The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1893-11-27
CHAPTER !
THE CRY IN THE MOTT,

THE CRY IN THE MOTT.
The night had grown very dark. Black
clouds were drifting over the moon and
fast blotting out the somber light of the
cold stars,
As leaned from the carriage and with
straining eyes vainly sought to pierce
the gloom Of the night the soughing Of
the wind through the great pines fore
told the oncoming storm.
A feeling OF intense depression seized
me- Why had come? AT this moment
wished myself miles away. What a
senseless quest this upon which | had
entered Suppose were to find my old
friend; would she be glad to see mer
Was it not an unpardonable intrusion to
arrive thus, unheralded, at dead of nightf
Was there, in fact, any greater inbecile
on earth than |. driving here, near mid
night, over miles of rough country road
in search Of Portia Vane?
Ten years had gone by since Portia
and were graduated from the Canadian
convent in which we had spent four
happy, uneventful years. During that
time we were as inseparable as any
schoolgirl fxiends. Ihad idolized the beau-
tiful, amiable southern girl, whose tales
Of plantation life in all it's tropical color
and Incidence had completely captiyated
me. Born and brought up III rigid
northern atmosphere, the glimpses got
through her conversation and letters of
Portals home life were visions of fairy
land. Portia was stately, clever and
talented. j was poor, inferior and plain.
But the loveliest and wealthiest girl in
the convent singled me out as her friend,
and my gratitude and devotion to her
were unbounded.
After our graduation we corresponded
for two years, during which time was
employed in teaching and laying by
money, for intended some day to visit
Portia in her southern home. She wrote
me Of her approaching marriage, urging
me to be one of her bridesmaids, which
pleasure / was forced to forego.
received few letters after her mar
riags, in which she spoke in glowing
terms Of her new life. Then heard no
more. We drifted apart, as all school
friends invariably do.
It is always the unexpected which
happens. Whoever would have fancied
that from his numerous train of rela-
tives my uncle, John Mason, would have
selected me, poor Prudence Mason, as
the heir to his great property? When l
had finished gasping over the announce
ment his lawyers made me, my first
thought was of Portia, and that would
seek her at once to tell her the good
news. Perhaps we might travel togeth-
OF; perhaps she was poor and needed as
sistance. Possibly there were children
for whom / might do something. Re-
member an obscure plain teacher has
few trends, and never in all my desolate,
colorless existence had so clung to any
human being as to Portia Vane. |
thought of her now as the carriage went
jolting through this wilderness over the
uneven roads. occasionally banging
against q stump or the root Of tree. l
saw her sweet face and heard again her
gentle voice and remembered all her
gracious and kindly acts.
will We soon be tbere?' asked my
driver.
He was q typical specimen of the
southern cracker" and in the 1nonoto-
nous, mellow accents borrowed from the
negroes drawled out:
rPutty soon, ma'am. 1t ah bout tn
mile. Soon's we uns git by Dead Mans s
swamp ye kin see the lights down yon-
dah."
"Dead Mans swamp repeated in
Voluntarily, What horrible-a dis
NAL name"
''Dismal place, tu." he replied, "thah
hain't white noh niggah dah go in thah
at night. All sorts O. Gurus an awful
COINS on thah."
"What do You meanW l asked.
fWaal." he droned, II hardly know
myself what / du mean. Thet's it. You
know, ma'am, thet it's the mystery,
thet's what skahs. Now, if We knows
what's happened, II takes half the scah
off, but if thah's only stories an nobody
willin to find out it's kind O. awful.
Anyway, kin tell ye this much-thah's
lights seen in thah at midnight and ter
ribie sounds heard An some SAYS, an
they don't hahdly like to whispah the
word, thet thah's whah the yoodeos
meet"
'The voodoos" said.
"Yes, niggahs, ye know, what do un-
earthly things-eat dead babies, tab out
folks hearts an play with sahpents'--
"oh, don't tell me anything more"
exclaimed. I've read of them"
"Waal, ma am, it is somethin disgustin
an awful to think on. I'm allus powah-
full glad when I'm past the place"
A few rods farther the great forest
broke away little, and in the pallid
light could discern under the scattered
trees stretches of morass, black, slimy
and filthy. From the gaunt trees the
long gray moss hung like lifeless figures
dangling and dipping in the sullen sur
face Of the stagnant pools. The swamp
seemed interminablc, reaching away in
endless gloom under the lo hanging
branches. The moon came out from
the clouds for one moment and sent
cheerless light down on the forbidding
scene. but quickly withdrew, as if
alarmed at what she saw.
1t was frightful place-weird and
uncanny. The wind shuddered through
the trees, and ghostly shadows seemed TO
Turk beneath their swaying, writhing
branches.
"What q horrible placel" exclaimed.
HORRIBLE Yes this hyah Is Dead
Mans swamp" whispered my compan-
ion.
Though was oppressed by these hid
eous surroundings, yet was at the same
time unaccountably fascinated, and lean
ing ont looked as far into the black
vistas as the waning moonlight would
permit. 1t seemed TO my excited fancy
s-zzssEzE=z~s-Ss-s .'~.-s-s--.=.zs
PfOCH MSSplNl