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THE SAN FRANCiSCO CAfX. SATURDAY. JANUARY 21. —THE JUNIOR" CALU. HOW THE QUICK BROTHERS DEFENDED FORT FROLIC ARTHUR MORGAN LANGWORTHY THE Quick Quartet (as they, are nicknamed) consists of four'of the liveliest most— "up-to-the minute" boys you'd ever want to meet. First, there is Austen Quick, the eldest, aged IS, and the leader of the Quartet, by virtue of seniority, strength and pluck—if not always pure intellect. lie leaves'the last;qualifica tion to:14 year old Pliny Quick, whose bulging -head, rather long brown hair and large, dreamy blue eyes de note him as the thinker of the Quar tet. Then follow Anthony Wayne Quick and Bonaparte Wellington Quick, who are sturdy 12 year old, black haired twins. You'd, think their names sounded differently enough, but even the.',, have been reduced to Ilka sound ing titles—Toney and Bone] ! Any one might suppose this a Chi nese story, because there re 80 many "Q'g" in it—but, the next "Q" Is an Irish one—being Dennis Minn, the stout, young leader of the "Lowers." as the crowd of brawny, young boys Is called who live ill Lower Oakdale, where th.; big steel mills are located. ) There is also one more similarlty between the head of the Quick Quar tet and the leader of the Lowers each has the same color of curly, fiery red hair, which may account for the fact (as Mr. Quick says) that every '""lime they run across each other it's Ilka Awo_ red headed friction matches being rubbed together. And this usu ally touches off the two rival- gangs, for the Quick Quartet is the leading spirit of the "Uppers,' as the boys of Upper Oakdale'call their crowd. Both the Uppers and Lowers had until recently a tacit agreement con cerning one thing, no matter how much they disagreed on others. This was about Frolic hill, the only perfectly suitable, coasting bill about the town. Each had its own carefully laid out course and many were the races be tween the; Uppers and the Lowers oil these parallel courses. This winter the dOUbl ! runner bob ■lad races were particularly ■. close and had finally . narrowed down to two leaders — Pliny .Quick's Reindeer and Denny Quinn's Peats All. Bach had won several heats and only one more remained to be run. The Frolic hill course was a long one and Pliny found the return trip very tedious. To save as much walk ing as possible and have some fun, too, Pliny constructed two immense tandem box kites. The heavy kite line was wound on a small windlass nailed to the sled front. When the wind blew in the right quarter. Pliny would send these kites up, and as the return la] . over almost level ground for more than half way the- tremendous pull exerted ,by the kites would pull the Reindeer back in fine style. Pliny, called- the tandem kites his 'aerial reindeers." .At the close of the afternoon on the day before the final heat of the coast ing contest Pliny used his aerial rein deer to drag him back home, as. the wind was just right. He "reached a lonely spot along the treeless road when Suddenly half a dozen figures sprang from behind a snowbank, threw Pliny off his shed and seized the kites. Their faces were' muffled, but Pliny needed no Identification when they .wrecked the Reindeer with axes. This could be the work of only one person, Denny Quinn, who was most Interested in getting rid of the Rein deer, his only rial competitor in to morrow's race. Pliny arrived home "bruised and* heartbroken, and the brothers sat up until after 10 making their plans of vengeance. And here is what confronted " the Lowers when they came to race'- the ,-■ next afternoon: a dazzling, snowy citadel bull) breast high on the summit, at Frolic, hill frowned down upon the . advancing ": throng, which quickly halted and fled when its batteries suddenly unmasked and poured a storm of snowballs on their unprotected heads. There would 'be no more coasting until Fort Frolic was captured) - v", 7- The siege was on! Fpr two days did General Austen Quick and his forces valiantly defend the hill. His watchful pickets were always ready for surprises, one being on duty all .lay and evening, taking turns staying at Bandy Wilton's house, which stood' on an even higher.! hill and commanded a view of .ill the Frolic hill approaches. .' so most; of the de fenders of Fort . Frolic could be ) as-/ sembled at a minute's notice by phone, as this happened during the holidays.- And it looked as if the enemy was to be baffled in spite of his snow shields, ammunition, trains and other..'. imple-f ments of modern snowball warfare, for no boy/however tough, could stand the pitiless .-shower *of snotcballs.. de livered by the besieged. Not but that negotiations for peace were tried. Generals Quinn and Quick met under a Rag of truce and Austen made this proposal: - -" "Denny, give; up the kites, pay us for the damage to the Reindeer, , and we'll give up the .hill. .Pliny has re built the Reindeer and .he wants to beat your old snowscowyet!" "I know we didn't act" square," . ad mitted Denny] "but things have . gone too far. Yer sharp shooters have near ly killed me an' my gang—an', we've got to git even!" be ended angrily, and as he retired yelled this mys terious .taunt: . "Sure, we'll'return the kltes!'"^ And General Quinn kept his word. The' Fort 1 Frollckers were astounded J to see the, besiegers calmly launch the "aerial reindeers" into the sky the next day.' They also viewed with some alarm tile maneuvers" by which the big tandem box kites were anchored In the air less than 10") feet, directly over the fort. Pliny now ///discerned that there wen' two small extra cords run ning parallel with the kite line. Closer examination , proved , these v two ;, extra cords.were really one, being supported at the kite end by a small. pulley. /„ .; And.then,came the explanation. The extra cord was seen to move,/ serving as a- trolley for the strange, ominous looking object that hung from it as the operator on the ground pulled it up into the air until it reached the kite.' '-i^^oSfoaKtofSKjf>9BUßm Pliny suddenly realize,! Its dread meaning and shouted: , "They're sending up a' bomb! ■ See, the smoke from, the fuse at the bot tom. That's a timefuse and connects with the round box, which is full of powder when the fuse burns down it'll explode and break the cords hold ing those big snowballs!" 'iSstPw "An' they'll drop right onus! Gee! We haven't a place to get under!" shouted Austen despairingly., The brave garrison felt doomed. The new terrible engine of, war was pulled up to the kite and now hung directly over them. "Get ready to dink!'' commanded General Quick, as the garrison crouched with frightened, upturned fat es. Bang! The box end of the aerial bomb disappeared In a flash of flame. The six big snowballs dropped whist ling through , the air and burst into glittering pieces inside the intrench ments. The defenders all ducked safe ly, but the next discharge did damage. General Flint had his shoulder badly bruised and Walter Armstrong, was "knocked out',! for; five minutes, !\ one aerial; ball striking him on the head. But dusk put an end to General Quinn's aerial war operations. Some 'wanted; ito give up. but the Quick Quartet xstood Arm for defense. PUny Quick, as ' ■military engineer, said: '■ "We'll board over this, corner of > the works' and whenever, an aerial , bomb ■ explodes/we'll just duck for the bomb proof." This plan was adopted, and - when General Quinn; next sent up his , aerial destroyers the garrison easily! dodged out of barm's way. Then General Quinn resorted to strat egy. He made a grand attack just at the .moment, the/ garrison, was - driven under the ; bombproof on the next aerial bomb discharge.. This plan J was tried again and again, but the garrison man aged to hold out after terrific fighting. The following afternoon- General Quinn flew the kites ,in half a gale. The big aerial reindeer tugged hard ■at the heavy/sled they were tied " to. General Quinn sent up a bomb, and;asv the garrison watched it some", .one/ shouted: > 'itSBBHR HKaflßHbjsflHHH •Look! She, got away!"; Bars enough, the high wind had given the kites such a tremendous pull that they tore the poorly fastened sled loose from its fastenings and away they" raced with; it across the. levelisnowfleld, the whole Lower army. in yelling pursuit. The, tandem kites headed straight lor Crawford's violet farm. Now, you'd think such a dainty sounding Industry as that would be'run by very nice; and • gentle people, probably ladies. , Hut it' wasn't. The meanest man in the county, ran it. and he had a standing feud wtih all the boys,/ who just couldn't resist "plugging, his acre, or so -of ; glass - topped greenhouses.'; For it was a very large, farm.' and/employed a big force of men. BtoHBHBBJ General Quinn finally caught the runaway kites, but not until - the siz zing bomb, hung right over the green houses. And before he could yank it back—blng!— the aerial bomb exploded —crash!—those '. big, heavy snowballs dropped on a greenhouse roof and smashed it to smithereens! -, , General Quinn Instantly returned to the fight now- that he had recovered his aerial war engine. Perhaps if the lust of battle hadn't been so strong the general would have noticed short!) afterward what the Fort Frolickers instantly saw from their high perch.- "Whew! And Quinn's never caught' on!./; Say, but "there's going to be a circus!" "For the hill toppers could see what Quinn : couldn't. Crawford' shod as sembled his whole force of vjolet. gar deners and they; had quietly managed to entirely surround the; hill. When the besiegers , suddenly found : them selves ;ambushed there was no. escape] .They, fought as hard as they could and tried ,;. to "break -through the line of angry farmers, but : were gradually driven up the' hillside. > ' Some of the more, bloodthirsty Up pers wanted to slaughterj the, hemmed In . Lowers. -However, this v was .too - much :' for . Austen .; Quick's v big ,; heart. Bad as;the Lowers were/ he;could not stand, seeing them fall Into Crawford's merciless,; hands.' He t conferred with his brothers: and they finally, won .the" others to their plan.', AH firing ceased. Austen jumped'l over,;.the breastworks and- waving "a- white ; flag shouted to General *"f"'""' "jffSWPTOnrTIBJSSr™^ "Come; up—-we won't hurt* you— it's your only chance!" bVQHsSmHH .'. The Lowers;' hesitated at" Bret, 'but General Quinn,' with on.- look :at the advancing circle; ,of violet /growers, decided 'on; the lesser : of: the •. two evils. The $ Lowers -' swarmed Into-* the '• fort, and now the combined : force-showered a"pitiless snowball fire on the foe, driv ing them; backdown t the 5 hill. Another'assault'was j repulsed, and then Pliny Quick got, his great escape idea—and also his "chance for; revenge On Lenny Quinn.*/- He ;' pointed "to the Reindeer, -.which was doing duty, as an ammunition sled;', then to .the .;Beats All, which Denny had dragged up ; the hill and saved,/.although the: aerial reindeer, were" captured. 'I^BhSSMSB "Now we'll make our, grand, get away, and .we'll have our match race at the same time." . Pliny's scheme was to coast to safety: nothing short of a .house could stop a; "bob" going a mile a' minute.-" so a little later, the violet farmers were astounded" to see "the Reindeer and -the Beats All ; poke ; their , prows .'. over.; the hilltop. ; Down they:/each on their .respective: courses,. followed/by, half a dozen sleds, bearing the ■' rest of.- the boys. ' Some ,of .the? farmers :! foolishly tried to stop the Reindeer." There was a great upheaval—the Reindeer whizzed through and dumped' s the /-obstruct ors head 1 first into ,the;;snow. This slowed her up a bit and gave the Beats All a slight lead. ; On; they I went,, the Beats All still leading, but the/Rein deer crept steadily 'up as the yelling violet farmers were left, far behind. v A hundred yards from the; finish Tine two posts, a mile from the "start— the Reindeer was level '.with the; Beats All. There wasn't: a - foot's "dlrtererice until .within fifty feet, of the/finish, when suddenly the Reindeer forged ahead and passed the finish posts two yards in the lead. ' ■BBSBJ And thus was a,double victory,won for the Quick Quartet—-one of kind ness and one of swiftness. 3