The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-09-19


knees and covered his face with his
hands. His horse turned and touched
him with its nose. The silence OF
the great, dark wilderness seemed to
center in the spot and add an awful
eolemnity to Burns's voice as he began
to pray. 49,,
Uplifting his hands and turning his
pallid yet bronzed face toward heaven,
he walled aloud: AZ :,
80 my God, hast Thou forsaken
me? This, o Heavenly Master, is
my hour of extremity!" -
Thus far he proceeded in pas
sionate strain; then, checking HIM
self, he closed his lips and prayed in
wardly, until he was grufay inter
rupted by Rsmeau, who exclaimed:
"Here, stop that tomfoolery! l
have said for you to mount your
horse and move of, and now I mean
for you to do it! Get up from there,
Instantly"
Something infinitely brutal and re.
lentless in the outlaws voice closed
the gate of prayer with a slam so to
speak, and caused Burns to start and
rise, almost with a spring, to his feet.
Instantly the manner OF both men
changed. -,
"You old fool" said Rameau, edo
you hope to deceive me? I see
through your game; but I am not 30
easily taken in. Very small will be
the reward that you will ever get for
capturing me-"
"sReward'-'Reward,'" Burns re-
peated, ST suppose that I never have
deserved anything better than this"
"You and that Vasseur are chums,
I imagine. Great detectives and
sleuths of the law, are you two fell
lows! Set out to capture Pierre
Rameau, eh? All, your little plan is
all plain enough to me now"
He had drawn one of his heavy
holster pistols and now cooked it with
q slow, deliberate motion, his eyes
seeming to lengthen and narrow them
selves like those of cat.
"You choose to play apart, Kirk
Mac acCullough," the old man said;
"you choose to deny everything, to
spurn your own name, to treat me as
a stranger, to refuse me the one last
hope of my ruined life; but I tell
you now that you shall not escape
me-"
His ewes were burning and his
voice was deep and strong, with de-
cided Scotch accent. His long white
hair and matted beard shook with the
vehement force of his speech. He
had Strengthened himself up 80 that
his tall frame was firmly erect and one
bony hand was quivering high above
his head. ..-
"You shall not escape me-" he re-
peated, with awful emphasis, "even
though you riddle my body with your
bullets! will never die-I cannot
die until" 49,. ..
"You are going to die right now, ="
said Rameau, interrupting him. sold
man, leave no person alive who says
what you have said. You have
spoken your own death-warrant. am
your executioner. !
"Kirk Mccullough, you cannot
kill me-you cannot. " Death is not
for me SO long as you ivel I am in
Gods hands; He will not wholly de-
sert ne me- HHex ~ssass He has at last led
me, TO you."
ooh, you think that, 90 you! A92
Won Econsider yourself butfst tpfo6f,
eh? Well, the test is quite easy"
He raised his pistol; but instantly
lowered it, as q fendish light leaped
into his strangely handsome face.
"Let me tell you before you die
that you have No child. Margaret is
deal. You are her murderer, not I,
though I killed. her. IF you had not
interfered with our love I shonld have
been happy husband and Margaret
my happy wife in old Scotland day.
You chose to treat me like dog. I
took the girl and did my best for her.
She proved untrue to me in Spain,
and I killed her. Now I am going to
kill you. --Jothing can save you. I'm
glad t1at you came here; it makes my
revenge so easy"
Burns stood as if petriied at the
outlaws words. His hand lifted and
iell by his side, his features took on a
stony expression.
Pierre Raneau spoke without any
specia; emphasis; but his words came
forth from his lips like bullets from a
a gun. The desperation of sudden
mood induced by the memories arising
in his mind was not the frenzy of an
ordinary man. Indeed, he was not
m ordinary man. The history OF his
deeds makes him an unparalleled
character. With him anger was no
moro than mirth; he seemed to be
passionless in the ordinary sense of
the word. Any mood was to him a
nero phase Ct conscienceless exist
cnce at tLs core Of which burned O
steady, intense sel6shness.
"You wish to find Margaret, do you? ?
You shall find her if there is anything,
in your tomfoolery, where you both
belong. You forced her to despera-
tion; you made an outlaw of me. l
am going to make dead man of you. "
S BY soma such reasoning as this
does the desperate criminal almost
always seek to justify his attitude.
Rarely, indeed, do we find q man,
whose deeds have made him the hor-
ror of mankind, whose name is sufi-
cient to send shudder through the
world, whose whole record is black