Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1912-04-11

across him, helpless or not, he would
have killed him out Of hand.
Armstrong had soon enough forgot
ten Louise Rosser, but he had not
forgotten Newbold. All his ancient an
imosity had famed into instant life
again, at the sight Of his name last
night. The inveteracy of his hatred had
been in no way abated by the lapse
Of time, it seemed.
Everybody in the mining camp had
supposed that Newbold had wandered
off and perished in the mountains, else
Armstrong might have pursued him
and hunted him down. The sight OF
his name on that piece Of paper was
outward and visible evidence that he
still lived. 1t had almost the shock
Of resurrection, and resurrection
| to hatred rather than TO Iove. II
Newbold had been alone in the world,
il Armstrong had chanced upon him in
the solitude, he would have hated him
| Just as he did, but when he thought
| that his ancient enemy was with the
woman he now loved, with a growing
| intensity beside which his former re-
sentiment seemed weak and feeble he
hated him yet the more.
He could not tell when the notice,
which he had examined carefully, was
written; there was no date upon 1t,
but be could come to only one conclu-
sion. Newbold must have found Enid
Maitland alone in the mountains very
shortly after her departure, and he
| had her with him In his cabin alone
| for at least a month. Armstrong
gritted his teeth at the thought. He
| did not undervalue the personality Of
Newbold. He had never happened to
see him, but he had heard enough
abost him to understand his quail
ties as man. The tie that bound
Armstrong to Enid Maitland was
strong one, but the tie by which he
held her to him, If indeed he held her
at all, was very tenuous and easily
broken; perhaps It was broken al
ready, and so he hated him still more
and more.
Indeed, his animosity was SO great
and growing that for the moment he
took no Joy in the assurance Of the
girls safety; yet he was not altogether
an unfair man, and In calmer moments
he thanked God in his own rough way
| that the u-c-r--- - ~-,s alive and
well, or had been when the note was
written. He rejoiced that she had not
been swept away with the food or that
she had not been lost in the mountains
and forced to wander on finally to
k.starve and freeze and die. In one mo-
Dent her nearness caused his heart to
ysthrob with joyful anticipation. The
certainty that at the first flush of day
he should seek her again sent the
warm blood to his cheeks. But those
thoughts would be succeeded by the
knowledge that she was with his en-
emy. Was this man to rob him Of the
latest love as he had robbed him Of
the first? Perhaps tie hardest task
that was ever laid upon Armstrong
was to lie quietly in his sleeping bag
and wait until the morning.
So soon as the first indication Of
dawn showed over the crack Of the
door, he slipped quietly out Of his
sleeping bag and without disturbing
the others drew on his boots, put on
his heavy fur coat and cap and gloves,
slung his Winchester and his snow
shoes over his shoulder, and without
stopping for bite to eat, softly open
ed the door, stepped out and closed 1t
after him. 1t was quite dark in the
bottom Of the canon, although few
pale CLEANS overhead indicated the
near approach Of day. 1t was quite
still, too There were clouds on the
mountain top heavy with threat Of
wind and snow.
The way was not difficult, the direc-
tion Of it, that is. Nor was the going
very difficult at first; the snow was
frozen and the crust was strong enough
to bear him. He did not need his
snow shoes, and, indeed, would have
had little chance to use them in the
narrow, broken, rocky pass. He had
slipped away from the others because
he wanted to be first to see the man
and the woman. He did not want any
witnesses to that meeting. They
would have come on later, of course;
but he wanted an hour or two in pri.
vate with Enid and Newbold without
any interruption. His conscience was
not clear. Nor could he settle upon a