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About Washington County news. (Forest Grove, Washington County, Or.) 1903-1911 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 13, 1904)
4 *}• > ■«■ 4 ■!■ ♦ ♦ T |t >< wr <t Mi My ll>,MM i> ■> »;♦•{•*;«-<* •>»;• ♦ ❖ v ❖ <♦»;♦•!♦' GRAUSTARK I. . . . By . . . GEORGE • » 6 \ A • > \;P «> #*« CK^vrC #*♦ |f* 0*0 ♦»<* 4, BARR McCUTCHEON Cnpwtfilit, ’Ml, hjj Herbert S. Status .j. •:• ♦> •;*•> >:• <> <♦ ♦:* -> •M “{* •;♦ *{♦ -I* v ♦> *t* CHAPTER 1.—G renfall L orry, a w ealthy A m erican globe trotter, stum bles into acquaintance with a charm ing foreign girl on the train from D enver to W ashington. T he p air is left behind when the flier stops for repairs in W est V irginia. II.—Lorry wires ahead to hold the train . H e and the unknown girl ride tw enty m iles at a tea rin g pace in a m ountain coach. T here is no love-m aking, but a near approach to it as the rolling stage tum bles the passengers about. III.—Lorry dines w ith the foreign party, consisting of Miss G uggenslocker, Uncle Caspar and Aunt Yvonne. T hey are natives of G raustark, a country Lorry had never heard of before. IV.—Lorry shows the foreigners the sights of W ashington. T hey leave for New York to sail on the K aiser W ilhelm . Miss G uggenslocker naively calls L orry her ‘‘ideal A m erican” and invites him to come and see her at E del weiss. V. W ildly infatuated, L orry hurries to New York. T he name G uggenslocker is not on the steam er list. He sees the rteam er off. Miss G. waves him a kiss from the deck. V I.—L orry joins his old friend, H arry Anguish, an Am erican a rtist, in Paris. G raustark and its capital, Edelweiss, are located by a guide book. The Am ericans get no trace of the G uggenslockers there. VII. Lorry sees his charm er driving in a carriage with a beautiful companion of her own sex. He gets a glance of recognition, but the carriage rolls on, leaving the m ystery unsolved. L ater he receives a note at his hotel slgnen Sophia G uggenslocker, Inviting him to visit her next day. VIII. In the evening L orry and A nguish ram ble about the grounds of the castle where dwells the court of the Princess of G raustark. T hey overhear a plot to abducts the princess and resolve to capture the plotters red handed. IX .—Following the conspirators, L orry finds him self in a room he heard them designate as that of the princess. X .—Lorry tells the princess of the plot. M utual recognition; she is Miss G uggen slocker. Dannox, the guard, is in the abduction plot. He fells L orry w ith a terrible blow. Anguish to the rtsc u e . X I.—L orry quartered In the castle. The p rin cess visits him , but forbids all talk of love. X II.— G raustark is bankrupt and owes the neighboring p rin ce dom of Axphain $.10,000,000. T he creditor demands cash or the cession of the richest districts of G raustark. X III.—T he P rince of Axphain offers to extend the loan if the princess w ill m arry his son Lorenz. Prince Ga briel of Dawsbergen also bids for the princess’s hand w ith offer of a loan. Y etlve tells L orry tb s ' she belongs to h e r ht opte and w ill m arry Lorenz. ■‘I will not bo dragged aw ay w ithout seeing her." he an sw ered resolutely, th ro w in g him self on the bed. "Confounded young ass!” grow led D angloss. T he soldier’s teeth grated. A m om ent la te r th e slab door closed so ft ly. a key ra ttle d and ills visitors w ere gone—m essengers bearing to him the m ost positive proof of devotion th a t m an could exact. He looked a t his hands and saw the black stain s from th e ch arred letter, la st evidence of th e crim e a g a in st the state. A ten d er light cam e to his eyes, a g re a t lum p struggled to his th ro at, an d he kissed th e sooty spots, m u rm u r in g h er nam e again and again, llo w lonely he w as! How cold and cheer less his cage! For th e first tim e e began to ap p rec iate the real serious ness of his position. Up to th is tim e he had reg ard ed it optim istically, con fident of vindication and acq u itta l, li e grew cold an d shuddered instinc tively as he realized th a t his position w as so critical th a t th e princess had deem ed it necessary to reso rt to s tr u t“- glc m easures in o rder to save him from Im pending doom. S ta rtin g to his feet, l«e paced th e floor, nervousness tu rn in g to dread, d read to te rro r. He pounded on th e door and cried aloud. Oh, if he could b u t b ring back those kindly m es sengers! E xhausted, torn by conflicting em o tions, he a t last dropped to th e bed an d buried his face in ills arm s, nearly nirul w ith the sudden solitude of de sp air. li e recalled h er d e a r letter, th e ten d er, helping hand th a t had been stre tc h e d o u t to lift him from the d ep th s in to which he w as sinking. She had w ritte n —he could see the w ords p lain ly —th a t his d an g er w as g reat: sh e could not endure life until she knew him to be safely outside the bounds of G rau stark . His life w as d e a r to her. an d she would preserve It by dishonoring h er tru st. Then she hail unfolded h er plan of escape, dls- Jolntodly, guiltily, hopelessly. *!♦ ❖ ❖ «!*-> *i*4* *t>*I**M*4**I**:—!♦ ♦! * • B u t she w as offering him freedom only to send him aw ay w ith o u t g ra n t ing one m om ent of joy in her presence. A fter all. w ith d eath sta rin g him in th e face, th e p ractically convicted m ur d erer of a prince, he knew he could not have gone w ith o u t seeing her. H e had h ern u n g rate fu l perhaps, but th e mes- s a g ; he h ad sen t to her w as from his h eart, and som ething told him th a t it w ould give h er pleasure. A key tu rn ed suddenly in th e lock and Ills h e a rt bounded w ith th e hope th a t it m ight be some one w ith her su r ren d er in response to his ultim atum . H e sa t u p rig h t and rubbed his swollen eyes. T he door sw ung open, and a tu.II prison g u ard peered in upon him. a sh arp eyed, low brow ed fellow in rain co at and helm et. H is la n te rn ’s single unkind eye w as tu rn ed m enac ingly to w ard th e bed. “ W h at do you w an t?” dem anded the prisoner irritab ly . In stead of answ ering, th e g u ard pro ceeded to unlock th e second or grated door, stepping inside th e cell a m om ent later. Sm othering an exclam ation. L orry jerk ed out his w atch an d then sp ran g to his feet, intensely excited. I t w as ju s t 12 o’clock, and he rem em bered now th a t she had said a g uard would come to him a t th a t hour. W as th is th e m an? W as the plan to be car ried out? The tw o men stood s ta rin g a t each oth er for a m om ent or tw o, one in the agony of doubt and suspense, th e other quizzically. A sm ile flitted over the face of th e g uard. lie calm ly advanced to th e table, p u ttin g dow n his lantern. T hen he drew off his rain co at and hel m et an d placed in the o th e r’s hand a g ray envelope. L orry reeled an d would hav e fallen b u t fo r th e w all ag ainst w hich he staggered. A note from her w as in his hand. H e tore open th e en velope an d drew forth th e letter. As he read he grew stran g ely calm and contented. A blissful repose rushed in to su p p lan t th e rack in g u n rest of a mo- m ent before. The shadow s fled and life’s light w as b u rn in g brightly once more. She had w ritte n : I e n t r e a t y o u to fo llo w I n s tr u c tio n s and g o t o n ig h t . Y ou s a y you w ill not le a v e G r a u s t a r k u ntil you h a v e s e e n me. H o w r a s h you a re to r e f u s e lib e r ty a n d life for s u c h a trifle! B u t w h y , I a sk , a m I o f f e r in g you t h is c h a n c e to e s c a p e ? Is it b e c a u s e I do n ot h ope to se e you a g a in ? I Is it n ot e n o u g h t h a t I a m b eg g in g , im p lo r in g you to g o ? I can s a y no more. He folded th e brief note, w ritten in ag itatio n , and, a fte r kissing it. proceed* cd to place it in his pocket, determ ined to keep it to th e last hour of his life. G lancing up a t a sound from the guard, he found him self looking into th e m uz zle of a revolver. A deep scowl over spread th e face of the m an ns he point ed to th e le tte r an d th en to th e lamp. T h ere w as no m istaking his m eaning. Lorry relu ctan tly held th e note over th e flam e and saw it crum ble aw ay as had its predecessor. T h ere w as to be no proof of h er com plicity le ft behind, li e knew it w ould be folly to offer a bribe to th e loyal guard. A fter th is very significant act th e g u a rd ’s face cleared, an d he deposited his big revolver on the table. Stepping to th e cell’s en tran ce, he listened in tently, then softly closed th e heavy iron doors. W ithout a w ord he began to strin off his uniform . Lorrv w atching him as if fascinated. T he fellow look ed up im patiently and m otioned for him to be mick, ta k in g it for g ran ted th a t the priso n er understood his p a rt of the tran sac tio n . A w akened by this sharp rem inder. Lorry nervously began to rem ove his ow n clothes. In five m in utes his g arm e n ts w ere scattered over th e floor ai l he w as a ttire d in the uni form of a guard. Not a w ord had been spoken. T he prisoner w as th e guard, the g u ard a prisoner. “Are you not a fra id th is will cost you your life?’ asked Lorry, first in E ng lish, th en i G erm an. The gu ard m ere ly shook his head, indicating th a t he could not u nderstand. li e quickly tu rn ed to the bed. seized he shuddered apprehensively. “A fitting nig h t!” he m u ttered as he plunged into th e driving rain, forcing his w ay across th e co u rty a rd tow ard the m ain gate. T he little light in the g atek eep er’s w indow w as his guide, so, blinded by th e to rren ts, blown by the winds, he soon found him self be fore th e final b arrier. P eerin g through the w indow , he saw th e keeper dozing in hi3 chair. By th e light from w ithin he selected from the bunch of keys he carried one th a t had a w hite strin g knotted in its ring. T his w as the key th a t w as to open the big g ate in case no one challenged him. In any other case he w as to give th e countersign, “ D angloss.” and tru s t fo rtu n e to pass him through w ith o u t question. Luck w as w ith him, and. finding the g re a t lock, he softly inserted and tu rn ed the key. T he w ind blew th e heavy g ate open violently, and it required all of his stre n g th to keep it from banging a g ain st th e w all beyond. T he m ost d if ficult task th a t he had encountered grew from his efforts to close the gate a g ain st th e blast. H e w as ab o u t to give up in d esp air w hen a hand w as laid on his shoulder and some one hissed in his sta rtle d e a r: “ Sli! Not a w ord!” H is legs alm ost w en t from under his body, so g re a t w as th e shock and the fear. Tw o stro n g hands joined his own in th e effort to pull th e door into position, an d he knew a t once th a t they belonged to th e m an w ho w as to meet him on the corner a t th e right of the prison w all. H e undoubtedly had tired of th e delay and, feeling secure in the d ark n ess of th e storm , had come to m eet his charge, th e escaping prisoner. T heir united efforts b ro u g h t about the desired result, and to g e th er they left th e prison behind, strik in g out against th e storm iu all its fury. “You a re la te.” called the stran g er in his ear. “N ot too late, am I? ” he cried back, clutching the o th e r's arm . “No. but we m ust h asten .” “C aptain Quinnox, is it you?” “ H ave a care! The storm has ears and can h e a r nam es.” cautioned the other. As rapidly as possible they m ade th e ir w ay along the black street, alm ost a riv er w ith its sheet of water. L orry had lost his bearings and knew not w h ith e r he w ent, tru stin g to the guidance of his struggling companion. T here seem ed to be no end to their journey, and lie w as grow ing w eak h e - | neatli th e exertion and the excitem ent. “ How fa r do w e go?” he cried a t last. “ B ut a few rods. The carriag e is at th e next corner.” “ W here Is th e carriag e to tak e me?” he dem anded. “ I am not a t liberty to say.” “ Am I to see her before I go?” “T h a t is som ething I cannot answ er,® sir. My instructions are to. place y o n ! in th e c arriag e and ride beside the® a sheet an d tore it into strips, imps* H eatly th ru s tin g them into the o th e rs hands. T he first le tte r h ad foretold all this, an d the prisoner knew w h a t w as expected of him. li e th erefo re secure ly hound the g u a rd ’s legs and arm s. W ith a grim sm ile the captive nodded his head to w ard th e revolver, th e lan tern and the keys. Ilis pbligiug prison er secured them , as w ell as his ow n personal effects, and w as ready to de part. A ccording to instructions, he w as to go forth, locking the doors be hind him , leaving the m an to be dis av o w ! the n ex t m orning by surprised keepers. It stru c k him th a t th e re w as som ething ab su rd in th is p a rt of the plan. H ow w as this g u ard to explain his position w ith absolutely no sign of a stru g g le to bear him out? I t w as hardly p lausible th a t a big, stro n g fel low could lie so easily overpow ered single handed. T here w as som ething w retchedly incongruous about the—but there cam e a s ta rtlin g and effective end to all criticism . T he guard, bound as he w as, sudden ly tu rn ed and lunged headforem ost against the sh arp bedpost. H is head struck w ith a thud, and lie rolled to the floor as if dead. U ttering an exclam a tion of horror, Lorry ran to his side. Blood w as gushing from a long gash across his head, and lie w as already unconscious. Sickened by th e brave sacrifice, he picked the m an up and placed him on the bed. A hasty exam ination proved th a t it w as no more than a scalp wound and th a t d eath w as too rem ote to be feared. The gu ard had done his p a rt nobly, and it w as now the prisoner’s tu rn to act as reso lutely and as unflinchingly. Sorry to leave the poor fellow in w h a t seem ed an inhum an m anner, he strode into the corridor, closed and locked th e doors clum sily and began th e descent of the stairs. He had been instructed to act unhesitatingly, as the slightest show of nervousness would resu lt in discovery. W ith the helm et well down over bis face an d the cape well up he steadily, even noisily, m ade his w ay to the next floor below. There w ere prisoners on this floor, w hile he had been the only occupant of the floor above. S traig h t d riv er until our destination is reached.” ! ahead he w ent, flashing his lan tern “ Is it th e castle?” cried th e o th e r ! here and there, passing down another joyously. stairw ay and into the main corridor. “ I t is not the castle,” w as the d isa p ® H ere he m et a guard who had ju s t pointing answ er. come in from the outside. The m an ad A t th a t m om ent they cam e upon dressed him in the language of the g re a t d ark hulk and h eard th e s ta m p ® country, and his heart alm ost stopped \ Jug of horses’ hoofs close a t hand. It beating. H ow w as he to answ er? Mum w as so d a rk they could scarcely dlsceri® bling som ething alm ost inaudible, he tin; shape of the carriage, alth o u g h » hurried on to the ground floor, trem bling they oould touch its side w ith th e lflj w ith fe a r lest the m an should call to hands. him to halt. H e w as relieved to find, 1 A soldier stood in the sh elter of tue in th e end, th a t his progress w as not vehicle and opened th e door for tlie to be im peded. In another m om ent he w as boldly unlocking the door th a t led Am erican. “H urry ! G et in!” exclaim ed to the visitors’ hall. Then cam e the ! uox. door to the w arden's office. H ere he ; "I w ish to know if th is is liable to found th ree sleepy guards, none of get her into trouble,” dem anded L o rrl, whom paid any attention to him as he pausing w ith one foot on th e steps. passed through and entered C aptain “G et iu!” com m anded th e soldier who D angloss’ p riv ate room. The gruff old w as holding the door, pushing him f ^ H captain sa t a t a desk w riting. The es w ard uneasily. H e floundered into tl|® caping m an h alf paused ns if to speak to him. A sharp cough from th e cap carriage, wlu>re all w as dry and clei ta in and a significant je rk of the head In his hand he still carried the kt told him th a t there m ust be no delay, and the la n tern , th e slide of w hich no w ords. Opening the door he stepped had cloCed before leaving the pri jM t ' (Continued rn ra ;r S ) out into a storm so tierce and w ild th a t