The Washington times., 1902-09-21

Good night / murmured, and he
came step after me. The candle was
Iyet in his hand, showing him my bulk.
and perhaps the small clothes he had
longed to vend. l expected hue and
|cry, but walked on after the priest. and
heard the heavy doors jar, and breathed
again.
Hearkening behind and in front. on the
right and the left. followed him in the
direction of what have since learned to
call the Jardin des Plantes. 1t is near
st. Pelagie.
The priest, wearied by his long office.
spoke only once about the darkness:
for 1t was a cloudy night; and did not
attend to my muttered response. I do
not know what sympathy the excellent
old man might have shown to an es-
capped prisoner who had choked his sac
ristan, and ] had no mind to test 1t.
He turned corner. and with the wall
angle between us, / eased down the
sacred furniture, drew off the surplice
and laid that upon 1t, and took to my
heels up the left hand street; for the
guard had brought me across the river
to st. Pelagie.
had no hat, and the cut Of my coat
showed that / had lost a waistcoat.
Avoiding the little circles Of yellowness
made by lamp posts, reached without
mishap of falling into the hands Of any
patrol. bridge crossing to an island
point, and from the other side Of the
point to the opposite shore At inter-
walls along the parapet dim lights were
placed.
Compared to Lake George. which
wound like river, and the mighty st.
Lawrence as remembered it. the Seine
was & narrow stream. Some boats mads
consultations on the surface. The
mass of island splitting 1t into two
branches was almost the heart of Paris.
There were other foot passengers on the
bridge. and gay carriage rolled by. I
did not see any gendarrnes, and only one
foot passenger troubled me.
1 was on the bridge above the left arm
of the river when an ear trained in the
woods caught his footstep, pausing as
mine paused, and hurrying as mine hur-
ried. If the sacristan had been found in
Ste. Pelagie pursuer would not track
me so delicately, and neither would
Skenedonk hold back on the trail.
stopped in the shade when we two were
alone on the second span, and wheeled,
certain of catching any man under the
flare of a creset. / caught him, and
knew that it was Bellenger following me.
My mind was made up in an instant.
I walked back to settle matters with
him. though slaughter was far from my
thoughts. / had done him no harm; but
he was my enemy. and should be forced
to let me alone
The fellow who had appeared so feeble
at his cabin that I opened the door for
him, and so poorspirited that his intel
lect claimed his pity, stood up as firm
as bear at my approach. and met my
eyes with perfect understanding.
Not another thing do remember. The
facts are simply these: faced Bel
lenger; no blows passed: my mind
flashed blank with the partial return Of
that old eclipse which has fallen upon
me after strong excitement in more
than one critical moment. The hiatus
seems brief when awake though It may
have lasted hours. I know the eclipse
has been upon me. like the wing-shadow
of eternity; but I have scarcely let go OF
time.
I could not prove that Bellenger
dragged me to the parapet and threw me
into the river. II l had known 1t
should have laughed at his doing so,
for I could swim like fish. through or
under water, and sit on the lake bottom
holding my breath until Skenedonk had
been known to dive for me.
When next I sensed anything at all It
was a feeling of cold.
1 thought was lying in one Of the
shallow runlets that come into Lake
George. and the pebbles were an uneasy
bed. chilling my shoulders. 1 was too
stiff to move. or even turn my head to
lift out of water the ear on which 1t
rested. But would unclose my eyellds,
and this is was l saw-a man naked to
his waste, half reclining against a lean
ing slab of marble, down which a layer
Of water constantly moved. His legs
we're clothed, and his other garments
lay across them. His face had sagged in
my direction. There was a deep slash
across his forehead, and he showed his
teeth and his CLASSY eyes at the Joke.
Beyond this silent figure was woman
as silent. The ridge OF his body could
not hide the long hair spread upon her
breast. | considered the company and
moisture into which / had fallen with
amazement. We were in Q
low and wide stone chamber with a
zroined ceiling, supported by stone pill
ars. a row of lamps was arranged
above us. so that no trait or feature
might escape beholder.
That we were put there for show en-
cred my mind slowly and brought in
iignation. To be so helpless aud SO ex-
posed was an outrage against which I
struggled in nightmare impotence: for I
vas bare 10 my hips also and 1 knew
rot what other marks | carried beside
hose which had SCARED me all my con-
;cious life.
Now in the distance, and echoing, feet
descended stairs.
| knew that people were coming to
ook az us, and could not move a mus