Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-04-28

mount in the morning, when the officer Of
the day would make his report They had
more than an hours start but If he pressed
hard after them he should catch up soon
That settled, he urged his horse to the ut
most, and gave himself up to the mad rage
of jealousy and disappointment. He mad
known her from a child to be willful and
passionate and mischievous, but he mad
never In his alteration believed her capable
of such deceit. He did not stop to think
that love had forced himself to break his
oath, to neglect his duty, to assist pris-
oner under his charge to escape. to forfeit:
II the truth became known, the trust OF
years Of hard campaigning. He did not
stop to think of what love might nave
forced her also to do. His mood was en-
trely selfish. He was wounded sorely and
he wished for nothing but revenge.
The dust scattered in clouds about him;
the horse, in that hot night, soon was
streaming sweat He never slackened pace.
Nov aat again there was a creek to cross:
and through them he dashed, needless OF
mud hole or rock or stump. once be,
lated Indian freghter met him and us gruntea
him, nor answered his greeting. In an In
slant he was out of sight and hearing SO
he rode, blind to all he passed. his eyes
glazing ahead, his teeth grating, seeking
revenge for the slight and the scorn and
the lie.
They had travelled more quickly than
he had reckoned they would and the sky
of the midsummer morning was turning
slowly from gray to violet when he saw
them, and drew the revolver he carried as
being on guard duty. He hailed them, and
through the misty dimness of the dawn
| they him and spurred ahead with 4
cry of fear and surprise. His horse, the
| fleetest in the troop drew w upon them
| but, urged by terror, they pushed on TO
| the utmost. The sergeant was within 2n
yards of them when he leveled his revolver
and fired. They were too far off for pistol
shooting, but the shot resulted in bringing
them to standstill He rode slowly up
and refined in, facing them The girl sat
| erect in her saddle, her bosom heaving, her
| eyes defying him. The musician looked at
him with his big. brown, sorrowful eyes
despairing. Holmes looked only on the
| girl, and even as he did that which had
| caused all his misery in the last few years,
his great love for her, came back, sweeping
| in on him as a flood, washing away MS
| wrath and disappointment and longing Tor
| revenge. 1t was Katy Malone VINO faced
| him, his pet in her school days, the one
| thing he had ever loved. AS he looked on
| her flushed with exercise and Indignation,
he put his pistol back in the holster and
| the reins fell on his horses neck and he
| cared nothing for the others presence, but
| held out his arms in overwhelming despair
| crying:
| Katy! Katy! Why have you done this?'
| The girl paused moment in surprise for
| she had surely expected an outburst of
! colossal rage, but in moment she re-
gained her usual self-possession. She took
| the musicians hand in hers, in the pro-
| tecting way she had used when she had
met him in the island wood.
| Because love him." she said, simply.
| The sergeant's head dropped low over his
| horse and his tall frame shook. When he
| looked up, his face was gray as the morn
| ing sky. All light was gone from his eyes,
| even as the stars were disappearing In the
| heavens. He was calm now.
You could not trust me to make you
happy" he said, slowly. II begin to under
stand. 1 want to know one thing. Did you
| care for me at all, before-he-came?
| She shook her head.
Never" she said
He sat again erect and looked up at the
sky. In one instant his life stood revealed
Lonely, lonely. lonely. Through all the
! years, from the first early questionings Of
himself, of who his mother was and who
his father; through all the years Of ill-used.
| soul-souring childhood; through all the
through all the years of manhood, solitary
and avoided by his comrades, he saw him
self-babe. child, boy, man-unfriended and
alone. Lonely, lonely, lonely! Friendless
and unloved.
He looked at the young lovers. hand in
| hand What good would 1t do to arrest
him? She would only hate him the more.
| What good would 1t do to force her back
| Besides, the escape must be known soon,
| and he, in turn would be prisoner. The
sky changing into blue: the sun was
| almost on the horizon, but round his soul
| the night grew very dark. For while they
| watched him, wondering, and at last he
locked at them, and his eyes were full of
| tears.
Ride on" he said.
They did not move hardly believing, until
! he waved his hands impatiently
Go" he said, ''and-and God make you
both happy"
. Without q parting word they wheeled and
fled
He watched them disappear, and a mo-
ment after the crack of a pistol rang out
across the plain and the sergeant's riderless
horse frightened, galloped back to the pest
!