Evening star., 1924-09-10
THE OWLS HOUSE
a Thrilling Adventure Story
By Crosbie Garstin
Copyright, 1924 by Frederick A. Stokes Co

| II was MS pTdCtlCe TO pltCn MS VIII
ter camp in a small coppice about
two and half miles north of Bosula.
1t was no mans land, sheltered by
| wall of rocks from the north and
east, water was plentiful and the trees
| provided fuel Moreover. it was Sc
cluded, a weighty consideration, for the
gypsy dealt in other things besides
horses. in the handling of which privacy
was of the first import. In short, he
was a receiver of stolen goods and
valuable articles of salvage. He gave
a better price than the Jew junk
| dealers in PenZance because his
| travels opened a wider market and
also he had reputation of never
! "peaching," of betraying a customer
| for. reward-a reputation far from
deserved, be it said-but he peached
always in secret and with consum-
mate discretion.
| He did lucrative business in salvage
| in the West but the traffic in stolen
goods was slight because there were
! no big towns and no professional
| thieves. The few furtive people who
| crept by night into the little wood
| seeking the gypsy were mainly
| thieves by accident, victims of sud
| den overwhelming temptations. They
seldom bargained with Pyramus. but
| agreed to the first price offered,
/
as if red hot and were gone, radiant
with relief frequently forgetting to
| take the money.
Il am like their Christ said Py-
| ramus; they come to me to be re-
! lieved of their sins"
In England of those days gypsies
were regarded with well merited sus-
picion and hunted from pillar to post.
| Pyramus was the exception. He
passed unmolested up and down his
trade routes, for he was at particular
| pains to ingratiate himself with the
| two ruling classeS-the law oflicerS
! and the gentry-and, being a clever
| man, succeeded.
The former liked him because once
King Herne joined a fair there
would be no trouble with the Ro-
NAMES: also he gave them reliable
/ information from time to time. Capt.
! Rudolph, the notorious Bath road
! highwayman. owed his capture and
subsequent hanging to Pyramus. as
did also a score of lesser tobymen.
| Pyramus made no money out of foot
! pads, so he threw them as a sop to
| justice.
| The gentry Pyramus fawned on
with the oily. cunning of his race.
| Every man has joint in his har-
ness, magistrates no less. Pyramus
made these little weaknesses of the
great his special study. One infiuen-
tial land owner collected snuff boxes,
another firearms. Pyramus in his
| tratlickings up and down the world
kept his eyes skinned for snuff boxes
and firearms. and, having exceptional
opportunities. usually managed to
bring something for each when he
passed their way, an exquisite casket of
| tortoise shell and paste, pair of silver
mounted pistols with Toledo barrels.
Some men haG to be reached by other
| means.
| Lord James Thyme was partial to
| coursing. Pyra.mus kept an eye lift
ed for greyhounds, bought dog from
the widow of a Somersetshire poacher
| Chung the day before), and Lord
| James won 10 matches running with
| it. The Herne tribe were welcome
| to camp on his waste lands forever.
| But his greatest triumph was with
| Mr.. Hugo Lorimer. ]. p, of Stame, in
the County of Hampshire. Mr.. Lori
ner was death on gypsies, maintain
| ing against all reason that they
hailed from Palestine and were re-
| sponsible for the crucifixion. He
harried them numerically. He was
not otherwise devout man; the per
| secution of the Romantics was his
sole form of religious observance.
Even the astute Pyramus could not
| melt MIN. cndFH ne never So Wisely
| This worried King Herne, the more
so because Mr.. Lorimers one pas
| sion was horses-his own line of
business-and he could not reach him
| through it.
| He could not win the truculent
J. p. by selling him a good nag
cheap because he bred his own
and would not tolerate no other
breed. He could not even convey
| = 1o flap a hf-
cause he did not bet. The justice
was adamant; Pyramus baftied.
| Then one day came change in
| the situation. The pride of the stud,
the crack stallion Stane Emperor,
went down with fever and, despite
all ministrations, passed rapidly from
bad to worse. All hope was aban-
doned. Mr.. Lorimer. infinitely more
perturbed than if his entire family
| had been in a like condition, sat on
upturned bucket in the horses box
and wept.
To him entered Pyramus, pushing
past the grooms, fawning, obseQui-
| ously sympathetic, white with dust.
He had heard the dire news at Down.
| ton and came instanter, squirting.
| Might he humbly crave a peep at
the noble sufferer? Perhaps
his poor skill might effect something.
| life. Had succeeded with
many cases abandoned by others
more learned 1t was MS
business and livelihood.
Would his worship graciously per-
nit?
His worship ungraciously grunted
an affirmative. Gypsy horse copper
full of tricks as dog OF feas.
At all events could make the
precious horse no worse. Go
ahead.
Pyramus bolted himself in with
| the animal and in two hours it was
standing up, Tipping bran mash from
his hand. sweaty, shaking, but saved.
Mr.. Hugo Lorimer was all graft
tude, his one soft spot touched at last.
uranus must name his own reward.
Pyramus, both pa Inns upraised in
protest, would hear of no reward;
honored to have been of any service
to such a gentleman.
Departed bowling and smirking, the
poison he had blown through a graf
ing into the horses manger the night
before in one pocket, the antidode in
| the other.
CONTINUED in Tomorrow's Star)