Year: 1865

w ltlCl MI lllc VI NY lIl'
are in that belt and you know it."


:" Is it possible, sweet fox, that have
found your nest p? | shall give Marie neck
lace of diamonds, then. Why do you
wait Why should you fall from a trair
and make piece of news for the papers
Why W .......


Take it and be accursed in your life
and death !" and | heard the belt flung OF
! th- floor Of the carriage.


Now, good Alexis, | am in funds, there
are three pieces of gold for you you will
need them at Leghorn. Will you drink
No? Then | will tell you why, without
drink. Do you know where we are ~
"Yes between St Dominica and Sig
na"


And do you know where you are go
ing"


Yes to Leghorn."


"No, sweet Alexis, we are not we are
going to Empoli; the train will go no fur.
ther Look you, little fox we shall arrive
at the junction one minute before the Sien-
ma goods train, and there the engine will
break down just where the rails cross ; for
two blows of a hammer will convert an en-
gine into log | shall get out to examine
it I; that will take little time shall ex-
plain to the Count the nature of the injury
! that will take a little time and then the
goods train will have arrived ~and as it
does not stop there, this train will go nc
| further than Empoli, and | shall be Count
| Spezzato tomorrow How do you like my
scheme, little fox? Is it not worthy Of your
pupil? Oh, it will be beautiful accident
it will fill the papers. The beast of an
Englishman who begged his place in the
| train will be fortunate he will cease, for
goods trains are heavy Eh but it's a
grand scheme-the son, the mother, the
servant, the stranger, the engine-driver all
shall tell no tales"


"And the stoker 2" said the courier.


ooh, you and he and | shall escape. We
shall be pointed at in the streets as the for
tunate 1t is good, is it not, Alexis, my
fox? | have told him that the Count is the
man who betrayed his sister. He believes
it, and is my creature. But, little fox, it
was not my cousin,it was myself, that took
his Beatrix from her home. Is it not gen
ius? And Atkinson-he, the driver-is
now stupid he has drunk from his can the
poppy JUICE that will make him sleep for
ever | will be politician. am worth y
of Office. | will become the minister of a
Bourbon when | am Count, my dear fox and
you shall be my comrade again. as of old


was, for a time, lost to every sensation
save that of hearing. The fiendish garrul-
ity of the man had all the fascination of
the serpents rattle. | felt helplessly re-
signed to a certain fate


| was aroused by something white slow
ly passing the closed window of the car
riage. | waited a little, then gently open
ed it and looked out The stoker was crawl
ing along the foot board of the next car
riage, holding on by its handles, so as not
to be seen by the occupants, and holding
the signal lantern that had noticed at the
back of the last carriage in his hand The
meaning of it struck me i'll moment if
by any chance we missed the goods train
from Sienna, we would be run iuto from be-
mind by the train from Florence.


The cold air that blew in at the open
window refreshed me, and | could think
what was to be done. The train was in
creasing its pace rapidly. Evidently the
stoRer, III sole charge. was striving to reach
Empoli before the other train, which we
should follow, was due !; he had to make five
minutes in journey of forty-five, AID, at
the rate we were going, we should do it..
We stopped nowhere, and the journey was
more than half over We were now be-
tween Segua and Montelupo another twen-
ty minutes and should be bruised corpse
Something must be done.


| decided soon. Unfastening my bag,
took out my revolver, without which |
never travel, and looking carefully to the
loading and Gaping, fastened it to my
waist with handkerchief. | then cut with
my knife the bar across the middle of the
window, and carefully looking out. | could
see nothing; the rain was falling fast, and
the night was dark as ever. | cautiously
put out first one leg then the other, keeping
my knees and toes close to the door, and
lowered myself till felt the step. | walk
ed carefully along the fOotboard by side
steps, holding on to the handles of the doors,
till came to the end of the carriages, and
was next the tender. Here was gulf that
seemed impossible The stoker must have
passed over it; why not |? Mounting from
the foot-board on to the tender, and holding
on to the iron hook on which the lamps arc
hung, stretched my legs to reach the fiat
part of the buffer on the tender My legs
swung about with vibration, and touched
nothing. must spring. l had to hold
with both hands behind my back, and stood
on the case of the buffer-spring, and, sud
denly leaving go, leaped forward, struck
violently against the edge of the tender
and grasped some of the loose lnmps of Goa
on to the top. Another struggle brought
me on my knees, bruised and bleeding OF
the top. stood up and at that moment
the stoker opened the door of the furnace
and turned towards me, shovel in hand t.
put in the GOALS The bright red light from
the fire enabled him to see me, while i
blinded me. He rushed at me, and thel
began a struggle that I shall remember t.
my dying day He grasped me round thu
throat with the arm, dragging me close t.
his breast, and with the other kept shorten
ing the shovel for an effective blow. NJ,
hands, numbed and bruised, were almvs
useless to me, and for same seconds w
rceled to and fro on the foot-plate in tn
binding glare. At last he got me agains
the front of the engine, and with horribl
ingenuity, pressed me against it till tn
lower part of my clothes were burnt to
cinder The heat, however, restored m


hands, and at last | managed to push hin
far enough from my body to loosen my pis


tol. did not want to kill him, but | coul


not be very careful, and fred at his shou


der from the back He dropped the shove