Mountain Home Republican. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1915-1946, 1916-11-04

felt sure that escape was feaslDle
anywhere.
IF we could lower that boat, for
instance" he suggested, indicating
little craft swung out near the stern.
IF you could escape the bullets
of the guards, you'd die Of thirst" said
the other.
"There's water cask inside" said
Jerry.
"How about food?" sneered his COM
panion.
During succeeding days jerry saved
scraps Of the coarse food that was
flung to the prisoners. During the
course of their walks on deck he man
aged to slip these scraps inside the
craft.
On the third morning after Jerry
had spoken about the boat the old
man. attempting to rise fell back with
groan. Jerry laid his hand upon his.
forehead and found that he was In a
burning fever.
Half dozen similar cases had de-
NtlODtu uliouE lIt NohflNio' nv mp -
doctor knew at once what the trouble
was. II was the dreaded prison fever,
or typhus.
The epidemic ran riot. Weakened
by their hardships and privatlons, the
sick men were unable to resist the raw
ages of the disease.
Two more men died that day. To
ward nightfal 1t was evident to Jerry
that his friend was sinking fast. The
old man called him to his side.
Bend over me, lad" he said. I'm
gone. Thanks be to God, I'm going to
better place than the world has
been"
Thirty years ago" whispered the
old man, IL killed man. That's
what have suffered for. man who
lnsuIted my daughter. If he hadn't
been Il government employee I'd have
gone free. Curse him
Lad, | don't know what you've done,
but it can't have been worse than me.
The time will come when you'll grow
resigned too, as / did. The time will
come when it'll have scared your heart
numb like mine I'm going now. You'll
stay by me till it's over"
Jerry promised. And suddenly there
came into his brain hope, so weird
and so grotesque, that at first he flung
1t from him as the dream Of mad
man.
1t returned with renewed force. 1t
was the most desperate scheme that
had ever entered human brain.
Toward midnight the old man, who
had been muttering In his delirlum
ceaselessly since sunset, sat up sud
denly, shouted, and pointed into the
darkness.
maria Angela !" he cried exutantly.
Next moment he fell back dead into
Jerrys arms.
The body would be buried at night,
after 1t had been placed In the rough
hewn coffin.
All Jerry's schemes depended on
whether the coffin was flung from the
bow or from the stern. The former
event meant life; the latter death.
He raised the hardly yet cold body
of the old man In his arms and laid
It on the bench where the dead were
placed. None of the guards woulC
penetrate more than few feet beyonc
the door, and then they drove bacE
the prisoners with whips and curses
About half an hour later the door
was opened, and two men appeared
carrying the coffin, mere shell OF
wood They took the old mans body
and thrust it within, afterward fasten
ing down the lid with nails.
1t was fortunate for Jerry's scheme
that some interval occurred between
the mailing down of the coffin and the
burial. This was due to the fact thai
the two functions were performed by
different men; the first by the guards
the second by the seamen, who had re
fused to enter the plague-hole.
AS soon as the guards had with
drawn Jerry set to work to remove
the lid with fiat piece of wood which
he had found In the hold. 1t was no
difficult task, for the mailing hat
been task hurriedly performed, ant
the wood was flimsy. Within a shor
space of time, working in the dark
he had managed to open the coffin.
Gently he took out the body of hi
friend and deposited 1t in corner o
the hold. Then he entered the colfil
and pulled on the lid again.
To faSten 1t in any way was a diff
ficult task, but by inserting his tinger
into the rough edges of the under par
g of the lid, he contrived, after mucl
Y effort, to secure 1t in some degree
And he lay there, chob ng in the mar
$ row space, with his mouth against
+ crack between the lid and the casket
s Then he saw the gllmmer of lar
tern near him and heard the voice
e of the guards.
e "Get hold of your endr
v "Say, this lid amt on. Where's tn
e hammer"
e Hurry up! Do you want us to di
of the plague?' yelled one of the tw
v sailors at the door.
n The guards raised the coffin an,