, 1875-10-24
HARD PRESSED,


The crisp shining snow cracked beneath Il
burrying feet OF the speaker, as, painting III
breathloRs, be came bursting through the brus]
wood, and emerged from the pine-copse into IL
road, not pistol-shot from the two pillars
| red granite brought from the U.al that dec
rated the e1tremit; Of the avenue leading to tt
country-houee hard by. With come difficult
the driver Of the eledge-n tall, manly youu
| fellow, whose fair hair and ruddy cheeks CO,
traated forcibly with the swarthy sallowness an
black ellocks OF tho Russian mouiik WHO ha
| thus suddenly accosted nim-hrought the fier
| horses to q check.
why, 1saac, INF good hiend," ha said s1nil
| ing, what news hare you tor me that brock
no delay in the tc}iug7 Has some bear killed
man, and does nobody dare to trnverae the fos
eEt road until settle scores with Bruin, with th
aid Of q brace OF leadon pills from the big rifle
Or have you been SO unfortunate Is to be agai1
at a misunderstanding with the gems darmes
II 50, T."
"E1cellency," interrupted the man with ve
heEnens earnestuees which made itself felt, -
am hero today tc pay d debt. We Rnsaian
have memory tenacious of kindness, and tht
poor vagabond, Isaac Pau1ovitch, has not forgot
ten that but fo1 your intercession he would hay,
tasted, before this, Of the black bread ane
the knotted thong in Jitomir gaol. ".
run to-day 10 veTats through tho snow to war;
you that the foreigner and the gentleman whe
travels the Vasilko road this night carries hi
life in his hand. knew you to to on visit al
the Baron's yonder. He's in no danger. but wot
to every castle from the Dnieper ferry to Bogus
law and Skudra, for they will be, one and alt, in
light tlame before moourise !"
''There is rising, then. among the serfs ~
asked the young Engllshman, eagerly.
There II, answered tho man called Isaac
with nod. Tho people OF swenty villages
have sworn the great oath on the Gospels to root
out Nil these Sobieskis and Jagellons, and the
rest of tho unbaptzed Polish Counts and Princes
that wiring the wlthers of the poor"
do you mean Count Nicholas Galitzio, Of
Czerngorod:" asked the young man, growing
pale Is be spoke.
THAT 90 T." replied the moujik. "A heavy
account heu have to settle, tae proud"
But before the sentence was concluded the
young EnGlishrnan had slackenea the reins Of
lis lmpAtien. 6teed5, which dnTted off at once
lilo arEows from the bow, and, to the inefFsble
surprise OF the gar1ulous Isaac, tn whole equip
age rapidly disappeared along the road leading
to the very district to which his warning had
reference.
= In the course Of thres years residence In
Southern Russia, Edgar Marston, who was
manager Of the Land Bank q: Tasilkof,-a
post OF trust to which he had been appointed
through the influence Of relatives Of his,
wealthy membcrs Of the British Guild Of
merchants at st. Petersburg: had gained
province III which he hyed, and lnaU the bitter
hate nhieh the Ruthenisn peasants entert aimed
towards the landowners, most CT whom we're
Polish MOBILES who had Won their estates when
Poland Vas widespreadiog kingdom. He
knew, too, that Count Ga!itzin Was personally
obnoxious to his late vassas for aundre1 ar
bitrary acts aud petty exactl0ns aud be trembled
lest he should not reach tho lonely Eanor-bouse
III time to give warning to its inmates Of the ap-
preaching owl
land Annette is there !" said the young man
10 himself half ucconsciouAly, as hs encouraged
xassa1ae secrat Of Edgar Naretons 8 eagarness to
give timely notice Of the coming storm to those
beneath the root Of the Galitzin Castle He had
fallen deeply IN love with the Counts young and
oretty danghter-the Countess Annette, as she
vas called in compliance with that courtly Rus
,iau rule which bestows titles on all the men,
,crs OF 81. ar!stocratic family-and he knew that
,is loveT-was 1eciprocated. ue had, indeed,
,een formerly on terms OF intimacy with Count
ialtzin's household. although on proposing
lsmsalf as suisor for Annlette's hand, he had
,een mot By q decided refusal.
Count Ga1itziu, whose large bat ilI-cul1Tated |
state lay on the bank Of the Dorysthenes but |
aw miles from YaslJkof, aud who oged money
o the financial corporation Of which Marston !
7as tue representative, had other views ior hls |
angbter than to bestow her On young for !
,sner whd.was neither rich nor titled, and the |
isits Of Edgar, formerly Welcome guest ut /
'zerpgorod, had for some time wholly ceased |
fe wne, however, aware that Annette With her !
arents, had for several weeks pnst been resid-
ne at the chateau, and his first impulse VAS to
urry thithcr to preserve her whom he loved /
rom the blind vengeance Of the half-barbarous
orfa raw mn ths ava of revolving.
The short wintar's day Was nearly spent, and
hen Edgar reached the outakirts OF tic Village
t Czerngorod, the sun had sunk beneath tie
lack screen OF su1len pine-trees that marked the
ounaary OF the forest; while through those
.cea glnred an omlnous ruddy light, and shouts
aots, and roar Is Of an excited crowd came
3nfusedly to the ear.
- Hcayen help them the castle must be al
,ady On fire !" exclaimed che young man, as he
~ tall column Of smoke, streaked BY fiery
,owers OF sparks and burning takes, rise high
the mir. What, by this, may be the fate Of
1859 within !"
His 8pprehoDsion8 we're, however, destined to
, promptly relieved, since, as he drove past the
~ boundary fence OF the Counts gardens, he
sard ha name called. and saw Annette GalitZn
ersen come running toward him IRON 1as;n smla?E
as hanging loosely over her shoulders, and her
tile feet, il their dainty Paris shoes, sank at
cry stop in t1a deep SNOW, making it evident
at in her alarm she had darred forth from the
lrning manor-hcnse, having merely the tlme
snatch up the short-hooded cloak, lined and
lmned With costly fur, which she wore -,
4. Mr. Marston-Edgar!" she exclaimed, with
terrific earnestnees, "0h, pray, save me-!
lis me with you before they seek me- out to
d ma. I feel half dead already, at the very |
und Of their savage shout aud trampllng feet.
Ipa, thank Heaven, is safe at Vasalkof, where
and nv dear mother went but yesterday, leaT-
= me here alone with the German gorerness;
d, when the peasants broke iD, Mademoiselle
,rzen thought ut nothing but her OWN safety,
d He'd into the woods and"
By this time Maraton had sprung to the
aund, fastened the reins to projecting boush,
4 by vigorous effort had succeeded in tear
i, away portion Of the ill-kept fence. 60 Is to
Eablish . gap th=ough which slender figure
eht pasa. Yet minute, aad Aanietse Eas
tied beside him in the s!edge, speeding rapidly
az from the pil!aged castle.
rhe roAd, which had hitherto trsverseo .
tivatsd district, at this point plunged into
asry tract Of forest land, 80 that the black ! :
10 trees coon barred out the light Of the dying F.
:, and little could be seen except the white
~ that cleaned from between their boles.
| chilly breeze sprang up, and the evening
~ perceptlbly colder; but the siedge Vas well | Z
,vided with wraps, and Edgar WAS careful to c
~ heavy fn11ed pel1see around the trembling c
N OF the young Countess, while, IN fond aud