Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-03-27

either sIde OF MIN. IL was a stormy
night. black as the Earl of Hell's rid
ing.boots, with wind and lightning.
and he rode cursing at both. There's
IN old black-gum tree a mile from
here tina. they still call Devil-John's
tree. They were just passing under
it when the lightning struck it, Light
ming has no effect on the black-gum.
you know. The bolt glanced from the
tree and struck him between the two
slaves without harming either of
them. 1t killed his horse. too. That's
the story. To be sure at this date
nobody can separate fact from hc-
ton. Possibly he wasn't so much
worse than the rest of his neighbors
not excepting the parsons. Other
times, other manners"
They weren't any worse than the
present generation" said the doctor
inadvertently. your four bottle men
then knew only claret: now they pun
ish whiskey-straight."
The major buried his nose in his
julep for a long moment before he
looked at the doctor blandly. 81 agree
with you, Bristow," be said: "but it's
the first time I ever heard you admit
that much good of your ancestors"
Good" said the doctor belligerent-
~. Me-? don't! l said people now
were no better. AS for the men of
that time. they were a cheap swagger-
ing lot of DULLES and swash-bucklers.
When l read history I'm ashamed to
be descended from them"
II desire to inform you, sah," said
the major, stung. that I too am a de-
scendant of those DULLES and swash-
bucklers. as you call them. And l
wish from my heart l thought we, now
adays, could hold a tallow-dip to
them
you refer, no doubt" said the ooc-
tor with sarcasm, "to our friend Devil
John and his ideal treatment of his
wife!"
mo, sah," replied the major warm
ly. I'm not referring to Devil-John.
There were exceptions, no doubt, but
for the most part they treated their
women folk as | believe their Maker
made them to be treated The man
who failed in his courtesy there, sab,
was called to account for it. He was
mighty apt to find himself standing in
the cool dawn at the butt-end of a."
He broke off and coughed. There
was an awkward pause in which he
set down his glass noisily and rose
and stood before the open bookcase.
II envy you this, sah," he said with
somewhat of haste. "A fine old col
lection. Bless my soul, what a curious
volume!"
AS he spoke. his hand jerked out a
heavy-looking leather-back. Valiant,
who had risen and stood beside him,
saw instantly that what he had drawn
from the shelf was the morocco case
that held the rusted dueling-pistol! In
the majors hands the broken box
opened. A sudden startled look darted
across his leonine face. With smoth-
cred exclamation he thrust It back
between the books and closed the
glass door.
Valiant had paled. His previous
finding of the weapon had escaped his
mind. Now he read, as clearly as II
1t had been printed in black-letter
across the sunny wall. the significance
of the majors confusion. That weap-
on had been in his fathers hand when
he faced his opponent in that fatal
duel! 1t flashed across his mind as
the doctor lunged for his hat and stick
and got to his feet.
"Come, Bristow," said the latter irri-
tably. "Your feet will grow fast to
the floor presently. We mustn't talk a
new neighbor to death. I've got to see
a patient at six"