The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1936-01-03
CHAPTER 1
I Attend a Funeral.

as a painter Of portraits, have made
his mark, but work within doors he
would not, and since he cared moth
Ing at all for riches or fame, he paint
ed old buildings and landscapes and
lazy streams, and though l think that
he painted these very well. the pub
lie would not have them, but clam
Ored for portraits instead.
Whether Godfrey was right or
wrong, / cannot pretend to say, but
I must confess that was glad Of his
choice, for since my parents death l
had lived with him, and the work he
preferred made US free Of the coun-
tryside. Indeed, Of the four years
preceding the matters which l am to
tell we had not spent six months at
his London house, but had Travelled
winter and summer, at home and
abroad. We visited many places and
saw all manner of beauties that few
men see, for often enough my cousin
would paint at dawn, when the dew
lay thick upon the meadows and the
mountains stood up like a rood-screen
against the sky.
OF such was my education, after
left my school, and though might
have done better to go to Oxford in
stead, learned to speak German and
French with pretty good grace and
to share with the peasants Of Europe
their several hopes and fears.
/ was in as fine a condition as a
man Of two-and-twenty may be, and
my only care was the knowledge that
very soon now the agreeable life l was
leading must come to an end. This
by my cousins decree. for Godfrey
was trustee of my fortune, and though
he was only some twelve years older
than I, had to great extent to do
as he said. And at twenty-three, he
declared, 1 must take to work: "and
from them" said he, "till you're thirty
your allowance will be exactly as
much as you earn. Earn FIVE pounds
a week, and I'll give you another FIVE.
You've got to make good"
I was brooding on this one morn
ing-for my birthday was the first of
October, and June was very near out
when I heard the sound of voices a
little way off.
This was unusual enough, for, save
for the birds and beasts. an Austrian
forest at dawn is a lonely place: but
what was stranger still was that the
voices were English, and coarse at
that.
Godfrey was painting a vista two
furlongs away, and Barley, his man.
was half mile off with the Rolls. It
was, therefore, plain that no one was
talking with them. and made my
way quietly forward to see and hear
what I could.
Almost at once I saw bushes which
seemed to me to be screening the edge
of some bluff could hear the sound
of labor and the sob of man as he
welded some heavy tool.
Then a spout of oaths startled the
silence, and two men were cursing
each other. the one alleging that the
other would be his death, and the
other insisting that the one had got
in his way.
A third man spoke.
Suppose you go on now"
'But he'll do me in in a minute.
layin' about with that pick"
"The world will be the cleaner"
said the other, and stifled a yawn. "Till
then, get on with your work. l say, get
on"
His voice was deadly.
More curious than ever, Law down
on the ground and, wriggling cautious
ly forward into the bushes which
screened the men from my view.
I shall never forget the scene.
Directly below me, in the midst of
a sparkling dell. were FIVE grown men.
Two, with pickaxe and shovel, were
digging a hasty grave: the sods had
been piled to one side. but a third
man was taking the earth and casting
It into a brook. A fourth man was
leaning against the trunk of a tree.
smoking a cigarette. And the fifth lay
dead beside him.
This spectacle shocked me so much
that a moment or two went by before
/ had collected my wits: then knew
that the man had been murdered, for
his gay. green. belted smock was heay-
lily stained with blood.
AS the porter came back from the
brook
THAT'S enough earth away, Dew
Drop" said the man who had spoken
last. stake another stroll in the coun-
try and see there's nobody up."
The man who was shovelling
stopped and Strengthened his back.
'Lemme do that, Pharaoh. I'm sick
Of this spade"
The man addressed as Pharaoh
wrinkled his brow.
1--WE never liked you," he said. "And
when you question my orders. like
you less. There's food for thought
there, Rush. !"
An instant later Dewdrop was out Of
sight.