Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1901-11-14
(CHAPTER XVI.-Continued.)

was spoken. returned to the fortress.
What is it?' cried Jack expectantly.
"He has lost the power to protect
you. He advises me to stay with you
to the last"
will you"
EYES," replied, with sigh.
"Tbank God" exclaimed Helen.
Another night of horror; rising sun,
flooding the face Of the rocks and our
wan faces with ruddy glow. A more
wretched lot of beings could not be
found among castaways at sea. We
had not slept during the night, for
whatever of rest had come to any Of us
had been rather stupor than sleep. Our
cheeks were sunken; our eyes, deep in
their sockets, were turned toward the
red orb of day, which to our fevered
imaginations seemed to be advancing
to strike the final blow.
A great change had come over us
during the night. Jack alternated be-
tween bursts of passion and devil
may care spirit. 'sprinkled with humor-
GUS sallies between tears and smiles,
which served to tighten momentarily
the gloom for the others, but only rem
dered me more wretched; Buck craved
food more than all the rest and after a
few vain efforts to appear unconcerned
took on CHASTITY look that cut me to
the heart; Ginger spent great deal Of
his time in prayer; Helen seemed calm,
yet noticed strange look in her eye
Up to this terrible morning she had
been the mainstay Of the party. I'm
der the strain that smoldering fire
which burned within her flared omi-
nously. Turning to me, she asked
harshly:
"Are you Confederate or are you "a
Yankee?"
What matters it now?'
II came to save you, understanding
you to be a Confederate"
would you abandon me now if you
knew me to be Union man?"
She turned away, and saw that she
was weeping. 1 put my arm about her
and drew her head down on my breast.
There she wept long and silently
Whether she was unconscious of what
she did or whether her sufferings made
her careless l did not know, but as
felt her heart beating against mine I
was conscious of the birth of a new
love.
AS the sun rose higher 1t beat down
upon us with all the enervating heat Of
an unreasonable day. The water drip
ping back of us alone sustained and
refreshed US. One by one we would go
to the cleft and. standing under the
cooling drops. receive them In our
mouths. We envied the birds the food
they bore to their nests and the free
dom of those soaring far above in the
limitless ocean Of air. Why could we
not be given wings to fly from our
rocky prison? The wrecked are prone
to dwell on hallucinations. So to us
came sounds denoting the approach Of
rescuers. One would hear the tramp Of
armed men. Another would see the
white covers of wagon train. All day
we were tortured by these 2ancies till
at last ceased to pay any attention to
them.
IT hear horses hoofs," said Buck.
"Oh. no. you don't, Buck" said, lay
ing my hand on his head
II tell yo' do"
"Listen," said Helen.
We all listened, but so far as was
concerned there was no unusual sound.
II hear them, too," said Jack.
1t was singular that these two should
agree. 1 looked an1iously at Helen.
My hearing was not especially acute.
If Helen had heard, I might have
thought there was something to hear.
She listened long while, but no sound
came to her.
cts gone" said Buck.
$50 1t is" said Jack. 81 heard it;
know did,"
turned away. 1t was plain to me
that they had been tortured by another
hallucination. Neither Buck nor Jack
heard anything more. and the incident
was soon forgotten, at least by Helen
and by me, who had heard nothing.
We all relapsed into that dreadful wait.
ing--waiting for the time when the
fear of death would be overcome by
the pangs Of starvation. Helen sud,
denly locked at NE, that dangerous
light which had seen before in her
eyes.
"Your enemy?" she asked.
what enemy"
.The one you came to Alabama to
kill"
81 shall never kill him now"
"Do you mean that you abandon your
revenge?" She spoke contemptuously.
with death staring me, staring yor
and the others in the face-you wht
have wrecked yourselves in vain at
tempt to save me-my private grief'
sink to nothingness."
you must be revenged." She spok'
as If 1t were she and not ! who was Il
be the avenger. - =