Daily Kennebec journal., 1895-08-31
HE WON HIS BET.


"I'll wager so napoleons, said one Of
them, 'that no European ever goes from
here to Fort st. Denis alone and reaches
there alivcp'
"Doner' said quiet voice behind him.
The speakers looked around with start
and saw that a new parsonage had sud
denly come upon the scene-a small, thin,
swarthy Frenchman in civilian dress.
You must not thi1E1 of it, my dear
sir, " cried the young lieutenant, who had
offered tho wager.
Perhaps it may not turn out to be such
terrible business, after all, " said the lit
tio man. "Pm going straight to the colo
mel and ask his spermission to make the at
tempt, and have not the least doubt that
l shall get it,"
And he did get it, sure enough, though
IL was not without q severe twinge OF con-
science that Colonel Lagrange gave his
sanction.
Rash as he was however, the bold ad-
venturer had a method in his madness,
Tor the first thing he did was to assume an
Arab dress, knowing that however useless
such disguise might prove at close quar-
ters against the keen eyes of his enemies,
yet II they saw from distance solitary
man In native garb they might not think
IL worth while to ride after him, as they
would certainly do after European.
When the hour for starting came, not
merely the old colonel, but every other
olilcer who was not actually on duty
crowded to the gate of the little fortress to
witness the departure of their adventurous
guest.
Can carry any message for you to
Fort st. Denis, colonel?" asked the latter
turning to Colonel Lagrange as coolly a..
II he We're only setting out for picnic in
stead OF running risk in which the
chances were 80 to l of his being killed.
We'll, since you will CO. reioined the
veteran laughing in spite of himself, ''you
might give this paper to the commandant,
and l only hope you'll survive to deliver
it."
There Is 10 more grim or dreary spectacle
upon the face of the earth, except perhaps
the kindred wastes of central Asia, than
the mighty desert that stretches almost
unbrohen from the palm groves of Egypt
to the waves of the Atlantic.
All at once, in the very midst of tho hot
brassy glare which makes all earth and
sky seem or. fire together, the palmy crests
OF long limo Of graceful palms arc seen
standing like sentincls along the edge of a
clear, still, shining lake. But it is only
that fatal mirage of the desert which
| mocks the weary eye of the lost wanderer
only to add keenor agony to the bitter
ness Of his despair.
To the brave Frenchman, however. this
visionary splcndor and this weird, ever
lasting desOlation were alike hackneyed
spectacles, and forward he went without
even troubling himself to look mt them
Ten miles of the 20 had already been ac-
complished, then II, IA, Is. HS,had now
achieved three-fourths Of his perilous jour
hey, and at length, mounting the crest on
one of the long, wavelike sand ridges, he
deserted far il tho distance the low white
walls of Fort st. Denis, with its CAV tri-
color flag of France waving jauntily above
it.
But at the same moment he caught sight
of something else which was by no means
so satisfactory. distant group of white
mantles aud glittering spear points and
Arab horses coming straight down upon
him.
The fact was that the French had so Of
ten employed native messengers that every
man, even if he looked like an Arab, was
now an object Of suspicion to those desert
yultures.
But when they neared our hero and saw
that he quietly continued on his way with
out taking any notice of them whatever
they began to think that they must be
wrong in suspecting him, naturally sup
posing that his showing so little fear of
them was proof that he could have no
reason to be afraid.
As the six wild horsemen closed around
him. brandishing their guns and spears,
but still in doubt whether to attack him
or not, the disguised Frenchman drew him
self up detiantly, INDUCED in series of
those excited gosticulations which are char
acteristic of Mohammcdan pilgrims and
thon called out to them fiercely in Arabic:
"Begone, transgressors of the lawl A
true believer hath no fellowship with the
sinners who violate tho sacred commands
of the prophet" ,"
what mean you?" asked the nearest
horsoman in tone of amazemcnt, which
was certainly not without reason.
'What call you this2" retortod the ac.
cuser with stern emphasis. And quick as
thought he drew forth from beneath the
Arabs white mantle an undeniable pork
sausage.
A yell of mingled horror and indigna-
ton burst from his comrades as the sun
clean flesh" came to light, and their holy
anger broke forth anew when the reprov-
ing stranger produced a small flask of
wine from the pouch of another of the
band.
This was more than flesh and blood could
bear. One of the Jealous Moslems dealt
heavy blow to the wretch who thus defied
the precepts of the holy Koran, whereupon
the fierce Arab leyeled his gun and shot
him dead on the spot, being himself in
stantly shot dead in turn by the slain
mans brother.
Meanwhile the supposed sausage eater.
being coarsely reviled by two of his COM
rades, drew his sword and mortally wound
ed both. The next moment he went down
before the sixth mans stroke, but in fall
ing he avenged himself with pistol shot,
and a scouting party from st. Denis,
drawn to the spot by the firing found all
the six Arabs dead or dying and the mys-
terious traveller locking on with the quiet
satisfaction of one watching the success of
great scientific experiment.
And who are you?" asked the officer in
command wonderingly when the stranger
had told his story