Perth Amboy evening news., 1912-05-17

Copyright, a. @ hcCiurs & %, 1871.

i%OlNS L i'm L ar Whol you
wear, as long as it suits you. Ny
business? oh, l explained all that tc
your putty-faced servant--Saint Anne!
that fellowl But I'll review the mat
ter again. I'm drumming up C~linton'a
deserters, but now I've met you I'm
tempted to go along with you as far as
Elmhurst."
Become e deserter YOURSELF"
"0h, NO, or at least only Temporal
rily, There will be plenty Of fighting
yet in the Jerseys. Clinton's whipped
all right, and is going to have a time
getting away to the ships. In my
judgment there will be richer picking
for g J%erpeymsn right here at home,
than with the army IN New York"
There was a moments silence; then
the girl asked, a shade Of horror In
her voice:
Surely, you cannot mean to ally
yourself with guerillas, Captain Grant,
With-with FRgin2"
The man laughed, but mirthlessly.
THAT would be horrible, wouldn't
It? Well, personally ! fail to see why
Fagin Is any more OF a %scoundrel than
some of these other fellows In gilt
= epaulets. However, I've not come to
that point yet, The fact Is I have a
private affair to attend to before /
leave this neighborhood. Can you
guess what 1t isT"
~ Certainly not"
We'll. you will know shortly-the
ambulance Ia coming"
/ rode my horse slowly forward,
keeping at tho edge Of the road, until
assured a sufficient distance separated
as. Then l gave the FESTIVE animal
a sharp touch Of the spur, aendlng him
swiftly forward. My escort would have
a mile or two the start, yet that was
nothing. My thoughts were not with
them, or with my military duty, but
reverted to the little company around
the wounded man. The bearing of
the dispatch to Arnold was mere rou-
tine, involving only steady riding, but
the relations existing between Claire,
Grant, and Eric Mortimer were full
of mystery. There were connecting
links | could not understand; no doubt
had the girl been permitted to CON
clude her story l might At 1t togeth-
er, but as 1t was l was left cropping In
the darkness. Yet my mind tena-
ciously held to It's original theory as
to Erio's strange dlsappearance-he
had been betrayed by Grant, and was
being held prisoner. But where? BY
whom2 And for what purpose9
I pondered on this problem as my
horse ploughed forward through the
dust, my eyes unconsciously scanning
the dark road. Grant could not have
known that Colonel Mortimer was be-
ing taken home. His meeting with the
ambulance party was altogether an &C
cident, Yet | had no faith the man
was out seeking British strsgglers. for
had he been dispatched on such a mis-
sion lie would have had at least O
squad Of soldiers with him. Then what?
The probability was hat he was eth
er riding to Elmhurst, or to some rem
devious with Fagin. Some plan had
been interrupted by Clinton's sudden
march, by the British defeat at Mon
mouth, and Grant was risking his
commission, Drawing the charge Of de-
sertion, for some private purpose.
This might be love of Claire, revenge
upon Erie, OF possibly both combined.
The latter would seem most probable.
He would use Eric in some way to
threaten the sister, to compel her to
EprriHpA harGalp Sha u,au nf n no+rrn
to do this, as was already abunGantly
proved by her assumption Of male
attire to save Eric's reputation. My
W responsibility doomed large as l
reached this conclusion, and remem-
bered her appeal for help. She, also,
must suspect the truth, and had turned
to me as the only one capable Of I'M
travelling the mystery. She trusted me,
loved me, l now believed-and, under
God, would prove worthy of her faith.
With teeth clinched In sudden deter
mination | caught up with my little
squad Of ploddlng horsemen, and, with
word of command, hurried them into
a sharp trot.
Riding ahead, boot to boot with
Conroy, l thought out q plan for &C
ton, and finally, In the gray OF the
morning, told him enough Of the story
to arouse his interest. Just before
sunrise we passed Elmhurst, the great
white mansion appearing silent and
deserted. There was no hating, al
though we turned in the saddle to
look, and my eyes swept over the
troopers trotting behind us. They were
a sturdy lot, their faces bronzed from
exposure, their uniforms stained and
Undiscovered.
"Regulars?" I asked, noddins back
across my shoulder.
mot a man but has e two years
service" he replied proudly. Ham,
tlton knows the troop, and he picked
us out"
81 may need them for \ bit of des-
perate work"
They'll do Il, sir, never fear"
Good, sergeantJ well ride hard,
and trust to getting fresh horses in
Philadelphia. I'll tell Arnold tho story.
When We arrive there have your men
get all the sleep they can. I'll attend
to rations and ammunition. You are
simply to have the men rested and
ready. Cannot we make better time!
The horses seem in good condition"
We passed swiftly over the level
country, meeting q few stragglers, but
paying them small attention. BY two
o'clock we yer on the banks Of the
Delaware, and a half-hour later, I