San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1891-03-19

thlng to aid her own liberation. She
wisely decided to give her ladder the
simplest possible form, by knotting at
intervals into the long rope that shewas
making small crosse pieces of wood, to
serve as rests fCl her hands and feet
With these she supplied herself from the
spokes of an old fashioned bedstead in
the next room to her own, and during
the long hours of that sleepless night the
work went rapidly on.
The next day it went on more rapidly
still and was half finished by nightfall;
but how could she find out what length
it ought to be?
A thought struck her. Sitting on the
summit of the Pit tower, over piece of
embroidery which she had lately COM
menced, she contrived to let one of her
balls of silk roll IS if by accident for a
keen eye was watching her from a
neighboring turTeO over the edge of the
battlement. Running out its whole
length as it fell, while she held the other
end, it reached to within two or three
feet of the ground, and thus she got the
exact measure.
By noon the next day the work was
done, and in the afternoon Princess
Madeleine went for ride over the hills,
attended as usual by two of the jailers
who called themselves her servants.
She was three or four miles from the
castle, and had just pulled up her horse
after smart canter, when a battered
old white bearded beggar hobbled up to
her with IA whining petition for aims.
But as his eyes met hers they darted at
her keen, warning glance, and he
whispered in the voice of Henri de Nor
temart:
''ls the ladder fnishedT
REFRESHING by violent effort the
start that would have betrayed her
Madeleine answered EYES," while
throwing a small silver coin into his
outStretChcl hat.
BE ready then at nightfall ON the
third evening hence, when you shall
hear my guitar in the thic&ets," said
the seeming beggar, in a tone audible
only to her, and with clumsy gesture
of thanks no turned and limped away
down the path.
That night Madeleine, having listened
long and walily for any sound of move
ment in the silent case, made up her
rope ladder into u bundle, in order TO
carry it to the Pit tower. But to her
indeScribable dismay she found it SO
heavy that she could hardly raise it
from the ground, much less carry it up
the steep, high stair of the tower.
But the brave girl was not easily
checked with life and freedom before
her. She dragged the rope ladder after
her along the passage and up the wind
ing stair, reaching the top of the tower
so utterly exhausted that she was forced
| to sit down and gasp for breath. But
the moment her strength began to re-
turn she was at work again, knotting
| the end of her ladder to a broken iron
stanchion which had once served to So
cure flagstaff, and then she began to
| let it down, coil after coil, between two
great masses Of ivy, the deep shadow of
which would even in the day time make
it quite invisible from below.
With all her care, it made q rustling
amonG the leaves which sounded tern
bly, loud AMID that tomb like silence.
Had any one heard it? She clinched her
teeth in desperation as she listened, firm
| " resolved that if detected now she would
fling herself headlorg from the tower
rather than see her last hope OF liberty
melt away. But all was still, and with
the slow, mechanical stepOf Il sleep walk
er she descended the perilous stair.
But now that all was done, and moth
Ing left for her but to wait, the slow
torture became all but uncomfortable.
| The nearer the time Of her delivdnce
came the more impossible it appeared.
The rope ladder would be discovered;
Henri would be delayed by some acct
dent; Keretsenyi would return be-
! fore the time, or would perhaps sur
prise them in the very act Of escaping,
and wrcai upon them both the full fury
of that heliish vengeance Of which she
had already seen so many fearful proofs.
, Would the third evening never come?
1t came ut last-chill, dreary, dark,
with coming Storm, and as the red glare
of the angry sunset faded amid the
gathering Of clouds that blackened over
head, Madeleine, watching it from the
summit of the fatal tower felt as if the
light Of her own life wore going out
along with it. Over ca:th and Sky
brooded a grim, unnatural silence,
broken only by hurrying hoof tramp
far away among tho hills, as if some be
lated traveller werc in haste to reach his
home ere the storm burst.
Harkl was that faint sound Of mu-
sc from the black shadowy tlIickets be-
lowi
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