For Love and Glory.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8181, 12 July 1906, Page 2

For Love and Glory.

By St. George Rathborne. Author of "Dr. Jack," " The Witch from India," ** Captain Tom,'" "Mynheer Joe," " Dr. Jack's Wife," etc., etc.

CHAPTER XXVlll.—Continued

The major was so pleased he, shook all over with suppressed laughter, being of stout build, tor he took all this as a compliment, since it stamped their attempt at disguise with s'ueoess. Of coarse, time would not admit of tHeir playing a little game upon the energetic captain, suoh as might have pleased them. » The major whispored a few sentences in nis ear that acted like magic; he stepped back, surveyed them both from bead to foot, and then grinned broadly. % "Success to yoa, comrades. Adios." And walker; away. It was almost time for the train to start when they brought up at the station. The men wore there—some eight in all, and gotten up regardless of expense, each man having begged, borrowed or stolen what nriicks in his mind were necessary to transform him into a full-fledged iusurreoto. A gay looking party they appeared taken in all. Radcliffe BEUied every time he looked at thtsra. Thoy chattered, too, like magpies, for those men had been select ed who had picked up more than a smattering of Tagalo lingo, although 4* was hardly expected that much speech would be necessary; still, each fellow eeomec 1 bent on displaying nil he know and much more be--Bh!G2. The major soon stopped all this. Me deolared that he would drop the first man who spoke abovo a whisper without being asked a question, and the fellow could not have been threatened with a more dire punishment than tne threat to leave theun behind. Not a man among them knew whither they were bound. At, the end of the road lay Dagupan, and beyond that a vast couctry somewhere in which the fugitive general Aguinaldo with a few devoted followers, was supposed to be in hiding. Little they cared what was in the wind—the cards were all trumps to'them; being men of unquestioned nerve, they were ready for any species of adventure on earth, so long as it quickened the pulse and pleased ihat yearning for excitement so characteristic of the soldivr. When, amid sundry toots from the whistle and much clanging of the bell, the train at length pulled out, all were safely aboard. Of course, the major knew all about it, and sitting alongside Armand be took occasion to tell him 11 little more concerning what he had learned of tho place whither they wore bound. £ It was a small station, the only thing notable about it being a great building used at one time as a convent, or tuonastrey, or something like, by the friars, those jolly "comaradrs" who ruled the Philippines with a rod of iron for generation, and owned tho major part of everything that was worth possessing in the islands, so that the natives could not even call their souls their own. For this place Don Juan had purchased a ticket, as the major had learned at the office, and his enquiries, after revealing, his identity to the gentlemanly agent, had brought certain information. I" The old building .offered a splendid biding place for a crafty fellow like Godiago'; perhaps he had util ised it before, during previous visits to the islands from bis eyrie at Hong-Kong. Why, it might have been used as a store house for smuggled goods, not being a great distance from the metropolis. They were now booming along prist nipa-eovercd native huts, throuab'old rice fields and bamboo thickets, and occasionally entered a bit of limber, though much of this has long been cut away in the vicinity of Manila. Improvement has gono'steadily on since the Spaniards ran this bit of rairoad, but Armand found it next to impossible to conjecture what it must have been like under the old dispensation, and rather imagined a ride over it must have been equal to the rack torture so fashionable at the. lime of the Spanish Inquisition, i for it was tough enough, even now. I The major behoved Don Juan might take the alarm if he saw half a score of supposed natives drop off tlas train when ho did, and accordingy he had arranged for the eight men to remain aboard until the cars were on the move again. Suoh agile fellows would have no trouble in landing on their feet. As for himself and Armand, tbey could get out in the regular way f The senor appeared uneasy. Twice he got out of his seat and sauntered down to the end of the car where there was a small looking glass, before which he stood for a brief time twisting his 'rakish moustache. Perhaps his recent experiences had made him fear lest bis good looks were'departing, and since this constituted the entire capital upon wbioh he was accustomed to banking, their possible loss or deterioration was enough to exuite more or lesa alarm within his breast. His nervouseness increased the closer they came to the little statioa where he expected to alight. Holding aloof from the other pas sengers, he had thought only of himself, now flicking the dust from his sleeve, anon doffing his soft hat and crushing it into a more rakish shape, and even surveying eaoh of the other travellers in the car as though won* dering whether they noticed what an Adonis he ooulchbe. Of course, few cast a glance at him, except on the sly, and as for the major i\nd Kadeilffe, their jbacka were usually;turned to tne Spaniard, although a mirror oetrayed his every movement to them. , At last the time came. < ' The train began to slow up. i

Both our friends, were preparing to leave ere the brakemao shouted tt>e name of the station in true American fashion through the cars. Armand was conscious of a mild attack of intereat,'J w but really this was getting to be an old story now, and the prospeot of adventure did not have the same effect upon him as before. One may become to accustomed to even taking poison if it is gone about in the right way. As soon as the train, with a severe jerk, came to a stand, the major stepped off followed by hia companion. It was a lonely-looking hamlet, —• half a dozen natives roosted on a bamboo fenoe to'watih the advent and departure of the train; an a merican station ag«nt, telegraph operator, baggage smasher, freight handler, and everything else combined, was rushing madly about, endeavouring to fulfil his manifold duties, but pave for his presence, the place was dead as a salted herring. The major evinced no curiosity regarding the movements of Senor Juan, but walked etraigi.it over to the small house, leaving Arn:nnd to beep an eyo on the Spaniard. Senor Juan looked around him and then at the misty country. I'fce moon shone, but the illumination was of a peculiar ghostly charStill Don Juan made no attempt to hire a native to show him the way; he evidently had been here beforo, and his mission was of such a secret character that he had no desire to share it with one who might turn out to be a traitor, and betray the game. The Spaniard was exceedingly cautious, if he did lack somewhat in valour. Almost immediately, the Dagupan limited had gotten under way again. One glance showed Radcliffe a nam her of fellows dropping to the ground from the oars while they gathered motion; some were nimble and landed on their feet, others, with less rail-roading practice came down on all fours, while one chap, who stuck too long and made a straight-away leap, actually turned a header in the air, and landed, fortunately enough, in a sandbank. The whole thing bordered on the ludicrous, and made the spectator smile: but he was glad to see that the boys all got there, just the same, which, of couse, was the main thing. Fortunately Don Juan was too much engrossed with his own thoughts tc look back, else might he have discovered a spectacle that must have filled bim with mingled awe aodgsuspioion, for there was a time when the air seemed fairly filled with wildly plunging figures, reminding one of the famous acrobatic feats of the Hanlon brothers as witnessed for yeara upon the stage. "Well, the first act had reached it* conclusion, and the curtain fell upon a successful business. All the characters had safely landed at the lorfely Don Juan was striding away, the major had begun to gather his dilapidated reoruits, Falstaff fashion, under the shadow of the little freight house, and Armand, whose especial duty it was to keep close tab on the Spaniard, began (o move in his wake, fearing lest the misty moonlight might prove treacherous, and aided by a patch of fog rising from some boggy stretch, swallow up the otject of his solicitude. And about this time it began to be a little more exciting to our young friend, and he indulged anew the hope that those papers, upon which rested his fate, were about to come his way.

CHAPTER XXIX.

WHAT THE MAJOR WAGGED. The senor never hesitated, but with the assurance of familiarity, started out, leaving the station behind, and heading along the road that in all probability would take him to the old, ruined convent, for the major had learned that this was the only route in the neighbourhood. It was a still, calm night. The only sounds to be heard were those of nature, the croaking of tree toads, drone of insects or such crips as oame from night birds indigenous to the Philippines, and some of which would strike the Amerioan ear as familiar, especially to the soldier from Dixie. For a time the rattle of the fast, i Filipino express oould be heard as : it fairly, swooped along the rails at the rate of twenty miles an hour, but distance was speedily mellowing this, and one would presently be able to forget that there were suoh things in the Southern Sea islands as limited trains "de luxe." Senor 'juau walked like a man who was eager to get to his destination—either that or Dossessed of some little fear of his surroundings, Armand oould not decide which. (To be continued.)