Pierre weekly free press. (Pierre, S.D.) 1889-19??, 1911-07-27
CHAPTER discontinued.

you will stay-eh. Nat?" he cried,
bobbing his head. Yes, you will stay,
and you will give me back the pack
age for day or two" He retreated
to the trap and slid down it as quick
ly as rat Pleasant dreams to you.
Nat, and-O, wait minute!" Cap
tain Plum could hear him pattering
quickly over the floor below In a
moment he was back, thrusting his
white grimacing face through the
trap and tossed something upon the
bed. She left them last night. Nat.
Pleasant dreams, pleasant Dreams"
and he was gone.
Nathaniel turned to the bed and
picked up faded bunch of lilacs.
Then he sat down. loaded his pipe,
and smoked until he could hardly see
the walls Of his little room From the
moment Of his landing on the island
he turned the events Of the day over
In his mind. Yet when he arrived at
the end of them he was no less mys-
titled than when he began Who was
Obadiah Price? Who was the girl
that fate had so mysteriously asso-
ciated with his movements thus far?
What was the plot in which he had
accidentally become involved? With
tireless tenacity he hung to these
questions for hours. That there was
a plot of some kind he had not the
least doubt. The councillors strange
actions, the oath, the package, and
oil h1 III, T.
convinced him of that. And he was
sure that Obadiah's night visitor-the
girl with the lilacs-was playing
vital part in 1t.
He plucked at the withered flowers
which the old man had thrown him.
He could detect their sweet scent
above the pungent fumes of tobacco
and as Obadiah's triumphant chuckle
required to him, the gloating JOY in
his eyes, the passionate tremble of his
voice. a grim smile passed over his
face. The mystery was easy of solu-
uon-if he was willing to reason along
certain lines. But he was not willing
He had formed his own picture Of
Strang's wife and it pleased him to
keep it. At moments he half con-
coded himself fool, but that did not
trouble him. The longer he smoked
the more his old confidence and his
old recklessness returned to him. He
had enjoyed his adventure. The next
day he would end 1t. He would go
openly into st. James and have done
his business with Strang. Then he
would return to his ship. What had
he. Captain Plum. to do with Strang's
wife?
But even after he had determined
on these things his brain refused to
rest. He paced back and forth
across the narrow room, thinking of
the man whom he was to meet to-
morrow-of Strang, the one-time
schoolmaster and temperance lecturer
who had made himself king, who
for seven years had defied the state
and nation, and who had made of his
island stronghold hot-bed of polyg.
amy, of Righteousness, of dissolute
power. His blood grew hot as he
Thought eess:: again CT the beautiful girl
who had appealed to him. Obadiah
had said that she was the kings wife
Still
Thoughts flashed into his head
which for time made him forget his
mission on the island. In spite of his
resolution to keep to his own scheme
he found himself. after little. think
Ing only of the Mormon king, and the
lovely face he had seen through the
castle window. He knew much abou
the man with whom he was to dea
tomorrow. He knew that he had beer
a rival of Brigham Young and tina
when the exodus of the Mormons K
the deserts of the west came he hat
led his own followers into the north
and that each July, amid barbaric fes