Mower County transcript., 1904-01-06

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4 Z Nov, 4 have favor to ask: M.v 10,
we-bring Riehard with uss this evening1
He has promised to come II you WIN ash
him, although, as he says, he Is snot
very fit But ] do so want you to meet
and be friends. Iou remember wfaf Won
said the other day. can imagine there
will be plenty Of things for you both to
talk about. sSss s2s*##g5s #gs85 zSsssj.2
''send me line to say Yes and be-
neve me, ssE7$&s G5.s d # 81: s.
zg=& & Ever yours anectionately,
'P. ST. forgot to say that Rick says
he is very rich man, and he has shaved
off that horrid beard-S.'' Ess3
The presence Of the man-servant
alone restrained Kane from some in
sane expression of emotion.
Richard Dysart alive and in En-
gland! Then he had not killed him,
after all! The thought brought whit
at first happy revulsion of feeling.
He was not a murderer! =
But Dysart was none the less his
victim,> and he none the less would:
be assassin and r. an actual robber.
Why, the whole fabric of his fortune
rested on those stolen diamonds!
These thoughts opened up such a hor-
rid vista of new troubles and perplex-
tiles that he shrank from them in ter
ror. Yet SO quickly and mechanically
does the human brain work, that
scarcely a minute had elapsed since
the perusal of Stella's note before he
had pulled himself together and drew
paper and pen towards him to indite
his reply. He even managed to say to
the man, a decent, middle-aged fellow:
'There must have been great times
at Denecroft last night?" '@~
"Never see such goings on, sir, since
Sir Arthur came of age," was the re-
ply. Master Richard, he walks in as
cool and cam as if he'd only been away
a month. But he have growed! And
that rich. My! My!" shaking his
head as one utterly unable to do justice
to the subject.
II judge Master Richard, as you call
him, is an old favorite of yours said
Kane with SMILE.
The man chuckled proudly. ::
1T was me as taught i'm 'ow to sit
'orse and 'old a gun and cast fly
afore e was twelve, sir. Twas sorry
day when e went away, and there's
many'll be happier for is 'ome-com-
ing"
II have no doubt of that" was
Kane's reply. Then he set himself to
answer Stella's appeal. Those few
minutes pause while old Carthew was
speaking had suficed for Kane to de-
eide upon his answer, and this is what
he wrote:
my Dearest: Your happiness is mine,
and I do rejoice with you and yours.
shall reserve my congratulations for your
brother until our introduction tonight
for, of course, he will be welcome. Pray
explain to him why send no formal in
vitation; nevertheless, the best robe and
the highest seat at the feast shall be his.
"Devotedly yours,
"ROSSITER KANE"
When Carthew was dismissed with
his answer, Kane found himself alone
once more, and proceeded to confront
this new dilemma. VI"
Was there ever more grotesque and
puzzling or terrifying situation! The
man whom he had shot, robbed, and
left for dead at the other end of the
world had returned to life and was
that very night coming to dance un-
der the roof of his assailant!
Kane laughed aloud at the bitter
irony of the thing. Of course, he stood
to be denounced on sight before all
his guests as an assassin and a thief!
A pretty ending to all his social
strivings after honesty and ~respecta-
bility!
And Stella! What would she think
of it all? How she would despise him!
With what scorn would she lash the
man who had dared to approach her
with Words of love upon his lips, while
her brothers blood was upon his hands
and her brothers property in his
pockets!
A weaker man than Kane, PHYSICAL
ly, mentally and morally, would have
turned tail and fed; coward would
have ended it all with a bullet. 1t
was characteristic of him that he did
neither; no thought of taking either
course entered his mind. He would
see it Throughout in callous bravado
or because he could not realize the full
weight of his impending punishment,
but from a sort of heroic determina-
tion to "take his medicine" like a man,
and from half-recognized feeling that
i therein might consist part Of his ex-
piation. -. -
There was but one possible loophole
for escape-though even that could be
only temporary putting off of the
day of reckoning. 1t might be- that
Richard Dysart had not caught a
/ glimpse of his features on that memoir
able night. and if SO, there was lit
tie danger Of recognition or detection
from any other source. > ~.
| It was bare chance, yet, the more
he thought Of it, the more probable it
| appeared. = ,',.. @>.s. FYq i
However, few hours would settle
It one way or the other. So, with the
| cool fortitude which had stood him
in good stead in more than one tight
place hitherto, Rossiter Kane proceeded
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