Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1905-05-16
IcoNTINyED.l

Tn tne nineteenth day Of their resi-
.en"e on the island the sailor climbed
as WAS his invariable habit. to til,
Su,Imit rock while Iris prepared break
fds.. At this early hour the horizon
was clearly cut rs the rim of sap
hire lie examined the whole arc o.
tie sea with his glasses, but not sal
was in sight. According to his calcu
i"tions the growing anxiety rs to th'
fate of the Sirdar must long ere thi'
have eliminated in the dispatch from
IIongkong or Singapore Of specia
search vessel. while British warship:
In the China sea would be warned tC
keep close lookout for any traces ol
the steamer. to visit all islands OH theil
route and to question fishermen whom
they encountered. So help might come
any day or it might be long deferred
He could not pierce the future, and II
was useless to vey his soul with ques
tionings as to what might happen mex,
week. The great certainty Of the houl
was Iris-the blue eyed. smiling divin
lty who had come into his life-wait
Ing for him down there beyond the
trees. waiting to welcome him with @
sweet voiced greeting. and he knew
with fierce devouring Joy. that hei
cheek would not pale nor her lip treG
be when he announced that at leas,
| another sun must set before the eX.
pccted relief reached them.
He replaced the glasses in their case
and tlived into the wood. giving pass
Ing thought to the fact that the wind
after blowing steadily from the south
| for nearly n week. had veered round to
the northeast during the night. Did
the change portend storm? Well
they were now prepared for all such
| eventuallties. and he had not forgot
ten that they possessed. among other
treasures. a box of books for rainy
days. And rainy day with Iris for
company. What gale that ever blew
could offer such compensation for en-,
forced idleness?
The morning sped in uneventful
work. Iris did not neglect her cherish.
ed pitcher plant After luncheon II
was her custom now to carry dish,
full Of water to Its apparently arid
roots. and she rose to fulfill her self I'm
posed task.
LET me help you." said jerks. II
am not very busy this afternoon"
mo, thank you. simply won't al
low you to touch that shrub. The dear
thing looks quite glad to see me. 1t
drinks up the water as greedily as a
thirsty animal"
Iris had been gone perhaps five min
utes when he heard distant shrek.
twice repeated. and then there came
family to his ears his own name. not
jerks" but Robert" in the girls
voice. Something terrible had hap
pened. 1t was q cry Of supreme dis
tress. Mortal agony or overwhelming
terror alone could wiring that name
from her lips. Precisely in such mo
ments this man acted with the deci-
sion, the unerring judgment. the In
Simultaneous acceptance Of great risk to
accomplish great results. that marked
him out as born soldier.
He rushed into the house and
snatched from the rack one Of the ri
tles reposing there In apple pie order.
each with a filled magazine attached
and cartridge already In position
Then he ran with long strides NOT
through the trees. where he could see
nothing. but toward the beach. whence
In forty yards tie place where Iris
probably was would become visible.
At once he saw her struggling in the
grasp of two ferocious looking Dyaks,
one by his garments person of collse-
uuence. the other a half naked savage,
hideous and repulsive in appearance.
| Around them seven men armed with
guns and parangs were dancing with
excitement.
Iris captors were endeavoring to tie
her arms. bat she was Il strong ANA nc.
tive EnglishwD oman. with muscles we'll
knit by the constant labor of recent
busy days and frame developed b.
years of horse riding and tennis play
ing. The pair evidently found her a
| tough handful, AMI the inferior Dyak.
either to step her screams-for she was
shrieking, Robert. come to me-! with
II her migit-or to stltle her into sub
,aission. roughly placed his huge hand
over n.h mouth.
These things the sailor noticed i'll
stantly Some men. brave - rashneSs.
ready rs lie to give his life to save her.
would have raced madly over the inter
venin% ground. scarce furlong. and
attcmrtcl heroic combat Of one
against n;ne.
Not 80 jerks.
With tie methodical exactMess Of the
parade ground he settled down on one
knee ana lcvelcl the rifle.
None of tie Dyaks saw him. All
were intent on the sensational prize
| they had secured, 4 young ana beauti-
| full wliite woman so contentedly roam.
Ing about the shores Of this fetish is.
land. With the slow speed advised
by the Roman philosopher the back
sight and fore sight Of the rifle came
into line with the breast Of the coarse
brute clutching the girls face.
| Then something bit him above the
heart and simultaneously tore half OF
his back into fragments. He fell, with
o queer sob, and the Others turned to
face this unexpected danger.
Iris, knowing only that she was free
from that hateful grasp, wrenched her.
self free from the chiefs hold and ran
with all her might along the beach to
jerks and safety.
Again and yet again the rifle gave
its short, sharp snarl, and two more
Dyaks collapsed on the sand. Six were
left, their leader being still uncon.
sciously preserved from death by the
figure Of the flying girl.
A fourth Dyak dropped.
The survivors, cruel savages, but NOT
towards, ulslung their guns. The sail
or, white faced, grim. with an unpleas'
ant gleam In his deep set eyes and Q
lower jaw protruding. noticed their
preparations.
ITO the leftr' he shouted. run to
ward the trees!'
Iris heard him and str0ve to obey
but her strength was failing her, and
she staggered blindly. After few de
j anairinR efforta abe lurched feebly tC