davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

ORourke was not one to resist its al
lure. Four bells saw him lounging at
the rail below the bridge, staring hum
grily over toward the land. 1t was in
his mind that another twelve hours
or so would see him relieved of his
trust; and as the time drew nigh i'm.
patience burned hotly within him; he
had become full weary Of the Pool Of
Flame and was anxious to be free OF
the thing. to have its chapter in his
history closed forever.
Far Eel the water a white and
flashing light lifted up and caught his
eye, a nameless beacon bright against
the darkness at the base of the Ara.
kan hills, guardian of the perils of
those shallow seas. And simultane-
ously he became conscious OF a pres
ence at his elbow; as he turned sharp
~ the English girl addressed him in
a voice sweet-toned and quiet.
What is that light, II you please,
Colonel O'Rourke?"
Faith, that l can't say, Miss Pyn-
sent"
Her eyes flashed a laugh upon him
in the gloom. Then you know my
name?"
Even as yourself knew mine.
Twould be strange otherwise, with
our ships company so small"
But l." she returned, animated, lam
such an insignificant person-while
you are the Colonel O'Rourke."
"Ye do me an honor I'm not deserv-
Ing, Miss Pynsent, but It's proud |
AN entirely that a humble soldier of
fortune should be known to we be
reputation"
"Oh, I've grown quite weary of your
fame, Colonel O'Rourke." she coun-
tered with a trace of laughing impu-
dence. Hardly anything has inter
ested Monsieur De Hyeres, these past
few days. save anecdotes OF your ex.
ploits."
"'Tis kind Of him, to be sure. l
must cultivate his acquaintance and
learn from him to know meself. l
see."
II she detected the irony she over
looked or failed to understand 1t.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

Yes" He thrust a hand into his waist
coat pocket and producsG a peEknifA
with which he began TO slit the
stitches that enclosed the ruby
You've been wondering. no doubt
why SO enormous a reward was OF
fered. :"
Il have that" assented O'Rourke.
1T was partly because Of the dan
GER" said Sypher. intent upon his 90
cupation. you know, these Burmese
are a c~uriously pious folk; when a
of them grows rich he employs the
major part Of his fortune in building
a temple-or in some such work. This
particular gentleman--a very wealthy
merchant-chose to give half of what
he had to the restoration of the Poll
of Flame to the Buddha from which II
was originally stolen. But he. too,
was afraid. He's superstitious about
the stone-believes 1t bad luck to
touch it SO long as 1t remains away
from it's Buddha. So he anne to US.
=. / myself am not superstitious.
DuI
He ceased to speak abruptly. for the
Pool of Flame lay naked, a binding
marvel, in the hollow OF his palm.
O'Rourke heard him gasp and was
conscious of his FASTENED respiration.
Watching the nan intently, he saw
a strange shade Of pallor color his
face.
TITS meself," said the adventurer,
that's no more superstitious than ye.
sir. Yet I'm willing to confess Pm
glad the things out Of me hands at
last"
Sypher seemed to recollect himself
as one coming out OF a state of stu
por. He stood up ann buttoned the
ruby carefully into a pocket of his
trousers. Come" he said crisply.
Let us step across the street to the
bank. The moneys there for you, sir
the reward"
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

under a mistake. / am merely a
French gentleman without a title;
Raoul de Hyeres is my name"
All" said the w~anderer. Twas
the resemblance misled me. Pardon,
monsieur"
Granted. my dear SIR. Des
Trebes? The name has a familiar
sound. Do ! not remember reading
somewhere that the Vicomte des
Trebes died last spring? In Tunis,
was IL? Suddenly. / believe"
as it so?" said o'Rourke drily. Pos.
sIbly. The vicomte lived In the man
ner of those who meet with sudden
deaths"
The subject languished, and after a
few more noncommittal o~bservances
De Hyeres wandered OFF, presumably
In search OF the English girl. to whom
he had been paying a%ssiduous atten-
ton.
On closer scrutiny, she had proved
to be a remarkably pretty girl; al
though, In point Of fact, O'Rourke. fer
oh thdN nc duLIIIcu hCl NUNS III
mensely, had purposely avoided her.
This he did from motives of prudence;
he mistrusted the ccmbination formed
by De Hyeres and the Girl. The latter
might be all that she looked and claim
ed to be: a sweet, wholesome and rath-
er ingenious young Englishwoman. an
orphan. resident in Rangoon in the
household Of an uncle. TO whom she
was returning after a visit with
friends in Simla. On the passenger
list her name stood as Emilia Pyn-
sent. But the adventurer felt II the
course of wisdom to deny himself the
pleasure of her acquaintance. so long
as she permitted the attentions of the
Frenchman.
Altogether, considering the hct
weather and such self.imposed re-
strictlons. O'Rourke considered the
voyage hardly a success from a social
point OF view. He kept pretty much
to himself and to Danny, and to make
assurance doubly sure he instituted a
new regime with regard to the Pool
OF Flame: that jewel never left his
stateroom. When o'Rourke wss on
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
SYNOPSIS.

7As story opens ~ Monte Carlo with
eand Terence O'RoDIke, a military free
xx.rs and something OF a gambler. In his
lzenl Leaning on the balcony he sees a
h<xzdful girl who suddenly enters the
a9ssatcr and passes from sight. AZ the
GnzAng table O'Rourke notices two men
ssnaehsng him. One is the Hon. Berthe
N3yBn, while his companion Is Viscount
pns Trebes. a duelist The yiscount tells
ssAzs the French government has directed
hon 10 ORourke as a man who would
tEz0sStake a secret mission. At his apart
nssr1A O'Rourke. who had agreed to un-
ssesaake the mission. finds q mysterious
heAasS. The viscount arrives, n a
seensed package to O'Rourke. who Is not
tD e3pen II until on the ocean,. A pair of
seHsnty slippers are seen protruding from
snAss a doorway curtain. The Irishman
asz&s the owner OF the mysterious feet to
no A&s wife, Beatrix. from whom he had
sue away q year previous. They are
~gcrDaciled, and opening the letter he finds
nhhl a Rangoon law firm offers him
H4aso9 pounds for a jewel known as the
t'nDs OF Flame n left to him by a dy-
sng friend. but now in keeping OF one
nnsed ChaIabret In Algeria. O'Roprke
ssswsts the nobleman in a duel. The wife
zaaB O'Rourke farewell and he propaises
no soon return with the reward. - dis.
@Erfrs both Glynn and the v%iscount OH
44zrd the ship. As he finds Chambret
Hhsre Is an attack by bandits and his
1sarnd dies telling O'Rourke that he has
npa the Pool OF Flame with the governor
&stkeraf. who at sight or a siBnet ring
given the colonel will deliver over the
Degel Arriving at Algeria the Irishman
1nas the governor general away. pes
Tr2hes makes a mysterious appointment.
4ns tells O'Rourke that he has gained
pnssession OF the jewel by stealing IL. In
a &uel O'Rourke masters the ~yisccunt,
sewmses possession of the Pool of Flame
mna starts by ship for Rangoon. He nnds
sl<r captain TO be a smuggler who tries TO
steal the jewel II is finally secured by
H3ss captain and O'Rourke escapes TO
zssad With the aid OF one Danny and
Aas sweetheart. O'Rourke cover the
faWi OF Flame. On board ship once more.
1w1Dd for Rangoon. a mysterious lady
spDears. O'Rourke comes upon a tascar
n.hDut to attack the lady. who Ii a Mrs.
&synne. and kicks the man into the hold.
nHxR Prynne claims she is en- route for
tD6iana on a mission for the king.
rSHeourke Is attacked by the lascar. who
neeures the Pool OF Flame, the captain
" shot and the lascar jumps into the sea.
Khe ship arrives in port. Danny hands
FE0urke the Pool OF Flame which he
bns stolen from Mrs. Prynne. 1t is the
brmb Jewel, the one lost at sea being a
sswnterfeit. O'Rourke goes to Calcutta
Bad discovers Des Trebes disguised He
NOW knows that Mrs. Prynne was an ac-
sssnpiice.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

seems my kismet to abide In Rangoon
forever and a day. You see, my only
living relative is an uncle, Mr.. Lans-
downe Sypher, and he's got no one
else to keep house for him."
"Lansdowne Sypher y
The ejaculation sprang to o'Rourke's
lips before he could restrain it.
Yes. Do you know him? He's the
junior, you know, of the firm of Sec.
retain and Sypher."
Solicitors, are they not? . . a..
No; it's me- misfortune not to know
your uncle. But the name Of his firm
I've heard"
The genial nature of the Irishman,
which had insensibly warmed to the
girls charm, withdrew abruptly, tor
toise-like, into a shell OF reserve. The
element Of coincidence had again en-
tered into his affairs. and he had
learned a bitter lesson from experience
to distrust coincidence on general
principles. There's naught so COM
mon in life as condolences" he phil
osophised, land he the same token
naught SO dangerous"
For which reason he invented an
early excuse to terminate the CONVEX
sation, and ungallantly withdrew to the
seclusion of his stateroom, where he
passed a night that seemed intermina-
BILE; for he lay long in a wakeful pam
ic of imagination, scheming out a hun
dred stratgems whereby he might con-
fuse as many possible attempts to pre-
vent the due and safe delivery of the
Pool of Flame into the hands of Mr..
L~ansdowne Sypher.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
TROOPS TEST HUGE MORTARS
ArtilIerymen at Honolulu Make a
Small Percentage Firing at
Target.

Observation-Disclosures engaged in
target practice with 12-inch mortars
beyond Diamond Head attempted to
demonstrate that it Is possible to de-
stroy any hostile warship at a long dis
lance by mortars.
The firing was at a small target set
$500 yards off shore. II ten shots
fired there was one hit, and certain
officers believe that most of the shots
were entirely too wide of the mark.
Maj. Edward j. Timberland, who
was in charge of the battery, said.
however, that while the practice show
ed a poor percentage of hits, the test
had proved the efficiency of the NOR
tars.
The small percentage of hits was
partially due to high winds.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
CHAPTER xxx.

As time went on, however, TX his IN
easiness were not sensibly dimin-
ashed. nothing happened. the voyage
ysov.ag entirely ~uneventful; and
sJRourke was forced to the conclusion
mat. II Monsieur de Hyeres were real
~ the Vicomte des Trebes. he was
strangely content to play a waiting
game.
The Irishman. however. had known
stranger things than that one man
mAould seem the counterpart of an
sther. And by nothing more than
,shis questionable accident of resem-
Aaance did De Hyeres give him reason
90 believe him anything but what he
e1iamed to be. The mans demeanor
was consistently discreet and self
sDntained; he moved about the ship
spenly and without any apparent at
sempt to pry upon the doings OF the
adventurer. whom he fell into the
isasy ship-board way Of greeting ami
ably but coolly. Only in n instance.
decd did r. exchange more ina
nnt courteous salutations. and then
DO Hyeres himself seemed to seek
me interview. approaching O'Rourke
directly.
This q at night, when O'Rourke
occupied a chair on the leeward side
~ the saloon deck, consuming a medi-
fatiye after-dinner cigar. De Hyeres
stepped out of the companionway.
glanced swiftly this way and that. and
sauntered toward the Irishman with
m H~niighted cigarette held conspicu-
eusiy between his fingers.
O'Rourke likewise surveyed his sur.
rcundings In two brief glances: and
was c~ontented to find that they were
alone. or as much alone as two can be
upon a steamship. For they were,
after all. wcll matched; and n of
them he knew to be armed. Shifting
An his chair SO that his revolver lay
csnvenient to his hand. as De Hyeres
approached the Irishman removed his
cigar from between his teeth. fiicked
away an inch OF ash and silently prof.
sered It In the prescribed fashion. :
The ~Frenchman accepted the cour'
sssy with a bow. applied the fire to his
cigarette, inhaled deeply and returned
the cigar with a formal phrase OF
thanks. He fingered for a moment
pnflng and gazing on over the black,
starlit expanse of the Bay OF Bengal
youely TO It's dim and far horizon. then
observed quietly: Il am n mistaken
I believe. In understanding l have the
honor TO address Monsieur lie Colonel
ORourke. Chevalier OF the Legion OF
HONOUR"
.@You are not mistaken. monsieur
r~turned O'Rourke pleasantly. then
rv,th the di~rectness which he some
t,mes found useful. watching the man
rsosely az ne spoke; And ! believe
Il II my pleasure to recognize Mon
raer lie vicomte des Trebes?"
.Des Trebes. monsieur" The
Ssvnchman's look Of wonder was be
xond criticism and there was no least
fsaca OF. discomfsure TO be detectst
- rs manner. nut no.. You IN
NfU
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
r. Judge Without Prisoners.

st. Helena Is a curiousity among our
colonies. inasmuch as its governor is
also chief justice. although he may
never have opened a law book. The
retiring ruler. Sir Henry Galloway. is
a soldier. and In reviewing his nine
years administration the little local
paper mentions that he presided at
33 courts of quarter sessions, but az
81 Of them there was no business ex.
cept presentation Of white gloves. The
absence Of serious crime is declared
to be both remarkable and gratifying
In view Of the struggle for existence.
and the fact that since the withdrawal
OF the garrison st. Helena has been
In a state OF bankruptcy."-Iopdop
Chronicle.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

deck or at meals, Danny sat behind
bolts. alert and under arms. and vice
versa. BY night they stood regular
watches together. the one on guard
while the other slept. Clearly the adj
venturer was determined that no lack
OF safeguards on his part should again
deprive him of the ruby.
But it's no easy matter to avoid
meeting any particular person on a
ship with a small saloon list. unless
one is willing to be purposely rude
and discourteous. For all his war;.
ness the Irishman was TO carry with
him a personal impression of Miss
Pynsent.
On the last day OF the passage. to
ward evening. the Poonah raised the
coast OF Burmah; by dark she was
steaming steadily southwards along
the littoral. heading for the delta Of
the Irrawaddy.
A still. bright night with little wind:
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

Hes very entertaining" she com
mented. pleasantly. But then most
Frenchmen are, don't you think? |
hope TO see much OF him in Rangoon.'
$50 he's landing there, too.'
O'Rourke filled in the pause.
Il believe so. And you. Colonel
o'Rourke?
Il may have to wait over until the
next steamer" he admitted warily.
x sympathise heartily with your
disgust at the prospect" laughed the
girl.
"Eh? And why? Ills a land of fair
repute for climate and beauty"
"Ah. but | live In Burmah. you see,
and so have come to know It far too
well. But that's the way with all ex.
patriates, isn't tito hate their homes
SO far from homer
Must We endure II. then. Miss Pyn.
sent?"
AN orphan has little choice. 1,
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
CHAPTER XXI.

Back in his statercom on the Poo
nah, O'Rourke threw himself into the
lower berth and lay there, q forearm
flung across his eyes, thinking ex-
citedly, disturbed by forHless fore
bodings.
Beside him Danny was packing IN.
dustriously, with now and again a
pause during which he would stand
reflective, his gaze fixed upon mis- sm-
ployer's face, a little puzzled and per
picked.
The Poonah was pausiHg overnight.
to discharge and take aboard cargo;
for this reason O'Rourke IN his haste
to get ashore had not delayed TO take
his luggage with him. On
deck, fore and aft donkey engines
were putting and chugging and chain
tackles rafting as they lifted freight
to and from the hold and the lighters
alongside.
Abruptly, without moving. O'Rourke
spoke. I'll want evening clothes.
Danny" said he. "'Tis dining | am
tonight with Mr.. Straker and his
niece, Miss Pynsent, who came with us
from Diamond Harbor. Twill save a
bit of bother to dress before / 60
ashore"
AVN" said Danny. assimilating.
{. And the missus?' he said
suddenly, some minutes later. Man
in Madam O'Rourke, sor. Did We ge,
nc word from her."
For what else would | be driving
10 every hotel in the town after lea~'
ing Mr.. Sypher. Danny, but to inquire
for her? She's not here; but she1S
come, be sure. She's still got severa;
days-three or four-in which to keeL
our tryst. 'Tis discontinued l am not
to find her waiting for me. but I'm
satisfied entirely she'll keep faith"
And" insisted Danny eagerly
begin yer honor's pardon-but what
will We have to tell her, sor?"
O'Rourke sat up. Have to tell
her? What dye mean"
y mean, sor. I'm dyin' wild the wish
to know how ut's all turned out.
Phase, yer honor, won't We be tellin'
nc? Is ut-is ut ali right?'
Bless your heart. Danny" laughed
O'Rourke, IT'S so dazed I've been
that ! never thought to tell ye-think.
ing all the time that We knew. IT'S
all right, indeed. me boy. The Pool of
Flames in Mr.. Sypher's keeping and
the moneys in mine-in the bank,
Danny. payable to me order. Think of
it-one hundred thousand pounds of
real money. and all me own. 'Tis
ridiculous. it's absurd. IT'S meself
hardly credits the truth of 1t all; yet
/ was there-saw the man. gave him
the jewel. went to the bank with him
and for the space of five minutes sat
at a table. with all that money before
me, counting 1t over. bill by bill. a
square hundred of them, each for a
thousand pounds. guaranteed by the
Bank of England. Think of
that-all that belonging to me-to me,
O'Rourke, :"
Thank God!" breathed Danny de
votedly. But did We Earn nothin'
about the stone?"
Little enough. Danny-only a part
of the meaning of the whole divilish
business; the rest I'm to know to.
night. Mr.. Sypher IL be tellin' me
after we've dined; he wants to hear
me own end of the story. too"
CTo BE CoNTINUED)
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

airy was made by the government au.
cities of the French republic 1t Is COM
rnemorated by Examinations, fireworks,
special theatrical performances, balls,
concerts and much chanting Of the
Marseillaise, the greatest Of all war
songs.
What is called the festival of the
Escalade is the independence day of
the little republic of Geneya-certain-
ly the most picturesque of all repub-
lies. 1t is now, of course, a part OF
Switzerland, but this Is comparatively
recent. During all the middle ages,
with bloody wars raging on every
hand, Geneva-a quiet little town in
the Valley of the Rhone, surrounded
by snow-capped mountains-held it's
own against every foe and retained it's
freedom.
But on the night of December IL,
1902, it had an exceedingly narrow es-
cape. Large forces, secretly gathered.
which had marched from several
strongholds in Savoy, crossed the
River Arve and began to scale the
walls with ladders. There was an
alarm and the citizens, springing from
their beds, rushed out in scanty attire.
The enemy were driven back and by
noon on the following day were COM
pletely routed.
Italy, although a monarchy, has it's
WI independence day. This falls al
ways OF the first Sunday in June and
is called the festival of the constitu-
ton. 1t celebrates the final union OF
italy, which was accomplished in 1870.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
CHAPTER xxx.

Toward the close of the following
day the Poonah dropped anchor in the
river roadstead off Rangoon; and with
in the ensuing hour her passengers
had deserted her, De Hyeres and Miss
Pynsent In their van. O'Rourke among
the last to leave. And nothing hin,
dered him, not the least hitch delayed
his Decentralization. 1t was curious,
it was incredible, 1T was disturbing.
He took away with him no ease of
mind whatever.
There were tikkagharries waiting,
and without a breath's delay the ad-
venturer and his servant climbed into
the nearest and desired TO be con-
yeyed to the offices Of Messrs. Sec
retain and Sypher. The vehicle whirled
them swiftly away and into the main
travelled way Of Eangoon. Mogul
street.
In front of a structure of stone and
iron so palpably an Office building
that IL might have been transplanted
to the Strand without exciting COM
hiChb save lOl II SPOIiCoo NlCGhiA
ness of it-their tikkagharry drew up.
The gharriwallah indicated the Of
fees of Messrs. Secretan and Syphe-,
n flight up-and named his fare.
ORourke paid him and alighted, with
Danny at his heels and his heart try
Ing to choke him. The hour of full
filment was at hand-and all was
well, He who had faced death In IA
hundred shapes of terror, unflinching,
found himself In a fiutter of nerves
that would have disgraced a school.
girl
He lodged into the building, took
the steps three at a stride -. . and
suddenly found himself in the pres
ence of. nor than that, closeted with
the man to meet whom he had crossed
half the world at peril OF his life:
Mr.. L~ansdowne Sypher.
Colonel O'Ronrke?" Sypher's man
ner was very cordial. I'm glad to see
you. You are within your time, yet |
had begun to despair Of you. BE
seated" He indicated a chair beside
hiS oCoh. hhu pei Hlil NE, sOu vi
all men will appreciate the precau.
ton"
He laughed and went to the win.
dows. adjusting the wooden shades in
such a manner that the light was
tempered and no portion of the room
could be visible to anyone spying
from a window in one of the adjacent
buildings. The he turned and smiled
cheerfully at the s%tupefied a~dventurer
II have 1t here" said O'Rourke; safe
be the mercy of several highly poten
tial saints!" He laughed uneasily
fumbling in his breast pocket. There
1t Is" said he. tossing the stone in Its
chamois covering upon the solicitors
desk.
Sypher himself betrayed some evi
dences Of as he sat for
ward and lifted the case by its leath
ern thongs. He let 1t dangle before
him for an instant, watching 1t with q
curious. speculative smile.
Well" he said. really =
And after a pause; II congratulate
you. Colonel O'Rourke. And admire
you immensely. You see
when this commission was offered us
| considered seriously the project OF
going In search Of you In person and
bringing the stone back to Rangoon
myself. But then-although I'm moi
really q timorous mani knew the
circumstances so WE'LL feared
should never reach RaRgoon altya
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
RUNS HOME WEEKS ON SIS
Then Husband Tells Her She Is No
Wife for Poor Man, She
Testifies.

New York.-The most economical
housewife, n who can pay all the
necessary household expenses on a lit
tie yer $1.50 a week, has been
brought to light through an alimony
suit in a Brooklyn court. Mrs. Irene
Schroeder Of Staten Island tells in her
appeal to the court how she ran her
husbands home successfully for 35
weeks on $50. That was hard enough
to do, she adds, but 1t was harder still
when they parted, to have her hus-
band fling out at her that she was no
wife for a poor man.
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
INDEPENDENCE DAYS ABROAD
Many Other Nations Celebrate Time
They Gained Their Free
dom.

Paris, France.-Wherever there is a
free country it has its day OF indie
pendence. corresponding to our Fourth
OF July. and which is always the great
festival Of the year, when the people
indulge in rejoicings of every imag-
Unable kind.
In France the festival celebrates the
fall of the Bastile, which marked the
beginning Of the revolution. The date
of this event was July IA, 1889, but it
was not until 1880 that the annivers-
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29
WATER IN CANAL IN YEAR
This Indicated by Work of Excavation
on the Panama Ditch During
July.

Washington, d. C.-Within a year
water will be flowing where the great
steam shovels are now working on the
Panama canal II excavation continues
at the pace set in July. Reports just
received here show that during the
month 2.6SS,4S7 cubic yards of rock
and earth ere taken out, compared
with 2.33S.770 cubic yards in June"
The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-08-29

Finds Remains OF Two-Toed Horse.
Plainview. Textile remains OF q
swo-toed horse have been found here.