The Delta independent. [volume] (Delta, Colo.) 1886-19??, 1897-08-27
CHAPTER ".

She fed homewurj, seeking unctu.
ary like some hunted creature. Ny first
impulse was to follow and console, but
duty and curiosity nailed me to the
spot. From the shadow Of the cypress
fence l could see burlington, myself
unseen. He strode past. looking
neither 70 the right nor to the left.
walking as . man walks when he has
his goal in sight. l waited. thinking
hard; t.,cn returned 10 the house.
Nancy met me rs i passed the thre~l,-
old. Her sweet face was puckered and
lined by anxiety. Mother" she gasped.
"is so i'll. Please come to her ut once. ]
ain frightened"
/ entered the parlor. Upon the couci,
lay Mrs. Gerard. Her eyes were closed;
her breath came and went in short
gasps; her pulse was rapid and feeble.
At my suggestion Nancy left the room
to procure some aromatic spirits OF am
monin. Before she returned Mrs. Ge-
rard opened kcr eyes.
"Mnrk." she murmurctl. family
"whcre is he? This faintness will pass:
but my child-Mr. Livingston, find my
child"
Ihumorcd her instantly. fearing hys-
tcria. The sight Of the lad, reflected.
would still her poor 1ut;ering heart
more quickly than all the drugs in
ChTistendou. Mark. OF course. was with
Dcmetrius. had left the two Mt Ii.
back of the house. building n small
sioop upon plans furnished by me. The
Greek was no mean mechanic. and Mark
had proved an enthusiastic apprentice.
q a L. a. l...s
the boy was not with him.
The impnssivity Of the Greek. m re-
cited the facts, annoyed me. lie leis-
urely assumed coat and waistcost and
proceeded TO put away his tools.
"Don't alarm yourself. sir; csn find
Mr.. Mark. He is around somewhere"
''Somewherc! OF course; but wherc?"
"IIe ran down to the sands 10 get
some fresh water for his aquarium"
'The sands! Good God. man. and we
nre standing here! Follow me-
Iran at top speed TO the waters edge.
Yes, he had left his bucket md wan
dered north, searching. probably, for
shells in the masses of scagrass and
kelp which a recent storm had flung
upon the shore. I noted his footprints
in the wet sand, and close beside then,
the large. deeply-indented tracks Of
burlington.
Pcrdition! What IL I arrived too
late?
To the south the sands stretched
widely fiat for miles. n superb high
wsy, fringcd with low sand dunes; TO
the north were the cliffs. juttinG prom
ontories of red sandstone, honey
combcd with caves. These caves could
h, entered only at the lowest tidcs.
and were favorite haunts Of the boy.
In their dim rccesses were exquisite
rnedusr. pink. purple and green. star
fish, erhinodcrms, monstrous abnlones
and other marveIs. One cavern. 10
which the Portuguese had given the
melodramatic title Pirates' cave, had u
mighty fascination for Mark. He
listened 10 the yarns Of the ancient
mariners and believed implicitly with
the glorious faith Of youth, that chests
Of doubloons. dead mems bones and 9th
er relics Of Spanish buccaneers were
nwaiting discovery. Upon the Pncifc
slope. especially in springtime. tidal
waves arc not infrequent and Mark had
received etric. orders from his mother
never 10 venture alone intD the caves
make no doubt thas he igpored these
eonmas<is wbessves opportunity
scrvei.