The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1895-03-22

| sA9st.A" "a A8NAA A0 ~ uCE ~ tssAAA4 49,
reach, and. nearly sobered By his fears,
hack Of the house, which was on q
level with that which he inhabited,
and which looked out upon the yard
to which Emmeline had gone In search
OF the money and the letters.
Looking from the window, his mind
was somewhat relieved when he dis
tinguished the glimmer Of . candle In
the shed. and was made more confer
table when, In answer to his half
whispered:
"Halloa. young 'un!"
Nmmellne hastily approached, and
ttood beneath his window.
Il have found l.othing yet" the
young girl whispered.
"Havo you searched under the third
lump aYs. Of woody"
"And are you quite sure You hayc
found nothingw Mickey next asked,
and In accents Of suspicion.
Emmeline understood the meaning
which had been In the humans words,
and trenhled; and It was somewhat
falteringly that she said:
Perhaps you are mistaken Ii the
place In which you have deposited !"
Nicksey allowed her to proceed no
further. but exclaimed savagely:
III the swag amt now where I said
It was. have been robbed, and II I
have been robbed, you are the thief.
and 30 much the worse for you, young
'un!"
He disappeared from the window;
and Emmeline, fast as her trembling
limbs would carry her, hurried back
to the shed to renew her search.
She felt TINT now perhaps her very
life depended on her speedy discovery
Of those bank.notes and letters.
"Ill kill the yorng 'un!' Nicksey
muttered to himself, as he was about
to descend the stairs to make his way
towards Emmellne.
'"rhis Is soberer, this pretending
not to ind 'em won't do for me; this
Is what man gets for being too hon
est. It's the first time ever tried my
hand at that Game-never no more,
never no more!''
And he uttered terrible imprecation
on his own folly, and the young
'un's" ingratitudc.
All at once, and when about half
way down the stairs, he stopped short:
arrested by thought which had shot
through his brain, from which the
mists Of drunkenness were now almost
entirely dispersed.
He hurried back to the room which
served him for "parlor and kitchen
and ALL" and, standing In It's center,
scratched his ragged and partly bald
head. as he looked around him, and
seemingly In great perplexity.
A few words viii explain wherefor
| the fellow was now 90 greatly
troubled.
Noel Darlington had been mistaken
In supposing that Mr.. Nlcksey, after
his robbery at Mrs. Chesterton's, had
not returned to his own house. for,
throwing himself into the first hackney
coach he hn6 seen, he had flown
thither with I'LL speed which the driver
melted thereto by promise OF double
fare had been able to extort from his
not very Indifferent cattle.
Nicksey had made rather FREQ with
Mrs. Chesterton's decanters' and the
robbery was circumstance which had
greatly increased his excitement; and
after he had been well shaken up in
the hackney coach. he entered his own
house in state of extreme mental con-
| fusion.
He hurried to the shed and buried
the bank notes and letters, precisely
as he had told Elnmeline. s,,-s
But what he Ind now remembered
| was that having re-entered his house,
after having hidden them, 1t had sud-
denly struck him that he had not, per-
haps, chosen very secure spot for the
concealment Of his newly-acquired
treasure. AZ.
He hurried back to the shed; recover
| ed bank notes and letters, had returned
with them into the house, and then
anew Ind hidden them-where?
That was the question Nicksey now
was asking himself, as, with puzzled
look his eyes wandered round aud
round his room.
He had been in great hurry, he
remembered that; for the hackney
coach was waiting to take him away
again; and b feared. lest too much Mt
tention should be called to his dwell
ing. n !.
speaking, an destinations man.
After considering for several min
utes, and apparently with no very sat
1 isfactory result, Nicksey commenced
to ransack that piece Of furniture
which had once been chest Of draw
ers. His slender stock Of clean linen
he scattered on the dirty floor; pulled
forth miscellaneous stock of articles
which the mouth Of marine store
keeper would have watered to behold,
but found not his lost treasure.
He tried the mantel-piece; and q
large hole on one side of the chimney;
no satisfactory result
Presently, and suddenly, his face
lighted up.
II known he shouted aloud; and,
running into his sleeping corner, thrust
his hand, and up to hia shoulder, into
the old. worn mattress on his truckle
bed.
And his eyes glistened, and he
chuckled and was happy once again
forth and eagerly counted his banh
notes.
They were all correct. not one miss
ing.
Then again thrusting his hand into
the mattress, he next drew forth thret
letters; yes, three; for Nicksey counted
them also. and was evidently perfectly
satisfied in every particular.
He wiped his forehead, which hai
been believed with q cold Precipitation
and said to himself that he was be
ginning to feel q good deal better.
And the next observation he made 4
hlmseH was that 1t was lucky he hat
happened to remember, Just as he wa,
going down stairs, about the notes
for otherwise before this he sh0ull
have killed the young 'un.
From which It will be understood
TINT Emmeline had had indeed q yer,
narrow escape from very terrible
death.
II must go and ease the young 'un'i
mind and AZ his pardon" we know
Nicksey's state Of confusion concern
! Ing Emmellne's sex, 'tand I'll confess
my fault and tell her honestly that
meant to kill him!'
Z Nicksey turned and was about I,
leave the room. and then he started
and hastily thrust the bank notes an.
letters into his pocket. A man wa
standing In the doorway. i;'s
The fire had burned low and th
meagre tallow candle. which ut bea
gave but q feeble light had remaine'
unsnuned since 1t had first bee
kindled by Emmeline; % that whs
appeared to be. In the semi-darkne1l
but the shadow Of . human being thu
suddenly and unexpectedly confron,
ing Nicksey, It 70 no wonder that 10
moment or two. he felt his knee
tremble md 4 creeping sensation abou
the roots Of his NOT numerous an
struggling hairs. 81 i..s NJ