The Curse at the Cardews

Thames Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 14555, 24 June 1913, Page 3

The Curse at the Cardews

By W. MURKAY GRAYDON.

(Continued.)

peared f <to*ok him, but he knew not how long he could remain •in this trying position. To let go would be fatal, and to extru.au> himself unaided was out of the ques t'pn^ Ihjphounds, as hv had .or-»>e», woula be the case, sho" e-i ,no n, chnation to venture 'p <>->(( ilie'ia 1 en tree. The nm> !e , '\f, c p into the water hati g\»uni - h<y •• • j the others »cro ii»ieti u\ ... o^ t trunk. The great but s ■*•• c. t ed and peiidulous-iouieci, >.t.iou „,r iously at their elusive quarry a> they watched him with bloodshot eye*.

CHAPTER XXVI. A Frt'END IST NTEED. «?,the r ' t s wore slowly $n thi ■t^ o( Geoffreys ou v>*m -< ost uncntlurah c vp 1" v tr t* v»«'o* j n m, c ■ ( «• t""i • >.'. t) c •*-< htn r «.fcd ue* , i soon fail him and let htn. .is doomThe hounds ,\elpe<J .-v'( tinned at him and more than once or twice, abctye 'the snarling chorus, he fan--1 cied he'heard far off the shouting ol his human foes. i "God hasten them !"he groaned, though he dared aot entertain .ny hope of rescue from that quarter. Yet it would naTe laeen welcame. Geoffrey's feelings had undergone a swift change, as was natural. Hr was no longer in a mind to end his' troubles—to fight to the death rather than submit to recapture. The terrors of th« * quicksand — the thought of the bottomless grave that was yawning for him, had weakened his resolve. Infe had never seemed so sweet as now. t He wanted to keep if for Violet's sake, who had given him such proofs of Iqt« and devotion.* He was willing, to endure any hardships, to ,bear his-burden cheerfully, if 'only he "could live and look forward tc the day when he had been assured that truth and justice must triumph So he would gladly have hailed t&e arrival of his pursuers and besought, their aid,*: and gone back with thcN* to. t the hateful prison on the Mara runi, where at least his existence

wbuldj ;be djoeroJ b^'the, knowledge; -that ' friends i werewdrking^ to :estab~ > lish his [innocence' andj sot..: him . freer ;•," But he ;'did.'. ,n«jt.,'deceive •. I*imseU'.- -, There was not one chance Jn a ,thou-* ;*saw& that, hie could rescapje^his impending fate, and he kneW it. Col'Ricar^do artd; tthe warders had •fallen behind•' frbrn ihe- mpment they • unleashed the\ hoynds, ..and" it wtt^ doubtful if they "had *as yet reached the crest of the' hill, x though' the fr'an- 1, tic cry of the pack must urge them to the greatest speed, of' ,which Hhey were capable. Turning his head slightly. Geoffrey gazed , \yith 16ng'nff ey*s, with white and/rhaggard face; across "the narrow 1- rim of> the -.. valley. ; There, was nobody in sight. He imagined he heard a shout ; but it might have been only an of the, yelping .dogs. • ■•■.'%=

They will be too late," he thought. "By the time they get here this./oul quagmire will have closed over, me for ever. To die in such a hideous manner, sumocated by * slime? and mud—it is too hard, - God help me !;! His parched lips framed a prayer, though he felt that it was futile to appeal to Providence. . He yielded to utter despair, and cried aloud 'in the agony of/His mental sufferings. A minute ,dragged by, and he knew that another- would probably test his endurance to the breaking point. His hands slipped' a little further, down, the branch,- 'and he was suck-' wl just that much deeper into the quicksand. He hung a dead weight, tortured at one on the rack of' the; Inquisition. Every muscle throbbed' with pain, as if, the limbs were being wrenchecj apart. The strain was maddening—intolerable; "'1 must drop," ;he told himself. "Thesooner it is over the better."

But he didf not let.\ gol; At this crisis a lusty shout fell on his ears, and the next instant he was cling-, ing with' desperate energy, cheered and strengthened by what, he had 1 never expected tjosee. Heaven had answered his prayer, and the prospects of rescue wore, strong • enough to be worth struggling: for. The first" glimpse, when the shout roused him from his stupor, had shown him two men (breaking out of the green vegetation that clothed the lower slopes of the hill. They rapidly lessened the .intervening stretch of between two and : three: hundred yards, and as-^they drew;, nearer, running across, the^.treacherous, open ground, i; Geoffrey recog-* nisod one as l!ii Shen, the. Chinaman, and • the other as a West Indian, ricgro from : the Richards estate, Gr'umbo by., name; ThatX both were actuated "solely• ;by a desire, to capture him, and thereby earn their reward j heiv did p. 6% doubt ;nor, at the moment did he care, so intense Was tiis relief. Being the fleetest of foot; they had evidently outdistanced their companions, for no one else was visible as yet. .-,■■....''. . . "Help ! help !" Geoffrey appealed at the top of his voi^- ■' . The two saw o,Bn? heard him, and a few more strides brought them to the edge of the swamp, at which . the; pack of bloodhounds gave/tongue more noisily than ever. W ''•;'' "You no : fear. Massa Ilardinge," cried Gumbo,. "We soon get you out ob dat. Prison men want you --pay much gold ;" and the* negro's ayes glittered with greed "You holdee tight little v" xshouted the Chir .mam. "jf' a. aw fall—wait for \A. Svyey ■?" , p "Yes; I can re. „ .^m to hold vt- ' Geoffrey arSw^eu. "But huijy up." ; • >

, W>+ T ; • ..nat, from s*>h*'' 'surprise at whAi.' »mnr.j.fiato! ..iiowed, he al' >ut released r.- of the branch It was '"t^uiy done and over. ' lp ' went x... cShen's right arm, and th< short, thick cudgel that he carried descended with no little force; or G umbp's, skul 1. Down dropped the amazed and unsuspecting negro like a stricken ox, and Li, having snat- ■ ched a pistol from his victim's belt, ' leapt "upon the end of the dead,tree, along which the entire pack of barking bloodhounds were still squatted in single file. . >