Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1899-06-08


wolfish eyes, There he stood, an out
cast from the pale of human kind
ness, the convict, Mark Mold, on the
deck Of the passenger ship Briton,
the captain of which for certain sum
paid by the law officers, had consented
to take him, with several others of his
stamp, to Botany Bay, as room could
not be found for these criminals aboard
the transport vessel anchored mile
below and which had been packed to
overfowing ere the prisoners were
brought to it.
While Mark still waited on the deck
for the officers to stow him IN the
dark hold with his fellows boat from
the Liverpool dock came alongside
with several passengers, among them
handsome lady of thirty, Mrs. How
land, wife Of Colonel Howland, quar-
tered with his regiment near Port
Jackson, Australia, where she was 60
ing to join him, and her little daugh-
ter Grace, a beautiful child of six
years.
AS Mrs. Rowland was assisted up
the gangplank she noticed Mark Mold
and shuddered.
"You need not be afraid, ma'am, p"
said the captain. "The criminals will
be kept in the hold, chained; they
can do you HARM
"Can you not send them away from
here? l wish you would"
IT regret that I cannot, as I have
agreed to take them"
Descending into the cabin, the lady
sat, unable to rid herself of the feel
ing of alarm excited by the presence
of the convicts aboard the vessel. She
at length concluded to go ashore and
endeav3r to persuade the ship-owners
to have the criminals taken off the
orafs; but ere she could proceed to
execute her plan the Briton was under
weigh.
AS day after day passed the brighl
little cherub, Grace, spread light and
Joy throughout the vessel.
The rough sailors would smile,
their brown faces softening when she
ventufed among them.
They always had pleasant word
for her, for her winning little ways
had made her favorite with all, from
the cabin boy up to Ben Hayes, the
Oldest seaman aboard.
She would walk forward the first
thing of a morning and shake hands
with each one, her mother smilingly
permitting such freedom on the part
of her child. One day, having heard
that the crew did not fare as sump-
tuously as the passengers, little Grace,
instead of eating her piece of pound
cake at the cabin table, took it forward
among the sailors and make each of
them take a big bite, saying she
would tell the captain to send them n
basket full.
Soon she noticed on deck the con-
vict, Mark Mold, who, having been
taken i'll in the confined air below had
been relieved of his chains and led up
to breathe the fresh air. A pleased
look crossed his haggard face as he
inhaled the pure breeze, and, looking
out on the broad, blue, rolling ocean,
he seemed at once to get stronger and
better.
"Won't you have some? Here,
take it; you may have it all, fell a
childish voice on his ear, and, looking
down, he saw Grace at his knee, hold
ing up her piece of cake.
He seemed about to put his hand on
her head when Mrs. Rowland gently,
but quickly drew the child away.
The man showed no emotion at this
action Of the lady. 1t was natural the
mother should deem there was con-
tamination - poison - in his touch;
that she should not have permitted
him even to lay his hand on the
golden hair of the child.
"You must never go near that bad
man again" said Mrs, Howland,