The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1911-07-20

IA Out OF the grim loneliness at the
! foot of the mountain there doomed a
/ shadow. which at first Rowland took
! TO be huge mass of rock. A few
/ steps farther and he saw that it was
building Croisset gripped him firmly
i by the arm.
i Stray here, he commanded. Il viii
return soon.
| / For a quarter of an hour Howlant
/ waited. Twice in that interval the dog
howled above him. He was glad when
/ Croisset appeared out of the. gloom
1T is as thought. m'seur There is
death down here Come with ne"
The shadow of the big building
shrouded them as they approached
Rowland could make out that it was
built of massive logs and that there
seemed to be neither door nor window
on their side And yet when Jean hesi-
/ tated for an instant before blotch OF
gloom that was deeper than the others
he knew that they had come to an en-
trance.
Rowland could feel the half breeds
hand clutch him nervously by the arm
as they went step by step into the
black and silent mystery of the place.
/ Soon there came fumbling of Crois-
sets hand at latch, and they passed
through second door. Then Jean
struck a match.
Half dozen steps away was table
and on the table a lamp. Croisset
/ lighted it and with quiet laugh faced
the engineer. They were in a low.
! dungeon-like chamber without win
! dow and with but the one door
through which they had entered. The
table. two chairs. a stove and bunk
built against one of the log walls were
all that Rowland could see. But it
was not the barrenness of what he i'm
! agined was to be his new prison that
] held his eyes in staring inquiry on
/ Croisset 1t was the look in his com
/ panion's face. the yellow pallor of fear
Ia horror that had taken possession
of it. The haif breed closed and. bolted
I the door and then saf down beside the
table. his thin face peering up through
/ the sickly lamp glow al the engineer.
/ ..Mseur. 1t would be hard for you to
i guess where you are"
Rowland waited.
i IF you had lived in this country
] long. m'senr. you would have heard
of Ia Maison de Mort Rouge-the house
t Of the Red Death. as you would can
it. That is where we are--in the dun
/ geon room It is a Hudson Bay post.
abandoned almost since ! can remem-
( Der When ! was a child the smallpox
plague came this way and Killed all
tie people Nineteen years age the
red plague came again, ard not one
lived through it in this Poste de Mort
! Rouge Since then it has been left
to the weasels ard the owls. It is
Stunned BY every FIXING soui between
the Athabasca and the bay. That is
why ycu are safe here
..Ye gods.' breathed Rowland. rs
there anything more. groisset? Safe
from what. man: Safe from what p
From those who wish to kill you,
m'seur. You would not 20 into the
i south 50 Ia belle ,Neleese has. compel
/ led you to so into the north. Cornpre-
neg vous. You w0ald have died last
night. n'spur. had it not been for Me
leese. You escaped from the coyote
i but you would net have escaped from
1 the other That. is all | can tell you
i But you will be safe here Those who
i seek your life viii soon believe that
you are dead. and taen We will let gou
go back is that not y kind fate for
one who deserves to be cut into bits
and fed to the ravens2
you will fell me nothing more.
Jean?" the engineer asked.
Nothing. except that while would
like to kill you have sympathy for
you. That perhaps is because once
4 lived in the south For six years
was with the company in Montreal,
where | went to school,"
Then be unbolted and opened the
door. Family there came to them. as
if from great distance, the wailing
grief of Woonga, the dog.
"You said, there was death here. y
| whispered Rowland, leaning close to
his shoulder.
4
since the last plague replied Croisset
under his breath He lost his wife
and children. and it drove him mad.
That is why we came down so quietly.
He lived in little cabin out there on
the edge of the cleaxing. and when
went to it tonight there was sapling
over the house with flag at the end
of it. When the plague comes to US
we hang out red flag as warning
to others. That is one Of our laws.
The flag is blown to tatters by the
winds. He is dead"
Rowland shuddered.
"Of the smallpox
"Yes.''
For a few moments they stood in ST.
lence Then Croisset added, "You will
remain here. m'seur. until return"
He went out. closing and barring the
door from the other side. and How
land seated himself again in the chair
beside the table. Fifteen minutes lat
er the half breed returned. bearing
with him good sized pack and two
gallon jug.
There is wood back of the stove
81