The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1897-10-23

gu Shdu hdng J0T thtS!'
had lost a shoe. His foot was torn and
bleeding. Never was man or king in
sorrier plight.
"Do you remember, sire, that you
danced at the palace last night?" Ko-
linski asked with bitter mockery.
"Ah, fallen king" said Stanislaus,
II remember and can f~oresee, wretch,
how high you will hang"
"Hangl" muttered Kolinski at this.
"Ah, 1 may"
In the meantime one of the others
called back:
This is the way"
Kolinski then spurred up his horse,
again dragging the king. But the way
was Uneven. He stopped to dismount,
releasing Stanislaus for an instant.
Eyes, we shall have to walk" said
one of the others. but where are we?''
"In the wood of Bilany," Stanislaus
himself answered.
Eyes, but whereof asked Kolinski,
peering into the gloom. The rain
trickled from the leaves, and then came
another sound.
1.-The Russiansi" whispered one.
1.-The Russiansl"
"a patrolf" questioned another.
Quick! Save yourselves. " Panic seized
them, as it had the others. They disap-
peared among the trees into the dark
ness.
Then the king laughed a jarring,
mocking laugh.
"Kolinski, my captors have fled. We
are alone, you and l. Come, let me go.
We are man to man
MAN to man, Pole against Russian.
l have sworn. Stanislaus, to take you.
I'll not give you up"
but can l not call out to the Rus
sians?"
"Bahl Cry outl Do you suppose they
would believe you were the king? Do
you suppose they could hear? I do not
believe they were Russians, but only
the panic fears of my friends"
"And you have no fear, K~olinski?"
Fear? Yes, l have enough of it, but
l am little less likely to die-and l have
no wish to die-if l carry this out"
And here the king interrupted by
shouting at the top of his voice.
How useless!'' said Kolinski, trying
to put his hand over the others mouth.
"Do you not see that you are as likely
to be heard by my friends who will
hasten to help me as by a Russian pa
trol?''
The king, who was much exhausted,
as one may believe, had thrust Kolin-
skis hand aside. Now he said:
faye, true"
But where are WEI" asked Kolinski.
II know not save in the wood of BIZ
lany."
"We must walk and find out. We
cannot go over these ruts with the
horse"
"We must walk, said the king. 1T
avails neither of us to stand as we do
in the rain"
And, leaving the horse, they walked
on through the dripping wood, not
knowing the direction, although Kolin-
ski was careful to take hat which he
thought led away from Warsaw. And
as this odd pair stumbled on, the king
sore and sad and weak, so that Kolinski,
he knew, would have no difficulty in
controlling him alone, the king said:
William, you shot my servant Fe-
lixi''
II would to heaven it had been your
majesty"
And in what have I wronged you.
KOlinski?'
LAS you have every Pole, by ruling
Poland for her enemy's sake"
Eyes, granted, man. That may be the
fact, but how do you know that l may
not think it for the better?"
And why?"
Because you Poles cannot rule
yourselves, nor would you let me-.
mo, we have stolen your majesty
that you may not rule"
And how did you get into Warsaw
without arrest?" said the king, when
the other answered:
Your majesty need not suspect your
police in this matter. We entered dis
guised as peasants, and some of us hid
in hay carts"
Now, in this strange conversation,
without any further appeal by the king
to his companions pity, Kolinski yet
in some way was influenced. They both
were equally lost in the wood of Bilany,
captive and captor, and now that Ko-
linski reflected about the matter he saw
that it was equally necessary for both
IL r-nd some way out, yet he must not
let the king escape him. His freedom
nay, his life-probably depended OH
his keeping the king.
After stumbling along, the rain now
having stopped, the pair noticed a light
through the trees.
1.-The convent of Bilany!" said the
king.
Wtth a cry OF dismay Kolinski recog-
nized the building, which declared that
for all their walking they had proceeded
in a circle, the building not being a
league from Warsaw.
"Shall we ask aid of the nuns?" the
king asked.
For answer the other clutched his
arm.
mot on your life, fooll" he cried.
AS he spoke the great gate was sud-
denly thrown back, casting a bar of
light over a road that was revealed and
the dripping oaks beyond. Out of the
gate came slowly an old monk Stun
bling along. Kolinski clutched the
kings arm the tighter. knowing that
he was lost should the non discover
them. But he did not. The door closed;
the monk passed down the road. The
place was still, when suddenly the notes
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