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" FOR GOP, FOR COUNTRY, AND FOR TRUTH.
Single Copy, 5 Cents.
.VOL. XIV.
PLYMOUTH, N. C.. FRIDAY. APRIL 1903.
NO. 3,
9
-old TjmTMomws
ABSENCE.
, FRANCES ,AN' 15 KKMlit",
Frances Anno Kcmble was born in London on November 27, 1800, and died thevc
M January lu; 189.'!. , She. was an Anglo-A mcrieau actress, Shakespearean, reader and
i)lKor and a daughter of Charles Kemble. She m;ide her first pablic apoearanee in
1K!fl. She viited America in 18..2, and married, Pierce Butler in 1S:34. She lived at
Lenox. Ma.j and returned to England at intervals.
What shall I do with all the days and 'hours-. '
' That, nuisfc be counted ere I see thy face?
How shall J charm the interval that lowers
- Between this time and that sweet time oi' "grace?
Shall I in slumber steep each weary sense
Weayp' with longing? Shall I flee away
Into past days, and with some fond pretence
(.'heat inyselt to forget' the present day?
Shall love for thee lay on my soul the sin
Of casting from me. Cod's great gift of time?
Shall I. these mists of memory locked within, , ,
leave and forget life's purposes ullinie?
-Oh, hoW, or by what means, may I contrive
To bring the hour that brings thee Iwk more near?
., 1 How may I teach my drooping hope to live
, - Until that blessed time, and thou art here?
'; I'll tell thee; for thy sake I will lay hold
7 Of all good aims, and consecrate to thee.
In worthy deeds, each moment that is told
; While thou, beloved one, art far from me.
. For theo I will arouse my thoughts to try'
'.. . . . All heavenward flights, all high and holy strains; '
' ' For thy dear sake I will walk patiently
Tb rough, these long hours, nor call their minutes pain. .
I will this -dreary blank of absence make
A noble buk-th.ne; and will therein strive
'" To follow ei ellence. ,md to o'ertake
More good than I have won since yet I live.
So may this doomed time build up in me
, A thousand graces. vh if h shall thus be thine; '
. ' So may ray love and longing hallowed be.
And thy dear thought an 'influence-divine.
A Story of Thrilling Adventure.
By Cecil
Q f T V XCHAXGE! Hollo! hello!
I Arc -you". there? iine
I three-seven-six, please."
.Then, as in customary
.1 1 - 1 j . t 1 - 1
wit?; me leiepnone system, mere en
sued a prolonged silence, during which
K ci shaw waited with the receiver to
his ear Avondering whether the presid
ing deity at Central was trying to
switch him through or Avas deep in the
sixteenth chapter of a new serial.
That something bad been doue in im
,wcr fn Ins iinneal. was clear, for thorn
came over the "wire the muffied whirr
of another call, scraps of conversation
a female voice high )Uchc(l in argu
mentand a sound like footsteps on a
stone-flagged passage. Then came a
InV.t and another scrap of conversa
tion between two people unknown
reached him.
"'Yes. that's settled due off by the
boat train I shall be at the station."-
"l.oes ho .carry them on -him?"
i "Who takes charge of the matter?"
i ne ipiuer mmsen.
"Whew! .It's a bigger thing'thnu I
thought, Ihen. Where will ho "
"iie'll start from (-hating Cross and
- ... i ii i. : r
lrilVC'l V1IM1I 1 II 11 1 li LL 1 1 . II IH"(7l i.
"Then a quarter of an hour before
iho train leaves to-night, eh! Oh! and
1- Sy. (angrily) No! don't cut 'me
off yet. Here, Central. I haven't tin-is-berl'"
and then once more silence.
Kershaw dropped the rereiver and
consulted with himself. lie had lis
ivned.half unconsciously to the open
ing sentences: but the mention of one
thing "The Spider" kept him on the
su m eh to hear all he could.
lie sat down on the nearest chair
n-hiuOrul u,.rHv t.. Itintuftlf
'I wonder.", he said tinder his breath
and again "I wonder."
, "Upon my word, I'm not a great be
liever In fate or chance, or whatever
yen call it. as a rule, but. unless,! am
very much mistaken, that telephone,
apd the delays and imperfections
thereof, bave saved my , life. The
Slider. -1oo-hAV the deuce has the
thing, leaked out V"
Forgetting all about the message
W had origitially intended sending.
Kershaw, left the club and walked
beck' to his own rooms. 'Once sure of
absgluto.'"' privacy, he opened. a dispatch
box and took from it a large, -bulky.
rial-looking envelope: ten minutes'
i work and the manipulation of
...i-r'n stationery enabled hint to lay by
its bide a-n almost vz.su. t duplicate, on
bottom corner of which, for secur
v r-.ik.'. lu placed a small private
Hayter.
Then, taking from a cupboard a
heavy fur-lined overcoat, be ruthless
ly slit up -one of the seams with a
penknife, just below where the sleeve
joined on; into this opening he slipped
the original envelope and stitched it
carefully in position.
The duplicate, together with a hand
ful of unimportant documents, he re
placed in the dispatch box and began
changing into traveling clothes. He
hael barely completed this when there
came a knock at: t lie tloor ami Sir Edgar-
Trailton. a reserved, distingttished
Jooking man of fifty or so. entered.
"Xeaily ready, Kershaw?" he said.
"Quite," was the prompt answer.
The elder man looked at him keenly.
"Yon fully understand the importance
of t hose papers? They must reach the
embassy at Constantinople, intact, at
any cost. There has been ton much
pilfering and tampering with the mail
bags lately. If (hose particular dis
patches were to fall into wrong hands
I am authorized to tell you plainly
(hat it means war Avar of a very
grim order just when we Avant it least,
also their value in the hands of-unscrupulous
people Avould be calcu
lated in sums to make a Kothschild
envious."
Kershaw hesitated.
"Well." said Sir' Edgar hastily,
"what is it? Do you want to back
out of the responsibility?"
"Xot in the least, but quite by
chance I overheard a few words on
the telephone just now, and I believe
the . man they call The Spider has get
Avind of the .matter, and is going to
have a try for them."
.Sir Edgar looked grave and his face
hardened. "That man is the tiend in
carnate. He gives more trouble and
is more dangerous than half the secret
services of Europe." ,
"I have heard a lot about him, but
have never seen him. Could you give
me any information?"
"That's the extraordinary thing.
The man is always cropping up and
causing infinite difficulties, bur no one
seems to have the vaguest idea what
he is like. He is French by birth the
most cunning and dangerous brute in
creation, and stone blind. So much I
know no more."
"r.linil!" said Kershaw in astonish
ment. "Absolutely, though few people,
boweVer, guessed it. lie has a lot of
paid spies to do rough work. Ibit, in
spite of liis infirmity, he always car
ries through his big couf- aloue-aiu!
unaided, trusting no one and keeping
his own counsel.''
Kershaw felt slightly skeptical, and
realizing that time was running short,
if he wished to dine before his jour
ney, he said good-bye to Sir Edgar
Trailton. and had his luggage put on a
hansom. ,
There were not many passengers by
the mail, and Kershaw could, if he had
chosen, have had a carriage to himself.
Itut an oh'h-ious porter hael already
placed his things in a compartment in
Avhioh there was an old clergyman
already seated, pulling aAvay at a cigar
and reading a yellow book with an air
of great enjoyment.
He looked up as Kershaw got in
and then resumed his reading, and the
train started off.
After some time Kershaw pulled out
his case ami lit a cigarette. The old
clergyman held out his hand with a
smile. "Excuse me." said he, "but
could you give me a light?"
Kershaw handed him the still flam
ing match. Avhich the other took, and
relit his cigar. Then a strange little
ae-cldent happened. The man threw
avay the inarch, which, being nearly
burnt down, stuck slightly to his fin
gers, so that, instead of going on to
the floor as intended, it fell on the
cushion 'of the seat opposite, still
alight. Now that in itself Avas noth
ing, but Avhat was extraordinary Avas
that the old man picked up his book
and resumed his reading, Avith the
match burning the seat almost under
his nose. ,
Kershaw Avas about to give an ex
clamation of surprise. Avhen suddenly
Sir Edgar's Avords came hack to liim,
"The man is. stone blind." The book,
the In tie. bit of bravado in asking for
a light, the disguise, Avas all simply a
ruse. The man Avas blind, but bad it
not been for the trivial accident of the
falling match Kershaw would have
staked his last farthing against such
a supposition. Obviously the thing to
do was not to let the man kuow he
AA-as discovered. Very cautiously he
stretched out his Avalking stick and
extinguished the fire before the cloth
began to smell. So far. so good, and
he Avas holder of a trump card.
It Avas a misty, choppy night Avhen
the train drew yn alongside thq quay;
the, Avind, blowing a quarter gale,
Avhistied and moaned through the
boat's shrouds, and made the
draughty customs sheds cptiver Avith
each fierce, gust.
KershaAV snatched v-p his things,
beckoned a porter, and hurried on
board. He had had thoughts of spend
ing his time in the smoking-room, but
on second consideration he thought he
Avould be more secure in a private
stateroom, o -he took possession of a
deck cabin, and, having Keen his lug
gage carefully dtposited therein, he
bolted the door, placed his portman
teau against it, Avrapped himself in
his rug and settled down.
The tramp, tramp of many feet, the
moaning of the wind and the cries
of the deck bauds getting the luggage
on board, formed themselves into a
monotonous chorus, and he dozed over
his novel; then came the sharp ting,
ting of the engine-room signals, the
faint, continuous rhythm of the en
gines themselves, gathering in speed
and force as the boat crept slowly into
The. heavy Aveaiher outside. The book
slid from his hand and he fell into a
sleep only rendered deeper by the
heavy rolling of the vessel.
"When he woke it Avas Avith a start.
The cabin was in total darkness,
though he had purposely left the elec
tric light full on. It was so black
that it Avas impossible to distinguish
cax-ii the barest outlines of anythting.
Yet he Avas convinced that he Avas no
longer alone in the room. . Some one
had forced the door, and he Avas grop
ing about quite close to him.
He held his breath and listened, but
the din outside Avas too great. Cau
tiously he stretched out a hand. Then
steadying himself as avcM as he could.
lie moved round inch by inch toward i
the door. He Avas in a Avay at a dis
advantage The Spider Avas blind, and
therefore accustomed to darkness,
Avhile he Avas heavily handicapped by
it.-'But of one thing he felt certain,
that though some one had entered un
aAvares. they were not going to get out
without trying conclusions Avith him.
-The ship lurched and backed, and
every iioaa' and then came the clatter
of something falling. The darkness,
to his excited nerves, seemed to grow
thicker every second and he never
knew but what ho. might fee a lew
inches of cold steel in his ribs before
he could move hand or foot. For The
Spider".; pcusc-x Avere so marvelously
acute that it av:is quite Impossible, he
should not have been able to detect
Kershaw's mwvciiicut.
Then there came a lurch and a stag
ger heavier than usual as a big mass
of water struck the boat something
sAvayed forward and touched hint light
ly: but it Avas sufficient; he clutched ,at
it Avith both hands and brought up bis
knee Avith a jerk it was no time for
niceties. There was a crack a stifled
cry and Ihe tinkle of steel: be had
snapped the man's forearm above the
Avrisf joint the next instant, they
Kershaw picked himself up, groped
hurriedly for the electric light switch
and liooded the cabin .with light, but
too late the door was swinging Avide,
and The Spider had vanished, broken
arm and all. leaving as traces of his
visit the dispatch-box neatly severed
at the hinges, and on the floor a
businesslike looking knife. Kershaw
glanced round for his fur coat, and
heaved a sigh of relief that at any
rate Avas safe. -with its valuable con
tents stoAved away in the lining. But
the dummy envelope was gone from
the dispatch-box. He rang for the
steward and. without giving any rea
sons, asketl him to find out for him
the" Avhereabouts of the clergyman
avIjo had come aboard. The man
Avent, but returned in a few minutes
saying that there Avas no such person
to bo found. The Spider had A-anished.
For once in his life he had made a
complete failure.
As the train Avas moving out of the
station en route for Paris, however,
Kershaw saw a youngish-looking man,
dressed as a bicyclist, bciug helped
into the train. He had his arm in a
sling, and Avas explaining to an ac
quaintance that be had slipped on the
Avet decks and sprained his wrist.
Kershaw also noticed, with grim
amusement, that in the man's left
breast pocket there Were outward and
visible signs of a bulky package of
sorts, and blessed the much-abused
telephone system of his native kind.
XeAV York News. . ,
Kabbit as Acrobat.
The rat is, as ,no one avUI doubt, a
very fair climber. He can scamper
about anywhere on the roof of a barn
or can ascend the ivy that grows on the
house Avail, and make the lives of the
pigeons in their cotes anything but
happy ones. The rabbit, on the other
hand, is not usually accounted a climb
ing animal. A Avriter in Field' de
scribes the astonishment of his sister
at seeing a rabbit jump from the; bough
of a tree, and, picking itself up, "scam
per off rather dazed to its warren."
Whenever a rabbit is found in a tree,
except Avhen he is carried there by a
receding snowdrift, it will be found
that a" sloping trunk or other easy
method ot approach has been made use
of. He is, hoAvever. Aery expert at
climbing stone Avails that bound his
fields, and even the Avire netting that
the farmer vainly imagines avUI keep
him from the choicest crops. We have
seen rabbits run up the face of a
quarry to their holes tOAvarel the top. a
feat Avhich Ave have not found it easy
to imitate. ,
i;eu Nash's Successor.
Angelo Cyrus Bantam, Esq.. .M. C.
Aveieomed Mr. FickAvick to Bath in tic
lion, and Beau Nash was. in fact, the
greatest master of ceremonies on rec
ord. For many years the office has
been in suspension, and the man Avho
Avelcomes you at Bath is the ticket
collector on the airy platform of the
raihvay station. But Bath is pulling
itself together. After nearly a quarter
of a century of suspended animation I
the M. C. is revived, in. the person of"
Major Charles Henry Simpson. Avho
lias already been Mayor. It Avill be
Major Simpson's duty and pleasure to
arrange balls, entertainments and
other amusements and act as president
in a republic of pleasure. It ay ill be
interesting to see how he carries on a
tradition Avhich is as famous in fact
as in fiction. London Chronicle
Waste of Time.
There had been a slight shock of
earthquake, and Mr. Ilerlihy and Mr.
Dolan had both felt it.
"Tim,"' said Mr. Dolan. solemnly,
"what did you think Avhin lirrst tho
ground began to trimble?"
"Think!" echoed his friend, scorn-,
fully. "What man that had the use av
his legs to run and his loongs to roar
would Avaste his toime thinkin? Tell
me thot!'' Youth's Companion. t'
An Ancient Overcoat.'
Report has it that a prominent citizen
of Petersburg. Va., Avears au overcoat
for which he paid $b" In Baltimore in
1S44. It is of English pilot cloth, and
although it has been Averti every win
ter for li !'"-- It yt-arz il is said to be
still a re- j -H-look! sarmeat.
A SHRINE.
She sits and sew$ in the window there "'
The sunshine round her lingers.
Just touching her braids ot bright brow
. nair
'And slender busy fingers.
And she fashions garments fair and fine
Fo:- the dear little" baby hers. and mine.
Her swii't white lingers can scarce keep
pai-e , ' -
As down the vears she glances.
And sows into olds of mull and lace
Her own sweet, thoughts and fancies.
And her eyes are bright with light divine
As she croons to the baby hen and mine.
She drops her work when tiie daylight
dies .
I see them rocking, rocking
There are dimpled arms, two dear, dark
eyes,
A Avee blue shoe and stocking. ,
And my heart bends low before Cue shrine
Oi' my wife and the baby hers and mine.
Alice K. Allen, in Good Housekeeping.
"Mamma." asked Young ' Curiosity,
"when deaf-and-dumb people cheer, do
their fingers get tired?" Lippincott's.
"I don't intend to be married nntil I
am over thirty." "And I don't intend
to be over thirty until I am married."
Town Topics.
Mother "Why, Alice, don't yon love
your baby brother?" Alice "What's
the use? He Avouldn't know it if I
did.s Town Topics.
Miss Giddy "I suppose you medical
students have seine gay times." Young
Medicus "Yes. we do Y-ut tip quite a
good deal." Chicago News.
lie doesn't care for money.
His purse, so far from slim
Is big enough, they say. to make
His money care for him..
Washington Star.
"Her marriage Avas a great disap
pointment to her friends." "Indeed?
"Oh, yes. They all predicted it would,
turn out unhappily, and it didn't."
Judge.
Teacher "Johnny, you've been fight
ing." Johnny--" Yes'in; Jimtnie Brown
said his teacher Avas prettier than you,
an' I licked him tiy, he took it back."
Piek-Mc-Fp. ''.'' .
She meditated, Avith growing anger.
Suddenly she .grasped a bottle of bair
iue and. hurling it . across the room,
shrieked, "Ha! The dye is cast!"
Princeton Tiger.
'"What is an asteroid?" asked the in
structor of the class. "An asteroid,"
replied the young Avomau with the
pert nose, "is an understudy to a star."
Chicago Tribune.
Richard "Your fourleen-yeav-obi
daughter seems to be a very capable
girl." Robert "Ob, yes; she has her
mother and me under perfect control."
Detroit Free Press.
He "I don't see how you can say
such terrible things about another
Avomau.", She "You don't understand,
you silly. Why, Carrie is my dearest
friend." Boston Transcript.
Stranger "You have a fim links
here. Do you play much?" The Other
One '"Me play? Well. I guess not.
There's nothing daily about me. I'm
the caddy. I am." Boston .Transcript.
"Absence makes the heave grow
louder" ...
Is an axiom most peasant
But afreet ion rather dicker.
It it's absence of a urescnl.
CSir::;;. Tribu:M.
"There is one very suspicious thing
I have noticed about the hum 'who
says 'I told you so,'" remarked the
observer of events and things. "He
never seems to come out A-,it'n a now
hat after election." Yonkers States
man. The savage regarded the first Avhito
man thoughtfully. "If 1 try "' to fight
him," he said, "he will exterminate me,
and if I try to live in peace with bint
be will cheat me out of everything and.
.1 will starve to death. WTbat chance
have I got?1' Chicago Post.,
TIio Klk lyng Out.
An animal Avhich Ix vapidly dyius:
out, and which is unknoAvn on' English,
hunting grouuds. is the elk. In Ger
many only ihe .Kaiser is the proud pos
sessor of a fCAv hundreds 'of thes.
giants of the forest. They are kept in
the imperial torcst of Ibenhorst, im
Eastern Prussia, and .are only allowed
to be bunted by a special permit front
the Kaiser, signed, by him .personally,
antl then only a errtatu number "may
be shot.
lightning clouds are seldom mj?-1
than TCD yards from vie varth.
V