Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1908-08-07
cHAPTER xyIII-contInued.

&08&s DAt R&@AAA0 49, ~F~E
had emboldened this ignorant man
WAS ashamed to seem TO hesitate
When the hostler Knocked at the doc
mot of 80, but Of 15--and IL present
ly opened, ! went in without muc
ado.
The room was a bare Inn chamber
A pallet without covering lay In on
corner. In the middle were a coupl'
OF stools and on one OF them a taper
The person who had opened to u
stood cycling us a~ttentiyely. a blum
weather beaten man with a tnici
beard and the air OF a sailor. Well
he said, what
These gentlemen want to buy some
lace" the hostIer explained.
"What lace do they want?" was ths
retort.
French lace" / answered.
You nave come to the right shop
then" the man answered briskiy
Nodding TO our conductor TO depart
he carefully let him out. Then. bar
ring the door behind him, he as rap
idly strobe to the pallet and twitclled
1t aside, disclosing a trapdoor. He
lifted this and we saw a. narrow SMART
descending into darkness. He brought
the taper and held II so as TO throw
faint light into the opening. There was
no ladder, but blocks OF wood nailed
alternately against two Of the sides,
at intervals of q couple OF feet or SO.
made the descent pretty easy for an
active man. "The door is on this
side" he said. pointing out the one,
KNOCK loudly once and softly twice.
The word is the same"
We nodded. and while he held the
taper above we descended one by one
without much difficulty, though ! adj
nit that half way down the old wom-
ans words, go On and perish" came
ack ~disquietingly to my mind. How
ever, my foot struck the bottom be-
fore / had time to digest them. and q
streak OF light which seemed to issue
from under a door forced my thoughts
the next moment into a new cham
mel. Whispering to Master Ber-
tie to pause a minute. for
there was only room for n
OF us to stand at the bottom of the
shaft. I knocked In the fashion pre-
scribed.
The sound OF loud voices, which I
had already detected, ceased on a
sudden, and I heard a shutting on the
other side of the boards. This was
followed by silence. and then the
door was flung open. and blinded for
the moment by a blaze OF light I
walked mechanically forward into a
room. i made out as / advanced q
group OF men standing round a rude
table, their figures thrown into dark
relief by flares stuck In on
the walls behind them. Some had
weapons In their hands. and others
had partly risen from their seats and
stood In pastures OF surprise. What
do you seek2D cried a threatening
voice from among them.
Lace" ] answered.
What lace?"
french lace"
Then YOU are welcome-heartily
wcicome,' was the answer. given In a
tone OF relief. But who comes with
your"
Master Richard Berthe, of Lincoln
shire I answered promptly. and at
that moment he emerged from the
shaft.
A still more hearty murmur OF well
come hailed his name and appearance,
and we were borne forward to the
table amid a chorus of voices, the
greeting given TO Master Berthe being
that of me who joyfully hail an
vaulted ceiling and stone floor and
the trans OF casks which lay here and
There or near the table serving for
seats, appeared to be a cellar. It's
dark. gloomy recesses. the 1aring
lights nj the weapon on the table
seemed meet and fitting surroundings
for the anxious faces which We're gath
cred about the board. for there was a
something In the air which vas not so
much secrecy as a thing more unpleas-
nnt-suspici0n n mistrust. Almost
mt the momen OF our entrance 1t
showed itself. One OF the men. before
The door had well closed behind us,
went toward u, as n TO go out the
aeader-he who had questioned me-
called sharply TO him. bidding him
come back. And he came back. but re-
luctantly, as 1t seemed to me-.
/ barely noticed this. for Master Ber-
tie, who was known personally 70
many ard by name to all, was intro
ducing me to two who were apparent
~ the leaders-Sir Thomas Penrud-
docke, a air man as tall as myself,
loose lirnbed and untidily dressed, with
a reckless eye and q loud tongue; and
Master Walter Kingston, a younger
brother, I was told. of that sir An
thony Kingston who had suffered
death the year before for conspiracy
against the queen--the same IN which
Lord Devon had showed the white
feather. Kingston was q young mai
or moderate height and slender. of 9
brown complexion ara delicate. al.
most womanish beauty. his sleepy dark
eyes and dainty mustache suggesting
4 temper rather amiable than firm
But the spirit Of revenge had enteret
into him, and ! soon learned that no
even Penruddocke. a Cornish knight Q
longer lineage than purse. was so We
henleut q plotter or so devoted to tn
cause. Looking at the others, IN,
heart sank. It needed no greater ex
perience than mine to discern that ex
cept three or four whom 1 identfhe'
as stout professors OF religion, the
were men rather of desperate fortune
than good estate. I learned on the In
slant that conspiracy makes strang
bedfellows, and that II Is impossibl
to do dirty dork even With the pures
i-ntentions--in good company! MaStc
Bertie's face indicated to n VIII
knew him as well al 1 did somethin
or the same feeling, n could the cicc
have been put back awhile, and "
placed with free hands and uncom
mitted outside the gatehouse. l thin
we should with one accord have turne
our backs on II and given up IN al
tempt which, In his company, coul
scarcely fare mi way but i'll still Il
good or evil the die was cast now, an
retreat was out Of the question.
We had confronted too many daf
eers during the last three years not
S nb11 TO lace this ono With = gof
courage, and presently Master Eerti
<akin8 i. cent, requested to be told
fho strength and plans OF our nsSs
c1a<es, h19 b~us1ntssiike manner tntr<
d1o3ng a. once some degree Of ord
and n1ethod into Il confererce Whi<
<~efor&x our arrival had-ur1Soe 4 NJ!
n1irch4 miefaken~-been conspicuous