me to three branchings of the road and chosen her way
in confidence, according to Billy Stiff's directions. When she came to
a fourth, where none had been indicated, she was sure, either in
Billy's instructions, or upon his drawing, she confessed herself
somewhat uncertain. She halted and felt for the map.

It was not to be found. She had left it behind at Mrs. Dick's. Dimly
she fancied she remembered that Billy had said on the fourth branch,
keep to the right. There could be no doubt that this branch was the
fourth, howsoever out of place it appeared. She rode to the right,
and, having passed a little valley, found herself enfolded in a rolling
barrier of hills where it seemed as if the sun and rocks were of almost
equal heat.

At mid-afternoon Beth abruptly halted her pony and stared at the world
of desert mountains in confusion not unmixed with alarm. She was out
at the center of a vast level place, almost entirely devoid of
vegetation--and the road had all but disappeared. It branched once
more, and neither fork was at all well defined, despite the fact that
travel to Starlight was supposed to be reasonably heavy. She had made
some mistake. She suddenly remembered something that Billy had said
concerning a table mountain she should have passed no later than
half-past one. It had not been seen along her way. She was tired.
Weariness and the heat had broken down a little of the bright, joyous
spirit of the morning. A heart-sinking came upon her. She must turn
and ride back to--she knew not which of the branches of the road, any
one of which might have been wrongly selected.

Her mare could not be hurried now; she must last to get her to
Starlight. To add to other trifles of the moment, the bank of cloud,
so long hung motionless above the western summits, moved out across the
path of the sun and blotted out its glory with a density that would
have seemed impossible.

Scarcely had Beth fairly turned her back to the west when a wind storm
swooped upon the desert. It came as a good stiff breeze, at first,
flecking up but little of the dust. Then a sudden, ominous change
occurred. All the blue of the sky was overwhelmed, under a sudden
expansion of the copperous clouds. An eclipse-like darkness enveloped
the world, till the farthest mountains disappeared and the near-by
ranges seemed to magnify themselves as they blended with the sky.

With a sound as of an on-rushing cataclysm the actual storm, cyc