The Press., 1895-05-30

He was wrapped il some sort of dark ul- ster or blanket which left only his face exposed, but that lAco was enough to give man q slccplcss night Never have l seen features so deeply marked with all bestiality and cruelty. His small eyes elowed and burned with a sOmber light, and his thick lips were writhCd back from his teeth, which glil,aCd and chattered at us with half aniIH;l fury.
 Fire if he r%iscs his hand," said Holmes quietly. We were within a boats length by this time and almost within touch of our quarry. I can see tho two of them now as thcy stood, the white man, with his legs far apart shrieking out curses, and the unhallowed dwarf, with his hdeous face and his strong vel low teeth gnashing tt us in the light of our lantern.
 It was well that wO had so clear n view of him. Even as WIG looked he pluckCd out from under his covering short, round piece of wood, like chool ruler, and clap ped it to his lips. Cur pistols rang out together. He Whillld round, threw up his arms, and wi,l a kind of choking cough fell sideways into the stream. l caught one glimpse of his venOmous, men | acing eyes amid the white swirl of the waters. At the same moment the wooden | lcSSSu ullI UltCW l!IiuS61l upon luC Iuu- der and put it hard down, so that his boat made straight in for the southern bank, while we shot past Ter stern, only clearing her by few feet. We were round after her in an instant, but she was already | nearly at the bank. It was wild and | desolate place where the moon glimmered l upon WidO CXpansO of marsh land, with pools of stagnant water and beds of decay ing vegetation. Tine launch, with a dull thud, ran up upon tIU mud bank, with her bow ill the air and her stern flush with tho water. Thc fugitive sprang out but his stump instantly sank it's whole length into the sodtINn soil. In vain he struggled and writhed. Not ono step could he possibly take either forward or back ward. He yelled in impotent rage and kicked franticully into the mud with his other foot, but his struggles only bored his wooden pin tine deeper into the sticky bank. When VIC brought our launch alongside, lie was so firmly anchored that it was only by throwing tho end of a rope over his shoulders that we were able to haul him out and to drag him, like some evil fish, over our sido
 The two Smiths, fA:her and son, sat suIlenly in their laul:Ch, but came aboard meekly enough when commanded. The Aurora herself we hauled off and made fast to our stern. A solid iron chest of In dian workmanship stood upon the deck. This, there could b. 10 question, was the same that had cOntainCd the ill Omened treasure of the ShUltos. There was nc key, but it was of considerable weight, sc we transferred it carefully to our own lit tie cabin. As we steamed slowly up stream again we flashed our sCarChlight in every direction, but there was no sign of the islander. Somewhere ill tho dark OOze al the bottom of tho Thames lie the bones of that strange visitor t0 our shores
 See hcre," said Holmes, pointi"g to the wooden hatchway. We were hardly quick enough with our pistols. y
 There, sure enough, just behind where we had been standing, stuck one of those murdcrous darts which we knew so well It must have whizZcd between us at the instant we fired. Holmes smiled at it and shrugged his shoulders in his easy fash ion, but I confess that it turned me sicl to think of the horrible death which ha' passed so close to F; tl}Ht ni@ht,
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