by Roy J. Snell
CHAPTER X ONE WILD NIGHT
A half hour later the little company had joined the merry mad throngthat, combining the enthusiasm of Hallowe'en with a farewell to abeloved play spot, was making the most of one wild night.
Never had any of them seen anything quite so tremendous, for Chicago,like some young giant, has never learned how big it really is. When acrowd of three hundred thousand persons descends upon one narrow park,things are sure to happen. And even now they were happening fast.
Already the "Battle of Paris" was on. In the Streets of Paris someonehad thrown a bottle through a mirror. At once a hundred bottles weredying, a hundred windows crashing. With wild abandon the throng surgedback and forth along the narrow streets.
All this was quite unknown to our friends. They had not come to revelbut to bid a fond farewell to a spot they had learned to love. The SkyRide, the shimmering waters of the lagoon, Hollywood, Rutledge Tavern--ahundred little corners had played a part in the lives of Florence andJeanne.
For all this, the spirit of the mob gripped them and, grasping oneanother by the shoulders that they might not be separated, they surgedon through the crowd.
"One wild night!" Florence screamed.
"And it's not yet begun!" Willie, who was in the lead, called back.
The Streets of Paris was not the only spot where revelers, getting outof bounds, were rushing shops and collecting souvenirs.
"Come down from there!" shouted a policeman as a large fat man climbedto the top of a shop-keeper's shelves for some treasure.
"Come and get me!" The fat man brandished a cane. The crowd roaredapplause.
Three burly policemen marched upon him. One seized his cane, the otherscaught him by his massive legs, and down he came. Once again the crowdroared. On this night of nights, one moment you were a hero and the nextyou were forgotten.
Like great armies of rats, this human throng burrowed in everywhere. Abarrel of rootbeer was turned half over, glasses seized and a toastdrunk to the departing Fair. When the barrel was drained a long, lankindividual sat astride it. Three men gave the barrel a push. Barrel andman went rolling and bouncing down a steep incline and on into thelagoon.
They were crossing the lagoon bridge, Willie, Danby, Florence, Rosemaryand Jeanne, when of a sudden Danby Force exclaimed in a hoarse whisper,"There! There she is! The dark lady, the spy! See that split ear? I'dknow her anywhere by that. There can be no doubt of it. Her ears haveevidently been pierced for ear-rings, and one of the rings at some timemust have been torn through the flesh, leaving a disfigurement. Yes,that's the spy, I'm sure of it."
"The spy! The spy!" came from the others. Could a moment more thrillingand more impossible be imagined? Here they were not twenty feet from theone they sought. And that twenty feet packed tight with writhing,twisting, screaming revelers of Hallowe'en, the end of the Fair!
Then, as if to redouble the suspense, someone threw a great switch. Asif by magic, the entire grounds went dark.
"Oh! Oh! Oh!" came the murmurs of surprise, thrill and horror, from thestreets many miles long, all packed with humanity.
The effect was strange. In a crowd of many thousands each individualfeels very much alone. Florence felt Rosemary's grip tighten on hershoulder as she, in turn, clutched at Willie's coat. Danby Force alonedid not lose his poise.
"Don't lose her," he whispered. "This is midnight. The lights will be onagain soon. Then we must get her."
He was not mistaken. Like the sudden dawn of a tropical day, the lightsflashed on. The Sky Ride towers turned to tall stems of light. Masses ofred, orange and green shone on every side. From the loud-speaker camethe notes of a bugle, the high clear notes of "Taps." For the moment, sogreat was the feeling that came welling up from the very center of herbeing, Florence forgot the spy. Then, with lips that quivered, shewhispered to Willie:
"Where is she?"
"There! There! Just ahead! I'll get her." Willie lunged forward.
But the crowd still surged about them. He moved slowly. And the darklady, apparently unconscious of the fate that lurked so near, also movedon with the throng.
"Pass the word back," Willie whispered. "Tell them to get a good grip onthe fellow's shoulders just ahead and then shove. Flying wedge. See?"
Florence passed the word back. Next instant, urged on by a great pushfrom behind, she sent her solid one hundred and sixty pounds againstWillie's back.
It worked. They moved forward. A foot, two feet, three, four, five, ten.
"I'll get her!" Willie hissed. "You'll see!"
She might have heard. Perhaps she did. She turned half about. No matternow, for, just as Willie's outstretched hand all but touched her, asecond flying wedge composed of college boys struck their line at thevery center. The result was rout and confusion. Like beads when thestring is broken, our friends were scattered far and wide.
And where was the lady spy?
For a space of time, no one knew. Then Willie spotted her, farther awayand moving rapidly.
After that things happened so fast that even to Florence's keen mindthey remain a blur. Willie sprang forward. A cleared space just beforehim was closed as if by magic. Four policemen and a score of revelersclosed it. There came the sound of thwacking clubs. Willie tripped andfell. He was up on the instant, but minus his hat. No matter. Someonejammed a hat on his head. Whose hat? He did not know or care. But forthe instant after that he cared a lot. It was a policeman's hat. He worea dark blue suit. In the crush he was mistaken for an officer.
He had just sighted the dark lady once more when three strong men seizedhim, lifted him on high, lunged forward, then tipped him neatly over therail. As he shot down, down, down to the icy waters of the lagoon, thecrowd let out a roar of approval.
"Crowds," he grumbled as he swam for the shore, "psychological mobsnever have any sense of humor."
When he had clambered to the embankment, he turned to see his fourfriends waving at him from the bridge.
"Goodbye folks!" he shouted, "I'm going home for my dress suit."
Then, realizing they could not hear, he grasped his damp coat tail, gaveit a wringing twist, threw up his hands, pointed to the spot where citylights gleamed, and marched away. "Forty above!" he was grumbling again."No night for a plunge."
Then as his mood changed, he began to sing, "Goodbye Fair! GoodbyeParee! Goodbye boys! Goodbye girls! Goodbye everybody! I'm going home tomy Mom-ee!"
As for the lady spy, she had lost herself for good and all. In a crowdof three hundred thousand you might hope to meet anyone once, but nevertwice.
