Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1899-08-24

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"TtS All BAHIA and the Forth Thiercs,'
BiUU" said Barr stolidly.
"lIe cant give any detailed account
Of the matter. All he remembers is
that his wife was mixed up in il. 1t
was on seeing her in their hands that
something cracked inside hn-as he
describes it-an6 he was endowed with
the strength of ten. Somehow or other
he must have hewed his way out, for
the next thing he remembers he and
his wife were outside in the forest.
After bit his wife couldn't move any
more. He realizes now that she must
have died then, but he says he didn't
at the time. Directly after that he was
alone and tearing through the forest.
He must have visited and unearthed
stinctive way, Just as a dog scratches
up its bones, for when he was on the
ship he found the necklet round his
neck"
Query: Is it the same necklet"
quoth Barr. "Where is it, my most
credulous young friend?"
Desmond thrust his hand into his
op
beads upon the table. There you are,
my unbelleving Thomas. Now let me
go on" And he resumed his tale as
Barr examined the gold linked circlet.
He thinks there were n lot Of wolves
In the forest, and that he played with
them and laughed to them from the
tree tops, but that may we'll be bit
of imagination, as you suggest. But
that doesn't matter as far as the rest
Of the story's concerned"
Hang it. Billy" demonstrated Barr,
don't gag at a wolf or two after swal-
lowing a buried hoard! Let's have the
wolves by all means. Most effective
touch"
"All right. Grin If you like. You
widest sort of state at finding l under.
stand him, and he's begged me by all
] hold sacred to take him back to his
home and give him a chance to see his
desire upon his enemies | told him he
was fool for his pains to wander
back to place where, as sure as eggs
are eggs, he'll only be clapped In pris-
on again. and probably a worse thing
than before come upon him. But it's
no use 1t wasn't at first by any means
that he let on about this-only as
means of bribing me to take him along.
He'd spent himself first In explaining
his tale of woe without any allusion to
this treasure trove. Now, seriously,
what d'you think"
Il think very seriously indeed" an.
swered Barr, "for ! perceive that you
and he are lunatics who differ only in
degree. Probably In some OF his sailor
wanderings he picked up this old neck
lace somehow-perhaps honestly, per.
haps not-and evolved the remainder
out of a whisky OF vodki heated i'm
agination. But know you we'll enough
to be perfectly aware that what you
call your mind is already made up and
that you mean sailing up to skeleton
or whatever the outlandsh place may
be-to dust after this fantastic phan.
tom Of lupatic's brain. So be it. It'll
he a Jaunt anyway. ! shall perhaps
prevent your getting into the most dis
as'rous kind OF scrape, so III come.
But, LOr', the blatant absurdity of
the business"
well, there you're talking wild, old
man" said Desmond, getting up and
straddling across the hearth rug. This
isn't the first time by many that I've
heard of viking treasure being buried
up north If you come to think Of it
and consider how those old customers
were always raiding south, it's Won
der that more Of the stuff hasn't come
down the centuries. In my opinion,
there's more of it buried than has ever
| been found"
THAT, | should think, is excessive
ly probable" said Barr dryly, 80 why
go padding after it in mountain tor
rent? Much better form syndicate Of
exploration and discovery and send
other fools. The Russian government
will let you have n concession of all
Finland probably for a couple of fiv-
ers. What on earth should bring
sccpters and necklets into the bed of
a strcam?"
THAT'S the convincing thing about
| it," said Desmond. IF the beggar
| had only come with a tale of buried
treasure, might have thought with
you. But, my boy, it isn't likely he
would imagine the stream incident
It's a trife too improbable unless you
consider other testimony. It's just
here that history backs him up. It's
well known that the old vikings used
to bury their special chiefs by turning
aside the course of stream, putting
the corpse in u hole in the bed Of it