Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1908-03-28

bed and huddhnR on my clothes ana
| thrusyug my seet into my boots like
one possessed. My heart was beating
as fast as If | had been running In a
| race and my hands were shaking win
| the shock OF The alarm, The lmpa
| tieui voice without was Master Prit-
! chaTds and il rang with al the Nenge-
/ ful passion which | should have eN-
| pected that gentleman, duped, ducked
and robbed. to be feeling. There would
/ be little mercy to be had at his hands
| Moreover my ears. grown as keen for
/ the moment as the hunted hare's dis
! tiHguisEed the uamping Of at least
! hair "a dozen horses, SO that II was
| clear that he had come with force
at his back Resistance would be use
less Ny sole chance lay In fight II
/ flight should still be possible.
Even IN my haste / did not forsake
! the talisman which had served me so
| wei, hut staid an instant to thrust Il
into roy pocket. rhe Cluddes have !
| fancy, a knack OF keeping cool in emer-
I gencies getting indeed the cooler the
greater the stress.
BY his time the inn was thorough
/ ~ aroused Doors were opening and
/ shutting on all sides OF me, and quss-
/ lions were being shouted in different
| tones from room 10 room. In the midst
/ Of the hub bub ! heard the landlord
| come out muttering, and go down
stairs to open the door instantly
unlatChed mine. slipped through il
! stealthily sneaked a step OF two down
/ the passage and then came plump up
| IN the dark against some one who was
! moving as softly as myself The sur
/ prise was complete, and | should have
| cried out at the unexpected collision
! had not the unknown laid cold hand
on my mouth and gently pushed me
| back into my room.
! Here tNaTg was nov "a faint pliTDDDpv 2
/ Of dawn. and by this / saw that my
/ companion was the serving maid.
! Hist" she said, speaking under her
/ breath. Is IT you they want?"
! nodded.
u thought 50. she muttered
| Then YOU must get out through your
| window. You cannot pass them They
are armed Quick Knot this about the
! bars. II Is no great depth TO the bot e.
| tom, and the ground is soft from the
! rain"
! She tore as she spoke, the coverlet
1 from the bed. and twisting il into a
/ kind of rope helped me TO secure one
! corner Of 1t about the window bar
/ When you are down" she whispered.
Keep along the wall to the right until
! you come TO a haystaCk. Turn To the
] left there-you VIII have TO ford the
water-and you VIII soon be clear Of
/ the town. Look about you then, and
| you viii see a horseback. which leads
! TO Elstreet, running in line with the
London road, bus a mile from it and
| through the woods. At Elstree any
| path to the left will take YOU 70
/ Barnet and not two miles lost"
Heaven bless you!" ! said, turning
from the gloom the dark sky and
/ driving scud without to peer grateful
/ ~ at her Heaven bless you for a good
! womani'
-, "a Goa ly..,, ,.,,, 60. q. t,,,,,,,,. t,,. .,
! che whispered.
/ kissed her, forcing into her hands
"a thing the remembrance of which
( is very pleasant to me to this day-my
/ last piece of gold.
A moment more and / stood un-
! nurt but almost up 70 my knees in
mud. IN an alley bounded on both
| sides as far as l could sees by blind
walis. Stopping only 10 indicate by a
| low whistle that ] was safe. | turned
and sped away as fast as | could run
! IN the direction which she had pointed
! out There was no one abroad and IN
/ . shorter time than / had expected
! found myself outside the town, travel
! ing over Kind of moorland tract
! bounded in the distance by woods.
( Here l picked up the horsetraCk X
/ easily enough. and without stopping
save for a short breathing space, hur-
! ried along II 10 gain the shelter of the
! trees So far so good. | had reason
/ to be thankful. But my case was still
/ an Indifferent one. More than once in
| getting out Of the town / had slipped
and fallen. ! was wet through and
/ plastered with dirt owing TO these mis-
/ haps. and my clothes were in woe
! ful plight, For a time excitement kept
/ me up, however, and l made good way
/ warmed by the thoug hi that I had
/ again baffled the great bishop II was
| only when naU had a
/ grown on to noon, and / saw no sign
! Of any pursuers, that thought got the
/ upper hand.
Then l began 10 compare, with some
! bitterness Of feeling, my present con-
! dition--wet, dirty and homeless-with
| that which ! had enjoyed only a week
| before. and il needed all my courage
TO support me. Skulking, half famished
! between Barnet and Totterham, otter
| compelled TO crouch in bitches or be-
! hind walls while travellers went by, and
: liable each instant TO have to leave the
highway and take to my heels, I had
! leisure to feel, and / did feel more
| keenly. / think, that afternoon than al
any later time. the bitterness of fort
une. cursed Stephen Gardiner a
dozen times and dared not let my
thoughts wander TO my father. ] had
said that | would build my house
! afresh. Well, truly / was building IL
| from the foundation.
1t added very much to my misery
! that IL rained all day a cold, half frozen
rain. The whole afternoon / spent In
hiding, shivering and shaking, in a hole
| under a ledge near Totterham, being
! afraid 10 go into London before night
fall lest / should be waited for at the
gate and be captured. Chilled and be-
| draggled as l was and weak, through
want OF food, which / dared not &c
| out TO beg, the terrors of capture
got hold OF my mind and presented
| TO me one by one every horrible form
| of humiliation, the stocks, the pilory
| the cart tail-so that even Master
Pritchard. could he have seen me, and
| known my mind. might have pitied me:
so that | loathe TO this day the hours
/ spent in that foul hiding place Be
| tween q mans best and worse there
| is little but platter of food.
The way this was put an end to
| wen remember. kn old woman came
into the field where l lay hid to drive
home a COW. l had had my eyes on
this COW for at least an hour, having
made up my mind to milk IL for my
own benefit as soon as the dusk fell
In my disappointment at seeing il
driven off and also out of a desire tC
| learn whether the old dame might not
/ be going TO milk IL in a corner of the
| pasture, In which case | might still
/ Sti an dlltT taste, CTdWled SO faf
/ out OF my hole that, turning suddenly
| she caught sight OF me. I expected to
! see her hurry OFF. but she did not She
J took long look and then came back
, toward me, making, however, az il
! seemed to me. as II she did not see
/ me. When she had come within a few
! feet of me, she looked down abruptly
and our eyes met What she saw in
mine | can only guess. In hers | read
q divine pity. oh moor lad She
murmured, "Oh, YOU poor, poor lad!"
, and there were tears in her voice
| was SO weak--it was almost "a
hours since I had tasted food, and !
had come "a miles in the tme-that
at that ! broke down and cried like
a child.
learned later that the old woman
took me for just the same person for
whom the bailiff at ST. Adams had
mistaken me-a young apprentice
named Hunter who had got into
trCTlhlg 1hOlIt rflIesinr apI