The herald., 1898-10-23

4
stxaieh3 thrust end : dtBsaoAgenseat
both over and under t1.o arms and end-
"a WITH . nanconnnde. They were now
evideutly fustered WITH my mode of
attack, 20 made the ceasbratsd feint
OF doubling on both sides. ana hndshed
the business by giving the lower rascal
q time thrust over the arm. and the
other q time thrust In the octave and
they were both dead men.
There were now fivs men outright
dead upon the stair. In addetion to
which I had killed Pippo IN the cellar.
and had MANNED Benedetto to that sx-
tent that he was incapacitated from an
further offensive operations. This
made seven in all. and left but six of
the original thirteen to oppose me. Al
I thought of these flattering results. I
felt quite proud Of the unaided
achievements Of my good right arm,
and at the same time as not . httle
encouraged as to the final outcome Of
the struggle.
All at once I heard a sound from the
chamber Of Ippolita, and Of the lifting
of one Of the board OF the floor, and
at this sound all six Of the knaves left
of looking at me and directed their
gaze at the ceiling immediately above
their heads. Then there seemed to fall
upon their faces from the rafters above
some kind of a bright liquid. and at
once there came from their six villain-
Gus throats the most awful, terrible.
ear-splitting, heart-rending shrteks
and yells which were ever heard this
side of he'll; and they struck wildly Into
the air, and clasped their hands over
their eyes, and they fell upon the floor
and groveled there. and crept this way
and that until, one by one. they had all
disappeared from view. And now there
came up to my nostrils foul stencil
as Of burned flesh or leather. and
sought out Ippolita and, in moments
space, found out and understood the
whole thing which had happened.
She had found in this chamber of the
tower the braziers furnace, already
supplied with charcoal. and upon the
top Of 1t there was a small round pot
filled with lead. and the dear ingen-
ious girl. knowing right well, from her
medieval education, wha. the thing
was meant for, had set fire to the CHAR
coal. and when the lead was melted,
had lifted one Of the loose boards Of
the floor and poured the molten metal
SO adroitly upon the faces Of the six
thieves, that she had burned the eye
balls out Of every mothers son Of
them. Thus at length we were rid Of
the last OF our dangerous foes. and
thus. what had not been able to do
with my sword had been accomplished
by this gentle, innocent and tender
hearted maiden. I praised her bravery
and adroitness, at which she gave me
a winning smile and said that 1t was
naught, and that she would do that
and more for me, II need for It should
ever come.
AS there was now no longer anything
to fear, we decided to descend at once
to the parlor floor. I vaulted lightly
over the carcasses which I had piled
upon the landing and then, reaching
back. took Ippolita by her round and
slender waist and lifted her gallantly
over. as II it had been nothing but a
hedge or a fence. AS she rested in my
arms for that one moment, and I felt
the yielding softness Of her nymph-llke
figure. and inhaled the fragrant breath
from her fresh rosebud lips. it seemed
the divinest moment Of my life. and
could with difficulty relinquish her
from my arms
While going down the stairs, Ippolita
again showed the mercy and benevo-
lence Of her disposition by suggesting
that we hunt out the six blinded male
factors from the holes where they had
concealed themselves, and that dis
patch them. in order to put them out
Of their present pain and affiiction.
And now began one Of the most excit-
ing still hunts which ever participa-
ted in. We found Benedetto presently
hiding, beneath the stairway. in a
dark and cobwebbed corner. and I i'm
mediately pulled him out, and running
my rapier clear through him, sent him
to join Pippo and the five individuals
whose cadavers lay at the head Of the
stairs. Ippolita was now in a delightful
humor, and as she was much greater
adept than I at finding out the
hooks and dark rat holes of the old
castle, she never failed to be the first
to discover the whereabouts Of each
skulking knave. Nor. would she at
once disclose his hiding place, but
would tantalize me by calling warm"
and "cold" as I lessened or increased
my distance from it. 1 can recollect
the whole thing wildly at this present
moment-her breathless excitement.