The record-union., 1899-01-08

for me to report that you accidentally
shot yourself, and that I tried to stanch
the wound That'1 make me out hero,
and she'll marry me, then. Now I'll
give you your choice-whered do you pre-
fer to be shot?'
I could no more make prompt reply
than if I had been dead. The same
numbness came over me that you've felt
when trying to run from some monster
that pursued you in the horrors or
nightmare; but courage came with
the reaction, and 1 said: You are
lying coward, and a ID murderer at
heart; but listen before you fire your
assassin's bullet! You're a crack shot,
and Pm no shot at all; but II you II
throw me revolver and give me
shadow of chance, I'll at least ole
game If you murder me in cold blood,
you'll never have days luck again.
Ny boldness frightened the f1end 1or
a moment not longer It's no use run
hing any chances" he said, so It's no
CO."
1t struck me that I ought to make a
desperate rush for him, unarmed as
was; but he must have guessed my
thought, for his beady eyes flashed at
me down the barrel Of the revolver, as
he said:
"Try to rush at me, and I'll double
you up with pain in the stomach; but
if you stand like a brave fellow, I'll give
you a humane bullet through the head"
He then deliberately told me that he
felt sorry for me, because it was be-
yond human power to save me. l then
knew that his mind was fatally bent
on murder.
I'm less than three minutes you'll be
dead" he said, so prepare to meet
your God Don't think too hard of me
for this, John = for I've struggled
against it, but something drives me to
do it,"
I felt that nothing could save me;
for the demon had two loaded revolvers
and an experts skill, against my naked
hands. The first fright had passed
away, and I stood fully resigned to die.
1t is strange feeling to realize that
you are about to be murdered in the
very bloom of life and ambition, as I
felt at the moment of Luken's prepara-
tions for the murder. Up came his
revolver, and he said, "One!'-then
stopped counting to explain, when
say five. it'll all be over with you,
john
Then the slow, deliberate counting
rose in clear and cruel tones above the
tumult in my brain.
.Two."-a little pause. .
"Three!"-and I caught peep of sun
light, tangled in the autumn leaves.
'Fourv'-and looked straight at the
cold FLOODED demon, hoping that my
dying glance would haunt him, or that
his nerve would fail at the last.
His lips never pronounced the fatal
'five!" Like flash, he fell dead with
horrible groan. His body struck the
ground before heard the bang of the
revolver. His death clutch must have
set off the trigger, but the bullet went
far from. the mark.
. 1 was bewildered, then overcome with
joy, as if carried away on wings.
Heavens! what a laundering Niagara
of emotions roared in my brain: but
sprang upon the body, thinking TO dis
arm the wretch if he had swooned, to
rejoice if death had ended so base
life.. l could have finished him as read
lily as you would kill a viper-but it ;sas
death that I looked upon. A bullet
from my weapon had pierced the edge
of log, then torn up the ground at
spot at least ten feet from where Lux
ems had stood to deliberately murder
me. L dug the bullet from a bed of
sand and gravel-so far away from the
body that it could not have struck him.
either directly, or on. the rebound. But
there was hole in the dead mans
head and his hair was wet with blood
and brains.
In the tumult of my emotion, my first
thought after rejoicing over my dciiv-
erance and his death, was of my own
safety: for it looked like a strong case
of the State against Croudice, with
many circumstances that made me out
murderer. What worried me most
as / sat by the corpse with both his
revolver and my own in my hands. was
that shot had been fired from my re-
volver. How could explain that LUX
ems had accidentally killed himself in
this lonely spot, with my revolver? In
the excitement and fear of that terrible
moment, my nerves torn and my brain