The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-08-15
Copyright 1897 by Longmans Green & Company.


udy " dlleilu W my puS1LSSS, IIOi yum
| own. You say you are sick of your
| present life. Well, 1 have means to
| give you another chance, and 1 will do
| SO; but I repeat again, no nonsense
| you understand"
He stood silently for moment, look
| ing this way and that We were within
| yard or so of the forest, and its
shadow covered him, all but his face.
| which was turned to me, drawn and
white. He was struggling against old
habits of absolute obedience and they
won. II understand, NJ. lie Chevalier. "
Very well, then, go on, and remem-
| Der what 1 have said
He turned and stepped forward.
This way, and mind the branches
my horse leaping a low ditch that
| separated it from the grass land. We
took a soft turf-covered path, over
hung by branches, and went on for
about fifty PAGES before coming to q
halt, which we did in small, irregular
patch of trees that lay in the full flood
of the moonlight. In the darkness be-
a small spring, and then the distinct
| movement OF heavy body and the
clink of iron. My hand reached to my
holster in flash, but Nicholas saw the
gesture, and said: ''It Is the horse A
moment, monsieur" and lifting up the
curtain Of leaves beside him, from
which as he did so the dew fell in a
soft shower he dived into the thicket,
to reappear again leading the long
black length of his horse. It struck
me at once that the beast was of I'M
common size, and this and the white
star on its forehead brought to my
mind the recollection Of de Rone's great
English charger, Couronne.
"Harnibleu" 1 burst out, you seem
to be in the lowest water, and here you
have a horse worth a hundred pistoles
at the least!'
Did you see her by daylight, mon
sieur, you would know that twice a
hundred pistoles would not purchase
her. Do you not know her, M. lie
Chevalier? This is Couronne. M. de
Rone's charger"
"Couronne! I thought so. And how
the devil do you come by heT?"
Ter reins were in the wind when I
caught her, fair prize Of war, and NJ.
de Rome will never need her more.
Since I got her she has saved m:
twice, and If I can help it we shall
never part"
He stroked the mares sleek neck,
wet and glistening with the dew, and
quickly mounting swung her round to
the bit and laid her beside me. 1t was
not the time for talk, and we drew out
forcing our way through the wet and
shining leaves around US, found q
bride path. Along this my guide went
at a trot. On either side of us the
silent tree trunks stretched to an III
finite distance in gloomy colonnades.
Overhead the boughs swayed and
shook sadly; below the dry leaves hiss
ed and cracked. Once, when we had
slackened pace for a moment, the sui
len grooming of an old and very saw
age boar came to us, and we heard
him grinding his tusks in his lair of
juniper. At another time we surprised
number Of deer in an open glade. and.
startled by our sudden appearance,
they dashed off with a wild rush into
the forest, and then all was still. Be
yond the glade the roadway Widened
so that two might keep abreast, and
down this we went at a gallop to find
ourselves once more in the endless
aisles of the forest, passing through
a ghostly light that barely enabled the
horses to pick their way in and out
amongst the huge moss-grown trees,
standing in measureless numbers
around us, and where each pace took
them fetlock deep into the carpet of