Project Gutenberg's Harper's Round Table, March 10, 1896, by Various This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. Title: Harper's Round Table, March 10, 1896 Author: Various Release Date: May 7, 2017 [EBook #54675] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HARPER'S ROUND TABLE, MARCH 10, 1896 *** Produced by Annie R. McGuire FOR KING OR COUNTRY. IN THE TOWER OF MANY STORIES. A FLASH IN THE DARK. RICK DALE. THE COURAGE AND ENDURANCE OF ARCTIC ANIMALS. DAILY DRILL. THE INCANTATIONS OF ALI BEN MESROUR. INTERSCHOLASTIC SPORT. THE CAMERA CLUB. BICYCLING. THE PUDDING STICK. STAMPS. FROM CHUM TO CHUM. HARPER'S ROUND TABLE Copyright, 1896, by Harper & Brothers. All Rights Reserved. published weekly. NEW YORK, TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 1896. five cents a copy. vol. xvii.—no. 854. two dollars a year. [Pg 445] FOR KING OR COUNTRY. A Story of the Revolution. BY JAMES BARNES. CHAPTER XXIII. WHEREIN SOME THINGS ARE EXPLAINED. Propped up by pillows in an easy-chair before a roaring fire in the great fireplace, George Frothingham was sitting, relating to a group of listeners the story of his adventures on the way from New York. His sister Grace, seated on the arm of the chair, was softly stroking his hand. Aunt Clarissa, who had discarded her tatting-frames, was busily clicking her needles at the toe of a woollen stocking. "What I don't see," said George, "is where I got that little chopped-down horse that you say I rode upon. I do not know where he came from." "But you are anticipating," said Aunt Clarissa; "you had only got as far in your story as sighting Lyons Farms." "Oh, that's so!" said George. "Now comes the part that I hate most to tell. When I came down the hill, it was evident that something was wrong in the collection of little houses. No one was stirring about, and the ruins of a small building were smoking to the left of the road. What do you suppose had happened? The firing that I had heard two or three hours before had taken place here. There had been a skirmish. A body of English troops and a company of Hessians on a marauding excursion had been met at the cross-roads by a handful of militia. It makes my blood boil to tell the rest, but the Lord will punish them. All this had happened only a few hours before I arrived. They had shot Mr. Hinckley, and a brute of a Hessian had rested his gun on the window-sill, and killed his wife as she bent over her baby's cradle. Then, like redskins, they had hurried off. I found no one amongst the dwellings but some frightened children huddling in a cellar. The houses were robbed and empty." Aunt Clarissa had dropped her stocking and rushed into the next room. "God forgive me!" she had exclaimed, when she was alone, and she had reached her long arms up above her head. "Curse them and their tyrants to the bottom of the sea! How could I have been so blind—so stubborn?" When she had come back, however, she kissed her nephew on the forehead. The remembrance of the scene, and the picture of it which was going through his mind, had caused George to pause and sink back silently among the cushions. "I think I will rest a little," he said. [Pg 446] No one disturbed him, and for some time there was silence. In a few minutes a loud, hearty voice was heard ringing through the hallway. George smiled. "Colonel Hewes," he said. "Do ask him in." The Colonel greeted his young friend with a subdued effusion, and, with the gentleness of a woman, spread out George's fingers in his palm. "Just back from headquarters!" he said. "Lad, lad, I have had you on my mind, and when I heard of your escape, I grew quite young again. The Commander-in-Chief himself rejoiced to hear of it, for the officer with despatches from the north brought the news of your arrival. But when his Excellency heard for what you had gone to New York he grew quite angry. He laid aside my request for active service, though. Too bad the plan fell through! It was my idea.—I wrote and proposed it to the printer." George smiled to himself. Perhaps Mr. Hewes's next venture would be an attempt to capture the King of England. "Did you come along by the Tumble Ridge Road?" inquired the Colonel. He did not catch Aunt Clarissa's warning glance. George wrinkled his forehead. "Now let me think; yes—there's where it occurred," he said. "But wait; I have got to think how it all happened." "Don't try, brother George," said Grace. "Wait until another day." "No, I must tell it now. Where was I?" "You were telling about Lyons Farms," said his sister. "Oh yes! I found an old sledge in a shed much like the one that my good friend Wissinck had driven me in from Paulus Hook. Although old Molly was very tired, I harnessed her up and put the children—there were four of them—in a feather-bed, and drove across the hill. I stopped at the first house that I came across, and found two old women there. You should have heard their stories! The Hessians have been worse than Indians; you would hardly believe it.—But enough. I left the children there with the two old women, and pushed along as best I could three or four miles further. Here I came upon the remains of a camp-fire by the road-side, and was glad enough to find the remnants of a meal in the kettle that hung over the smouldering fire. It had been left hurriedly. "That night I slept in a farm-house in the mountains. The poor old mare was so tired by this time that I determined to make the rest of the trip on foot, and left her in the care of the old farmer, who promised to return her. I shall never forget how I suffered all that day. If it had not been for two rough snow-shoes that I had made out of the staves of a molasses hogshead, I could not have gotten through the snow at all." He paused. "Now comes the part that leads up to my forgetting." George had seemed to gather strength as he went on with the recital. He now sat up straighter, and the color came to his pale cheeks. "I had almost feared I had lost my way when I saw the trunk of a shattered pine—the one that was struck by lightning, you remember—then I knew that I was only six miles from home. I was weak and faint, for I had had nothing to eat but a frozen potato all that day. I soon came to the cross-roads where the path winds across the ridge. It was a short-cut, and I took it. The bushes interfered with my rough snow-shoes, and I discarded them and plunged through the snow. When I came to the hollow by the old Camel rock, I smelt smoke quite distinctly.—It is here, you know, that the path joins the road again.—As I pushed through the short pines the smoke became stronger, and all at once I found myself face to face with a group of men seated about a fire. Two or three horses were tethered to the trees, and the men were all armed. "'God save our country!' I exclaimed—for the idea that there were English so close about seemed impossible. "'God save ourselves!' said one of the men, with a laugh. "At that moment I recognized a man in the little circle who was slowly rising to his feet. It was that rascal Cloud, the man who had robbed Uncle Nathan unknown for so many years, you remember." "Well," cried Colonel Hewes. "He's got his dues. I—" The Colonel stopped and dug his fingers into his palm. George had not noticed the interruption. "I knew, of course," he went on, "that some mischief was afoot, for that wretch never had an honest thought. I backed away, and was going to make a break for the road near by, when I tripped and fell. "'Seize him!' said Cloud, and in another moment I was bound hand and foot. They took my purse, which yet contained some gold pieces. They were as murdering a lot of pirates as you ever saw!" "We know of them," the Colonel broke in, excitedly. "There's a price on all their heads, for they acknowledge no law or party. But go on." "'What are you going to do with me?' I asked, after they had searched every pocket. No one paid the least attention. "They had drawn apart and were whispering together, and I could see that Cloud was talking angrily. How long they conversed I do not know, but it was at some length. When Cloud had finished speaking, there was some dissent about what he said, and the rest—all but two—took their bundles, and, heading about, struck off through the woods. Cloud was left sitting opposite to me, his horse was tied to a tree a short distance off. I shall never forget the look in that man's eyes. It was the look of Satan himself." "Go on," said Colonel Hewes, breathlessly. Aunt Clarissa and Grace gathered closer. "'Do you remember me?' asked Cloud. "'I do for a thieving villain,' I replied. "'Do you know that your uncle had me tied and thrashed like a low black nigger?' he exclaimed, his teeth coming over his under lip. "'And well deserved,' said I. Perhaps it was foolish, but I so detest the man that I could reply naught else. "'I swore that I would be revenged on him and his,' snarled Cloud. "'What are you going to do?' I inquired. I was wound about lengthwise with a long rope, and could move no more than my little finger. "'I am going to hang you,' he replied. The two men that had been left behind approached us as if to interfere, but he repulsed them, and they hurried into the woods. "I was frightened. The idea that he really intended to do it never entered my mind. But now I judge that he must be a maniac and nothing less. "'You villain,' I said, 'you dare not lay hands on me!'" Aunt Clarissa started. She remembered this was the expression that George had used in his delirium. "Do you know what that, that"—George paused for an expression—"what he did?" he said at last, quite calmly. "He put a rope around my neck, and threw the end over the branch of a tree. Even then I did not suppose that he was trying to do anything but frighten me, but I shall never forget the horror with which I felt the rope tighten about my throat! As he was no heavier than I, he could not lift me entirely from the ground.—I could still almost stand upon my toes." Aunt Clarissa and Grace both grew faint. The Colonel dashed his riding-whip to the ground. George panted as he went on with his story. "I can remember no more than seeing that fiend standing there cross- legged, looking up at me. Then it seemed to me I fell from some frightful height." "You must have come home after that," said Aunt Clarissa, "for you arrived here shortly after dusk." She made up her mind that she would not say anything about the latter escapade and his escape from the house, as George did not wish to talk on further, and Colonel Hewes also concluded to say nothing about the doctor's discovery, which the latter had related to him. "After I fell, I remember nothing for two days, you know," George added. "Never mind," said Aunt Clarissa, smoothing back his hair. "You must rest, dear boy." The lad closed his eyes, and appeared to drop asleep. Colonel Hewes took his leave at once. As he went across the meadow toward the foundry a thought struck him. "Jove! I have the solution!" he said, "It was Adam Bent Knee's revenge. Indian blood will show out. I have always held it so. He has settled scores for good and all with his old enemy Cloud." There was one thing that puzzled every one—the presence of the strange horse that it was supposed George must have picked up somewhere on the Tumble Ridge Road, and while still under the influence of his disordered mind. Burnt into the saddle was the name "Ralston, Hoboken." If the "colt" could have talked, it could have added some astonishing information that would have cleared away the fog of uncertainty. It was thought, however, that the little horse might have escaped from the band of marauders, and that the young man had found him after he had fallen, and had managed to free himself from his bonds. Colonel Hewes's cousin could have solved a great deal of this mystery, but he had gone to Morristown, and had been ordered thence to General Putnam's forces in the southern part of the State. There was some confusion also about the time of day at which things had taken place. But we must return and follow the doings of the royalist Lieutenant, young William Frothingham, after he had closed the door of his old home behind him, and had bade that mysterious adieu to his white-robed sister in the hallway. Her exclamation and her calling him by his brother's name had proved again that the resemblance must be as marvelous as ever. As soon as he had left the house he started on a run toward the old bridge, and taking a lumber path, he waded through the snow, intending to make for the hut of Adam Bent Knee that was in the hollow in the ridge. He knew that the old Indian would give him shelter, and would help him on his way, no matter to what party he belonged. He reached the hut at last. It was built against a bank, and was roofed with bark and slabs of pine. Something had happened here, however, for the interior was torn to pieces. The furs that hung upon the wall were cut and slashed, and a half-barrel of apples had been thrown across the floor. All this had been done quite recently, for there were signs before the door of footprints and horses' hoofs. They led along the lumber path from the summit, and a short distance further on the same tracks were seen going in the opposite direction as if the party had doubled. The latter trail was much the fresher. William followed it. [Pg 447] They had broken a way through the snow, and he could travel for three or four miles much more easily. The trail led him through the woods until he descried the other side of the mountain. Far below him William made out a fire's light shimmering through the trees. Broad streaks had appeared in the east, and the edge of the red sun was showing through the horizon clouds. It was a grand sight. So still was the air that a twig that he stepped on in the snow seemed to him to crack like the report of a pistol. A belated owl in its sturdy driving flight swept across the clearing before him. Such a feeling of loneliness came over him that his heart sank again. What had his career as an officer of the crown brought to him? There was nothing of the coward in his disposition, and his sense of duty, as we know, was developed to the limit, but he hoped with all his soul that should he arrive safely back in the city, that he and all the gleaming bayonets there might be bundled back into the ships and sent to England. He prayed that he might never be compelled to draw his sword against this people, his own people, who were "rebels" no longer in his mind or estimation! The sight of the fire in the woods reminded him that he was hungry, and must push ahead that he might reconnoitre. He half slid down the sharp declivity, and forced his way through the bushes. There was a group of rough-looking men seated about a bivouac at the right of a great oak; some leaning forward wrapped in heavy blankets, appeared asleep. Three horses were nibbling at the twigs of the stunted undergrowth. One had strayed to quite a distance, and was standing mournfully leg-deep in the snow. As William came down the hill he found himself at the top of a great rock even with the branches of the oak and overlooking the small fire. He was in full sight when one of the party looked up and saw him. The man's jaw dropped, and he caught his breath, with an exclamation that aroused the drowsy ones about him. One of the men rolled backwards with a howl, and with his blanket trailing behind him plunged down the hill. "Greeting, good friends," said William. The effect of this short speech astonished him. Two of the men sprang up and jumped astride of the nearest horses, and the others took to their heels like the first, and soon the whole party was crashing down the hill like a herd of startled deer. William did not move. He was too astonished to call after them, and from his post on the rock saw them come out into the meadow some distance below, where they stopped and talked. They appeared to come to one decision, for after looking back, they pushed on hastily, and entered the woods at the other side of the valley. Swinging himself down by the branches of the oak, William found himself in possession of the very things that he most needed. In their unaccountable flight the strange party had left behind them a rough blanket and a blue woollen cape, and a huge flint-lock pistol, whose dark butt protruded from the snow, where it had been dropped, like some new growth of the forest. A short distance away was a placid-looking horse who had commenced again to gnaw the trunk of a white birch. "Refuse not the gifts the gods provide," quoted William. "What did they take me for? I must look like an army or a constable. A lot of thieves, most likely." He extricated the horse with some difficulty, and picking up the blanket and woollen cape, he retraced his steps to the top of the ridge, and made his way along the summit toward the travelled road to the southward. He had now the things he had wished for to continue his journey. By noon he had covered some fifteen miles, for he could hardly urge the sorry beast out of a walk. He met no one on the road until the sun glowered directly above his head. He had passed several houses, but deemed it safer to go on as far as he could before he stopped and asked the direction. As he made his way through a bit of swampy land he saw ahead of him a strange-looking object. It was a man carrying a heavy burden on his back. What it was at first William could not make out, but as he approached nearer he saw that it was the body of a freshly slaughtered hog. He was almost at the strange figure's heels before the latter turned. The broad honest face with a cheek closely pressed against the dead pig's open-mouthed visage presented such a comical picture that William to save himself could not but smile. "Greeting, good friend," he said. "Good-morrow." The man did not answer, but walked closely up to William's side, almost thrusting his own face and the pig's into the saddle. "What sayest thou?" he inquired. "I am deaf as a ploughshare." "Can you tell me the direction of Plainfield?" shouted William, bending over. "Yea, friend," was the answer, "but thou art too far north." William had surmised as much. "Where are you going with your burden?" he inquired. "Oh, the shoat?" the man answered, rubbing his cheek against the pig's fat jowl to steady him on his shoulder. "It's a gift I am making to a righteous cause. I am not a man of war," he added. "It is against my creed, but they who fight need flesh to strengthen them. I am taking this to some good people who are camped below us. Thou art a soldier?" "I am," said William. "I would shake hands with thee, but I should drop my load." The broad face smiled. "Come, place him upon my horse," said William, dismounting. As they were placing the pink body across the saddle, and William was marvelling at the man's great strength, there was [Pg 448] Drop Cap O a hail from a clump of alders to the left. "Ah, Brother Whitehead," was the exclamation, "what have we here?" A tall, black-bearded man came through the bushes. Behind him followed three or four stalwart youths, with long- barrelled rifles over their shoulders. But before another word was spoken the first man leaped across a ditch and came toward William, saluting as he did so. Then it was seen that he wore a ragged Continental uniform. "Well met indeed, and God bless you, Lieutenant Frothingham! Methinks you are in time to aid us." The youths who were with him also came to an awkward salute. "We have the green-coated women-slayers cornered," he continued. "Not one of them will escape. There were some 'Lobster Backs' with them. They will suffer for the doings at Lyons Farms, I'll warrant you." "Are the English near us?" inquired William, his heart beating fast. "Ay, and the Hessians too! They were driven back in their efforts to reach Elizabethtown, and we have been gathering our forces for an attack this afternoon. You rank me, sir," he continued. "I am but Sergeant Ralston, and my elbow touched yours at Princeton and Harlem, you may remember. Come now, sir, will you take command? We have some brave hearts with us." William half faltered. Here, indeed, was a predicament. [to be continued.] IN THE TOWER OF MANY STORIES. LADY ARABELLA STUART. BY MRS. LEW. WALLACE. ne of the most familiar names to the student of English history is that of Lady Arabella Stuart, who was long a constant source of alarm to James I., because she was born near the throne. She never urged her claim nor appeared to covet the crown; daughter of Charles, Earl of Lennox, and cousin to the King, she inherited a full share of the beauty and misfortunes of her race. A lovely girl, full of wit and grace, gifted with the gentle art of making friends, she was the life of a lifeless court. Many matches were proposed to the sovereign, who had power to make or break a marriage for her. Suitors of various rank and countries knelt at her feet, and it was told that even Henri the Great of France had dreams of seating the blue-eyed Countess with the wavy tresses on the throne of Charlemagne. So passed her youth; and in her thirty-fifth year James, by way of banter, told the maiden she had remained fancy free to suit him long enough; she might now wed whom she would. Poets, adventurers, courtiers, and knights of high lineage kissed her white hand, but came no nearer the heart, which beat faster for none but William Seymour, afterward Marquis of Hertford, a youth of twenty-three years. Only the stars were witness as they sealed their vows and oath, and the secret kept well for a season. But a bird in the air carried the matter to Windsor, and Seymour was arrested and brought before the Council to answer for the outrage—betrothal in secrecy. He denied everything; swore he had not thought of anything but pastime. What did he want with a wife ten years older than himself? And so the rumor was forgotten with other court gossip. They thought the King would give up his nonsense, for Seymour was from one of the proudest families of Europe, and there was no reason in this opposition; besides, he had consented to a wedding. But no relenting was admitted by James, and in July, 1610, a poor priest was found and bribed to risk his neck by going through the marriage ceremony for the lovers. ST. THOMAS'S TOWER, WHERE SEYMOUR WAS CONFINED. After a year of concealment the news reached the King's ear. He was enraged; the priest was thrown into prison, the two witnesses present were arrested, and the offending pair parted in the first sweetness of the honeymoon. Seymour was sent to St. Thomas's Tower on the river. He was furnished handsome apartments, with plates, hangings, books, luxurious belongings; and the Countess was lodged in a fine house on the Thames, with attendance and surroundings as became her rank; allowed every freedom—except freedom. Indifferent to the elegancies about her, the bride wrote tender and passionate letters to her bridegroom, but he answered never a word. Sweet William made no sign, sent no love-gift. He wrote only to the Lords of the Council, praying to be restored to liberty, that his health would be lost if he were not freed, and busied his days making himself comfortable in the chambers over the Traitors' Gate of London Tower, his wife's money paying the bills. One dull, foggy day she quietly stepped into a common barge and floated down the river to the barred window on the wharf, where she might make signs to him who did not appear bold enough to plan an escape, and returned safely to her castle. The brave movement could not be concealed, and in his wrath the King ordered a dozen counties to be put between his cousin and the defiant prisoner looking with despair at the water-gates. Sadly did the tearful blue eyes turn to the bleak and frozen North, while sentinels doubled their watch on the square tower built over the moat. Such was his Majesty's pleasure. Lady Arabella's attendants were devoted, ready to brave death itself for their mistress; her soft, kind manner never failed to win where self-love had not taken too deep a hold. Day and night, while she sighed her soul away, they schemed and planned to open a path to reunion in the pleasant land of France, where they might be at peace in banishment. At last she slipped off, well provided by her aunt, the Countess of Shrewsbury, with costly jewels current in any country, and with good English gold to lavish on any who might espouse her cause. She glided down the Thames, reached the Channel, by arrangement was taken on a light French bark; but the open water in front of Calais was not for the hapless bride. Captain Corvè did his best; his little craft was no match for the swift war-ship Adventure in pursuit. Gallantly he fought wind and wave, but Admiral Monson outsped him, and after thirteen shots were fired, he struck his flag, and the crew of the victorious vessel boarded the bark which carried the royal lady. She gracefully yielded herself prisoner to James, King of England, consoled by the thought that he whom she loved better than life was so well disguised, and his plot so well laid, that he was safe in French port. "Where is William, Earl of Seymour?" demanded Monson, Admiral in command of the chase. Lady Arabella smiled. "I cannot tell, but I believe he is beyond the reach of his enemies and mine." [Pg 449] LONDON TOWER FROM THE RIVER. So she was marched to the Tower, into rooms once occupied by Margaret Douglas, the common grandmother of the King and herself. When brought before the Lords she was mild and patient, yet asked with becoming spirit why she, a free woman of royal blood, should be held a criminal and separated from her lawful husband. The furious King seized her jewels and money; and her two companions in the flight, gentlemen by birth, were dragged to the torture-chamber of the Tower, and forced to confess what they knew of the perilous attempt. The tale of Seymour's changes of wig and cloak, in various disguises and places, is too long to tell here. Delighted with liberty and with France, he seemed to mourn the loss of his bride less than the loss of her jewels and money, for William dearly loved to loiter in the delicate plain called Ease, and lie in the soft places gold can buy. The calculating fellow found his high name a passport in Paris, which city was vastly amusing, and so was the staid but not less delightful capital of the Belgians. In the damp old rooms of her grandmother Lady Arabella languished five years. The third year an escape was arranged, and when the time was ripe and success appeared assured she was betrayed, and the venture ended in nothing but harsher treatment. While "William, dearest," danced the night away, she wore out the dark hours writing prayers to the King, who deigned no answer. Like other high-born dames, she was skilled in cunning needle-work, and many a doleful day was spent stitching gay silks into canvas, making a bright broidery, offered as a souvenir to the man who imprisoned her; but the King would not touch the pretty gift. The courtesy did not move him any more than her demand to be tried by her peers, according to law, in open-court, instead of by a Committee of the Council sitting with closed doors. When the tapestry came back rejected the blue eyes grew dimmer, and her cheek paled with the heart-sickness of hope deferred, or rather of despair, and it was rumored that the daughter of the House of Stuart had met her doom in madness. Sorriest of all the history is that the youthful husband forgot his too-loving wife. The letters full of tenderness reached the trifler at European courts, and lay unanswered. The low-browed villain Wood, who had her in charge, knew the death of his captive would please King James and the courtiers who lived on his smiles. His small mind lent itself to all sorts of petty annoyances and means to make imprisonment unwholesome. She must not walk, nor have her own attendants, nor food and dress befitting the near kinswoman of queens, though the offended monarch generously had the ceiling of her room "mended to keep out wind and rain." The forlorn lady passed from deep melancholy to spasms that touched her brain. Even in such pitiful condition she was closely watched and guarded by the nervous coward, who pretended to believe there was an Arabella plot, with Raleigh at its head, secreted in the Tower. For a year the insane Countess lived, gentle and harmless, chattering like a little child. Her one amusement was singing songs of love and longing, learned in happy days, with the lute, whose trembling strings made the saddest strains ear ever heard. The heart-breaking music softened even her jailer; he grew compassionate, and she wandered at will through the doleful halls and the garden. But the wan face never brightened; she faded slowly, drooped, and died. In the chill midnight of autumn her wornout body was brought by the black-flowing river to Westminster Abbey, in a miserable coffin without a plate, and laid away in that sanctuary with no ceremony, not even a prayer. "For," says a loyal courtier, "to have had a great funeral for one dying out of favor with the King would reflect on the King's honor." After a troubled life she sleeps well in the tomb of her ill-starred family, close beside the dust of her grandmother, Margaret Douglas. Her coffin lies across and flattens the leaden casket which holds the headless corpse of her great- aunt Mary, unhappy Queen of Scots. Neither name nor date is above her breast, and the skull and bones were plainly seen below the rotten wood in 1868 (a ghastly sight!) when the vaults were searched for the remains of James I. Her persecutor rests near his victim. The enemies are at one now. The strange peace of death which ends all feuds has brought them together, and their restless hearts lie still, awaiting the coming of the Angel of the Resurrection. [Pg 450] The period of which I write is sometimes called the good old times. I call it the bad old times. A FLASH IN THE DARK. BY R. M. FULLER. The Whitonville Camera Club was to meet at Will Vaughan's house Wednesday evening. Whitonville is a town of some size in the western part of New York. Mr. Vaughan, Will's father, one of its earliest residents, lives in a large old- fashioned house on the main street, opposite the Whitonville Bank, of which he is president. All day the overcast sky had given promise of a downpour, and the sultry atmosphere, charged with electricity, presaged plenty of thunder and lightning before midnight. "It's too bad!" exclaimed Will Vaughan to his friend and visitor Tom Wetherby, as they stood on the front porch looking at the angry sky. "If the storm breaks before the fellows get here the meeting falls through; but here comes Frank Wentworth." The young men exchanged cordial greetings, and followed Will to the library, where the meeting was to be held. One after another the members arrived, until the whole club was seated around the table. Tom Wetherby belonged to a large club in the city, and was recognized as an authority by the members of this small country organization. He was a bright young fellow of nineteen, always on the lookout for some novel subject for his camera, which accompanied him on all his wanderings. He listened to the debate, offering a word now and then as his opinion was requested, until his ear caught the swish of rain hurled violently against the window-panes by the wind. Presently this was followed by heavy peals of thunder, and flash after flash of lightning. "If you don't mind, Will, I will try to catch a flash or two of the lightning; I have been waiting for a chance like this for a long time," said Tom. "All right, old fellow; we'll excuse you. Look out your camera isn't blown away." Tom was soon busy setting up his camera on the front porch, with the lens pointed at the sky at an angle which just cleared the tops of the opposite houses. The rain poured down, while crash upon crash of thunder followed each successive flash of lightning. Nearer and nearer came the force and violence of the storm, until the centre of electrical activity was directly over the village. Tom exposed several plates, and had put the last plate-holder in position when his foot struck one leg of the tripod, almost capsizing the camera. A quick grab at the instrument prevented the catastrophe; but before he could get the camera in position, again, a blinding flash came, followed simultaneously by a crash which shook the building to its very foundation. For a moment Tom was dazed with the vivid light. Every object was illuminated with a brightness exceeding daylight, and then all became intensely dark. Tom capped his lens, seized his camera, and re-entered the house, where he found the club still discussing the topic of the evening. "Well, what luck?" they exclaimed. Tom shook the water from his clothes, wiped the moisture carefully from the camera, and replied: "Oh, so so! the last plate must be a dead failure, though. I knocked the camera half over just before that terrible crash." The following morning the Vaughans were at breakfast when a quick ring at the door-bell was heard, and Mr. Vaughan recognized the voice of one of his clerks, saying, "I must see Mr. Vaughan without delay, if you please." Mr. Vaughan surmised from the tones of the speaker that something had happened, and hastened to the door. "Mr. Vaughan," exclaimed the excited clerk, "please come over to the bank at once. We have been robbed, sir." "Robbed?" "Yes, sir; everything is in confusion. The vault is open, and papers and securities litter the floor." It took but a moment to recognize the truth of the clerk's statement. The vault door was wide open, but the lock had not been injured. The robbery had been committed by some person who knew the combination of the lock, or the vault had not been fastened the night before. Mr. Vaughan discarded the latter idea, for he had tried the vault door before leaving the bank, and knew that it was locked. There were three besides himself in the employ of the bank—James Hendrix, the cashier; Frank Wentworth, bookkeeper and assistant cashier; and John Salters, general utility clerk, the man who had notified him of the robbery. Neither Hendrix nor Wentworth had arrived, and Mr. Vaughan requested the clerk to gather up the papers which were still lying scattered over the floor, while he endeavored to find a clew to the robbery. While they were thus engaged the cashier entered, and appeared surprised to find the president already there. Mr. Vaughan immediately informed him of the robbery, and noted the look of indignation and astonishment with which the news was received. "Hendrix, what was your cash balance last evening?" The cashier, after consulting the books, replied, "Twenty-eight thousand five hundred and twenty dollars, fifty-eight cents, of which six thousand four hundred was in bills, twenty thousand in government bonds, and the balance in securities and currency." Mr. Vaughan stepped to the cashier's desk, glanced over the book, verifying the figures, and was about turning away, when his eye caught the edge of a paper protruding from the right-hand drawer of Wentworth's desk, which adjoined that of the cashier. Without saying a word or attracting attention to his movements, the president quietly drew the paper from the drawer and gave it a glance as he put it in his coat pocket. It was a thousand-dollar government bond. At this moment Frank Wentworth entered the bank with a pleasant "Good-morning." As he passed behind the rail which separated the customers' side from the working office he noticed the eyes of the president fixed upon him with a stern expression entirely new to him. "Wentworth, I would like to see you in my office immediately," said the president. When they had entered the little room, Mr. Vaughan closed the door, and, looking Wentworth in the eye, said: "Frank, the bank has been robbed of a large sum of money, exactly how much we do not know until these securities have been examined and counted." Wentworth's face became crimson, for the president's manner implied more than the mere words conveyed. "You were the last one to leave, were you not?" "Yes, sir; but everything was safe and sound when I left. I tried the vault door after putting on my hat and coat, and I am positive it was securely locked." "Are you equally positive in regard to the front door after you had passed out?" "Yes, sir; I turned the knob repeatedly; the door was closed and locked." "You have no theory to offer as to how the robbery was accomplished?" "Why, Mr. Vaughan! how should I know anything more about it than yourself? Was the vault door open?" Without replying, the president said, "Step to the door and call Mr. Hendrix and Mr. Salters." Frank did as he was bidden. "Each of you has a private drawer in your desk of which you retain the key. The bank has lost a large sum of money, and we must be willing to clear ourselves of the suspicion which might attach, in view of the fact that the vault combination is unknown to any person outside this room. You will hand me your keys, and come with me to the outer office while I perform a most unpleasant duty." Hendrix's desk was first inspected; then Salters's; but nothing found to implicate them. Mr. Vaughan next opened Frank's private drawer, and there, directly in front, lay two of the government bonds and a number of bills of different denominations. Wentworth's face became ashen, his knees trembled, and he gasped for breath. Presently, however, he looked Mr. Vaughan squarely in the eye, and exclaimed, "Mr. Vaughan, in spite of what we see, and what you doubtless think, I do not know how the bonds came there." The president did not reply. He tried the keys of the others' desks in Wentworth's lock, and neither would fit. "Mr. Hendrix, you will call an officer; my duty is plain; I cannot evade it." As the cashier went out of the door, Mr. Vaughan turned to Wentworth, who had sunk into a chair, covering his face with his hands, and said: "Frank, I could not feel much worse if this had been against my own boy Will. Your father was a director of this bank, and my friend for years. It is a mercy that he did not live to see this day." Wentworth made no answer; the power of speech appeared to have forsaken him. He did not lift his head nor utter a sound until Hendrix appeared with an officer. Mr. Vaughan explained the situation, and Frank was led away in custody. Consternation fell upon Frank's friends and acquaintances, for the evidence was so overwhelming that his simple denial of any knowledge of the matter had no weight with the majority. His mother and sister, together with the members of the camera club, formed a small minority who believed him innocent. Will Vaughan was untiring in his efforts to console Mrs. Wentworth and her daughter Alice, and did his best to keep Frank's spirits up. What could he do, however, to stem the tide of public opinion? Again and again he besought Frank to discover some tangible clew to the robbery. Frank had racked his brain in the effort to do so, without avail. Tom Wetherby returned to his home in New York early on the morning of the day following the storm. He knew nothing of the robbery until weeks afterwards, when a long letter from Will Vaughan arrived, detailing the terrible plight of Wentworth, and rehearsing all the circumstances. [Pg 451] "Too bad! too bad!" muttered Tom, as he finished the letter. "I don't believe Wentworth guilty any more than Will does. His face is as honest and open as the day." Will's letter called the lightning plates taken at Whitonville to mind, and he determined to do so now; accordingly he went up to his dark-room and was soon as busy as a bee. One after another the plates were developed, fixed, and washed, until plate-holder No. 7 was reached. Tom hesitated as he drew the slide and removed the plate from the holder. "Oh, pshaw!" he exclaimed, "what's the use of bothering with this one?" for he remembered with a smile the wild grab for the camera and the dazzling flash that came before he could straighten the tripod. "I don't suppose there's anything on it—but here goes, for fun, anyway!" He popped it into the tray, poured the developer over it, and awaited results. After a while the image began to show, and little by little the detail came out. "Hello! what's that?" Tom's eyes fastened on the negative with astonishment. His face assumed an expression of intense interest, for moment by moment the image grew stronger and stronger. With the utmost care he completed the process, and then, opening the dark-room door, flew down the stairs two steps at a time, tore into his bedroom, grabbed Will's letter from the desk, and read the concluding paragraph as follows: "My heart aches for Frank and his mother and Alice. I don't believe one word of the charge against him; but, like all the rest of his friends, am powerless to help him. The trial comes off on the 18th." "The 18th, and to-day is the 17th! It's a close call, but it's got to be done, and I'll do it," cried Tom, in a whirl of excitement. He hurried to the telephone in the library, called up his father's office in the lower part of the city, and while waiting for the connection looked at his watch. It was quarter of three o'clock. Then the customary "Hello!" came over the wire. "Please tell Mr. Wetherby to come to the 'phone." "Who are you?" "His son Tom; I want to speak to father." Presently Mr. Wetherby called back, "Well, Tom, what is it? Hurry up; I'm busy!" "Father," shouted Tom, his voice betraying the excitement he was under. "I must go to Whitonville to-night. I think I've got something which will help Will Vaughan's friend who is accused of robbing the bank." "My son, hadn't you better wait until I get home and talk the matter over with you?" "Can't wait, father; to-day is the 17th; Wentworth's trial takes place to-morrow. The only train which would get me there by noon to-morrow leaves at four o'clock this afternoon—about an hour from now." Buzz-z-z went the 'phone. Mr. Wetherby was probably thinking about it. He knew Tom was a pretty level headed young man, and felt convinced that his son had something of material importance to the case. The break seemed an age to Tom, and he called over the 'phone impatiently, "Well, father, can I go?" "Yes, Tom. I think I can rely on your judgment. If you haven't money enough for the journey, explain matters to your mother, who will supply you. Be sure and write me full particulars, and come home as soon as practical." When the four-o'clock express rolled out of the Grand Central Depot that afternoon, Tom Wetherby was aboard, and in his grip was the plate that came out of holder No. 7, and a bromide print therefrom. The court-room at Whitonville was crowded to suffocation. Never before had such widespread interest been manifested in a criminal case in that town. Frank Wentworth was known and liked by everybody, and the astonishment and grief at his predicament were universal. Hendrix testified to quitting the bank about five o'clock in the afternoon, leaving the president and Wentworth still there. Mr. Vaughan testified to his departure a few minutes after the cashier, and that Wentworth was still at his desk. Frank, in his own defence, accounted for every moment from the time he left the bank until he entered it next morning; but the fact that he was the last to leave the building after remaining there alone half an hour weighed heavily against him. No one but the Almighty and Frank himself could know what took place in the interim, and the lawyers sought in vain to bridge over the fatal half-hour which succeeded Mr. Vaughan's departure. The case finally went to the jury, and a verdict of guilty was reluctantly rendered in accordance with the facts. The District Attorney moved for sentence, and Frank was directed to take his place before the bar, when a commotion occurred at the door of the court-room. Some one was evidently trying to force his way through the crowd. For a moment all was confusion, and the judge rapped savagely for order. All this time a young man was making the best of his way towards the bench. It was Tom Wetherby. Without looking to the right or left he kept his eye fixed upon the judge, and raised his hand in token of a desire to be heard. Judge Dalton, recognizing that something of import must be responsible for this unprecedented proceeding, calmly awaited Tom's approach. At length he reached Wentworth's side before the bar, and speaking earnestly, said: "I believe, your honor, I have in my possession evidence which will clearly establish the innocence of the prisoner. I have travelled all the way from New York to bring it to you, and reached Whitonville less than half an hour ago. If you will let me give the evidence to the prisoner's counsel before you take further action, I think you will be satisfied with the truth of my statement." The required permission was given, and every eye in the room was fixed on Tom while he hurriedly told his story to the lawyer and produced his negative and print. A consultation followed between Frank's lawyer, the District Attorney, and Judge Dalton. Presently the judge turned to the jury and said, "In view of the fact that new evidence of importance has been presented to me, the District Attorney recommends the reopening of the case; I therefore set aside the verdict rendered, and ask your further consideration of the matter." The excitement of the spectators was intense. Frank's lawyer promptly called Tom to the stand. Tom testified to the facts we already know, and took his seat. "Mr. Hendrix," said the lawyer, turning to the cashier, who occupied a seat among the witnesses for the people, "will you take the witness chair for a few moments?" Hendrix started as though he had been shot, but rose and made his way to the stand. "Will you tell us, Mr. Hendrix, where you were between the hours of nine and ten o'clock on the night of the robbery?" "I was at home." "Did you not leave the house at all that evening?" "No, sir; it was a very stormy night, and I did not go out." "You are perfectly sure of this?" "Certainly. I did not leave my house." "Mr. Hendrix, will you look at this picture and tell me if you recognize the person it represents?" Hendrix took the bromide print from the lawyer's hand, and saw—the entrance of the Whitonville Bank; a man was just issuing from the door; one hand was on the knob in the act of closing the door, while the other hand was holding his hat firmly on his head to prevent its being blown away; the man's face was clearly distinguishable; it was himself! THE EFFECT UPON THE GUILTY MAN WAS PITIFUL. The effect upon the guilty man was pitiful. He shook with fear; his head dropped upon his breast, and the picture fell from his nerveless grasp to the floor. The lawyer quickly handed the print to the jury, and then turning to the judge, said: "Your honor, our side of the case [Pg 452] has been presented. We have finished." The jury promptly acquitted Frank, who was surrounded by friends eager to congratulate him on his wonderful escape. Tom was the hero of the hour, and received compliments enough to turn the head of any fellow less modest and unassuming. Hendrix's story is quickly told. Speculation, losses, peculation in small sums to make good the losses, and finally robbery to cover the petty thievings. He made a full confession—told how he put the bonds in Frank's drawer to avert suspicion from himself, using a duplicate key to open the drawer. He is now undergoing a long term of imprisonment in Auburn. Frank Wentworth is the new cashier of the Whitonville Bank, and enjoys the friendship and regard of the entire community. RICK DALE. BY KIRK MUNROE. CHAPTER V. FIRST MATE BONNY BROOKS. Alaric Todd's sensations as he sat on that log and watched the ship in which he was supposed to be a passenger steam away without him were probably as curious as any ever experienced by a boy. He had deliberately abandoned a life of luxury, as well as a position that most people are striving with all their energies to obtain, and accepted in its place— what? He did not know, and for the moment he did not care. He only knew that the Sonntaggs were gone beyond a chance of return, at least for some weeks, and that during that time there was no possible way in which they could reach him or communicate with his family. He realized that he was in a strange city, not one of whose busy population either knew or cared to know a thing about him. But what of that? If they did not know him they could never call him by the hated name of "Allie." If he succeeded in making friends, it would be because of himself, and not on account of his father's wealth. Above all, those now about him did not know and should never know, if he could help it, that he was thought to be possessed of a weak heart. Certainly if excitement could injure his heart, it ought to be completely ruined at the present moment, for he had never been so excited in his life, and doubted if he ever should be again. With it all the lad was filled with such an exulting sense of liberty that he wanted to jump and shout and share with every passer-by the glorious news that at length he was free—free to be a boy among boys, and to learn how to become a man among men. He did not shout, nor did he confide his happiness to any of those who were coming up from t...