Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1898-06-09

-, ,N>~ES9N placed him I'M
n SA der the wagon
~ SS.N. to shelter him
l,H y from the night
!. I !: !. !. !. { !: !
sziN,Ls,d mi. q G W s. IL c
Essh saffSl IT, M%#3. moaned little,
WI | | I==HzsS#=>/ but seemed I'M
ET |(5%z$ conscious as to
wv (SHzSy who was about
" NS him and where
~ he was. They
made their fire near him, and sat as
close to him as possible, and hoped
the boy would slip off that way quiet
ly during the night, without pain.
Nothing more could they do to save
him. Their experience of the fever
made them feel assured his death
would be easy, but the great horror
was that he should perish in the yeldt
wilderness, and he but six months out
from home. For the others, to whom
home was but dim, retreating mem
ory, such an end at any moment would
seem natural enough-the expected
finale. But the boy! He had read
them scraps of his sisters letters to
him, because he was SO frankly en-
thusiastic about her and the fortune
ne was going to astound her by max
ing speedily, that he could not keep
quiet about it. Lions and big game
he had longed to meet beyond the
Zambesi, but he had left the fever out
of his plans. No doubt he had told
his sister all about the game. Which
one of the party would have to write
to her about the deadlier peril which
he had not escaped?
The great full moon, which seems
to gaze more nearly and more sadly
on Africa than on other lands, was di-
rectly over the camp. In its light the
thin-bushed veldt glimmered as an
ocean of silvery pillows, close bound
ed by solemn shadows. From these
shadows what would come to the men
tonight, stalking unseen through the
midst of them, bearing the sword of
death?
Copeland laid his pipe down and
knelt beside Isdale, feeling his pulse.
''How is it?" Paget asked when Jack
came back.
Every feeble. He don't know me
at all. Smiles and whispers something
about going fishing with Judy in the
river. Wants to know why it'ss so cold
to-day on the banks"
"Judy's his sister," Paget said.
"He showed me her photo. fancy
they were lonely pair--playmates. -
''Fishin' in the river, eh?" old Han
men grumbled in his gray beard.
"Then it's all up with the kid. It's
always the river when they're goin'
off. 1t was so with me, too"
Somebody laughed grimly.
when did you die, Hannen?"
81 didn't. Might say 1 wouldn't.
1t was on the Northwest plains of the
States, and was hunting with party
of Eastern swells. Got typho-malariai,
same as Isdale got his, dom know how.
Nobody else got it. They dropped
me at half abandoned army post, for
there was no town near, and put me
in the soldiers hospital 1 was in an
awful bad way-a most interesting
case, tho bloomin' doctor told me af-
ter, and off my head most of the time,
and thinl L was afraid of the lookin'
glass for O month after it was over.
They had swing doors at the end OF
the ward, an the bed at the doors was
called the death bed, because it was
handy, you know, to get cold man
out without disturbing the other pa.
tients. So one evening when 1 was
lying in cot near big box stove
the doctor came round, and Put him
in the death bed,' says he to the hos.
pital steward, he'll go some time to.
night They thought couldn't hear
l suppose, but 1 did, and was too bad.
ly sick to care rap. They changed
me, an put a screen round me an left
me to die whenever 1 got ready.
81 suppose L went right off my head
again. | had the queerest dreams,
Off through the prettiest green fields
you ever saw, with hedges and daisies
an children playin' in them, only ]
was cryin' all the time because was
SO cold. Somehow | got to river
not big one, it seemed, yet it was
sort Of dark on the other side, and the
water was tumblin' down, brown anC
noisily, like trout stream in the
Scotch hills. lay down about tel
yards from the bank an it was awfu
cold, Years and years before a boy
I'd been chums wlNh at school had dice
an I'd near broke my heart about it
Now, from the other side of that rive
that boy sang out to me, only his voic,
wasn't very near like: why don't yot
come, jim? You can wade across.
An somethin' seemed at the sam,
time to be drawin' me to the water
Well, I wouldn't; was born pighead
ed, l suppose. 1t was too cold an
that settled it. The more the bo,
called and the more it. whatever i