The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1870-12-31

been distinguished. The storm that had gone
before had been but play to tins awfnl outburst
The vessel drove on, creaking and grooming, u
mere cookie shell on the pillows.
Mother of Mercies" walled the captain,
"It's all up with us, signores. can't make out
the Cape in this darkness. We shall go on the
rocks. St. Anthony save us!"
| The seamen echoed his cries.
| The two young EnglishmeR, comprehendins
their peril, clasped hands in silence.
For the next few minutes it seemed that a
Pandemonium reigned.
Then noise like the report of a cannon sud
denly doomed through the storm and the dark
ness. Tie little vessel shivered staggered and
careened upon her side.
She had struck upon a rock
moment later crew and passengers were
struggling in the waters.
A few moments of buffetings and tossings, of
vain struggles aud agonized, in voluntary prayer,
and then Jasper Lowder felt his senses slip from
him, and bee me unconscious.
When he came to himself he WAS lying upon
IA rocky beach of the Siclian shore, sore, bruised
and weak child.
He opened his eyes The wind had spent it's
fury, and now moaned along the coast with a
desolate, desptring wall. This waves beat
againS, the rocks.
Lowder struggled to his elbow.
"Wrecked y he muttered. Il am cast ashore
while the others are drowned! Oh this is terri
Bile! have lost my best friend tonight"
lie moaned aud wrung his hands.
He is dead, who would have done so much
for me, and | so worthless am saved All my
hopes of an easy and luxurious lite must be re-
signed now
At that moment he beheld a dark object at a
little distance III the water. The waves hurled
this object against the projecting head of a
sunken rock. At the same instant Lowder re.
cognzed it as the body OF d man.
lie crept toward it, and the waters 1ashed the
body on the shore at his feet. He put his hand
on the face. How cold and wet it was. 1t felt
like the face of dead man! L,wder's fingers
came in contact with the soft, silken moustache,
and he knew tina. the body was that OF Guy
Tres-ilian!
| half-hour earlier, these two alone were left
The captain and his crew had found their deaths
among the cruel, yawung waters.
Lowder thrust his hand under the waistcoat
OF his friend, but he could not perceive the
beating Of his heart Despair took possession
of him.
dead !" he said sbrilly "Dead! And he
would have done so much for me if he had
lived And his father and the young girl he
WAS to have married will wait in vain for his
=; coming. His place at Tressilian Court is empty.
| Who c,n fill it ~
1t seemed to HIM that some demon at his side
| echoed the question: Who could fill the place left
| oacant By tie noble Guy T'essHiln!
A thought Came to him-a tn ought so strange
and sinister that he shivered involuntarily.
Again he felt Of Tressilan's heart. It gave no
throb against his hand. He passed his hand
over Tressllian's head and discovered gaping
wound in the skull The hair was clotted With
blood.
Putting his hand into his breast pocket, Low
| der drew out his little waterproof match safe
He opened it with trembling fingers and struck
| light. The red flicker danced Oh young Tres.
| sili4n's face
How CHASTITY and terrible it looked! The eyes
were closed, the smile was gone The seal Of
death seemed to set on the noble features.
Lcwder examined the wound. II had been
made by contact with the sharp rock, and even
| Lowder perceived lite terrible character.
''1f he is not dead he soon will be-" he NUT
| tered. "His brain has received an awful injury.
He will never know who he is again. He Won't
1--we till morning and he is perhaps dead already
| He mus; be dead ~
Again it seemed to him 40 though some demon
echoed his words.
The match dropped from his fingers into the
| water. For little while he crouched on the
| wet stones in silence, battling it may be with
the better and nob!er instincts of his nature.
At last, with sudden and abrupt ste.lthiness,
his hands stole into the breast pocket of Tressi.
| ian and drew out his private notebook, = packe.
Of letters, few trnkets. He secured these
among his own wet garments. Their possession
seemed to give him courage and his face hard.
ened, and he knelt beside the body of his friend
and rted his garments of all that they contained.
| bestowing his plumber on his own person.
Then he took his own purse, his notebook, q
few receipts and trifes from his own pockets,
and pat them in the pockets of Tresslian,
ut Is done!" he whispered to himself, looking
! with wild defiant eyes through the darkness
| "No one is harmed. He is dead. II he had
lived he would have provided for me. As he il
dying or dead must provide for myself 7hs
Likeness tetrSen us wM make my fortune. His
friends will be spared terrible grief and IL
shall live at last! Fortune gives me chance to
gain name and wealth at one lucky strokew
AS if to give himself no chance for repent
ance, he arose to his feet and turned his search.
ing glances in an inland direction. A light as
from cottage window, glimmeripg family
through the thick haze, caught his gaze.
| Raising HIS voice, he called loudly:
"Help! Ho, there! kelp!"
| The wind had abated, and his cries rang out
through the night with startling distinctness
The light he bad seen moved and disappeared
| A minute later, answering cries reached Lowder's
ears and he heard hasty steps, and saw the sp.
| preaching light of n lantern, borne aloft by a
| mans appraised arm.
This way| shouted Lowder. I'VE are
wrecked on the rocks For the love Of Heaven,
hasten ~
The bearer of the lantern, attended by male
companion, came running to him, and was soon
at his side. The lantern bearer was q rough
| Siciiian fisherman, grade above his class. His
companion was also Sicillan bnt evidontlv of