The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1905-07-06

he picked up the girl in his arms. She
was conscious, but breathless.
you are not hurtY' he gasped, his
eyes blazing into her face with an in
tensity that she afterward remembered
as appalling.
NO." she whispered.
Listen" he continued in labored
jerks. "Try and obey me exactly. /
will carry you-to the cave. Stop there.
Shoot any one you eetill come"
She heard him wonderingly. Was he
going to leave her, now that he had
her safely clasped to his breast? I'm
possible! All, she understood Those
men must have landed in a boat. He
intended to attack them again. He
was going to fight them single handed,
and she would not know what happen
ed to him until it was all over. Grad
ually her vitality returned. She almost
smiled at the fantastic conceit that she
would desert him. -
jerks placed her on her feet at the
entrance to the cave.
'sY0u understand" he cried, and with
out waiting for an answer ran to the
house for another rifle. This time, to
her amazement, he darted back through
Prospect park toward the south beach.
The sailor knew that the Dyaks had
landed at the sandy bay Iris had chris
tened Smugglers' cove. They were &C.
quainted with the passage through the
reef and came from the distant islands.
Now they would endeavor to escape
by the same channel They must be
prevented at all costs.
He was right. AS they came out into
the open he saw three men, not two,
pushing off large sampan. One Of
them was the chief. Then jerks un-
derstood that his bullet had hit the
lock Of the Dyak's uplifted weapon
with the result already described. By
a miracle he had escaped. .
He coolly prepared to Stay the three
of them with the same calm purpose
that distinguished the opening phase
Of this singularly one sided conflict
The distance was much greater, per-
haps 800 yards from the point where
the boat came into view. He knelt and
fired. He judged that the missile struck
the craft between the trio.
II didn't allow for the sun on the
side of the fore sight," he said, cor per-
haps I am bit shaky after the run. In
any event they can't go far
A hurrying step on the coral behind
him caught his ear. Instantly he
sprang up and faced about-to see Iris.
'"They are escaping" she said.
''No fear of that" he replied, turning
away from her.
"Where are the others?''
"Dead!'
''Do you mean that you killed nearly
all those menu"
"Six Of them. There were nine in
all.''
He knelt again, lifting the rifle. Iris
threw herself on her knees by his side
There was something awful to her in
this chill and businesslike declaration
of fixed purpose.
MIR. Jenks," she said, clasping her
hands in an agony of entreaty, "do not
kill more men for my sakew
"For my own sake, then,'' he growl-
ed, annoyed at the interruption, as the
Sampan was afOat.
''Then ask you for Gods sake not
to take another life. What you have al
ready done was unavoidable, perhaps
right This is murder!''
He lowered his weapon and looked at
her.
IF those men get away they will
bring back a host to avenge their COM
rades-and secure you,'' he added.
1T may be the will Of Providence for
such thing to happen. Yet I implore
you to spare Them
He placed the rifle on the sand and
raised her tenderly, for she had yield
ed to paroxysm of tears. Not another
word did either Of them speak in that
hour. The large triangular sail of the
sampan was now bellying out in the
south wind. A figure stood up in the
stern of the boat and shook menacing
arm at the couple on the beach.
It was the Malay chief, cursing them
with the rude eloquence of his barba-
rous tongue. And jerks we'll knew
what he was saying.