The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1904-07-01

lover favored by her father, come out
from Spain to hurry his wooing; that
she feared she would be forced into
marrying him; that she hated him,
and that she loved Don Tomaso" and
Don Tomaso" only
At $50 that night returning slowly
to quarters and dreaming of settling
In Havana with a lovely Spanish wife,
Dering was confronted by the polite
full Silyera, who asked permission to
stroll with him. Granted.
"l our gloves, senior" the Spaniard
said pointedly, "are of the color of
your hair, which is the color of your
courage which is yellow"
Next instant he staggered back with
q broad red mark on his cheek, bowed
and said:
"The senior will give satisfaction
when?"
Nov! Any time!"
A friend of Silvera's called in half
an hour and was referred to Corporal
Francis Hardy, also an Englishman. A
meeting was arranged for at sunrise
next morning at a spot five miles
from the city, on the beach, Only the
seconds and principals were to be pres
ent.
The affair was conducted, of course,
with the utmost secrecy. Dering and
his friend reached the spot just at
daylight They found it to be grassy,
level and well suited to the purpose.
= IL nf min
and other tropic growths.
Siivera and his second, Sebastian
Escobedo, arrived within 10 minutes.
, The drivers of the cabs were ordered
to stay quarter-mile distant. The
| men bowed with punctiliousness and
stripped to their shirt sleeves. The
rapiers were measured and the prin-
cipals placed facing each other
Escobedo called
EN- garde!" and the dual began.
Dering found at once that he was
engaged with swordsman of the first
class. The Spaniard was as active
as cat, had a wrist of steel, and there
was look in his black eyes which
meant murder His first act was to
Iunge, leap back and circle swiftly to
the right, the intention being to bring
the risen sun into his opponents eyes.
Confident of his SKILL Dering calmly
faced toward the light, and sent his
steel against Silvera's blade with
clash Then the battle was on in
earnest
Lunge, parry and riposte, feint,
guard and lunge followed necessarily.
The clicking of the rapiers a dozen
| yards away would have sounded like
the rattle of castanets. Neither man
| altered his position or gave back an
inch
Escobedo bowed to Hardy, smiled,
and said
Plainly it is battle Poutrance."
Hardy, young hand at such work,
! did not answer. His soul was in the
fray.
Suddenly Dering stepped in half
/ foot, changed from carte to tierce, half
! cut. disengaged, and lunged with the
speed of light Silvera parted, but in
! sufficiently. fleck of blood showed
through the shirt above his ribs. Es-
/ cobedo struck down the swords.
at is nothing-nothing!" Silvera
/ said, pantingly. ut is to the death, is
| ii not?"
ITO the DEATH" Dering said grim
ly.
Escobedo struggling his shoulders,
stepped back, and once more the
blades rasped along each other Into
the Embellishments eyes there came
now lust of battle and the desire to
STAY.
He pressed his foeman steadily
! back. Around the slender form, with
the spot red upon it, his blade
"writhed and flickered like a flame" .
Twice it was within half an inch Of
the breastbone, twice it drew blood
from the right arm, once it SCARED
| the cheek
Silvera was fast weakening. Drops
of sweat hung upon his yellow fore
head and ran down into his black
eyebrows His breath came in gasps;
each successive lunge was slower,
each party more wild. Dering smiled
and lunged Not until some kindly
wife or friend presses down his lids
in blindness will he be nearer death
than at that moment.
The Spaniard dropped To both
knees and thrust upward with all his
force. It was "Tancred's blow" long
| I,,,.,d Ia bonor,bla dualin0 There