Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-11-16


friend, surprising the bride to be his. and
that his descent into the depths had been
momertariy arrested by it-had been fore
Ell to reiinquish his hold, and was by this
time miles below us. Fastening through
unimaginahle corridors of the earths crust
on his way to the central planetary fires.
Poor fellow! So Imogene's mystic per-
ception had not awaited us to save him,
though it might afford us such satisfac-
ton as would assist in being able to certify
to his fate. AS this melancholy conviction
impressed itself upon me, turned to look
at my companion, expecting, yet dreading,
to see it reflected in her face. But she was
no longer beside me-
CHAPTER III.
Greatly startled, 1 jumped to my feet,
and was Immediately relieved by seeing her
coming out of the thicket behind, with a
long rod in her hands, having at one end
hook or barb formed by the base of a
twig which had been broken off. Her ex-
preston, as she met my glance. full
of purpose and energy. but showed no
symptoms of despair What did the girl
mean to do? Was she going to fish for her
lover with that absurd instrument?
She came quickly up and said something
in rapid tone. but owing to the noise
made by the water l could not distinguish
what it was. She threw herself down upon
the brink, with the rod in her right hand,
and. reaching over. began to make passes
at the EeluSlall, with TIE OBJECT OIL Catcn-
Ing the barb in II. l thought l OWNED her
reason. 1t was to examine the headStall
at close quarters, so to determine (as
she would doubtless be able to do whether
it were Toms or not. She was not going
to give him up for lost until she was GER
tain that he had been carried over the
falls. very sensible precaution. 1t also
now occurred tc me-strange l had not
thought of it before-that perhaps Tom had
got safe ashore and only his horse had
gone down to perdition. Obviously, it was
yet too soon to despair.
l was wrong in all my surmises as the
event proved. lmogen had never doubted
that Tom was in the hole, or that We
should get him safe out again. She fished
away, and presently succeeded in catching
the hook in the angle of the bit. Then
she hauled In.
What was my establishment to see the
headstall jerked quickly hack to its origi-
nal position 1t was not the action of the
water which had done this, but some hui
man agency. Imogen turned to me with a
triumphant smile. She put her mouth to
my ear and shouted out: Its all right.
He knows we are here, now. Get the rope
and lower it down SO he can fasten him
self to it,
Though utterly unable to account for
what had happened. 1 seized the rope,
which was upwards of thirty feet in length.
AT distance of ten feet behind us stout
young tree was growing, with a smooth
trunk some seven inches in diameter. l
took a hitch round this with one end of
the rope, and carefully let the other drop
over the edge of the rock. The strong cur
rent of air which was carried into the
abyss by the rush of water caused the loose
end of the rope to incline inward, and /
had little difficulty in directing it that
it fell just behind the peak of rock to which
the bride hung. 1t went out of sight; but
the next moment l had the ineXpressible
satisfaction of feeling it caught and strong
ly pulled downward. l payed it out, and
had used up all but a few feet of the slack
W her no sod al ire
movements seemed to indicate that the
lerson at the other end was making him
self fast to it.
In a couple of minutes a sharp Jerk an
nounced that he was ready. Now came
the most difficult and critical part of the
operation. Awaiting ourselves of the pur-
chase afforded by the tree, We had to haul
a solid young man up through 4 distance
of at least seven or eight feet and over
the rough edge of the arch If he got stuck
on the way, or If the rope broke, he was
lost beyond peradventure. But l am anx-
ious to save you as much as possible of the
anxiety which We couldn't escape; and, in
brief, after five minutes of the hardest kind
of work, in which Imogen took her full
share, we enjoyed the unforsetable sensa-
ton of seeing the head OF honest Thomas
Sedley arise like new sun above the hor-
lion of the arch Another desperate haul
a frantic scramble or two, and 10. he lay
gasping before us like new-landed fish,
drenched, draggled, torn and brea thless
but alive and with the exception of few
scratches and bruises, quite uninjured
Imogen and l were nearly or quite as
much exhausted as he; but 1 retained
enough self-eonsciousness to remember that
the two lovers might have some private
information to impart to each other, and
in order that they might do so without
delay or embarrassment l muttered some
thing about looking after the horses and
staggered away in that direction. l re-
manned away half an hour. Then | beheld
them approaching, arm in arm, absorbed
in each other ana having evidently totally
forgotten my existence But the sensitive
gratitude and consideration of young peo-
pie in their position is proverbial. | had
been too often surprised already that morn
ing to feel any surprise at that. Besides,
l had, after all, done nothing except to
pull on rope; it was lmoSep, and she
only, who had saved Master Thomas
well, Tom said l, as they came up, YOU
are looking bit off color, my boy Is it in
such attire that you are wont to ride forth
to meet your lady love? And where, now
think of it. is your horse2 Is that the en-
chanted bride of Bellerophon that you car
~, and are you locking for the winged steed?
Or were it not more fittngt that you put the
lit between your own teeth and surrender
the birdie to the fair Imogen?'
Tom as l have said, was bornfin England