Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1905-02-22
rHE SHADOWER



dispatch OF importance which wish
you To deliver at once to General Tay-
Tor. do not think t-cre are any
Mexicans in the region between our
two separate forces, but there may be.
You can either take an escort or scout
your way alone"
Captain Allen Duane palcd. His gen
eral Looked at his aid-de-camp curious
ly. wonderingly. for lie knew him to be
brave luan, then asked. Which
course win you adoptY
Il shall scout through alone"
As If the captain had chased away a
disagreeablc suspicion as TO his cour-
age. tie general turned complacently
to other matters.
What was il that caused tie color to
momentarily leaYe the cheek of the
young officer at being ordered upon an
ordinary duty? He did not know him.
self He only knew that some vague
message had come TO him TO tell him
that this would be to him a night Of
what? He cid not know. More In
fear of cowardice than danger, he
shook of the disagreeable impression,
which melted before his resolution like
mist before the sun.
Riding to the outposts. he left his
horse and moved away into the debata-
bic land held by neither American nor
Mexican. \ young moon shone down
on his shoulder. casting a faint shadow
to his left and to his rear. 1t annoyed
him. Turning TO glance at it, he could
not refrain from fancy that figure
was following him. Looking straight
ahead, lie fized his gaze ON the plain,
over which here and there grew scat
tered clumps of tropical trees
1t was lonely out there on that desc
late plain where the poorest Mexican
| disdalned to build even an adobe hut
The viperS with which the country
abounds had crawled into their holes;
the few birds were hidden. silent, in
the branches OF the trees. 1t seemed
to him that even the melancholy cry
of a whippoogwiil. with which lie had
long been familiar in the north. would
sound companionable. There We're only
the plain, tie trees. the moon and the
sky, over which tloated small clouds
with dark bodies and feecy borders.
Despite his efforts to drive away the
impression that his shadow was some
| one following him this impression grew
stronger. Turning again. he east a
| quick glance behind. There was the
| shadow as before. Raising his eyes to
the sky, he shuddered. The moon was
behind a cloud.
1t was now clear to Captain Duane
that the mysterious follower was not
his shadow. What was it? If hui
man enemy 1t would haze long before
| this shot or knitted him In the back
If friend, why did 1t not declare it
self? And why did he not hear its
tread? He listened. but by the closest
! attention he could not detect foot
| step. And why, he asked himself, did
| he, a soldier who had been twice
brevetted for bravery, shrink from
turning and confronting this mystical
| intensity of shade?
| BY an effort he gathered strength TO
| turn his head for one more glance.
There was the figure. more distinct
than before, yet not continuously 50.
1t seemed TO Captain Duane that his
| eyesight was not capable of holding
| the image long enough to see exactly
what it was. Now, for an instant, the
head and shoulders would keep their
| form-the face bony, with deep sunken
eyes-a broad, prominent mouth. Then
the legs, long thin ones, would be
| tramping with one uninterrupted, I'M
| changed gait, the whole covered by n
| long flowing mantle which futtered in
| the wind, yet there was no wind.
Desperate. the officer halted and fac
| ed about.
"Who comes there?" he cried.
| The words broke the stiffness like a
clap of thunder from q serene sky.
| There was in them a singular distress,
as If they had been for ages asking a
question to which there had come no
reply. The figure stopped when the
! speaker stopped. standing, waiting, as
though neither impatient nor tired, con-
| fident that the object of its attention
would move on and it would again fol-
low.
The young captain did move on.
Though his physical strength was un-
| impaired, it seemed TO him that his
soul was tagging. that 1t was slowly
but surely slipping away from him.
He was as ready to meet an accustom-
ed enemy and fight as bravely as ever.
| As Captain Allen Duane lie was still
independent; rs human soul he was
| losing himself
And now there IN the distance Is
something white He shades his eyes
from every ray of moonlight and dis
covers white tents. He is nearing the
end OF his mission. A few more miles
and he will he within the picket line
OF friendly army. VIII this shadowy
tramper remain behind?
Captain Duane pushed on. The IN
CAPABILITIES of the road were no obsta-
cles. He took no thought at running
upon some rowing band of Mexlcans.
The mysterious figure was closing up