, 1873-03-02

u iaugh. "you will find my marks in all tbe
great Eastern cities, ard, VIXEN You know Who
au, you will vondo7 that treated you SO kindIy
Eur your llelcn charmed ne, and l kept gi:h
you IL order 70 complete my experiment npoa
| her. Now. however, must BE- oil, C:Ya n,a
then.'' ~
q IRE you then tzlicf:' eaia Ma7uaapke
scornfnlly.
"Yes, at your service. And that Is not all I
am. TIastt cae, young sir, ai7se yoa well when
! I tell .ou not to oppose u.o.''
- an not afraiu ct yoz, murderer" !" raid Mag
Ianduse, with flashing eyes fixed on the pistol
pointed r. his breast.
tho man, qu;o:l;. Nhy do you llositate3 Hs7a
not giyoa your Helen safely esck into your
arms vixen .ao was eatircl! Il ny power?
The tw6 stood eyeing each other Ike two wild
chance and contingency whirled through Mar
maiuko Frcston's bT.in with tk.t pistol pointing
at his heart and tLoao indo1ibfe a;c3 behind. IL
II hs hat doubted tbs eyes AL tha hand! Bat
he felt that tho first vera pisiIsas and tho las.
sare. There wes way save tia one proposed
by the bandit.
"If give them to you" he began.
"Tcs, Jcs, I UNDERSTAND Interrupted ths
stranger; 'you are no coward; know that
II you we're, sho1ld hayo shot you long ago. I
haze the advantage Of you; you aro anarr,od.
eud mist yiell or die. Bat, in gcnerosty VOC
ought 70 :;iyo me tho trinlots voluntarily, II
rlace Of Helen.
grot,ud Lefozo than.
".lo: to mel" answered the n1aa.. e.n;Ioz.
"Go, row, 3!aEmaduko Preston. Ii you sse
Sir John Wentworth ohen &c Genes bacl
from tho plains, a3l him no r he lost his fishing
rod I beauea!h it to you. And, as for Victor
Lac, Of Lcca5urg. you may tell him borrowed
his name for willie. pe.iars shall take you,a
ns1t, who kuo"s? Farewell. Apollo! 1 viii
stand hero and watch you down the path. Tou
caa give the alarm, whoa you are out Of the
range OF m5 pistol, il yoa choose, but zdsise
you no. to DO it. I: w.u bo uEeless, and Eish:
throw zczndal upon Helen, vino is out there in
tao forest waiting for re. 90, now! Ay time
is short"
Marmaduke stood q moment, but Fate was
too strong foz him; ho wen: down the aide
of the mountain. When lie reached tho bottom.
he turned and looked bac5, and, aa he did 60.
the bandit waved bis ha1d end disappeared into
hesitated he could see the csHp-llre and tbs
sleeping figures around it. Should he giya the
alarm? But tho image OF Helen rose before
him he made C. detocr, reached the broo1-alde
n11d found her cold md half insensible On ita
bank My darling" he cried, and cla.ped her
in his arma. .'..
Tho next morning there was great commotion
in tie camp at the foot OF the Iron Mountain
" Wake up! wake up!' skrieked Aunt Kane,
sinking aor niece, who aeened to be unusually
sound asleep en- her leafy couch by the door;
tiny watch is gone, aud my rings, End ny
purse!"
"And mine :" cried another.
t'And mine /! and mine! and mino !" screamed
the chorus.
Dire confusion reigned, all voices talking
a. once, all counting their losses. The camp
had been p1undered, no one had escaped both
outside and inside there was not valuable left.
t'Where ia Victor Lee7" said one Of the gen.
t1erncn. 'sCould Le have been tho th;ef:" sug-
gested another; nftor all, We know re1y littla
about him.
But the. ladies' 7ehenent17 derided this
idea. The camp had been plcndered By soms
marauder, who had evidently followed then1
from Marquette, and possibly even from De-
troit; sucd outlaws wore onlJ too common Ii
tho wilds OF tie West Dnt. to coanac. ench
deed with AIr. Les! Absurd Outragcousi Ha
had his owa reasons, probably, for leaving them
go suddenly, but tho idea that such o nan could
be 3 common thief! =:
-"Not common. but most u2ooz1Iaon. should
sav," commented tho original s1o3aa.ar of, tls
libel. But the ladies' laughed him = s1oru..o
1.-The Lees, OF Leesourg!" said Aunt Kane.
"Imposaibla !" .-~~:-~
:Helen," said N1arnaduko Preston, several
years 1ates, Sc Maryland Victor is taken at last
out beyond the Rocky Iou1" "ta;-e:"
The fair wife turned raie. ''Oh, hope they
will -not-they will not" She could no:
finish. e.,
"Haaz him, do ycu, mean? DO richly d.
served it. the scountrel!" " said .Iarraadu5e,
clinching his teeth, az he thought Of the scens
on the Iron Mountain. s'But they Ind no op-
portunity. It WAS in one Of those canons, hs
vas surrounded by United States troops, md.
when he found that escape was Impossible, LIS
shot himself Through the heart"
Fenimorc Woolson in 4pp!etons Journal.