Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1895-07-06
d. NEWMAN.
AUTHOR Or THE, MN IN glkCNo
"A GENTLEMAN OF FRANCE. ErE~


case in the face Of unknown numbers was
"a task from which the bravest veterans
might have fiinched, and the tOwnsfolk,
furious as they Were hung back. l took
advantage CT the pause. l grasped the
halbcrt myself and pushed the duchess
| back. Drag him up!' muttered. If
you cannot manage il, call Annc!''
But grief and hard necessity gave her
strength, and despite the noise in front of
me heard her toll painting up with her
burden. When judged she had reached
the room above, !, too, turned and ran up
after her, posting myself in the last angle
just below the room. There l was shell
tered from missiles by the turn in tho
staircase and was further protected by the
darkness. Now l could hold the way with
little risk, fer only one could come up at
q time, and he would be a brave man who
should storm the stairs in my teeth.
All this, j remember, was done in a kind
Of desperate frenzy iii haste and confusion,
with no plan or final purpose, but simply
out of tho instinc: of self preservation,
which led me to do, from moment to mo-
mcnt, what / could to save our lives. /
did not know whether there was another
staircase to tho tower, nor whether there
were enemies above us, whether indeed
enemies might not swarm in on us from q
dozen entrances. / had no time to think
Oh more tnah Just this-that my staircase
of which did know, must be held.
thlhk had stood there about MN
ute, breathing hard and listening to tho
uih outside "hich came TO my ears a ilt-
tio soi''hcd by inc thich walls rouhu me
So lnuch so.'chc.i, at le.'st' tnat couio
mar my Hc'ft pc"tiiis III 'hc ihiosI Vi u
al IN
800 '"I uu',',9' '',4"' p''.N 70 '''o uooi
"no''' A''"it seo ny 'i'i0 o'ih. vi
t''ih amount u iI3ut iii 1he rooiii pehihu
per, but She could not see me. what can
GO! she ASKED soliiy.
answered ny question. is he
awe! lmnttciea:
les nn1 hur', she answered, seru
Siihe VIZ, so',' wiz, iu''er,hs Vi 'i'o
" -, -, 81,
IL, ,,.,, - 49, "' ""'' way
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81" .. ~ 49, ',a -, - -
-. :, =, 80, -, - 80 ,a.
49,, - ., sbo,,i,i ,,o - 49,. I'LL
W, s,'a ,"r.ai IT, a. 49,.
,t,;,,,',,i 81 80" 80, - ~ w .'
-. ,.a', g., ,,'nn,nn, S;rna ,,n nr'
o,',, h,l cot ,,,,do lie anno,r,,co nb,ro
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hold out some hope, ana 1t was the more
essential that l should understand 1t and
know exactly what our chances were.
sprang up the stairs into tho room and
looked round, my eyes seeming to take in
everything at once. IL was pig Dare
room, with signs OF habitation only In one
corner On the Side toward tho town was
"A long, low window, through which-a
scoro OF the diamond panes were broken
alrcady-tho flare Of the Ecsiegcrs' torches
fell luIidly on the walls and vaultcd roof.
BY the dull cmbcrs of wood fire, over
which hung huge black pot. Master Der
tic was lying on tho boards, breathing
loudly and painfully, his head pillowcd on
the duchess kerchief. Beside him sat Mis-
trcss Anne, her face hidden, the child wall
ing In her lap.
A glance round assured me that there
was no other staircase, and that on the
side toward the country tho wall was
pierced with no window bigger than n
loopholc or an arrow slit, with 10 opening
which even n boy conld enter. For tho
present, Therefore Unless the Ton of the
tower should he cscaladod from the ada
cent houscs-snd could do nothing to pro.
vide arainst thnt-vc had no,hin1 70 fenr