Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1901-09-07

NAAto thot n III
longer trusted Nine. 40. / was not
convinced 1T Is true, of her conscious
guilt, still l did not trust her entirely.
DO not wear them on your return
she had said and that was odd: al
though | could not yet believe that she
was such a siren as Father Pierre had
warned us of, telling tales from old
poets. Her companionship with that
vile priest, the strange eagerness to
secure Pavannes' return, her myster-
ious directions to me, her anxiety to
take her sister Monochrome, where she
would be exposed to danger, as being
in a known Huguenot's house-these
things pointed to but one conclusion:
still that one was so horrible that |
would not, ven while / doubted and
distrusted her, l would not. L could not
accept 1t. 1 put 1t from me. and re-
FUSED to believe ii, although during the
rest of That night IL kept coming to me
and knocking for admission at my
brain.
All this flashed through my mind
while / was fixing on Pavannes'
badges. Not hat / lost time about II,
Tor from the moment 1 grasped the po-
sition as he conceived 1t, every minute
we a wasted on explanation seemed
to me an hour. / reproached myself
Tor having forgotten even for an in
slant that which had brought us to
town-the rescue OF Kits lover. We
had small chance now of reaching him
In time, misled as we had been by this
miserable mistake in identity. If my
companions fears were we'll founded,
Louis would fall In the general mas
sacre OF the Huguenots, probably be-
fore we could reach him. If ill-founded,
still we had small reason to hope.
Beers vengence would not wait. /
knew him too we'll to think II. A Guise
might spare his foe, but the Vidame-
the Vidame never! He had warned
Nine. de Pavannes, it was true; but
that abnormal exercise Of benevolence
could only, l cynically thought, have
the more eXasperated the devil within
him, which now would be ravening like
II dog disappointed OF It's victuals.
i glanced up at the line Of sky visible
between the tall houses, and 10! the
dawn was coming. 1t wanted scarcely
half an hour of daylight, though down
In the dark streets about us the night
still reigned. Yes, the morning was
coming, bright and hopeful, and the
city was quiet. There were no signs,
no sounds Of riot or disorder. Surely,
thought, surely Pavannes must be
mistaken. Either the plot had never
existed, that was most likely, or 1t had
been abandoned, or perhaps-Crack!
a pistol shot! Short, sharp, omin-
Gus, 1t rang out on the instant, a soli-
tory sound in the night! 1t was some
where near us, and | stopped. / had
been speaking to my companion at the
moment. Where was it?" 1 cried,
looking behind me.
Close to us. Near the Louvre" he
answered, listening intently. See!
See! All, heavens!" he continued In a
voice Of despair, 1T was a signal"
1t was. One, two, three! Before I
could count so far, lights sprang into
brightness in the windows OF nine out
OF ten houses In the short street where
we stood, as If lighted by a single hand.
Before. too, l could count as many more
or ask him what this meant, be-
fore, indeed, we could speak or stir
from the spot, or think what we should
do, with a hurried clang and clash, as
II brought into motion by furious, fren-
Zied hands, 81 great bell just above our
heads began to boom and whirr! 1t
hurled its notes into space. 1t suddenly
filled ell the silence. IT dashed it's harsh
sounds down upon the trembling city,
till the air heaved and the houses about
us rocked. 1t made In an instant a
pandemonium of the quiet night.
We turned and hurried instinctively
from the place, crouching and amazed,
looking upwards with bent shoulders
and scared faces. What is It? What
is it?" l cried, half In resentment, half
in terror. 1t deafened me.
The bell Of st. German rAuxer-
rols!" he shouted in answer. THE
church OF the Louvre. 1t is as I said.
We are doomed"
Doomed? Mo-" l replied fiercely, for
my courage seemed to rise again on the
wave of sound and excitement as IL
rebounding from the momentary shock.
Never! We wear the devils livery,
and he will look after his own. Draw,
man, and let him hat stops us look to
himself. You know the way. Lead on"
l cried, savagely
He caught the infection and drew his
sword. So we started boldly, and the
result justified my confidence. We
looked, no doubt, as like murderers as
any who were abroad that night. Nov
ing In this desperate guise we FASTENED
up that street and into another-still
pursued by the din and clangor of the
bell-and then a short distance along
q third. We were not stopped or adj
dressed by anyone, though nun,Ssrs,
increasing each moment as door after
door opened, n we drew nearer to the
heart of the connection, we're hurrying
In the same direction, side by side with
us; and though I'm front, where now
and again lights cleaned on a mass of
weapons, or on white, eager faces, fill
ing some alley from wall to wall. we
heard the roar Of voices rising and fall
ing like the murmur OF an angry sea.
All was blurr, hurry, confusion, tu-
mutt. Yet / remember, as we pressed
EDWARDS with the stream and part Of
1t, certain sharp outlines. i caught
here and there a glimpse Of a pale
scared face at a window, a half-clad
form at a door, of the big, wondering
eyes of a child held up to see us pass,
of a Christ at a corner rudy in the
smoky glare of a link, OF a woman
armed, and in mans clothes, who
walked some distance side by side with
us, and led off a ribald song. 1 retain
a memory OF these things; of brief
bursts of light and long intervals OF
darkness, and always, as we tramped
forwards, my hand on Payannes'
sleeve, Of an ever-growing tumult IN
front-an ever-rising flood Of noise.
At last we came to q standstill where
a side street ran out of ours. Into this
the hurrying throng tried to wheel,
and, unable to do so. halted, and
pressed about the head of the street.
which was already full to overfoWing.
and so fought with hungry eyes for
places whence they might look down
1t. Pavannes n / struggled only TO
get through the crowd-to get on; but
the efforts of those behind partly aid
ing and partly thwarting our own,
presently forced us to a position whence
we could not avoid seeing what was
afoot.
The street-this side street-was
ablaze with light. From end to end
every gable, every hatchment was
glowing, every window was flickering
In the glare of torches. 1t was paved,
too, with f~aces-human faces, yet
scarcely human-all looking one way.
all looking upward; and the noise, as
from time to time this immense crowd
groaned or howled in unison, like a
wild beast in It's fury, was SO appal-
ing, that / clutched Pavannes' arm
and chung to him In momentary ter
ror.: l do lot wonder now that I
qualled, though sometimes / have heard
that sound since. For there is nothing
in the world so dreadfu as that hr,,ta