Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-05-14
where l. Della: -

| where i Dfiii-
"Here," called voice; and from group
that stood under the glare OF the window
came my dear mistress running.
GAIL safe, jack But what She drew
back from our strange equipage.
IAN in good time. First tell mellow
came the fire.
"Why, foul work, as it seems. All know
is l was sleeping, and awoke to hear the black
seaman hammer'ng on my door. Jumping
up, found the room full of smoke, and es-
capped. The rooms beneath, they say, were
stuffed Wit straw, end the yard outside
heaped also - III straw, and blazing. Ben
Halliday found two oil jars lying there
| care the horsss o-+9'
''Oh, jack do nos knowl Shame On me
20 forget them"
ran towards the stale Already the roof
vas ablaze, and the straw yard beyond,
livery furnace Pushing IN : found the TWO
horses covering in thei,. stalls, bathed II
cweat, and squealing. But twas all fright.
/ So fetched Mollys saddle and spoke to her,
and set it across her back, and the sweet
| thing was quiet IN ? moment, turning her
head to rub my sleeve gently with her ruz-
zle, and followed NE out like lamb. Ire
bay gave more trouble, but soothed hin IL
the same manner, and, patting his neck, LED
him, too, into safety.
I had fastened the horses by the gate and
was ready to join in the work when shout
WIS raised:
Billy! Where's SILLY Pottery: Has ~
seer the skipper
Sure called, you don't say he was
ever alarmed
Black Sampson was in his roor--wLere'l
| -,celc SAMPSON
Here be- cried a voice. ''r0 Ls sure I
ole the skipper before any o ye.'
Then where's he hid, DID any see him
,onie out:'
Now, that we have not -" answered one or
.wo.
stood by the house door shouting these
| .r-estions to tie men inside, when hand was
aid on my arm, and there in the shadow
aited Billy himself, with mighty curious
| s--inkle in his eve He put a fingertp and
! signed that I should follow
! We passed round the outbuildings where,
! three hours before, Matt. Soames and l had
| hid together. was minded TO stop and pull
| Oh my boots, that were hid here; but and
| this was afterwards the saving of mel c.
second Thought let them lie, and followed
Billy, who now led me out the poStern gate
Without speech we stepped across the turf,
| he q pace or two ahead. \ night breeze was
| blowing here delicious after the heat of the
| fire. We were walking quickly towards the
east side of the headland, and soon the blas
| behind flung our shadows right to the cliffs
edge, for which Billy made straight, as if to
| fling himself over.
| But when, at the very verge, he pulled up,
! became enlightened AT our feet was an
iron lar driven into-the soil, and to it a stout
| rope knotted, that ran over a block and dis
appeared down the cliff knelt and, pull
| ing at it softly, looked up 1t came easy in
the hand.
Billy, with the glare in his face, nodded;
and, bending to my ear, for once achieved
whisper.
Saw one stealing hither-an' followed \
man VII a limp fOot-wcuu over the sids like
a cat"
Unjust have appeared to doubt this good
fortune, for he added:
BE Il truth SpcakiI' man i the main. Jack
lay over pom my belly, ami spied ledge
fifty feet down or leSs-reckon there he
way thence to the foot Dear, now! what &,
rampn', tearin' sweat is this.'
For, as fast as | could tug, l was hauling u,
tie rope. Nearly sixty feet came up before
reached the cnd-a thick twisted knot.
rove a long moose, pulled it over my head and
shoulders, and made Billy understand he was
to lower me.
Sit i the moss. lad, am hold round the
knot. For sign To hoist again, tug the ropS
hard. | can hold.
lie paid it out carefully while | stepped TO
the edge. With the moose around my lOinE
thrust myself gently over and i'll trice
hung swaying.
On three sides the sky compassed me-wild
and red, save where to eastward the dawn
was paling; on the fourth the dark rocky
face seemed gliding upward rs Billy lowered.
Far below heard the wash of the sea, and
could just spy the white spume of it glimmer-
ing. 1t stole some of the heart out OF NE,
and 1 took my eyeSOff it.
Some feet below the top, the cliff fetched
slant inward. 80 that dangled a full three
feet out from the face. As boy had adj
ventured something of this sort on the north
sides of Gable and the Pillar, and once Cafter
a nest of eagleiS) on the Mickledore cliffs; but
then twas daylight. Now, though saw the
ledge under me, about a third of the way
down, IL looked in the darkness, to be so ex-
tremely narrow that It's probable should
have called out to Billy to draw me up but
for the certainty that he would never hear:
over.
Down 1 swayed BILLY letting out the rope
very steady, and at last swung myself in
ward to the ledge, gained footing and took
glance round before slipping off the rope
l stood on a shelf of sandy rock that wound
round the cliff some way to my left and then,
as l thought, broke sharply away. Twas
mainly about yard in width, butin places
no more than two feet. In the growing light
noted the face of the headland ribbed with
several of these lodges, of varying length,
| but all followed away underneath las l sup
pose 10y the sea in former ages. so that the
cliffs summit Overhung the base by great
way, and peering over / saw the waves creep
ing right beneath me.
Now all this while 1 had not let Master
Tmgcomb out of my mind. So l slipped off
the rope and left it dangle while crcpt for
ward 10 explore, keeping well against the
rock and planting my feet with great caution.
believe | was twenty minutes taking as
many steps, when at the point where the
| ledge broke of l saw the ends of an iron lad
| der sticking up, and close beside it a great
hole in the rock, which till now the curve of
the cliff had hid The latter no doubt stood
on a second shelf below.
/ was pausing to consider this, when a
| bright ray streamed across the sea towards
/ me. and the red rim of the sun rose out of the
waters, outfacing the glow on the headland,
| and rending the film of smoke that hung like
a curtain about the horizon. Twas as if by
alchemy that the red rippes melted to gold;
and stood watching with child's delight
heard the sound of a footstep, and faced
| round.
Before me, not six paees off, stood Hanni-
bal Tingcomb.
| He was issuino from the hole with a sacL-