The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-06-07

I II guessed as much. God rest our poor
comrades!''
Aye: and God help Madge. IT'S no time
for reproaches but amongst us we have
signed her death warrant with our bung-
| lirgs.''
IF ii were only DEATH / groaned
TITS just that Jack said he: no bet
ter mayhap, but no worse. When We were
Gowned by that screeching mob. she WAS
out and on her knees to Farconnet, beSeecl-
ing him to spare us. He put her off smooth
ly al first, saying twas the Indians affair
that they would not be baked of their
vengeance by any Interference of his. But
! when she only begged the more piteously.
he shovel his true coors. rapping out that
should have as swift a quittance as we
had meant to give him, and that within the
hour she should he the mistress of Apple
by and free 10 marry an English gentle
man
We'll" said l. making sure that now at
last he must know all.
AT that she stood before him bravely,
and | saw that all the time she had had
the Catawha's knife hidden in the folds of
her gown. You have spoken. truth for
once, Captain F'alconnet: l shall be free
| she said. Come and tell me when You have
added these to your other MURDERS"
And them"
Then she went back to her prison wig
wan, walking through the rabble of red
coats and redskins as proudly as the Scot
tish Mary went to the block
She will do it. think you?' I queried,
fearful lest she would. but more fearful lest
her courage should fail in the pinch.
Never doubt it. Good Catholic az she is
there is martyr blood in her on her mothers
side. and that will help her to die unsullied.
And God nerve her to 1t. say l."
/ said Amen to that: and thereupon we
both fell silent. watching condemned
men on the gallows the busy preparations
for our taking off.
Again. as in the late battle. It was the
trivial things that moved me most. Chief
among them the grinninS row Of dead In
dams propped against the fallen tree Is the
constant background for all the memory
pictures of that waiting interval. and can
see those stiffening corpses now, some erect,
as II defytnS US; some looping this way or
that, If their bones had gone to water
at the touch of the steel.
l know not why these poor relics of
mortality should have held me fascinated
as they did. Yet when / would look away,
through the vista to where the light of the
great fire in the savanna camp played iurid
ly upon the Indian lodges. or. nearer at
hand. upon the savages gathering the
wood to burn US with. this CHASTITY
file OF the dead drew me irresistible.
and 1 must needs pass the fearsome
ing eyes and unnatural postures, and the
circular blood bla ok patches on the heads Of
the three peacemen whom Yeates and the
Catawba had scalped.
While they were making ready for the
burning, our eXecutioners were strangely
silent, but when the work was done they
formed in a sernicircle TO front the row Of
corpses and set up a bowling chant that
would have put band OF Mohammedan
dervishes to the blush
IT'S the death song for the slain said
Richard: and while It lasted. this moving
tableau Of naked figures. keeping time In a
weird stamping dance to the rising and
falling ululation OF the chant. held US
spellbound
But We were not long suffered to be mere
curious onlookers In its dismalsst fight
the death song ended in shrill hubbub.