Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-03-12

! CHANGED to come along. without uouDt
] a craft of some sort would pass from
J one direction or the other by tomorrow
at least. or, If not, she and Poleon could
! send back succor to him from the first
! habitation they encountered The two
! men disappeared again. and her fears had
/ begun to prey on her second time When
she beheld the big Canadian returning
! He was hurrying bit, apparently TO De
rid of the mosquitoes that swarmed
| about him; and she marked that. in addi-
ton to whipping himself with handful
| of BURBERRY bushes, he wore Runnion
| coat to protect his shoulders.
| "Woof! Dose skeeter bug is hongry,
/ ne cried. Lets we pass on de river
} queeck."
/ You didn't touch him again.
mo, no. I'm trough wit i'm"
! She was only too eager to be away
/ from the spot and an instant later they
were afioat in the Peterborough.
dis nice batteau," Poleon remarked:
critically IT MAX it go fas'," and be-
gan to row swiftly, seeking the breeze
of the open river in which to shake off
the horde OF singing pests that had risen
with the sun. Il come way queeck
without t'inkin' bout gun or skeeter net
or not'in Runnion she's len me dis
coat, so mebbe DON look so worse lax
1 do jus now. eh?'
How did you leave him? Is he badly
! injured?"
mo, | bus it up on de face an de
rib, but she's feelin' good now. Yes I'm
! leave i'm nice place for stop an wait
on de steamboat-plaintee spruce bough
/ for set on
She began to shudder again, and, sem
sitive to her every motion, he asked, So
| licitously, if she were sick, but she shook
| her head.
a'T-I-was thinking what-supposing you
| hadn't come? Oh, Poleon you don't know
what you saved me from" She leaned
forward and laid a tiny, grateful hand
on the huge brown paw that rested on
his oar. 81 wonder if can ever forget?
She noted that they we're running With
the current, and inquired:
where are we goingT
| oval / can't pull dis boat 'gainst dat
current so L guess we pass on till fin
my shirt, den bimebye we pick it up some
steamboat an go home"
Five miles below his quick eye detect
ed his half-submerged bark lodged be-
meath some overhanging frs which. from
the waters action, had fallen forward
| into the stream, and by rare good-fortune
1 it was still upright, although awash. he
| lowed IL to the next sand bar, where he
| wrung out and donned his shirt, Their
| tipped the water from the smaller craft,
and, making it fast astern of the Peter.
borough, set out again. Towards noon
they came in sight of a little stern
wheeled craft that puffed and battered
manfully against the sweeping current,
hiding behind the points and bars and
! following the slackest water.
Its the mission boat" cried Necia.
Its the mission boat! Father Barnum
/ will be aboard"
! She waved her arms madly and mingled
| her voice with Poleon's until a black
robed figure appeared beside the pilot
house.
Father Barnum!" she screamed, and.
recognizing her, he sfgnaled back.
| Soon they were alongside, and a pair Of
Siwash deckhands lifted Necia aboard.
Doret following after, the painter of the
Peterborough in his teeth. He dragged
laid them bottom up on the forward deck,
tfen climbed the narrow little stairs to
| find Necia in the arms Of a benignant,
| white-haired priest, the best-beloved man
on the Yukon, who broke away from the
girl to greet the Frenchman, his kind
face alight with establishment.
What is all this / hear? Slowly.
Doret, slowly! My little girl is talking
! too furiously for these poor old wits to
| ". L can understand l. am amazed.
| What Is this tale?''
Together they told him, while his blue
eyes now opened wide with wonder, now
grew soft with pity. then blazed with
Indignation. When they had finished he
| laid his hand upon Doret's shoulder.
| MY son, 1 thank God for your good
| body and your clean heart. You saved our
Necia, and you will be rewarded. AS, to
this-this-man Runnion, we must find
him, and he must be sent out of the
country; this new, clean land of ours is
no place for such as he. You will be our
pilot, Poleon, and guide us to the spot"
1t required some pressure to persuade
the Frenchman, but at last he consented
| and as the afternoon drew to a close the
| little steamboat came squattering and
wheeling up to the bar where Runnion
had built his fire that morning, and a
long, shrill blast summoned him from
the point above. When he did not appear
the priest took Poleon and his round
faced, silent crew of two and went up
the bank, but they found no sign of the
| crippled man, only few rags. a tram
pied patch of brush at the forests edge,
| and-that was all. The springy moss
showed no trail the thicket gave no an
swer to their cries, although they spent
an hour in a scattered search and sound
Gu ln6 SlSdHnDOdl WHlSllS again anu
| again.
Hes try for walk it back to camp"
said Doret. "Mebbe he amt hurt 90
much, after ALL"
You must be right" said Father Bar
mum. I'VE will keep the steamer close to
this shore, so that he can hail us when
we overtake him"
And so they resumed their teoilsome
trip; but mile after mile fell behind them.
and still no voice came from the woods,
no figure hailed them. Doret, inscrutable
and silent lounged against the pilot
house, smoking innumerable cigarettes.
which he rolled from squares of newspa-
per, his keen eyes apparently scanning
every foot of thei, slow way; but when
night fell. at last, and the bank faded
from sight he tossed the last butt over
board, smiled grimly into the darkness,
and went below.
Continued in Next Issue
MAN WAKES tn FIND