The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1900-01-13

thinking you'd start home first thing
IN Che morning. Why, doubt whether
there's any train to-night-an the pas
sengers r stopping. Besides, you
couldn't see Lottie till tomorrow, any
how, could yoU?"
mo, Of course not. Only" i stood
g minute, turning it over. One night
could make no ditference-the authori-
ties would not be in attendance till
morning. Ihad landed safely, and Jack
was here-dear old Jack Hamlyn.
Come along, then: you take the big
box. I'm glad I wired now
Fifteen minutes later we were sit
ting in a private at the hotel.
The dispatch was safe in my small
trunk. If only Lottie could see us at
that minute-how her brown eyes
would wideni If only the London
editors, eagerly competing for informa-
ton, had guessed at the contents Of
that little leather easel
Just imagined" Jack repeated, Gran
ing himself over the red Goals. 1 had
just told him; there was no secret in
the world I should have dreamed Of
Withholding from Jack. sch? I'm
looking awfully queer? Pooh, it is you
who have taken in a fresh stock of vi
-tality out yonder. Dad and the others2
yes, all going well and strong"
"All?" I dropped my voice-I was
touching on the family skeleton here.
'Er-you don't include Wilfred, of
course? No change or hope in that de
rection, / suppose? I've never heard
a word of him.
"And you won't, Brian!" Jack whis-
pered that with a hand to his eyes
he had been the last to taboo that scape-
grace brother of his. / knew. "He
doesn't count-a hopeless outsider-we
don't mention his name, if we can help
it. Living? No one knows; at least,
it's some days since he last came try
ing to squeeze more money by lies
from me, and-and you know what
I've done for him in times past. But
drop that now. You wrote home about
some diamonds-do show mel"
turned them all into cash at a
profit" 1 laughed; sail except one, that
I've had set in a brooch for-you can
guess who. It's in the big trunk; you
can see it when we go up to bed"
So we chatted on, till an irresistible
drowsiness crept over me. 1 was doz-
ing as Jack talked; and soon after nine
o'clock I caught up the small trunk and
declared for bed and a clear head in
the morning. The morning-the sig
nifeant morning! 1 should be thanked
by the colonial secretary himself!
!. Up we went.
Oh! my buzzing brain! Try as I
would, tired as 1 felt, 1 could not quite
succeed in losing consciousness, Had
I done wrong in staying here? Might
the delay of even those few hours mean
danger? Was I quite sure I had locked
that door? Most provokingl Once or
twice 1 whispered to Jack in the bed
opposite, but only a prolonged
''ch-r-r-h!" answered me. Finally /
gave up trying, and lay framing Lot
ties oval face in that wavering re1ec-
ton of the gaslight overhead. Heaven
alone knew what it had meant to leave
the woman one longed for, and now
Oh, what was that? A clock down
stairs had just struck II times, and at
the last stroke Jack had swayed silent
ly Up in his bed and sat staring across
in my direction. A query was on my
lips, but 1 could not seem to sound it,
Perhaps my eyes were nearly closed,
but 1 could see enough to make me lie
perfectly still, while a kind of mystic
misgiving crept through me.
Why, / hardly KNEW must have been
inspired by sheer instinct. But Jack
over there, he had lifted himself out
of bed with a queer stealth; he had
taken a step and still he stared across
in that unnerving way. I wanted to
up and gasp an end to the spell,
but there seemed a mesmeric numbness
in my limbs. Why, on that craned face
of his-almost chalk-white it looked
in the low gIimmer Of the gaslight be-
tween us-was there an i~ndescribabIe
expression of naked dread and evil?
Merciful heavensi did it mean that
Jack, my oldest and dearest chum, who
had chased butterflies with me in the
meadows 20 years ago
One more stealthy step, as if to make
quite sure of-yes-of my sublime un-
consciousness. Now he was h~esitating.
like a man weighing all the odds for and
some design; now he was Slip
ping on his clothes. = = y Fully
lressed-hat, boots and all! He took
something from his pocket, stole across
and dropped it ever so lightly
across my face silk handkerchief.
{ = The thing seemed too paralyz-
ing for sanity. 1 remember I counted
just Goa minute of nameless horror
for me; and not till afterwards did
know why / made no sound or sign.
Then my teeth closed on a fold of the
silk, and drew it down a little; I could
Just see. = = = If ever a mans heart
stood all but still through sick amaze
ment, mine did then. The T~ransvaaTs
iispatchl he meant to steal ito sell
It's signed contents at a price-to set
England ringing with news that might
hurry on an awful ~crisisl The key in
my trousers pocket; he had found it,
the small trunk-was half way
10 the door with the precious leather
.ase, He was gone-no-he hesitated
igain, tip-toed back and was on his