The Savannah morning news., 1903-03-08

presently, and whispered long, broad,
profound curse upon the men of the
Cross Roads, and Meredith's gratitude
to him was keen. Barrett went away,
soon after, leaving the cab for the
gentlemen from Plattville. Meredith
had a strange, unreasonable desire to
kick Barrett, possibly for his ser
geant's sake. Warren Smith sat in
the ward with the nurse and Gay, and
the room was very quiet. 1t was a
long vigil.
They were only waiting.
At 8 o'clock he was still alive-just
that, Smith came out to say. Mere
dith sent his driver with a telegram
to Helen which would give Plattville
the news that Harkless was found and
was not yet gone from them. Horner
took the cab and left for the station;
there was train, and there were
things for him to do in Carlow. At
noon Meredith sent a second telegram
to Helen, as barren of detail as the
first; he was alive-was a little inn
proved. This telegram did not reach
her, for she was on the way to
Rouen, and half the population of Car
lOw-at least so it appeared to the
unhappy conductor of the accommo-
dation-was with her.
They seemed to feel that they could
camp in the hospital halls and corri-
doris, and they were an incalculable
worry to the authorities. More came
on every train, and nearly all brought
flowers, and jelly, and chickens for
preparing broth, and they insisted that
the latter delicacies be fed to the pa
tient at once. Meredith was possessed
by an unaccountable responsibility for
them all, and invited a great many to
stay at his own house. They were still
in ignorance of the truth about the
Cross Roads, and some of them spent
the day Git was Sunday in planning
an assault upon the Rouen Jail for the
purpose of lynching Slattery in case
Harkess' condition did not improve at
once. Those who had heard his state
ment kept close mouths until the story
appeared in full in the Rouen papers
on Monday morning; but by that time
every member of the CROSSROADS
White7Caps was lodged in the, Rouen
Jail with Slattery. Horner and a heav-
lily armed posse rode over to the mud
dy corners on Sunday night, and the
sheriff discovered that he might have
taken the Skilletts and Johnsons sim
gle-handed and unarmed. Their nerve
was gone; they were shaken and
afraid; and, to employ a figure some
what inappropriate to their sullen, glad
surrender, they fell upon his neck in
their relief at finding the law touch
ing them. They had no wish to hear
John Browns Body" again. They
wanted to get inside of a strong taiI.
and to throw themselves on the mercy
of the court as soon as possible And
those whom HAIRLESS had not recog-
nized delayed not to give themselves
up; they did not desire to remain in
Six-Cross- Roads. Bob Skillet, Force
Johnson, and one or two others need
ed the care of a physician badly, and
one man was suffering from a severe
ly wrenched back. Horner had a
train crossed at a crossing, so that his
prisoners need not be taken through
Plattville, and he brought them all
safely to Rouen. Had there CHANGED
any one to ride through the deserted
CROSSROADS the next morning. pass
ing the trampled fields and the char
red ruins of the two shanties to the
east, and listening to the lamentations
of the women and children, he would
have declared that at last the old
score had been paid, and that Six
oss-Roads was wiped out
The Carlow folks were deeply inn
pressed with the two eminent sur
geons, of whom some of them had
heard, and on Tuesday, the bulletins
marking considerable encouragement,
most of them decided to temporarily
risk the editor of the Herald" to such
capable hands, and they returned
quietly to their homes; only few
were delayed in reaching Carlow by
travelling to the first station in the
opposite direction before they succeed
ed in planting themselves on the prop
er train.
Meanwhile, the object of their solicit
tude tossed and burned on his bed of
pain. He was delirious most of the
time, and, in the intervals of half-con-
seriousness, found that his desire to
I'VE, very strong at first, had disap-
peared; he did not care much about
anything except rest-he wanted peace
In his wanderings he was almost al
ways back in his college days, behold
ing them in an unhappy, distorted
fashion. He would lie asprawI on the
sward with the others, listening to the
seniors singing on the steps, and. all
at once, the old, kindly faces would
expand enormously and press over him
with hideous mouthings, and an uplv
senior IN cap and gown would starnn
upon him and grind spiked heel into
ms hand; then they would toss him
nigh into air that was all flames. and
he would fall and fall through the
raging heat seeing the cool earth far
beneath him, but never able to lyet
Gown TO 1t again. And then he was
- ~ AHAlCo anu miles DY QuSKN f1R-
ufes, through rain of boiling water.
and at other times the whole universe
was a vast, hot, brass bell. and II gave
OF huge continuous roar and hun,
while he was a mere point of con.
seriousness floating in the exact center
OF the heat and sound waves. and he
listened, listened for years. to the ow-
Iul' brazen hum from which there
could be no escape; at the same time
IL seemed to him that he was onIv a
FRESHMAN on the slippery roof of the
tower trying to steal the clapper Of
the chapel bell. "
FINALLY he came to what he would
nave considered lucid intervaI. had ~
not appeared that Helen Sherwood was
whispering TO Tom Meredith an the
Ioot OF his bed. This he knew 10 he
d hcuuous presentation OF his fever
Ior was she not by this time awav
Tor foreign lands2 And, also Tor,
Meredith was a slim young thing ara
not The middie-aged youth with an mn.
urhlable stomach and a haldish bead
no. Dy the grotesque necromancy az
M hhluclnations. assumed a nrc-
NNnitInlH likeness "a his ala 49,