The free press., 1895-01-17

which the victim took the decisive ac-
ton which would make his fate GER
tain and Interchangeable. He drew out
plan rapidly, making rough sketches
of the mechanical details on the back
of Deborah Dene's fatal letter.
Then he went down to his forge on
the floor below, and worked hard at
the manufacture of the instrument he
had invented. 1t was finished by mid
| night, and, in a grim sort of way,
Ralph Carbon was proud of his work.
The invention was in the sort of
dynamite bomb, which would explode
by the slow action of an acid eating
through barrier of cement. One of
his past failures haG left him with the
dynamite on his hands. 1t was in
closed in carefully welded iron case,
joined strongly, so that once the case
was closed it could only be opened by
the exercise of considerable force. It
was connected as strongly to an iron
chain, which the inventor fastened
around his waist, joined the two ends
with Yale paddock. When he had
locked it he laid the key on his anvil,
and with stroke of his hammer beat
it out of shape.
"Now," he said to himself, almost
triumphantly, when it was done,
Coward or no coward, in about half
an hour 1 must die"
He was glad that the affair was set
tied. There was nothing left to live
for. The only thing that he still
feared was his own want of courage
and determination.
To get away from his anvil and
tools, with the chance they still offer
ed him of changing his mind, and
breaking the chain round his waist, as
we'll as to save the empty house from
needless injury, the inventor put on
his hat and walked out into the coun-
try road that stretched in front of his
lonely dwelling.
He walked along rapidly, anxious,
whilst his determination remained
firm, to place as great q distance as
possible between himself and any
chance of undoing his handiwork.
There was not soul abroad, Of
course, at such an hour, and Carbon
had no fear of injuring anybody but
himself by the explosion that now he
was expecting every moment. When
the road took him near any habltatlon
he made wide circuit to keep it out
side the range of the dynamite bomb
thoughtfulness for others he stopped
when, after about half an hours walk,
he caught sight of the figure of wo-
man approaching him. He was like
man with the plague, whom it was
dangerous to approach, and Ralph
was about to turn precipitately, and
get out of the woman's way, when
something in her figure struck
him as familiar. The night was
moonlight one, and in the middle of
the road where she was walking it
was as clear as MONDAY. A second
glance told him that his suspicion was
right; it was Deborah Dene hurrying
along the road.
In the complete surprise of seeing
her in such spot ut such an hour, the
thought of his invention went clear
out of his head. 1t was due to go off
at any moment now; but Ralph was
SO astonished that he actually forgot
its existence.
He hurried forward.
"Deb," he said, "what are you do
ing here?"
For answer the girl flung her arms
around his neck and burst into tears
She had hurried as fast as the train
would bring her to him Immediately
on receiving his letter, with its hint OF
suicide, and had walked from the
nearest station, three miles farther up
the road, expecting to find him
corpse. She sobbed for five minutes
on his breast without being able to
speak a word, in the relief of finding
him alive. The letter which he had
received and which she was supposed
to have written, she had never heard
of except through his reproaches. 1t
was forgery, no doubt, conceived by
some spiteful acquaintance OF his or
hers to ruin their happiness. she
loved him with her whole heart and
Il II