coming in my direction, and a moment later I saw a car with
glaring headlights, driven at a furious pace, coming right at me.
It slowed up a little, and I hugged the hill as close as I could,
for I know some of these reckless young drivers up that way, and
this curve was in the direction where the temptation is for one
going north to get on the wrong side of the road--that is, my
side--in order to take advantage of the natural slope of the
macadam in turning the curve at high speed. Still, this fellow
didn't prove so bad, after all. He gave me a wide berth.

"Just then there came a blinding flash right out of the darkness.
Back of his car a huge, dark object had loomed up almost like a
ghost. It was another car, back of the first one, without a single
light, travelling apparently by the light shed by the forward car.
It had overtaken the first and had cut in between us with not half
a foot to spare on either side. It was the veriest piece of sheer
luck I ever saw that we did not all go down together.

"With the flash I heard what sounded like a bullet zip out of the
darkness. The driver of the forward car stiffened out for a
moment. Then he pitched forward, helpless, over the steering
wheel. His car dashed ahead, straight into the fence instead of
taking the curve, and threw the unconscious driver. Then the car
wrecked itself."

"And the car in the rear?" inquired Garrick eagerly.

"Dashed ahead between us safely around the curve--and was gone. I
caught just one glimpse of its driver--a man all huddled up, his
collar up over his neck and chin, his cap pulled forward over his