The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1906-04-12
CHAPTER XII.

TO bolt again"
'The old trick. Ha; ha! don't 1 know
tT' says Mr.. Frere-
well. we caught him and gave him
fifty. Then he was sent to the chain
gang, cutting timber. Then we put him
into the boats, but he quarreled with
the coxswain. and then we took him
back TO the timber RATS. About sly
weeks ago he made another attempt
together with Gabbett, the man who
nearly killed you-but his leg was
chafed with the irons, and we took him.
Gabbett and three more, however. got
away"
Just then some one came up the gar
den path and saluted.
What is it. Troke?"
Prisoner given himself up, sir. Cab
bett. He came back tonight He's
down at the sheds. You can see him at
once gentlemen. if you like"
l. was not far to the sheds, and after
a few minutes walk through the wood
en- palisades they reached a long stone
building, two stories high, from which
Used a horrible growing pierced with
shrilly screamed songs. At the sound
OF the musket butts clashing Oh the pine
wood tagging, the noises ceased. and a
silence more sinister than sound fell on
the place.
Passing between two rows of warders.
the two officers reached a sort of ante
room to tne jail. containing a pine-log
s~tretcher, on which a mass of some
thing was lying. On a roughly made
stool. by the side of this stretcher sat
a man in the gray dress of good con-
duct prisoners. This man held be-
tween his knees a basin containing Cruel
and was apparently e~ndeavoring to feed
the mass on the pine logs.
"Gabbett,-
The intelligent Troke, considerably
alive 70 the wishes Of his superior OH
GERS. dragged the mass into a sitting
posture, and awoke 1t.
Gabbett-for it was he-passed one
great hand over his face, and. leaning
exactly in the position In which Troke
had placed him. scowled, ~bewildered, at
his visitors
well, Gabbett." says vickers, you've
come back again, you see. When will
you learn sense. Ell? Where are your
mates? p
dead" says Gabbstt.
why dent you eat your gruel?"
II have eaten it Amt yer got nuf-
hn' better nor that to fog a man on?
Ugh. yer a mean lot. Wot's it to be
this time. major? FiftyY
"A nice specimen said vickers. with
q hopeless smile. "What can one do
with such a fellow 2"
sd fog his soul out Of his body"
said Frere, IF he spoke to me Ike
that"
The giant raised his great head and
hooked at the speaker, but did not rec
ognize him. He saw only a strange
face7a visitor. perhaps. "You may
fog. n welcome. MASTER" said he,
eff you'll give me a fig O. tibbacky."
Frere laughed The brutal Indifference
of the rejoinder suited his hrmor, and,
with a glance at vickers, he took a
small piece of cavendish from the peck
ct Of his pea jacket. and gave to the
recaptured convict. Gabbett snatched
It as a cur snatches at a bone, and
thrust 1t whole into his mouth.
How many mates had he?" asked
Maurice, watching the champing jaws
as one looks az a strange animal, and
asking the question as though a mate
was something a convict was born with
like 4 mole. For instance.
aThree, sir"
Three, Ell: Well, give him thirty
lashes. vickers."
And if l ha' had three more" gro l.
cd Gabbett, mumbling at his tobacco,
"yon wouldn't ha' had the chance"
AS he SIT there sIoomily chewing, he
was a spectacle to shudder at. Not so
-. oorr 49,
ness. increased a thousandfoId By the
tattered and filthy rags which barely
covered him. Not so much on account
of his nshaven jaws, his hare-lip, his
torn and bleeding feet, his haggard
cheeks, and his huge. wasted frame.
Not only because. looking at the animal,
as-he crouched, with one foot curled
round the other. and one hairy arm
pendent between his Knees, he was so
horribly unhuman. that che ~shuddered to
think that tender women and fair chill
dren must, Of necessity, confess to fell
lowship of kind with such a monster.
But also because, in his slavering mouth,
his slowly grinding jaws, his restless
fingers and his bloodshot, wandering
eyes. there lurked a hint of some terror
more awful than the terror of starvation
Ia memory of a tragedy played out in
the gloomy depths of that forest which
had vomited him forth again-and the
shadow Of this unknown horror. cling
Ing to him, repealed, as though be bore
about with him the reek of the sham
bles-
Come" said Vickers. ''let us go back.
! shall have TO fog him again. l sun
pose. Oh. this place. No wonder they
call it .Hell's Gates.'v
"Halloo. what's that red light there ~
Dawes FIRE on Grummet Rock. .
says Vickers, going In; the man I told
o about"
Two or three mornings after the ar
rival of the Ladybird, the solitary pris-
oner of the G-ummet Rock noticed mys.
ferrous movements along the shore of
the island settlement. The building Of a
pier. or breakwater. running from the
western point Of the settlement, was
discontinued; and all hands appeared
to be occupied with the newly built
Osprey, which was. lying on the slips.
Parties of soldiers also daily left the
Ladybird, and assisted at the mysterious
work in progress.
A fortnight after this. about the 18th
of December. he observed another curl
Gus fact. All the boats on the island
put off one morning to the opposite side
of the harbor, and in the course Of the
day a great smoke arose along the side
Of the hills. The next day the same
was repeated; and on the fourth day
the boats returned, towing behind them
q huge raft. This raft. made fast 10
the side of the Ladybird. proved to be
composed of planks, beams and joists,
all of which were duly hoisted up and
slowed in the hold of the brig.
This set Rufus Dawes thinking. Gould
II possibly be that the timber cutting
was to be abandoned. and that the gov
eminent had hit upon some other method
of utilizing its convict labor? BE had
keyrn timber and built boats, and tanned
hides and made shoes. Vas ii possible
that some new trade was to be initiated,
Before ne had settled this point to his
satisfaction, he was startled by another
boat expedition. Three boats crews
went down the BAY. and returned, after