The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-02-02

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 Two millions Ot shining money. gold. silver and English notes And he laughed again as he recalled Nj. Fer Faud. caught in trap He was cleV CT. but not clever enough. What gtroke-tO make prisoners of the par Hy on their return. tO carry the girl away into the mountains: Would any of them think of treasures. of con spiracies. with her as 8 hostage2 He thought not In the hue and cry for her these clements in the game would fall to a minor place. Well he knew M. Ferraud. He would call to heav- en for the safety of Laura. Love her? Yes. She was the one woman. But men did not make captiEes of women and obtain their love. He knew the futility of such coercion. He had con- mitted two or three scoundrelly acts. but never would be or could he sink to such a level. No. He meant no harm at all. Brighten her. perhaps and terrorize the others. and mahap take a kiss as be left her to the com Ing of her friends. Nothing more seri- Dus than that.
 Two millions in gold and silver and English netes! He would have his re- Venge for all these years of struggle and failure. for the cold and callOus policies of state which had driven him to this piece of roguery. On their heads be 1t Two thousand in Marseilles. ready at his beck and call. a thousand more in AvignOn. in Lyons, in Dijon. and so on up to Paris. the Paris he had cursed one night from under his manSard. In a week he would have them shaking in their boots. The un employed, the idlers, thieves. his to a man. If he saw his own death at the end little he cared He would have one great moment, pay off the score. France as well as Germany. He would at least live to see them har- xying each others throat To de clare to France that he was only Ger many's tool, put forward for the sole purpose of destroying peace in the midst of a great military crisis. He had other papers. and the pry1ng lit tie Frenchman had. never seen those clever forgeries. bearing the signature of certain great German personages These should they find at the selected moment. Let them rip one another's throats. the dogs! Two million of francs-enough to purchase 100000 men.
 "Ah. my great-grandsire. if spirits have eyes yours will see something presently. And that poor little secret Ngent thinks I want a crown on my head! There was time Curse these Informal beadaches!''
 On. on: hurry. hurry. The driver was faithful. some time brigand and later . harbor bOatman, and of all his con Rederates this one was the only man he dared trust on an errand of this kind.
 Evisa. They did not pause. They ate their supper on the way. With three Sardinian donkeys. strong and patient little brutes. with lanterns ana shOvels and sacks. the two fared into fhe pines. AitOne was all familiar ground to the Corsican. who. in young Er days. had taken his illegal tithe from these hills They found the range soon enough. but made a dozen mistakes in measurements. and 1t was long toward midnight. when the oil of the lantern ran low. that their shoveIs bore down into the precious pocket The earth flew. They worked like madmen. with nervous energy and power of will. and when the chest finally came into sight rotten with age and the soak of earth they fell back against a tree. on the verge of collapse The hair was damp on their foreheads, their breath came harshly. almost in sobs.
 Suddenly Breitmann fell upon his knees and laughed hysterically. plung ed his blistered hands into the shining heap It played through his fingers in little musical cascades. He rose.
 "Pietro. you have been faithful to me. Put your two hands in thereP'
 'I, mastery stupefied.
 "Go on! Go on! As much as your two hands can hold is yours. Dig them in deep. man. dig them in deepI"
 With a cry PietrO dropped and bur rowed into the gold and silver. A dozen times he started to withdraw " his hands, but they trembIed so that some of the coins would slip and fall At last. with one desperate plunge. the money running down toward his el- bows. he turned aside and let fall his l burden on the new earth outside the |