The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1893-10-04

Robert was eXasperated by her wakeful-
ness, and by his noisy movements kept
old Beaumont from his plan of changing
the hiding place Of his money.
In the morning she was almost in a
fever, for she felt that her strength was
failing, and she feared that she would
not be able to hold out long enough to
save the exposure which she dreaded.
She knew that if something strange did
not happen some dreadful trouble might
come upon them all before nightfall,
and that such might come to them at any
moment whether anything unexpected
happened or not.
A strange thing did happen, but it did
not bring any relief to the poor woman's
stricken heart.
Scarcely was breakfast over when one
of the neighbors ran in quite breathless
and called out:
'Quick! Go down to the shop. There
is such news. Nothing like it has ever
been known in"-
What is it?' cried out Beaumont.
while Robert Macaire said not word,
but sat still with white face Marie's
heart seemed to cease beating. Every
thing seemed to upset her now.
pierre Lamar did not go for soldier
after all. The gendarmes were coming
over the mountain path, and they saw
something queer lying in the ravine I'M
der the precipice. So they went down
the side Of the mountain farther on and
went back up the ravine until they found
it. There was the skeleton ofpoor Pierre.
They knew it by his passport, which was
vised to go over the frontier. The mule
was there, too, Or rather it's skeleton,
for the crows had been down, and by
him was the wreck Of q wine barrel.
They say it may have been murder"
"a murder!'' cried all the party ex-
cept one. Marie's overweight nature
had given way at last, and she had
tainted.
The last thing which she remembered
was the sudden recollection Of the hur-
ried beating Of her husbands heart that
night, and then q red cloud passed before
her eyes, and she remembered no more.
Oblivion is at times the most merciful
of the things that be and yet are not.
The waters of Lethe are the only medi-
cine at times for mind diseased.
Leaving Marie to her mothers care,
the men FASTENED to the shop whittier
the gendarnes had conveyed the CHASTITY
remains from the foot Of the precipice
In his excitement Beaumont quite forgot
his anxiety about the buried money. AS
for Robert, he was afraid to be very far
away from the scene Of the excitement.
He was in truth drawn to the murdered
body with q strange attraction, which is
part of the murderer's doom. For the
present he had to give up all idea Of bet
tering his resources at the expense and
without the knowledge Of his father-in-
law.
The sergeant of the gendarmes was
very grave as he held rough court of
inquiry over the bones of the murdered
man. In common with French police
officials he took the worst possible view
Of the circumstances and was ready to
down face any one who might venture
to suggest that the death might have been
accidental. In this he was supported in
public opinion by the wild grief of Nine.
Lamar, who had come rushing into the
midst of the little throng at the first It'd
ings of the discovery brought to her. She
was naturally in pitiable condition.
All the winter she had been hoping
against hope that her son had really gone
a-soldiering, and that she would some
time get word Of him. Now, at the end
of this weary waiting. the blow came