The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1906-08-12

cHTlIIl@t WIS II iJll>lltt. ne 1ldSLllF
sought to eject it, and the rife jammed
Springing to lis feet with a yell, he
ran forward. The flying men caught
glimpse Of him and accelerated their
movements. lust as he reached Iris
they vanished among the trees
Singing the rifle over his shoulder.
he picked up the girl in his arms She
was conscious, but breathless.
You are not hurt?" he gasped. his
eyes blazing into her face with an in
tcnsity that she afterward remembered
as appalling.
"NO." she whispered.
"ILs-~n," he continued in labOreG
jerks Try and obey me-exactly.
Will carry you-tO the cave. stop there
Shoot any one You see-till l come"
She heard him wonderingly. Was he
going to leave her, now that he had
her safely claSpcd to his breast: I'm
possible, All. she understood Those
men must have landed in boat He
intended to attack them again. He
was going to fight them single handed
and she would not know what happen
cd to him until it was all over. Grad
ually her vitality returned. She almost
smiled at the fantastic conccit that she
would desert him.
jerks placed her on her feet at the
entrance to the cave.
You understand" he cried, and with
out waiting for an answer ran to the
house for another rifle This time to
her amazpmcut, he durtCd back through
Prospect park toward the south beach
The sailor knew that the DyakS had
landed at the sandy bay Iris had chris
tened SmugglerS' cove. They were ac-
Quainted with the passage through the
reef and came from the distant islands.
Now they would endeavor to escape
by the same channel. They must be
prevented at all costs.
lie was right. AS they came out into
the open he saw three men. not two,
pushing off a large sampan. One of
them was the chief. Then jerks I'M
dcrstood that his bullet had hit the
lock of the Dyak's uplifted weapon,
with the result already described. BY
a miracle he had escaped.
He coolly prepared to Stay the three
of them with the same calm purpose
that distinguished the opening phase
of this sngularly one sided conflict.
The distance was much greater, per
haps 800 yards from the point where
the boat came into view. He knelt and
fired. lie judged that the missile struck
the craft between the trio.
II didn't allow for the sun on the
side of the fore sight" he said, "or per-
haps l am bit shaky after the run. In
any event they can't go far
A hurryinG step on the coral behind
him caught his ear. Instantly he
sprang up and faced abOut-to see Iris.
They are escaping" she said.
'No fear of that" he replied, turning
away from her.
"Wherc are the others?'
Dead
do you mean that you killed nearly
all those menu
six of them. There were nine in
ALL"
He knelt again, lifting the r lie. Iris
threw herself on her knees by his side.
There was something awful to her in
this chill and businesslike declaration
u Il hAtb PuApOSc'
Mr.. jerks" she s1id, clasping her
hands in an agony of entreaty, do not
kill more men for my sake
"For my own sake. then" he growl-
ed, annoyed at the interruption, as the
sampan was atlOat.
Then l ask you for Gods sake not
to take another life. What you have al
ready done was unavoidable, perhaps
right This is murder"
lie lowered his weapon and looked at
her.
IF those men get away they will
bring back n host to avenge their COM
radcS-and secure you" he added.
1T may be the will of Providence for
such thing to happen. Yet l implore
you to spare them"
He placed the rife on the sand and
raised her tenderly, for she had yield
ed to paroXySm of tears. Not another
word did either of them speak i'll that
hour. The large triangular sail of the
sampan was now bellying out in the
south wind. a figure stood up i'll the
stern of the boat and shook Il menacing
arm at the couple on the beach.
1t was the Malay chief Cursing them
with the rude eloQuence of his barba
rouS tongue. And jerks well knew
what he was saying