The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1922-07-06

II ll.
nearly as she could count nj all. tho
reckoning agreed with what the Indian
woman had heard. Two had died
tnen' since the Drum last had beat.
when Its roll was twenty. Two more
than before; that meant five were left
| constance caught up her woolen
| mood from the table and put 1t on. Her
| action seemed to call Henry to him
SELF
What are you going to do2" he de-
manded.
I'm going out"
He moved between her and the door.
Not alone, you're notw His heavy
voice had deep tone Of menace in il
| ne seemed to consider and decide
something about her There's a farm
| mousse about mile back; I'm going to
take you over there and leave YOU with
those people"
Il Will not go there!"
| he swore. "Fll carry you, thenI"
| she shrank back from him as he.
iurched toward her with hands out
stretched to seize her; he followed
her, and she avoided him again: II his
guilt and terror had given her mental
ascehdency over him, his physical
strength could still force her to his
VIII and, realizing the impossibility
or evading him or overcoming him.
| she stopped
| Not that" she cried Don't touch
| me!'
| come with me, then !" he command
ed; and he went to the door and laid
| MS snOwshoes on the snow and
stepped into them. STOPPING and tight
enlng the straps; he stood by while
she put on hers. He did not attempt
again to put hands upon her as they
moved away from the little cabin to-
ward the woods back Of the clearing:
but went ahead, breaking the trail for
her with his snowshoes. He moved
Forward slowly; he could travel, IL he
had wished, three feet to evsry two
that she could cover, but he seemed
not wishing for speed but rather for
delay. A deep, dull resonance was
booming above the wood; 1t doomed
again and ran into rhythm. No
longer was 1t above; at least 1t was not
only above; 1t was all about them
here, there, to right and to left before.
oehind-the booming Of the Drum.
Doom was the substance of that sound
OF the Drum beating the roll Of the
dead.
Henry had stopped In front Of her.
half turned her way; his body swayed
| and bent to the booming Of the Drum.
as his swollen lips counted Its sound
ings. She could see him plainly In the
| moonlight, yet she drew nearer to him
as she followed his count. "Twenty-
one" he counted-"Twenty-two!" The
drum was still going on. Twenty
enty-five-twenty-s y-six" Would
he count another?
He did not; and her pulses which
had halted, leaped with relief He
moved on again, descending the steep
| side OF little ravine, and she fol-
lowed. One Of his snOwshoes caught
In protrudng root and, instead of
| slowing to free it with care, he pulled
| IL violently out and she heard the dry,
seasoned wood crack. He looked down,
swore saw that the wood was not
| broken through and went on; but as
he reached the bottom Of the slope. she
leaped downward from little height
| behind him and crashed down upon his
trailing snowshoe just behind the heel.
The rending snap of the wood came
beneath her feet. Had she broken
| through his shoe or snapped her own?
She sprang back, as he cried out and
| swung In an attempt to grasp her; he
lunged to follow her, and she ran 4
Few steps away and stopped. At his
next step his foot entangled In the
mesh OF the broken snowshoe. and he
stopped, curslng, to strip it off and
hurl 1t from him; then he tore off the
one from the other foot, and threw it
away, and lurched after her again; but
now he sank above his knees and fioun-
dered In the snow. She stood for a
moment while the half-mad. half
drunken figure struggled toward her
along the side Of the ravine; then she
ran to where the tree trunks hid her
from him. He gained the top of the
slope and turned I'm the direction she
had gone; assured then, apparent "
that she had flown i'm fear of him, he
started back more swiftly toward the
beach. She followed. keeping out of
his sight among the trees
To twenty-siX, he had counted-to
twenty-siX, each time! That told that
he knew one was living among those
who had been upon the ferry! What
one? 1t could only be one Of two to
dismay him so; there had been only
two OH the ferry whose rescue he had
feared; only two who, living, he would
lave let lie upon this beach which he
had chosen and set aside for his pa
troll while he waited for him to die!
She forced herself on, unsparingly.
as she saw Henry gain the shore and
lis, believing himself alone, he hurried
northward. She could not rest she
could not let herself be exhausted
Needless minute after minute she
:aCc,. -. thus A dark shape-a fig
~" iLy stretched upon the ice ahead |
. BcyOnd and still farther out, SOME
ihinS which seemed the I'ragme nts OF
lifeboat tossed up and down where
the waves thundered and cleaned at