Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1919-01-24

darkness Ike @ knife.
YES" came Eleanor's voice out of
the night as she Joined her stepfather.
The sound Of hoofbeats grew fainter
and finally died into silence; the soft
patter Of rain on the chestnuts and the
low wall Of mourning from the negro
quarters formed the only requiem over
the funeral pyre of the house of Max
well.
John drew nearer the ruins and
looked up at the Fowning majesty of
the six huge chimneys. They must
come down." he murmured, and made
q mental note TO go to town and get
the dynamite necessary for the blast
ing.
Out of the grove Of trees Uncle
Jake's voice came. cracked with emo
ton. 'Marse John, Aunt Sally she done
clar outer her cabin an its sweeter'n
honey fob 20 comfort, sab; 20 bed
an lot of things from the big house am
thereof, Marse joint"
Maxwell forgot his own troubles in
allaylng the grief Of the old servants,
but when the gray morning dawned
and he still lay awake in his new quar-
tiers all the comfort and hope that
Eleanor's promise had awakened in
him had departed.
He would be a cur indeed to snatch
the delicately nurtured girl from her
home and let her slender shoulders
bend beneath the burdens that the wife
Of q poor mana beggar, he thought
bltterly-must suffer- He would not
bind her to u promise given perhaps In
the first warmth Of sympathy. He
would go away-alone-and Seymour
could have the coveted land.
Stern In this resolution, he rode over
to Leesburg that afternoon and pur-
chased quantity of dynamite, and the
following day, with the help Of the SER
wants, he prepared to raze the menac-
Ing chimneys to the ground.
The women servants carried all the
precious crystal and china to a place
Of safety, and then the work of remov-
Ing the chinneys was begun.
One by one, they tottered and fell in
clouds Of choking dust, until there re-
manned only the great central chimney
the hearthstone around which gener-
atoms of Maxwells had gathered In Joy
and sorrow, in prosperity long ago. and
now in bitter ruin. Better remove this
landmark Of dead race Of which he
was doomed to be the last.
SO unused Maxwell, as he stood alb
sorbed in bitter thought while Uncle
Jake, near-slghted and half blinded by
tears, recklessly prepared the last
blast. The fuse was laid and they
withdrew into the shelter Of the chest
nut grove.
II done leave cherry stick OBJ dinna-
mite there, Marse John" muttered the
old man with resentful triumph in his
grumbling tones. There won't nc
folks pint In here an say"
my God, Jake, what"
Johns words were drowned in a
deafening roar, followed by the black
ness and silence Of death itself.
When he regained consciousness his
eyes opened on the sunshine stream
ing through the window Of Aunt Sal
ly's cabin; all around him were famil
lar articles Of furniture and above hin
bent Eleanor Lee.
what happened-Uncle Jake?" he
asked family.
Uncle Jake's snow-crowned heaC
bobbed above the foot of the bed, hi:
lips stretched in toothless smile.
Here is, Marse John" he chucklet
softly; dem lazy niggers done left {
fodder bald yander in de grove, an
when de 'splosion came this Niger fel
on the bed an amt hurt a mite, sab
You was de only one"
I'm glad of that, Uncle Jake,
smiled Maxwell, and then he raiset
his eyes to Eleanor's. "What did tn
doctor sayT
'That you will be as good as new Il
few weeks" returned Miss lie
promptly, evading his tender eyes.
Maxwell groaned. "The DEVILS owl
luck" he muttered desperately. "Nell
darling, can't hold you to your prom
Use to go with mel am penniless.
am not selfish enough to accept you
sacrifice"
A soft hand covered his mouth an,
Eleanor's bright hair touched the Pill
low beside his head. i've set m
heart on making rich marriage
John, don't disappoint me, please
hsten-two weeks ago l heard m
stepfather telling that man who bough
the Lesson place next door that h
was positive that there was vein o
coal beneath your place that meant
fortune to the man who acquired tn
property.
u thought the matter over and dc
cided that he was the author Of a
all your enterprises. lie had hoped