Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1898-05-19

though 1t was strange 10 me, was well
enough known to some there, and car
ried a great weight of terror. Some
| of the men who had been to field-work
on the far side of the Admiral Ben
bow remembered, besides, to have seen
several strangers on the road, and, TAX
| ing them to be smugglers, to have bolt
ed away; and one at least had seen
! a little lugger in what we called kits
Hole. For that matter, anyone who
was a comrade of the captains was
enough to brighten them to death. And
the short and the long of the matter
was. that while we could get several
who were willing enough to ride to
| DIR. Livesey's, which lay in another di-
rection, not one would help us to de-
! fend the inn.
They say cowardice is infectious; but
| then argument is, on the other hand,
great emboldener; and so when each
had his say, my mother made them
speech. She would not, she declared.
lose money that belonged to her father
less boy; ''if none of the rest of you
dare" she said, Jim and l dare. Back
we will go, the way we came, and small
thanks to you big, hulking, chicken
hearted men. Well have that chest
open, if we die for it. And I'll thank
you for that bag, Mrs. Crossley, to bring
back our lawful money in"
Of course, said l would go with my
mother; and of course they all cried
out at our foolhardiness; but even then
not man would go along with us. All
they would do was to give me loaded
pistol, lest we were attacked; and to
promise to have horses ready saddled,
in case we were pursued on our re-
turn; while one lad was to ride for
ward to the doctors in search of armed
assistance.
My heart was beating tierceiy when
we two set forth in the cold night upon
this dangerous venture. A full moon
| was beginning to rise and peered red
ly through the upper edges of the fog,
and this increased our haste, for it
was plain, before we came forth again,
that all would be bright as day, and
our departure exposed to the eyes of
any watchers. We slipped along the
hedges, noiseless and swift. nor did we
see or hear anything to increase our
terrors, till, to our huge relief, the door
of the Admiral Benbow had closed be-
| hind us.
L SHppeU the DOIC dl once, anu we
| stood and painted for moment in the
| dark, alone in the house with the dead
| captains body. Then my mother got
| candle in the bar, and, holding each
others hands, we advanced into the
| parlor. He lay as we had left him, on
his back, with his eyes open, and one
arm stretched out.
"Draw down the blind, JIM" whis-
pered my mother; "they might come
and watch outside. And now," said
| she, when I had done so, 1--WE have to
get the key off that; and who's to touch
| it, should like to know ?" and she gave
kind of sob as she said the words.
| 1 went down on my knees at once.
On the floor close to his hand there was
little round of paper, blackened on
| the one side. I could not doubt that
this was the black spot; and, taking it
up, found written on the other side,
in a very good, clear hand, this short
message: "You have till ten tonight"
''He had till ten. mother" said L; and,
| just as I said 1t, our old clock began
| striking. This sudden noise startled US
| shockingly; but the news was good,
| for it was only six.
"Now, JIM" she said. "that key"
/ felt in his pockets, one after an
| other. A few small coins, a thimble
| and some thread and big needles,
| piece of pigtail tobacco bitten away al
| the end, his gully with the crooked
handle. a pocket compass and a finder
box. were all that they contained, and
began to despair.
perhaps it's round his neck" sug
| gested my mother.
Overcoming a strong repugnance, /
| tore open his shirt at the neck. and
| there, sure enough, hanging to a bit of
tarry string. which cut with his own
gully, we found the key. At this tri-
| umph we were filled with hope, and
| hurried upstairs. without delay, to the
! little room where he had slept so long,
and where his box had stood since the
| day of his arrival.
1t was like any other seaman's chest
ON the outside, the initial s'B." burned
on the top of it with a hot iron. and
| the corners somewhat smashed and
broken as by long, rough usage.
sGive me the key" said my mother;
and though the lock was very stiff she
had turned it and thrown back the lid
| in a twinkling.
| A strong smell of tobacco and tar
rose from the interior, but nothing
was to be seen on the top except a suit
| of very good clothes, carefully brushed
and folded. They had never been worn,
my mother said. Under that. the mis-
| cellany began-a quadrant, tin can't
| kin, several sticks of tobacco, two brace
of very handsome pistols, piece OF
bar silver, an old Spanish watch and
some other trinkets of little value and
mostly of foreign make. a pair of COM