The Cecil Whig., 1885-12-12

"Dinnermit p yelled Tom, "the poo
mans ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS -sho
shell! Dinnermit-grease, lard an,
and nitro-glycerine Hurrah for din
hermit !"
Three cheers echoed this, three ring
ing cheers. ST McGuffin heard then
in the lonely mill and shuddered. Wha
did it meanl What new danger threat
ened him? He sat at his high desk il
the light of smoky lamp. How still
the mill was, how vast and gloomy the
great buildings about him And he
was the only living thing there, while
outside in the quiet streets were hun,
dreds who might take his life.
miserable man, miserable money!
he groaned. 'Has my wretched life
ever been worth the living? Yet now
it is so dear, so dear to me l wan
to live; old, friendless, loveless-I ycr
want to live !''
| A step sounded on the stair, the Latch
ratified softly; Silas with wildly baatin.
heart flung open the door. He knew
we'll he was defenseless against mob
he had suspected an attack ike this
one man who would lead the way fol
the rest. A decent, gray-haired mar
crept into the room; he was III hi:
stocking feet, his face pale and his eye:
wide.
"Them was goin' ter blow up the
mill with dinmite l feered ye wa int
| come ter see sir. Ye wa old, an
fair mostly, an then it were rank mur.
der, sir. They was comm nigh r.
This man was one of the committee
of three.
From him Silas learned that under
the mill was dynamite enough to wreck
1t and all the buildings. Where would
he be in that awful upheaval? Before
they had time to think another stealthy
step sounds on the stair.
Where were Benny and the cobbler
They heard the plan and hurried to the
mill, the child the guide; but at the
door Benny shranK back, for his father
was just before him up the stairs.
"Who is it?' said McGufin, when
the latched ratified second time.
"Tom Bailey" was the answer. The
gray-haired informer hid himself, and
Silas let in the man who had sworn to
Kill him. To his surprise, Tom tol1
him the whole plan of the explosion.
"Now," said Tom, with an evil leer,
''give me cheek for one thousand dol
lars and III give ye the names Of all in
t."
"What reachery p thought Silas, but
he wrote the cheek with steady hand.
To show this man up to the rest (the
hidden witness to prove lt) was worth
all the money.
Tom took the check, looked at it
keenly and went out. As he left the
room he seized the key with quick
movement and locked the door be-
hind him. The men were like rats
in trap, for the door was Of oak
and bullet-proof. The window was
six stories from the ground and they
were more than a mile from the
town. They heard the man go
down the stair; the workman sank
trembling into a chair. A terrible
presentiment came over him of what
Tom meant to do.
Silas ran to the window. Six
stories below he saw a mans figure.
The night was dark, but Tom had a
lantern. He saw the man creep
along the ground, stretching some
thing Ooh, how long was it, that
something that meant their death)
and at the end-very cautiously he
lighted it-a spark. Then Tom
rushed away.
Oh, that evil spark! 1t crept
nearer, nearer-a bright red eye,
Pickering, glittering, creeping in the
darkness, slowly, steadily. All, how
steadily, nearer, nearer! Would no
kindly breath from heaven withcr
its evil light? Was there no rain,
no dew in all the beautiful sky to
fall now and quench it forevero Was
all nature so cruel that the fire king
should triumph? The traveller on
desolate plains loses his fire, the
merest breath of heaven robs him OF
its faint life, To all who need, fire
is coy, hard to get. People have
frozen begging for one glimpse OF
its cheer and warmth, yet this spark
crept on, steadily on! Such wee
spark, tiny dot of light-ncarer,
always nearer!
What was that? Another lantern
"a child! Listen.
"There it is, William, there,
there" in a child's shrill voice.
How Silas listened! What did the
two figures mean? Who was the
child?
"Run, run!' said another voice,
full and deep. (Where had he
heard that voiceo) "You must keep
far away. You are a child; you
might fail; it might gain. on you.
Run to the town. Where is the
spark? Point me right. Now, il
you care for me, run, run, Iun'
The child sped away. Silas
strained his eyes into the night
Who was that man sroping with
outstretched hands to the evil spark
that meant death and desolation?