The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1891-07-10

am dying, and tCith no ono to l0Uc you"
These two men had belonged to the
same regiment, and had stood shoulder
to shoulder on more than one battlefield.
Dupont, after his term of service was
over, had knocked about the world for
several years; he had been an acrobat in
London, gambler in Ceylon, miner
in Australia and sheep farmer in New
Zealand, and now, with few thousand
dollars in his pocket, he was on his way
to Central America, with no very clear
ideas as to what he would do when he
got there. But he was not the man to
get the worst of any situation in which
he might find himself. Nothing fright
ened, nothing depressed him. Withal
he was most entertaining companion,
having resources of anecdote, humor
and dare deviltry that never knew ex-
hnnstinn. No wonder, then. that Maui
rice. who for more than two months past
had scarcely exchanged two score SEN
fences with human being, was highly
delighted to see thus unexpectedly his
old comrade.
But after the first greetings had been
exchanged-and very hearty they were
on both sides-Maurice began to reflect
that perheps the encounter was not SO
fortunate after all. For Dupont, besides
being communicative, was inquisltive,
and he had not been on board half an
hour before he had asked Maurice all
manner of unanswerable questions about
himself. his destination, his objects in
travelling and dozen things besides.
How to meet this brOadside of interroga-
tives Maurice knew not, for his character
was straightforward and unimaginative.
He told lies awkwardly-and on the 9TH
er hand, if he kept silence the result
could only be to stimulate his friends in
quisitivcness still further. Finally he
attempted Il compromise by informing
Dupont that for certain good and sufi-
Gent reasons he preferred not to specify
his exact intentions just then, but that
after they had arrived III New York he
would willingly tell him all he cared to
hear.
Dupont, who had all the imagination
that Solange lacked was gifted also with
the power of effectively Disgusting his
feelings and designs when he deemed it
eXpedient to do 50. He accordingly pro-
fessed to be satisfied with the others
ultimatum; but, at the same time, pri-
vately made up his mind to get at the
bottom of the mystery, whatever it was.
And very likely he would have suc-
ceeded, but that destiny chose another
way to bring about the issue.
While the Santa Lucia was still a
thousand miles distant from her port,
sailing over smooth seas, with light but
rather battling winds, the second mate
fell i'll, and the captain, after Investigate
ing his condition, returned to the deck
with grave face. The mate remained
shut up in his bunk for two days, dur
ing which time there was great deal of
more or less outspollen speculation among
the ships company as to the nature of
his illness. The captain, in answer to
all inquiries, responded that the mate
was suffering from IL bad attack of in
digestion and would be all right in day
or two. But on the third day Dupont,
who was always the first to discover
everything, told Maurice that the disease
the mate had was yellow fever. Twelve
hours later the mate was dead, and then
the truth was known to every one. Be-
fore sunset a seaman had caught the in
lection, and that night three others were
seized with the pestilence.
There were twenty-five persons on
board when the ship left St. Elmo; at
the end of week after the fever ap-
peared only fifteen were left alive. The
captain, Dupont and Solange were the
most active in nursing the sufferers The
two first had seen yellow fever before,
and Solange showed the hardness and
adaptability of an old campaigner. These
three were also the only ones who escaped
the panic that is among the most effect
i've predisposing causes of the disease.
AS fast as the men died they were stitched
up in their hammocks and buried in the
sea. No one who had been attacked re-
covered, but at length the epidemic
seemed to have run its course, and for
two days there were no fresh cases.
Then, when all seemed well, Solange
himself was smitten. He struggled man
fully against the fatal grasp of the fever,
but in vain.
When he realized that his time had in
deed come, the anxiety caused by the
thought of the peril to which his recent
mission was thereby exposed had the
effect of worseninS his disorder. His
mind was in no less pain than his body;
he had set his whole soul upon fulfilling
the emperor's command, and he could
look upon his illness in no other light
than as a crime on his own part. He
had undertaken duty-as important a
one as had ever been intrusted to SOL
dier-and he was about to fail in it. The
emperor, never hearing from him, would
suppose that he had been unfaithful and
had yielded to base temptation. 1t was
more than probable that the whole fut-
ure of France might be compromised by
his failure, He writhed in helpless ago