A DREAM COMES TRUE
On the edge of the mesa, from which, on the day of her adventure with the
injured ankle, Ruth had viewed the beautiful virgin wilderness that
stretched far on the opposite side of the river, she was riding, the
afternoon of a day a week later, with Randerson. She had expressed a wish
to come here, and Randerson had agreed joyfully.
Seated on a rock in the shade of some trees that formed the edge of that
timber grove in which he had tied Ruth's pony on a night that held many
memories for both, they had watched, for a long time, in silence, the
vast country before them. Something of the solemn calmness of the scene
was reflected in Ruth's eyes. But there was a different expression in
Randerson's eyes. It was as though he possessed a secret which, he felt,
she ought to know, but was deliberately delaying the telling of it. But
at last he decided, though he began obliquely:
"I reckon there's a set plan for the way things turn out--for folks," he
said, gravely. "Things turn out to show it. Everything is fixed." He
smiled as she looked at him. "Take me," he went on. "I saw your picture.
If I'd only seen it once, mebbe I wouldn't have fell in love with it.
But--"
"Why, Rex!" she reproved with an injured air, "how can you say that? Why,
I believe I loved you from the minute I saw you!"
"You didn't have anything on me there!" he told her. "For I was a gone
coon the first time I set eyes on _you!_ But is it the same with
pictures? A picture, now, has to be studied; it ain't like the real
article," he apologized. "Anyway, if I hadn't kept lookin' at your
picture, mebbe things would have been different. But I got it, an' I
looked at it a lot. That shows that it was all fixed for you an' me."
She looked mirthfully at him. "Was it all fixed for you to take the
picture from Vickers, by force--as you told me you did?" she demanded.
He grinned brazenly. "I reckon that was part of the plan," he contended.
"Anyway, I got it. Vickers wouldn't speak to me for a month, but I reckon
I didn't lose any sleep over that. What sleep I lost was lost lookin' at
the picture." The confession did not embarrass him, for he continued
quietly:
"An' there's Masten." He watched the smile go out of her face with regret
in his eyes. But he went on. "I intended to kill him, one night. But he
had no gun, an' I couldn't. That would have spoiled the plan that's fixed
for all of us. I let him live, an' the plan works out." He took hold of
the hand nearest him and pressed it tightly.
"Have you seen Hagar since?" he asked.
"No," she told him, looking quickly at him, for she caught an odd note in
his voice. "I just couldn't bear to think of going back there."
"Well," he said, "Hagar's happy. I was over there this mornin'. Masten's
there." He felt her hand grip his suddenly, and he smiled. He had talked
with Catherson; the nester had told him the story, but it had been agreed
between them the real story was not to be told. "They're married--Hagar
an' Masten. Masten come to Catherson's shack the day after I--after I
brought you home from there. An' they rode over to Lazette an' got hooked
up. An' Catherson had been lookin' for Masten, figurin' to kill him. I
reckon it was planned for Masten to have a change of heart. Or mebbe it
was gettin' married changed him. For he's a lot different, since. He's
quiet, an' a heap considerate of other folks' feelin's. He's got some
money, an' he's goin' to help Abe to fix up his place. He asked my
pardon, for settin' Pickett an' Kelso on me. I shook his hand, Ruth, an'
wished him luck an' happiness. Don't you wish him the same, Ruth--both of
them?"
"Yes," she said earnestly; "I do!" And now she was looking at him with
luminous eyes. "But it was very manly of you to forgive him so fully!"
"I reckon it wasn't so awful manly," he returned, blushing. "There wasn't
nothin' else to do, I expect. Would you have me hold a grudge against
him? An' spoil everything--nature's plan included? It was to happen that
way, an' I ain't interferin'. Why, I reckon if I wasn't to forgive him,
there'd be another plan spoiled--yours an' mine. An' I'm sure helpin' to
work that out. I've thought of the first of the month," he said, looking
at her, expectantly, and speaking lowly. "The justice of the peace will
be back in Lazette then."
"So you've been inquiring?" she said, her face suffused with color.
"Why, sure! Somebody's got to do it. It's my job."
A little later they mounted their ponies and rode along the edge of the
timber. When they reached the tree to which he had tied her pony on the
night she had hurt her ankle, he called her attention to it.
"That's where I lost the bandanna," he told her. "It fell off my neck an'
got tangled in the knot."
"Then you know!" she exclaimed.
"Sure," he said, grinning; "Uncle Jepson told me."
"I think Uncle Jep has been your right hand man all through this," she
charged.
"Why shouldn't he be?" he retorted. And she could give him no reason why
it should have been otherwise.
"It was a rather mean trick to play on me," she charged pretending
indignation.
"If you'd have thought it mean, you'd have told me about it before now,"
he answered. "Patches was reliable."
"Kester an' Linton have sloped," he told her as they rode away from the
trees. "This climate was gettin' unhealthy for them."
"What makes folks act so foolish?" he questioned, later. "There ain't no
way to escape what's got to be. Why can't folks take their medicine
without makin' faces?"
She knew he referred to Masten, Chavis and Pickett, and she knew that
this would be all the reference Randerson would ever make to them. But no
answer formed in her mind and she kept silent.
When they came to the rock upon which he had found her, he halted and
regarded it gravely.
"You had me scared that night," he said. "Patches had most run his head
off. I was mighty relieved to see you."
"I treated you miserably that night," she confessed.
"Did you hear me complainin'?" he asked with a gentle smile at her. "I
expect, some day, when we're together more, an' you get to lovin' me less
than you do now, you'll get peevish ag'in. Married folks always do. But I
won't notice it. I'll get on Patches--if he's alive, you wantin' to put
off the marriage so long--"
"Until the first!" she laughed, in gentle derision.
"Well," he said, with pretended gravity, "when a man has waited, as long
as I've waited, he gets sort of impatient." He grinned again, and gave
her this last shot: "An' mighty _patient_ after!"
And they rode on again, through the white sunlight, close together,
dreaming of days to come.
THE END
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ZANE GREY'S NOVELS
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list
THE LIGHT OF WESTERN STARS
A New York society girl buys a ranch which becomes the center of frontier
warfare Her loyal superintendent rescues her when she is captured by
bandits. A surprising climax brings the story to a delightful close.
THE RAINBOW TRAIL
The story of a young clergyman who becomes a wanderer in the great
western uplands--until at last love and faith awake.
DESERT GOLD
The story describes the recent uprising along the border, and ends with
the finding of the gold which two prospectors had willed to the girl who
is the story's heroine.
RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE
A picturesque romance of Utah of some forty years ago when Mormon
authority ruled. The prosecution of Jane Withersteen is the theme of the
story.
THE LAST OF THE PLAINSMEN
This is the record of a trip which the author took with Buffalo Jones,
known as the preserver of the American bison, across the Arizona desert
and of a hunt in "that wonderful country of deep canons and giant pines"
THE HERITAGE OF THE DESERT
A lovely girl, who has been reared among Mormons, learns to love a young
New Englander. The Mormon religion, however, demands that the girl shall
become the second wife of one of the Mormons--Well, that's the problem of
this great story.
THE SHORT STOP
The young hero, tiring of his factory grind, starts out to win fame and
fortune as a professional ball player. His hard knocks at the start are
followed by such success as clean sportsmanship, courage and honesty
ought to win.
BETTY ZANE
This story tells of the bravery and heroism of Betty, the beautiful young
sister of old Colonel Zane, one of the bravest pioneers.
THE LONE STAR RANGER
After killing a man in self defense, Buck Duane becomes an outlaw along
the Texas border. In a camp on the Mexican side of the river, he finds a
young girl held prisoner, and in attempting to rescue her, brings down
upon himself the wrath of her captors and henceforth is hunted on one
side by honest men, on the other by outlaws.
THE BORDER LEGION
Joan Randle, in a spirit of anger, sent Jim Cleve out to a lawless
Western mining camp, to prove his mettle. Then realizing that she loved
him--she followed him out. On her way, she is captured by a bandit band,
and trouble begins when she shoots Kells, the leader--and nurses him to
health again. Here enters another romance--when Joan, disguised as an
outlaw, observes Jim, in the throes of dissipation. A gold strike, a
thrilling robbery--gambling and gun play carry you along breathlessly.
THE LAST OF THE GREAT SCOUTS
By Helen Cody Wetmore and Zane Grey
The life story of Colonel William F Cody, "Buffalo Bill," as told by his
sister and Zane Grey. It begins with his boyhood in Iowa and his first
encounter with an Indian. We see "Bill" as a pony express rider, then
near Fort Sumter as Chief of the Scouts, and later engaged in the most
dangerous Indian campaigns. There is also a very interesting account of
the travels of "The Wild West" Show. No character in public life makes a
stronger appeal to the imagination of America than "Buffalo Bill," whose
daring and bravery made him famous.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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STORIES OF RARE CHARM BY
GENE STRATTON-PORTER
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list.
MICHAEL O'HALLORAN. Illustrated by Frances Rogers
Michael is a quick-witted little Irish newsboy, living in Northern
Indiana. He adopts a deserted little girl, a cripple. He also assumes the
responsibility of leading the entire rural community upward and onward.
LADDIE. Illustrated by Herman Pfeifer.
This is a bright, cheery tale with the scenes laid in Indiana. The story
is told by Little Sister, the youngest member of a large family, but it
is concerned not so much with childish doings as with the love affairs of
older members of the family. Chief among them is that of Laddie and the
Princess, an English girl who has come to live in the neighborhood and
about whose family there hangs a mystery.
THE HARVESTER. Illustrated by W. L. Jacobs.
"The Harvester," is a man of the woods and fields, and if the book had
nothing in it but the splendid figure of this man it would be notable.
But when the Girl comes to his "Medicine Woods," there begins a romance
of the rarest idyllic quality.
FRECKLES. Illustrated.
Freckles is a nameless waif when the tale opens, but the way in which he
takes hold of life, the nature friendships he forms in the great
Limberlost Swamp, the manner in which everyone who meets him succumbs to
the charm of his engaging personality; and his love-story with "The
Angel" are full of real sentiment.
A GIRL OF THE LIMBERLOST. Illustrated.
The story of a girl of the Michigan woods; a buoyant, loveable type of
the self-reliant American. Her philosophy is one of love and kindness
towards all things, her hope is never dimmed. And by the sheer beauty of
her soul, and the purity of her vision, she wins from barren and
unpromising surroundings those rewards of high courage.
AT THE FOOT OF THE RAINBOW. Illustrations in colors.
The scene of this charming love story is laid in Central Indiana. The
story is one of devoted friendship, and tender self-sacrificing love. The
novel is brimful of the most beautiful word painting of nature, and its
pathos and tender sentiment will endear it to all.
THE SONG OF THE CARDINAL. Profusely illustrated.
A love ideal of the Cardinal bird and his mate, told with delicacy and
humor.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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MYRTLE REED'S NOVELS
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset and Dunlap's list.
LAVENDER AND OLD LACE.
A charming story of a quaint corner of New England, where bygone romance
finds a modern parallel. The story centers round the coming of love to
the young people on the staff of a newspaper--and it is one of the
prettiest, sweetest and quaintest of old-fashioned love stories.
MASTER OF THE VINEYARD.
A pathetic love story of a young girl, Rosemary. The teacher of the
country school, who is also master of the vineyard, comes to know her
through her desire for books. She is happy in his love till another woman
comes into his life. But happiness and emancipation from her many trials
come to Rosemary at last. The book has a touch of humor and pathos that
will appeal to every reader.
OLD ROSE AND SILVER.
A love story,--sentimental and humorous,--with the plot subordinate to
the character delineation of its quaint people and to the exquisite
descriptions of picturesque spots and of lovely, old, rare treasures.
A WEAVER OF DREAMS.
This story tells of the love-affairs of three young people, with an
old-fashioned romance in the background. A tiny dog plays an important
role in serving as a foil for the heroine's talking ingeniousness. There
is poetry, as well as tenderness and charm, in this tale of a weaver of
dreams.
A SPINNER IN THE SUN.
An old-fashioned love story, of a veiled lady who lives in solitude and
whose features her neighbors have never seen. There is a mystery at the
heart of the book that throws over it the glamour of romance.
THE MASTER'S VIOLIN.
A love story in a musical atmosphere. A picturesque, old German virtuoso
consents to take for his pupil a handsome youth who proves to have an
aptitude for technique, but not the soul of an artist. The youth cannot
express the love, the passion and the tragedies of life as can the
master. But a girl comes into his life, and through his passionate love
for her, he learns the lessons that life has to give--and his soul
awakes.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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THE NOVELS OF
GEORGE BARR McCUTCHEON
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset and Dunlap's list.
GRAUSTARK. Illustrated with Scenes from the Play.
With the appearance of this novel, the author introduced a new type of
story and won for himself a perpetual reading public. It is the story of
love behind a throne in a new and strange country.
BEVERLY OF GRAUSTARK. Illustrations by Harrison Fisher.
This is a sequel to "Graustark." A bewitching American girl visits the
little principality and there has a romantic love affair.
PRINCE OF GRAUSTARK. Illustrations by A. I. Keller.
The Prince of Graustark is none other than the son of the heroine of
"Graustark." Beverly's daughter, and an American multimillionaire with a
brilliant and lovely daughter also figure in the story.
BREWSTER'S MILLIONS.
Illustrated with Scenes from the Photo-Play.
A young man, required to spend one million dollars in one year; in order
to inherit _seven_, accomplishes the task in this lively story.
COWARDICE COURT.
Illus. by Harrison Fisher and decorations by Theodore Hapgood.
A romance of love and adventure, the plot forming around a social feud in
the Adirondacks in which an English girl is tempted into being a traitor
by a romantic young American.
THE HOLLOW OF HER HAND. Illustrated by A. I. Keller.
A story of modern New York, built around an ancient enmity; born of the
scorn of the aristocrat for one of inferior birth.
WHAT'S-HIS-NAME. Illustrations by Harrison Fisher.
"What's-His-Name" is the husband of a beautiful and popular actress who
is billboarded on Broadway under an assumed name. The very opposite
manner in which these two live their lives brings a dramatic climax to
the story.
Ask for Complete free List of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
SEWELL FORD'S STORIES
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list.
SHORTY MCCABE. Illustrated by Francis Vaux Wilson.
A very humorous story. The hero, an independent and vigorous thinker,
sees life, and tells about it in a very unconventional way.
SIDE-STEPPING WITH SHORTY.
Illustrated by Francis Vaux Wilson.
Twenty skits, presenting people with their foibles. Sympathy with human
nature and an abounding sense of humor are the requisites for
"side-stepping with Shorty."
SHORTY MCCABE ON THE JOB.
Illustrated by Francis Vaux Wilson.
Shorty McCabe reappears with his figures of speech revamped right up to
the minute. He aids in the right distribution of a "conscience fund," and
gives joy to all concerned.
SHORTY MCCABE'S ODD NUMBERS.
Illustrated by Francis Vaux Wilson.
These further chronicles of Shorty McCabe tell of his studio for physical
culture, and of his experiences both on the East side and at swell
yachting parties.
TORCHY. Illus. by Geo. Biehm and Jas. Montgomery Flagg.
A red-headed office boy, overflowing with wit and wisdom peculiar to the
youths reared on the sidewalks of New York, tells the story of his
experiences.
TRYING OUT TORCHY. Illustrated by F. Foster Lincoln.
Torchy is just as deliriously funny in these stories as he was in the
previous book.
ON WITH TORCHY. Illustrated by F. Foster Lincoln.
Torchy falls desperately in love with "the only girl that ever was," but
that young society woman's aunt tries to keep the young people apart,
which brings about many hilariously funny situations.
TORCHY, PRIVATE SEC. Illustrated by F. Foster Lincoln.
Torchy rises from the position of office boy to that of secretary for the
Corrugated Iron Company. The story is full of humor and infectious
American slang.
WILT THOU TORCHY. Illus. by F. Snapp and A. W. Brown.
Torchy goes on a treasure search expedition to the Florida West Coast, in
company with a group of friends of the Corrugated Trust and with his
friend's aunt, on which trip Torchy wins the aunt's permission to place
an engagement ring on Vee's finger.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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B. M. Bower's Novels
Thrilling Western Romances
Large 12 mos. Handsomely bound in cloth. Illustrated
CHIP, OF THE FLYING U
A breezy wholesome tale, wherein the love affairs of Chip and Della
Whitman are charmingly and humorously told. Chip's jealousy of Dr. Cecil
Grantham, who turns out to be a big, blue eyed young woman is very
amusing. A clever, realistic story of the American Cow-puncher.
THE HAPPY FAMILY
A lively and amusing story, dealing with the adventures of eighteen
jovial, big hearted Montana cowboys. Foremost amongst them, we find
Ananias Green, known as Andy, whose imaginative powers cause many lively
and exciting adventures.
HER PRAIRIE KNIGHT
A realistic story of the plains, describing a gay party of Easterners who
exchange a cottage at Newport for the rough homeliness of a Montana
ranchhouse. The merry-hearted cowboys, the fascinating Beatrice, and the
effusive Sir Redmond, become living, breathing personalities.
THE RANGE DWELLERS
Here are everyday, genuine cowboys, just as they really exist. Spirited
action, a range feud between two families, and a Romeo and Juliet
courtship make this a bright, jolly, entertaining story, without a dull
page.
THE LURE OF DIM TRAILS
A vivid portrayal of the experience of an Eastern author, among the
cowboys of the West, in search of "local color" for a new novel. "Bud"
Thurston learns many a lesson while following "the lure of the dim
trails" but the hardest, and probably the most welcome, is that of love.
THE LONESOME TRAIL
"Weary" Davidson leaves the ranch for Portland, where conventional city
life palls on him. A little branch of sage brush, pungent with the
atmosphere of the prairie, and the recollection of a pair of large brown
eyes soon compel his return. A wholesome love story.
THE LONG SHADOW
A vigorous Western story, sparkling with the free, outdoor, life of a
mountain ranch. Its scenes shift rapidly and its actors play the game of
life fearlessly and like men. It is a fine love story from start to
finish.
Ask for a complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction.
Grosset & Dunlap, 526 West 26th St., New York
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE NOVELS OF
STEWARD EDWARD WHITE
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list.
THE BLAZED TRAIL. Illustrated by Thomas Fogarty.
A wholesome story with gleams of humor, telling of a young man who blazed
his way to fortune through the heart of the Michigan pines.
THE CALL OF THE NORTH. Ills with Scenes from the Play.
The story centers about a Hudson Bay trading post, known as "The
Conjuror's House" (the original title of the book.)
THE RIVERMAN. Ills by N. C. Wyeth and C. F. Underwood.
The story of a man's fight against a river and of a struggle between
honesty and grit on the one side, and dishonesty and shrewdness on the
other.
RULES OF THE GAME. Illustrated by Lejaren A. Hiller.
The romance of the son of "The Riverman." The young college hero goes
into the lumber camp, is antagonized by "graft," and comes into the
romance of his life.
GOLD. Illustrated by Thomas Fogarty.
The gold fever of '49 is pictured with vividness. A part of the story is
laid in Panama, the route taken by the gold-seekers.
THE FOREST. Illustrated by Thomas Fogarty.
The book tells of the canoe trip of the author and his companion into the
great woods. Much information about camping and outdoor life. A splendid
treatise on woodcraft.
THE MOUNTAINS. Illustrated by Fernand Lungren.
An account of the adventures of a five months' camping trip in the
Sierras of California. The author has followed a true sequence of events.
THE CABIN. Illustrated with photographs by the author.
A chronicle of the building of a cabin home in a forest-girdled meadow of
the Sierras. Full of nature and woodcraft, and the shrewd philosophy of
"California John."
THE GRAY DAWN. Illustrated by Thomas Fogarty.
This book tells of the period shortly after the first mad rush for gold
in California. A young lawyer and his wife, initiated into the gay life
of San Francisco, find their ways parted through his downward course, but
succeeding events bring the "gray dawn of better things" for both of
them.
Ask for Complete free list of G. & D. Popular Copyrighted Fiction
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOVELS OF FRONTIER LIFE BY
WILLIAM MacLEOD RAINE
HANDSOMELY BOUND IN CLOTH. ILLUSTRATED.
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset and Dunlap's list
MAVERICKS.
A tale of the western frontier, where the "rustler," whose depredations
are so keenly resented by the early settlers of the range, abounds. One
of the sweetest love stories ever told.
A TEXAS RANGER.
How a member of the most dauntless border police force carried law into
the mesquit, saved the life of an innocent man after a series of
thrilling adventures, followed a fugitive to Wyoming, and then passed
through deadly peril to ultimate happiness.
WYOMING.
In this vivid story of the outdoor West the author has captured the
breezy charm of "cattleland," and brings out the turbid life of the
frontier with all its engaging dash and vigor.
RIDGWAY OF MONTANA.
The scene is laid in the mining centers of Montana, where politics and
mining industries are the religion of the country. The political contest,
the love scene, and the fine character drawing give this story great
strength and charm.
BUCKY O'CONNOR.
Every chapter teems with wholesome, stirring adventures, replete with the
dashing spirit of the border, told with dramatic dash and absorbing
fascination of style and plot.
CROOKED TRAILS AND STRAIGHT.
A story of Arizona; of swift-riding men and daring outlaws; of a bitter
feud between cattle-men and sheep-herders. The heroine is a most unusual
woman and her love story reaches a culmination that is fittingly
characteristic of the great free West.
BRAND BLOTTERS.
A story of the Cattle Range. This story brings out the turbid life of the
frontier, with all its engaging dash and vigor, with a charming love
interest running through its 320 pages.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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JACK LONDON'S NOVELS
May be had wherever books are sold. Ask for Grosset & Dunlap's list.
JOHN BARLEYCORN. Illustrated by H. T. Dunn.
This remarkable book is a record of the author's own amazing experiences.
This big, brawny world rover, who has been acquainted with alcohol from
boyhood, comes out boldly against John Barleycorn. It is a string of
exciting adventures, yet it forcefully conveys an unforgetable idea and
makes a typical Jack London book.
THE VALLEY OF THE MOON. Frontispiece by George Harper.
The story opens in the city slums where Billy Roberts, teamster and ex
prize fighter, and Saxon Brown, laundry worker, meet and love and marry.
They tramp from one end of California to the other, and in the Valley of
the Moon find the farm paradise that is to be their salvation.
BURNING DAYLIGHT. Four illustrations.
The story of an adventurer who went to Alaska and laid the foundations of
his fortune before the gold hunters arrived. Bringing his fortunes to the
States he is cheated out of it by a crowd of money kings, and recovers it
only at the muzzle of his gun. He then starts out as a merciless
exploiter on his own account. Finally he takes to drinking and becomes a
picture of degeneration. About this time he falls in love with his
stenographer and wins her heart but not her hand and then--but read the
story!
A SON OF THE SUN. Illustrated by A. O. Fischer and C.W. Ashley.
David Grief was once a light haired, blue eyed youth who came from
England to the South Seas in search of adventure. Tanned like a native
and as lithe as a tiger, he became a real son of the sun. The life
appealed to him and he remained and became very wealthy.
THE CALL OF THE WILD. Illustrations by Philip R Goodwin and Charles
Livingston Bull. Decorations by Charles E Hooper.
A book of dog adventures as exciting as any man's exploits could be. Here
is excitement to stir the blood and here is picturesque color to
transport the reader to primitive scenes.
THE SEA WOLF. Illustrated by W. J. Aylward.
Told by a man whom Fate suddenly swings from his fastidious life into the
power of the brutal captain of a sealing schooner. A novel of adventure
warmed by a beautiful love episode that every reader will hail with
delight.
WHITE FANG. Illustrated by Charles Livingston Bull.
"White Fang" is part dog, part wolf and all brute, living in the frozen
north, he gradually comes under the spell of man's companionship, and
surrenders all at the last in a fight with a bull dog. Thereafter he is
man's loving slave.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
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