Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-01-09
CHAPTER XIX.

CHAPTER XIX.
Roscoe.
Roscoe had never been ablc to clear
up his doubt a. to Jeannes Identity.
nor to solve the mystery Of Cayley's
appearance in the air. The doubt
and the mystery tormented him worse
than any final conviction could have
done. When he thought. az he some.
times did. that tho cause Of al his
terror, the thing which kept him
penned up here in the cave and de-
MED him access to more than the fur.
tive edges Of the beach, might be Just
. rather defenseless human couple. Q
man ana = woman, and the woman
beautiful. young, alluring-when he
thought Of all that he would go OF
into transports of rage. which left
even his gigantic body limp and ex.
hausted. If that were the situation.
he might have killed the man weeks
ago and taken possession Of the
woman.
Tho thing that kept him sane vs..
In itself. . species Of insanity, the pas
sion for gold which had led him to
murder Captain Fielding. Every day
he trampsd up the glacier TO the gold
ledge and there. while the light lasted.
he worked. cutting the precious metal
out OF the rock. ana with infinite labor
beating It pure.
A. the weeks and months dragged
along. this UNMARRIED routine more than
compensated for the solitude and the
terrors his superstition thrust upon
him. and gradually restored him to his
old normal. formidable, brutal self
On the day when he made the discovery
that was to terminate the long series
Of golden days which Jeanne and
Philip had been enjoying, he was
again, the very man who. during those
long years Of exile. had dominated
crew and captain Of the Walrus- and
bent them to his will.
He wss returning from the ledge
along the crown of tho glacier. when
on the day Of this discovery. he found
that his accustomed path was inter
rupted by q new fissure in the ice: II
had occurred since he had come that
way In the morning, and was too
broad to leap across. SO he was forced
to descend by the rougher and mors
diMcult tract which lay along the
moraine.
Before he had gone three paces
along this track his eve made out
something. Just of his patch and . lit
tie below It. which caused him at first
to utter . snarl Of anger. but led him
tho next moment to give Q Wild bias
nhAvnoNs vall ~ inv
The great assure which had opened
in the ice had done. in an instant
what the party from the Aurora had
failed to do after hours Of hard labor
1T had yielded up the body Of Perry
Hunter, which. during all these
months, IL had kept imprisoned.
Strapped across the dead mans
shoulders. Just where he had carried
IL In life. was q rife and around his
middle belt full Of cartridges.
The next instant Roscoe was bend
ing over the body, Jerking savagely
at the frozen buckles which resisted
his impatient fingers. But they wers
mot to be denied. II they were clum
~, the hands were strong.
It was not i've minutes later when
Roscoe. rife and ammunition belt II
his hands. was hurrying on toward his
cave once more. The body lay just
where his desecrating hands had lefa
IL.
The ride was uninjured: that he had
seen ct . glance. though Of course
all the mechanism Of its breech was
frozen fast. But half hours hard
work with cleaning rod and rags a
what once had been Q shirt, su@cea
to put It into commission again.
Then, with the rife over his Oh J.
der. he swagssrsd out Of the cave.
With his nrst glance abroad. be
started. His devil was being hal -
him today. There could be no doubt
OF that Only. was hs being too kind1
Roscoe wondered . little unsasily.
FOR, stumbling along the ice. through
the thitkening twilight, not 100 PAGES
away, was . big bear. Roscoe was
tired Of Walrus meat. The thought Of
. bear steak made his mouth water.
Three years disusc. however. had
made his marksmanship somewhat
uncertain. He fred too soon. and
though he did not miss, the only Of
feet his shot had was TO make the
bear turn about and 60 Ghamblin8
down the glacier toward the beach.
with ungainly haste. Roscoe hurried
after him. and nred two more shots.
Whether they hit or not, he could not
tell. Certainly they did not serve to
check tho bears flight The neat nc
ment he had rounded the corner Of
the cliff and disappeared down the
beach In the direction Of the hut.
Roscoe hssitated. but only for .
moment; tAsa. with q oath. b ct
out in pursuit Il was not % much
the protection which the ride afforded
him that was responsible for this new
courage - II was that the mere feel
a it In his hands brought him back
In touch once more with the every.
day matter q fact world. and made
his visions ana ghosts seem . little
unreal.
Il was fully dark down here In the
shadow OF the cli6. The numbering yel-
low shape of the bear was indistin.
guishable against the icy beach. That
didn't matter. for he could follow
along well enough by the bloody