Evening star., 1924-02-26
eyes. outraged by the act of the man
she had trusted-nay, whom she had
loved!
CHAPTER XIII.
The News.

1uc NetP9.
A horseman rode furiously over the
| new road from Fort Bellefontaine to
st. Louis village. He carried news.
The expedition of Lewis and Clark
had returned!
Yes, these men so long thought
lost. dear. were coming even now
with their own story, with their
proofs. The boats had passed Cha
rette. had passed Bellefontaine. and
presently would be pulling up the
river to the water front of st. Louis
itself
Run, boys!" cried Pierre Chouteau
to his servants. Call out the people!
Tell them to ring the behs-teil them,
Capts. Lewis and Clark have come
back again-those who were dead"
The little settlement was afire
upon the instant. Laughing, talking,
people of St. Louis hurried out to
meet the men whose voyage meant so
much. ''-'
At last they saw them coming. the
paddles flashing In unison in the
thorny hands which tirelessIy drove
the boats along the river. They could
see them-men with long boards, clad
in leggings Of elk hide, moccasins of
buffalo and deer: their head-dresses
those OF the Indians, their long hair
the foremost craft sat two men. side
by side-Lewis and Clark, >the two
friends who had arisen as IL from
the grave!
command. as the boats lined up along
the wharf.
The brown and Scared rifles came
to place.
The volley Of salutation blazed out
even with the chorus OF the voyag-
ers' cheers. And cheers repeated
and unceasing greeted them as they
stepped from their boats to the wharf.
In an instant they were half over
powered.
Come with me-
mo, with me-"
with mel"
A score OF eager voices of the
privileEe priv es' Of = hospitality tor them. It
was almost by force that Pierre
Chouteau bore them away to his
castle on the hill. And always aues-
tions. questions. came upon them
calculations, exclamations.
MA foil" exclaimed more than one
pretty French maiden. such men
such splendid men -, savages, yet
white! See! See!"
They had gone away as youths,
these two captains; they had come
back men. Four thousand miles out
and back they had gone. over q coun-
try unnapped, unknown; and they
brought back news-news OF great,
new lands. Was 1t any wonder that
they stood now, grave and digntf1ed,
feeling almost for the first time the
weight of what they had done?s
They passed over the boat landing
and across the wharf. approaching
the foot OF the rocky bluff above
which lay the long street Of st. Louis.
Silent, as was his wont, Meriwether
Lewis had replied to most of the
greetings only with the smile which
so lighted up his face. But now, sud-
eve rested not upon the faces Of those
acclaiming friends, but upon some-
thing else beyond them.
Yes. there It was-the old fur shed,
the storage house OF the traders here
on the wharf, just as he had left 1t
two years before. The door was
closed. What lay beyond it?
Lewis shuddered. as If caught with
chill, as he looked at yonder door.
Just there she had stood. more than
two years ago, when he started out on
this long journey. There he had kiss
ed that face which he had left in
tears--he saw it now. All the glory
of his safe return. all the wonderful
results which 1t must mean, he would
have given now, could he have had
back that picture for different max
ing; .
my instruments-how did they per-
form7"
The speaker was DR.. Saugrain,
eager to meet again his friends.
Perfect. doctor, perfect. We have