The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1901-12-27

links, looked around me for somethini
in response.
A small footpath ran along the mar
| gin of the wood, and formed the mos
direct communication between the pa
vilion and the mansion house; and, al
I cast my eyes to that side, / saw 6
spark of light, not a quarter OF a mile
away, and rapidly approaching. FroU
its uneven course it appeared to be tht
light of a lantern carried by a person
who followed the windings Of the path
and was often staggered and taEer
aback by the more violent squalls. J
concealed myself once among the
elders, and waited eagerly for the new.
comer's advance. 1t proved to be 9
woman, and, as she passed within a few
rods of my ambush, / was able to rec
ognize the features. The deaf and 81
lent old rame, who had nursed North
mour in his childhood, was his asso-
ciate in this underhand affair.
l followed her at a little distance
taking advantage of the innumerable
heights and hollows, concealed by the
darkness, and favored not only by the
nurses deafness, but the uproar of the
wind and the surf. She entered the
pavilion, and, going at ono to the up
per story, opened and set a light in one
Of the windows that looked toward the
sea.
Immediately afterward the light at
the schooner's masthead was run down
and extinguished. It's purpose had beer
attained, and those on board were sure
that they were expected. The old wom-
an resumed her preparations. Although
the other shutters remained close,
could see a glimmer going to and fro
about the house; and a gush of sparks
from one chimney after another soon
told me that the fires were being kin
died.
Some time before II, while the tide
was still dangerously low, a boats lam
tern appeared close in shore; and my
attention being thus awakened I could
perceive another still far to seward
violently tossed and sometimes hidden
by the pillows. The weather, which
was getting d~irtier, as the night went
on and the perilous situation Of the
yacht on a lee shore, had probably
driven them to attempt a landing at
the earliest possible moment.
A little afterward four yachtsmen
carrying a very heavy chest and guided
by a fifth with a lantern passed close
in front Of me as I lay and were admit
ted to the pavilion by the nurse. They
returned to the beach and passed me a
third time with another chest larger
but apparently not so heavy as the
first. A third time they made the tran
sit; and on this occasion one of the
yachtsmen carried a leather portman-
teau and the others a lady's trunk and
carriage bag. My curiosity was sharp
" excited.
While / was thus rejecting a second
lantern drew near me from the beach.
It was carried by a yachtsman whom l
had not yet cen and who was conduct
ing two other persons to the pavilion.
These two persons were unquestionably
the guests for whom the house was
made ready; and, straining eye and
ear, l set myself to watch them as they
passed.
One was an unusually tall man, in a
travelling hat slouched over his eyes,
and a highland cape closely buttoned
and turned up SC as to conceal his face.
You could make out no more of him
than that he was, as l have said, unusu-
ally tall. and walked feebly with a
heavy stoop. BY his side, and either
clinging to him or giving him support
I could not make out which-was a
young, tall and slender figure of a
woman She was extremely pale; but
in the light Of the lantern her face was
marred by strong and changing sha-
dows, that she might equally well have
been as ugly as sin or as beautiful as
I afterward found her to be.
One by one, or in groups, the seamen
returned to the beach. The wind
brought me the sound of a rough voice
crying, "Shove Off" Then, after a
pause, another lantern drew near It
was Northmdur alone.