Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-01-09

after penetrating the tree fringe was
the glimpse Of q small shack, built OF
/ poles, and matched with coarse grass.
which stood nearly In the center of the
island. It was o rudely constructed,
primitive affair, and to all appearances
deserted.
"Hold the horses here. Tim; let me
see what we have ahead first"
approached the place from the rear,
! peering In through the narrow open
! ings between the upright poles. The
/ light was so poor / was not able to
| perceive much, but did succeed in
| fully convincing myself that the dis
| NAL shack was unoccupled. TIE door
| stood Unattached and l pushed it open.
| A single glance served to reveal every
thing the place contained. Without
| doubt 1t had been the late abode OF
| Indians, who, In all probability, had
fed hastily to join Black Hawk In his
| foray up Rock river. What interested
me most was a small bit Of jerked
deer meat which stu hung against
an upright and the rude stone fire.
place In the center Of the hut. with an
opening above to carry away the
smoke.
had found during the night . fair
supply Of hard bread In my saddle-bsg,
and now, with this additional gift Of
Providence. felt assured, at least. Of
one SUFFICIENT meal.
ut Is all right. Tim, there Is no one
here. An old Indian camp with moth
ing but hunk Of jerked deer meat left
behind. Elsie, gather up some of that
old wood yonder and build fire.
Kennedy and will look after Miss
Beaucaire."
1t was bright day by this time, the
red of the rising sun In the sky, and /
could trace the radius of swamp land
stretching about Us on every hand, a
grim, desolate scene even in the beauty
Of that clear dawn. We had been for
tunate enough to approach the spot
along theBonly available pathway which
led to this little oasis, and more Sc
cure hiding place it would be difficult
to find. / felt almost at ease for the
present and satisfied to rest here for
several hours
Tim assisted me In unstrnpping
Eloise, and lifting her from the sad
die, and, as she made no effort to help
herself, the two Of us carried her to
warm, sunny spot beside the wall Of
the hut. Her cramped limbs refused
to support her body, and her eyes, then
open, yet retained that vacant look so
noticeable, from the first. The only
change was in the puzzled way with
which she stared into our faces, as
though memory might be struggling
back, and she was vaguely endeavor-
Ing to understand.
Tim led the horses away and staked
them out where they could crop the
rich, dewy grass. After removing the
into the hut, and.I could hear the muir
muir of their voices. endeavored to
address Eloise, seeking thus to awaken
her to some sense Of my presence, but
she merely smiled meaninglessly,
leaned her head YEARLY back against
the poles and closed her eyes.
It was a poor meal enough. although
1t sufhced to dull hunger and yield Us
come strength. Eloise succeeded in
choking down a few morsels. but drank
thirstily. 1t was pitiful to watch her,
and to mark the constant effort she
was making to force the return Of
memory. I had Elsie battle her face
with water and while, no doubt, this
! refreshed her somewhat ,she only
rested her head back on my coat, which
! had folded for pillow. and again
closed her heavy eyes. The negress
appeared so tired l babe her lie down
and sleep, and soon after Tim also dis
appeared. I remained there alone,
guarding the woman loved.
How were we to escape, burdened by
this helpless girl, from pursuit. which
perhaps had already started from Vel
low Banksf At all hazards must now
prevent this dazed, stupef1ed woman
from ever again falling into the powsr
Of Joe Kirby. That, was the one fact
knew. I would rather kill her With
my own hand. for was convinced the
fellow actually possessed legal right,
which could not hope to overthrow.
However 1t had. been accomplished,
through what viliainy, made no odds
she was his wife, and could only be re-
leased through process Of law. He
could claim her, hold her in spite OF
me; In spite of herself. No influence
I might bring to bear would save her
now from this contamination. 1t would
all be useless, thing for laughter, Her
signature-of which Kirby had boasted
land the certificate signed by the
dead Gaskins, would offset any pos
sible efforts might put forth. There
remained no hope except through
flight; outdistancing our pursuers find
Ing a route to safety through the
wilderness which they would never
suspect.
must find an unknown path, an IN
travelled trail, Our only, hope lay In
battling pursuit, In getting far be-
yong Kirby's grip. dragged the map
out from its silk wrapping and spread
It forth on the ground between my
knees. It was the. latest government
survey. given me when ! first departed
for the North, and I already knew
every line and stream by heart. ~
I became SO interested In the prob
lem as to entirely forget her presence,
but, when finally lifted my head, our
eyes met, and / instantly read in the
depths Of hers the dawning, Of recog-
| milton. saf-.. 4l