The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-05-07
CHAPTER VII.

Poor Decima's first impulse was to wake
Rose, and her hand her sisters arm
before she reflected that, as there must be no
sound of voices, it would be better not to
arouse her.
Besides, Rose would in all probability lose
her head entirely, and anyway, as the child
could afford no help, there no need to
frighten her needlessly. Let her sleep.
Then came an impulse to barricade the
door with everything in the room; but this,
too, died at birth, strangled by thought of
SURPRISING horror.
Could she stay here quietly and let the
house be robbed-let the Hirams jewels and
money, Miss Yamm's wonderful diamonds,
their own silver, be taken, without an effort
to save them?
Oh, horror horror, horror!-for even if she
could force herself to try and give an alarm,
this room, transformed into a bed-chamber,
to make more room in the house during Miss
YanlmS visit, was really only summer tea
room, that added a chalet-like finish to the
music room, and gave access nowhere but to
the garden. ~ .nrp71 4f-f11'IHS ~ fi144s
To get to the house she must step out on a
balcony, descend an ornamental little stair
case, cross the garden, and unlock a door
that led to the servants quarters.
Gree inside the house she could creep to her
cousins room, and get him to give an alarm;
but how to get there-how to get there?
For a minute she stood with her body sway
ing with indecision; then, her face rigid
as a corpse's and as white, she crept to the
window and peeped over into the garden.
Nobody. Nothing-but darkness.
She stole to the door, and drawing a long
shuddering breath, unlocked it, and put the
key in the hole outside.
If forcing ones self to do that which one is
afraid to do is courage, there never was
more courageous act than this of Decima
Russells.
Burglars-violence to those who interfere
pistols rnurder-a helpless girl, and strong
reckless men, perhaps waiting on guard round
the corner of the music room-all the terrors
Of it were in her mind as she stepped out on
the balcony, locked her sister in from the
outside, withdrew the key from the door
glided down the steps, and crept past the
shattered windows up to the body of the
house
Though it seemed hours before she got the
key noiselessly into the lock of the door, she
did so without interruption and, at length, it
had turned, and she had entered.
She closed the door behind her. and the
nervous catch in her breath was becoming
sob of relief, when she turned to find herself
in the light of a lantern.
1t showed her the face of the man who held
it, and she staggered back against the door
holding her hands out to him appealingly, as
she gasped-
You, you, only you! Oh. am $3.50 glad
I thought
But, instead of taking the appealing hands
in his, the man pressed something against her
mouth
She struggled, fell and knew no more.
1t was a month before Decima regained
consciousness.
She had been chloroformed, and in the
struggle which led to her fall had had a bad
blow on the head, and a dangerous concus-
sion of the brain ensued
She was very weak when the fever left her
50 weak that it was some hours before she
gathered herself sufficiently to think of ask
ing what had happened that night.
Griffith had not gone to bed, and heard the
noise of your fall, and soon became conscious
something wrong" Mary told her, gent
w: 80 he used his policeman's whistle and
when the policeman came the thieves. who
had got in by the mushroom window had
dissp Observation-Disclosures away"
They did not take anything, them
They had no time to do So No harm of
any sort-except this to you, poor brave
darling-had been DONE"