The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-27

of what he said of them until they
came to stand for Romance to me.
One day, a little before Ralph and
Veronica became engaged, these Span
iards descended out of the blue. 1t
was Romance suddenly dangled right
before my eyes. It was Romance; you
have no idea what 1t meant to me to
talk to Carlos Riego.
Carlos was dark, and of a grace to
set Ralph as much in the shade as
Ralph himself set me; and Carlos had
seen a deal more of the world than
Ralph. He brought with him short,
pursy, bearded companion, half friend,
half servant, who said he had served
in Napoleon's Spanish contingent, and
had a wooden hand CHS arm had suf-
fered in a cavalry CHARGE, and ex-
claiming, Il, Tomas Castro!
He was an Andalusian.
For myself, the first shock Of his
strangeness overcome, adored Carlos,
and Veronica liked him and laughed
at him till one day he said good-by
and rode off along the London road,
followed by his Tomas Castro. had
an intense longing to go with him out
into the great world that brooded all
round our foothills.
Shortly after Carlos went, Rooksby
proposed for the hand of Veronica and
was accepted-by my mother. Veroni-
Ca Went ABOUT lOOhluS happy. AhoI
upset me, too. 1t seemed unjust that
she would go out into the great world
to Bath, to Brighton, should see the
prince regent and the great fights on
Hounslow Heath-whilst / was to re-
main forever a farmers boy. That
afternoon l was up stairs, looking at
the reflection of myself in the tall
glass, wondering miserably why
| seemed to be of such an oaf.
u, 81 n1ycI hoi1 Or mo
denly down stairs, Hey, John-John
Kemp; come down, / say!"
He wanted to talk to me, he said,
and I followed him out to the soft road
that climbs the hills to westward. The
evening was falling slowly and mourn
fully; it was dark already in the folds
of the somber downs.
II know what you've got to tell me-,
I said you're going to marry Veron-
lea. Well, you've no need of my bless
ing. Some people have all the luck.
"Confound it, I continued, II shall
run away to sea! I say, Ralph. give
| me Carlos direction.-Tll go after him.
Carlos is the only soul I know outside
five miles from here. He's friends in
the Indies. That's where I want to
go, and he could give me cast. You
| remember what Tomas Castro said.
Rooksby came to a sudden halt and
! legs.
Course Carlos and his Castro. too.
| They'll have me in jail betwiXt them
They're both in my red barn, If you
want their direction ="
He hurried on suddenly up the hill,
leaving me gazing upwards at him.
| When I caught him up he was swear
| stamping his foot in the middle of the
road.
Il tell you" he said violently, its
| the most accurSed business! That
Castro, with his Cuban, is nothing but
| a blasted buccaneer and
| Carlos is no better. They go to Liver
, pool for a passage to Jamaica, and see
what comes of it!
1t seems that on Liverpool docks, in
the owl-light, they fell in with an
elderly hunks just returned from the
West Indies, who asks the time at the
door of shipping agent Castro pulls
out a watch, and the old fellow jumps
on it, vows it's his own, taken from
him years before by some picaroons on
| his outward voyage. Out from the
agents comes another, and swears
/ that Castro is one of the self-same
crew He himself purported to be the
master of the very ship. Afterwards
i'm the solitary dusk among the ropes
and bales-there had evidently been
some play with knives, and it ended
with fight to London, and then
down to Rooksbys red barn. with the
runners in full cry after them.
Think of it," Rooksby said, "and
me a justice, and oh, it
drives me wild, this hole-and- corner
work! There's filthy middle with
the free traders-a whistle to blow
after dark at the quarry. Tonight of
all nights, and me justice y
and as good as married mani"
! 1 looked at him wonderingly in the
dusk; his high coat collar almost hid
| his face, and his hat was pressed down
over his eyes. The thing seemed in
credible to me- Here was an adven-
ture, and l was shocked to see that
Rooksby was in pitiable state about
| it.
/ He seemed ready to tear his hair,
and then I put in my say. He needed
a little persuasion, though, in spite of
! Veronica.
I should have to meet Carlos Riego
and Castro in little frwood above
the quarry, in half an hours time. All
l had to do was to whistle three bars
| of "Lillibullero," as signal A con-
nection had been already arranged
1 with the Free Traders on the road be-
side the quarry, and they were COM
ing down that night, as We knew well
from Canterbury way down to the
Marsh. 1t had cost Ralph a pretty
penny; but, once in the hands of the
smugglers, his cousin and Castro
| would be safe enough from the run
ners; 1t would have needed troop of
horse to take them. A boat was to
| take them out into the bay, where an
outward bound West Indiaman would
pick them up.
Finally Ralph settled it; and I EN-
barked on a long adventure.
CHAPTER IL.
/ Between mOonriSe and sunset / was
/ stumbling through the bracken of the
little copse that was like tuft of hair
on the brow of the great white quarry
1 l made the circuit of the copse, whis-
ting softly my three bars of tLilli-
bullero." Then / plunged into it.
My pulse was dancing with delight
my heart, too. 1t was like q game OF
hide-and-see and yet it was life al
last.
I moved forward again, getting back
towards the road. I thought I caught
the outlines of mans hat down
among the tossing lines of the bracken
l whispered loudly:
Carlos! Carlos!"
A shaft of blazing yellow light dart
ed from the level of the ground into my
dazed eyes. A man sprang at me and
thrust something cold and knobby into
my neckcloth. The light continued to
blaze into my eyes; it moved upwards
and shone on red waistcoat dashed
I, Ia1rff !, ocf