San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1924-03-09
Begin Here Today.

Begin Here To-day.
: Colonel Holes, soldier and adye,
turer, returns TO England. the land +,
his birth, when war is declared wit
Holland. He comes TO lodge wit
Martha Quinn, wealthy hostess of t.
PauPs Head, in Pauls Yard, Londor
It is dangerous for the colonel t
SECURE a commission in the Englis
army because the name OF Randa
Holes, father of the colonel, is OF
the warrant for the execution OF til
late king.
His Grace OF Albemarle, old frien,
of the colonel, promises to try to Sc
cure for HOLES a commission. Martin;
Quinn falls victim to the charms o
the colonel and proposes marriage Il
him.. HOLES refuses her offer TIL.
dreaded plague Is spreading rapidly il
London and on the streets the colone
sees a victim. Now go on with the
story.
As HOLES, perceiving here no more
than a sick man. continued his ad-
vance, a voice from the retreating
crowd shouted warning to him.
Have a care. sir! Have a care
He may be stricken with the plague"
The colonel checked, involuntarily
arrested by the horror that the very
word inspired. And then he beheld a
stoutish, elderly man in a heavy wig.
plainly but scrupulously dressed in
black, whose round countenance gash-
cred singularly owlish expression
from pair of horn-rimmed spectacles,
W ali nalv,,1t- arJ 40 h. ~t.;n
citizen. A moment he stood beside
him looking down; then he turned to
beckon couple of burly fellows who
had the appearance and carried the
slaves Of billmen. From his pocket
the sturdy gentleman in black pro-
duced kerchief upon which he
sprinkled something from phial.
Holding the former to his nostrils with
his left hand. he knelt down beside the
sufferer, and quietly set himself to
unfasten the mans doublet.
Observing him, the colonel admired
his quiet courage, and thence took
shame at his own fear for his utterly
worthless life, he went forward to join
that little group.
One of the billmen was pointing OUT
to the other purple tumid patch NJ
the base of the sufferers throat. His
eyes were round, his face grave, and
his voice came hushed and startled.
See! The tokens" he said to his
And now the doctor spoke, address
ing HOLES.
"You would do well not to approach
more closely, SIR"
rs it the plagueT quoth
HOLES in quiet voice.
The doctor nodded, pointing to the
purple patch. "The tokens are very
plain to see," he said. IL beg, sir,
that you will CO." And on that he
1nce more held the handkerchief to his
mouth and nostrils, and turned his
shoulder upon the colonel.
HOLES withdrew as he was hidden,
moving slowly and thoughtfully,
stricken by the first sight of the
plague at work upon a fellow-creature.
As he approached the edges of the
,rowd, which, keeping its distance, yet
stood at gaze as crowds will, he OBJ
served that men shrank back from him !
is IL he were himself already tainted. |
A single thing beheld impresses us
more deeply than twenty such things |
described TO us by others Hitherto |
hese London citizens had treated |
lightly this matter of the plague. Not |
en- minutes ago they had been derid- |
ng and pelting one who had preached |
repentance and warned them of the |
niger of Heaven launched upon them.
And then suddenly, like a bolt from
be blue, had come the stroke that
aid one of them low, to freeze their
lorision and fill their hearts with
error by giving them a sight Of this
hing which hitherto they had but
leard reported.
The colonel stalked on, reflecting
hat this event in Paul's Yard had
lone more proselytizing for the cause
f the commonwealth than score of
,dvocates could have accomplished.
t was very well. he thought. 1t was !
sign. And il anything had been /
wanting to clinch his decision TO throw
IL his lot with Tucker, this supplied
{.
But first TO quench the prodigious
hirst engendered by his long walk
through that sweltering heat, and then
m to Cheapside and Tucker to offer
lis sword TO the revolutionaries.