TALES AND SKETCHES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5454, 4 January 1896, Page 1

TALES AND SKETCHES.

PEARCE'S PLOT.

A TALE OF EARLY VAN DIEMEN'S

LAND.

Chapter VIII.

The lofi3 of the burthen made a great difference to Pearce, and as he got through the cemetery and began to climb Mount "Wellington the noise behind got fainter and fainter. At last it ceased altogether, and almost exhausted he threw himself down on a rook and rested. A's he looked below in the direction of the town he could see numerous lights flitting about, and it seemed as if half the population must be out searching for something. The robbery of the had, in fact, been discovered^ and it was such a serious matter that the Governor himself was taking part in the search after the culprit or culprits, for the officials thought there must be at least three or four persons concerned in the extraordinary theft. Word of the outrage on the Government was sent to the barracks, and detachments. of soldiery were mustered and sent out in different directions with orders to arrest everyone who could not give a satisfactory account of themselves.

As Pearce lay on the rook fully a thousand feet up the mountain side and watched the commotion below he felt that it would be madness to venture down after the money./ He was evidently desirous of doijlg so, but he' well knew that it would, in all probability, lead to his destruction, and he was forced to curb his avarice and wait. The portion of the mount which he had reached was very rugged, and he decided to wait where he was until daylight and

then he could see what would be be3tto do. He did not fear, his pursuers .venturing so far up the mount as where he lay, for it would be dangerous bright as the night was.

During the hours intervening till daylight he kept a careful watch, for if he slept it was Just possible that he might be taken by surprise. Some of ' the more adventurous might scale the mount; and, in consequence, he was watchful. As ithappened, none of the pursuers did so j for after searching the cemetery, the almost unanimous opinion was; that the robber had doubled back towards the riveif' and would seek refuge on board the craft there. The Governor himself made up his mind that the plot to rob the treasury must have come from that quarter. He knew /'that an extensive system of smuggling was carried on, and that there were' many dare* devil fellows, connected with it that would

; stick at nothing. The thought was a natural one under the. ciroumstances, and, actuated by it,' he caused nearly all the searchers to be drawn round towards the Cove. ; • • ■■.■'•':■■ •■ ' ■■■•-.■.:

At first gleam of day Pearce eagerly scanned the panorama below . him, and his eyes were directed towards the little Cemetery. At first a fog obscured his view, but it was -soon dissipated by the rising sun, and then the outlaw could distinguish, s. few people moving :about. He scarcely : knew what;' to : ,do. From the 1 position he he was in there w^sTiftlo'leM^ discoyeryl for ho Had m^a his W^ inadise'ssibl© spots' otm tidpiaib; '''J'\ ' r: : ; -'■ ■ 'Hs had a few ship's' biscuits, in his pockets, and, after aniiOua consideration, ha decided it would be. best to remain in hiding where he was until. nightfall when ; he would descend the mounts^ and secure the money. There was a spring of water close by, and with the biscuits he could appease. Mb hunger. He was impelled to this course by the reflection that in all probability the. news of Nicholas Stevens's death would reach the town at any moment, and when Barrett heard about it he would, of course, refuse to divide; the money if he should get it and perhaps denounce him into the bargain. ( ' • The confidential servant would, of course, easily see how the plot had been- arranged, and that /the supposed representative of the late chief smuggler was really his murderer, who had rifled his pockets of the papers, which caused him to acquire the Knowledge he had* It was scarcely likely that Barrett would go to the cemetery during the daytime. , There was nothing for it but to wait ana secure the money, for if Barrett once got it therejrould be no hope of sharing it even, and aB. the risk \ and labour would be lost.

During the day he saw several bands of men leave the barracks and make a search of the town, and no less than three parties ,-wero sent to the mount. One of these came very near to his hidingrplace, and at one time it seemed as though he would foe discovered. The ragged nature of the .place and the caves, in the rocks enabled him to hide successfully, though he nearly lost his life in a cavern into which he had crawled in an encounter with a large snake. The reptile sprang at "hjni and fastened its poison fangs in his arm, bitirig through the thick coat. He at once killed it, and baring his arm, cut a small piece out with his ' knife, and then sucked it. . - ' . This quick and thorough treatment, .aided by the fact that the coat must have prevented the bite being so severe, stopped the deadly effects of the poison and he felt no injurious effects whatever. The place swarmed with snakes and he had to be. •careful to avoid them, but his long experience assisted him in overcoming the danger. ••■.., Pearce fretted with impatience to go down the mount and reach the tomb. It Was very improbable that there would be any watchers, in the burial ground that night. The enclosure had been thoroughly searched during the day and, also the preceding night by the soldiers.;

Shortly after seven o'clock he crept from his retreat and cautiously commenced the descent. It was more than an hour before lie reached the gentle slope which led to the cemetery, and crossing this he was soon in the graveyard. It waa as silent as befitted such a place, and the stillness was almost oppressive. His footfalls sounded strangely loud, and they seemed to re-echo across, the enclosure.

The moon had not yet risen and he had some little difficulty in locating the tomb which, he wanted to, reach. There were, however, few. monuments in the place to puzzle him, and he soon sighted the object of his search.* Eagerly , ha walked towards; it, crushing down the rank undergrowth as he crossed the neglected graves. He felt that his decision to remain on the mount was a wise one and that he was about to reap the reward. He reached the tomb and in a moment mounted the slab and put his hand into the urn for the bag. It was not there. With alow cr/of dismay he pulled himself up to the urn and examined it as closely aB though the bulky bag had been a pm or a needle. There was no sign of it, and the reality flashed on him that all his danger had been in vain. Almost bursting, with rage he got off the slab and began to search around the tomb in the hope that by some means the treasure might have fallen out of the urn and was lying close at hand. It was while engaged in this work that on looking up he was momentarily started to see the figure of a man approaching him. His first impulse ■waa to retreat, and then a spirit of revenge seized him and he determined to wreak it on the new-comer. Crouching behind the tomb he awaited the approach of the man, ■who was coming straight towards the place where he lay. When he was within a few yards. the aiding outlaw saw that it was Barrett, jind, rising up' suddenly, he confronted fhe new - comer, who seemed in no way '/tirprised ; "Have you got it with you safely?"

Barrett asked, for he at once recognised Pearce.

Something in the tones of the voice filled the outlaw with a swift and deadly suspicion, and in a moment he answered— "No, I have not; but you can tell me where it is ? " "I tell you ! " exclaimed the official. " I have come here for my share, and I am not going to be swindled out of it by any lies you mky chose to tell me, young fellow." Pearce was in an extremely bad humour and the words of Barrett did not improve it. He was in a condition to vent his disappointed wrath on anyone, innocent or guilty,' and he could not disabuse himself of the fact that Barrett knew more than he liked to say about the treasure. , He was the only one who was aware that the urn had been selected as the place to deposit half the money, and what was more feasible than that Barrett had come about nightfall to get his portion and removed it all. Then there was the fact of his coming back' again; but on slight reflection that could be accounted for by a desire to throw suspicion off himself. The reader might be informed here that Barrett had taken the money from the tomb. ;

During the day and previous night when the search had been so hotly maintained, he had been in a fever of dread lest the money might be found. He could not get an opportunity to remove it during daylight, but night had scarcely fallen when he went to the cemetery and searched the tomb.

\ Concealing the treasure, he conveyed it back to ; his own room, and on counting it he found that the whole of the money must be in his possession. Such had not ' occurred to him before, but a moment's thought showed him that Pearce must have put the whole of the money into one bag, and being closely pressed by the i pursuers, he " planted" it in the urn. 1 . . He had hdard that one of the robbers had I ran through the cemetery, and as he was aware that there was only one man concerned in the matter he, of course, knew that it was Pearce. As he reflected on the position he determined to keep the whole of the booty and assert that he had not got any of the money. It was reasonable to expect that Pearce would remain in hiding close at hand and return to the tomb for the purpose of at least getting his share, and on account of the nature of the plunder he would lose no time in doing so. Once a better Bpirit seized Barrett and he [almost decided to count out half the treasure and bring it back to the urn, where he would leave it for Stevens and his emissary. He actually opened the bag and started to count the money ; but as the guineas shone upon his gaze the spirit of the.miser fell upon him and he.fmally decided to keep the lot. There was more than in it, and with other money he made in smuggling operations with Nicholas Stevens, he would be in a position to leave the island and either go to the hind of his birth, or mayhap seitle in Sydney. Hobart Town was getting too hot for him, for he had numerous " hangers-on " who had' assisted him in villainous acts, and at times they, were rather awkwardto deal. with, i

lis conoealedlt in the ifoom> ai^dj putting^oii hTs:hat staxied away 'towards the cemetery. If anyone was there he would make it appear as though, he had come for the first time to get his share of. the money, and' if no one had yet arrived he could watt — in fact, he intended' to wait all night if necessaryj for he' must see Pearce and make it seem as though he was anxious for his share

If no one came that night he would write a letter to Stevens asking him when he was going to divide. Once or twice , he tried to formulate a plot whereby he could . .put the authorities on the track of Pearce ; but the more he thought* it out the more dangerous to himself it appeared. Finally he concluded that as a last resource he would kill Pearce . himself, and . deal with Stevens afterwards.

He was utterly ignorant of the fact that Nicholas Stevens was dead, or he would have acted very differently. ,

Aa the outlaw spoke to him in fierce tones, and showed that he suspected him of taking the money, Barrett knew that decided action would be necessary.

. .' What do you mean, you scoundrel, by saying I took the money. I did not even know you had left it here, and I don't •believe you did. It is only a, lie to deceive me and rdb me of my share!" Barrett exclaimed. . Lies cilme easy to him, and at any time his words' might have carried conviction to Pearce ; but now his rage and disappointment demanded a victim, and he marked the man before him.

It was a dramatic scene. Both men were determined to commit murder, though neither suspected the other of such a foul purpose. . . Pearce's vengeance claimed a victim, and it was necessary now for his safety that Barrett should put the outlaw beyond doing him harm. His future depended on his decisive action that night, and Barrett was a man 4 who did not hesitate over a trifle. 1% his past had been written it would have shown that more than one life had been sacrificed by him— and, in fact, as he spoke to Pearce in the graveyard there was a skeleton hanging on the gibbet near the Cove that Barrett was responsible for putting there, when it wa3 clothed with flesh and blood.

The story of that shameful and tragic act does not come ■within the scope of this narrative, but it is mentioned to show the character oithe man.

Something in the menacing t,one3 of Batfretl/3 voice struck Pearce with a sense of Ms danger and. put him on his guard, as he said.—

"It is you who are the scoundrel and thief, and before you leave here you must make full restitution !"

"Bah! You must take me for a fool!" was the confidential servant's answer, and even as he spoke he lifted his pistol to slay his foe.

The warning that Pearce had received was none too soon. He' had hot expected such rapid action on the part of Barrett, but lie was watchful, and as he saw the movement he threw himself behind the granite slab and saved his life, for at the same instant the flash of Barrett's pistol glanced luridly before his eyes. By a hair's breadth he escaped the bullet, and a moment after he had levelled his own weapon at the treacherous man and . fired point blank at him.

After the first shot Barrett, fearing that he had missed his foe, rushed behind the tombstone drawing his second pistol as he did so, butPearce was too quick for him and fired. The ball went through his heart, and with a fearful cry, fell forward at the feet of the outlaw.

The report of the pistols sounded loudly on the night, and the young man knew it woiild attract attention. Stooping over the dead man, he hurriedly searched his pockets, but found nothing of any 1 consequence ; and then taking the two pistols, he turned in the direction of the mount, and disappeared in the darkness. The sound of the firing did attract attention, and on a search being made, the body of Barrett was discovered beside the tomb. There was not the slightest trace of anyone else, and the corpso was carried back to the dead man's quarters.

There was no suspicion of the real facts until the next day, when Captain Fox, who had quickly recovered from the stunning effects of Pearce's blow, made a search of the room to gather up the papers of the dead official. Lifting some old. clothes in a

cupboard he found a skin-bag, and was both astonished and overjoyed to find it contained the missing money from the treasury.

There was no doubt about that, for when counted it was found to be exactly, the same, and the proportion of gold and silver was identical. The suspicion that the confidential servant was concerned in the extraordinary robbery was soon converted into certainty, from facts that came to light.

Solomon, for instance, had to admit that the' rum he gave to Private Ted Wills on the night of the robbery was drugged. He confessed that he had bgen induced to do so by the deceased, who promised him a large sum of money. He did not really know that the object of Barrett was to rob the treasury-chest, though he surmised as much.

The result was that Solomon, the butler, was put in prison, but he was soon liberated.

Some papers were also found in Barrett's room which implicated several leading residents of Hobart Town in very questionable practices ; but as little good could come of taking drastic measures against them the matter was hushed up. In fact the chief officials were more or less implicated in the disclosures, and it shocked no one, for governmental purity was neither looked for nor expected.

Nicholas Stevens'^ misdoings came to light, and at the same time the news of his death at the hands of an unknown assassin, though supposed to be Alfred Pearce, came to hand.

(To be continued.)

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