Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1901-01-31
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IGAu 81 1GdI1ul w DIS 1eSI lily NO1Sc 1llS5
betray me, that made no answer, but
| followed him in silence to the smoke
room.
An hour before met this man I had
been full of hope, and now, unless I
could shake him off, had not the
slightest chance Of communicating with
Anguish, and unless I did so he would
| be utterly in the dark as to my where.
abouts, and might naturally imagine
| that had met with foul play. And,
| indeed, at first, as made a rapid ment-
al survey of the situation, it occurred
| to me that this might easily happen;
but before I was halfway through with
| my cigar reelected that D'Orville had
made no secret of the fact that I was to
meet him-at least I knew that he had
not done so to Mr.. Courtney-and that
if I disappeared he would certainly be
interrogated.
If I went the length of withdrawing
from the undertaking now I should i'm.
mediately become & suspect. and should
I call in the aid of the authorities and
have D'Orville arrested I must make
some specific charge; and the news of
his arrest and the reason thereof
would bring down upon me the veng-
eance of the remainder of the gang.
And I felt that this would reach me, no
matter how I might be guarded: and so
I went on. desperate as matters seemed,
and trusted to Providence to provide
me with some opportunity of writing a
few lines or sending a telegram to the
address that Anguish had given me.
We took train at Waterloo, but never
ierI,t
of me, and as soon as we arrived at
Southampton we found a carriage
awaiting us, and into it he hurried me,
and we We're driven away rapidly. I
was altogether in his power now.
What would he do with me? The pace
was too rapid to permit of conversation,
but as we whirled along in the waning
light I caught sight of the water, and
when this had vanished and the woods
had been on each side of us for some
space, we drove up an avenue to a
large house.
"Here we are," said D'Orville. Jump
down and come with me. should like
to have few minutes chat before we
begin business"
followed him up a broad staircase,
and we fofnd ourselves in a well-lit,
cheerful room.
"Take that chair" said he; and when
we had made ourselves comfortable. he
went on: 1--WE are obliged to act with
the greatest caution. The house we are
in has been taken for fortnight, but
our occupation of it will be of the
briefest. We shall be here tonight and
gone to- morrow. You are about to take
upon yourself a most solemn RESPONSE
bility and in a most solemn manner,
but that need have no terrors for you if
you are true to us and your heart is in
the right place."
I remembered the mummery and so
worthy Sweeney, and however much
solemnity they might impart into the
ceremony of installation, I should put it
down at it's own valuation.
"Now," he went on, "before you go
any further, tell me whether you have
any scrples about becoming one of us.
If you have, and you wish to retire,
now is the time to do it. In less than
an hour it will be impossible. Say the
word, and the carriage that brought
you here shall take you back to South
ampton."
81 don't know why you should harp
on such string" said. II have gone
SO far now that you ought to know
that I intend to go through with the
matter. Let me ask you, on my side,
whether you think I shall be useless
member?''
Perish the thought" he said, gaily.
"And now must leave you for a while.
You will shortly be summoned to the
Presence Follow your guide and do
exactly as you are told"
With that he left me.
Elm minutes or so might have passed
and employed the time in examining
the place closely-when a figure, wrap
ped in a long cloak, and wearing a
mask sol mnly stalked in, and. standing
still a few seconds, to impress me the
more, as supposed, uttered the words,
"Follow mel" in a deep, sepulchral tone.
We passed along a passage to a door
at the far end. Three knocks were CIV
en-, and scarcely had the third sounded
when the door flew open and we were
admitted.
was left standing close by the en-
trance, While the individual who had
guided me SO far slipped quietly to the
chair that was placed at the end of the
half-circle of seats, in which, wrapped
in long cloaks and a profound silence,
sat eleven other persons. ..
"The mystic number is made up"
said one of the twelve in deep voice.
I'VE are now thirteen. Let the rules of
the Ragged Thirteen be read to him
who would boone one of us, to him who
may not leave this room alive unless he
subscribes to our regulations"
And then in basso profundo rigma-
role of laws was read to me, to. not one
Of which did I pay any attention,
though the penalty Of death for the in
fringement. of this, that or the other
was repeatd with tiresome iteration. l
signed document with a pen dipped in
a fluid supposed to be blood. The lights
were lowered. The men gathered round
me, and drew the swords, which up
till now had been concealed, and as the
blades clashed above my head, under
stood clearly how helpless I was, did
they mediate mischief. And when the
wild. dance, that I was sure had been