The Camp Fire Girls Go Motoring; Or, Along the Road That Leads the Way

ght of the Striped Beetle just around the corner, but it was nowhere to be seen. We stopped at a store and asked if they had seen it come by and they said, yes

t we are not behind them and must be waiting

ahwah. "You know how much we talked about being self-reliant? We'll probably find her where the r

aid Nyoda grimly, he

ed to hear the laughter of the girls who were leading us such a merry chase, but we didn't. Soon we were out of the city and on the country road once more, and we were quite a

e Striped Beetle is a six-cylinder car and more powerful than the Glow-worm, which is a four, and then they

atch Lady Gladys before she gets to Ft. Wayne, I'll know the reason why. This i

ugh Napoleon and Defiance. It gets to Ft. Way

cided on the northern. Whatever could have made Gladys change her mind without lett

remember much about the cars that went past. There were too many of them. But these girls looked so fine in their tan suits t

ndoubtedly the Striped Beetle that was going alon

misunderstood when you were playing 'John Kempo'

ed, "this route is as good as the northern, and we are right behind them and I mean to catch up before we get to Ft. Wayne." I knew what Nyoda was thinking about. The man had said the girls in

en sitting, and saw a red roadster not far behind us. There was one man in it

re we gaining on them at that rate. Nyoda looked thoughtful as she started out once more. I knew she was meditating a lecture for Gladys when she caught up with her, about running away from us. Nyoda was responsible for the welfare of seven girls and how could she fulfil her trust if she had only three under her eye? And I knew as well as I knew anything that Gladys

od in front, and he could easily have gotten ahead of us. I wondered for a long time why he did not do so, and then suddenly I had a premonition. He was following us, or rat

startling squawk. Nyoda swerved to one side and ran squarely into a tree. There was a bump and a grating sound somewhere

et is bent," she said, but when she tried

s caught the flywheel," said

ndoubtedly the trouble wasn't there. There was a repair shop not far away-all of the towns along the touring routes which have an eye to business have some sort of one-and Nyoda repaired thither and fetched a man who tinkered knowingly with the

do?" she sai

ead with a blue and white handkerchief. "We have a dismantle

we were told that the damage would be fixed by the next morni

ayne to-night," said Nyod

Then we realized that we would have to stay in S-- all night. Here was a pre

said Nyoda. "They'll worry wh

h, darkly. "It serves them r

good time we were going to have!-and told the girls to stay there for the night and to please wait for us in the

t night, we were informed, and the out-of-town guests had filled the hotel. They were already two in a room and there was no hope of doubling up. Seeing our dismay at this news, the clerk bethought himself of a wom

had not been able to accommodate us when we saw this house. The hotel was on the main street and the rooms must have been small and stuffy; anything but comfortable on this hot night. But this house stood far back from the street in an immense shady yard, one of those enormous brick houses that well-to-do pe

wedding. Without a word she led us up-stairs and we breathed a sigh of relief when we thought of a bath and supper. The house must have been the home of fashionable people in its time, for the furnishings, though old, were still luxurious. The carpet on the stairs was still thick

d culture, notwithstanding the reduced circumstances which made it necessary for her to rent out rooms in this big

these things, which remind her of he

at home. The bed was a mahogany four-poster covered with a spread of lace, and the rug on the floor was a faded oriental. Opening out of the bedroom was a bath with a shower and we made a dash to get under the c

dsome and proud-looking, and dressed in a gown of plum-colored satin. She said nothing; just looked at us. I glanced around at the others. There was Sahwah, her kimono wrapped loosely around her, patting her feet dry with the fringe of a dozen towels; Nyoda stood in front of the dressing-table with a towel wrapped around her, combing her hair: I was sitting on the floor putting my shoes on, while through the bathroom door came the sound

, after a silence of a full minute. We knew something

ble. "We were directed to your house from the hotel as a place where we could spend the

oor of the bath and emerged in her dressing-gown, the open door behind her revealing splashes of water all over the room and mo

yoda, with growing misgiving. "Don't you

y husband is State Senator McAlpine. My daughter is getting married to-night and we have a houseful of wedding guests. We had two special trains, one from Chicago and one from New York, bringing guests. If my

on the stool and the handful of towels in her hand. For one moment we remained as if turned to stone and then Sahwah buried her face in the towels with a muffled shriek. If embarrassment ever killed people I know not one of us w

en we came in. Mrs. McAlpine had withdrawn into the next room, and through the closed door we could hear the sound of excited talking and knew that

th and used up all the wedding towels that you wouldn't even let me touch! Oh, ha! ha! ha!" The very house seemed to shake with the violence of

the front door, past numbers of people who were arriving. Once out on the sidewalk we leaned against the ornamental iron fence and laughed until

o'clock and we were ravenous. The rooms we had in that house, while they were nothing compared to what we almost had, were still very comfortable, and we were in such high sp

and ask for the "automobile ladies." He had been sent out from the telegraph office and the hotel clerk had to

, Nyoda?" w

ce message from the telegraph company, and read: "Message sent Glady