Year: 1870

"
5 not courage to undeceive his wife ant
D young Mary and ali at home, who be
: lieved thoroughly his first statemen
5 that Jack was at his mothers IL
J wondered much at my hesitation.
: saw he did. In fact, once he almos
I told me 50.


: 'sWhy do you keep the worm unde
[ your fO0t?" he said, putting his hag
5 gard face over the low door there
! about the second evening. "WhN
2 don't you crush it at once?'
/ turned my back upon him. | haC
t done SO whenever he looked over th'
f door, as he had done several timei
5 since the night he came home with
2 out Jack. This went against the
/ grain with him more than any wOrdi
= could have done.


The third evening he was there
again more haggard and wild than


ever.


"Sturt,D says he, sit must be al


over. must he in hell now. There''


nothing worse than this-there cam


be. They'll drive ME mad. It's
, When Jack comes back from morn
: ing till night. What's the use OF let
ting Christmas come? They'll know
fast enough then, when it comes with
r out him, that he'll never come at all.


What dye say Shall make an end


of it ," r q


did not look at him or answer
him, and he drew a long breath and
crept away. He did not make an end


of it that day.


The next morning, about twelve
O'Clock, ne came straight into the


forge, and clutching my arm, said,


Come outcome out, and tell me


what the fools are all gaping at"


Shaking him off, walked with him


down to the road before the parade,


which was torn and tumbled about by
the high tide, as it will be tO-mOr-


row. Ii was fine bright morning,
and the gentry There used to be more


winter gentry than We have now


had turned out, and were standing in
little groups looking at something out
at sea. All the townsfOlk had turned
out too, and We're looking at the same
thing. We asked an old sailor what
il was, and he told Us it was dead
body out just beyond the pier. Par
son BrOwne-he was one of your sea-
fanciers-was coming ashore that
mornings at four o. clock k;and he had seen
it, and given proper notice, and it had
been fastened by rope to a little sail
ing-bOat.


There were some railings where we
stood, dividing the road from Il field
the sea had laid waste. Joe leant
against these with row of the other
watermeA, and looked out in the same
direction as everybody else looked
Ali that could be seen of the thing
! they looked at from this distance was
IA small dark line on the bright gilt
/ tering water between the pier and the
| little boat. The motion of the waves
made il rise first at one end and then
| the other with monOtonOus rocking
movement. ~


left Joe looking at il, and return
ed To my work. In the afternoon |
went down to the sea again, and found
all the town there ; and more fine Ia
dies than i'm the morning were on the
pier and parade looking at the lit
tie dark line on the sunny water.


Joe Hurlan was in the same place.
He had been fetched home to dinner
by the children, and had SUNK back
again.


BY this time all was ready for bring
ing IL ashore. The shell that had been
made for it i'm the morning was down
OH the beach, ready for il to be lifted
into out of the boat that was just set
ting off to fetch It, Four men were
going out in the boat. Just as it was
putting off, one of them, q young fell
low who happened to be a chum of
Jacks, sickened at the job, and asked
| to to be let off.


Joe wiped the moisture from his
forehead with his sleeve when he saw
this. 1t struck him that the young
man had a sort of instinct about the
thing, though not the slightest suspic-
ion was afiOat in the town about
Jacks absence.


The lad was let off, and the three
bOatmen looked about for some one
to take his place. No sooner did they
catch sight of JOe's tall, strong form
leaning against the rail than they set
tied on him as the man of all men to
be above letting any squeamishness
stand i'm the way Ofa bold waterman's
duty. They hailed him from the
beach: "Ahoy there, Joe Hurlan!
Bear handw


Joe stood still. If ever face aged
years i'm few seconds, his did
Crowds were looking at him, the
man for whom the boat waited
they were impatient to see it off.


What was he TO do? He was not Il
man who might refuse with impuni-
ty on the score of nervousness, he
with his herculean frame and dark
strong face. Yet to go TO help draw
the thing III nearer and nearer, while
the town gaZed on il, and would grad
ually recognize the features and form
of its favOrite; draw that in, while
the children all stood there, clustered
thick as shell-fish on the groin, ready
to see all, and shrek, ats Jack, it's
Jack p'-draw that in, while young
Mary stood beside her mother, moved
as if by some strange instinct to look
on a scene he was sure she would
at other times avoid! She would
know him. Yes Joe was sure of that;
was sure, however altered Jack nigh
be by cruel death and a cruel restless
grave, Mary would know him-wOuld
know both the murdered and the
murderer ut "A glance, and proclaim
them both in her agony to all the
world. %


1t rushed, all this did, in a minute
through JOe's mind as he leant against
the rail; and all eyes waited and
watched to see him answer the sum
mons he had received.


Would he go? wondered but as
/ wondered, he dragged his hat lower
over his eyes, crossed the road, and
dashed noislessly down to the beach,
plunging through the shingle with
long determined stems


The young fellow whose place Joe
was to fill helped to shove the boat of,
and i'm doing so murmured his friend
Jacks own peculiar cry OrsOng, which
he had caught of him: