4
CAM
GOLD
>1
«
3 *
>
»
ELLERY H CLARK,
W N U S e r v ic e
C opi/rt<£h 4 /fj *6 Ay
fìo a a s -A U '& m t / . c o
C H A P T E R V l l . — i.in oia y ha» mad«
th» acijuairitanc« of a yyunji mu**. ' a lo n e ; lllcw, strivin g to re is x us much
li eorK** lefVhia, wi i on i he a d m i r e » Wh i t e
T o my re lief !
w a tc h in g a card ¿¿am« In which I.ewia »» possible, I let go
I h eng. i.ed, Lindsay detect« a player
struck bottom uliuost d is t a n t l y ; lit*
chealil.fc,
11» (ieiiMUiic*« the cheater,
«nd a duel foiluwh LUnlnay worst» hi* pit could not have been more than
opponent, hut Krauts him Ills lit« on eight feet deep. At otiee I stretched
I i : h admitting in« truth of L in d s a y *
my arm s upward, and a ft e r u few mo
accusation.
ments of quick p nneuvering the dooi
CHAPTER
V III.— Und«ay
find» had closed o v er us, and wa stood sidt
fchlVely, intloducue hlinaeif. und 1»
by side 11 the gloom.
coldly received. Shlv«Jv 1 « a cowardly
tyrant, hi utal to 1 «g^ «lav«« under
hi« control.
He 1 « torturing 1 young
Im m ediately I groped about me with
fem ale r ave vhi < ii the woman '« hu»
Land tile« to kill him with a knit«
iiitstretched hands.
On three sides
Miiveiy m I ioo I m the man, hut In hU
death throes the slave declare« he will | solid earth ; hut on the fourth, at about
¡th e level o f my wulst, I encountered
come back to huunt hi« «layer.
never ten nls q u arry and that his
I . r a c k ! c ru e t ’ crack ’ of rir;«*? «nil pis
dark
face ylearned with exultation
,
While fr.-un the mangroves. close
" T h e Itlack P anth er” - e v e n In these
,r h a n d fire-tipped arro w * soared up
ward, curved alid descended upon the tense and thrllllntf inoineutt I realized
roof o f I lie house To me the course the aptness o f the phrase
Nearer and nearer we came until at
.,f c v e n ti teemed phi In T h e garrt?«.n
hopelessly outnumbered would either length our how found Its resting !***•<***
In Ilia smooth sand. Besid e us lay the
| he m assacred at their posts or. tnk
I M!> fn the tunnel end em erging among whaleboat, careened upon its side, as
rhe fugitives had left It. No trace of
■ he mangroves. would wild to the dun
■ ers o f our predicament. “ We must them was to be s e e n : only tlie level
risk It.” I cried, and even a s the words sweep of the sand. and a hundred
left my lips, the moon us If In eclipse j vards aw a y the «Inr1: and sinister out
wns suddenly engulfed In cloud
Out tine of the reeds, unions which ou r foe
hunce had c o m e ' In an Instant wc men lay concealed. T h e re w a s no dal
were uhourd had shoved the canoe l vl „ g no delay. So well did B a r c la y 's
,.|,.ur o f the m angroves and the riex' follower* know their navaga gam e that
moment had begun our Journey Io w a n ! he had no need o f w a s tin g words.
••Take him a l i v e ! ” w a s Ills one com
the sea.
n:und
Then, out o f kind n e st to an
Whether our adventures were ended
or were otil! Just hegiiiDlOg. ft was unskilled hand he assigned me to a
Behind us the tumult |ilaee on the left o f the line, ami told
hard to say
seemed to have slackened, hut whethei me briefly: " K e e p your d istance from
the malt npxt y o u : when 1 g ive the
this meant victory or defeat for McAl
lister we could not tell. V bout In out wortl t<> charge, run crouched and leap
path was our greatest dread, and I from side to side. And above all. hold
U m s so busy peering forw a rd through vour tire. The light Is bad. Cold steel
will tell the tale.”
the blackness that 1 Imd no thought
An instant la ter we w e re advancing
for anythin g else until, a ft e r twenty
minutes of steady progress and with toward the ambush, tr a v e rs in g per
the mouth of the river near at hand. haps h a lf the d istance In perfect si
Helen -uddenl> stopped paddling, and lence. Then I heard B a r c l a y ’s rrun»
turned her head. '"H a rk! she whis- | pet voice. “ C h a r g e ! " and mindful o f
Ids counsel. I bent double, and went
pered.
leaping,
zigzag fashion, up the beach
I sat motionless, puddle su s p e u d e l
No sound came from the reeds, and I
In midair.
onscloue
B a r c la y wits raging I.
lion among the fo e ; I heard oath s
nd cries o f p a in ; hut. unskilled a s I
-.as In such wurfure. It seemed as
Imugli I should be o f small usalst-
m e. until tlnully, more through accl-
ent than design, I w a s d raw n Into
lie very center o f the f r a y
B a r c la y
th his enem y almost within his
each, had struck down the man wlm
card ed hltn. hut the maroon. In his
ath agony, gripped the c a p t a in ’s
,,,t und n early brought him to the
T
Jii
1
W
Hi
?\, I
Instantly I became nwnn
began to feel a hot resentm ent, a*
of the unm istakable sound of <mrs. and
though they were uot g iving us a
again my heart sank like lead.
Up
chance for our lives, when suddenly
and then down, had flowed and ehhe.
! wo flashes o f flame s eared the dark
CHAHTkIK IX.— Lindsay I. accepted “ nip ,J' "»'“ ««• u,i<1 for ,h ‘*
t,m * 1 1
the tide o f our hopes and fears, an. i
.
. ,
without question a« McAllister h nepli experie nced u gleam o f hope C le arly
lm||S, ness, and the man to right o f me
no w —to be caugiit with safety
ew tlj- nioU the m m the embodiment it w a s a case o f hands und knees, am!,
pitched forward, g a v e a tw ist or two.
of evil, und le oonvlnred of the truth
, ,,
, .
. _ ,,
In our grasp — it was too much to bi
of Mur. luy's story of his villainy I.lv telling Helen to follow. I dropped on nil
and then lay still. On w e swept, utnl
borne.
In* with M, . v Mint or is his adopted four* and without Hie faintest Idea
hud nearly reached the edge o f the
daughter, Helen, with whom I.in.Jsu
. . .
. ...
Without n word, we bent to our
is impressed it. nods th. pla. e atror g " f w hether our venture meant life or
ambuscade before we got the rest of
paddles again with a will, and m
ty defended
tils ei -jun. iiiunce wlrl. death, f began cruw llng along the
tlielr volley, almost, a s It seemed. In
h e l m progresses During a hurricane
.
longer keeping a lookout for Imaginary
M cAllister's si.lp, the Ashuntce, with tunnel.
our faces. Som etim es, as I look hack
dangers tve made the canoe fa irly boll
a t.ii gu of slut eu, is u r . . k«d ua th.
I’ resentlv. a f t e r what a p p eared like
upon It, It a p p e a r s strunge that they
Island, not u soul surviving
.
, . .
.
. . . . .
through the w ater
And then, uII ai
an Interuilnahle time, hut which was.
did not aiiniliHate u s ; hut. ou tlie other
once, the nmon shone forth through a
CHAMTKit X.— Investigutlng a dls- ; | suppose. In re ulltv only a few niin-
hand, fate w a s aga in st them.
Fo r
turbun, e among the cattle, l.lndsay
_
. . .
' .
.
.. .
rift In the clouds, and to my horror 1
will, two ..eg roes. Mod. one of tlie u ,e s' 1 suddenly encountered Solid
one thing, the light could uot have
heard, behind us a wild yell from our
anim als f r lg l.if u lly mutilated, evident- earth ahead and. Judging that this
been worse, and they w e re d raw ing
ly not the work of uny man, huvsevei
„
, '
. . ..
,
pursuers. One hurried g lance told me
p o w . i f u l Thai nI k t>t tin- two negroes " ," st " iark the eml o f the passage. I
head on moving objects, almost a?
all I wished to k n o w ; It w a s thr
w atching, are klll.-d In much the same groped above us. pushed Upward on
black as the night Itself.
M oreover
m anner as bun been the holier t h e ! . ,
....
.
,
,
,
whaleboat, and
with h a the
lf a dozen maroon?
di > before
Dick secs a hlacu man In the
wood that
met
my hands,
they hud a lre a d y undergone one ties
a . tn iii, evidently cm aping from th
at the oars, and In the bow. rifle In
next Instil tit c le a r starlight, never
perute tight, and had. on top o f that,
Islkinl, amt, hi Having lilm the inunlm-
hand, the wizened figure o f M cA llls
1 1 , loiuts and kill« him The tenutoli 1« more welcome, shone down upon us.
rowed themselves alm ost to the point
relieved, hut that night l.inUmiy Und« A second Inter we w e re scra m b lin g up
ter. Whole-heartedly I cursed myself
o f exhaustion, so that their lingers
McAJIUli-!' >nve«tlgkting « burled t i n ,
for not leavin g the treasure.
ure. While he watches, uniteli, M cAl the sides o f the n arrow opening, to
must have been unsteady on the trig-
lister I n liin-utened by whkt «etui« to find ourselves aga in above the earth,
Only one hope remained.
I had
ger
Again, something, I think, of
he a black man. I.mdany « h o o t « him
agreed to meet B a r c la y In the evening.
,
. ,
and the ligure inui.i-« fur Hie h u u e with the night a ir blowing fresli and
,
, * . , , ,
, their l e a d e r s panic must h a v e continu
While set-k'ng «ntianoe, Dick shouts I cool upon our faces. I knew at once
ant! It wns now close to davllght.
.vllght, vet
*
superstitious
n
lea
ted
Itself
to
the
I h« b fu ts pruvua tu b«
.
,
,
If Ills patie nce had lusted, and he wa-
where w p were— In the c lea rin g among
sn uriing utun.
blacks. And. last o f all. yo u r m erce
still lying off the riouth o f the river
the m angroves when* M cA lliste r had
nary. no mutter how brave, can never
1 — The big ape hnd eg
all might yet he well. Once more the
wreck of the Axhun te« crept to view Ills treasure, anti had
hope to tight like the man who battles
Dlmlxuy t«ll« Helen, w Il Olii he hHg nearly met his death ut the hands of
moon w a s engulfed In clouds, suddenly
l-.ii r nc<| tu lov«,
», the w 1iole truth or
for his own hand. In any event, th e ir
effacing our pursu ers In the gloom
hl« tin «ptluii She belle ve« lla roll *y « the giant ape.
volley did us little dam age, and the
Dick K 1ue« to H meet
■ tory I«
H H V th«
L.
and a minute Inter the long, slow
B y this time It w a s plfrh dark
tirai«, as airans««! At the plan tut lui)
next Instant they hud leai»ed up from
heave from the ocean told us that we
i« lieuri rumori of un uprising uf th. around u s ; moonrlse w a s still fa r off
their hilling places und hud re ceived
had pussed the limits of the river. Mild
du un«« ft
a >>atrsnir«r*y
» ‘hr
L>h;k
paiiNUH
H irs LiiK er. w
ho«« u p p i-a ru
m - t Hml accordin gly we crept back 11 little
our
Are In return. And then we closed.
w ere f a i r ly on the sea.
in vuicuf'y familiar. Meeting wuanhy, MllHtauc** from the cleuring. and, rank
All
that followed w a s blurred and
Presently, not fa r ahead o f us. some
tu I
- ' . h . Mr.i u!,'i m k \ : , Y iV.
o u r w lv**s »» com fortable ns pos
distorted, like an ugly dreutn.
The
uiiHi.uii« lu take lleUu off the l,lumi slhle, proceed«*«] to await developments.
thing loomed faintly through the haze
' tu
• iuf«ty
»(e“ - unii **
flash of pistols, tlie gleam of steel,
then ««UU with MuAI- And now, for the flrst time, 1 had a
and for an Instant my heart leaped
Ustsr
dark form s meeting hand to hand— It
with the b elief that It w a s the long
chunce to consider our position, and to
was a ll bew ild ering and u “ 'i-?L 1 «vaa
C H A P T E R X t r — . « u t m o rn ln s L ta d
wonder whether or not we had bet
boat, but a moment Infer, ns we drew
say m » rtH W u i.n l> u n d sets o u t w i t h
Ill on«*
s w iftly nearer. I perceived that It wa>
h i m t u r t h u I r I u i u I O n t h e w a y t h e tered ourselves by our flight.
n e g r o te lle h i m t h « «luve » h a v e ris e n
way. o f course. ! m y se lf had greatly
hut one o f the m any s andy Islets tha
U K u l i i « ! t h e i r m u B l e r » D i c k ««es S h i v e
benefited, for 1 was. at least, still alive.
fringed the shore, barren, sa v e for a
ly u n i t 1)1« o v e r s e e r « d r u u g i d t u t o r t u t «
u n d d e s i l i H e l m u t b y W u u s l i y h« l e u c h But beyond that the outlook seemed
clump o f reeds In the center. Had om
en M i A l l l n t e r ' « I i u u n »
, dubious. 1 had shown M cA lliste r that
pursuer? been few e r In number, w>
for >)• trr u » n u t i v l n our hands we | w>g nnj |,js n e p h e w ; had admitted
might have beached the canoe an*
hound Him, hand und foot
Ami next. rnv ,| j |
running I W I J
Nor w:is
taken refuge, foy a last stinld. In tin
though momenta w, re precious, Helen l h ,H thp W(irst of
for Helen, through
reeds ¡•''but, with a half-dozen sissnll
snatched the s c a r f from her neck and her omlraB„ HlH, quickness o f wit.
ants, doubtless fully firmed, our rltb
bandage«! his eyes, then c rie d : “ Quick I , had Joln(>(, , „ . r fortun,,s l m .Vocnhlv
and our two pistols would scarcely
T o the southerly (ioInt. T h e re ’s
with mine. Ami how we were now to
have sulliced. And s«>, like h a re s liar
boat there.
I t s our only c h a n c e !
escape from the Island and reach the
ried by a falcon, we swept out to sen
And. rushing to the door, she unbarred month of the river, where B a r c la y
N e a r e r and ne a re r drew the whale
It anil threw It open
awaited us, w as more than I could
boat. I could hear M cA llister shriek
F o r an Instant I thought that she s«*e.
lug Im precations, uml could imagin'
had lost her wits, for what wns the
that tlie loss o f the trea su re mu?
Th e hours dragged on.
From the
use In attem pting to escape, If we
have driven hltn nearly mad.
I foi
river, to the westw ard we could hear,
thus told the luw y e r of our destina
sure that he w as within range of u?
from time to time, the sound o f low
tlonT But the next second I under
and wondered why he did not shoot
voices hiu I the splash o f oars Clearly
stood, for with finger on lip she caught
the s lav es would attack from that
until I reflected that If he shot nn<<
up my rifle and pistol, thrust them
,
.
. . . .
.
qtiarter also. I rum th«> plantation on
wounded me, l might. In my struggle?
Into my hands, ami motioning me to
. ,
# n
the east, rose the telling and slinut ng
upset the canoe and lose the treasure
follow, led the w a y , on tiptoe, down
of the avengers, anil presently the light
Doubtless It w a s this thought tha
the hall ami Into the dining room;
stayed his hand.
o f a huge honflre flared against the
then hurriedly e x p ls ln e « !: “ T h e r e ’s a
sky. then died a w ay, ami darkness
Wild plans darted through my hrnti
pit.
Under the flooring.
I found It
again enshrouded the world.
I might stop paddling, poise the die ?
y e ste rd ay
W e’ve thrown them off the
“ Helen.” I whispered, “ this tunnel
over the side, and demand our liv es li
track. Now we cun h i d e ”
payment for Its s a fe ty
But how maki
Kven In this c ris is I could not help Is M cA lliste r’s last resort his refuge
In
emergency.
Th
at
Is
plain
ns
day
M
cA
llister
keep
his
word?
Plainly 1
adm irin g her cleverness. They would
crl?is o f aome sort w as close at hand
•march for us on the Island.
Night It’s a m eans o f esca p e from the Island
and in desperatio n I had laid down no
w a s at hand. T lie s lav es would short and where there’s a burrow there must
paddle and reached for my rifle wliei
ly attack
F o r a time. Indeed. It be n bout. I’ll go to the north, you
to
the
so
u
th
;
If
you
And
anyth
in
g
call
all at otH-e I heard a hall, and a s th.
seemed that we w ere safe, and with
moon once more emerged from It-
out an liixtant's d elay Helen made for I«» me, but softly. <»n your life."
dark
b a rr ie r l s a w a sight that I shal'
Without
another
word
we
separated
the closet In the dining room, dropped
never forget— the longboat o f the
on her knees, fuiuhled for u moment ami 1 began groping biy way through
B lack Panther shooting out from th«
In the darkness, then rose, swinging the tangle, but hud not gone, | tlihik
more than fifty feet when I heard llel
«'o'e where It hod Inin concealed, foui
men bending their sturdy b a c k s at th-
en’s low call. and. retracing my steps
with all possible speed, found her oar*, and In the stern the familiar
standing by a little Inlet in the swamp,
figures of Bui ford und of C ap tain B ar
while before u*. In the darkness, we clay.
i could discern the dim outlines o f two
In an Instant the whole aspect of
boats, one a sm all canoe, the other
HfTnlrw had changed.
I Imagined, at
l»erh«ps thirty fe«'t long, hnllt on the first that M cAllister would stand ami
lines o f ■ whaleboat, anil capable of fight, hut I think that to Ids guilty con
holding a dozen men
To handle this ■ d e u c e there must have been some
la tter c ra ft was. o f course, beyond our thing te rrify in g ns well as superaafu
powers, and accordingly I Imd no time ral In B a r c la y 9 Midden appearance
In launching the canoe through mud upon the scene, for almost Immediate
I I and slime, until sh * lay ready at the
ly The bow o f the whaleboat swung
I very entrance to tlie river. And then, toward the islet, the m aroons putting
despite the danger, a sudden reckless
forth »11 th eir strength In m effort to
thought flashed through my mind
gain the protection o f the reeds
»v«s
31
1 The trea su re chest ’ Who cou!«l fore
the at ra n g er among th«'m. I wondered
tell the fu tu re?
Th e s lav e* might
I could see no sign o f him. and su?
I p erm anently |*>**e»* and guard the pected (what 1 found, long a fterw a rd
island. T h is might he the last chance to he the truth) that he. with Bill an.!
to secu re the gold and getns.
And Quamlno. and three more maroons. ha,i
thus with a hurried whisper to Helen
fallen In tlie attack upon the fortress
I sped hack to the big boat, found the thus meeting by the whim o f fate. •»
grap ple In the bow and. m aking mv tra gic death In a quarrel not his own
w a y to the fa m ilia r spot where I hml
A second la ter the longboat swept
sa ved the life o f McAllister, I used alongside o f us. and I shall never for
mv novel spade to ouch sd v n n tsg e that ! get the captain's courtly bow to Helen
within live minutes I had return«*d to Yet this w a s no time for cere: ,«u
the Canoe, and had placed the small ! and he said quietly, " A r e you with ns
but h ea vy chest s a fe ly shoard.
R ic h a rd ? I think we may have u«»ed
Anti r w I p raved for dgrkt ss Rot o f you.”
Then Roe*. S w in g in g Up
T rap
while the whole east.- n skv was
Dour.
I did not hesitate— did not a nsw er
barr«*d with clouds the motto had so even -but spran g it once Into the
op with her a tr a p door
I g a te d f a r m anaged to e vade them, and con
longboat's bow. Kven Holer, -and 1
d ow n w ard Into Unpenetrable black tlnuetl to shed her light upon Island blush to s a v It w a s f.*r the ins|.int „
ness.
• nd riv e r
And presently, a s we wait
■ «woodary th o u g h t T h is wa* a man’s
I su rve y e d the c h asm doubtfully ed. In a fe v e r o f Impatience. It became
fight, and In It I meant to play niy
■ pm ulattiig s s to Its pri'fcahi# depth evident that the attack upon the for
part.
But this was no time to hesitate, sud trees bed at lest begun
From the
A w a v e <*f fa rawed, and we were
handing my rifle .'•» Helen, I slid down eastwar«] r a m * a tnmult o f frenzied 1
»pee.ling tow ard the Island
Looking
w s i d u s t i 1 be|(J . j by my hand, shunt. m . * » • beating o f ¿ruroa. the t f t I couJd tea t u t tha
, t lir ,
{
r. did not a n s w e r him.
•he fight w a s over, my ‘ , ho * ’• *
i w l f t l y back to Helen
Kv»r, ’
the light w a a growing H*-ur„rUl' S(*
:ould see that ahe w as
**1
y to w a r d the Island
P r e ^ nf, *
d a y c a m e n e a r e r and I>,14 hu J ^
n y sh ould er, and ! saw p,»r ^ *
was g a z in g e astw a rd .
\ ,h« ha . . .
.
Kr,>«t iL. I
ta d com e o v e r his f a c e ; (,e •
'<>ol(M ijL
I man a w a k e n in g from a dr^ [( *
••R ich a rd ." he said. " |'a f| '
»▼ er. F o r all this time, night »nd /'
f’ ve thought only o f reveng,. Ì '
y e m ust look ah ead
v ,,„ . . . “*
u »nd -Iq#
a s s a re s a f e ; you'll marry
»0(1 'W
»ear a w a y to the north'srd
Cell«
his tro u b le w ith the black» i, n
f l l ta k e c h a r g e o f the plantation“' '
re a t them a s I’ d Mice to he treatei
h e ir place.
Th e n there’s tit* '
'■ •a
i r e — w e m u st get that.”
I pointed to the approaching c#.
•It’ s th e re .” I answered. " a U(j u *
ter v i c e ."
"*
H is c l a s p on my shoulder tighten-
•1 th ank you. R ic h a rd ." he »»14
r e a s u re . then, for me. «nd for g*
ford and toy men.
But I w
M
rou the b e a rin g s, aud when you <w
:o S tra lt sm o u th . the other ebeit -
>e for you und your bride."
L a t e r I w a s to appreciate the 3
llflcence o f his gift, hut at th?
nent I think I hardly underv,
^or the c a n o e had almost rear|,wi„
ibore. and ! s ia r t e d swiftly «town rt»
»each.
T h e night was pH||t„ ^
o the e u stw u rd . fur beyond u e
•lends, tinged with ruse foretold tg
mining o f th e dawn
(THW E N D )
PhC
All
v
r /
In stantly
a B ent but W iry
L e ap e d F o rw a rd .
Figur*
ground.
In st a n tly a bent but w iry
figure leaped fo rw a rd , a knife flushed
high, and I saw. to ray h orror, that It
w as M cAllister.
I stl 1 ! grasp ed my
j empty rifle In my hand, und more
quickly than I h a v e e v e r ucted before
or since, I clubbed It and dealt McAl
lister such a blow that It crushed
| through his gua rd and sent his knife
«pinning through the air. my gun stock
fairly sp lin te rin g his skull.
In a fraction o f a second B n rclay
Mad w rench ed h im se lf free, and w a s
bending o v e r his enem y. I wns a w a r e
of sudden silence about us
T h e con
i '1 let w a s e n d e d ; not one o f o u r u d ver
carles w a s left alive. B a r c la y , rising,
¡replaced his kn ife In Ills belt ami
turned to me with a hulf-rueful s h ak e
if fils head.
••Richard.” he snld. “ I would that
rnur strength w e re less.
You have
n>th given mid taken a w a y . You h a ve
qived my life, but you h a v e rubbed me
| WHAT IS YOUR
| Favorite Recipe?
w . v
i is IT CAKE, SOUP
M E A T L OA F , O tfii|i
SALADS?
Phot
We will mail a pack ;
a^e of 3 x 5 f i l i n g cards!
to
every
suhscribc^^V
sending in t h e ir favor-1
ite recipe. T h e s e
be published in the ro;
tation in which theyare| I
received at o u r office!
with the name o f the;
donor. A d d r e s s letter!
;• to ED IT O R , care local]
paper.
W K K K h J** h X m X h * m «(>*W m X m ! h Wh!**!h!4 |
EVERY READER
of this paper has something that
he, or she does not need.
SELL
SOME WOULD ACCEPT SOMETHING ELSE
FOR WHAT THEY
NOW HAVE
;
•
0 .
SWAP
A
Little W ant A d
Seen
it
Will Do The W ork.
A
\
dr
TRY
1
2 lines — one time — one dime
Want
5 c per
11