Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1909-08-25
Continued.


whom he had noticed yesterday by the
water-seller's stall, and now, as he
stood beside the chief, bowling re-
spectfully yet speaking with the free
dom of a son, the likeness between
the two faces was quite noticeable
In twenty gears tine, if he lived the
same lawless life, the young face
would be probably an exact reproduc-
ton Of the old.
Brancaleone turned his naughty
gaze upon the prisoner.
Your name, signor?" he inquired.
Il am Carlo Poerio Donati," he re-
piled. For what purpose have you
brought me here? If money is your
object, am as poor as any man in
Naples
The chief did not answer, but or
dered one of the banditti to search
the prisoner. The man obeyed, and
handed the contents of Carlos peck
cts to the leader, who at once singled
out the watch and chain and handed
them to Lionbruno.
This is your share, my son; you
have done WELL" he remarked.
The rest of the things he pushed
collectively toward the three men who
mad helped in the capture; they
snatched eagerly at the purse, and
grumbled much to find so little in 1t.
Meanwf lie Carlo stood motionless.
Sometimes it seemed to him that the
whole scene must be some wild imag.
ination of his own brain Had he,
perhaps, been so overweight by the
hurrying griefs and joys of the past
few weeks that his mind had become
deranged? Or was he asleep, and
was 1t all dream arising out of some
confused recollections of the strug-
Cling he had witnessed in the panic,
and Enthusiastically blended with the
gypsy camp scene in Carmen A
horrible giddiness seized him--the re-
suit, probably. of the blow he had re-
ceived and the exhausting walk which
had followed. He staggered a little.
but recovered himself, and once more
turned to the chief with the same
question.
For what purpose have you brought
me here?"
you bear name, sigonr, that I
once revered," said the chief coldly;
land for the sake of that l viii answer
you, though / am not usually Ques
toned by my prisoners. You come
here to replenish my purse. There
are those who were willing to pay
well for my sons little eseapade, and
your stay here will be quite free of
cost to yourself.
q will double the sum If you win re
lease me at once!' exclaimed Carlo
But the chief shook his head.
in the words OF the proverb, signor
e megio aver oggi un uovo che
dimani una gallina'' nor do l ever
turn from my word. Rocco make
haste with the ironsi"
Again that horrible, giddy confusion
rose in Carlos brain; he was very
dimly aware of what happened during
the next few minutes; but the parox-
ysm passed. and he found that they
We're leading him through a cata-
corr, and that Lionbruno, torch in
hand. headed the procession. The
which showed signs of habitation
and here his guards left him. with
Lionbruno only as sentinel. He no,
ticed that his arms had been un.
strapped. but that there was a chain
round his waist to which Que foot and
one hand were attached, and the
weight of iron was so great that he
could only move with difficulty. He
remembered that Poerio himself had
worn such letters for years. and again
the dream-like feeling crept over him,
He could hardly persuade himself
that he was actually Carlo Donati, the
singer living in the peaceful days of
King Humbert.
Meanwhile, the SOP of the chief was
regarding the Ar, prisoner for whose
capture he Was .esr2nsible, with some
thing like embarrassment. He had
expected on the part of his victim an
abject terror, a piteous appeal for
mercy. which would effectually have
steeled his heart against him, which
would have genuinely pleased his
pride. and made opportunities 1or
cruelty delightful But now that he
had got his wish and with exceptional
GOODNESS and daring had kidnapped his
man in broad daylight and within a
few miles of Naples, he found, much
to his disgust, that, far from feeling
a hero, he had vague sense of dis
comfort and shame, for which he
could not IN the least account.
You still feel the effects of the
blow, sigonr?' he inquired. pushing
together with his foot the shavings
which had accumulated about car
penter's bench that stood in a corner
of the cell. You had better lie down
and rest" He made a gesture toward
the pile of shavings. wondering
greatly at himself as he did so.
Carlo, however, took no heed of the
suggestion; instead, he drew nearer
to his jailer.
81 am your prisoner" he said
gravely, and wholly at your mercy
as you reminded me just now; but we
are fellow-men. DO not keep me any
longer in the dark Tell me what
Generic means to do"