San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-01-20

when he returned. No more was known, for
none of the rest had come ashore, and it
seemed they were pressed for time to reach
certain spot before the snow shou,l fall.
And sure enough the next day there fell q
sprinkle even in Albany; but it passed as it
came, and was but reminder Of what lay
before us | thought of it lightly then, know
ing so little as did of that Indictment prov
ince; the retrospect is different; and won
der at times if some of the horror Of these
events which must now rehearse flowed not
from the foul skies and savage winds to which
We we're exposed, and the agony of cold that
we must suffer.
The boat having passed by, thought at
first we should have left the town. But no
such matter My lord continued his stay in
Albany where he had no ostensible affairs,
and kept me by him, far from my due en-
ployment, and making pretense Of occupa-
ton. 1t is upon this passage | expect, and
perhaps, deserve cenSure. | was not so dull
but what had my own thoughts
l could not see the master intrust himself
into the hands of Harris and not suspect
some underhand contrivance. Harris bore q
villainOus reputation, and he had been tam
pered with in private by my lord; Mountain,
the trader, proved, upon inquiry, to be an
other of the same kidney; the errand they
were all gone upon, being the recovery Of i'll
gotten treasures, offered in itself a very
strong incentive to foul play; and the char
acter of the country where they journeyed
promised inpunity to deeds of blood. Well,
it is true | had all these thoughts and fears,
and guesSes of the masters fate. But you
are to consider | was the same man that
sought 10 dash him from the bulwarks c. a
ship in the mid sea; the same that, little
before, very impiOuSy but sincerely offered
God bargain, seeking to hire God to be my
bravo IL is true again that | had good
deal melted toward our enemy. But this l
always thought of as weakness of the flesh
and even culpable; my mind remaining
steady and quite bent against him True yet
again that it was one thing to assume on my
own shoulders the guilt and danger of a
criminal attempt, and another to stand by
and see my lord imperil and besmirch him
self. But this was the very ground of my
inaction. For Should any way stir in the
business might fail indeed to save the mas
ter, but | could not miss to make byword
Of my lord
Thus it was that | did nothing; and, upon
the same reasons, | am still strong to Justify
my course. We lived meanwhile in Albany,
but though alone together in a strange place,
had little traffic beyond formal samtations.
My lord had carried with him several intro
auctions to the chief people of the town and
neighbOrhOOd; others he had before encoun-
tered in New York with this consequence,
that he went much abroad, and, | am sorry
to say, was altogether too convivial in his
habits. | was often in bed but never asleep,
when he returned; and there was scarce a
night when he did not betray the influence Of
liquor By day he would still lay up N me-
endless tasks, which he showed consid rabls
ingenuity to fish up and to renew, in thu man
ner of Penelope's web. | never refuse is I
say, for | was hired to do his bidding, Uut
took no pains to keep my penetration under
bushel, and would sometimes smile in his face.
II think | must be the devil and you
Michael Scott" said to him one day. 81
have bridged Tweed and split the Eihons,
and now you set me to the rope Of sand"
He looked at me with shining eyes and
looked away again, his jaw chewing, but
without words.
"Well, well, my lord" said l, your will is
my pleasure. will do this for the fourth
time; but would beg of you to invent an
other task against tomorrow, for, by my
troth, | am weary of this one."
you do not know what you are saying
returned my lord putting on his hat and
turning his back to me. 1T is a strange
thing you should take pleasure to annoy me-
A friend-but that is a different affair 1t is
a strange thing lam a man that has had i'll
fortune all my life through | am still sur
rounded by cOntrivances. | am always tread.
ing in plots" he burst out The whole world
is banded against me"
IL would not talk wicked nonsense if were
you, said |; but will tell you what would
dol would put my head in cold water, for
you had more last night than you could
carry"
DO you think thatf' said he, with a man
ner of interest highly awakened Would that
be good for me! It's thing never tried"
IL mind the days when you had no can to
try, and | wish, my lord, that they were
back again, said l. But the plain truth is,
if you continue to exceed, you will do your
self a mischief"
81 don't appear to carry drink the way /
used to- said my lord. Il get overtaken,
Mackellar But | will be more upon my
guard"
THAT is what | would ask Of you" re-
Piled You are to bear in mind that you
are Mr.. Alexanders father; give the BARN a
chance to carry his name with some RESPONSE
bihtJ."
"Ay, ay," said he. "Yere a sensible man,
Nackellar, and have long been in my employ
But think, if you have nothing more 10 say
70 me, will be stepping. II you have moth
ing more to sayr he added, with that burn
ing. childish eagerness that was now SO COM
mon with the maa
mo, my lord, have nothing more" said
|, dryty enough
Then think will be stepping" says my