Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1916-04-25

I'M tninkin, and make sure there's rs
harm COON to Dan Page through thii
NIGHTS work And Mr.. Langdon says
quick like. What do yod meant SO
told him and the doctor. and Mr.. Lang
don was all fer comm wi me. but the
doctor wouldna let him. Dinna fash
yersel',' said, when / saw the doctor
was RIGHT. III sac fast. and If there
Is need Ter you III come RIGHT back
Aud the doctor said. You're all worn
out, Philip. You've got to have some
rest. BE sensible So I went back
alone"
"At what hour did you reach the
home OF Miss Pager"
III dinna ken the exact hour, but II
were aboOt daylight, and | cude see
quite ways ahead of me-"
"Will you tell us. please, what you
saw when you approached the Page
house?"
Slowly one great hand clinched itself
Into a knotted fist. and the muscles of
his jaw frightened, and across those
who sat between, the gray eyes OF the
Scotchman and the tear-dlmmed eyes
Of Mrs. Page met in n mute commun-
ion of terrible memories. Then, slowly,
with a new tone Of suppressed excite
ment lending a thrill to his voice he
said:
when | got ME enough to see the
hoose, cude see great black splotch
in front of it, that made cot to be
men. Then l cude hear shouts: Come
oot Dan Page, we've summat to say
to you" So / didna drive right oop
to the place. 1 stoppit In the road and
crepit through the wood at the back
and, hiding under the hedge, got oop
to the rear. Then 1 wrote on a wee
scrap Of paper, I've news Of Mary
and l come to bring help Then 1
tappit on a window, till l saw Mrs.
Page perrin oot-and 1 held up the
paper.
"After a minute or so she unlatchit
the back door and 1 slippit in. oh,
Mr.. MacPherson,' says the puir lady,
cryin', is my girl safeY And 1 says,
Safe and sound asleep And she says,
Thank Cod Then I heerd another
voice sayin, Annie Annie-who is it?
Don't let them get mech, my God,
don't let them get mep And / saw
that Dan Page was hidin' behind her,
elingin' to her skirts like n scared
BARN. His face were all drawn and
twistit like. and his mouth was slob-
BERN, and he kept cryin', 4 was drunk
Il was drunk You tell them, Annie
You tell them! At that she says like
one speakin' to a child, There, there,
Dan-you're safer And then there
came an awfu' cry from ootside:
Come cot, Dan Page-or we'll smoke
ye cot like the beast that We arer At
that Mrs. Page began to sob and says,
oh, what shall 1 do? What shall
do! They will ma talk to me-and
they'll burn DOR hoose. they'll burn oor
hoosel oh, if Philip were only herer
"'Dinna greet said, I'll get him,
but he mum ha' time. Let Dan Page
go upstairs and talk to them from a
window
"'Oh, DAM says the puir lady, Dan
will you do that? Tell them you
didn't mean to hurt Mary or-or me-
NO, no. he whimpered, 4 can't, I
can't! But l grabbit him by the arm
and pulled him TO his feet BE a man.
/ cried, and l shookit him. BE u man
and get you upstairs
"'You'd be safe I'm the cupola. DAM !
says Mrs. Page. III stay with you
and this kind man will go for Philip |
But he kept sayin, No, no. and !
could hear the others bangin' at the !
door and | dared not stay. so slippit !
DOT the way came and went off for |
Mr.. Langdon."
Mrs. Page, whose anxiety to be near !
Mary had kept her from returning TO
the witness room, shuddered at the
that MACPHERSON was con- |
juring up out of the past. The soft |
ness which time has lent the tragedy |
Of that chill winter morning was /
stripped off, exposing the old horrible |
wound, and she could feel again those |
cropping fingers, icy cold, clutching at |
her as she strove TO drag Dan Page !
up stairs towards the cupola.
She could hear his voice, now thick
With drink. now athrill with terrible
'ear-as he pleaded with her TO hide
lin and to save him. She had been
nerclfully numb with the horror of 1t
hen; consumed only with the desire
o hold those men at bay long enough
or MACPHERSON to bring help, and 1t
vas that desire which gave her the
trength TO drag the heavy bulk of her
husband up the two flights Of stairs
nto the little cupola at the top.
She could feel again the sting Of the
old dawn wind against her face as she
topped out on the platform of rough
'oards and dropped the inert figure of
er husband at her feet
Then with all the eloquence of her
reat fear she had pleaded with the I
nnh hnInUr fo L,I 9