The Irish standard., 1899-05-20

For Heavens sake don't send me back
to two years more!"
He threw himself on his knees before
her, and the sweat of agony gathered
thick upon his brow.
II WON'T" she said, gently, looking
down upon him. But you're not safe
here in those things. will give you
something to eat and drink; then you
must CO."
He let her go, and while she was
away went round the shed, seeking
something. At last he CHANGED upon
the handle Of a broken spade. which he
gripped firmly in both hands, as if to
measure the force he could put into q
blow dealt with it.
The door swung open and the young
woman entered followed by stalwart
man of 30. whose handsome, honest
face betrayed his relationship.
"Cat!" Kissed the convict at the
woman entered, followed by a stalwart
his head ready to smite down the man
should he approach him.
mo names, young fellow, if you
please" said the man. angrily, land
drop that tool. No ones betrayed you
yet. Give him the food, Mary; he looks
fit to die"
A spasm of intense emotion passed
over the convict's rugged face as he
seized the bread and can of milk the
girl held out to him. He gulped down
the milk, and took a hungry bite at the
bread. turning to the man as he did so.
Farmer, for goodness sake don't give
me away" he cried. II am farmer by
calling myself. Take pity upon mis-
cradle fellow, and I'll bless you all my
life, and her-and her."
'Never fear that, man." said the
farmer. But that's not all. Suppose
it gets known that we've harbored you;
suppose they prosecute me? Eth?
You're a farmer? Then your eye must
have. told you there's not much money
going on this farm, and-well, your wits
will tell you all I mean. If you go from
here you'll be arrested by others: your
clothes give you away. So it wouldn't
be fair to let you go like this. Then if
I lend you some clothes 1 shall have
helped you to escape-as bad an offense
as if I had kept you working on the
farm for me, where perhaps you would
stand better chance of escaping recog-
milton than if you went elsewhere, for
we're lonely here, and the place has al
ready been searched"
The farmer dived his hands into his
pockets and walked the barn impa-
tiently.
"Let me stop, then. For PHYS sake,
give me chance" implored the convict.
Eyes, farmer, I will! My names
Jolly. D'you know the name of Jolly?
No! Forgotten it, probably. Well, I'm
from your part of Hampshire, John At
kins, and I knew some Atkins, and I
know the ms and outs of that affair of
yours. I'll go the whole hog, farmer!
Slip you indoors and we'll wash you
into new farmland"
The new hand at Jolly's farm was a
distinct success. He worked with a
will, and knew his work even better
than did Farmer Jolly himself.
Two weeks had elapsed since John
Atkins, otherwise James Arnold, which
latter name he had adopted, had been
taken on at the farm, and his knowl-
edge had made him very useful to Mr..
jolly. while his handsome face and gen.
eral demeanor had induced Mary jolly
to regard him with something deeper
than mere pity, deep as pity may be.
But it must be admitted that James
Arnold did not trust Jolly. When the
warders again walked into the farm one
morning. Arnold had thrown look full
of scorn at the farmer, for he believed
he had been betrayed. And although
this belief had been dispelled by his es-
Gaping detection by the warders, some-
how or other his faith in Jolly's homes
ty would not reestablish itself. One
reason for this was the knowledge he
had gathered from this word and that
look. that the farmer was financially
embarrassed. which in consequence of
the hundred pounds reward which had
been offered for the capture of John At
kins, was certainly temptation to rem
der him up to the law.
No absolute obstacle stood in the way
of the convict's fight from the farm;
almost any moment of the day he could
have turned his back upon the farm and
departed. He had considered that hun.
dreds of times, and abandoned the idea:
not because he feared being detected
elsewhere. not because any kind of OBJ
stacle stood in his way, but because of
two soft, tender eyes, the sound of a
mellow. sympathetic voice; because of
because of Mary Jolly!
Under the influence of his suspicion
of the farmer, Arnold grew very watch
full and astute. 1t dragged him down
to doing meaner things than-felon as
he was-he would otherwise have
stopped to do. He played the spy upon
the farmer many time. But he felt
the shame of it. Still, he had more
than durance vile to dread; he had the
loss of something dearer to his heart
than liberty to fear. Thus it befell that
one evening, when the farmer and his
sister were locked in the tidy little par
lor of the farm, Arnold was kneeling on
the mat outside the door, his ear and
his eye alternately at the key-hole. At
first he could not hear what either said,
but as they talked their voices in
stinctively rose. and he heard words
and sentences of their conversation.
"Only $780," the farmer said. mo.
I can't raise on anything. But
I'll be worth couple of hundred easily
in a few weeks, if 1 can tide over. :.
A week. Must have $3.50 IN a xueaL m