The Delta independent., 1897-04-28
ny uIhhIAN r. NICHOLS.
). .CeeyslGhs. ,sss. tS }. D. uppIaeoa Coarsn,
u. :. cs.ls.s.I .. s.- s~.s s.ss~.)

the accident which drove the Mary
Peck to Rio. 1t may he destiny that
even for u third time we shall be OF
service the one to the other"
II trust that If the opportunity comes
II will be mine," said !; but our lives
promise to be spent far apart"
"Eyen SO. But the chain of destiny
sometimes links the most remote"
Evidently . feeling possessed him
that our connection was not to end with
the 9ood-byes spoken on the steamer
which was to benr me from Rio. He
asked many questions about my plans.
until from the answers he perceived
that was turning homeward almost
without an idea OF the manner of ca
istence before me. Then the talk drift
ed to the sorry experiences Of my pro-
fessional career and to the GRANT chnr-
acter of my boyhood existence. He
was sympathetic listener to q adescrip-
tion of the old village on the New Eng
land coast and the lonely house, sur
rounded by the marsh, which had been
my favorite retreat. Under the spur
Of memory, told him much OF the
abandoned dwelling and OF its isoia-
tion.
"If ever I come to be misanthrope,"
I declared. "let me retire thither. as
sured that I mny remain undisturbed
10 long Ms I choose. Yet, II my mood
changcs, it will be but step, and again
] shall he among my fellows"
Truly m admirable heritaee," he
observed.
"Indeed II Is. The villagers take NO
interest in the old place. Though near
them, it is out Of their why, and there
In no reason why they should visit II.
They nre not people OF the sort to waste
energy in tramping through salt bogs.
A man who settled there might feel
tolerably certain that they would not
attempt to intrude upon him."
We were silent for . time, but NJ
length I asked whether he might not
visit the United States.
ut In hardly on the cards." he M
swered. ut il not probable that shal.
quit Brazil for some time to come. l
have interests TO be guarded which
would suffer in my absence. The coun-
try II on the eve of \ revolution; the
empire is doomed, and its fall cannot
be long delayed. Under the surface
there are plots and counterplots. l
have striven to keep clear Of them, and
have succeeded. 70 TAR - active partieI-
patton II concerned; bot l have had
knowledge Of . numbeS Of them, and
many Of my eIosest friends are deeply
involved. The nations need II strong.
stable government. God knows how
We are TO obtain Il, or what the history
of the next few yeazr will be-"
Before we separated for the night an
agreement had been made which aft-
erward seemed curious enough, though
at the time we entered into IL with the
utmost gravity. 1t was, in brief. thar
in case either had an urgent request to
make Of the other, and the request was
made by letter, there should be used.
either Ms n signature or appended TO
the writer's name, . symbol, . Greek
cross with three dots ranged vertically
TO the right of it. Perhaps it was Perez
carnestncss as we talked over the mat
ter which prevented me from appre-
ciating its strangeness. A little renec-
tion might have persuaded me that we
were wasting our breath, for It was
difficult to understand how I, in my
poverty and powerlessneaH, could ever
aid one who possessed 10 much Of the
resources lacked; but, under the in
fuence of my friends grave face and
words, . pledge to heed his coll WA
given n solemnly ~ II the alliance
were one Of equals.
The following day. . passenger on the
steamer Bedouin, leaned upon the
vessels rail and watched the Brazilian
highlands growing less and Iess in the
distance.
/
The Bedouin, her size and accommo-
dations considered, had but . small
number of cabin passengers. All told,
there were hardly score, including
six or seven women, who were invisible
save when the ses Was at it's smoothest.
Even when they Joined the rest at din
ner we barely filed two tables Among
the men were two or three English
men, n half-dozen braziiians, a French
rnnn and two GermanS. The women ap-
parently represented almost rs great a
variety Of nationalitics. Only two of
them had any claims 70 youth. In the
matter Of beauty the average was low.
The most ardent Of wooers Of old buc-
cslneering days, when suits were pressed
with rare dispatch, would have turned
n very ST. Anthony at sight Of such an
srrny of elderly femin;nity - the Bed.
ouin presented.
| The two girls, however. were Of nm.
commQp attractiveness. One was Bra
lillian maiden. . fine brunette, with
figure inclined to the statucsque in It's
outlines. The other. no nearly ~
could discover from an occasional
glimpse Of her in The course Of the hrs.
two days Of the voyage, was slender.
graceful girl. brown-haired, and neither
very dark nor very light Of complexion.
She was travelling in company with an
older woman. attendance upon whom
kept her fully employed for % hours
Out Of port. Then. - the weather