THE LADY OF NORTH STAR.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12718, 13 August 1919, Page 8

THE LADY OF NORTH STAR.

By OTTWELL BINNS,

CHAPTER XXV. When the next day dawned, a. soft warm day, holding in 'it all the promise of the Northland spring, Dick Bracknell was in no condition to travel. He was clearly much weaker, and at times ho lapsed into delirium during which, the hearts of two of those with him were wrung. The feverish babble was of nothing relating to his life in the Nortn but about his boyhood at Harrow Fell, and of his first meeting with Joy. More than, once Joy was unable to restrain her tears, and as the day wore on, it was evident that the strain was telling upon her. Several times Roger Bracknell begged her to leave the sick man and rest, but she shook her head. “ No,” she whispered on the last occasion. No ! Look at him. It will not be very long. I think I should like to bo with him, when—-when ■. It will help him, you know, 1 ’ she concluded hastily. "Yes," he admitted, ‘ you are quite right. He told me in that, lucid interval that these moments with you by his side were among the happiest in his life.” She looked down at the drawn fare, her eyes flooding with sudden tears, idhe did not love him, hut there was a great pity in her heart, tor the wayward man whose life, had taken the wrong turn, and whose nature ns she now knew was ns full of generous good as of desperate evil. She prayed for him rilently, and leaving her with bowed head, Roger Bracknell walked slowly away. At_the outer edge of the camp he met sibon. The latter waved a. hand towards the river, on the frozen surface of which tiny streams of water were beginning tc run. “Tt is the v jiving.’’ he said- “If we do not leave 10-dav the ice mav not hold ” “ "Wc cannot, leave to-day. Si ton. 7 ** No. replied the Indian. “We wait for death.. Is it not so?’’ It w so"' agreed the corporal. " And to-morrow comes the spring and now life,’ said tin* Indian thonshtfullv. “That is the wav always death on the heels of life, and life on the heels k r* ** “5* *?•»?* *-R yh «•!- -N *■> *5- da -P

or death," Hs jerked his head towards the camp. "The woman nurses rha man who dies, what is she to him?” “'She is his wife," " B‘.u she loves him not- I hare watched her, I have seen the light m iter eyes. He broke off abruptly, and .again waved his hand townrd? the river. "Bat the spring comes, and with the spring comes life, and the kindling of the heart.” Roger Bracknell looked towards the. river. He knew that the Indian’s words wore true, but be offered ho comment on them. Instead he watched the water running on the ice. and after a minute • a Jl™P tl - v - “ How long will the ico hold, feibour” The Indian shook his bead. ‘ "That is not to bo told.” He pointed across too river to where the tributary stream flowed into the main river. • Iho water comps down there and adds to the strength, of this. It. mar oreak the ice hero, and spread over the surface. Listen.” The corporal listened. The air .was lull of an indescribable sound, a moanmg and growling, quite different to the sound of the soft wind in the trees. Already Hie water fights for the mastery ” said Sibou, "and to-morrow it may have won.” No to-day!” cried the corporal quickly, as there came a sudden crash far out m front, and the next moment a /? a R in g fisstiro showed in the ice. Yes, to-day v assented the Indian as he watched. "That is the find and them will lie others. The’ break up has come. The. spring has arrived.” A cry from the camp startled them, ■and divining what had happened, the wliite man began to run. IVlien he reached the lire he found Joy standing by his cousin. Her eyes were buming with tears. He looked at her, and ns their eyes met. she answered the question in his, " Tes,” she said, "a moment ago. he knew me at. ■ the' last-” "" Roger Bracknell took a step forward, and looked into the still face of his cousin. To him it seemed extraordinarily peaceful, and the half-smile on the ups caught and held by death told its own story. "He was happy in his death,” he gid- happier than in life. Poor old He turned awav. leaving ,Tov alone with the dead for a little while. He knew that his cousin’s death meant release for her, and for himself also, since it would remove the hands of silence from him. But in that moment he refused to think of that aspect of the matter, and as with the help of Sibou he bent a couple of young spruces, that his cousin’s bodv might have the aerial sepulchre practised by the Northern tribes, he reflected how much of good there was in Hick, and how many such there are who having taken the wrong turn miss the full purpose of life. Half an hour later the dead man was lashed to the yonno; ■which wer^ released, carrying the body high in aim Such portions of the burial service as Roger could remember were recited, and then with Joy, he turned towards the camp. "We will start in an hour, if you like. ’he said. " The ice is not very good, but it will he worse to-morrow, and wc can,get some wav towards Chief Louis’s camp. Once there, ice or no .ice will not matter. Wc shall bo able to get canoes.” ’ she said. <f 1 es, in an hour, "here is no reason why we should Unger here now.” They started before the hour was out; and travelled hard until the edge of dark, avoiding fissures which were ever increasing, and pitched camp several miles away from their last restingplace. In the night the corpora.! was awakened by a crash somewhere on the river in front, and in the morning he know_ that sled-travelling was over till the Northland winter should once more bind The rivers- A BtreaJii of water was flowing on the surface of the ice. There were fissures everywhere, and a distant rumble told himthat somewhere the ice was breaking up. Sibou came and . joined him, and together they looked across the river. Something caught the Indian’s keener eyes, something moving. He pointed it out to Bracknell., “ There is a man there. He m coming this way!” The corporal looked intently for a moment, then he agreed. " Yes, it is a man. He is atone. He has no dogs.” (To be concluded.)

HEW SERIAL.

Ths Opening Instalment of a. yw S&rial by the well-known English author, Arthur W. Maroinnou*, entitled “ WHEN THE EMPIRE CRASHED Will appear in. FRIDAY’S ISSUE of the “ Star.''