Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1901-09-21

you are friends Of his?" she added.
~questioningly.
But ] did not stay 10 answer her. I
shook Croisette. who had not heard a
word OF this. by the shoulder. There
Is a chance that he has escaped" I
cried In his ear. "Escaped. do you
hear7" And I told him hastily what
she had said.
1t was fine, indeed, and a sight to see
tears In his eyes. and energy and
the blood rush to his cheeks, and the
muscle Of his face. Then there is
hope!" he cried, ~grasping my arm.
Hope. Annie! Come! Come! Do not
let us lose another instant. II he be
alive let US Join him!"
The old woman tried to detain us, but
In vain. Nay. plying us, and fearing,
! think, that we were rushing on our
deaths. h cast aside her caution and
called after US aloud. We took no heed,
running after Croisette, who had not
waited for our answer, as fast as young
limbs could carry us down the street.
The exhaustion we a felt q moment
before when all seemed lost-be II re-
membered that we had not been to bed
o. tasted food for many hours-fell
from us on the instant, and was clean
gone and forgotten In the Joy OF this
respite. Louis was living and for the
moment had escaped.
ESCAPED! But for how long? We
o a our answer. The we
turned the corne by the riverside. the
murmur OF a multitude. not loud. but
continuous. struck our ears. even az
the breezes off the water swept our
cheeks. Across the river lay the thou
sand roofs OF the lie de la Cite, all
sparkling In the sunshine. But we
swept 20 the right. thinking little Of
tina giOhf nd phanLAd go 1900 -
finding ourselves on the skirts OF the
crowd. Before us was a bridge-the
Pont au Change, ! ~thing-and at its
head on u side of the water stood the
Chatelet. with It's hoary turrets and
b~attlements. Between us and the lat
ter, n backed only by the river, was
a great open space half-flled with peo-
pie, mostly silent and w~atchful, come
together as to a show, and b~etraying,
at present at least. no desire to take an
active part In what was going on.
We hurriedly plunged into the
throng, and soon caught the cue to the
Quietness and the lack OF moment
which seemed to prevail. and which at
nrst sight had puzzled Us. For q mo-
ment The absence OF the dreadful symp-
toms we had come to know so we'll
he flying and pursuing, the random
blows, the shrieks and curses and bat
terlnB on uoors, the tlpsy yellS, had re-
assured US. But the relief was short
lived. The people before us were un-
der control. A tighter grip seemed 10
close upon our hearts as we discerned
this, for we knew that wild fury of
the populace. like the rush of a bull,
might AVE given some chance of es-
cape-in this case as In others. But
this cold-blooded ordered search left
none.
Every face about us was turned in
the same direction: away from the
river and toward a block Of old houses
which stood opposite to 1t. The space
Immediately in front OF these was
empty, the people being kept back by n
score or so Of archers OF the guard set
at intervals, n by as many horse
men, who kept riding up and down,
~belaboring the holder spirits with the
Hat OF their swords, and so preserving
a line. At each extremity OF this
more n~oticeably on our left where the
line curved ound the angle OF the
bu~ildings-stood a handful of riders,
even In a group, perhaps. And alone
In the middle Of the space so KEPT clear,
walking his horse up and down and
gazing at the houses, rode q man OF
great stature, booted and armed, the
feather nodding In his bonnet. I
could not see his face, but I had no
need to see 1t. / knew him, and
aloud. 1t was Beers!
Continued Next Weekly