Widnes Examiner. — 1906-01-06 (Widnes, Cheshire, England)

NNIJ-Nmarol a the Night. The Nilmo_ion a.aedled lam- AN the old forth. _ _  "To the Sacred Fire 1" they screamed with one accord. They did hot immediately ascend the ladder. Some formalities delayed them, and Gilbert, seeing in this a ray of Lope, rushed like a madman to the basket. Throwing the fool to right and left he seized the water-skins. There were six of them, and with his great hunting. knife he hacked at the neck of the first, and opening it wide threw the skin bodily into the brazier. The fire hissed and spluttered but was not extinguished. A second skin bad no effect, but the third reduced the Eternal Fire to a heap of blackened cinders. A shriek of rage from the foot of the ladder told him that his work was discovered, as the old priest rushed up, closely followed by a Mini carrying Miss Hyde. As the last glimmer of the fire expired these men reached the platform. The priest, yelling with rage, rushed to his fire to make a desperate effort to rescue it. The matt who carried Miss Hyde received young Gilbert Homo'n fist straight between the eyes, and fell like a log, dropping his burden us he did mo. Yellow-Hammer seized the ladder, and with all his force dragged it backwards just as the rest were swarming up. It came up with a rush, and knocked him over flat upon his buck. '• Ilse bucket, Miss Hyde !" lie slionhA, picking up its quickly na he coulsl—" Get into it, and swing over the side !" But this was more tlsan the terrified girl's nerves were equal to, and Gilbert had almo4 to lift her in, and pst-.11 the basket over the edge, where it 'swig, swinging round and ri und. lie wan preparing to set tho repo going over the puller, when he felt a crushing blow on the back of his head, and with a csnfuned sound of bugles, mingled with the (heel ifl of lii it ish soldiers, he fell. %nets he olasned Isis eyes again lie was surrounded by brother officers. It was Uniacke who poured brandy down his throat, whilst Captain blail suplsorted his head on his knee, and Kathleen Hyde, rescued from her terrible position, bathed his face. The tower-top was alive witls soldiers, itt the midtst of whom stood a sullen band securely bound—not one had escaped. Even the man whom Gilbert bed knocked down was there, his face a ghastly object, and his MOM) Sintiterea. Yellow Hammer was surprised to find that he did not turn faint or shudder at the sight of blood now. Perhaps there was so much of it about flint he was getting accustomed to it. Hniacke told him all that had happened afterwards. About the same titne that Gilbert had reached the tower, the native who had been wounded early in the day sent for Uniacke and confessed that he was Mina Hyde's syce, who had been in league with the frequenters of the tower to betray his young mistress into their hands. He had been persuaded that she would merely be detained for a few hours and then ransomed, but bad discovered, when too late, that the fanatics intended to sacrifice the unfortunate girl in the belief that by burning a European alive in their Sacred Fire the plague might be stayed. The syee had been on his way to widow the whole plot when set upon by one of the band, who suspected his fidelity, and almost murdered him.  Maack° lost no time in giving the alarm, but he had not betrayed Gilberen secret in doing so. He merely said that " Yellow Hammer had gone to put out the fire ; and if he and Miss Hyde (whom, he had just heard, had been trepanned there) were to be saved. no time must be wasted." The result we have seen. The rescue had arrived just in time, and Gilbert's ears, as he fell, had not deceived him. The men had cheered loudly KR they scaled the wall, and "MINA° had given the order for the bugles to sound to let him know that they were coining. "I thought the huglss would cheer you up, old man," he said, " and let you know the regiment was turning out." Yellow Hammer's secret is still safe with Geoffrey Uniacke, but it is now a thing of thP past ; and the two, who have been fast friemije ever since, often talk over that terrible night when a great emergency completely cured young Gilbert Home of hia one weakness.  " Yellow•Thuniner be will be to the etul of hie &vs, but to Uniseke be is " the youth who can neither shiver nor shake."