Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1901-12-04

SCISSOR grinder sounds all day III
the thick roof of foliage overhead.
It is not nice place for a Sunday
school picnic, and long before Jessie
had reached the bottom she had be-
gun to wish she hadn't come, but
the calm young man beside her
made her feel ashamed of owning
up.
They walked beside the river, and
little, lobsterhke black insects
erswied up their limbs and gave
both of them agony. They entered
an open glade, and a ferdilance
snake suddenly reared up before
them and was only lodged with
difficulty, Algie giving him crack
on the head with his stick as he
passed that left him powerless for
ali further malice in this world.
Wherever they went they encoun-
tered fresh dangers, and all the
while, unseen and unknown by
either of them, big leopard was
stealthlly dogging their steps, keep
ing artfully in the shadow, but with
eyes that ever burned and glared-
two circles of green malignant fire.
At last they reached the tree on
whose topmost branches were
blooming the orchids Jessie had
seen.
"How high they are" said the
girl, looking up. 81 thought the
tree was quite short one"
Not too high for me-" answered
Algie, preparing to climb.
mo, no; don't attempt it." cried
the girl. "Half the branches seem
rotten. You might fall and be
killed"
"And what if 1 were? Who
would miss me? Not soul" And
he gave short laugh that was lit
lie bitter.
"Do you say that because
brought YOU down here ?" asked Jes-
sic slowly
81 never. dared to think of YOU as
taking the smallest interest in me
one way or the other"
"Whv ?" asked Jessie, making the
soft eyes at him. And the icorard
behind, seeing them thus absorbed
in one another, crept little nearer.
Don't look at me ike thatw
cried Algie, as her face suddenly
paled and her eyes opened wide with
horror.
Turn quickly" whispered Jes-
sic. But she was too late. The
beast was upon him, its claws in his
shoulders, and its teeth IN his neck.
He turned and writhed. bu, the
brute stuck to him: he gave the
stick to Jessie, and. with scream up
on scream, she struck il or The
head again and again, while the
blood poured down the lads Shout
ders, and his strength was visibh
ebbing away. At last she brought
the cudgel down upon the animals
head with a force that broke its
skull, and it relinquished its hold
and fell TO the earth dead, and AL
gle fell back upon it in a swoon.
Jessie knelt beside him, wiped the
blood from his face and neck and
bathed him with water from the
river. Hour after hour passed, and
though he opened his ewes and
spoke to her he was utterly unable
to rise. At last the sun set. the
forest darkened, the lantern flies
began to dart hither and thithcr
and all the strange sounds of The
night commenced. Then Jessie be-
gan to tremble, and ear fell upon
: the lads face.
81 feel as though / were diving"
he murmured family.
No." cried Jessie, and leaped to
her feet. "Helpl Help" she scream
cd at the top of her voice. "Help!
Help! Helpp And the echoes died
away in the blackness Of the night.
"Goodby," whispered Algie. "Win
you kiss me once 2"
She stopped and pressed her lips
against his, and his head fell back.
But he was not dead. Oh, dear,
MOI That kiss, with the magic
: force that a kiss may have, had re-
vived him, put life into him. set
the blood running fast once more.
! and presently he raised his head
again and said
Jessie"
Eyes, darling"
Il believe / shall live"
"Thank Godw And she kissed
him again,
: Then came great noise Of men
calling and great flashing of big
; lamps and a wild cry in a woman's
voice, and half an hour later Algie
was being borne back to Santa Mia.
his hand held by Jessie.
And sometimes now he tells his
bouncing boys OF the night he and
their mother once spent in the Co
lombian forest. But Jessie listens
to it with fear and trembling.-Chi-
nann rrihrna
His Million.
An Irishman who had but re-
Gently arrived in this conntrv an