The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-12-23
CHAPTER XII.


CHAPTER XII.
Colonel Graham could not have beel
mu over so years Of age, but he or
dinarily looked to be 60, and now tina
he was suffering from very unneces'
sary loss of blood, added to great men
tai anxiety, he might have passed fol
20 q; least.
His sickness called out great inter.
est, and the people Of the town and the
officers Of the Sea Hawk would have
paid him every attention had he per
mitted it. -
Dinah's visit was soon noised abroad,
and created no little comment; but, az
many of the humber people, and some
Of the well.to-do also. he'd great faith
in her curative skill, it was generally
believed that Colonel Graham had sum.
moned her to examine his case. IS.
Unlike the majority Of his race.
Othello was reticent, and though he
was pretty well subjected to the pump
Ing process, be kept his own and hie
masters secrets: the latter had sud.
denly become very heavy, but, being
naturally shrewd, he bore tho burden
with dim notion that it would turn out
sooner or later to his advantage.
His relationship to Dinah was moi
known outside thems elves. The ole
woman called every man, white, black
or RED, son, and she was usually called
granny"
Col. Graham could not afford to re-
main pent up in his room. l. vas es.
sential that he should be off, yet EVIL:
dent to the doctor and even. himself
that he would not be able to make the
Journey overland to New York, for al
least two weeks.
II am very anxions, he said to Dr..
Hedges, the day after Dinah' 8 visit, to
utilize my forced stay here by learnin
something Of the aborigines have
seen, here in your streets, Uncas, the
Montauk chief, and his rarely bei u ifu!
sister, Untilla; If they be fair speci.
mems Of the natives, they are people
to be envied.
@They are hardly fair specimens, y
said the doctor. who was an authority
on Indian matters. They belong to the
royal race, and are descended from the
great Wyandauch, with whom our first
settlers-my father was one OF them
made treaty for the lands now held
by the whites. A trip into the land OF
the Montauks would do you good; anc
II you desire to make it, will see that
they give you due care and proper es.
cort." ..:.E .l;
They are hospitable, then?"
"Yes, sir; as all brave people are. no
natter where you find them"
Il thank you for your offer, and vii,
start al once" said Graham.
He was emphatically man OF action,
and SO we'll did he exert himself, thai
by the early afternoon Of that day, he
was sitting on horse, while his SER
want, mounted on another, led an ami
NAL laden with their luggage.
The young chief, Uncas, being IN town
that day, was asked by Doctor Hedges
to take charge Of the colonel and his
servant, and he did so with readiness
and grace that would have done credit
to an accomplished courtier.
Uncas on foot, and, with his long rifle
thrown over hs shoulder, strode ahead,
and he would lave kept on, without a
halt, b id not Colonel Graham stopped
In front OF Sqrire Condit's house.
The Colonel was not anxious to meet
the Squire agSin, but on this occasion
he could not avoid it, for that gentleman
was standing in the road in front Of his
own house, and looked as If he wanted
to be addressed.
Approaching the Colonel, and laying
his hand on the horses name, the Squire
said: -.
When you spoke to me last, you said
there was something you wanted to get
Ralph Denham to do, when you would
answer question I asked.
i am aware of that, said the
Colonel, haughtily.
Well, am ready.
But is Capt Denham here?"
@You know he is not.
Then it is impossible for you to full
fill your part OF the condition, so with
your permission we shall wait till he
returns from New York. -..
But you may not be here then.
How do you know?"
II know but little about your past or
present. unfortunately, and that little,
I guess, is not in your favor. You do
not wish to speak now. Go on, we shall
meet again before you leave, depend on
that"
SQUIRE Condit, with q flushed face,
turned toward his house, and the
Colonel, followed by Othello, and pre-
eeded by the Montauk chief. rode on.
why, Goodwill" said Mrs. Condit,
who. with her daughter Ellen, Lea
Hedges, Valentine Dayton and the old
Lieutenant, was looking over the
flower garden, now in most charming 6
bloom, you LOOK to be excited. Has
anything wrong been done to you?"
Mrs Condit had never seen Colonel
Graham until his recent visit, and hel
husband, not caring to trouble her, or il
may be with the belief that one cau
keep secret better than two, had never
told her his suspicious and dislike Of
| this man, nor limited that he had ever
| received money from him for Ralph'e
care.
Squire Condit had religious and alec
| q manly hatred OF falsehood. but being
| something of lawyer he was inclined
to caution and diplomacy, and had the
skill to parry direct question without
throwing much light on it.
| Il have no sympathy with people
! whose curiosity takes them in among
peaceful enough people If they are lei
alone. Some day one Of these rich En-.
| glishmen viii see the land Of the Mon.
| tauks-as did the spies OF Joshua in the
| olden time-and they will conclude thai
it would make fine estate and game
| preserve, and then they will send agents
| over here, and under some trumped ut
treaty they will get the lands away
from our red neighbors," said the
Squire. -.
Wasn't that the way grandfather
did?" asked Ellen, laughingly.
NO, it wasn't. The treaty with the