The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-04-08

that evening 1 concluded that his period of
! penance was over and all was on its old
footing.
1t was two hours later, namely. at 80
O'Clock, that / was smoking in front of the
| billiard room, when saw Robert and nv
niece 60 up the board walk and ascend the
steps Of the hotel. They were walking
rapidly, AM l saw that both were silent
| and distrait. AS thew passed Robert made
an imnerious sign for me to stay where |
| was, and | abandoned the intention. which
| he thus anticipated. OF followinR them uD
stairs. Two minutes later he ran down the
| steps, seized me by the arm and hurried
me toward tie wharf. To my expostulation
| he only said come under his breath, in a
manner of suppressed excitement that |
| had only sean in one man before, and he
| was an unfortunate friend OF mine who
! was on his way with me and a doctor in a
| cab to Kirkbride's.
| saw his hands tremble as he fumblsd at
! the knot which secured to the wharf the
! SkiH which he and my niece had Just left
After thirty seconds OF vain effort to unite
| it, he drew his knife with a curse. The
! fisherman who was standing in the boat,
steadying Il and looking curiouSly in his
| face daring his struggle with the painter,
| started back at this action. The young
man observed the start, and laughed loudly.
| | could see all the lOungerS in the lighted
door OF the billiard room turn their heads
| at it.
''You needn't be afraid of me, O'Niel,"
| he said, in raSping voice. I'm harmless,
| quito, Get in, Draper
had no particular fancy for trusting
myself in a s4lif to the middle of the st.
Lawrence with presumptive mania, but
subtle intuition told me tnat it was either
that or a scane, and thought at the same
| time that with crazy cunning he had
calo u ated on my intuition for having his
Wy. Obeyed. ] saw the stout white ash
blades OF the oars bend like whale5one as
he took the first savage stroke when our
bow was pointed outward.
Six Of tlc strokes carried US fairly into
mid-channel. where we rested in the midst
of the broad pathway of light thrown from
| the lamp of the little red-tOpped Lighthouse
on the reef 1t was the sound of voices of
men singing that arrested Roberts oars.
The music flOatcd across the water from a
Sailboat, whose canvas could dimly make
ont sons distance down stream. Robert
dropped his right oar, doubled his fist and
shook it desDairingly az the indistinct
Wilderness, and then dropped his head III
his hands and stared blankly at me.
Mr.. Draper" he said, at last. He spoke
in a voice from which his late fury had
gone utterly. Thought it curious that he
should have put the handle to my name,
watch he was proud of having dropped
some years before, and then recognized
pathetic likeness, both III the tone and man
nef OF his address, TO Ulab OF clllC IN what
it considers great trouble.
Il have 4 q other and two sisters al homo,
as you know, and if | hadn't shouldn't
have brought you out here. | should have
come out alone, and l shouldn't have gone
back"
All my sympathy vanished at this. "a
threat of this kind is, perhaps, the most
contemplate utterance that man can
make, Robert" | said. If you wish to
carry it out shan't deter you-jump right
overheard l was caught with cough at
that moment, and, remembering my eX-
treme susceptibility to cold, l grew very
angry. ''If you've simply brought me out
here" | said, Ito pour oat lot Of Stop
about my niece Cicely, having refused
you, you can row me right back to shore,
and then you can go hang or drown or
whatever you want. The family has es-
capped, must say, a most diSagreeable ad-
dit;on in the shape of very deadly ass"
Don't" he said. with gesture of hope
less depreciation, that would be nothing
30 this. never knew what mans honor
was, but now Eve lost it. l do know now"
For mercy's sake, man, what do you
mean" | cried.
1 will not say what thought crossed my
mind. Go on! stop this internal beating
about the buSh!"
The sound of the singing came more
plainly over the water and Robert raised
his head and looked hatred at the white
SILL from DSulDu WHICH IL came. 1QaU
cursed load of cadS and walters has cost me
more than life." he said. "Listen!'
"We pulled up to Warmers tonight and
heard the sunset gum he said, heavily.
When it went of your niece asked me if |
wasn't opposed TO sunset guns any way, as
being warlike, you know, and we got
thraShed over all the old straw that was
chopped last night. She's very fond of
arguments, your niece" said Robert, with
a melancholy break in his voice that was
as near a sob as a laugh. She took the
oars and l sat in the stern and we drifted
down between Friendly and Titusville.
The talk stopped, and l was Watching after
it grew dusk, the figures ofthose New York
fellows on Friendly, about thsir campfire
in front of their tent on the bluff, you
know. SlihouetteS are awfully fetching
against the canvas, with the fire between.
/ heard a little gasp and oars splashed in
the water. l looked at your niece.
thought she was dyinG-SO many women
have these heart troubles, you know. She
swayed back in her seat, and grasped the
gunwale. never saw such a staring black
as her eyes, nor such dead white as the
face. She tried to speak once. Then she
gasped out. Behind behind-look
''One of those fellows on the bluff gave a
whOop at tae same minute. l wouldn't
Ia ave known what was up, but l heard
soft slapping noise behind me and the
creak of q boom. rose and turned like a
wall of canvass right above my head.
Your niece pointed to the oar-she could
not speak-there was no time for that.
doubled back and sprang for their hal
yards. | INST have looked over my
shoulder while l was still in the air, |
think, for my first consciousness when
slid down tho rope and tunhled on their
deck was that the boat was safe, carried
out of harms way by the force of my
jump. She gave a little shrek when |
jumped; that was what made me look,
suppose; -. ,,
one of them jumped up and down and
banged on q kettle. Then those brutes be-
gan 20 apologize. They were excursionists
who had hired those niggers out to sing for
them, and they were beating to windward;
that's why we didn't hear them sooner
I'm the midst of all the excitement your
niece coolly backed that skiff up to the sail
boat and waited for me to get in"
Robert broke off in his narrative here.
He wrung his hands like a woman and
choked in his throat ''See here" he said,
almost sebbingly, ''it's your niece you
Think don't think that ever man
felt quite for woman as | did when
l made that jump If it had been
royal mail steamer l was jumping for
I'd have done the same. Ny God, what it
was to see her so frightened. And then"
Ne "uou sic CtulS dTOulu 50
quick and backed that skiff up and didn't
faint or tremble at all, as most women
would when the danger was over, l felt So
proud of her, and felt SO proud that that
quick thought Of mine had saved her Ex-
cuse me, but felt as il she were mine.
She spoke first when got into the boat"
continued Robert. Her voice startled me.
II was very cold AID yet it was little for
lorn You had better take the oars and
row mo hons, Mr. III >rtiu,' she said.
''She took the stern and l began to pu'l
for the hotel, not speaking, for did not
understand her manner. ALI at once IL
struck me that, perhaps, the close shave to