Newspapers / The Wallace Enterprise (Wallace, … / Oct. 24, 1935, edition 1 / Page 5
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«■* SerUI Fiction in a now form..... Throe Prise Short Storks (of four initalmenU t, Res Beech at Me beet. • FINAL INSTALMENT ’ i Mechanically Ben made an ; effort to rise, but could not ■ manage it. “Must have hit on my head,” ' he mumbled thickly, and raised ; groping fingers. Then he sat up. He knew now that he had ? not fallen into a pit. “Where are they? What’s— happened?” Betty was sobbing wildly; her hair hung in a cascade , about her shoulders; Bhe was | clad only in her nightdress, and it was soaked with the wa ter she had poured over Ben 1 to revive him. Beside the open door to the | hall lay the wreck of a chair; ; two of its legs were splintered, f broken off: Ben realized more | clearly what it was that had I crashed down upon his head. With an effort he scrambled dizzily to his feet. Water was | trickling into his eyes and binding him; he brushed it away, tnen discovered, to his £ great surprise, that it was not water at all, but blood, his own blood. His head felt twice its normal size; his brain did not • function clearly and his limbs I refused to obey him. Betty’s voice came to him as , if from a long distance; she was telling him something try ing ito make him understand that they were alone n the house and that their assailant had fled. When this became plain to Furlong, he sat down. It was some time before the girl succeeded in stanching that flow of blood wound, for she was scarcely in condition to render help to anybody. By the time her task was complet | ed Ben had managed to get a pretty clear idea of what had happened. She had been awak ened by a sound and had real ized that somebody was in her room; she had uttered a fright \ ened challenge, only to feel groping hands upon her, to find herself in the grasp of some unseen person. She re tained no very clear recollec tion of anything after that; the rest was a hidious nightmare. Not until the miscreant had bolted out of the house and she had finally managed somehow : to strike a light was she made aware of the reason for his 'flight. Then she had stumbled over Ben and had realized that it was his voice she had heard calling to her, that it- was the sound of his coming that had . interrupted the attack. His plight had done a good deal to bring her back to herself, but now she threatened to again abandon her se’f-control. Furlong checked this by spy ing: “Betty Durham! You’ve | got nothing on but your night . ie!" I It was some time later when % the girl emerged from her ; room, dressed after a fashion, to find her deliverer waiting in | the kitchen with a scowl upon j his face. “You got a gun?” he inquir ; ed, harshly. “No, Ben. Why?” “I’m going to kill Maddox.” For a moment Betty stared at the speaker; with shaking fin ' gers she plucked at her dress. ■ It was in a thin, reedy voice that she said: .“It wasn’t Maddox.” “How do you know?” “Oh, I know! It wasn’t Mad dox". £ Are you sure?" The girl l nodded, and Ben bowed his ; throbbing head in his hands. "I’m glad,” he groaned. “Pro vidence certainly brought me ; back. It wouldn’t happen that - way once in a thousand times. Whoever it was, I’ll find him.” Both the man and the girl I were in wretched condition. The ?; rest of the night they sat to ft gether, watching the clock and i listening for a possible return ; of the marauder, waiting for the day to break. It was shortly after they had finished breakfast that Fur 1 long was surprised to discover aigns of activity,' movements, - goings-on at the * well which caused him to stare fixedly, then to announce, inCredulOUS tJy. I ’‘Say! I believe Maddox is [ fixing to shoot the well I” (( “All the same, he’s doing something queer. See those1 cans—those shiny things?" “You couldn’t hire Tiller to touch nitroglycerine. He’s scar ed of it—” Ben uttered an oath. “I tell you he’s filling those cartrid ges. He’s crazy! You’ve got to stop him!" Betty turned white; she shook her head. “I won’t goj near the place. It’s—it’s Aunt; Mapv^s wpII 99 * “Then I’ll' stop him. Why, it’s ten to one he’ll sear the rock, ruin the whole job and^-Damn ed if I don’t believe he’s trying to do that very thing!” Furlong started for the door but Betty clung to him. When he pushed on past her she fol lowed him. Together they hur ried across the field and took the path through the mesquite. As they went the girl continued to implore him not to interfere. Halfway to the drilling camp they met the engineer hasten ing towards the farmhouse and the latter announced, breath lessly: “Tiller’s gone plumb off his nut! He’s goin’ to shoot the well himself. You better stay clear.” Furlong dashed past the speaker and emerged from the shelter of the bushes in time to see Maddox gingerly swing a long, cylindrical tin over the well mouth and guide it into the opening. A new manila rope had been run through a block on the derrick, and with this he lowered the charge. Ben yelled at him; he waved his arms. Maddox glanced over his shoulder, then let the line slide smoothly through his hands. “Take my tip an’ don’t go too close,” the engineer shout ed. “He ain’t no powder man an’ that well’s makin’ gas. She blows off every few minutes.” Betty seconded this warning in frantic tones of appeal: “Let him go, Ben. He knows what he is doing. You’ve got no right stopping him. You’ll just make trouble—” “It’s none of my business,” the latter agreed, impatiently, “but there’s something crooked —” He ceased speaking; then he seized Betty and whirled her around with the sharp com mand, “Run! Get back!” They were still perhaps a hundred yards from the well, but Furlong’s practiced eye had seen something that sud denly raised the hair upon his head. That rope from which was suspended the heavy charge of liqiud death no long ger hung vertically, it no long er ran over the block and into the casing; instead It wa< fal ling in loops about Maddox. It was coming up out of (he well! Maddox himself was alive to what had happened. That which he most greatly feared had come upon him, and he al so turned to flee. But the plat form was slippery or else he tripped over the rope and fell. The others heard his cry of ter ror. He quickly regained his feet, but to Furlong it seem ed as if his movements there after were maddeningly slow and deliberate. The engineer’s apprehen sions had been well grounded. Once again gas had been re leased far down in the earth, and now, like breath forced from the lungs of some tortur ed giant, it rose, propelling the smoothly fitting cartridge of nitroglycerine ahead of it as a pea is pfopelled out of a pea shooter. It was a phenomenon by no means unusual in a well as unstable in its balance of forces as this one. In fact, un der like conditions none but a mad man would have dared to risk Maddox’s maneuver. The latter had not put fifty feet behind him when up out of the well mouth shot the gleaming tin cylinder. Directly above and in its path hung the massive forty-foot steel bit suspended from its wire cable. What happened next the ob servers were never able to ag ree upon, but the world dis olved into an inferno of smoke and flame and the suddenness of it rocked the sky, upheaved the earth. The two came to lether with a cataclysmic ~ar. Furlong and Batty Durham were tossed headlong, flung down like straws. When they scrambled to their feet, dazed, shaken, terrified it was to find themselves enveloped in a mighty dust cloud. The eighty foot tower of heavy timbers was gone; in an instant it had utterly vanished. Where it had stood was a shallow, smoking crater. Splinters of planking, debris of every sort, were scat tered for and wide; particles of earth and gravel were rain ing from the heavens with the sound of a heavy hailstorm; nothing in the neighborhood of the well remained except the boiler and engine and the for mer lay upon its side. Even the bushel had been whipped out, uprooted, shaved off as by a sweeping scythe. That afternoon Furlong’s friend, the engineer, came ov er to the farmhouse with a con siderable bundle in his arms. “How’s Betty”? he inquired. “She’s all right, but pretty well bruised, of course.” “Well, I guess there’s no thin’ more us boys can do, so we’re goin’ in to town.” “Right. I’ll stay here until Mrs. Durham gets back.” “Here’s all of Tiller’s stuff that we could find. I reckon you better look after it.” “Anything besides clothes?” “Not much. A few letters an’ things we found in his bunk. Miz’ Durham can keep ’em in case he’s got relatives. There is one suit of clothes that would fit me. No use to throw ’em away. Say L It’s funny how scared he was of powder. It musta been a huncb.” Shortly after the engineer had left, Ben came to Betty with a queer light in his eyes. In his hand he held a soiled sheet of foolscap paper. “Feel strong enough to stand another explosion?” he inquir ed with an effort to suppress his agitation. “Well, the queer est thing-i—l This farm doesn’t belong to your aunt Mary, af ter all; it belongs to you!” The girl gasped; she voiced some breathless query, but Ben ran on: “Your uncle Joe left it to you, just as he promised. He left everything to her. This is his will and Maddox had it. I guess it’s a good will, even though your uncle Wrote it himself. Anyhow it’s witnes sed by two people—Maddox and another. From the date I fig ure it must have been signed just a day or so before he was killed.” "Where did it come from? How did Maddox—?” I’ve figured that out too, Mr. Durham must have had it in his pocket when Maddox found him. That would explain ev erything—how he made your aunt do just what he wanted and why she didn’t dare to fire him.” “That's why she said I’d have to marry him! That’s why Don’t Prolong The Agony! Next time you suffer from Gas on Stomach, Headache, Sour Stomach, a Cold, Muscular, Rheumatic, Sciatic or Periodic Pains; That Tired Feeling, That "Morning After” Feeling. Get a glass of water and drop in one or two tablets of \ Alka-Seltzer The New Pain-Relieving, Alka lizing, Effervescent Tablet Watch it bubble up, then drink It You will be amazed at the almost instant relief. It is called Alka-Seltzer because it makes a sparkling alkaline drink, and as it contains an analgesic (Acetyl-Salicylate) it first relieves the pain of every day ailments and then by re storing the alkaline balance cor rects the cause when due to excess arid. After trying many brands of medicines—so-called relief for gas, and all of them a failure, I gave up hopes. By chance I tried Alka-Seltzer—I am more than satisfied. Geo. Bennett, New York, N. Y. Get a glass at your drug store soda fountain. Take home a 30 cent or 60 cent package. V'2G6-. ■Z-SsiKi.-x*'. .Jh. iJl'A/w* J —Oh, Ben!” Betty rose sudden ly and clutched Furlong. "I knew she was a mean, selfish old thing, but I never thought she was so—wicked. This oil is a curse to poor people. I hate it!” “Why, Betty!" Furlong ex claimed. “You’re the wicked one to quarrel—” “She’s the only kin I’ve got left and I tried my best to love her. But she was so greedy for quick money that nothing mat tered. Maddox, too! It made beasts of them. I almost wish we’d never heard of oil.” Af ter a moment the speakercon tinued, more quietly: "I lied to you last night. It was Tiller who came here.” Furlong’s body stiffened, he breathed an oath, then he mut tered: “I thought so. Why did n't you tell me?” “What’s more, she knew he was-^coroing! They arranged it. She as good as sent him! That’s how he got the kitchen key.” This announcement the man greeted with the growl of an animal. He began to pace aboul the room; his face had grown black and threatening; his fin gers were working as he storm ed: “Wait! Wait till she gets back here!” “You can’t lay your hands on a woman—” “Cant I?” he breathed. Betty shook her head; a mo ment, then a new expression slowly crept into her eyes; hei chin set itself firmly. “No!” sht declared. “But you can lay ’em on her trunk and drag it oul here where I can pack it.” “I sure can,” Ben agreed “And what’s more, when yoi get it packed I can lug it oul to the gate where it will b< nice and handy for her.” Ab j he finished speaking his frown disappeared; it was replaced by a grin and he said: “Say, Bet ty ! What d'you think? I’m go ing to marry an heiress, after all" THE END Ignorance or Innocence University of Virginia sav ants will attempt to learn why babies smile. We can only at tribute it to ignorance of what posterity is up against.—Des Moines Register. Science mystified by period' ic fading of radio signals. NOTICE OP RESALE By virtue of authority in a judgment of the Superior Court in case entitled, N. C. Bank and T. Company vs. B. F. Pearsall Et al, the undersigned will sell at the courthouse door in Kenansville, N. C., on MON DAY, NOV. 4, 1935, at one o’ clock, P. M. to the highest bid der for cash, lands situated in Island Creek Township, Duplin County, N. C., described as fol lows: First Tract: Beginning at a stake in the center of Souther land street, the beginning cor ner of lot No. 1, and runs {thence South 75.10 west 270 feet to a stake, corner of lot No. 1, the center of Souther land Street, thence N. 14.1C west 115 feet to a stake, thence N. 67 East 290 feet to a stake, thence south 17 East 33 feet to a stake, thence S. 75.50 West 124 feet to a stake; thence South 17 east 139.5 feet to the beginning and being lot No. 2, as set out in report of commit tee and final decree in case of Jeremiah Southerland, Et al, which said report and final de cree is recorded in Register of Deeds office of Duplin County in Deed book 163, page 138, on the 30th day of April, 1914. Second Tract: Adjoining the lands of S. B. Newton, Louise S. Pearsall, Deed, L. B. Carr and others and beginning in t-he Southerland line in the west line of Orange street and runs with the western line of said Orange Street, south 14 de grees, 45 mins. East 93 feet to the northern line of Boney Street, thence with the line of said Boney street South 75 de grees, 15 mins. West 158 feet to the Southerland line, thence with the said Southerland line north 44 degrees, 46 1160 feet to the begii training 7606 square The bidding will first resale at $845.25 This the Oct. 15, GEO. R. WARD, Commissio Oct. 24-31 —17«, At the first SNIFFLE Quick!—the unique aid for preventing colds. Especially de signed for nose and upper throat, where most colds ttart. VICKS VATRONOL 30c doubU quantity 50c PREPARE TO ENJOY THE LONG WINTER EV ENINGS BY HAVING US INSTALL A NEW PHILCO RADIO Clear Tone — Longer Life — Wider Range ASK US FOR A DEMONSTRATION Tubes tested free — Complete radio equipment Member Radio Manufacturing Service We also carry a full line of Hardware Come to see us for your needs. We have it, can get it, or it isn’t made. A full line of stoves and heaters now on display. Come look ’em over before cold weather catches you unprepared HUNTING LICENSES County—$1.10 . State—$2.10 Combination State Hunting and Fishing $3.10 Stedman Carr Hwd. Store WALLACE, N. C. R ENGINE OUT THERE When your car’s in cold storage at the curb this winter, don't have misgivings. Simply do what no oiling system can do by itself... make your engine stay oiled at a standstill, by changing to Conoco Germ Processed Oil. Then when the thermometer slides, so will every part of your engine. You can come out calmly, as late as you like, to an engine that’s oiled IN ADVANCE —clear to the top—before you’ve touched door-latch or starter. No more cruel, scraping starts, without half enough lubrication. And right there, you know, is where engineers lay more than half the blame for worn-out motors. But the Conoco Germ Process . . . patented ... spares you all that. How? By giving this oil the startling power to COMBINE with metal. That’s what gives you the famous Hidden Quart, which won’t drain down. It’s up there for starting, and then while you’re run ning it backs up the high-durability Germ Processed Oil film. You may have one of the newest cars —with their copper-lead, high-lead, or cadmium-alloy bearings. Or you may have an older model—with babbitt bearings. But you can be sure that any bearing—or any other moving part is safer with Germ Processed Oil. This season don’t merely change your oil. . . change your car’s whole future... all for the better. Get to your helpful Conoco man before Sunday comes. Continental Oil Company, Established 1875. CONOCO GERM PROCESSED MOTOR OIL Head ia at this sign today and head off Winter damage Yoar correct grade always
The Wallace Enterprise (Wallace, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Oct. 24, 1935, edition 1
5
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