Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-03-01
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A Romance of the American Revolution
By w. GILMORE SIMMS

taking a route different from that
which would have been pursued by Da-
Wis.
"Come!" he cried impatiently to
Hastings, as the latter floundered slow
ly and with difficulty through the mire
and water. "Come!"
| The sergeant did his best to keep up
with his conductor. but he found 1t no
easy matter. Familiar with the
swamps-a wild dweller in their depths
-Frampton strode away almost as
easily as If upon the solid land. He
picked no path-he availed himself OF
no friendly log, offering sure footing
and an unimpeded path through the
slough; but dashing in, through bad
and good alike, he led the luckless
sergeant over a territory the worst he
had ever in his life travelled. Occa-
sionally, the maniac would pause, as
the other fingered behind, to utter the
expressive osyllable-"Come!" a
thrilling. half-suppressed sound, which,
from his lips, had a singularly fmpos-
ing accent in the ears of his destined
victim.
The fatigue of this progress served
in some degree to excite the appre-
tensions Of the captive sergeant; par
ticularly as the dimensions Of his guide
seemed so much larger than those
which belonged to Davis. How had
the latter grown? He shook off this
thought as well as he could, ascribing
it to his own imbecility, and trying to
account for the apparent size Of his
enemy, by ascribing 1t to the exagger-
ative medium Of the imperfect light
through which he beheld him. Still
his imagination was painfully I'M
h. h41 HrtcE hfFnoalf
fairly safe from the encounter. But
when he thought of the brother of
Bella Humphries, and his superior
rights and Superior power for venge-
ance, he plucked up courage, and con-
graduated himself on the choice which
fortune offered him between the
two enemies. He toiled forward
accordingly, with most praisewor-
thy perseverance, at the bidding Of
the maniac, who still kept ahead, until
they reached a hammock-a solemn
looking place enough-closely embow-
cred with the highest pines. and al
most isolated by the long and sinuous
lagune. through which Frampton had
already scrambled. The sergeant
shuddered to behold the black looking
water, the depth of which seemed i'm
measurable. But Frampton stood upon
the hammock, tall. seemingly, as one
of its pines, and waited for the victim,
and welcomed him with a wave Of the
hand, and still that stern monosylla-
ble-"come!"
The prospect disquieted the nerves
Of our sergeant, already considerably
disordered.
"Ugh!" he cried with a shudder, as
he looked at the lagune, and thought
of its depth and blackness. "Am /. to
go through this? 1t will take me to
the neck"
The maniac waved him forward i'm
patiently.
Surely" thought Hastings, "he will
give me time to rest for awhile. He
will not be for the fight right away.
have scarcely any breath"
"Come!" cried his enemy to him
across the lagune, 1t was with q feel
ing akin to desperation that the ser
geant plunged into 1t, and soon found
himself in a bed of mixed mire and
water, which closed round him instant
ly, almost to his middle. There was no
help but to struggle forward through
the ooze into which, while stationary
he continued to sink. With unsteady
footing he scrambled through the
slough. and drenched and dripping,
chilled and breathless, he at length
stood upon the bank, confronted by the
person who had led him thus far
through perilous ways. At the mo-
ment, wild and terrible laugh-a
shrill demoniac screech gave him well
come: and he recoiled from the sound
and from the strange person who now
met his eyes, with unmitigated horror.
'Who-who are you?" demanded
Hastings in feeble inquiry. where's
John Davis?"
John Davis? Ha! ha! ha! John
| To To- Gomez
come!"
Such was the response of the mad
| man.
"Oh! you are to lead me to him?"
said the other, but imperfectly reas-
sured.
"Come!" was all the reply.
But he told me he would come for
me himself"
"Come!" in a voice Of thunder; and
| like fierce spirit Of wrath, the ma
MAC waved his arms aloft, in the d.
rection of the deeper and darker woods
- forest wall, dense and dark, which
spread away impenetrably before
| them, The nerves Of Hastings were
not in condition to enable him to re-
sist the command The action Of the
stranger awed him. The terrible tones
of his voice seemed to paralyze all the
| faculties of the victim. He went for
ward passively, as a bullock to the
slaughter. The maniac led the way
without looking behind him. He SEEM
ed to think that the other must fol-
| low. More than once the sergeant
found himself measuring the size and
estimating the powers of his conduc-
| tor. Had he been weaponed 1t might
| have been easy to spring upon his
guide, and strike him down without
resistance. But Hastings could not
bring his will to cooperation with his
thoughts. Besides. this was not the
man. Were it John Davis or Bill
Humphries now" was his muttered
conclusion as he went forward.
The two penetrated the thick forest
and passed through a dense copse OF
some fifty PAGES. Suddenly, the scene
opened before them. upon a space, and
into a degree of light. that, emerging
as they did from the darkness, SEEM
ed really to blind and dazzle the pris-
oner's eyes. The hammock was here
quite bald showing somewhat like
what the western men called the Poor
Prairie, that is, they come upon II
as through door in the woods. Such
it was upon small scale.
Hastings looked upwards. The deer
vaults Of heaven were bare, and spread
| clear before him. without cloud, and
| lowered with it's prOfuse myriads OF
stars looking down upon the two Win
a loving softness, as If there were nc
crimes to be wept over in the VIDE
world Of humanity. The moon, too
had sent up in the rest a faint glory
the harbinger of her own coming
which spread itself afar like a gauzy
veil, clearly distinguishable from the
starlight which II now began to super
sede.
The wild man paused, looked briefly
upon the rich assemblage above him
/ turned back to beckon his companion
and once more with a wavino h""
led the way over the prairie. Hastings
followed like a tame dog. In a few
moments they had gained a tree-a
i huge cypress which stood on the oppo-
site side of the hammock-and there
the maniac paused. Acquiring conf
dence as he came up, Hastings ap-
preached his conductor. and was about
to speak to him, when, with finger
upon his lips, he silenced the forth
/, hNr