Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-07-05
,ok"' she cried.


Ii was a sail standing out sharp and clear
against the sky, as the suns rays clothed it
with dazzling whiteness.
Look! Look" repeated Molly in tones
so strange as to seem scarcely to have fallen
from human lips.
Kate's ewes followed her cousins move
ments with a startled look in them
and the mulattress, with a censuring shake
OF the head, reached quickly out and laid
hold of Molly's arm.
Come come" she cried.
But the words didn't seem to reach
= Mollv's ears.
Come, dear Molly!' pleaded Kate. And
with these words she tried TO lead her away,
TO turn her gaze away from that sail, hung
like a glistening white curtain on the far
western skv. Molly resisted
mo, no. she cried pushing Nanny aside
with startling vigor.
But this mental e1citatiOn ended sud-
denly. The sun passed under 4 cloud, and
The white and glistening vision faded into
nothingness Once more Molly's arms
dropped istlessly BY her side, the vacant
stare came back to her ewes and all con-
seriousness of the situation ceased. Then
Kate took her by the hand, and she allowed
herself TO be led quickly back to Prospect
cottage.
From now on, bv Lew Barker's directions
Molly was not to be taken for walk out
side Of the villa grounds.
1t was at this iuncture that Andrew
Holister decided TO inform Captain John
Of everything that had happened, the men
1al alteration of Mrs Allaire having now
taken on all the symptoms of chronic dis
order. 1t was not TO Singapore whence the
Dreadnaught must already have
sailed, after putting in there as had been
contemplated: it was TO Calcutta that he
cabled q long message which John would
find upon reaching that port in the Indies.
But although Mr.. Hollister has given up all
hope with regard TO Molly, still in the
opinion of the physicians, il was still posi-
BILE that her mental condition might undergo
some change in the event of her experienc-
ing some violent shock-as for example, the
return of her husband and her coming face
TO face with him. This chance, ii is
true, was the only remaining one, and
although its promise of success was very
slight, Mr.. HOllister was unwilling that it
should be neglected. Hence in his dispatch
10 Captain John, after conjuring him not TO
give himself over to despair, he directed
him to turn the command of the Dread
naught over to his first mate, Rod Shelton,
and to return to San Diego as quickly as
possible. This worthy man would not have
stopped at any sacrifice in order to have
this last experiment made upon Molly, and
he requested the young captain to reply by
cable as TO the course he would pursue.
When Lew Barker learned of the tenor of
this dispatch, which, by the way, Mr. Hol-
lister thought expedient to make known to
him, he approved of it thoroughly, but took
care to express his doubts that Captain
John return would produce any change in
the patients mental condition of character
qualified TO bring about Improvement But
Kate clUng TO the hope that the sight of
John might lift the clouds from N1olly's
reason and Lew Barker promised to write to
him to this effect, so that he might return
home al once, promise, however, which he
failed TO keep.
BY the first of June it would be two
months and half since the Dreadnaught
LETT the port of San Diego. There had been
no news from her since she fell in with the
Flying Cloud. BY this time, allowing for
her stopping at Singapore, she ought to be,
il the absence of accidents, upon the point
OF arriving at Calcutta. There had not been
either from the Pacific or Indian Ocean any
report of exceptionally bad weather which
would be likely to interfere with the speed
of such fine clipper ship. Therefore, Mr.
Hollister could not conceal his surprise at
not receiving any news. He couldn't ex-
plain why his correspondent at Singapore
should not have advised him Of the arrival
Of the Dreadnaught. How could he sup
pose that the Dreadnaught would not touch
at SingapOre-w when Captain John was eE-
prCssly ordered to 90 so. Anyway, ii would
all come out in few days, for the Dread
naught must soon reach Calcutta.
\ week went by. June IL came and
there was no news yet. A dispatch was
now sent to the correspondent of the firm of
Bollister & Co. asking for an immediate re-
ply concerning Captain John Allaire and
the Dreadnaught The reply came two DAYS
later. Nothing had been heard of the
DreGdnaught at Calcutta The American
Tbree-master had not been fallen in with,
Mp 20 date, within the latitude of the Gulf
OF Bengal. Andrew HOLSTERS surprise
now changed to anxiety, and as it was i'm
possible to keep the contents of the tele-
gram from becoming known, the report was
soon spread about the city that the Dread
naUght had neither reached Calcutta nor
Singapore.
The Allaire family, so ii seemed, was
about TO be stricken with another calamity,
z calamity that would reach other San
Diego families TO which the crew belonged.
About this time il was that change was
made in the service of the cottage With
out any apparent motive, Lew Barker dis
charged the servant who had been retained
until now. and whose work had not given
any cause for complaint. The mulattress was
now left in sole charge of the domestic az
Taugements Of the house.
At the end Of June Andrew Hollister re-
ceived a dispatch from Calcutta. The mari
time agencies had no news of the Dread
naught's touching at any port of the course
which she would be obliged to take in
traversing the latitude Of the Philippines,
The Celebes, the Java Sea and the Indian
Ocean. Now, as it was three months since
this vessel had left the port of San Diego,
II was but fair to assume that she had been
lost, with every soul on board of her, either
through 4 collision or by shipwreck before
she had reached Singapore