. t . ILLUSTR'JlD d. j.lawj
15
CHAPTER XXII Continued.
I "a lowered himself Into the stream,
which wu deep to the shore, as silent-
1 AS a irhfinf A Hnun foot wi T
lout eight of him entirely amid the
dim, dancing shadows. ; Then I fol
lowed with equal caution, my face
turned up to the sky. It was a dark
night, but with' a few stars visible
peeping down through rifts of cloud.
The Small river was not wide, nor the
current particularly swift, and I had
. not been carried far down Stream
when the overhanging branches of the
opposite bank gave shelter. I drew my
self ashore, and sat there, shivering in
my wet clothes, the night air( chill', and
tared anxiously about, and across, to
the shore, we had Just left i,
I moved down the shore cautiously,
keeping well below the concealing
bank until I found Brad v. Ha was
crouched In the shadow of a great tree
root,' his whole attention riveted on
the opposite side. " ' ''.''V
- "There are no signs of pursuit?" 4
"Not that I can see. I have watched
here some minutes, but there has been
no movement along the bank. We will
move on down stream." " '"''"'."''"'
It was hard walking amid the tangled
, roots, and we-made slow work of It
rady, In advance, stumbled once or
twioe, and, I noticed, held one hand
pressed against his side as though
from pain, breathing heavily". To our
left, but some distance away, a voice
called, and was" answered by another.
So, tolling on, we came to a sharp
bend In the stream. ? i
, "It must be : about opposite here,
Hayward." he said stopping, "the girl
told you the boat would be. What is
that lumping shadow yonder? Tour
eyes are younger than mine." ,,- ''
.. I looked where he pointed, shading
my eyes, and gradually focusing- the
outlines until, they assumed definite
shape. . '.''' Sf v''?;';i
"It is a big tree bent down, over the
river; no uondi we one sne meant
"Yon see no movement?" ; . A
I strained my eyes, searching the
dark shore inch by inch, but could per
ceive nothing; the lights of the fires
were far away.
He shot a swift glance at me, as If
the words pleased him little. In the
dim starshlne his face appeared ghast
ly white. ' ": '. ,;
"Perhaps the days of miracles are
f t gone," ha said doubtfully, "and
Cirty may have played fair. Anyhow
there is nothing to be done now. but
test it Come on, lad; well take to
water again." ' ...
The cheerful note la his voice bol
stered my own courage. We swam
.straight this time, with steady stroke,.;
our eyes scanning the bank we were
arproaching. And the canoe was there,
:led under the leaning tree, bow
to Lank, rendered shapeless by a cpv
rl)'f of broken branches, y. We lay
hoU of the sides, standing waist deep
In water; our eyes searching the high
tack towering dark above us. There
was no movement, no sound, and I low
ered the branches one by one into the
wa:er, and permitted them to float Si
.,.jy down stream. v- '"'-: lr
Concealed by the shade of the. great
tiYd I waded cautiously ashore and
err t out i 'o a maze of roots. The
L,, . r li : i rose sheer before me. To
tbe r".. t ,o was an opening, as If a
t.j.11 led d n to the river, and re
vffOod ther-9 siinet the urper sky,
t " ethlng n.oviJ. For an instant I
'-M t '.I no r -,'re; d,a I recognized
' I .1 f.. -:9 tr. U Z CUl'jUiily tO-
; . (e V " i tl'.i g:.,t,:n. It moved
., and t, y K.rt l- at
vp a i slare 1.
3 t- 3 I WCS SlTS.
f 5 I t
3i the quick
't ?i you; how
: i
r V
t
I !
) I ; f t 1 y 1 1
f r 1 i, f i
1
' ' -A.
, " V
"Never mind that; will you go as I
say?" v ' '. : " ' : ,:-
There was a silvery gleam of star on
her upturned face, and I could see her
eyes, startled, puzzled, half frightened,
gazing up into mine. Then the long
lashes drooped over them.
. "Yes, monsieur,'' she said, her Hps
trembling, "i will go with you."
The dawn found me with the paddle,
but Rene still wide awake. There was
a thin, gray fog over the river, which
turned to purple as the light strength
ened, and we were at the apex of a
great bend, the course of the stream
ahead leading into the northwest That
was not our direction, and besides I
, felt if there was pursuit it would be
safer far ashore. , Just as the sun
broke through the mist we came unex
pectedly tf the mouth of a small
stream leading Into the main river
from the south. Bo thoroughly was it
concealed by a thick growth of bushes,
that we would have slipped by, had I
not been skirting the Shore closely,
seeking some such opening. I headed
the canoe straight in, pressing aside
the branches to gain ; passage, and
found beyond a narrow creek, up which
we managed to paddle for several hun
dred 'yards. Then .1 - stepped over
board, and dragged the light craft still
higher, until I discovered a place of
concealment behind' a huge . rotting
log. . ,' : ',.'.' :' ; ;';" ".'
: , Here we left it, Rene and I bearing
with us the guns and our small store
of provisions. I had cut a , cane for
Brady, and, with Its help, he managed
to get along slowly, although sight of
his face made my heart ache. Thus in
single file we waded up the tiny
stream, until we attained a ledge of
rocks where our feet would leave no
trail, Over these we toiled, helping
each other, until we came to the up
land, into an open forest, carpeted
'with autumn . leaves. By this time
Brady' was too exhausted to go further,
sinking helplessly on the ground. Rene
also looked worn and heavy-eyed, and
I had no heart to urge them on. We
ate sparsely of what food we had, but
Brady barely touched his portion. !
wrapped him In our only blanket, and
the three of us slept
:. It was the gray dawn when mademoi
selle awoke me, shaking me soundly
ere I could be aroused. That some
thing was wrong t perceived Instantly
from the expression of her face, and
sat up. glancing hastily about, expect
ing the approach of savages.
"What is ltr . ;
"He Is gone, monsieur! Monsieur
Brady is gone." : ' -
"Gone! You mean left camp. Why
that Is impossible; be could barely
.walk." - . t
"But he la not here, monsieur," she
insisted. "See; it was there he lay! I
will toll yoii all I know. I woke up in
the night and thought of him, of how
hard It was for so strong a man to be
so. weak and 111.' Then I got up and
went over quietly to be sure he was
all right But he was awake', mon
sieur, staring up at the sky with eyes
wide open. He saw me, and said he
was nervous and could not sleep. No,
he told me he was not in pain, but
complained of being cold. I spread
more leaves over him, and he said that
was better. Then then he took my
hand and klsBed It, and begged me to
go back and and lie down. He was
very nice and gentle, and smiled at
me. Co 1 went back, and crept into
my loaves, and tried to sleep. He did
not cove, yet I lay there a long while
thl: . I think I crio i a litv.e, mon
siei r, for I felt so sorry. At last I
situ t age'-n. It was Just a little i:ht
when I awoke once more, and my first
pi "y w8 of him. I went over there
i, :!--;! he was gone. I couU see
v ' i ! a had rested in the leaves, evd
t" i 1 " t on the ground, but but he
v t t'.cre. I sought f.-.r LLn, tit
V. : ' 5 no trace nothing. C 3 I
i ' v -' 3 you."
II : f et a f.--.::rj cf C 1
-; --t if- " tin-
i
C
I V
; I 1 1
ct I
i t t
f..r. I
' f i r"
1 I
' t (
it
cu t": i . ' ... .. .
"lie has given his life for others, my
glrlfor you and me, and those sol
di, rs of at. ( lair's."
the stood a moment, silent, tears on
her cheeks, looking blindly out at the
water. Then she eank upon her knees,
holding the crucifix against her face.
I could see the movement of her Hps,
but heard nothing; only I knew .that
she prayed for his soul, and my own
eyes were molut as I knelt beside her.
Then I lifted her up by the baud, and
we went tck op the hill to the camp.
There 'was nothing to hope for In
waiting, and all our duty lay beyond.
Without the exchange of a word we
packed what few things we had, and
started, following the bank -of the
stream.' . : i -
" It was a raw November morning that
we came unexpectedly upon St Clair's
outposts. The ground was covered
with snow, and the little pools were
skimmed over with thin , Ice.' It had
been too cold to rest, and 'we bad
walked much of the night, afraid to
build' a fire. Chilled to the marrow
by the icy wind that swept through
the , trees 'and - buffeted us, I had
wrapped the girl in our only blanket
fastening It about her head and face,
hurt as I did. so by the dumb pa
tient, bewildered look In her eye. She
tried to protest, yet at my first stern
word ceased and wrapped herself
closely in the folds. I was in front,
breaking the trail that she might have
easier marching, when suddenly a
man stepped put of a thicket, and with
gun at my breast roughly 'commanded
a halt. I paused Instantly, uncertain
as to which side the challenger was
on, yet a glance at his face and dress
reassured me. ::... "
"Who are yer, an what ddt frer
want?" he asked suspiciously.
"I am an officer of the Fort Harmar
garrison,'; I answered, "with, news
from the north. To what command
do you belong?" s ' .
"The Kentucky militia,'' he acknowl
edged sullenly. "Colonel Oldham." x
"Where is your colonel?"
"Back yonder on that rtee o' ground;
yon kin go on, but I'll keep- an eye
on yer.":v., ;,,;.':" ' -
We left him, following the direction
pointed but . hearing him call to some
one in our rear, yet paying no heed.
"He Has Given His Life for Others,
' My Girl."
' '';f '-' C '
The ' very ease with which he had
passed us on was evidence enough of
lax discipline, and small conception
of the danger of the command. There
was a plain track through the snow,
which led to a camp fire blazing cheer
ily in a grove of trees, with maybe a
dozen men clustered about it. No one
appeared to notice us as we drew near.
"Which ie , Cofonel Oldham ?" I
asked, glancing about the group. - One
stood up, a smooth-faced, ruddy
cheeked man of fifty, with iron-gray
hair, and eyeB that looked as if they
laughed easily, I liked him at first
glance. . , " ( - t " ' '
"That is my name," he said shortly.
"What 1b It? St. Denis, man!" as his
glance swept over me, "you look as
if you had teen far from : the settle
ments and had a hard trip."
"I have, e'r; I come from the Mau
mee. I sn an p "cer of regulars with
news cf 1 .
, ,r,-T v
fcri t
"TL .
that is a
you s'7
rumor t i
cf the i
Know j i .
'Thry 1 .
I v i it 1
'.' ry e fill
. ace for St Clair." ;
on me now and Old
i nearer.
!" he exclaimed. "Ay.
. News for Et, Clair,
raws? There was a
' .v that the Indiana
t were musterlns.
' j of that?"
! ?y mustered, sir.
i "'ous. Even no'v
' ' l -tli9 Whl,:3 Cf
: I ', i i r- y
11 V '
i i f . . :
l c i '.'a I' i i-
"7 WBJ I -r. j
i." 1 Cf VC' ' 3,
i. ! f i:i '
f g'a&c-i-d lack at her, t:.mu.. g tl
1' "tly behind pie, the blackct drawn
over her head and face.
' "Taks it off, Rene," I said quietly.
"Yes, monsieur." . ' ' '
Her hands obediently threw the
wrapping asido, permitting it to drape
over her shoulders. She lifted her
head, and stood facing them, with eyes
centering upon Oldham. He gasped,
and jerked the hat from oft bis head.
"I beg your pardon," he stammered.
I'A white woman?" .;.'.' ,
, "A French girl, sir, whom found
with the Wyandots. Can you send as
back to St Clairr ' '
He stared at kx to long, hat still
in hand, that I thought be did not bear.
An officer touched him on the shoulder
and spoke a word. . v - . '
"Ah, yes, certainly St Clair. . At
once, sir, but I don't envy you your
reception. By Jove, I lost my wits
seeing such a woman as that here
in this hole. . Someone send Masters
here." Jt.r'yV -'.;' :.
He came quickly, a youngish lad,
with white hair and eyebrows, but
intelligent face, who never took his
eyes . off Rene. ; , Oldham spoke
brusquely - , s
. ' "Take this officer and the the lady
to Oeneral St Clair at once. Tell But
ler I say It Is' important, that he be
given Immediate interview. Here, wait!
get the lady a horse somewhere. Cap
tain, oan be take yours?" : , ,'
"With pleasure, sir; I will fetch the
animal.;' . j,. 'y. r ...
They watched us depart until we had
crossed the ridge, Masters and I trudg
ing through the snow at the horse's
head. Rene had drawn up her blanket;
but I could see her eyes watching me,
when I glanced around at her. It was
not long, however, until we came out
of the forest, into a bit of lowland near
the river, where a dozen tent, grimy
and dirty looking, stood on the bank.
There were soldiers everywhere, gath
ered about the camp fires, with a few
guards patrolling beats along the for
est edge. Masters led the way through
the motley crowd up; to the central
tent. There was delaythere, Rene sit
ting motionless in the laddie, and I
waiting impatiently beside her. At
last Masters came back. -
"He will see you, sir."
V 'Very well; are there any women in
camp?" ' . .,- '
"A fewVslr; "non-com' wives mostly,
washerwomen, and cooks; they are In
those two tents . there the officers'
kitchens." i ' '
, "Take the lady over there, and leave
her in good hands. Rene." . .
She looked down at me.
, "Yes,' monsieur."
"This soldier will take you to some
women who will take care of you nntlt
I come. You will wait for me.",
y "Yes, monsieur."
I waited until they started, and then
advanced to the tent. A tall, slender
man, in; a colonel's uniform, pointed
the way within, and I stepped through
the narrow opening. The interior was
plain a. bearskin stretched on the
ground, two officers on campstools
against the canvas; a sentry beside
the open flap standing motionless; a
rude table of one unplaned board, and
behind it, Beated, St Clair. He was
a spare man, with broad shoulders and
prominent nose, wearing a long queue
of thick, gray hair, which was plainly
visible below his three-cornered hat
He was attired in blanket coat, with
hood dangling down his back. I had
met him once, but it was clear he
retained no recollection of me, as he
surveyed me coldly across the table.
,i "Well,' eir," he snapped, "Colonel
Oldham 'says you bring news.' Who
are you?" . - ' , " -
"Ensign Hayward of Fort Harmar,"
I answered, bringing my hand up in
salute. "I was sent with a message to
the Wjrandots." . .
The; stern linei of his face broke
Into a grim smile. ' ' ,
"Ah, yes, I recall that. One of Har
mar'a fool notions. Told him as much
when I got back. Well, your peace
offering didn't do much good, did it?
I hear there is hell brewing in those
north woods." ; 1
" "It Is already brewed, sir. The
tribes have got together io crush you.
They rendezvoused on the Maumee,"
"Huh ! that is a ways away. - No
great danger from that source till we're
ready, ' What tribes were there, do
you know?" ' ,
"I saw them; sir; Wyandots, Potta
wattomies, Shawnees, Delawares and
Miamls. There were also some Ojlb
was, and a sprinkling of others,
mostly yoi- ? war flora."
"Who I s th conspiracy?" ." :
"Little T. L-tio, .if the . Miamis, but
there are : illahmen with them also;
Hamilton 1 nself was there." 1
"The ci raed hound; so1 you were
there, wK'i t" em, hey? A prisoner?-
"Yes, oial; a scout named St
phen Bra ' r J I. We got away by
means of a c oe on the river."
"Where U Crady? I know the old
coon."
"He die-!, i
No one f
"It was a
were ms-y .'
as quick' .
think th
"Ob, C .t
ally. "It v
and as t
own see
young, s "
: -a to V
. in wi
S ' ody c
, up c
;j tlie :
'" n, a
and I came on alone."
and I went on.
I Journey, and there
a on the way. ' I came
c iuld, eir, but I don't
i are far tt !.lnd."
, Indeed," gTcsstla
t aJvice I V"" e.'.- T.
!3 la fro;.t it rs ir.y
e po?'. 5.
" I.
a't 1
Yu'j're
I 1
j I a-
-i t a
t t'
T f t
t c
8
i t
SAYS CREOLES ARE HOW UP TO DATE
' I
Orleans well; but it was the New
Creoles who have lived all their lives there into old age who have never
been north of Canal street, the main thoroughfare."
DIDN'T KNOW COHGRESSr.lAII KENT .
: Perhaps the worst of all the petty
annoyances that beset a congress
man's path Is to have some , of the
swarm of employes about the capltol
fail to recognize him. '
1 "And this, irritating at all times,
becomes a source of extreme mortifi
cation if any of your constituents hap
pen to be around," observed Repre
sentative Kent of California, comment
ing on a recent contact with this
briery little thorn along the congres
sional trail. -,i .. V ; - .-
"Some friends from home, to whom
I wished to show' special attention,
dropped in on me,", he said, "and 1
devoted myself to showing them about
the capltol. They were keenly alive
to the distinction of having their rep
resentative personally conduct them, '
and were profuse in their expressions
of regard for my courtesy hence the
situation was all the more embarrass
ing when' on seeking to enter the
members' gallery, I was incontinently
halted by a raw and Ignorant asslstant-eomethlng-or-other and curtly forbid
den to enter. , - . " -v-i
"Of course, it war all straightened out and the fellow apologized.' But
the damage had been done. , After that miserable little episode things were
different In that party. The paint had come oft the doll and I could feel that
they felt I must be small potatoes If an Insignificant little whiffet like that
didn't know who I was. You see, they couldn't get out of their back-hornet
way of looking at a congressman,. Back there, everybody knows him; even
the boy who brings the groceries knows him by sight and to find some one
right here under the very dome who does not! ;
"And the worst of it all is you cannot explain to them that there are
400 of us right here; explaining would only magnify it.
"So, you Just have to let them take home the memory of you with the
sawdust leaking out?"
CONGRESSMAN HENRY'S WITNESSES
:..s;:si I
i
J
tebUfy! Boreas, the north wind, and snow and sleet and driving storm and ,
biting cold! They are testifying to their presence here at this season.'
: . , cniLLiAru l::.:e. pbi;:cAr,E
v Here is a love story-all the way
from France. A husband risks mis
representation and even ridicule to
honor his wife, and he is president!
The gallantry and courage of Poln
care have made presidents', wives
mal to queens. ' .
Mme. Poinca-. i position is, of
course, as delicate as brilliant. One
of the republic's dogmas Is that
France requires no queen. For in
ta nca, heretofore ' when a French
pr-.. "-lit drove In state to Long-ch-'-
a, honoring . coaimerce, s;ort
t i f Mon in the culmination cf the
e l, kotody noticed If his 'e
i rtt '5t wl'.h hi:n.
; t "oie. Poincare Is dLTer-'r.t..
J ; ..re la very C." r" t. I"a
v t t take her r' :e;'it h l'i
1 ; It is h's J - .And I !
f-' " . lie la r
a ' ' I I r It 1 t i
r
' L
i Representative Albert Estoplnal
of Louisiana, himself a Creole, saye
that the manners and opinions of
inese proua people or me oia regime
have undergone marked change within
the past generation.
. "Within the last thirty years there
has been widespread adoption of what
may be called up-to-date American,
ways of thinking by the Creole.
There are those still lert, nowever,
who adhere to the old traditions of
the blood, for we are all proud of our
"Not so very long ago I had oo
. casion to go Into the new residential
district of New Orleans. " I took with
me In my car a relative who was a
native and resident of Mew uneans
a Creole, like myself. . Now, although
he was well along In years, be was as
much a Stranger and exhibited as'
much novel Interest In that quarter of
the city as though he had been fresh'
from a foreign land. ,He knew New
Orleans of old, the New Orleans of the
, JThe effort to change the date of
the presidential inauguration from tho
1th of , March to a more seasonable
sentatlves from time to time. During
the present session a hearing upon
the matter before committee was set
for a day on or near the 4th of March.
rra vA ' ntrnAV tha Attnltal r thai ' TCtrV .
morning. As the committee members,
witnesses, reporters and others gath-.
erea ine niasi romea nerceiy ai iuo
casements and the swirling snow, and
sleet drifted high against the window,
panes. When some remark was made
about certain witnesses not appearing
on account of the weather Represen
tative Henry of Texas, who is an sr
seized the opportunity.' . . , . ,
- "Witnesses!; he exclaimed, dra
matically. ... "Witnesses! .There are '
our. ' witnesses!" and pointed out
throueh the windows. "Hear them
"T
A
.Mil ' ' I