The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-09-10
CHAPTER v.

The Thing That Moved Under the Seat.
The first train back to London was a
slow one, and stopped at several small
stations, but Jim preferred taking it to
waiting. Two or three persons shared the
first-class compartment with him in start
ing, but they got out at wayside stations.
Breakspear had consulted a, time table,
and knew that after the next stopping
place there was run of forty minutes
before the train would pause again.
He was very sleepy, not having rested
any better than had Vivien Oakley the
night before, but at first he decided to
wait before indulging his almost over
, towering desire for rest until the one
more station was past, as after that he
would be sure whether or not aheewas to
have the compartment to himself for
three quarters of an hour.
Almost Immediately he felt himself nod
ding, however. and a soft dream1ness
stepped his brain as with poppy juice. He
| nodded once or twice, and then decided to
| make himself comfortable without delay,
risking intrusion. Accordingly he turned
up the bars which divided the seat on one
| side into three, and laid himself deliber-
ately down, his head on his arm, his tray
cling cap over his eyes.
| He was sure that he would wake when
the train slowed into the station from
which it was not many miles distant, but
| he had not been In a recumbent position
| for three minutes before he was sound
asleep and dreaming. His dream was sin
| gularly vivid, too, and so promising that
| he would have been 10th to wake from it
| had he known it was not reality. He
was talking to Brandon-P Payne about the
beautiful photograph, which lay now on
| a great altar Of lilies. Brandon-Payne
said that the original was a cousin Of
his, and he could introduce Breakspear to
| her, II Breakspear were willing first to
| frr1of 1,,o ~
son whose name he pronounced indis-
tinctly over and over again, but always
| in such a numbling way that Jim could
not catch 1t. Finally, Brandon Payne
grew angry, and cried out in loud voice:
well, there he is anyway. Look up and
you'll see him. Are you ready to fight?'
| Breakspear looked up, in his dream
and, to his surprise, beheld the man who
had followed him from Victoria yesterday
the man he had called to himself
! "Eagle-face." There seemed to be a good
deal Of noise and confusion at the mo-
ment of his appearance, and Jim began
feeling for a weapon of some sort, being
| under the impression that the duel was
to be fought at once, If at ALL or that
| Eagle-face would fall upon him while he
| was uharmed, and attempt to kill him.
He hastily felt in all his pockets, but
could discover neither knife nor revolver,
which disturbed him SO much that he
OpSIeu Ills cy cS dHo was dSIOllSllSO W
find himself stretched out on seat in
a railway carriage, with moving pano-
rama flying past the windows.
BY Jove, how real that dream had been!
he said to himself. Flatness of dsap-
pointment crept in, because he was, after
all, no nearer the goal of acquaintance
with the Lady Of the Lilies as he had
begun to call her in his mind. He sat up
and looked out Of the window and judged
by the landmarks that, while he slept,
the train must have reached the expected
station and left it again. The noise and
confusion which had vaguely disturbed
his dream must have been at that time,
yet he had slept thru it all. He wished
that he had not woke up, and, in the hope
of going back to the promise of JOY he
had left in dreamland, deliberately lay
down once more. But sleep did not come
to him so easily again. He lay still with
eyes half shut, counting Inconsistencies
but could not forget that he was travel
ing from Brighton to London.
| The day was growing more and more
gloomy, and driving rain had blurred
the windows Black clouds were boiling
up from the west, foretelling thunder
storm. It was so dark that 1t would have
been difficult to read the small print Of a
newspaper as the train sped along. But
Jim had no wish to read, and he was just
about to close his eyes again, when the
futter of something white under the seat
opposite caught his gaze.
1t was so extraordinary that there should
be a futtering something there, tho nc
wind could come in thru the windows
closed on account of pelting rain, tha,
Jim, still slightly dazed with his heavy
sleep, was almost inclined to think he
must be dreaming once more. But his
eyes half shut, he continued to stare into
/ the shadows under the opposite seat The
thing that moved looked like handker-
chief. It was handkerchief; and a mans
hand whether in dream or reality was
manipulating it over the neck of bottle
Twice, three times the bottle was tilted
up SO that its contents, If any, must soak
Into the handkerchief. And-in the dream
or reality-a strong, sweet, pungent smell
4 came to Jin's nostrils.
/ Suddenly the drowsiness fell away from
him, leaving him alert and clear Drained.
i He was sure at last that he was awake;