The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1912-08-10

doubt as to the insanity in those wild
orbs staring at me. and for the in
slant l could not escape their power.
They seemed to hold me as the snake
does the bird. Then my fingers grip
ped hard on the dresser. and I swung
around. desperately resolved to make
the creature captive. With my first
hostile move the door cliC ke shut
and before I could touch the latch
my foot caught the edge of a rug. and
I fell to my knees.
Could she have gore down the stairs?
I sprang to the railing and glanced
below. A guard. fully armed. stood
Just within the front door. leaning on
his rifle. No one could pass that way
u~nobserved. Then she must be hiding
within one of the rooms. SO certain
was | OF this that | took time to the
search. opening door after door aud
surveying each interior thus revealed
with q carefulness which convinced
me they were absolutely empty
Thoroughly puzzled. | came ont OF
the last roouf. that In which the Irish
lad and | had been imprisoned. aud.
scarcely Knowing why, paused at the
head of the stairs to glance down once
again at the sentry stationed below.
He was apparently a ycung fellow.
roughly dressed In butternut. a wide
brimmed and rather d~isreputahle hat
shading his face. He lifted his eyes to
| the stairs. ard | nearly cried out In
startled Amusement. AS | lived. II
was O'Brien. | would have believed
1t merely n TRANCE resemblance had
not the fellow impudently grinned up
at me. making use OF q peculiar yes
ture. which left no doubt of his iden
tity. O'Brien. in pretense of Confed.
crate uniform. acting rs sentinel here
as one of Donald's guerrillas. What
had 1t to do with my e~scape-with the
mystery of this house? And Jean
| did she know Could she have passed
and relassed without noticing the boy
and recognizing him? Could it be that
she was conspsring In my escape and
had placed him there?
"For the Lords sake. sor." he whis
pered hoarsely. "av we're goin' to skip
now's the tonne. before the sergeant
gifts here wild my relief"
What do you mean? Have you
been stationed there to let me slip
through?"
Sure. that's the program, It's the
girl that liked 1t all up"
Not Miss Denslow:"
AN who the dlvil else would 1t be:
Sure she picked me out from the
whole bunch for the job an niver
cracked n smoIle. but them pretty oies
Of hers was dancin. just now whin
she came down she give me the wink
an said | was to pass ye out an niver
say nothin'."
But what are you doing here:
What's the meaning OF this masque-
rade:"
The fellow grinned, bringing his
band to q salute.
I'm Private O'Brien. sor. OF the
Confed army. | wus lift behind whln
me fellow soiers departed after the
late fracas. Sometimes | tell thin !
belonged to Dodd's squad. sometimes
20 Thellen's. an thin agin | came over
here wild I.iftenant Dunn. Divil q
bit o difference it makes so ! belong
to some other outfit than the fellow
I'm talkin' to. Its an illigant liar ]
am. berorra. an that's how ! hold the
Job. Sure, thin divils shot the horse
undher me. an | came down In II bit
of bush. so shook up | didn't know me
own name for an hour. Thin there
was no glttin' away. nm | lay there
studyin' 1t all out an watchin' thin
rebs lavin'. The way they had liked
me | couldn't see how ! was liver go
in TO git shut of thin except by bein
a rcb myself for awhoile. So | shtole
d coat-this beauty I've got on. sor--
an a hat. an afther the most of thin
had marched away | came out an
reported TO the sergeant. He talked
to me loike hell. sor. Till the girl took
me part. an since thin hes bin civil
enough"
Miss Denslow took your part?" !
questioned in surprise. What did she
say"
The Irish eyes twinkled merrily
"Bedad. she said she knew me-; thai
| was wan of I.iftenant Dunn's cavat
rymen."
"She said that:"
"Begorra. she did. sor. an ] stood
lookin' at her purity face Wild me
mouth open. 1t was a beautiful ioi.
sor. an' she niver cracked II smoiie
while she was givin' ii 10 him. shed
"a fooled a betther man than that ser
geant wild the honest way of her an
thin eyes a lookin' straight nj him
They're great devils. thin girls"
"But why did she do thisf What
object could she have had"
He rubbed bis sleeve across his
mouth. leaning over the railing 10
where he could look the full length of
the hall. Then he Strengthened up. his
face solemn as a preachers
AT first | thought IL was me manly
beauty that did it. But afther awhoile
| woke up from me dhrame. You was
the wan the loidy was thinkin' about
all the tonne. Bedad. she about the
same as tould me so wild her own rosy
lips not tin minutes ago"