The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1898-02-20

say? Lower still he sank, like a
beaten dog, but made no sound.
1T was HIS she moaned, land his
fathers before him. Nay, shake not
thy head, then, thou wretched hound!
1t was his, 1 say; could tell it among
a thousand Are not these his very
own marks upon it? 1t was his, his
lucky piece, and he carried it always.
sleeping and waking, as his father had
before him. and not all the world could
have tempted him to part with IT, II
was his charm, his holy charm and
protection. They said no mortal hurt
could come to him the while he kept it.
Oh, how I've wondered and wondered,
when they said it was not there, how
he had come to lose it! on, Johh,
John. what has this old man done
Her voice choked. and she kissed the
coin again and again, while the figure
at her feet sank groveling to the
earth. He raised one hand in feeble
application but she spurned him aside
What hast thou done?" she asked
him fiercely.
Take it-Aake it alli' he moaned.
But what hast thou done!
..Oh. take it-take i'll have no
more!"
take ito" she shrieked. Take it?
Take the robbings of dead mems bod
les? Take the price of dead mems
flesh? Thou vile. thou wretched
hound, They have often said it OF
thee. and 1 would not believe it and told
,em they lied But now l know it!
Thou hast robbed him-aye, even him
hast robbed him of his holy charm.
have robbed him of his.life!"
His head was down on the wet
ground now, but still he moaned, Take
it-take it ALL"
She seized the cords of the cloth flung
his treasure to the ground beside hlnl'
and slammed and bolted the door. II :
heard her last words from within,
Never again let me behold thy face,
thou vile corpse-eating wolf! or, quick,
to thy den, out of the sight of human
folk It's horrible even to touch what
thou hast touched" And then there
was nothing but wild sobbing. mingled
strangely with the bowling of the wind
around him.
Long after the sound of the sobbing
within had subsidized the old man lay
there with his burning brow on the
cold stone Except that his fingers had
once more grasped the treasure, he had
not stirred. At last his dog, tempted
by the inexplicable silence, stole up the
garden path till he found his master
lying there and thrust his black muz-
zle against his face. The old man
moved at that touch, and slowly rails
ing himself, crept away, carrying his
money with him.
At the end of the lane he stood and
listened The storm still ragged, but it
was ebb tide now. and the sea had al
tered its tone. The air was filled with
a seething hum, through which hs
heard the savage rattle Of pebbles
drawn down in the undertow. At the
sound of it he knew that there was
nothing more to be done, and dull
hopeless despair took hold of him.
So he. turned northward up the road
and went towards the headland.
Through all the darkness he could see
the cleaning white waters draw to and
fro amid the rocks, and he. crawled
painfully down until he was so near
that several times the sea flung broad
flecks of foam upon him. But still he
struggled on, till he reached the great
ledge of rocks which overhang the
deep water There he clambered TO
their outermost edge and stood facing
the tempest Then with one great eff
fort he flung the bundle he carried far
out into the wild confusion. The cords
gave way and the coins, scattering,
fell in a precious shower and passed.
without trace into the seething flood
In another instant as if in response
to a wizards spell, great surge burst
suddenly upward upon the rock and
swept unanimously over the edges.
Next day the heads and tongues Of
the Abblesey folk were kept fully &C.
cupied A vessel had gone ashore in
the night, and in spite of the efforts
of the life boat men, two of her crew
had been drowned More work for
old Conger," said the fishermen. But
at ebb coast guardsman came in with
strange news He had heard the yelp-
ing Of a dog among the great rocks
under the headland and had gone to-
wards the sound. The dog was Con-
gers. and just below, tightly wedged
In among the boulders. was the dead
body of the old man himself
Whatever could he have been up to
at that side of the town." asked sew
era voices.
Nay, I can't understand that" re-
piled the coast guardsman 1T must
have been the first and last time he
ever went ere.'-Macmillan's Maya
zine.