The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1876-10-19

In vain; ye cannot rob n1o 0t that t60u4h,:'p
h.s % i '. .ueh + Aess.renl s e sxsetnaf'.
That biessed sn9les have iof AGES smiled =:
| - q #. ;,sa.-.! Z -e>..z:.:-.si at7 =! !,,t:
~. =. PRINCE, BQLTIKOFF.,.;,, ;, ;,
hs9! feaa aaa fe2s g ess SassS
Coast; but lit is at all times 30 strictly
garrisoned that the integrity Of the
Empire might depend upon its tenure.
Twas once It's garrison-1, Randall de
Loutherberg Carruthers, Lieutenant in
her Majesty's Royal Regiment Of Fem
ctbles-that is to say, I, with hand
ful Of soldiers, held it against all com.
ers. My men were better off than |
was, for they took it in turn to mount
guard upon the honeycombed ordnance
and the tumble.down gates Of the fort
ress. They had employment, 4 had
none. bathed, breakfasted, and walk
ed upon the; shore; to eat, drink, sleep,
and smoke made up tho sum total of
my diversions. But that / was gifted
with powers of progression, might
have been an oyster. -,
One day as usu"l l strolled upon the
beach. The season was springtime, the
sky bright, the sea like q mirror.
Nothing ever broke the stiffness that
reigned around Fort Needham; it lay
off the highroad, no one came to it !:
even the fishing boats avoided the bay,
because of the shoal water. With my
glass I swept the horizon, now and
again examining the sea gulls or far
off sail.
What is that black thing bobbing up
and down in the water! A hen coop
or whale! or a new rock shot up sud.
denly from beneath the waves!
|. No, it: is q. boat Of some sort very
low in the water, not unlike'a q raft, land
there is a figure on it, a>man pad1ling
He is making for the shore; slowly and
surely he approaches. Closer and clio.
ser. His face is plainly visible now,
and his breast through his open shirt.
He handles his little oar with skill and
vig0r-nearer and nearer he comes.
At length-grate, squeeze, thud, his
raft has run aground, and he Jumps
onto the shingle.
The strangers first act was to throw
AAu0OAx upOA LID AACOO anu CAC401u1
fervently in French, ''Thank God
safe at last %
Then he rose aud came to greet me
with the bow of finished courtier.
He was in rags, he wore only dilapi-
dated shirt of coarse calico, and pair
Of tattered trousers reaching just be-
yond his knees, made apparently from
an old gray blanket ; yet, in spite of
all, he seemed a gentleman. His man.
ner was perfect, the English in which
he addressed me, though tinged with a
foreign accent, pure, and in intonation
decidedly well bred.
''This is a sorry plight in which
find myself, Monsieur. l am waif
cast up by the sea. have been ship
wrecked. never dreamt l should
reach land alive! y
s'Shipwrecked, l asked. "When :
Where? How!''
"Yesterday was on board my own
yacht, the Feodorowna-I am Prince
Boltikoff- know my name, per.
haps," seeing that bowed at this in
PRODUCTION of himself. "No! am a
Russian. was en- route for Cowes.
Last night the yacht lay becalmed off
the needles. was in my berth-half
reading half doing, when-crack -
something crashed into the side Of the
yacht: l jumped from bed and rush.
ed as I was, on deck. It was coils
sion. Death stared us one and all in
the face. l snatched up the first gar
ments could find-you see them," he
pointed, smiling, to his rags-'and
jumped overheard. 1 am 8 good SWIM
mer. At dawn l was still ahoat. Then
I got together a few floating spars
from the wreck, and made that little
raft-good friend it has done its duty"
and as he spoke he pushed it back
into the tide-''Adieu; go, mon ami,
co.
"May ask" continued the stranger,
as soon as the raft had 'drifted away,
''May I ask where am! Would you
have the extreme complaisance to di.
rect me to the nearest town T. =.
This is Fort Needham, said I. Var:
chester is the nearest town-solne doZ-
en- miles Distant
So far! I lam hardly in walking trim,
I fear, but I must make shift to push
on
"1mpossible. I cannot permit it.
You need rest, food. My quarters are
close at hand: lam the commandant of
the fort-'
''You are then an English officer! l
might have guessed it! You are all
generous as you are brave. Twas with
Menschikof in Sebastopol, and learnt
to respect you then.' -
"If you are yourself a soldier, Prince,
it is the more incumbent upon me be.
ing your host.''' ~, IT,,
With this, I led the way to the fort.
The admission of such a tatterdema.
lion rather surprised the decorous sen.
try, but my servant, who was called
in to assist at the Princes toilet, soon
spread the real story through the bar.
racks.
| A bath, my razors, and 4 complete
rig.out of my clothes, made a wonder.
full change in the Princes appearance
He was evidently a person of the high
est distinctions not exactly handsome
his smoothly .shaven face was too sal.
low, and his cheek bones too high, but
fhe had good features and dark pene
trating eyes. He made the mistake
also Of wearing his hair too short; il
was clipped so short that his head look
ed like a round shot.
Your clothes fit me to the marvel
monaier, n. Carruthers. 1t would no,
beind3screet TO ask your tailor name|
He Il an artist. ''s81'' - - i - - .s*'' y
e; .s4ua
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