Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1915-05-27

laugh and shivered for a moment, for
the voice sounded strangely like that
of his daughter. Almost 1t dissuaded
him from his purpose; 1t was difficult
to retain his mind at the tension nee
essary for It's accomplishment when
the thought Of Eleanor came to him.
But he dismissed this weakness and,
with a shrug Of the shoulder, pulled
hard along the shore in the direction
Of Kristiensund.
Evidently the tourists had been
bound for neighboring village, not
Kristiensund. for everything was dark.
The Inhabitants had retired to bed
long since; while, from the fact that
the vessel itself was dark, Haynes con-
cluded that Beyers had not yet re-
turned from his fishing trip. True, he
might have elected to seek such shell
ter as the peasants In the vicinity OF
the station could offer him, in prefer
ence to the hazards Of night drive
back to his ship through the darkness.
Listening to assure himself that the
Waterman was not on deck, he padded
noiselessly to the stern end Of the ship,
and, taking the rope between his
teeth, plunged overheard, found his
footing on the sandy bottom on which
the yacht rested, and fastened the
rope securely around the rudder's base.
When he emerged, breathless, dripping
and shivering in the night air, he held
the vessel captive; for, even had the
steersman suspected that an invisible
bond held her at the mercy Of man
seven miles distant upon barren
island, the knowledge would come too
late. Once in the grip of the waves,
the vessel could not be stayed.
The early dawn was in the sky when
John Haynes scrambled up the rocks
of his island refuge. Without wait
ing to change his clothes, he filled his
gasoline tank again and set the gyro-
scope In motion. The lengths Of drip.
ping cordage came up slowly out OF
the sea and wound themselves around
the top. Haynes detached them as
they Topped themselves round 1t and
carried them from post to post. At
last the rope frightened, there came q
hardly perceptible pull, and hastily he
shut off the mechanism. That pull was
the resistance of the ship, seven miles
distant. Out of the mist-wrapped seas
she answered him. He was her mas
ter, and master of those aboard.
But whether that were 80 or not did
not matter to the man In the boat
That he would have to sacrifice tho
lives of innocent men In order to
achieve his revenge did not occur to
Haynes. Nor would he have cared;
for his whole soul was set upon the
death of the chief of his enemies
Haynes slept most of the day, but
all through the night Of Saturday he
lay awake upon his lonely rock. shiv-
ering in the cold, and ever and anon
taking the rope In his hands to feel
that slight and indifinably thrilling re-
sistance which told him that the yacht
still lay at her anchorage. II she
should sail too late! But that could
not be; she could never emerge from
the shallow waters of the ford except
at such time as the same tide which
carried her awakened the sleeping
forces under the black surface Of the
ever-tossing sea- For the tide which
bore the vessel from her sandy bed
would also set in motion the slow, 81.
gantic eddying Of the whirlpool.
At four O'Clock he took the rope In
his hands and felt the strands tighten
under his fingers. At five, when the
waves were dashing more strongly on
the rocks under the force Of the tide,
he pulled again This time there came
no pull in answer. The ship had
sailed!
He touched the pin which set the
gyroscope awhirl and, in the increas-
Ing light, saw the long, dripping
lengths OF rope emerge again. He ran
from post to post, winding them round
them In a fever of haste. But, as fast
as he ran, the ship and gyroscope out
paced him. The cordage gathered, long
fathoms of line, already green with
the sea growths that had fastened
themselves on 1t, upon the rocks be-
hind him.
No matter; though the cordase lay
loosely upon the rocks 1t would tighten
soon enough when the pull Of the mael-
strom etrove with the gyroscope. 1t
was his purpose to set these two forces
against each other, to hold the vessel
suspended over the edge of the whirl-
ing trough for full hour, kept there
by the instrument which he had de-
vised, before stopping the motor force
and letting the ship plunge headlong
into the sucking seas. He laughed
loudly at the thought of his revenge.
A ray from the sun pierced the fog
clouds. 1t shone on the black waters
and brought into view the distant
coast with its tall towering cliffs. Be-
tween them rolled the whitening sur
ges Of the maelstrom, two miles away.
And equidistant between the pool and
the shore was tiny ship, as small, to
his view, as top ship on pond, head
ing straight toward him.
His vengeance was on the point OF
accomplishment. Now, as the sun
gained fullest mastery over the mists
and illumined the vast breast OF the
sea, he could perceive that the oncom-
Ing vessel was sailing not head first,
but stern first, her head pointing vail
antly toward, the receding shore, But
all her engine power was helpless
against the pulling force Of the tide
and the busy gyroscope that hummed
beside him.
He had been so intent upon his task
that he had not seen the boat which
was approaching from behind jut-
ting angle of the rocks. 1t was not till
her keel grated that he sprang to his