The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1905-07-06
10 me, ard SO l crept back into the

10 me, ard SO / crept back into the
burrow.
See here" he said, excitedly. What
a devil will you make of this!
He had drawn the scattered embers
together, tanning them ablaze agin, and
had sought and found the arrow. IL
was a b~lunt-head reed and no war
shaft. And around the middle or II,
tightly wrapped and tied with silken
threads, was a little scroll or parch-
ment.
Ills the Catawba's arrow" said Jen-
infer, though how he knew I could not
guess; and then he cut the threads to
free the scroll.
Unrolled and spread at large, the
parchment proved to be that map or
| Captain Stuart's that l had found and
lost again. And on the margin or 1t
was my note to Jennifer, written IN
that trying moment when the brloed
| sentry waited at the door and my sweet
lady stood trembling beside me, muir
muring her Holy Marys."
Read it," said 1. 1T explains itself.
Tarleton had laid me by the heels to
wait for the hangman, and | would
have passed the word about the In
dian arming on to you. But my mes
senger was overhauled, and
Yes, yes" he broke in; I've spelled
f II OlIl JDuL lILLo my ~ ~ ~
t~on-surely, that is never your grabbed
fist. BY heaven! it's in Madge's hand!"
He knelt to hold it closer to the flick
ering freight, and we deciphered 1t to-
gether. 1t WAS but ii line, as he had
said, with neither greeting nor leave
taking, address nor signature.
IF this should come into the hands
of any true-hearted gentleman"-here
was q blot as If the pen had slipped
from the fingers holding it; and then,
in French, the very wording of the in
a~rticulate cry that had come to me out
of the darkness and silence: "a moi!
pour lamour de Dieu!"
We fell apart, each to his own side
of the handfu of embers.
You make it out?" said I, after a
moment of strained silence.
He nodded. She has prattled the
parleZ-vous to me ever since we were
boy and maid together"
A full minute more of the threatening
silence, n at the end OF it we were
glazing at each other like two wild
creatures crouching for the spring.
1t was ~Jennifer who spoke first.
"Twas meant for me-" he said; n
his voice had the warning Of a mas
tiff's growl in it.
NO" said l curtly.
II say it was!"
Then you say the thing which is
not"
Had I been Richard J~ennifer, I NOW
not what bitter reproach I should have
found to hurl at the man who had
thrice owed his life to me-. But he
said no word Of what had gone be-
fore.
You may give me the lie, If you like,
John Ireton; I hall not strike YOU He
said it slowly, but his face was gray
with anger. Then he added,
holly: You knew we'll that word was
meant for me-"
At this-God forgive me,-my jealous
wrath broke bounds n 1 cursed him
for a beardless coXcomb who must
needs think he stood alone in the eye
Of every woman he should meet. "She
needs a mani" I ragged. lost now to
every sense of decent justice. "a man,
I say! And to whom would she send
If not to her
I choked upon the word. He had
risen with me-, and we stood face to
face in hat grim earth-womb. snarl-
ing flercely at each other across the
marrow irelit space; two men with
every tie to knit us close together, and
Vetoed save us ALA pair Of wild
beasts strung up to the killing pitch
because, f%orsooth, we must needs front
each other across a deadllne drawn by
the finger of a woman!
God knows what would have come OF
all this naQ my GEAR laQ Deen as IerCe
g fool as 1. Twas his good common
sense that saved US both, I think, fol
when the savage rival madnes was al
it's height he turned away, swearing we
We're the very pick and choice of q
world of asses to stand thus feeling foI
each others threats when, mayhap, the
:. lady needed both of us.
This brought me to my senses at {
! gallop, as you would guess; to then
and to the lighting of the conscience
fire within whereon to grill the wicked
heart that but now had thirsted for {
t brothers blood.
> "Now God have mercy on us BOTH
: I groaned. "Forgive me, Dick, IL yot
, can; I was as mad as any BeTlamite
If 1 have any claim on her, tbs not o
8 her good will. o may be sure. Yot
have the baronet to fear-not me-"
T He shook mis- head and pointed t
the parchnent-to the line in French.
o "Francis F~'alconnet was under tht
t same roof with her-or at least in easy
o call-when she wrote that, Jack He i!
h no longer my riyal-nor yours."
n His word set me thinking, and
would fall to picking out the strand!
/; that Jealous wrath had woven for m.
: into the web OF happenings. Setttns
aside the story brought by Ephrian
a Yeates, there was nc certain proof tina,
she had Yer favored the E.nglishman
a nay, more, till I had come to be nadIJ
If jealous Of Falconnet, I had made SURE
It that Jennifer waa the favored one.
e Continued Next Week.