Lincoln County leader., December 11, 1908, Image 3

"The T hited Qepulchre
X The VV Tale of O Pelee
B y Will Levington Comfort
Copyright. 19)4, or Will Lerinrton Comfort
Copyright, 107. by J. B. Lifpikcott Coann. All right reserred
CHAPTER XI.
When Constable opened his eyes he
was far down the slope, and Breen was
bending over him.
"Hello !" said he. "What unhorsed
me? I had just settled down comforta
bly to view that spout when pluff! I
began to lose track o things and my head
broke. What was it gas, altitude V"
"More likely old Pelee was up to some
thing he preferred you shouldn't see,"
aid Breen. "I know the racket turned
me sick as a poisoned rat while I was
dragging at your leg. I know that the
natives wouldn't venture within two hun
dred yards; also, that you are a mortal
heavy young person."
"And so you retrieved the fallen under
the guns of the enemy? That was good
of you, Breen. It was, indeed."
The natives were pressing in. Darkness
was beginning. Breen was conscious of
a catch in bis throat.
"I'eter," said Breen quietly, "I ran
from you this morning."
"You didn't run from me this after
noon, the which is lucky for me. Take a
little touch yourself, old playmate, and
don't get moody. One needs a pal when
one makes such a mussy dumping-ground
of good chances. The engaging Mr. Stem
bridge never did me any barm, and all
that the newspapers 'could accomplish in
the minds of people at large would move
me to no deeper emotion than to say,
"Dear folks be hanged!' "
"I'eter, if I hadn't been here, you
would be a good daylight run out on the
decent ocean by this time, with the lady 1"
"I'lease don't goad yourself further,
Breen. That matter is mine all mine."
Constable g;oke In a low voice. Breen
was bending over him in the dusk. "You
didn't force yourself upon me. Y'ou didn't
ven come along by chance. I asked you
to cruise with me. You volunteered to
tell me about yourself. I said it wasn't
necessary. This man has a mind, and
be isn't a coward,' was the conclusion I
came to that night, and I haven't seen
fit to change my opinion."
"But the lady "
"Yes, the lady has spoken. I am done
down and out. The point is,
you didn't turn on Pelee's throttle. You're
not to blame because I'm a dub of a
lover. I'm not on sick report."
"You're game, Peter," said Breen as
he helped the other into the saddle.
"Not game enough to abduct one fright
ened little mother-handled girl," Consta
ble replied.
They were riding together down the
winding trail, apart from the guides. The
lights of Ajoupa Boullion were ahead,
and the mountain carried on a frightful
drumming behind. The coiling masses of
volcanic spume, miles above the craters,
generated its own fire, and, lit in the
flashes, looked like billows of boiling steel.
Constable was very weak, and Breen rode
upon sheer nerve nerve that men had
often wondered at.
"Peter,' he said at length, "you are
not through trying to get the lady out of
this?"
'To think that such a tone and such
a question could come from the 'implaca
ble Stembridge' !" Constable said, with a
laugh.
"The 'implacable Stembridge' was never
crucified before," Breen answered. "To
you and me, together, it does not vastly
matter that I am Stembridge, one of the
bigger wolves. But others have come in.
Because I am here, you stand dazed to
night, your heart torn out. Because I
am here, you went up to the mouth of
that horrible pit to-day, and lay down to
die. I have played with men and women,
Peter, but I never wrecked a white man
before, or broke the heart of a friend."
A hand stretched across the dark and
fell upon Breen's arm and tighten-d
there. "I kuow how you feel ; but what
would you have me do?" Constable mut
tered. "When I see a wisp of smoke on the
horizon, and know that you and the lady
and the Madame are wrapped in it "
"For four days I have been dreaming
that dream, Breen." '
."It must come true this night. There
will have been a reaction. Go there to
night. Speak to her alone. Tell her bow
you came to know me how men look at
these things that the newspaper story
was as new to you as to herself. Tell
her of your trip to Pelee, and how the
disorder they see and hear down in the
city looks up there at first hand 1"
It was at this instant that a full-rigged
thought sprang into Breen's brain, which
had known but the passing of hopeless
derelicts throughout the day. He dared
not trust the thought to words, lest the
other should cancel it, but he called to
the guides to increase the pace.
"Ah, she would not listen to words of
mine," Constable answered hopelessly. "If
ehe had any faith in me, words would not
be necessary. A man knows when he Is
beaten. I have drawn my little quietus
for one day. To-morrow "
"There may not be any to-morrow for
Saint Pierre."
"Of course. For. that matter, we might
be boiled out like a pair of tater-bugs
before we can pick up a snack in Ajoupa
Bouillon. Then, again, the people may
be right, and I a frenzied alarmist. Pe
lee is throwing off pressure true and
steady as a clock running down. It may
be that he'll relieve his crowded chani
. bers this way."
Such words, more than anything that
had passed, revealed the ex'nt of Con
stable's reaction. They were entering
Ajoupa Bouillon, where food and fresh
mounts were procurable.
- "It's probably better for her that she
did not give herself to me,"- Constable
observed, when they were in the saddle
a;rain. His mind was deepening the bitter
groove now. "We'll put all this behind
us presently, Breen. We're mates, I
guess."
"This is our last ride together, Peter.
There are many reasons. One is the
law is on my trail ! Will you
please inform me what you are laughing
at?"
Constable carefully related the Crusoe
episode.
Breen groaned. "Don't you see, Peter,
you are winding yourself up tighter and
tighter in my crimes?"
"Somehow, I can't get wrought up over
trifles to-night. The detective matter dis
posed of, what are the other reasons why
you and I must diverge after this night?"
Breen was silent a moment. "I was
pretty hard-hit this morning," he said
finally. "The rough weather broke down
my idea about not going to the shop
again. It seems incredible, but Soronia
has never had a lover before. I found
her if you'll forgive we in need of we.
Y'ou see, I had just come from the reek
ing stone of sacrifice where you lay ; and
I relit a pair of Creole eyes promised
to go to sea no more."
"Suppose I had missed Crusoe?" Con
stable asked bitterly. "Suppose I had
been a poor liar?"
"There are many Crusoes, Peter. They
won't all fail. You can't keep this one
off always. It amounts to just this for
me that I have found my little Isle In
the midst of the sea, like that other pro
moter who all but conquered Europe."
"But why could you not both go aboard
with me?" the other persisted.
"I have told you that after this ride
I cease to vampirize the career of Con
stable. If Crusoe finds the Rue de Rivoli,
very well. If not, for the present, very
well again. None of his ilk shall find
you and me together. Two or three times,
back across the forbidden tundras of
years, I have met men who stack up
something as you do in my thoughts to
night. I never hurt any of those fellows
as I have hurt you. I'm too fond of you
to hit you any harder. Let's talk about
something else."
Constable had received a singular ap
peal. He knew that if there were any
future for him, he would think of Breen's
last words co-ordinate in memory with
the quaking rim of the crater. It did not
occur to him to answer at once. They
were passing through Morne Rouge, so
overcrowded now that people were sleep
ing in the streets. On the dark down
trail again, words did not come to him,
and when the party re-entered the bank
of falling ash and the sulphur stench, it
was not good to open one's mouth in
speech.
The guides were paid at the edge of
the- city. Saint Pierre was dark and har
rowingly still. The hoof-beats of the two
mules which the Americans retained were
muffled in the ash, as if they were pound
ing along the sandy beach. Often the
rousing fetor of death reached the nostrils
of the riders, above, the drying, cutting
vapor of the volcano, and their beasts
shied and snorted at the untoward humps
on the highway. It was as if war and
pestilence had stalked through Saint
Pierre that day, and a winter storm had
tried to cover the dreadful aftermath. A
door opened at last before them, and
there was a cry from Soronia. Pere
Rabeaut hurried out and led the mules to
shelter.
Constable sank into his old seat at the
round table under the window. lie watch
ed Breen and the woman. His friend was
huge and lean in the lamp light; his
white clothing stained from the saddle,
his hair and mustache white from ash, his
black eyes burning in a face haggard unto
ghastliness. The woman was in his arms
as they stood together. What they said,
Constable did not allow bis mind to rea
Bon with, but the glory of her lover's
presence which Bhone in the eyes of So
ronia called down upon the watclier his
own black vistas of desolation. She had
found, for an hour, the true and the beau
tiful the soul anchorage which he was
never to know 1 He would keep
all craft of the Crusoe stamp from
blundering into her sweet haven this
much he could do, was his thought. Food
was placed before him, and he ate a lit
tle, for the sake of Breen. His eyes
pained from the lamplight, and he drop
ped his face forward into his arms on the
table. Close to the wood, the vibrations
of the mountain boomed louder in his
ears.
"But you must not go away again I"
Soronia Implored.
"Yes, for an hour two hours at the
most little fairy," Breen whispered.
They were in the living rooms across
the court, where the bird cages were
tiered and covered with cloths. She clung
to him pitifully.
"With you away oh, my lover, no, no I
I cannot live again for hours
and hours!" ,
"Hush! he is In great trouble. He
must not awake until after I am gone.
Then he must not know where I have
gone. I am going to the plantation house
on the Morne d'Orange. It Is. for him.
Two hours at the most, and the last
the last I shall ever leave you, little
fairy."
Breen recrossed the court and entered
the fruit shop on tiptoe. Constable did
not move; his breathiug was inaudible.
At the street door Soronia joined him like
a shadow. He kissed her and put he
arms from him. It was eleven-fifteei
by the old French clock.
soronia, aione, mureu ior an lnsran
at the figure sprawled across the table
the man who had caused her lover twie
to be torn from her arms that day. The
she moved to a chair, in the shadows a
the far end of the shop, and sat dowi.
rigidly to wait.
CHAPTER XII.
In the dim upper hallway, Lara read
in the face of her mother, hard and white
as ivory, that the clash of wills had come.
A slender arm barred the door through
which the daughter had to pass.
"Lara, what do you mean to do?"
"I mean to bear what this man has to
say."
"At midnight listen to an outlaw?"
"Yes; lot me pass !"
The elder woman did not move her
arm. Slowly, softly, she snld : "I saV
that you shall not Order Uncle Joey to
send the thief away, or you and I are
estranged."
Lara faltered before the revolting pos
sibilities of the moment. "Mother," she
implored, "don't poison the years ! I am fcome tbe best egg producers he has
a grown woman I see my way clearly I" ire apparently his poorest specimens
She leaned against the arm that cross- This is quite likely to happen, for not
ed the doorway. It did not give. The by any means Is It alw'ays the flnrst
face close to hers in the feeble light ( looking hens the hens which would
burned away her self-control. The rigid- gPore highest In the show pen that
ity of the bar Sufifocated-as if it had , , tm nlost e(? . Needless to say,
pressed against her throat Every fiber , tQe bpgt o b(, lf
of her young body sprang tense to burst !,... , , .
the insufferable bond. Not a tissue re-,? flock " 'sgrac-ed by egg-eaters, the
laxed, although the bar was forced. Her fraP nest wI" Pck tne 8"" ones out
mother's fingers scraped like wood aeros 1,kewlse tlle drone, so that the flock
the casing. The sickening sound made an may be culled until only profitable
imperishable record in the girl's brain. , stock Is lef L As but one hen can be
Horrified at the thing she had done, Lara j present at a time to lay. It also does
would have fallen at her mother's feet,
praying forgiveness, had there reached
her now a murmur of pain or relenting,
But the face was not changed. The sov
ereign will would not have broken had
she hewn her way into the room with a
sword. Low-spoken, freezing utterances
found the brain of the girl, promptings of
the dread, imperfect faculty :
"Go, grown woman, who sees her way
clearly I Go with the thief to your lover
who dares not come to you ! Go out
to the hunted ship, then with the thief
and his dull tool 1"
Lara seized her hat and shawl and dart
ed past the pitiless voice, shutting her
ears with her hands. Down the stairway
the sped, her one thought to flee. There
was truce below ; the awfulness of defeat
behind. The men had heard
nothing. Breen stood by the door, his
face whitened with dust. The planter
waited near the foot of the stairs an
other obstacle.
"Go to mother quickly she needs
you !"
"Where are you going, Lara?" the old
man gasped.
To the ship with the other refugees I"
"Not with this man, child "
"He is Mr. Constable's friend."
"But I'll go with you, dear! I'll have
a carriage brought "
"In the name of pity, Uncle Joey
don't leave mother alone longer up
there !" she said desperately. "I am go
ing out to the ship. Your nephew has
asked me to be his wife. This man will
take me to him. Go to mother !"
The planter turned a last look at Breen
and obeyed, his face a field of conflict.
Lara threw the shawl about her shoul
ders and hurried to the door, which Breen
opened in utmost amazement. She turned
to him in the dark, with the burning
question :
"Is Peter Constable dead?"
"No "
"Is he hurt lying on the ship?"
"No, he is reasonably well, and In
Saint Pierre."
Reacting weakness rushed over her
now, the doubts of an untried soul, and
the loneliness of an outcast.- The scene
in the upper hallway was upreared in her
brain. She had been borne throughout
the day, unerringly by the processes of
will ; but the fruition was bo sudden and
horrible as forever to be beyond the
shadow and circumstance of exteuuation.
If Constable were well and in Saint
Pierre, why did he not come to her, in
stead of sending this man? Even though
Breen were all a man could be, had Con
stable the right to send him to her, after
the allegations of the press? Could there
be any truth in the suggestions of her
mother? Might there not exist in the Con
stable character a war of the base and
noble?
These big tangible terrors possessed
her. She could not go back the bridges
were burned. The man at ber side did
not speak, save to answer her questions.
Ahead were possibilities and fancies,' be
side which the rumbling menaces of the
mountain were clean fears. She halted.
Her body swayed a little, and the man
put out his hand to steady her. A cry
escaped her lips.
"I cannot go on !" she exclaimed brok
enly. "I have done a terrible wrong in
coining. Everything is different. Leave
me. I I Bhall go back toward Fort de
France !"
(To be continued.)
Odd Vne for a Ilnlloon.
It Is said that an enterprising Par
isian company has discovered a meth
od of bleaching linen by balloon. A
few hundred feet above the earth th
atmosphere Is nearly as pure over the
city as In the open country, and It 1m
In this higherregion that the linen Is
dried by the aid of a captive balloon.
The li.nen Is attached to bamboo
frames and sent up. There are about
six mcents In a day. An extra charge
of from five to fifty centimes, or from
one to ten cents, Is charged for each
article.
j M
f
Value of Trap Nfltl,
To become convinced of the amount
of good there Is In trap nests, one
must use them. He will then find out
for a certainty which of his hens are
laying well nnd which are not. Per-
ue wl" surprised to learn inni
j away with crowding and quarreling,
whereby the danger of breaking the
eggs in the nest Is lessened. It indi
cates, too, which hens are the winter
layers, the layers of the most fertile
egjs, the most symmetrical ones and
the brown, the white and the speckled
ones. At the sntne time It necessi
tates frequent handling by taking the
hens off the nest, so that even the'
wildest birds become more tame, and
are less likely to scare. Summed up
briefly, It enables the breeder to get
In touch with the Individual hen, ascer
tain her good and bad qualities, and
satisfy himself of ber general condi
tion. The only objection that can be
raised against It, any way, Is that It
requires a lot of attention. The nests
want visiting every other hour, at
leaBt, and every hour would be better,
through the day. For the shiftless
poultryman, therefore, they are hnidly
to be recommended. Agricultural Eplt
omlst Rlghte of the Hired Man.
A little thought and a little "put
yourself In his place" would do won
ders In solving the problem of "How to
keep the hired man on the farm." Of
course there are many worthless fel
lows strolling about the country looking
for Jobs as farm hands, and any em
ployer Is liable to get one of them.
Ou the other hand, there nre muny
employers who -treat their men In such
a manner that no self-respecting young
man would remain In their service.
As a rule the hand who goes at his
work cheerfully and does not complain
lf a little extra Job comes his way, Is
the man who can always And a place
at the best wages going, while the out!
who grumbles at bis regular work and
flatly refuses to do an extra task is al
ways moving from place to place. The
employer who Is considerate to his
men, who does not Impose upon them
by word or deed, Is the one who can al-
i wnTg get good men, and he seldom has
! to 1)unt tl)em up. xhe hlretl man ,
; entmed t0 a good be(, nnd POmfortnble
room, with a place for his clothing. He
Is entitled to good, wholesome food,
and, above all, ho Is entitled to decent
treatment nnd kind words.
Belf-Openlnic Sliding; Door.
The door should be hung on a per
fectly horizontal bar. A cord or small
rope Is fastened to the door near the
top and runs over a pulley at the end
of the track on which the door Is hung.
The rope Is fastened to a bucket or a
paint keg Is good, In which sufficient
weight Is placed to draw the door open
when catch Is raised. The cord run
ning from the catch should run the
entire length of the barn, so the door
r.iay be opened from any part of the
driveway, or may extend to a post in
the barnyard, so the door may be open
ed when In the wagon or on horseback.
-American Farm World.
Tha Farniera I"roperlly.
No better evidence of the prosperity
of those engaged In agricultural pur
suits Is needed than to witness the
showing of wealth at the various Stats
fairs this season. Cbicagoans who' at
tended the annual shows at Iowa,
mmm
P js10 .. .2afT
pihiiiiiiiiBMj i
SELF-OPENING DOOB.
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio
d Kentucky have returned with the
most cheering reports of prosperity In
the farming districts as was well shown
by the Increased attendance at each of
the State fairs as compared with recent
years.
Practically all of the State shows this
year had greater numbers of rural vis
itors than have ever attended before.
Were the fanners a little pinched for
money doubtless many of them would
have remained away from their State
fairs, viewing a few days' study and
pleasure as a luxury which they could
not afford. This year, however, the
farmers turned out In record numbers,
and spent more money than in former
years. Goodall's Fanner.
Valaabla In tha lea Home.
This Is a storehouse, 4 to 6 feet
square. In the Ice house, or of any con
venient size for the milk and butter.
The room should be provided with a
ventilator at the top. The doors lead
ing to the room should ench have a
sash at the top. The sketch shows
only the Inside door. The house proper
CONVENIENT STOREHOUSE.
Is built with walls, the space being
filled with sawdust. The dotted lines
show the outline of the Ice when the
bouse Is filled. If sawdust Is piled
upon and around the storeroom It
makes a fine place to store vegetables
or fruits.
Frail Wrapping Machine,
A fruit wrapping machine has been
put In operation In California. It re
quires practically no attention and en
tirely automatically wraps the fruit,
says Country Gentleman. The fralt
rolls down a slight Incline to the oper
ator, turning slowly over as tt ap
proaches him and giving him an oppor
tunity to remove defective specimens.
The fruit Is lifted and placed stem up
In rubber cups, which carry It to a me
chanism operating much as the human
bands. It Is carried to the paper being
cut and printed from the roll. Tha
twist of the paper is made over the stem
end, thus cushioning the stem nnd pre
venting puncture Injury. If the ma
chine becomes clogged, It is stopped by
a clutch operated by electricity. A
counting attachment registers the num
ber wrapped. The cnpaclty of the ma
chine Is said to, equal six good wrappers.
Sheep Are Not Stupid.
The sheep Is usually set down for a
model of stupidity, but a gentleman
who has just returned from a three
years' trip In the West tells the fol
lowing story: "I was on horseback a
great part of the time nnd often visit
ed large sheep ranches. One day, while
riding along, a mother sheep trotted
up toward my horse, bleating pitifully.
At last I made out that there was
something wrong off toward the left
I followed the sheep In that direction,
nnd soon found the cause of ber dis
tress. Her lamb bad fallen Into a
shallow pit and could not get out. I
lifted the little thing up, and the grati
tude of the mother sheep's eyes wl'l
always be a source of consolation to
me."
Praettcal Farm ITotea,
Don't fall to cut out and burn any
canes Infested by Insects and diseases.
Cabbuge club foot may be prevented
by a liberal application of lime to the
soil around the plant.
It Is a mistake to plow under soy
benns or cow peas for fertilizer. They
are too expensive. Better use barn
yard manure as far as ixisslble, grow
u crop of clover and them turn under
the sod.
Have you ever noticed that men who
are the most successful farmers stick
to the eroi they know most about,
making a specialty of them? The man
who experiments with every new thing
that comes along will find It expensive
business.
Measure hay in the stack this way:
Measure the stack In length, width and
over. Multiply the width in feet by
the over and divide by four. . Then
multiply the result by length. To re
duce to ton of liny In stack less thuu
twenty days, divide the cubical con
tents by 512. For more thau twenty
and less than sixty days divide by
422, and for more than sixty days di
vide by JJCO.