Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1909-08-25
CHAPTER VIII.
THE MAN FROM nRopNEY's.

dered to the Brownies. They
~ We're obliged to humbly admit
in the seclusion of their own councils
that it was to the obnoxious but en-
crsetic Britt that they owed their pres
ent and ever growing comfort.
Late in the afternoon Of the day fol-
lowing the advent of the Brownies,
Lord and Lady Deppingham were la
boriously tanning themselves in the
midst of their sitting Marie Antoinette
elegance.
By Jove. Aggy. it's too beastly hot
here for words" growled he for the
hundredth time. II think we'd better
move into your grandfathers rooms"
Now. Deppy, don't let the Brownies
talk YOU into everything they suggest"
She complained, determined to be stub
born to the end. "They know entirely
too much"
'That's all very good, my dear. but
yon know quite as well as that we
made frightful mistake in choosing
these rooms. 1t is cooler on that side
of the house. Pm not too proud to be
comfortable. don't you know"
The next day they moved into the
west wing. and that evening they had
the Brownies to dine with them in the
banquet hall. Deppingham awoke in
the middle of the night with violent
cramps in his stomach.
Don't say n word to Lady Depping-
ham," he srunted. sitting up in bed
and gazing wildly at his valet, "but
I've been poisoned. The - serv-
ants-ouch!-don't you know! Might
have known. Silly ass! See what
mean? Get something for me-quick"
For two hours Antoine applied hot
water bags and soothing sirups, and
his master. far from dying us he con-
tinually prcphesied, dropped off into
peaceful sleep.
The next morning Deppingham. fully
convinced that the native servants had
tried to poison him, Internationally dis
charged the ontire force.
OF course there was great upheay-
al. Lady Agnes came tearing down to
the servants hill, followed directly by
the Brownies and Mr.. Britt.
Stop" she cried. .Deppy. what
are you doing? Discharging them
after we've had such time getting
them? Are you crazy?"
They're pack of snukes-l mean
sneaks. They're assassins. They tried
to poison every one of us l:,st''-
Britt smoothed the troubled waters
with astonishing ease. The servants
returned to their duties. but not with
out grnmbling and no end Of savage
glances. all of which were leyeled Mt
the luckless Deppingham.
why poison?" demanded Britt.
They've got knives and guns. haven't
they?"
MY dear man. that would put them
to no end Of trouble cleaning up after
u.s." said Deppingham loftily.
Meanwhile it may be well to depict
the situation from the enemy's point
of view-lhe enemy being the islanders
as unit. They were prepared to
abide by the terms of the will so long
as 1t remained clear to them that fair
treatment came from the opposing In
terests. Rasula. the Arafat lawyer in
mass meeting had discussed the docu-
ment. They understood its require
ments and its restrictions: they knew
4 by this time that there was small
chance of the original beneficiarics
coming into the property under the
provisions. Later came the news that
marriage between the heirs was out of
the question. Then the islanders
laughed as they toiled. But they were
not to be caught mapping. jacob Won
Blitz. the superintendent. stolid Ger
man that he was. saw far into the fu-
ture. 1t was he who set the native
lawyer unceremoniously aside and urg.
ed competent representation in Lon
don. The great law firm headed by
Sir John BrCdncy was chosen. A wide
awake representative Of the distin-
guished solicitors was now on his way
to the island with the swarthy COM
mittee which had created so much in.
terest iii the metropolis during its
brief stay.
Jacob Won Blitz came to the island
when lie was twenty years old. That
was twenty years before the death OF
Taswell SkagSc. He had worked il
the South African diamond fields and
had no difficulty in securing employ
ment with Skaggs and lNyckholme.
Won Blitz was shrewd enough to see
that the grandchildren were not com
ing to the island for the mere pleasure
of sojourning there; their motive was
plain. 1t was he who advised-eyen
~
desert the chateau.
He lived, with his three wives, in
the hills just above and south of the
town itself. The Englishmen who
worked in the bank and the three Boer
foremen also had houses up there
where it was cooler, but Won Blitz was
the only one who practiced polygamy
His wives were Persian women and
handsome after the Persian fashion.
One hot, dry afternoon about week
after the reopening of the chateau, the
siesta of swarthy population was
disturbed by the shouts of those who
kept impatient watch Of the sea. Five
minutes later the whole town of Ara.
tat knew that the smoke of steamer
lay low on the horizon. No one doubt.
ed that it came from the stack of the
boat that was bringing Rasula and
the English solicitor. Joy turned to
exultation when the word came down
from Won Blitz that it was the long
looked for steamship, the Sir Joshua.
Won BlitZ stood ut the landing place
to welcome Rasula and his comrades
and to be the first to clasp the hand
of the man from Brodney's.
At last his figure could be made out
on the forward deck. His straw hat
was at least head higher than the
turban Of Rasula, who was indicating
to lin the interesting spots in the hills.
Hes big" commented Won Blitz
comfortably. more to himself than tc
his neighbor. And young" he added
a few minutes later. gowles. standing