The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-06-14

ceiling. He dropped his rope and chung
to the door In panic Of dread, his pal
plating heart nearly suffocating him
with it's wild beating, starring with af-
frighted eyes at the machine which
had given such an unexpected alarm
Slowly recovering command over him.
self, ne turned his gaze on the sleepeTs
neither had moved both were breath.
ing as heavily as ever.
Pulling himself together, he turned
his attention first TO Picard. as the
more dangerous man of the two,
two, should an awakening come be-
fore he was ready for it. He bound
Picard's wrists tightly together; then
his ankles, his knees and his elbows.
He next did the same for Lamoine.
With great effort he got Picard in a
seated position on his chair, tying him
there with coil after coil of the cord.
So anxious was he to make everything
secure, that he somewhat overdid the
business, making the two seem like
seated nummieS Swathed in cord. The
chairs he fastened immovably to the
floor, then he stood back and gazed
with sigh at the two grim seated fig
ures, with their heads dropping help
lessly forward on their corded breasts,
looking like silent effigies OF the dead.
hopping his perspirlng brow, Adoiph
now turned his attention TO the ma
chine that had startled him SO when
he first came in. He carefully exam
ined its mechanism to see that every
thing was right. Going to the cup
board. he took. up a, false bottom and
lifted carefully out number of dyna-
mite cartridges that. the two sleepers
had stolen from a. French mine. These
p a h.a,
together. He raised the hammer of
the machine, and set the hand so that
the blow would fall in sixty minutes
after the machinery was set in motion.
The whole deadly combination he
placed on a small table, which he
showed close in front of the two sleep
ing men. This done, he sat down on a
chair patiently to await the awaken
ing. The room was situated at the
back of the house, and was almost
painfully still, not a sound from the
street penetrating to it. The candle
burnt low, guttered and went out, but
Adolph sat there and did not light an
other. The room was still only half
in darkness, for the moon shone bright
iy in at the window, reminding Adoiph
that 1t was just q month before when
he had looked out ON a moonlit street
i'll Paris, while his brother lay muir
dered in the room below. The hours
dragged along. and Adolph sat as i'm
movable as the two seated before him.
I The square of moonlight, slowly NOV
ing ait last Illuminated the seated
form of Picard, imperceptlbly elm bling
up, as the moon sank, until it touched
his face. He threw his head first to
one side, then back, drew a deep
breath, and tried to struggle
'Laamoine,' he cried. "Adolph. What
the devil is this? I say, here. Help! 1
am betrayed"
Hush, said Adolph quietly. DO
not cry SO loud. Lou will wake La
moine, who is beside you L am here;
wait till l light a candle, the moon
light in waning"
Adolph. you fiend, you are in league
with the police"
No, am not. I will explain every
thing IN moment. Have patience"
Adolp9l lit a candle, and Picard, roll
ing his eyes, saw that the slowly awak-
ening Lamoine was bound like him
self.
Le.moine, glazing at his partner and
not understanding what had happen
ed, Kissed:
You have turned traitor, Picard
YOU have informed curse your
Keep quiet, You fool Don't you see
am bound as tightly as you?"
There has been no traitor and no
inforrnin <. nor need of any A month
ago tonight, Picard. there was blown
ireo eternity good and honest man,
who never harmed you or anyone. l
am his brother, Adolph DeIore. who re-
fused to make your internal machine
for you. l am much changed since
then; but perhaps now you recognize
/ ne?''
Il swear to God,'' cried Picard, that
! / did not do it. L was in London at
! the time. l can prove it. There is no
use in handing me over to the police,
even though, perhaps, you think you
/ can terrorize this poor wretch into ly-
! ing against me-
Pray to the God, whose name you so
lightly use, that. the police you fear
! may get you before I am done with
! you. In the police, strange as it may
] sound to you, is your only hope, but
they viii have to come quickly if they
! are to save you. Picard. you have iiv-
4 ed. perhaps 80 years on this earth. The
next hour of your life will be longer
] to you than all those years.
Adolph put the percussion cap in its
I place and started the mechanism. For
| a few moments its quiet tick-tick was
! the only sound heard in the room, the
two bound men staring with wide-open
! eyes at the dial OH the clock, while the
/ whole horror of their position slowly
| broke upon them.
Tick-tick. tick-tick. tiok-tick, tick
+ tick, ticlS-ticls. tick-tick Each man
face was Paled. and rivulets of sweat
ran down from their brows Suddenly
Picard raised his voice in an uneartildy
Shrek:
Il expected that" said Adolph. oui.
city. i don't think anyone can hear,
but ] will gag you both. SO that we
may run no risks When this was
done. he said: Il have set the clock
work at so minutes; seven of those are
already spent. There is still time
enough left for meditation and repent
ence. / place the candle here so that
its rays will shine upon the dial. When
You have made your own peace. pray
FOR the souls of any you have sent
into eternity without time for prep
.ara.ion.'
Delcre left the room as softly as he
had entered it, and the doomed men
tried Intellectually TO cry out as they
heard the key turning in the door.
The authorities knew that someone
had persisted in that explosion. but
whether 1t was one man er two they
could not tell