. She s a
weather-breeder. Is that old mountain
Power of current cornin' down stream
after this little spat of weather."
“I.et's go out and have a look," sug-
gested Hinckley.
Coyote creek had risen, was rising.
In a volume that testified to the truth
of the landlord's ns.iertlon that there
laid heen a cloudburst lie nccom-
landed them to the bridge, scorning
anv waterproof for the now swiftly
falling rainfall and the three leaned
over the rail and vvuti'hed tho sliding
torrent of brown water. Caleb marked
the waterline on the cement of the i
bridge abutments, noting It by certain
stains In the cement. It was covered
within five minutes by as many Inches.
“Blslng fast." he commented.
"She'll rise for an hour or so after
that bust." said the landlord. "She
comes a klyoolln' nn' n tootin' In ihe
winter when Gabby gets to tankin' ruin
In earnest."
Caleb saw lllmkley off. Then he
ordered a lunch put up. The landlord
buttresses where
1
keep up this game nnd he'll practically I mliu|0 tittle comment ns he handed It to
lose Ids reason, he purely bestial, he |,|m.
. " |HM' HI** i cunimi ■«• I—
Mp.ahfV Clinton wheeled. W* strnlKht. might commit nny crime—oven nror-
with military You're hi* friend. Do wlmt you
........ caleh
watched him. his blood seeming to
holt Before he could follow Mary
Morgan touched him on the elbow He
whirled. In no mood fur lior.
•Thin't snarl nt me." she said.
"Snarl at Ted Baxter. I want to tell
v„n something. That girl docsn t
iiults* believe all she has heard. And
the reason Is. hecauso she doesn't
wiiiit to. Now is**
\* i\iW»b onwwwil the street n enr
went by Baxter driving. Clinton and
Ma daughter were In Hie tonneau
Caleb's hands bulled Into lists, opened
will, clutching lingers, lie ached to
spring lor the footboard and drag
llaxter from behind li e wheel. Bax-
ter saxv him standing to let them pass
„nd shrugged his shoulders ns he gave
I, „ short smile of gleeful malice.
Caleb made ihe curb trembling with
rage, lie hud shaken before like Hint,
wnlting for Hie xeto hour In fits
trenches, before he lunged over the
top with righteous murder In Ids
can. lie'll be f ilrl.v fit by tomorrow.
Tbe st tiff hasn't really got him yot
We'll keep him quiet today with
•If yon aim to he out late you bet-
ter take a slicker along." he said. "By
the feel of the air an' my rheumatic
knee, old Gabby ain't through ylt.
Likely to he another eloudhu’sl afore
bromide*, or something sllffer. You're . gumBlink ns the Inside of yore
closer to him than u»y one else Just
now. I fancy." „ , .
•I'm sorry, doctor." sold Caleb,
"but we’ve hint n row. Pretty serious
one. And V don’l know. . . . I’ve
got to go out of town on urgent Inisl-
iioss for a day or two, . . •
••Huh! tlml n row? Then ymi enn t
do it thins Just aggravate hint Con-
found him. lie's rowing with nil hi*
best friend* Not quite responsible
perhaps ttooil by, " timer
Caleb was still hitter enough him
self to feci sontil sympathy with Bax
tor’s rendition, serious a* Fields con-
si,t,wed 11 to be. Baxter hadn’t been
drunk when he went t» Herman..* val-
ley to talk with Betty nml her father.
Hinckley was waiting for him at the
Fern lintldlng. The engineer had man-
aged to subtly hut completely disguise
himself. In old. baggy tweeds, will, a
hat over Hair
Caleb thanked him and took Ids nil- |
vice, lie wits bound for llernmnos i
valley and he crossed the bridge and ,
started up Mcriminos creek with Ids j
shoulders squared and Ills Juiv set. I
Nothing was going to prevent hint get- ,
ting an nttillenco with Clinton. He had ,
certain things to set forth nnd. stormy
though that Interview would probably
ho la the beginning, lie would let him-
self hold no doubt as to Its favorable
conclusion.
CHAPTER XII
On the Bridge
It wn* a live mile walk to tbe canyon
head, another mile to the ranch In
Caleb's rendition tbe distance, both
way*, meant IIUlc. He knew the din
sores In the rocky
the entiles were anchored, fissures
ever widened Hnd deepened by suc-
cessive winter assaults of storm wa-
ters. lie was hungry nnd lie decided
to eat Ids supper and wait for moon-
light before he crossed the gut and
struck the ridge trail down to hi N do.
Hv the time ho had finished eatli g.
a tremulous light above the western
ridge proclaimed Imminent moonrlse
anil the efforts of tlte luminary to con-
quer the already retreating masses of
cloud In their disorderly flight.
Caleb stepped onto the bridge cau-
tiously. either hand on the guide-rope
of steel wire, held up by Iron stan-
chions that were bolted through the
floor plonks. The structure shud-
dered under his tread as he felt Ids
wnv alone. Suddenly the rhythm of
Its trembling changed nnd became so
Irregular as to force him to a stiind-
' still. Tlte Jolting Increased. Some
' one else was on the bridge, coming
from the valley side. Mas It I a dill a .
lie held Ids ground. The boards
were not wlfle enough to permit of
two passing breast to breast. They
would have to sidle about each other.
If it was Padilla and tlie Mexican
wnnte.1 to dispute the crossing, there
would be trouble. Caleb was no go-
Ing to turn back, lie hesitated wheth-
er to coll out ns the other came on,
his trend sounding distinctly.
Then the moon suddenly broke
through Its veil and sent a transient
rnv Into tbe mouth of the gorge. Out
of the dark, ns If a spotlight hnd heen
' projected against a black curtain,
staring nt Caleb while he stared hack,
leaped ihe face of Ted Baxter: the
features Incredulous at first, swiftly
changing, before ‘he »«'’! fnllprt to "
sneering, taunting mask. Ills voice
sounded out of the dark as the light
vn nl slieil.
"Wlmt the devil are you doing up
The querv held a scornful emphasis
that nroused In Caleb aucli a swift,
consuming hatred In answer to the
challenge, as he Imd never known
himself capable of. This man. witliln
reach once his friend, hnd done him
treacherous Injury. Now was the lima
to strike a balance.
“tve been looking for you, Baxter,
he said. "Though I didn't exactly ex-
pect to meet you here. I know every-
thing you’ve done. It's opened my
I imd an Idea that you were
decent, that you possessed nt
remnants of honor, aotue
eyes,
fairly
taut some
O.S.T.
AUTO REPAIRING
General Blacksmith.
1). RAPE, Prop.
rhone 181.
Sonora. Texas.
UNDERTAKING
Robert Mcssic Ce.
Day and Night
Phone 148
Ban Angelo, Texas.
GATEWAY HOTEL
AND
Tallmads* Coffee Shoppe
Open all Night.
Mrs. A. B. Tallmadfe,
Del Rio, Texas.
CATARRHAL DEAFNESS
rfien by an Infiam^. condition
if Ih. n.uious lining of th«
Tube When tins tube Is Inflamed you
hm a n mhlin* jound or Imperfect
hearing. lt..le*s Uve Infiammatuia caa
I be reduced, your hearing fT»*ir «>e ao-
1 etrryed fofvvei.
I IIA1.LB CATARRH
E. C. GARVIN,
RANCH LOANS
!-ivc Stock &Real Est4te
f!'Ml,SNA*l
\ i .ii.iirli t >r ever Forty Yc-ir*.
nit drngutsts. _ w
icucy & CW Tole4*> A
SONORA. TEXAS
I thrust
| words, trying
| ' “That was business trad I <[ot
! best of you. To h -I with all hat I
j That isn’t what you're sore
! !t*« boontino I've rut you out with t
I girl. Why don't you own up to H •
I Bnxted laughed mockingly.
“You don't suppose, you poor boon,
that sho would ever look twice at m
man like you as a lover. You've got
diluted maple sirup In .vour veins.
She’s got blood, red. hot! I kissed
her less than half nn hour ago. I—
Fury overmastered Caleb. Baxter
hud touched the sensitive core of the
whole mntter—Betty Clinton! He
leaped for hi* man and felt the well-
nluicd, smashing Impact of Baxters
fists to neck nnd Jaw ns lie himself
drove hard to the body. But tho
straight punch that nearly found tlio
fatal "point" Jolted him badly anil
left him dizzy. He grappled to ft
clinch ns the moon salted out, wading'
through it shallow sen of spindrift
clouds.
I The bridge rocked nnd swayed to-
their struggle, bucking under them as
tho flood lifted It. only to let It sag
again, and swirled about their feef,
tugging viciously nt the structure,
teat lug nt the cables, thrusting at tits
cliffs. Their feet slipped oq the wet
planks, they fell against the Itand-
r..|ie and the slanting suspension,
stays, clutching frantically wltlj ontv
hand, striking with the other, giving
blows that left each sick with pain,
desperate, Ignoring tlte (>erll, clinging
nnd sliding while they fought, silent
save for their heavy breathing Rmf
the grunts with which n blow was de-
livered or received.
Hnxter fought foul ns bis strength
sapped from hint. Cnleb was harder,
deeper-lunged, hotter muscled for this
rough and tumble game. He ham-
mered Hnxter over the kidneys and'
Hnxter gasped with the pain, his fare
contorting while he hung like a dend
weight to his opponent, faint with an-
guish. When It passed be flung up-
bis knee anil caught CniPl* In the groin,
temporarily evening things. He broke
free nnd lashed out. right nnd left,
flailing nt Caleb’s head nnd Jaw as the-
latter crouched against an angle of the*
hand rope nnd n stay, covering up.
Then, with on energy summoned frons
his reserves, Caleh rushed, landing
hard shove the henrt. Baxter stag-
gered, groped forward and flung niv
arm about Caleb * neck, dragging with
all his weight while Baxter strove for
balance. His Ungers found Caleb's
throat, nnd worked desperately It*
shutting off breath, torturing as they
pressed upon the-Jugular.
As they clung, athwart the planka
now, Batter's weight nTmost unbear-
able In Ihe crook of Caleb’s arm, his
body stretched out down stream with
the force of the water, the eastern
buttress shuddered, tottered, slid t
plunging Into the gut. It toppled side-
ways, shaking the bridge as n terrier
shakes a rat, dragging It until tho
cables sang above (lie noise of Ihe tor-
rent and then, anchored by sunken
ledge nnd crevice. Jammed hard. It
held firm. Ihe cables slill secure. Thu
sudden Jar, the lowered pitch, was too
much for Baxter. The blow over the
heart had finished Ids endurance. Ill*
fingers lost their grip on Caleb's throat,
the furious water claimed him. HI*
despairing clutch on Caleb's smooth,
slicker fulled. He gave a cry, his fare
ghastly la the white light of the mnim
nnd slid Into the current like a hog.
Caleb snatched him by Ihe collar of
his coat and shifted Ids aruiliold for a
grip on a saving stanchion ns they
both straightened out In the Imperious
sweep of tls* maddened creek. It<*
thought Ids arm would lie torn from Its
sockot with the strain and he fliuiuigett
to wrap his legs about the planks,
shouting nt Baxter, yelling Ids loudest.
Cnless Baxter helped to save himself,
or Caleb let loose of him, another mo-
ment would see them both whirled
down the gut, over nnd over, thole
lungs filled with water, buttered,
drowned!
“Gel hold of yourself,” Caleb yelled'.
“Baxter! Get n grip on something,
hang on to me. Haul yourself upi
Quick r
The Insistent words nnd the will be-
hind them worked In Baxter’s nunilv
brain nnd roused him to a lust flurry-
ing fight for life. With h frantic effort
lie clawed nt Caleb, twining Ids finger*
In the slicker nnd slowly drugged him-
self up from the suction of thp flood.
Caleb got both hands to the stanchion,
praying tlmt It mlgtrt hold. Bnxter
found the opposite one, then the hund-
nqie. anil so erawled to safety, releas-
ing Caleb from lif t dead weight, no
began to hlteh hliusqff np the Incline
while Caleb lay for the moment slack,
utterly exhausted. Ids breath coming
lu great gusps, the fibers of hi* nms-
cltui seeming to be torn apart, hi*,
sinew s rucked. He got to hla knee*
at lust and then to hla feet. Tho
bridge might collapae at any second,
there wus no time to lose. Baster eid-
i'qpsed again from weakneaa. facedown
f a the plunk* where they still showed
. hove tl q. evr-rUltur. turj«un wnty,
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Devil's River News. (Sonora, Tex.), Vol. 35, No. 1850, Ed. 1 Saturday, May 15, 1926, newspaper, May 15, 1926; Sonora, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth979186/m1/4/: accessed July 2, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; .