The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1903-10-14
lovers prison, his scaffold, even.

her lovers prison, his scaffold, even.
The sense of impotcnt helplessness
with which she was compelled to fuce
he situation, the knowledge that
CNeill was doomed absolutely, thai
there was nothing hat she could do or
say which would alter the decision,
WAS terrible. She had been accustomed
to have her will and, like most women.
loved 1t. Now she had to stand by I'm
the bright sunlight with all the strength
of life and youth and love I'm her veins
and i'm his and SEQ her lover choked to
death hanged like II doy-at the black
ynldarm of that great ship yonder.
And for what? Womanlikc, she put
aside every thought of him but that he
had dared death itself only to see her,
to be in her presence again! Oh, how
splendid. how handsome, bow noble, he
had been in the great hall when he had
refused her rather than TO take her rs
the reward of t%reachcry! And now he
WAS TO become ii ~iifcicss lump of clay,
nliv" 10 hcr only us q memory, n recol-
lection how cruel! She could not, she
would not, stand 1t. She rucked her
brain over and over. WAS there moth
ing? No
1t WAS late in the aftcquoon. Her
maid had not been bic 10 drag her
from the terrace whence she had n view
of the ship on which her lover was to
be cNecut"d-murdcrVd. she said. AS
she gaZcd uron 1t she noticed two men
climbing nImbly up the black shrouds
about tho Foremost. When they reached
the f%orCynrd they ran out on the yard
arm. One of them carried something.
A rope was dragging from it. In ODE
dicncc to an impcrious command her
maid ran and fetched her q glass. One
look through it showed her-shc was n
sailors ward-that they were rigging n
whip OH tho yardarm, they were secur-
ing there Il girtlinc block through
which Il rope was rove leading to the
top and thence to the deck. She Ill
vincd at once its hidcous purpose The
hour! Tho hour! Had IL grown so
auto? Was it so near, so near? Was
there n God in that blue heaven bend
ing above her head? Could such things
be?
a sick feeling came over her heart,
II she would have tainted but for a
sudden inspiration. Again she seized
the t~elcscope-an unusually strong one,
by the way-and, raising it to her eyes
with unsteady hand, eagerly swept the
sea off in the direction of Marlborough
head, rising family down to the south
ward, n long distance away. For a
long time her nervous trembling
hands could not get that part of the
horizon in focus. She finally knelt
down and rested the tube upon the
parapct, breathing n prayer MS she did
so, and looked again.
All! At last she had 1t, and there
swept into the field OF vision three
CLEANS Of white on the sky line, pro-
claiming, even to her approached eye,
the sails of ships! What had that in
domitablc man said to her last night
In the hall?
"Dclay the execution for at least six
hours, and l will save him." He was
not II TO promise lightly. She would
try again. The telescope fell with q
crash ut her foot.
She would make one more appeal to
The admiral. 1t was late. but there
might yet he time. On tho instant she
turned, leaving the startled maid, and
ran like Il fleet footed fawn along the
terrace, down the stone Steps through
the water battery, through the bailey,
into the inner court, down the long
passage and into the great hall Of the
night before, where the admiral was
usually TO be found at this hour. She
dashed jm%pctuonsly into the room, cry
ing:
"Thc admiral quick! Where is hc?"
"Ships has been reported down at
Bridlin'ton hay-furrin ships, yer led
dyship.' replied tho old sergeant, who
happened 10 he there alone, IAN his
ludship took horse about half past 10
O'Clock to 60 down there"
Failure! Her last hope gone! She
sank down into the chair. Reaction
had come. She was fainting, helpless,
dying. 1t WAS over! The sergeant
started toward her, his face full of
pity. She was sitting in the admIrals
chair by the great table. Her glance
fell listicssly upon it. At the moment
another idea flashed into her mind.
Desperate, foolish, nevertheless she
woul try it-try anything. This at
least was action. She started to her
feet again on the instant, instinct with
life.
Leave me ut once and sec that no
one interrupts me. / wish to be
alone" she said imporiously to the as.
tonished sergeant, who bowed respect
fully and withdrew. Half an hour
later she came hurriedly out of the
room, white faced, drawn, nerved up
to desperate endcavor.
= q
How he got through the night O'Neill
never knew. The court martial In the
morning had taken little time. Its
sentence, n forcgone conclusion,
promptly approved by the admiral,
had been death by hanging ut half
after 6 o'clock that night. He had re-
fused to give any further parole I'm the
faint hope that something might en9-
BILE him to escape, n consequently
had been heavily ironed and placed in
confinement In the space between two
Of tho great guns on the lower gun
deck-the Scraps was n double banked
frigatc-on the starboard side. The
~forethought of Coventry, who had at
tended him with the solicitude and
kindness OF q brother and had pleaded
for him unayaillngly before the court,
had caused n canvas screen to be pro-
vided, which Enclosed two Of the guns