The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1904-05-23
synopsis Of Preceding Chapters.

synopsis of Preceding Chapters
A young English woman. with her young SON
took lodgings IN a little village IN Brittany IN
order 10 be near her husband VINO was IN a
prison a few miles away sent there Tor murder
., Nnien his vie nsieSss hia nos "a bsd been
made by Odin. figured in the quarrel with the
murdered man. ard this ring tne hSinei ois t Ias
showed 70 her son Then she told MIN tns so
OF his father. and made him promise wheh ne
became man 70 md the rear muiGt tt, anu th
ciear his father name Ire same h ht Ia ia
runic ring stolen by masked roooer, ana
snortly after the convict f<rlc Ma tsa.s
escaped rom prison was recapiuIsa, IN ne lis, ID
room. and in the fight accidentally shot ana
killed her. On being taken back 10 prison ne was
rescued and carried on BY friends ms y IN
prologue 10 the main story. which begins Win
- return OF Riaitliie % tle . iro1-, S,bere
sne Earl OF Ormaby. who naa hot 100 I.h " g.
his son had been. A. his father deetn ne as
e.. ne uIls @ a 80 for some meg
nfSt wires son ne gave no hseI lot sol..e -
planned reason. but later heard that ne was dead.
completing his education ana brougnc WIN MN
mysterious casket which a wakeful guest IN the
vault The earl Wished his son 10 mar d
young and wealthy cousin Beatrice. ana ne re
luctantly consented II was this cousin 5 half-
brother Godfrey who saw the casket niddeh IN
the vault At this juncture Idris MarVille me
Godfrey. who swss an old friend. bearing how
ever the name ;of BreakspeaT. the name p.,sr oy
Neither he nor Godfrey knew OF the FORMER
relationship 10 the earl. Idris had come. now
" H bss Ipsnssfea the Inscription on the
runic ring. a coI.y of It having been among MS
tomb and eerts indications led him to believe
that this ancient tomb was near OrmsDy In
a mound In the neighborhOod. dug into II and
found tomb containing a crumoiing skeleton.
He brought away the skull and piece OF tapes
try but found nothing more. beautiful woman.
Lorelia REVERE. whom he rescued from drown
ing. he discovered 70 be in possession OF secre.
inkling Of IL he was greatly attracted to her
and disturbed on finding that she was on friendly
Ormsby. who vas really his brother, tnousn
neither knew H.. II was accidentally dlscoVereo
that the skull taken from the tomb had been
pierced by a s.eel instrument. thus showing
that IL was not as supposed. the Skull OF me
ancient Viking. %ho came 10 his death accord
ing tradition. in another way. Idris discoN-
cred that the facsimile Of The runic r,ns that
the altar window Of the church and that II
was armorial.dev of the earl's family.
(CHAPTER xI-Continued from Saturday.
At one end Of the hall on a dais there
stood, usual in those days, rude
images OF the gods. To this spot the herald
was dragged and told that unless he re-
vealed the hiding-place of the treasure ne
should be sacrificed there and then TO Odin
Vain was his plea of ignorance vain his
appeal for mercy. he was slain by the
dagger of J'ric. himself the high priest
as we'll as theschief of the clan: the altar
ring was dipped in the blood OF the victim.
and the red drops were spr1nkled on all
present. With his dying breath the herald
voking curse upon the head of him who
should discover the treasure, and praying
that the finder might meet with death
as violent as his own.
Afterwards. when Uric came 10 clean the
ring. he found he could not remove the
stain OF blood and the sagamen who ex-
amined IL declared that the mark would
never be effaced till one of the Raven-race
should die as an atopement for the death
OF the herald. whose sacred character had
been impiously set at naught.
his authority: at his death it passed to
his son. and So from generation to genera
ton il continued in the Ravergar family
as a generated heirloom. In the days of
Charles ii the first Earl OF Ormsby. Lam
celot Rsvengar, adopted the ring as an
armorial device, taking as his supporters
two ravens. in aIlusion TO the birds that
were said TO ihave directed the course OF
Dracos galleyi
story TO which, Idris listened with the deep
est interest. IL was clear to him that his
Viking Orm and Loreies Draco were iden-
teal. the Morse form of the name having
doubtless been changed into its Latin
equivalent by the original monkish chron-
icler.
OF the Ravengars he asked, when Lorelie
had come 10 the end of her story
mo. about fifty years ago 1t was stolen. =
Under what circumstances?
THE affair was a mystery. The ring was
kept with the other heirlooms in the jewel
room at Ravenhall. According to the but
Ter II was secure In ITS glass case when
he locked the door of the jewel-room al
night: in the morning IL was gone. Sus-
picion fell upon a steward who was under
notice of dismissal: II Is supposed that he
was actuated by a spirit of revenge. The
detectives employed in the case failed, how
ever. to connect him with the theft. nor die
their Investigations lead to any result sc
far as regards the recovery or the ring
The steward, il he were guilty. proba-
bly, disposed OF the relic on the continent.
said ldris- AT any rate II found its way
h1frI
surely have been the very ring which lee
10 the murder OF NJ. Duchesne and the con
sequeut arrest Of my father
Il belieVe-nay, i am certain il was,
answered Loreie.
Her eyes drooEsed and a shadow passed
over her face Any reference to Eric Mar
vile seemed TO trouble her, and Idris re
solved 10 avoid the mention of his name.
And during the many centuries in which
this rGnic ring was In the possession OF th'
Ravengars." he continued was no on.
ever found capable OF deciphering the RUM,
inscription
NO one In time past the ring was sub
mitted 10 many antiquaries. but they could
make nothing OF IT.
Idris. though justly proud of his success!
In matter wherein experts had failed
kept his own counsel for the present ans
refrained from mentioning that he had ac
compIished the feat.
Then. of course. the treasure of ole
Orm-Draco. I mean-has never been dis
covered?'
Not by a Ravengar"
..ISut by else proba bly,. 1t is no
likely that the buried treasure has remained
undiscovered for a thousand years"
THE legend says that only a Ravenga
can discover IL. and that In the very mo
mcnt of discovery he will forfeit his life al
an atonement for the death of the herald
But this. added Lorelie with a smile, lis
OF course. mere poetic fancy
There is one omission in your story Yol
did not state where this sea king, Draco
was buried"
The legend does not say You are for
getting that II is a legend, invented, per
haps. by some imaginative king at-arms IL
order TO decorate the vanity of the frs
Earl OF Ormsby with a long pedigree and
romantic origin"
But Idris had received proofs that tn
story was true in the main For example
there had actually existed an altar-riu,
such descril ed-for he had seen an.
handled il kimself-a ring engraved with +;
sentence which not only spoke of a burie,
treasure. but also bore the names of th
very persons. Orm. Hilda and Magnus
who had figured so prominently I'm tn
story. The fragment of tapestry brough
from the interior of the ancient tumulu
supplied additional evidence as TO the his
toric existence of the Golden Viking an
the widowed 1flda.
This Draco. continued Idris. III he. re
teived the sepulchral honors due TO a Nors
chief. would be buried beneath an immens
mound of earth IL we are 10 look for hi
tomb In this neighborhood we shall per
haps md II in a tumulus on the seashor
about four miles from here"
Il know the eminence you refer to-" re
piled Loreie. "It is called OrmfeIl tina
Draco's tomb. otherwise II would be Gale
DracOnfeli or something similar"