Baxter Springs news. [volume] (Baxter Springs, Kan.) 1882-1919, 1891-11-21
THE GREAT HESPER.
BY FRANK BARRETT.
CHAPTER I. CONTINUED.

''Then you are Bernard Th0rne," the
baronet said to me, land Lola is"
"The Kid" said Brace; cher mother
was a greaser-a Mexican" he explained
10 Miss Lascelles. The dinner had warm
ed his spirits and loosened his tongue,
and he continued: "Wo were drawed to-
gether at Cape Town by an advertise
ment in the paper. Our afflicted brother
wanted to stake his little pile upon q
mining venture. He had studied the
thing scientifically; he had laid out a
kinder chart in his head, pricked down
where the great finds had been made,
sorter reasoned out the cause thereof,
end sot his mind firm as big find was
to be made in certain spot known only
unto himself. We conversed, and he
perceived without much difficulty, as he
he'd found the right sorter partner in me,
end he kinder left it with me to find o
third party TO jine in the venture. I
spotted out Gentleman Thorne here
among dozen. liked the shape of his
chest and shoulders; / liked the look Of
his face: / see that though he was outer
luck, he was a gentleman, every inch OF
him; and tell you, miss" he said, adj
dressing Miss Lascelles, ''that though /
amt no gentleman myself, back blood
and breedin' ag'in all creation. A man
like Gentleman Thorne, who has been
KEEP clean in his infancy, fed wholesome,
trained up in public school, and been
learnt to respect hisself and God Al
mighty, has better temper, more endur-
ance, more pluck and fightin' power to
overcome and win, than q dozen o. the
muckers that bounce about bein' workin'
men" He paused moment to let his
words make due impression, and then
continued, Gentleman Thorne had no
experience, but he had hundred pound
to put into the concern, and that fetched
Israel Just Us much as his looks fetched
me. Israel had three hundred, l he'd
nothing in the shape Of dollars, but l
threw in the Kid, which, being female,
was calculated to be useful unter us in
the nat'ral order of things. What we
he'd we lumpt in, and by written agree
ment drawed up mutual, we undertook
70 play it out to the bottom dollar and
the pint of starvation. We worked, sir,
through thick and thin, through the
measliest streak of luck mortal man ever
struck.
'Israel was the first to funk it. My
calculations are wrong; it's hopeless
venture, let us chuck it. he says; to
which Gentleman Thorne replies-'No,
he saws, well stick to our colors and
fight it out says he; end he did his level
best to cheer us on. You should have
heered him there a-whistlin' like black
bud, singin' songs, drawin' US out Of our
selves, and maxim pleasant joke out OF
our bad luck. Asst the Kid down there
who was her best friend in that trouble.
She'll tell you it was Gentleman Thorne,
not her father. She had bit OF fever
it was him made up o bed for her, built
a screen to keep tho sun off, walked fif-
teen mile in the night to get things from
the store, set up night after night to give
her water. end used for to sing out about
the sleeping beauty and Cinerella, while
he was peggin' away at the burned
stones. will allow, miss, l were
ashamed to let him zee was losin' heart,
and when I felt like blasphemin' at
things in central, I used to take a short
walk and let of all my swearin where
he couldn't hear me. Well, 1t did LOOK
as eff we had hooked on to the everlastin'
fish-kettle. Then Israel funked 1t sec
ond time. we hev still few pounds
left he says to Gentleman Thorne, lets
throw up the cards. which they might
hev done without going from our writ
ten word, they two formin' a majority.
But Gentleman Thorne wouldn't agree
to it. 1t wouldn't be fair to the Judge,
he said, and then he promised that If we
failed in the end he'd stick by Israel, and
keep him like his own flesh and blood
until he found the means of keeping his
self, which was more than I'd hev prom
ised him, will allow. Well, we played
on till the last cent was spent in stores,
and the stores had got down to half tin
of beef. and screw of shag, and then l
lighted on a two-carat stone. The very
next day Gentleman Thorne found the
Great Hesper. We couldn't allow it was
real, vet we sorter thought it was. Any
how, we didn't sleep till we got to Natal
and had it tested. We sold the hitler
stone, and scraped enough together to
pay our passage TO Southampton by tho
next boat. In committee we agreed to
90 to bank and raise money on the dia-
mond as soon's we landed, but no one
wouldn't take us on, end eff the police
hadn't put us on this track I'm burned II
I know what particular ole we should
hev been stickin' in at the present mo-
mept."
During this recital, which I have abb
breviated considerably, Van Hoeck, who
despised the Judge and abominated all
he said, sat with his eyes closely shut,
his nostrils pinched, and his black brows
creased together, so that they almost
met. Miss Lascelles listened with in
tense interest, her pretty lips just parted,
and thought she looked more kindly
upon me for the glowing eulogium-of
which have omitted great part-paid
to me by Brace.
The Kid changed her position, seeming
to catch some of her fathers enthusiasm,
and, sitting upon her heels with her
hands clasped before her, turned her
flashing eyes sometimes upon me, but
more often upon Miss Lascelles, as II to
catch the effect of this narrative.
zone thing is obvious" said Sir Ed
mund cheerfully; ''you won't want to
leave me tonight"