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. CHAPTER it - _ Skis vs. Snowshoes -- 1 r'. The morning train left at eleven o'eloek,s The colonel had telephoned the Ideal livery-man to send rigs for our party. The sheriff determined to wait and Co in after we had broken the trail. " T _ . While We were umitin- 0.“. ", "e---"' I..- nu." us one wunu; . T ' Covered: witht blushes _at her own temerity; Mrs. Lillielove left me to di.. 'gest her declaration. This two-hun- dred-pound Venus had seen in'me a Don Juan and was secretly envious of Mrs: Hemmingxygy as the supposed réeipient of my attentions. The poor nyt.'. What a fool situa-? tion: it was. Probably no man within; a radius of a hundred miles was less) $233225 Erase: 1g)ttdirigtUtht,',t "my part I was thrust into a stellar part in a Decamerori romance. How could I clear myself and be- come again what I had been yesterday, a good natured dub, conventionally in love with the sweetest' girl in the world She paused to observe the effect of her Feproof. _ _ _ .f: . ' "But how We trirtlss, do admire:rotr rakes, yet} nfeit of the world."'. _ j‘T Wagnt'to beg your pardtén tor #9 whin3£4to You' at brea fast”? 1'tltk'fit.itiitriititsiii; _ Went ; Trn nervouély. "pf/course krmhldn'f before _ _eaasrarbodf $5011 understand. don't you Mr. Bild beck. "that my" social position as' the .Wife of .the _ most prorihnent under-) taker ané embalmer in town makes if impbssible for me to do'anything openly that might be talked about?" I assured her absently that I-under- stood. What wasvshe driving at? _ "But beneath my calm, conventional exterior," she wént on, “I am terribly 11ynytrttic.', I' an: very broad, and als thong}: the world may ffout you far l?'iinir another man's wife, I do not censure you. Oh, Mr. Bilbeck, you naighty man!" was mr re4uiretr, is; a conversational qiA. 31nd he left-us shine. _ ' -"-- - .77. w“.- - wuc. . . Riding In, tram the scene of the nun-r play in their costume: mnd overeodn. the group of player: is held up by two caved convicts, one of whom is captured by Bilheck after I struggle. . The captured thief is tied to I chair It the Old Soldier's Home. Unable to lave the home " tho-car refuse. to budge. the payers must am there. end Mr. mum. hear; ing this over the dune, an he i coming- right to the home--" he i suspicion of hrs wife and Bilbeck. "r-ttue an Bheritt, arr _ . . . _ Eminzway arrives just when BUMR h uskting Mm. Heinminzm. who but hinted, and of course think: the worst. Meanwhile I dhturbunce is heard in the cellar. lad " inthehom rush dammit. . _ The Sheritrs hone has broken loose. Means while Hémmingway suspects Bilbeck more and more. and Jim Cooner min. in 'n o-“ and more, and Jim Cooper mixes inuto tell Bilbeck he has arraiured that the Hannah!- ways be divorced and that Bilbeck in to may Mrs. Emmingway. _ . _ _ NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY "e Sha Sheridan Dramatic Club, ofwhioh‘Toal Bilheck, the narrator. Muyelh. the (it! he one: tor, and Jim Cooper. " rival. m when. nun a performance of Win Bad Guiana " the ou Soldien' Home. but we interrupted by I Bee, During the "heur- ants Tom 31'le ind-conned br-ti-ttmid ts. one_ of the ashorg, M.t. 1hrmasirurwav, of hymn ' ioGGriiirtiii' Git cmrade Dreyenfurth saw that id, were uniting for Ibo A, ."What cnn we dot" 1iilliehtve. _ .' h . "Maybe he will anyway," I added gloomily. What pleasure it would be to _paY a' fine for assault and battery committed on the person of one James Cooper, alias Jim the Fixer! The telephone rang. Every one listened withetrained attention while, the colonel answered it. T 1 "What's that f" he asked after list- ening a minute. "Cnn't get thy-ninth? . I was almost upon hih I shut my eyes . "Why, Jim has just 2old nte that he tiked it all' up for you," she ex- plained, innocently enough. "'He says it is all forvthe best, beéause otherwise Mr. Hemmintrway would probably have shot. you." " ‘MaryeIIaLhad spoken to me, when she came' from the room. _ .“I suppose I ought torforyrratulate you,” she traid. “Although I-amjntre I don't know just what one does say to a man who wins- the lo_ve of a married Woman.~~ . _ Everyone was anxious to get away. As the time approached for the rigs to come the women folk got on their Wraps and sat around expectantly nearuthe door so as not to keep us waiting, many were cracked. Evidently the Home ttot its records from the same source as its magazines. _ teams to come Comrade Henwether played the Phanatrraph for us. thr. ing to his afilietion his choice 9; records was nothing extra. Most_6'f the atiettrdietrsiiii' “very ancient _ “and “can: Ct "stb'_T--u=-r. V" wailed He made a supreme "ort--nnd stumbled "You io with me P" H questioned derisively. "t object in your trying to gt You have already robbed only thing! out!" in lit other with siirnifieant looks " Ht to say, See." The ownership of the woman has passed from the hushm'wI to the tueknowledsrp “WI!" . we can't let you‘go alone," Col- onel Stewart . objected when Hem- mintrwarbetran to bundle up prepare atory to leaving. "There i, really considerable danger.” "Then will someone else go with _-9” Mrs. Hernmintrway flushed as if she hid Lien struck. ’1 half rose as if to defend .her. This was Vobservgd by the Irtlytrs-, who. glanged gt one ati- 'Bue the snow' is deeper now," "obs jetted Mrs. Ji.e.mmimrwak, her matron- ly concern overcoming her anger for the moment; TT _ "Thank you just as much for your suggestion,” her husband said coldly, “butimy going and coming has ceased to be any-affair of yours.". 3.81388 Mr. Hemmingway made the first move. "Pm going to town,'! he de- clared. Ir e.an't stand it. here any I6iiiriiiirt, made it once on Snowshoes, and I guess I can do'it again.” "But there must be some way "tf getting through to-day." _ "Not unless you use snowshoes.” _ We sot in moody silence.. As hardly any one was speaking' to anyone else, there was not muelropportunity ter discussion of our situation. l '" . "You'lt have to stay here until they get. the road brpkep through. They isny that they can make it 'tit,ggy, if there is, noJurtherigll of no I th me t'" Hemminzvéai 'isively. "There is no trying to get me alone. Y robbed me of the for in life." lie-me, view. of the country. 0}.er Gi; (Continued on Nut Pure) I made " somehow, but Hemming- way on snowshoes but me to the crest by'seven! minutes. He waited there until I trot nearlrto the top and then he started down the other side. " I trained the summit. It was not very high, "but alTOrded In excellent _ My egotism melted away when’we came to the first rise. It was a gentle 'slope, but I found it very "iitBeutt to climb. I had to tack or else I found myself slipping backwards. _ I tried dismounting from the skis, but fouruy that the snow was up .near- ly to my walat and well-nigh impos- sible to Bounder throutth. me, for ,ski running.' .I'was fairly level from the Old Soldiers' Home, however,, tor a distance of aetrepat blocks. I was glad of that beclPyt it gave me an opnnmuny to sort of find ‘my on letra." By the time I euuld take three steps ,ithoutarirr, ping or splitting, I tronsjs.iered that I was no, longer in' the amateur class. Lia's; able to keep still, thank Heaven, although it would have given me gfeat pressure to have swatte'd him with the flat side of a ski. The country round about was slop- ing. This is ideal ground, they tell nney turned the other way itnd I got my runners ci-ossed. _ "If you're trying to make me laugh," .said Mr. Hemingway sar- castically, turl got up and dug the snow out of my eyes and ears, "yiru may as well give up. Pm not in the humor for it." _ On the few Occasions when I de- fleeted them fro.m the outward angle they turned the other way sind- I got my runners ci-ossed. . tertdtriey to 'iiiriiiitHEit was Wriiririir.. graiatine. Once or twice I had io sit down to argue with them about it. I'couldn't follow both --of them, and if I went with one I had to leave one leg behind. on account of everything being piled deep with snow, but if you Liar. due east you’ll come out at the village without fail." " J. _ We started, not rapidly-as , "uve heard that Indians, and. Norwegians travel across snow-trel' but chu- tiotEIy and slowly. "rtiskiii hadui' "You tan't get logt,"'he assured us. "It may be hard to follow the road The colonel bad us trodsiseed and directed us on our way. . “v...“ *‘._N. _AL ‘A,A " a - Finally we dug up some skin which had been sent by some charitable con- tributor with a'lack of humor. If you never happened to have seen any, they are long strips of springy wood about four inches wide turned 'up at one end like a sled 'runner. If you can navi- gate them the chances are that you can spell _ "fjord" without breaking the typewriter. . "e . .. Then came the _problem of imowL shoes. Hemminxway had his that he had secured/m town, but there wasn't Another pair in the institution. At last he Said, "Come on, them if you’re the only one who has thtmirve to follow where rlettd." ' . _ J im’s argument - curried undeniable weight with the distracted husband. I could see him ponder it. Although he had cut her off, -the idea of his wife taking up with someone else was willing to_him. _ I "Don't be umuonoble." Jim Cooper put in hits oar " new. “This is all for the best. You ought to be glad to have Tom tro with you. If he's with you it is the only trey you can be certain that he "n'tuurtintr with your wife." a tragic glance at the dissolving iers, Httynintrwnv. . 7 aEOrdggl gn axial-e}; “and". J nae 20, 1929 the snow b. 5751 FIN 20% BRO 618 514