Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-02-22

walk to the north beach in the first
instance, that being the scene Of the
wreck.
During the next hour he became audi.
tor rather than narrator 1t was Iris
who told Of his wild fight against wind
and waves; Iris who showed them
where he fought with the devilfish;
Iris who expatiated on the long days
OF ceaseless toll, his dauntless cour-
age in the face Of every difficulty, the
way in which he rescued her from the
clutch Of the savages, the skill OF HIS
preparations against the anticipated
attack and the last great achievement
Of all, when time after time he foled
the Dyaks' best laid plans and flung
them of, crippled and disheartened,
during the many phases Of the thirty
hours battle.
There were tears In her eyes when
she ended, but they were tears Of
thankful happiness, and Lord Ventnor,
silent listener who missed neither
word nor look, felt deeper chill in his
cold heart as he realized that this wo-
mans love could never be his. The
more. His hatred of Anstruther now
became a mania. an insensate resolve
to MORALLY stab this meddler who al
ways stood in his path.
Robert hoped that his present ordeal
was over. 1t had only begun. He was
called on to answer questions without
number. Why had the tunnel been
madc2 What was the mystery of the
valley Of death? How did he manage
to guess the dimensions of the sundial?
How came he 10 acquire such an amaz-
ing stock of out of the way knowledge
Of the edible properties of roots and
trees? How? Why? WhereI When?
They never would be satisfied, for not
even the British navy, poking its nose
into the recesses of the world. often
comes across such an amazing story
rs the adventures of this couple on
Rainbow island.
He readily explained the creation OF
quarry and cave by telling them of the
vein of anthony imbedded in the rock
near the vault. Anthony is one of the
substances that covers Il multitude of
doubts. No one. not excepting the doc
tors who use it, knows much about 1t.
and in Chinese medicine 1t might be 4
chief factor OF exceeding nastinese.
Inside the cavern the existence Of
the partially completed shaft TO the
ledge accounted for recent disturb
ances on the face of the rock. and new
corners could not, of course. distinguish
the bones Of poor y. s. as being the
remains of a European.
Anstruther was satisfied that none of
them hazarded the remotest guess as
TO the value Of the gaunt rock they
We're staring at, and chance helped him
to ba file further inquiry.
A trumpeter on board the Orient was
blowing his lungs out to summon them
to luncheon when Captain Fitzroy put
a final query.
81 can quite understand" he said to
Robert. that you have an affection for
this weird place but ! am curious to
know why you lay claim to the island.
You can hardly intend to return here
He pointed to Roberts placard stuck
on the rock
Anstruther paused before he an
swered, He felt that Lord Nentnor's
| dark eyes were fixed on him. Every
body was more or less DESTROYS TO have
this point cleared up. He looked the
questioner squarely in the face
I'm some parts Of the world" he said,
there are sunken reefs, unkno I'M
charted, on which many a vessel has
been lost without any contributory
fault on the part of her officers
"Undoubtedly.'
well Captain Fitzroy. when | was
stationed with my regiment in Hong
kong I encountered such a reef and
wrecked my life on it. At least that
is how 1t seemed to me then. Fortune
threw me ashore here after a long and
bitter submvrgence. You can hardly
blame me if l cling to the tiny speck
of land that gave me salvation"
No" admitted the sailor He knew
there was something more in the al
legory than the text revealed, but it
was no business OF his.
Moreover" continued Robert smil-
ingly. you see have partner"
There cannot be the slightest doubt
about the partner" was the prompt re-
ply.
Then every one laughed, Iris more
than any, though Sir Arthur Deanes
gayety was forced. and Lord Ventnor
could taste the acidity of his own smile
Later in the day the first lieutenant
! told his chief of Anstruthers voluntary
statement concerning the court martial
Captain Fitzroy was naturally panied
| by this unpleasant revelation, but he
took exactly the same view as that ex-
pressed by the first lieutenant in Rob.
ert's presence.
| Nevertheless he pondered the matter
and seized an early opportunity of men.
tioning it to Lord Ventnor. That dis.
tinguished nobleman was vastly sur
prised to learn how Anstruther had cut
the ground from beneath his feet.
Yes" he said. In reply to the sailors
request for information, 81 know all
about it, 1t could not well be other
wise. seeing that next to Mrs. Costobell
was the principal witness against
him"
That must have been awkward for
you" was the unexpected comment.
indeed WhyT
Because rumor linked your name