The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-03-01

ing in the roadway. 1t was therefore
clear to me that he must be still alive,
that he had escaped, probably by the
aid of others. from the scene of his
manning. and that it was perhaps the
/ dread of the future vengeance which
had instigated the hurried and secret
disposal of the object which l had
| found
Under what circumstances. then,
| had this savage act been perpetra ted
! To this question il was more difficult
| to find an answer. | could only sur
! mise that the man who had suffered
| so dreadful n punishment had beer en- :
| gagged in some secret and unlawful en-
terprise, in the course of which he had
found himself fatally entrapped, and
had been obliged to pay his penalty
for his escape. This was not the first
time for me to learn of the barbarity
of oriental customs; there were dark
stories floating about Constantnople.
beneath the surface. of men, who had
ventured into forbidden precincts and
suffered the most horrible retaliation
at the hands of eunuchs in the service
of a revengeful Moslem.
But il seemed to me that there was
something more i'm this affair, on the
traces of which i had fallen, some
thing peculiar. around which / was,
as IL were, cropping with out a clue.
Why, why had the author of this VEN
geance fastened to bear his horrid
trophy to this lonely spot? What was
the something about this foot, the
something which distinguished it i'm an
unusual manner from any other foot.
which had made those who found IL in
their hands anxious. with no common
anxiety, to rid themselves of il i'm such
guilty haste?
II could picture the avenger-per-
haps some highly-placed Pasha-who
had found a masked intruder in his |
harem at midnight, and had left this !
terrible mark upon him, stricken with |
dismay by the discovery that his vic
tim had been no ordinary being, and |
bidding his slaves hurry forth with /
the thing whose presence had all at |
once became n mortal peril and cast |
IL away in some lonely spot to be de-
voured by dogs.
realized what l was doing. | bent
down. and picking up the slipper, car
ried IL out of the shadow Of the lick
tree. into the full moonlight. and drew
forth the piece of human carton ii con-
tained.
do not ask me to describe the sight
which met my eyes. and which com
pleted the horror of the entire incident
The foot which l held i'm my hand was
unlike any other foot which had ever
seen-unlike any human foot One
glance at il was sufficient to overcome
me with a feeling of the most deadly
1 dropped the frightful thing
on the ground, and the brutes 1 had
driven away flung themselves upon 1t
with hideous sounds. averted my
eyes, and fed from the accused
place"
At this point the ambassador inter-
rupted himself to order the waiter. who
had already served our coffee. to bring
,ognac as well.
81 had retraced my steps almost as
lar as the Golden Horn" he proceed
"a. when discovered that ! was still
the slipper in my hand.
that IL might yet prove to be
II Importance. i thrust ii hastily in
side the folds of my Turkish robe be-
'ore proceeding. At the same time 1
ain movement in the street. which was
rot usual at that hour OF the night.
Jaw soldiers about. and unless my eyes
deceived me. there Were more lights
han usual on board the Turkish war
hip anchored opposite the Dolmaba-
heh palace.
Il might have stopped TO investigate {
hese symptoms OF disturbance. but for
sudden change which now took place |
n the atmosphere. The great black
LIQUIDS which had been gathering from
ne corner Of the sky massed them {
elves overhead and then suddenly split I
n binding fissure Of forked light
ing. while a crash Of thunder shook
he towers and roofs OF STEAMBOAT Ike ] I
n earthquake. Immediately the rain q
egan TO descend with the weight OF {
n avalanche. and huge pools instant I
? formed themselves along the roads. '