The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-03-05
QUIXARVYN'S RIVAL.

The battle of Sedgemoor had been
fought and lost. Night had come again,
and in the old gray church of Weston
Zoyland 500 Of the beaten rebels lay i'm
prisoned.
The scene inside the church was awful
in its weird impressiveness 1t might
have been gorge of the lost souls in the
Inferno. The lurid glare of a few
torches which were stuck at intervals
against the pillars revealed the forms of
men sitting and lying on the seats and
floor in every attitude of detection and
despair. Up and down the aisles the
iron .shod heels of the sentries rang upon
the pavement.
The greater part Of the prisoners were
silent, or only moaning with the pain
of recent wounds; some were praying;
one was raving. mad with terror. And,
in truth, he and his companions had
good cause for fear, for their conqueror
was Feversham, the general Of the
Royalists, whose only mode Of dealing
with rebel was to hang or shoot him
without moro ado, and who was only
waiting for the daybreak to begin the
work Of slaughter. A few only kept
their resolution-among them two who
were sitting together in the shadow of
the pulpit steps. Both these men had
been conspicuous in the fight, and both
knew well that they must die at day
break.
The elder Of the two was man of
about tEirty-fye, with powerful,
thickset frame and strong and rugged
features; bad man to have against one,
one might say. He was by trade horse
breaker, and a great part of his business
was to break in the wild colts of the
marsh. His companion was some six or
eight years younger. His figure was
tall and slight, but finely made, and his
face was singularly handsome. He was
the swiftest runner in the west Of Eng
land. perhaps in the whole kingdom.
His name WAS David Dare; that of the
elder man was John Quixarvyn. Both
were natives of the town of Abridge,
but until the day before they had been
strangers to each other. Chance had
made them comrades in, the contest,
where they had fought side by side and
where the same troop of Royalists had
seized them both.
The two were silent. Quixarvyn had
pulled out short black pipe, had filed
and lighted it, and was now smoking
TRANQUILITY. His companion had also
pulled out something from his breast
but it was not pipe; it was the portrait
of a beautiful young girl He took
long look at the lovely face-a look
which said farewell
Quixarvyn watched him In the dim
light in which they sat he could not see
the features of the portrait, but he
guessed how the case stood.
sPoor fellowr' he said, with more
tenderness than would have been ex-
pected from his looks. Then, after
Minutes silence, he went on, as much to
himself as to the other: ''And yet my
case is harder. / was in love-I am in
love, God help me!-and also have her
portrait IN my breast. What would l
give If could look on it as you can look
on yours!"
Dare looked at him with interest.
sWhat!" he said; 1'have you also the
same trouble poor girl who will go
distracted whan she hears of what has
happened to your
"No," said the other bitterly, "she
will not go distracted; she has had
enough of me. And shall have the
pain of dying unrevenged upon the
knave who robbed me of her!"
1t was strange to see how in. a mo-
ment his eyes had grown ablaze with
passion. The young man looked at him
in establishment.
4'Who wa p he inquired.
1:Whe was it?" echoed the other. Do
you think, if knew that, that I should
now have cause to writhe at dying with
out crying quits with him? No, do
not know him-I only know she loved
1ne-that she cooled toward me-that,
when asked her plainly whether she
had found younger and better looking
man, she confessed that it was true, and
threw herself upon my generosity to set
her free from our engagement. / did SO
in a frenzy Of mad passion. But when
] asked her for his name, she would not
tell me, fearing, | daresay, that might
twist his neck / should soon have
found him; but then this war broke
out, and in my rage l could not keep
myself from rushing to the fight to cool
my blood with blows. And so here l
an-going to be shot at daybreak. But
/ swear to heaven, if only had that fel-
low in my power for one brief minute, l
could die contented."
"You are right" said the other; 81
should feel tho SAME"
Quixarvyn drew a portrait from his
breast, and held it out to his companion
Look" he said, sis this q face to jilt
a man?-tl.cugh il is one to drive him
crazy. Let me look at you1s-it is not
moro innocent than this one, dare
swear"
The young man took the portrait, and