Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1895-12-26

warning"
Well. if | had been heavy with
thought before, You can think how |
felt after my strange talk with the man
among the fagguts. What came homo
to me even moro than his words was
his shivcring broken voice, his twitch-
ing face. and his eyes CHANGING swiftly
to right and left and opening in horror
whenever branch crcabcd upon Il
tree. II was clear that he was in the
last extremity Of terror, and it is pos
siblc that he had cause, for not long
after l had left him | heard II distant
gunshot aud a shouting from some
where behind me. 1t may have been
homc sportsman hallooing to his dogs,
but / never again either heard or saw
the man who had given me my warning.
kept a GOOD lookout after this, rid
ing swiftly where the country was open
and slowly where there might be IN
ambuSCadr. It was serious for me,
since 500 good miles Of German soil lay
in front of me; but somehow | did not
take it very much TO heart, for the Ger
mans had always seemed to me TO be
kindly, gentle people, whose hand
closed more readily around a pipcstem
than swordhilt-not our Of want of
vulur Won understand, but because they
are genial, open souls who would rath-
cr be on good terms with all men. | did
not know then that beneath that home
~ surface here turks 4 dcviltry as fierce
and far more persistent than that of
he Cast liam or he Italian.
And it was not long before | had it
shown to me that there was something
more serious abroad than rough words
and lard looks. ! had come to Il spot
where the road runs upward through
wild tract OF hcathcrland and van
iShtd into an lakewood. may have
been half way up the hill, when look
ing forward | saw something CLEAN
under the shadow Of the tree trunks.
and man came out with coat that
vas so slashcd and spanglcd with gold
that he blaHed like a fire in the sunlight.
lie appeared 70 be very drunk, for he
rcclel and staggered as he came to-
wards me. One of bis hands was held
up to his ear and cmtchcd n great red
handkerchief, which was liked to his
neck.
| had rcincd up the mare and was
looking at him with some disgust, for
il seemed strange to me that one who
" IRE 50 gorgeous uniform should
show himself in such a state in broad
daylight For his part ne looked hard
in my direction and came slowly on
ward, stopping from time to time and
sWaving about as he gnzcd at me. Sud-
denly, as again advanced. he screamed
out his thanks to Christ, and, lurching
forward. he fell with crash upon the
dusty road. His hands few upward
with the fall, and l saw that what [
had taken for red cloth vas a mon
strous wound, which had left a great
gap in his neck, from which a dark
hloodclot hung, like an cpaulcttc, upon
his shoulder.
"My Cod l cried, rs I sprang to his
aid, and | thought you We're drunk"
Not drunk. but DYING said he. but
oh. thank heaven that | have seen a
French officer while had still strength
to speak"
| laid him amoug the heather and
poured some brandy down his throat.
All round us was the vast country side,
green and peaceful, with nothing liv-
ing in sight save only the mutilated
man beside me.
who has done this?" asked, land
what are you? You nre French, and yet
the uniform is strange to me-
ut is that Of the cmpcror's new guard
of l,,. 4 4