Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1914-08-05

he sorely needed. Then he smiled. No
necessity for that caution at least. The
governor was snoring a heavy agrees
sive snore which would have drowned
most noises. Francois stood quiet till
MIS- eyes had grown accustomed to the
shadows, n then they searched about
quickly. All! there they were; the gov
ernor's clothes. On a chair by his bed.
With wary steps he stole across. He
lifted off n or two things and sud-
denly there was a Jingle.
AM" growled h governor ana
flung out his hand, and the snore came
to a full stop.
The hand searched the darkness a
co.'s, then fell Imply, the head turned
away, with a deep sigh. Like q statue
Francois stood, frozen to the floor, and
dared not look at the figure stirring
IN the bed. for fear his a q might
awake the sleeper. For he slept: the
sound OF the keys had only Jared some
chord in his uneasy dream. Long min
utes after the snoring was in full
progress again Francois waited. Inc
hen with careful fingers he clasped the
entire bunch of keys softly and IT.
ried them into the next room.
There was a low light there. on the
writing table. Francois slipped the
thin. old. brass key which he knew off
from the bunch: he glanced about
quickly and found the flint and steel
On Its table and put them in his pocket:
he took down that small saber, with
1t about himself; then a thought came
to him. A sheet Of paper lay on the
governors writing table as IL he had
been about to write a letter; pen and
Ink were ready. The prisoner dropped
into the governors chair N wrote:
without leaving a good-by for you and
q word Of hanks for the kindness you
have shown me. Be sure I shall no
forget u evenings together and shall
be glad when I hear Of your promotion,
as l am sure I shall hear. I heartily
for you. But I nave to go-you win
understand that. With a thousand
thanks again I am, count, your crate
ful prisoner-Francois Beaupre." And
under the signature by an after in
spiration he wrote:
d tous cote's ION dit que ie sufn
Celia Sc peut! ct dependant zen ris.''
Still the count snored. Francois,
alert, stood and listened as he folded
the note carefully and laid 1t under q
weight on the table. Then he tempted
tered. bright, old brassy key softly into
the lock, let himself into the dark STAIR
way, relocked the door on the inside,
CROPPED his way painfully down the
steep stairs into the wine cellar, and
when he felt a level floor under his feet
struck a light with the governors flint
and steel. He lighted n of his candle
ends. The wine cellar, which he had
left only w hours before. seemed al
most homelike; it lacked the governor.
that was all. He crossed to the pro-
jecting stone In the north wall, and
pressed h corner Of the stone below.
Nothing happened. Hurriedly he
pressed it again. harder, but the cold
even surface Of the wall stared him
blankly in the face. Again he pushed
with no result. A sickness came over
him. Was all his labor and peril to go
for nothing? Was he to be caught
again and thrust back. this time into
some far worse dungeon? How had he
dared to hope! The entrance was
closed, overgrown, the masonry had
grown solid with years and dampness.