The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1904-08-18

nor Il hand raised. The vehicles drove
off with a great CHATTER to give the
victims the impression that the drivers
feared for their lives or libcrt.7. ;:a,.
the captives We're ordered to get ~ al
walk. 1t was all very sudden. an the
outlook was Il bad one. but inst I'D of
Mysteries Miss Hattie gave h.r at,yH
ton to young Weston. Here VS. sG;I
thing that ought to arouse him IN!
make good the record of his race. bI;
he was not aroused is. he W,
only aroused enough to remark:
They might have waited till we had
finished our luncheon, bah Jo--c bus
, suppose We'll have to go along witt
them"
And go they did. Mr. Graham frettel
that he had not been prepared for the
fellows, but young Weston was undiS.
turbed. Even the brigandS. who hal
gobbled up all sorts ana conditions Of
men before, winked at each other and
wondered what sort OF fish they bad
landed this time. We all know how
brigands work their rackets. They are
out for the money and do not i'll treat
their captives. y walk of ten miles
brought them to a Wretched camp
captured We're made as comfortable ms
circumstances would permit. The cook
Ing was rude, the tieas plentiful and
the demeanOr of the brigands anything
but high toned, and after a wretchcd
night a raAver was called. The cap
tives couldn't speak the Turkish Ian
guage. and the brigands couldn't speak
the English, but in an hour or two a
satisfactory conclusion had been ar
rived at. 1t was to be $4,000 for the
girl, the same for her father and a like
sum for young Weston. all rated Al
and no discount for age, sex or previ-
GUS condition. Letters were written to
the American and English consuls in
the city, and as the money could be
easily raised it looked as if the captiveS
would be restored after four or five
days detention.
On the second morning of their stay
a peasant boy came into camp with Il
strange burden-strange to him and to
the brigands. The contents of the bas-
ket were sticks of dynamite, which had
in some way been lost on their journey
to marble quarry three or four miles
away. The boy had brought his find
to be examined and perhaps purchased,
but as the brigands knew nothing of
ha
four sat around the morning campfire
and handled the sticks and wondered
over them, and StrOlling down that way
from the huts on higher ground young
Weston saw and recognized the dan
gerous explosive. Not only that, but
he took stick in his hand and saunter-
ed back and said to Mr.. Graham:
Bah Jove, but I've an idea. You and
Miss Graham keep within doors for a
few minutes"
He turned away before he could be
questioned, and walking back to with
in twenty feet of the fire he deliber-
ately hurled the stick against the big
rock at the brigands' backs. There
was flash, a roar, an earthquake,
and a quarter of an hour later the daw-
ding young man opened his eyes to find
Graham and his daughter bending over
him. He had been hurled a hundred
feet, but was only bruised.
1T must have gone off, dOncher
knaw," he said as he sat up.
Eyes, it did" replied Graham. IF
you meant to wipe those brigands off
the face of the earth you've done it,
and we all came near going to-"
Bah JO,
'Wcll, ~. Weston, you have eX-
perienced an earthquake" said Miss
Hattie, "and can you tell me whether
it actually reused you out of YOURSELF"
at may have, Miss Graham-it may
have, but I'll think the thing over after
getting back to town and let you knaw.
doncher knaww