Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1902-02-26
Q . The b . o.
] Lost Continent
By cUTCLlFFE HYNE.
CHAPTER XI.-CONT1NrED
HI BY l1pr Irss. Copyright 1901. By cl,lins 1yns

tAcu, uOG only 1Or AtldnLlS sake, DIT
also because both Nais and had
nicely and a pride in our natures. We
were not as Phorenice to flaunt en-
dearments before others.
Yet, when had hidden the guards
unhasp the collar which held the pris-
oner's neck. and clapped my arms
round her, showing all the roughness
of one who has no mind that his captive
shall escape or even unduly strug cycle,
. thrill gushed through me so potent
that was like to have tainted, and it
was only by supreme strain of will
that l held unbrokenly on with the
ceremonial. I, who had never EN-.
braced woman with aught but the
arm of roughness before, now held
pressed to me one whom I loved with
an infinite tenderness, and the revela-
ton of how love can come out and link
with love was almost my undoing. Yet,
ouwardly. Nais made no sign, but lay
half-strangled in my arms, as s1y
woman does that is being borne away
by spoiler.
1trod with her to the uppermost step,
the vast throne-stone overhanging us,
and then, so that all of those who were
gazing from the sides of the pyramids
and the roofs of the buildings might
see, though we were beyond Pho
renice's view, I used force that was
brutal in dragging her across the level
and putting her down into the hollow.
And yet the girl resisted me with no
one effort whatever.
So that the victim might not struggle
out and be crushed, and so gain an
easy death when the stone descended,
there were brazen clamps to fit into
grooves of the stones above the hollow
where she lay, and these 1 fitted in
place above her, and fastened one BY
one, doing this butchers work with
one hand, and still tiercely holding her
down by the others. Gods! and the
sweat of agony dripped from me on to
the thirsty stone as I worked. Icould
not keep that in.
l clamped and locked the last two
bars in place, and took my brute's
hand away from her throat.
The hateful finger-marks showed
as bloodless burrows in the whiteness
of her skin. For the life of me, YES,
even for the fate of Atlantis, I could
not help dropping my glance upon
her face. But she was stronger than
l. She gave me no last look. She
kept her eyes steadfastly fixed on
the cruel stone above, and so left
her, knowing that it was best not to
tarry longer.
I came out from under the stone
and gave the sign to the engineers
who stood by the rams. The fires
were taken away from their sides,
and the metal in them began to con-
tract, and slowly the vast bulk of
the throne-stone began to creep
down towards its bed. ,-,-.~r .zrs-
But ali, so slowly! Gods! how nv
soul was torn as I watched and
waited.
Yet kept my face impressive, over
looking as any officer might a piece
of work which others were carving
out under his direction, and on which
his credit rested; and I stood grave
~ in my place till the rams had let
the stone come down on it's final rest
ing-placeS and had been carried away
by the engineers; and then I went
round with the master architect with
his plumb-line and level, while he
tested this last piece of the building
and declared it perfect.
It was useless form, this last,
seeing that by calculation they knew
exactly how the stone must rest; but
the guilds have their forms and Gus
toms, and on these occasions of high
ceremonial they are punctiliously
carried out, because these middle
class people wish always to appear
mysterious and impressive to the
poor vulgar folk who are their in
feriors. But perhaps am hard
1essly taken round to plumb and duly
level the tomb where his love lies
buried living may perhaps be excused
by the assessors on high little spir-
it of bitterness.
I had gone up the steps to do my
hateful work man full of grief,
though outwardly unmoved. As I
came down again I had feeling of
incompleteness; it seemed as though
half my inwards had been left be-
hind with Nais in the hollow of the
stone, and their place was taken by
a void which ached YEARLY; but still
I carried a passive face, and men,
DRY that before all these private mat
tiers stood the command of the high
council, which sat before the Ark of
the Mysteries.
So I went and stood before Pho
renice, and said the words which the
ancient forms prescribed concerning
the carrying out of her wish. -.
"Then now,' she said, II will give
myself to you as wife. We are not
as others, you and /, Deucalion.
There is law and form set down
for the marrying of these other peo-
pie, but that would be useless for our
purposes. We will have neither priest
nor scribe to join us and set down
the union. I am the law here in At
lantis, and you soon will be part of
me. We will not be demeaned by
profaner hands. We will make the
ceremony for ourselves, and for wit
nesses there are sufficient in waiting.
Afterwards the record shall be cut
deep in the granite throne you have
built for me, and the lettering filed
IN with gold, SO that it shah endure
and remain bright for always
The empress can do no wrong"
I said, formally, and took the hand
she offered me and helped her to
rise. We walked out from the scar