Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1915-07-12

vanished III Nlc Au4Nh u NAS NOOAS-
Tommy gave them two minutes head
start, and then beautiful as a Greek
God. he rushed out OF the water to the
trees where he had hung his clothes.
They were gone.
Tommy having failed her, it was OBJ
vious to Professor Stilliter that Celes-
tia no longer even wished to escape.
The heart had been taken out Of her.
There was no need to throw her into
a hypnotic trance. She would do as
she was told.
Since her emergence from that inn
aginary heaven, which nothing could
persuade her was imaginary, Celestia
had proved less manageable than he
had expected He thanked his stars
that she had taken a sudden fancy to
running away with Tommy rather
than with some other young man. He
disliked Tommy for three good rea-
sons. Tommy disliked him, and twice
Tommy had gotten the better of him.
Twice Tommy had knocked his glasses
of and rendered him blind and help
less. But he knew all about Tommy
and couldn't help respecting him in
some ways. Another young man
might have taken advantage of Ce-
iestia's ignorance and innocence.
He took off his glasses to polish
them and became for the moment as
blind as a stone. And that made him
shudder. So he polished his glasses
as quickly as he could, put them on,
and once more saw. Then he felt in
his pocket to see If this time he had
a spare pair with him. He had.
Nobody" he thought, will ever
catch me with but one pair again"
A man of iron nerves and Of great
imagination under perfect control,
Professor Stilliter had but one weak
ness-his eyes. Otherwise he was as
strong as bull; but let him once be-
gin to think about his eyes and he be-
came the prey OF fearful end wild
fancies.
Most men die but once. Professor
Stilliter had died a thousand deaths
and all of them violent and horrible,
and due to sudden loss OF sight.
During the preceding night, lying mis-
erably on the hard, rooty ground, he
had had most unpleasant nightmare
about himself.
He was alone in the midst of vast,
trackless forest. He was there on
scientific business-to record the song
Of certain very rare bird. But the
bird wouldn't sing. It would only
laugh.
Now he had stopped to rest; so had
the laughing bird. In the forest was
the silence Of death. Suddenly the
bird began to laugh again, and this
time the laughter came nearer and
nearer. And presently there emerged
from the forest into the little open
glade in which he stood two chill
dren, who held hands and laughed.
They were Tommy Steele and the lit
tie Amesbury girl. They walked
straight toward him as II they didn't
see him. But they must have, for sud
denly they stopped, and Tommy said:
$50 you are the man that tried to
take her away from me and lock her
up in heaven, aren't your"
Eyes, am, and what's more, I'll get
her this time"
And he lunged at the little Ames-
bury girl, and Tommy simply knocked
his glasses off.
He stood still for quite long time.
He could hear the children, still laugh
ing as they wandered OF into the for
est. The laughter grew fainter and
fainter.
Then he knelt and began to hunt for
his glasses. He hunted until the knees
of his trousers were worn through
and the small of his back ached like
an liberated tooth. He hunted slowly
and methodically until he felt that he
must have covered every square inch
of the open glade.
Then he began to scream for help
After an hour his screams grew hoarse
and faint and presently his vocal
cords relaxed and he could no longer
make a sound.
So it was to be death, was it7 DeatE
In the damned forest, when he wai
still In the prime Of 1ifei Death be
cause a little boy loved little cir
and always stood up for herl Wei
1t had to be, and he tried to resigr
himself to Il and be calnf
He woke so frightened that he wal
half dead in reality. And It took hin
some time to pull himself together.
Well, the party landed and took ul
the long trail to -Four Corners.
About leaving Tommy withou
clothes, Stilliter had no compunctions
The young man might suffer. III
would undoubtedly catch a frightfu
cold, but he wouldn't actually die
Hell swim across" Stilliter thought
"and walk naked until he reaches tn
outskirts Of -Four Corners. Then he'l
hide In a bush and call piteously TO
help. I wish I could be there to see
The scene should have in 1t the tru
essence OF comedy"
Stilllter had no beliefs that coull
not be ratified in scientific way, bu
he could not altogether explain ava.
the miraculous coincidence OF Tomm.
being the very first person that Celel
tia should meet.
fContinuedI
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