The Washington times., 1910-07-20
The Burning Image ss5.7ss VAN MARRIOTT

J hop" broke in the irrepressible Curly.
you needn't fret yourself 10 mora.
! We're right where we We're when those
Injuus jumped US That's the identical
rock where you was iyin' when the loo
tenant come up. totin' -zIiss Marian"
Marian started and the bishop rubbed
Dear me-" he observed, looking
around him 1T does look familiar, and
yet II seems changed. somehow
.,' IgTI5 s4 l'5l ought 10 be
bushels OF stone chopped promIscuous
or the edge Of place is kinder apt to
change il some
The bishop looked around him help
lessly- II scarce know what to say
he BEGAN PERHAPS we had better mead
f0r Mole St Nich0ias-''
But Marian broke in "Unclet' she
cried Have you forgotten FredZ7'
The bishop start Cd Good Heavenst"
/. ne exclaimed I hadI Oh, I am
ashamed ashamed heavens knows. /
love the boy, but I am getting old Mar
ian and cant stand things as 7 once
could This experience has been-has
been----. he faltered. and stopped
Never mind / ncles' Marian cried
Don't worry e wouldn't have done
Fred a bit Of good 81 you had been wor-
ryinE over him But II our friends wlIl
help us, we must try 20 hnd him" She
turned to Curly and me imploTingly.
we owe you q great deal already, she
continued But
You owe me nothing" 7 fnterruDted
eagerly Its the other way round
wouldn't have missed being in on his
for fortune u We can ind out where
Fred ls, III DO what man can to res
cue nlms n II gIupad a Httle---S!r
Henry hasn't already do so. Perhaps
Curly can tel US VIII .ther Sir Henry
and Fred nave passed here since we
The fror tiersmaa screwed his distorted
features INTO a grin wen. IOoteUzur.--
he returned. that's hard one. seem
as the Tall IS t-amplec t0ltablc Hard
and seem that the boy you're anxious
about wears a gals shoe just like your H.
Mss Marian But, II I had % mike a
guess. I d say they've both Of 'en been
Marian's face lighted up. "Do you
mean it.' she cried How do YOU
know
well" curly answered with another
grin. II guess ] must be the only one
IN this bunch tEars got any eyes. or
somebody else would ma seen that note
sticking In the cleft yonder- I'm glad
wasn't born blind.
3Iy eyes followed the direction Of the
frontiers man S finger ana lighted on a
NAlcn N IS thrust mo clelL ia tle
rock, not ten feet from where He stood.
Quickly piuCzeu il from it, place,
glanced At the suDerscription and hand
with trembling fingers she tore it
Open Uncle jncle-' she cried
ten 81 henry mas rescued me ana Is
taking ne you know where Hes
Marian-s hand, holding the note, drop
Pea by her side, and she turned -
curly can you follow them she
asked, eagerly. you are so clever.
Immediately the Dlainsuau shouldered
bis PACK SURE ne returned, lightly
Cbe5ienJly We followed the plalnsmau.
who led Us Tor 100 yards down the Way
~ which we had come the day before
lbeE he paused Tor an instant before
he pushed through a mask of bushes I
into another ard Tar narrower path up
which he proceeded qLste as fast as We
cared To follow him
cur progress was Mt unhappy. In
fart, we were all more cheerful than we
had been Tor days-proBably more s.
than we had been since that memorable
day at Virginia Springs, when the i'll
fated messenger Lad come % summon
Marian
OF all our party. Marian alone seemed
anxious, W0TrylnE about her brother. 7
thought Atler "a lille she apparently /
made up her mind 20 put the matter be-
nina her, and made an obvious EFFORT 70
The effort was failure however.
Both Of Us had too much 10 think about
O. permit our minds 10 be easily divert
ed. Behind ever word we uttered
doomed the ghost Of the past and the
vision 81 the future. until az last our
words died away, and We walked on IN
silence
I mad enough % think about. Tn the
turmoil O fthe last few days I had al
most forgotten my own situation. Now
it came back 20 me with re6cuhlad
force. Soon-for the chances were that
We were going 20 the abiding place of
the mysterious and rluCE-Cieslred
srranRer-my work would be done.
would have brought Marian 20 the home
Of her lover and could take my leave
and return 70 meet my fate / vas
ready.
Nov that had time TO think Of IT, I
realized what a load had passed from
my mind when I had defied Colonel
Nolta's men and wrecked his vessel I
was no no longer a spy, and the relief
Of being irrevOcabiy committed was ire
mend0us- All chance OF Colonel Volta g {
help auI- consequently. all hope OF eE-
onerarion from the crime with which I
was charged was at an end Disgrace. Z
sure and Inevitable. awaited me az the
end Of my tWo-month isaVe.
Yet, the fact that I was true 10
Marian. that I had served her. fought /
for her, and saved her by sea and by
land was compensation enough There
could be no happy ending 10 my story. +
Even ~ Marian We're rrEe- q ulSEracel 4
man could not ask Eer-C0uld not even
permit heT-tO give IT 10 me II must
be enough for me 10 see her happy with Z
the man OF her choice before 7 went (
back TO washington TO meet my fate Z
A sudden halt in Curly's advance in /
terrupted the course Of my reflections 4
and made me look Up He was stand 4
ing on the edge Of a clearing. in the 4
middle Of which stood q large, square, }