Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1912-03-01
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house, the latter with a meal sacl
slung over his shoulder.
Here, Solomon, take one of my pis
tolls" urged the judge hastily. "Yo'
may need it at Belle Plain. Good-by
and God bless you!"
Just where he had parted from
Ware, Darlington sat his horse, hi
brows knit and his eyes turned In th'
direction OF the path. He was on hi
way to a plantation below Girard, th'
owner of which had recently imported
a pack Of bloodhounds; but this un'
expected encounter with Ware had af'
fected him strangely. He still heard
Toms stammering speech, he was still
seeing his ghastly face, and he hat
come upon him with startling sudden
ness. He had chanced to look bacl
over his shoulder and when he facet
about there had been the planter with
in a hundred yards Of him.
Presently Carrington's glance ceased
to follow the windings of the path. He
stared down at the gray dust and saw
the trail left by Hues and his party
For a moment he hesitated; II the
dogs were to be used with any hope
of success he had no time to spare
and this was the merest suspicion, II.
logical conjecture. based on nothing
beyond his distrust of Ware. In the
end he sprang from the saddle anf
leading his horse into the woods. tiet
1t to a sapling.
A hurried investigation told him thai
five men had ridden in and out Of thai
path. OF the five, all coming from the
south, four had turned south again
but the fifth man-Ware, in Other
words-had gone north. He weighed
the possible significance Of these facts
Il am only wasting time!" he con-
fessed reluctantly, and was on the
point of turning away, when, on the
very edge of the road and just where
the dust yielded to the hard clay Of
the path, his glance lighted on the
print of small and daintily shod foot
The trobbing Of his heart quickenet
curiously
Betty" The word leaped from hi.
lips.
That small foot had left but one i'm.
press. There were other signs, how.
ever that claimed his attention; name
ly, the boot-prir ts Of Slosson and hi!
men: and he made the inevitable dis.
covery that these tracks were all con.
fined to the one spot They begar
suddenly and as suddenly ceased, YET
there was no mystery about these; he
had the marks Of the wheels to help
him to a sure conclusion. A carriage
had turned just here, several men had
alighted, they had with them a child
or woman. Either they had re-en.
tered the carriage and driven back as
they had come. or they had gone to.
ward the river. He felt the soul with
in him turn sick.
He stole along the path: the terror
Of the river was ever in his thoughts
and the specter Of his fear seemed to
fit before him and lure him on. Pres
emily he caught his first glimpse OF
the bayou and his legs shook under
him; but the path wound deeper still
into what appeared to be an untouch-
ed solitude, wound on between the
crowding tree forms, little back from
the shore, with an intervening tangle
Of vines and bushes. He scanned this
closely as he hurried forward, scarce
ly conscious that he was searching
for some trampled space at the waters
edge; but the verdant wall preserved
its unbroken continuity. and twenty
minutes later he came in sight of the
Hicks clearing and the keel boat
where 1t rested against the bank.
A little farther on he found the spo,
where Slosson had launched the skin
the night before. The keel of his boat
had cut deep into the slippery clay;
more than this, the impress Of the
small shoe was repeated here, and just
beside 1t was the print Of child's bare
foot
He no longer doubted that Betty
and Hannibal had been taken acros!
the bayou to the cabin, and he rar
back up the path the distance of G
mile and plunged into the woods or
his right. his purpose being to pass
around the head Of the eXpanse Of
sluggish water to point from which
he could later approach the cabin.
But the cabin proved to be better
defended than he had foreseen; and a,
he advanced the difficulties Of tht
task he had set himself became almos
insurmountable; yet sustained as hi
was by his imperative need, he tor,
his way through the labyrinth of trail
ing vines, or fioundered across acre.
wide patches Of green slime and blacl
mud, which at each step threatened t
engulf him In their treacherou
depths, until at the end Of an hour h,
6oiiCN IL WI lnC SlCdt
ing and a firmer footing within tn,
shelter of the woods.
Here he stopped and took stock D
his surroundings. The two or thrt
buildings Mr.. Hicks had erected stoG'
midway of the clearing and were yer,
modest Improvements adapted to thei
owners somewhat fiippant pursuit O
agriculture. While Darlington wa
still staring about him. the cabin dco
swung open and woman stepped
forth. 1t was the girl, Bess. She ven
to a corner of the building and callet
loudly:
Joe. Oh, joe"
Darlington glanced in the direction
of the keel boat and an instant late
saw Slosson Chamber over It's side. TIL
tavern-keeper crossed to the cabin
where he was met by Ress, who place.
in his hands what seemed to be
wooden bowl. With this he slouchet
off to one of the outbuildings, whicl
he entered. Ten or fifteen minute
slipped by, then ne came from the she,
and after securing the door, returne,
to the cabin. He was again met b.
Bess. who relieved him of the bowl
yl-.