Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1891-12-31

Thoughts of the sorrow and miseryln-
to which the families of the guilty men
would be plunged should he choose the
latter course, intruded on Walter with
strong persistence. He knew these
families and knew that their cups of bit
terness were already full.
"I'll take the risk" he declared,
simply. "Play with the doll as much as
you like, Peggy, while I'm gone. 1t
NAV be YOU can have one like it to-
morrow"
He opened the door, and without an
other word plunged into the icy air of
| the street. AS he turned the corner he
| looked at the face of the clock in the
| tower of the city hall. Nolan's clock
was wrong 1t wanted but twenty min
utes dill r. Twenty minutes What if
something should happen to delay him?
The mill was many blocks distant; and
there were no cars running in that part
Of the city; .,,
PRAYER half forming on his lips. 81
must ~
With the speed of frightened deer
he bounded along the streets. At one
place he passed a handsome church
with tall steeple pointing skyward. 1t
| contained number of people who were
prayerfully watching the old year out
| and the new year in. Then he brushed
by a crowd of registering young men
who were singing JOLLY, and who looked
after him as if they suspected from his
haste he was a thief endeavorng to
eiude the officers. But he needed none
of these. There was in his mind room
! for but one idea and that was of the
endangered mill.
If 50 foul plot can have any palliat-
ing circumstance it existed in the fact
that no one was likely to be injured
should the explosion take place. 1t
would result in fearful wreck of valu-
able property, and would plunge many
people into deeper depths of poverty
by depriving them of all chance of
work there. But no ones life was i'm
periled.
Walters thoughts were running some
what in this channel, when he recalled
the night Waterman. Perhaps the
Waterman was in the plot. Otherwise
the building? If he were innocent,
and he should not discover the deadly,
| ticking thing that was to fire the ex-
plosives. then MS life would be sacri-
| feed.
AS this fear filed the boys mind the
sweat came out on his face, and he ran
faster if possible than before.
| Another corner brought him again in
sight Of the city hall clock. Five
minutes of the ten allowed him by
Nolan had expired. If no accident
should betall him he would be in time
and have many minutes to spare. But
railway yards he found it filed with
moving trains and putting engines.
Walter could not think of waiting for
any Of them to pass. The network Of
tracks might not be cleared for hours.
1t was terribly tedious task to pick his
way among them, and could only be
| done by swinging between the freight
cars, diving under them, climbing over
flat and coal cars, and lodging before
and to the rear of swiftly moving en-
gines, where slip of the foot would
have resulted in death.
A passing fear that his unseemly haste
might create suspicion and cause his
detention, or at least an explanation of
his mission troubled him; but he never
theless scrambled on, knowing how
precious were the minutes yet remain
/ ing of the old year.
He was clear of the network of tracks
at last and running again at the top of
his speed. Once more he came in sight
of the dial of the great clock. His
breath almost stopped. Only eight
short minutes remained! Then the
deadly explosion would do its work
But he was near the iron mill now. He
could see the tall chimnevs outlined in
black against the frosty sky.
Painting, perspiring, and almost ex-
hausted, but with a courage as grand
and unselfsh as that which uplifted the
soul of Horatius, the hero of the bridge,
he ran on and on. He knew he was fac
ing peril as deadly as it was menacing,
but he neither hesitated nor faltered.
He was thinking of the Waterman as
he turned the corner nearest the MILL
and, as if his thoughts had conjured
forms from the shadows, three men APP
peared. Two were walking and bearing
the third between them. By sort of
intuition Walter leaped to the correct
solution of the mystery. The plotters,
not wishing to sacrifice the watchman's
life, had surprised and overpowered him
and were now carrying him to some
place of safety. This seemed attested,
as the men came closer, by the fact that
the two who were walking wore masks.
3They appeared to be in great hurry,
which caused Walter to think the time
for the explosion very near at hand. |
Just how near he could not tell, for the
dial of the great clock was not visible
from that point.
imposed by the appearance of the men.
The delay not only imperiled the
building, but endangered his life as
well.
When the men had passed he leaped
forward with feverish haste. Fortunate
ly they had been in too great hurry to
close the gate and door after them, and |
the way into the mill was open. In an
instant Of time almost he reached the
stairway, and then flew up the steps as
if winged. The second floor was
gained and here he halted, not know
ing which way to go, and trem bling with
nervousness and exhaustion. Every mo-
ment he expected to hear the crash
and boom of the explosion, and feel
himself hurled into space, to fall a life
less corpse.
Crossing to the opposite end, where
there was little occasion for the watch
man to 90 and where the explosives