Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1905-10-06

CHAPTER xXXu.-continued.

think the chill had melted a little.
mo. | was begging a nights lodg-
ing OF a friend whose house is full. He
sent me here With a note to-ah-to
your father, ac ! suppose, though in his
haste he did rot mention his name"
She held out her hand. Give me the
letter.
Nay" said 7; that would be but
thankless work. Knowing me, your ia
Their must needs conceive il his duty TO
d%enounce me-"
Give il met" she insisted; this with
an impatient little stamp of the foot
and an upglance of the compelling eyes
that would have constrained me to do
a far foolisher thing, had she asked ii.
So | gave her the letter n stood
aside, hat in hand, While she read it,
There were candle in their sconces
over the mantel and she moved nearer
to have the better light. The soft glow
of the candles fell upon her shining
hair. and upon cheek and brow, and |
could see her bosom rise and fall with
the quick-coming breath, and the pulse
throbbing in her fair white neck. And
with the seeing | became a fool OF love
again in very earnest, and was within
q hairs breadth of sinking honor and
all else in an outpouring of such words
as a man may say once TO one woman
in all the world-and having said them
may never unsay them.
Twas a most practical little thing
she did that saved me from falling
headlong into his last ditch of dis
honor. Twisting the letter into a spill,
she stood on tiptoe to light it at one of
the candles, saying: Twas a foolish
thing to put on paper, and might well
hang the writer in such times as these.
He says are a kings man and well
known TO him, and you are neither,
But when the letter was a crisp OF
blackened paper-aSh she turned upon
me, and once again the changeful eyes
were cold and her words were stranger
formal.
"wnat is it you would have me do,
Captain Ireton?"
Nothing" / made haste to say;
nothing save to believe that / came
here unw!ttingly-and to let me go"
Where will you go? The town is
alive WITH those who would-who
would"
who would show me scant mercy,
you would say. True; and yet ! came
hitherto the town, l mean-of my
own free will" p
fraction of al instant, and now he
beautiful eyes were alight and warm
and pleadingly eloquent.
"Oh, why did you come? Are you
are you what they said o were?"
"A spy? If l am, you would scarce
expect me 10 confess 1t, even to YOU"
"'Tis Observation-Disclosures ~dishonora-
ble!' she cried. Il could respect a
brave soldier enemy; but a spy
There was a Gathering of hoofs in the
street and a jingle of sword-scabbards
on the door-stone. l Wheeled to face
the newcomers, determined now to
f~,pt ~ hn1I1u nc a dpCnQrafp man lf
bay. But before the fumbling hands
without could find the door-knob Mar
gerry was beside me, all a-f1utter in q
trembling fit of excitement.
up the stair, quickly, pour iarnour
de Dieu!" she whispered; and we were
at the clock landing when the great
door opened and some half dozen kings
officers came in. We crouched together
behind the balustrade till they should
pass beyond the sight of US, and in the
group / marked a man stout and heavy
built, walking full solidly for his two
and-forty years. He wore his w hair
dressed high in front in the fashion
first set for the women by the Grand
Monarque's loose-wife; and as he
passed under the candles l saw hat it
was grazing slightly. His face, high
proved, long-nosed. double-chinned,
with the eyes womanish for bigness
and marked with brows that might
have been penciled by the hair-dresser,
I had seen before; but lacking this
present sight of it, the orders on his
breast would have named him the
ranking general of h army in the
feld-Lord Charles CORVALLIS. With
all the houses in the town TO choose
among, / had blundered into this-my
lords w headquarters.
l had out a passing glimpse of the
Incoming group, for when it was well
beneath the turn of the stair, my lady
had me up and running again. driving
me on before her to the chamber f1oor
above, along a dimly lighted corridor
with many turnings, n so to a cul-de-
sac in the samoa doorless passage
with a high dormer window in the end
and no other apparent means of egress.
Margery had snatched a candle from
one of the corridor holders in the flight,
and now she bade me sit on the floor
and draw my boots. / did it, shame
facedly enough, being but a foul and
ragged vagabond unfit to have her
come anigh me. But | might LAY
spared my blushings, for she had
turned her back n was opening a
secret door in the high wainscot.
Beyond the door lay a raftered garnet
half filled with cast-off house lumber
and lighted and aired by two high roof
windows. Into this she led me, with a
finger on her lip for silence. A hum
of voices. the climbing Of class, and
now and again a hearty soldier laugh
told me that my garnet was above
some living room of the house.
While / stood, boots in hand,
she found a makeshift can
dlestick, and in q trice had
spread me a pallet on an ancient oaken
settle big enough TO serve for a choir
stall in a cathedral.
you'll be safe here for the night,
If so be you will make no more noise
than a rat might make" she whis-
pered. Mails, non Dieu! tbs a terrible
risk. How you will get off in the norm
ing / do not KNOW"
Leave that to me-" / rejoined. Then
] remembered the portmanteau and the
promise tha it should be sent hither.
Here was a further complication, and /
must needs beg a Don on her. "A black
boy will bring my portmanteau in the
morning. j have a decent desire to be
hanged in clean clothing; may / beg
you to-"
She made a quick little gesture of
impatience; at the further complica-
ton, or at my boldness in asking, I
knew not which. But her whispered re-
ply was en- assent, and then she turned
10 Leave me.
at that a sudden fierce desire to
know why she had thus befriended me
came TO throttle prudence.
One more word before you go, Mis-
tress Margery. Will you tell me why
you have done this for the man who
can serve you only by thrusting his
neck into the hangman's noose?'
She was silent for a. little space, and
! knew not what emotion IL was that
moved her TO turn away and cover her
face with her hands But when she