The daily morning journal and courier., 1906-08-23
IN THE GLACIERS KEEPING.

Maxi"
 A The speaker was tall Englishman \ of perhaps fifty, but looking as hard 4 and tough and generally fit as most men of half his age, 7 Yes, sir" said the guide, who stood , before him at the inn door; land we'll } have to start early if we are to get back the same day. Sir Robert Ballard turned and reSen- ? tered his room. From desk he pulled out sheet of paper, and picking up a , pen, sat down at table and began a , letter.
 My dear Harry" he wrote, q am afraid I have not been quite fair to youThinking over things again. I can
 see that your foolish pranks, which so
 much offended me, may have been-in- , deed, no doubt were-the results of sheer youthful high spirits I am. : therefore, again altering my will, and instead of my cousin, James Rennie,
 being my residuary legatee, you will find the bulk of my property will even- tually come to you. l trust this will have been a lesson to you, and that
 you will grow up man worthy of the trust am repOsing in you.
 Your affectionate uncle,
 ROBERT BALLARD"
 Sir Robert. sealed and stamped the letter, and then on a sheet of foolscap proceeded rapidly to redraft his will.
 It seemed an easy enough matter and took but few minutes. You would hardly have imagined the amount in question was something like eighty thousand dollars.
 The rapid pen ceased flying over the Ipaper and Sir Robert touched the bell.
 "Call Max Schneider he said to the waiter, "and you, too, come in. l want you to witness this signature for me-"
 He signed the document, the two men affixed their signatures, and then he folded 1t, placed it in an envelope and slipped 1t into an inner pocket of hls Norfolk jacket
 What time do we start tomorrow, Max?" he asked. 30
 Not later than half-past three, sir" answered the guide.
 Very well, then. I shall go to bed at once, and l sppose you'll do the same,
 And twenty minutes later he was sleeping like boy,
 Great luck having lovely weather eh Maxi"
 Lovely, indeed, sir Robert; but pray don't say anything about 1t till we're clear of the Ice. It's the worst of bad luck, sir
 Sir Robert laughed-the laugh of strong man who is thoroughly pleased with himself.
 Indeed he has reason to be pleased. Few men had ever climbed the beet ling cliffs of the Alguille Vert at all. Fewer still could boast of having ac- Icomplished the feat within the hours of single day.
 Half an hour later they reached the edge of the ice. The sun had now set, and the air, chill with approaching night, was no longer clear as it had been. Pale wreaths of smoky mist hung in light hands, which seemed to shift and change kaleidoscopically CIOuBH no DteeZe Was Itll.
 Still roped together, as they had been during the entire time, they crossed the moraine and started steadily tramping across the rough Ice, whose surface was broken by a hundred deep rifts and lumpy, yawning crevasses.
 The fog closed and fell thicker and thicker.
 Some three hours later that night one of the guides burst into the kitch- en of the Montyert inn.
 His face was white and drawn, and he was almost speeches. with excite ment, misery and fatigue,
 At last he managed to gasp out his piteous story-how they had missed their way in the fog; how he had heard a sharp cry of warning from Max, who was leading the party; how next he had been ierked off his feet by tremendous pull at the rope around his waist and how he had desperately saved himself by driving his alpen- stock into the ice. Next thing he knew he was alone-alone on the edge of a giant crevasse, whose misty depths yawned silent as grave
 The instant they understood him a rescue party was formed, under the guidance of Herman, the lnnkeeper.
 All night the devoted men worked, and most of next day, But it was use- less. The glacier does not easily give up its prey.
 h
 A big, broad-shouldered, good-look- ing young fellow of about eight-and- twenty was sitting in dingy little room in Bloomsburg, answering a let ter he had just received.
 Harry Ballard had been looking out for a chance of accompanying read ing party abroad during the long vaca- ton and by good luck an even better billet had come his way. An old friend of his father-a MT Ffolkes-had writ ten to him to engage his services as tutor and general bear leader to his son, young Everard Ffolkes, during a forthcoming Swiss tour,
 He had always wanted to get abroad and now the chance had fallen his way he was resolved to make the most of it. Young Everard, his pupil, was nice lad, and the whole ex- petition seemed to partake more of l the nature of a holiday than serious 1 work, The two trudged afoot through | lovely valleys, up turf clad slopes, over rock bound, magnificent passes, drink Ing in the clear air and enjoying | themselves rather like two schoolboys than tutor and his pupil. Everard wanted to climb a mountain. |