Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1921-08-18


which he now was drifting with the
current. lis finger closed upon the
trigger. There was Il FASH report,
and Malbhn's giant frame jerked to
the impact of another bullet.
But he was not yet dead. Again he
aimed and fired, the bullet splinterlng
the gunwale Of the canoe close by
Baynes' face. Baynes fired again rs
his canoe drifted further downstream,
and Malbihn answered from the shore,
where he lay in pool Of his own
blood.
And thus, doggedly, the two wounded
men continued to carry on their weird
duel until the winding African river
had carried the Hon. Morrison Baynes
out Of sight around a wooded point.
Mericm had traversed half the
length Of the village street when a
score of white-robed negroes and half
castles leaped ont upon her from the
dark interiors Of the surrounding huts.
She tried to flee, but heavy hands
seized her, and when she turned at last
TO plead with them her eyes fell upon
the face of n tall, grim old man glaring
down upon her from the folds Of his
| burnOose.
At sight of him she staggered back
In shocked and terrified surprise. 1t
was the sheik
The sheik and his party had been
marching southwark along the river
when one of them, dropping out Of
line TO fetch water. had seen Merlem
making for the village. The fellow had
called the shcik's attention to the
strange sight--a white woman alone In
central Africa-and the old Arab had
hidden his men in the deserted village
TO capture her.
And when Mt last the woman had
walked into the trap he had set for
her and he had recognized her as the
same little girl he had brutalized and
maltreatcd years before his gratiflca-
ton had been huge. Now he lost no
time in establishing the Old relations
Of father and daughter that had ex-
listed between them in the past.
\ two days march brought them at
last TO the familiar scenes Of her
childhood, and the first face upon
which she set her eyes as She was
driven through the gates into the
strong stockade was that Of the tooth
less, hideous Nahum, her one time
J nurse. II was as though all the years
that had interviewed were but n dream.
Had it not been for her clothing and
the fact that she had grown in stature
she might well have believed it so.
For n time the inhabitants Of the
sheik's village who had not been upon
the march with him amused them
selves by Inspecting the strangely clad
white girl whom some Of them had
known ms a little child.
Among the Arabs who had come In
her absence was a tall young felloy
Of twenty handsome, sinister looh'
ing youth, who stared at her IN open
admiration until the sheik came and
ordered him away, and Abdul Kamah
went scowling.
At last, their curiosity satisfied, Me.
riem was left alone. AS of old, sh'
was permitted the freedom Of the vii
lagc, for the stockade was high and
strong and the only gates were well
guarded by day and night. But, as Of
old, She cared not for the companion
ship Of the cruel Arabs and the de-
graded blacks who formed the follow
ing of the sheik, and So as had been
her want In the sad days of her child
hood, she skunk down TO an unfrequent-
| cd corner of the inclosure where she
! had often played at housekeeping with
her beloved Geeka.
Meriem pressed her hand above her
heart and stifled sigh, and as she did
SO she felt the hard outlines of the
| photographs She had hidden there rs
she skunk from Malblhn's tent. Now
she drew 1t forth and commenced "a
re-examinc it more carefully than she
had had time TO do before.
AS she sat gazing at the picture she
suddenly became aware that she was
not alone; that some one was standing
/ close behind her, some one who had
approached her noiselessly Guilty.
she thrust the picture back into her
waist. a hand fell upon her shoulder
She was sure that 1t was the shelk
and she awaited in dumb terror the
blow that she knew would immediate
ly follow.
No blow came, and she looked up
ward over her shouldcr-intO the eyes
of Abdul Kamak, the young Arab.
Il saw" he said, "the picture that
you have just hidden. 1t is you when
you were n child, n very young child.
May / sec il again.
Meriem drew away from him.
IL will give 1t back" he said. II
have heard of you, and l know that
you have no love for the sheik, your
father Neither have /. l will not
betray you. Let me see the picture"
She drew the photograph from its
hiding place and handed 1t to him.
lie turned the picture over, and as
his eyes fell upon the old newspaper
cutting they went wide. He could
read French-with difficulty, It IS true,
but he could read 1t. lie had been TO
Paris. lie had spent six months there
on exhibition with troop Of his des-