Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1902-04-19
. 3 The . D
Lost Continent
By CUTCLIFFE HYNE.
Pub By Harper Bros Copyright 1901 BY Cuteffs EYne
CHAPTER XV.-CONTINUED.
Pub. BY Harper Bros. Copyright 1901, by Cucfs Hyn

CHAPTER AV.-CONTINUED.
Some mad thought took me, I be-
ieVe, that the mere fierceness and
heat of my kisses would bring her
back again to life and wakefulness.
Indeed, [ will own plainly that 1 did
but sorry credit to my training in
calmnoss that night. But she lay in
my arms cold and nerveless as a
corpse, and by degrees my sober wits
returned to me.
This was no place for either of US.
Let the earth's tremors cease (as was
plainly threatened), let daylight come,
and let few of these nerveless peo-
pie round recover from their panic,
and all the great cost that had been
expended might be counted as waste.
We should be seen, and it would not
be long before some one put name
to Nais; and then it would be an easy
matter to guess at Deucalion under
the beard and the shaggy hair and
the Drowned nakedness of the savage
who attended on her. Tell of fright?
BY the gods! I was scared as the veri-
est trembler who Numbered among
the dust-clouds that night when the
thought came to me.
1t was hard to find directions; it
was hard to walk in that inky dark
ness over the ground that was tossed
and tumbled like a frozen sea; and as
the earth still quaked and heaved, it
was hard also to keep a footing. But
If | did fall myself score of times,
my dear burden got no bruise, and
" r ~ IL IL 1,Ic - I 7
square and found street knew. The
most venomous part of the shaking
was done, and no more buildings fell,
but enough lay sprawled over the road
way to make walking into climb,
and the sweat rolled from me as
1abored along my way.
There was no difficulty about pass
ing the gate. There was no gate.
There was no wall. The gods had
driven their pillow through it, and it lay
fiat, and proud Atlantis stood as de-
fenseless as the open country. Though
I knew the cause of this ruin, though
in fact / had myself in some measure
melted it, [ was almost sad at the
ruthlessness with which it had been
carried out. The royal pyramid might
go, houses and palaces might be lev
eled, and for these I cared little
enough; but when I saw those stately
ramparts also flched away, there the
soldier in me woke, and I grieved at
this humbling of the mighty city that
once had been my only mistress.
But this was only passing regret,
a mere touch of the fghting-man's
pride. I had different love now, that
had wrapped herself round me far
deeper and more tightly, and my duty
was towards her first and foremost.
The night would soon be past, and
then dangers would increase. None
had interfered with US so far, though
many had jostled us as 1 clambered
over the ruins; but this forbearance
could not be reckoned upon for long
The earth-tremors had almost died
away, and after the panic and the
storm, then comes the time for the
spelling.
All men who were poor would try to
seize what lay nearest to their hands,
and those of higher station, and any
soldiers who could be collected and
still remained true to command, would
ruthlessly stop and strip any man they
saw making off with plumber. l had
no mind to clash with these guardians
of law and property, and so 1 fed on
swiftly through the night with my
burden, using the unfrequented ways,
and crying to- the few folk who did
meet me hat the woman had the
plague, and would they lend me the
shelter of their house, as ours had
fallen. And so in time we came to
the place where the rope dangled
from the precipice, and after Nais had
been drawn up to the safety of the
Sacred Mountain, put my leg in the
loop OF the rope and followed her.
Now came what was the keenest
anxiety of all. We took the girl and
laid her on bed IN one of the houses,
and there in the lit room for the first
time 1 saw her clearly. Her beauty
was drawn and pale. Her eyes were
closed, but so thin and transparent
had grown the lids that one could al
most see the brown of the pupils be-
meath them Her hair had grown to
inordinate thickness and length, and
Law as cushion behind and beside her
head.
There was no flicker of breath;
there was none of that pulsing of the
body which denotes life; but still she
had not the appearance of ordinary
death. The Nais [ had placed nine
long years before to rest in the hol-
low of the stone was a fine grown
woman, full-bosomed and well-boned.
Inc Nais that remained for me was
nan her weight. The old Nais it would
nave puzzled me to carry for an hour;
TINS was nc burden to impede grown
man.
In other ways too she had altered
The nails of her fingers had grown to
such a great length that thew were
twisted in spirals, and the fingers
themselves and her hands were SO
waxy and transparent that the bony
core upon which they were built
showed itself beneath the flesh in