Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1864-09-01

| IL LIE MATTER udI, salu l. nave you seen a
| ghost p bur ne staggered to chair, and fell,
rather than sal, down on it, holding his face
between his hands, while the big sobs that
| burst from him seemed to shake him from
head to foot, though not tear fell through
his fingers. l stood by him for some little
time, but he seemed to grow worse instead of
| better, and at last I laid my hand on his
| shoulder. Come, Ralph, be a man; what is
| all this about? He turned Oh NE like a
| tiger. Leave me alone, curse you. Do
| you too mock at me = and, with one spring,
| he was past me, and out at the door like a
mailman | followed in haste, greatly alarm
| ed as YOU may suppose, but could see nothing
| of him. There was a mist rising, and any
one would have been invisible at any mod
| crate distance; and it was with deep fore
| bodings that | went my rounds that night.
| When | returned to my cottage, l noticed
| small piece of paper lying on the floor
| 1t explained all It was a letter from
Hendon to Kare, evidently written in a
hurry, and was all crumpled up as if it had
been clenched in the fingers. No doubt
1t had dropped from Ralph's hand, though
how he got it | do not know. 1t left no room
for doubt. He urged her to hy from the vii
lage before her condition became known. and
promised that he would provide for her Soon
after, heard more. That same evening Kate
Polmarthen had disappeared That morning
! her bedroom had been found empty, and she
was gone. What surprised others, though not
me, was, that her father made no search after
| her-for he made none He knew only too
well why she had gone. Hendon was still in
| the village, in order, | suppose, to divert all
attention from himself, as he was not aware
that the note had been found Ralph and 7
each keeping our own counsel What need to
publish the certainty Of her shame? We heard
nothing Of Ralph for three days, when he re-
turned and went about his work Just as usual,
but resenting fercely any mention of the past.
His manner, too, was quite changed Oh! so
haggard and wild he looked, and with q dog
ged kind Of sullenness in place of his former
light-hearted gaiety. Even to me he never
spoke now, and one or two attempts | made to
draw him out into conversation were met with
such bursts of rage that | was obliged to leave
him to himself And now | must come to the
; most painful part Of my tale. You see that
the bay below is closed i'll high-tide, and
the sand gets quite covered. 1t was high
water about half past eleven on the September
evening, when | was on my beat, and bright
night, just like this. | was walking along the
top OF the cliff, just where we are now, when
| thought | heard voice down below, on
the beach, which was nearly under water
Surprised at this, looked over, and l saw
that there was figure there, and that he
was rushing about, and shouting up l could
recognize the voice of Heldon, and called
out Holloa, there! !" "Help help !" he
cried. 81 am cut off by the tide I can't
swim. Send boat. For Gods sake help
ME !" So it was. Sauntering along, he
mad suppose, waited there, and had found
himself cut off by the rising tide, which
would have been the case an hour and half
before saw him, so that he must have wait.
ed at least that time with the water grad
ually rising higher and higher. But what
was to be done True had a rope, and in
stinctiycly had taken it out, but it was only
il short one, about dozen yards long | al
WAYS carry bit about with me. 1t often
comes in useful but what good was it now !?
! [ could not descend the cliff, and if l left my
| beat and went for assistance he would be
drowned long before | could return. Even
while ! hesitated, i heard step behind me,
and Ralph Tregarva stood by my side II can
go down that cliff" said he, in the meas
ured, logged tone he had always used since
| Men, though there seemed to be an expires.
sion of savage exultation III his tone
that night that made Die Shudder. g
will 60. Give me that rope" Good
God !" | exclaimed, cit is certain death !"
| While L spoke, however, he had snatchcd
the rope out Of my hands, let himself over
the edge of the cliff, and was going down,
| northumberland clutching at every little bush
and every tuft of grass. Ny head swan
watching him. One slip, and he would have
fallen, literally smashed on the rocks be-
low but he seemed to bear charmed life,
Tor still l could see him going down, further
and further, crawling like a lizard, till he
was only some eight or nine yards from the
| bottom. There he stopped. There is a fat
! ledge or rock there, and he lay down on it,
| 1t was a still night, and | could hear him, as
plainly as | could you, sir. Mr.. Hendon }
he called out. 'Oh, thank God, you are
come at last ! | heard Mr.. Hendon answer.
Here l am. How can l reach you?" Il
have rope with me; if | throw it to you,
can you get up here ? Yes, yes be quick,
be quick. The tide has risen up to my knees,
and am half dead with cold Just so,
was the strange answer of Tregarva. Quick!
quick do not trife with we | shall drown.
You will not drown for half an hour yet, Mr.
Hendon,' replied Tregarva, with~a laugh.
But such a laugh 1t sounded like the
be quick Mercy = echoed Tregarva.
Such as you have shown shall be shown to
you. Where is Kate Polmarthen?' Il do
not know. | do not, indeed. Quick! the
water is over my knees 'Liar!' returned
Ralph, needless of his agonizing entreates
i have ventured my life to come here.
Did YOU think it was to save you? No; it
was to secure my revenge. Never shall you
come up here alive. Listen to me- When I
heard of her fight, was among the first to
visit her house. Her father found letter,
from you, telling her where to 60, and that
you would meet her. She had dropped it in
her hurried departure. But never shall YOU
meet her in this world. Liar seducer
Your last hour is come. I have but to throw
: you this rope, and you are safe Your life
is in my hands; but had | a thousand lives.
and were each of them entwined in your one,
l would give up all, all, to punish you
Again the scream arose" Mercy mercy -
Mercy" again echoed Tregarva. "Such
mercy as the lion shows to his prey, such
shall you have. You shall die, wretch-die
in your sins, and, as the water mounts high
err and higher, think of her whose body and
soul you have murdered, think of me, whose
peace of mind, you, in your wantonness, have
utterly wrecked, and then ask for mercy
Never Oh, that l could forget the fearful
scene that followed. The wretched Hendon,
as the water mounted higher and higher,
while each wave almost tore him away from
his trail hold on the projections of the rock.
chung to the cliff, shrieking out mingled pray
ers and basphemles in his agony, while the
relentless waves came dashing in, rearing M
with hoarse boom against the rocks, while
above all, rose the frantic yells of Tregarva
as he exulted in his terrors and suffer.
ings like wild beast over his VICTIM
The crisis had arrived. One mountainous
wave came rolling in, and while his death
shrek still rings in my ears, Hendon was
torn away from his hold His white face ap-
| raaraS olaan,;nu AMONGST the snrav 70, =