Newspaper Page Text
FOURTH PAGE
THE SUNNY SOUTH.
JUNE 23 1903.
f
Fate’s Beggar Maid
By TOM GALLON
AUTHOR OF: "Tatterley,” “Dickey Monteith,” “A
Rogue in Love,’’ “Kiddy,” “A Prince of Mis
chance/' “The Dead Inglehy,” Etc.
Copyright , 1905, by The National
Press Agency.
CHAPTER XIV.
DUMB.
ning mind. "Something was said just |<ir comparative affluence. This might
now," he said, “about its being neces-. happen again and again, now that Fer-
sar.v or advisable to remove tills woman Idinand had once had the courage to
from the house. Somebody's made a bit Intake a. beginning; and, in any case, he
of a slip there, I'm thinking," he went had always up his sleeve that last and
Ion, "because that ain't a point that's got most wonderful rand—that he knew, and
N the sudden joy of that
discovery that Ruth Ar-
kett was alive, and that
the shadow that had hung
over him for so long was
partially lifted, John Fal
coner was a changed man.
All sorts of mad and im
possible schemes suggested
themselves to him; now
thq>" he knew that Cap-
stick, while actually plot
ting against him, had yet
been the cliief instrument
In keeping the woman alive, he was
filled with gratitude to that gentleman,
somewhat to the bewilderment of Cap-
stick himself. Thcr*. need be no more
plotting now; Falconer had learnt his
lesson, and the restored Ruth Arkett
brought back to life, should be loaded
Falconer,
to be considered at alL"
“Why not?” demanded
sharply.
"Look here, John Falconer," replied
Saul, stepping up to him .and tapping
him on the breast with a forefinger, "you
and me know certain things that isn't
« coner was a changed mail, necessary for other people to know;
All sorts of mad and im- tDt.t is to say, we've got our little se-
possible schemes suggested cr « ts ' a " d we ’ re n<>t f oin , K l ° * aik
.. - . . . 'em unless we r* obliged. Observe the
themselves to him; now ® , *-v..
word, If you please—<1 said obliged. Do
th^ he knew that Cap- y(m , jndestand that , Jo hn Falconer?"
stick, while actually plot- ...j understand that you convey a
ting against him, had yet threat,” retorted the other, in a low
tone.
"Very good, I see you understand per- j force a retreat into the country; there-
fectly," said Capstlck, with a grin, fore he booked himself to a. small coun- I
"Now, 1 want it clearly understood, as try town some 60 miles ifroni London,
between fhose whose business it Is to with a sort of grim determination that
understand It, that I first of all saved | hft wolI i d , t ake the country by the
the life of this person upstairs; that j throat, and see what couM be shaken
I've gone out of my way. at the cost j out of lt to the tune of a few
— , tethlng to his
, ... At i k6e P t,iat P^aon ulive; that l ve paiu ;chagrln, that, as he expressed it It was
meant so recently to destroy her. ' this gentleman”—he indicated the doctor I merely “a little bit of London not
togeth.r it ’“iU 1.. >c*.- . v. r y l.r*. oj |“Z ,wtd. “’* 1'*.
a road or two thrown In.”
At the hotel to which he went lie was
could produce at a moment's notice, the
real Ruth Arkett.
For the present, however, Mr. Kirk
was satisfied He would indeed take a
holiday, and with that object In view
bad packed his bag, and W’as leaving
the house, when, as we have already
seen, lie wns confronted by Martin Fal
coner. That which had meant merely
a holiday became then a flight; for—
for the first time, he realized fully what
lie had done, and how he hod betrayed
the trust confided In him by Ruth.
Ferdinand Ivlrk did not go far. Hav
ing lived in London all his life, he had
a hazy idea that a holiday meant tper-
iroch," said Ruth, looking at him stead
ily. "There are one or two things I can
not understand—things that appear to
want some explanation. Have you any
thing to tell me?"
"Yes, a g. r ««t deal.” said Ferdinand,
lid-getting with -the brim of Ills hat, and
keeping his eyes cast down. "M you
v.c didn't mind not looking at me,” he
added, half crying, "I should feel more
comifort able. ’’
“When 1 saw you last, Mr. Kirk,” said
Ruth with what gentleness she could
assume, "I entrusted to your care
packet of papers. Do you remember?
was a little mistake. The girl I had
the honor of sending here—known to you
as Ruth Kirk—was really and truly ”
“Ruth Arkett? I understand.” The
face of Ursula Falconer was inscrutable,
but she seemed to smil#.
“Consequently," babbled on Ferdinand,
very pleased with himself, “consequently,
you will understand that Ruth Arkett '«
■very much alive, a.nd that she really has
t'he papers after all. Those are the pa
pers, I mean, for which Mr. John Fal
coner was willing to pay the money, and
| a bit more, you see before you on the
table. And very good money, too." he
iadxled. lingering one of the notes lov-
“Pepfectly,” sa# Ferdinand. "I've _ ^ _
thought of nothing else lor some days." j j ng | y *
“Let me ‘trace what happened after il ....... .. ,, , . ...
1 Ruth Arkett alive, and still holding
with money and kindness and consider*- of a Iot of money and a lot of risk, to j He found , however, something To
tion, at the hands of the man who
John Falconer looked that night, from money, counting myself as a poor man.
over th e apron of the cab in which he
drove with Saul Capstick to Isligton.
"I notice one thing,” said Mr. Cap-
stick, sourly; "that you ain’t reckoning
my conscience, and you ain’t considering
what I may find it necessary to do for
the easing of that conscience. If you
think I'm going to stand aside, and let
you attempt to murder an innocent wo
man,, you're very much mistaken; this
may prove to be a police joib, after all.
Of course, I may be squared, and my
conscience may be eased,” he added, .
thoughtfully: "but it's got to be taken
Into consideration."
“You can't count In this," said Falcon
er. with a laugh. "The wrong was mine;
1 <ihall settle th« matter with the woman
herself. I’m not afraid of you any long
er, Capstlck."
"That remains to be seen,” retorted
6a.ul. "I ain’t going to be pushed out
of things like this quite so easily urn
you imagine. However, here we are,
and that Infernal boy burning the traa
In the dining-room again, as I'm alive!”
John Falconer dismissed the cab, and
was admitted by Capstick to the house,
jlr. Capstick, viciously muttering threats
against the boy for stopping up so late,
and for consuming his parent's gas, sud
denly thrust open th e door of the little
dining-room, and went In. bent on ven
geance; only to stop a little sheepishly
jit right of a disreputable-looking man.
seated at the table, smoking and drink
ing. The disreputable-looking one nodd
ed cooly, and surveyed Falconer sharply.
"Thought I'd better look in, and see
that the improvement was maintained, as
1 used to say in my jjrofessiolnal dajs,”
salu the man. “Who's your friend?”
"This,” said Mr. Capstlck. a little sulk
ily, "this Is .Mr. John Falconer; and this”
—lie indicated the dilapidated individ
ual—"is a nameless, H e doesn't look
like a doctor,” added Saul, "and he
isn't really one now; but in peculiar
cases you have to employ peculiar peo
ple.'
•J understand that,” said Falconer, in
tto assist me in keeping that person
alive. Alfa am I to be told now,” he
went on, with rising heat, “is it to be
suggested to me for a moment that 1
am now to be deprived of the hard-
earned fruits of my labors? Perish the
thought! You’ve got to understand,
John Falconer, that I haven't done with
you yet; you've got to understand that
tills woman Is perfectly safe here, and
that she can be as dumb here as she
can ftnywliere else. And i can be dumb,
too, if I’m treated properly. Here she
stops until I've made my own arrange
ments. Now, what have you got to say
to that?"
"1 d«i't want to upset you, Capstlck,”
begun Falconer; but Capstick broke in
fiercely.
“You'd better not,” he exclaimed.
“For the present she will stop here;
and you shall be paid, over and above
wliat you've aLready had, for any ex
penses to which you may have been
put. IXJii’t be suspicious, Capstlck and
above all don't threaten. Now I should
likie to see the woman."
"I don't see any objection to that,”
replied Capstlck, a little mollified. "I’ll
go first, and get a light."
They went up the stairs, a grim and
silent procession of three—Saul Capstlck
first, then Falconer, and lastly the doc
tor. Falconer hesitated at the door of
the room, and In the silence of the dark
house could hear the breathing of the
doctor close against his shoulder. Then
came the scraping of a match In the
room, and a subdued !•»— Falconer
crossed the threshold, and found him
self standing in that cheerless room, and
looking tow.Vds a bed in one corner of
lt. With an inward shudder, he under
stood what the heavily-bandaged head
meant, so far as he was concerned.
“She’s asleep,” whispered Capstlck,
shading the candle with his hand, and
looking towards Falconer. “Step soft
ly."
Falconer, as though t'hls was his right
a low voice. “I don't know, " he added, end his only, held out his bund for the
'how much this gentleman knows, or jcandle, firmly and quietly waved the
how much he doesn’t know, 'but 1 sup- j men aside, and stepped up to the bed.
•• j For a moment he hesitated, as though
“If it comes to that. I know nothing at he dared not look. Then he lowered
all,” said the man, looking up for a mo- t-lie candle, and bent his head at the
ment, and surveying Falconer steadily. Jsame time.
••I’m not paid to know anything; that’s | He stood for a moment like one ipet-
not my business at all. I’m brought here rilied; Ills lips were slightly parted, and
to see a. certain person who has received j his disengaged -hand had gone up to
an injury. At considerable risk to my- his 'forehead, with the action of a man
self, and to thos e connected with that utterly bewildered. Then slowly he
person, I perform an operation. That ] turned a look of surprise and horror
operation is successful, and the woman ion Capstlck.
has been slowly recovering. There is, I “In heaven's name, where did you
however, one remurkable feature about j find her?" he whispered,
the case, a feature which may in the “Find her?” It was Mr. Capstlck'-
regarded as something of a phenome
non. He iwas not a- commercial trav
eler—that much was obvious; and he
was not a gentleman—Whicih -woe also a
little obvious, lie sat in a corner of the
billiard room, regretting that he had
never learnt the game, and deploring
the fact also that he did not care 'for
tobacco, he went to bed early, and
slept badly. On the following day he
created some astonishment in the little
town lie had honored with his patron
age, by 'walking about with his silk hat
stuck on the bateik of h1s head, and his
spectacles on the tip of his nose, staring
into shop windows in the High street,
and wondering why oil this fuss had
been made, in books and other places,
about the country; and so determined
that he would get back to Ixindon,
which be understood, and would seek
some of those delights from which he
had hitherto been debarred.
Even there. hawe%-er, he was unsuc
cessful. In the first plaice, when he
came out into the streets from the rail
way station, after having left his lug
gage in the cloak room, he had a fear
that every womh.n lie met might sud
denly turn out to be R-nth. watching
for him; a; further fear that every man
mllg’ht he Capstlck. knowing well mliat
left you," -went on the girl. "I went to
the house of Mr. Capstlck, and there I
uisooverod that the woman to whom I
gave t'he miniature had been mistaken for
•me and an attempt had been made on her
life.
“An attempt?" Kirk looked up quickly
at the (girl, and waited
"Shie is alive still; desperately ill, but
alive," said Ruth. "Mr. Capstlck, lor
seme reason, has deceived, everyone con
cur ring her; but I believe he still thinks
that she is the real Ruth Arkett. So
much for that. Now, Mr. Kirk”—Ruth’s
voice took on a new tone—“there Is an
other matter about which I wish do speak
to you.”
"i know—I know,” said the wretched
Ferdinand. “You trusted me with a cer
tain packet of papers; I was tempted,
end I fell. Say what you like to me,"
he went on wildly, “blame me, curse me,
ie!i me wliat you think of me. I wanted
money; I wanted to keep a roof over my
'head—over your bead also—and I sold
the papers."
"Yes, I know,” replied Ruth, quietly.
"I have the papers here.”
Ferdinand K1rk sit retched out his hands
toward her, and gasped, and swallowed,
anti -made several attempts to speak. Fi
nally he said, -with a weak attempt at a
smile;
“You—you have the papers here?”
"Yes,!’ replied Ruth. “Mr. Capstick
left some -papers In my hands, telling
me that It was dangerous for him to
carry them about with him. Knowing
only of one danger that could threaten
him or any one else—and that in regard
to myself—I had the curiosity to look at
the papers; reed there words written by
my father, and saw at once that al
though the envelope, with which I was
familiar, was gone, these must be the
papers I had been entrusted with by him.
Oh, Mr. Ivlrk—Mr. Kirk, you have fallen
Indeed!”
"Yes, I know I have," said Ivlrk; "'but
What I don't iwulerstaiHi is how the pa-
tbe papers," said Ursula Falconer, half
to herself. "Really, Mr. Kirk, my hus-
bang will be very grateful to you—very
grateful Indeed—when I tell him. But as
you have worked very hard In Ills ser
vice, and as you must not under any
circumstances be at a loss over suchi a
matter, I must ask you to take this
money.”
“Oh. I couldn't think of it," replie-l
Ferdinand, backing away from the table,
and yet watching the money eagerly. “I
haven’t earned It.”
“You must alldw me to Judge as to
that,” eaid Ursula, With a dazzling smile.
“Come, pick it up; you have more than
coujpse, you won’t find It necessary^to
mention what I have told you In ccfcfi-
•dence—I mean, as to my ward being
real Ruth Arkett?"
“I pledge my word, Mr. Kirk, that, co
one shall ever know of it,” said Ursitlt-
Mr. Ferdinand Kirk went away With
the money in his pocket, and with pe
comforting feeling in his mind that 'he
piCK IL . J ou tiu » v, uicM v tuuu i vvimvi ting •** ——
earned it. You have done Mr. John Fa!- ] had xeally been honest, and had receive!
coner a great service—a very great ser- > the reward of that honesty. And Ursula
vice indeed. Only one stipulation I would Falconer, left alone, Jooked with bropl-
make,” she added, laying a white hand ing eyts out into the street, and stroBi-
on his as he reached out for the money, ly and firmly made up her mind wh»t
“Yes.
asked
ma’am, and what is that?” he she had to do.
• Ruth Arkett—alive, and with the >a-
... . ... „ pers in her hands. Oh, John, you hav}
”1 wouldn’t say anything to Miss Ruth to] J me much but you have told mt
irkett,” said Ursula Falconer. "She | enough f or that. ' This time there ahsll
Arkett,’ ....
may have quite reasonable scruples as to ■ be no blunder; this time I’ll match PS'
the money; only It happens that you and ; woman's wit against hers-and for ysur
a
I know differently about the -alter, j sake ; IdWln. ^
don't we?" now j tako sides, and I shall have no m
"Yes, of course we do," said’ Ferdinand, j mercy and shall give no quarter." 4
nutting t'he money into his pocket. "I . to
won't say a word to anybody; and, of j _ (TO BE CONTINUED.)
LIVING HONEY JARS, ONE OF
NATURE’S MARVELS.
Continued from Second Page
lie had done, and prepared to demand p<rs ff0l j nto t | H , hands of the atrocious
long run be a very happy one for those
Concerned. I had my suspicions about
-the extent of the Injury some time ago;
tonight those suspicions are confirmed."
"Please explain yourself clearly,” said
Falconer.
"When this woman was brought here,
and I was summoned by our friend Cap-
•tick to attend her, she wars hovering
between life and death; it was nothing
ahort of a miracle that Capstlck had
been able to bring her from some other
place, and to get her safely Into this
The woman had received a blow
turn to look amazed.
“This Is not Rut'h Arkett," exclalned
Falconer, in the same quick whisper as
before. "I ask you again—where did
you find her?"
"N-ot Ruth Aj-keOt?” iSauli Capstick
turned his bewildered gaze from Falco
ner to the doctor, and back again.
“Then who the deuce -Is it?”
Falconer had reached out a hand be
hind 'him, and had set the candle on
the fable. Very slowly, while the two
men watched, he fell upon one knee be
side the bed; he seemed to be utterly
an explnnotion. Getting over that feel
ing with difficulty, -and suddenly remem
bering that lie was In a f.osition to
drive luxuriously, he took a cab, and
was driven to a large restanira-nt in the
West End.
But tTfe food was mot to h1s tiaste, and
mis expensive. He (found himself, dur
ing the progress of the meal, making
mental calculations a« to how many
meals of a similar kind (he could hope
to get out of the balance of his £500.
More -tbaai all else, he was lonely, and
dissatisfied with life generally.
Grimly determined, however, to see the
thing through, now that he had begun,
•lie went to a music hall, voted a really
excellent entertain men t as stupid and
commonplace, and finally came out into
the streets again, wondering a little what
he should do.
For he had begun to be haunted bv
the remembrance of 'Riuth Kirk. He
had. -In a. sense, delivered her Into the
hands of her enemies; had sold those
papers which, so far as he knew, were
of the utmost value to her, and was
altogether a traitor and a rascal. He
had made n-o provision for the girl, al
though he had known that sh P must,
after leaving t/lie house oif Falconer, lie
practically destitute. During his ab
sence in that abominable place called
thp couritry, all sorts of things might
have happened to 'her, while he, her
Fapstick. Not that -that matters very
itorc-h, if you've got them back again."
"Mr. Kirk, wha t did you got lor them J"
asked Ruth. __
"Five hundred pounds," replied Ferui-
nand In a whisper. "I've spent a little
of it, my dear, but only a little. The
lest 1 'think I'll pin by, .11 case of a rainy
day. Times are hard, and you never know
what you may need."
"The rest you will take back to the
man who gave it to you,” said Ruth,
sternly. "1 suppose that was Mr. John
Falconer?” Ferdinand Ivlrk nodded.
“Very well, then, you must give back
all that you have from him. Will you
do that?” Ferdinand nodded once .more.
"And then we can start squarely again,
and know what we are doing.”
"1 suppose you know be.-t, my dear,"
replied Ferdinand; "and I'm not sure
that it won't be something of a relief
Ho get rid of the money; it’s brought me
nothing but vexation so far."
Nothing, of course, could be done that
night. Ferdinand Kirk presently went
to Ills room, and Rutli to hers; and It
must be admitted that Ferdinand slept
more swundly than he had done -for two
or three nightis. Early in the morning,
fter breakfast, he gravely counted oil*,
'before t'he searching eyes of Ruth, the
exact amount of money he had left. It
totalled a little over four hundred and
forty prinnds, because if has to be re-
self-tconstltuted guardian, had been tllng- membered that Ferdinand had used some
mg his dishonest earnings In all direc- .part originally to pay a presing debt,
tions. The more he t.hou@lit about it the | Ruth shook her head whimsically over
less he liked lt, and the more anxious j jt_ and over him; but finally sent him
house.
from some blunt Instrument on the back ' oblivious of their presence.
C* the head; the bone of the skull was j "Nance! poor Nance Ryder!” he
crushed, and was pressing Into the brain. I whispered. . To find you again like
Jfh* operation relieved that, but It lias this!'
liad—the blow, I mean—one curious ef
fect.”
"Well, what's that?” asked Capstlck.
In a whisper.
The man drew his glass towards him,
And slowly and thoiightfull yturned It
round, raised it to his leps, and drank;
then looked at those who watched him
with a curious stnlle. “She will never
speak again,” he said. "Her brain ap
pears to be fairly clear. In the sense
that she can indicate what she wants,
that she can show signs of recognition,
t_ of pleasure, or of dislike. But she will
never be able to speak or to make any
declaration as to how she received her
injury—which is, as I said before, per
haps fortunte.” The man raised his
CHAPTER XV.
MR. KIRK THROWS UP HIS HAND.
It has to be remembered that poor
Ferdinand Kirk had 'had but few oppor
tunities :fbr real enjoyment in his life,
with whatever 'hopes he may have
started. It Is safe -to say that those
hopes had long been dissipated. lyove
had refused to smile upon him, or, at
ail events, he had refused to find time
for anything so unprofitable; and he
had lived a dull, scrambling sort of ex
istence, with only the uninteresting and
prosaic servant to attend to his wants.
With no regular profession or business
fflaas and drained it, and set It down j at b j s command, be had contrived to
again.
“Will ahe recover in all other respects?”
asked Falconer, after a pease.
“I think so. She is already recov
ering to Some extent the use of her
limbs; should lt be necessary, she may
make a shilling here, and lialf-a-crown
■there, and by great good luck perhaps
a sovereign somewhere else. He had
envied the rich, and yet with no bitter
ness; he had dreamed an impossible
dream that some day he might obtain
aven be removed in a very little time, j to moderate riches himself, and realize
But she is, and will be for the rest of 1 one or more of his mild ambitions,
her life, absolutely liimb.” . Behold him then, suddenly, with five
The eyes of John Falconer met those hundred pounds in actual cash In his
he felt to undo the wrong he had done.
Tie tried to comfort himself with the
reflection that she had in all probability
gone back to Joan Falconer, .-and taken
up her life again in Downes street; and
•yet that seemed Improbable. Finally,
taking his courage In his hands, h e de
termined to go back to that modest
home .wherein his hitherto comparatively
blameless life had been led, and to
hide bimseW there.
Behold him, therefore, with the bag
hp had recovered from the cloak room
drooping dejectedly from one hand,
creeping up the street, and watching the
house. Observe him as be puts the key
into the lock and opens the door; and
then follow Mm Inside.
lie was congratulating himself on the
fact that Tie had got In unobserved, and
might even creep u.p to his roam without
being overheard, when h e saw the door
of his sitting room slowly open. The
next moment Rut'h Arirott stood there,
.with a lamp In her hand, looking out
at him. Ferdinand Kirk dropped his
bag a-n-il leaned against 'the wall and
looked at her with a sickly smile.
“Good evening, my dear,” he faltered.
“You're u.p late.”
“I was so surprised to bear anyone
com e in at this hour, Mr. Kirk,” she
said, “that I thought I'd better investi
gate. Have you enjoyed your holiday?”
“Not—not much,” said Ferdinand, pick
ing up the bag drearily, and following
her into the little sitting room. “I've
heard people talk of holidays oefore, but
1 never quite knew what they were like.
And. as for the country ”
Ferdinand Kirk dropped the bag. and
of CapstSek, and then w-ere lowered. I pockets, and with the prospect of an | h) . hig hat „ (]s to express his'sen-
'nisvii <SP It 14 K. hp rrnirlit Te^n 1 bfinftr fplr I L^UA..1.: rri 1 F . __
•Disguise it as he might. Falconer felt j unlimited holiday before him. The thing
In his heart, and knew that Ills eyes | had been so sudden and so easy that
expressed hat feeling, that he was glad jit had left him breathless; for, if the
to think that the woman could not speak— 1 truth 'be told, he had felt it was more
could not, above all, give an account ■ than probable he might be kicked igno-
to any chance listener of whnt had hap- ' minlously out of the presence of John
pened to her. j Falconer as an impudent impostor. But
Presently Mr. Capstick drew a long j the thing had been so true and so
breath, as Jf to relieve tlie tense si- | wonderful, and Ferdinand Ivlrk ha<l
lence, and struck in with reference to ! tapped so excellent a gold mine, that
a point that had occurred to his cun- I here he wns in a moment in a position
erui feelings concerning the country.
Ruth laughed as she set the lamp down j ”
upon the table.
“The country must be looking beautiful
now,” she said.
“Beautiful!” Ferdinand Kirk gasped.
"I suppose I lilt the wrong part of It,”
h; said; “but the less said about it the
better. How have you been getting on,
my dear?”
“1 have been wanting to see you very
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away, happily enough in the direction of
Kerii-lngton, knowing that now. at least,
she could trust him.
It took Ferdinand a long time to get
to Ck house, and to ring the bell, chief
ly because lie hesitated from fear of the
consequences. But he experienced some
feeling of relief when, on enquiring at
last for Jkilin Falconer, he was Informed
that that gentleman wa,=- not at home,
but that he might see Mrs. Falconer.
Glad to escape the searching eyes of the
great John Falconer. Mr. Kirk humbly
murmured that he would l>e glad to see
the lady, and was shown in.
Ursula Falconer came into the room
Where t lie trembling Ferdinand Ivlrk
stood, to discover him standing with
some bank notes ind a little gold in his
hands, looking at her with pleading
eyes. She was very gracious, chiefly be
cause, in this strange business, of
which site knew so little, and was anx
ious to learn so much, she saw that
here was t man who might be intimately
connected n some way with her husband.
So graciots was she, as Ferdinand be
gan to tel. his halting story of the pa
pers he 'hid brought, and of the money
he had received for them, that the man
was throw.! off his guard, and said more
than he lad meant to say.
“You see ma'am, it was, in a way, fair
money for fair value,” said Ferdinand,
smiling deprecatingly as he finally laid
the money on the table and pushed it
reluctantly towards her. “In a manner
of speaklnt, Mr. Falconer may be said
tc have kcown that I had cer.tain papers
which were worth that money—or, why
should he pay it?”
"I quite understand.” said Ursula,
looking at him under level brows, and
wondering how much he really knew.
Mr. Falconer would, of course, pay the
value he himself put upon the papers.
But is thii a question of conscience that
you bring the money back to me?—or
what is It?”
"Partly tonscic-nce, ma'am, and partly
because Mi. Falconer hasn’t got his val
ue. Y'ou s«e, ma’am. In some mysterious
way the pipers have ccme back to the
person to whom they really belonged,
and Miss Stutli Arkett thinks "
She had started violently; she was
looking at him more -sharply even than
before. feuth Arkett. did you say?”
she asked.
“Well, bttween ourselves, ma'am, that
is t’he red name of the lady,” he said.
"You set it really ' doesn't mat
ter now, Wien, os I inform you, the real
lady is alf'c—the one, I mean, that was I
supposed t> be Ruth Arkett. I'm so ex- j
cited, ma’lbi that I scarcely know what
x m .saying-—” \
“It all fi?ni8 very clear." said Ursula i
Falconer, »eadlly. "Please go on.”
“Well, jdi see.” said Ferdinand, much
encouraged and feeling that he was at
last absolutely on an excellent footing
In a femii about whom he had heard
•o much. ‘‘Well, yom sea, ma'an\, then i
bushes. Neither iwas a single ant to be
found, although the search was kept up
all day.
In view of these facts, -there were but
two conclusions to come to, and these
were that the honey ants were noctur
nal and that the aphids were not the
source of their honey supply. A watch
iwas accordingly kept a't night ‘on one of
the nests, the investigator's tent being
'Pitched clos e by. Shortly after sunset a
few ants were seen to emerge from the
gateway, apparently acting a* scouts.
One of them returned below, having as
certained that the coast was clear, and
was immediately followed back to the
surface by score upon score of other
workers. They all crowded -together for
a ifew moments on the top of the mound,
evidently watting for on* of their num
ber to act as leader. And so, pres
ently, one of them did, trotting off in a
•certain direction as if it were all settled
beforehand, which no doivbt it was. The
rest at once followed In a long trail, the
line of which could only be traced by
holding a lantern close to the ground.
The light did not seem to disturb the
•procession, which moved steadily on, and
entered a group of scrub oaks. There
were thousands of the ants, but not a
single rotund or seml-rotund among
them. The rotunds, understand, are the
living honey jars. Every ant In the
march was a worker, either a m ln or or a
minim, the latter -being the dwarfs, and
all had normal corporations. But this
state of things, as we shall see. did not
always obtain permanently.
The procession of ants was followed
closely by the watchers, until it was
suddenly lost sight of in the gloom of
the trees. Presently, however, some of
the mysterious insects were discovered
clustered about some galls on the
brunches of one of >iie oak trees. They
ran here and there over the galls, -touch
ing them with their mouths, and return
ing again and agtiln to t'hg same little
excrescence they had left but a moment
before. And then, directly, the lantern
light revealed th G secret of the honey
supply. Tlie hitherto normal abdomens
of the workers were visa-bly swelling,
like inflated rubber balloons, as they
of taking toll was as odd as it was in
genious*. The forager stood with head
erect and body elevated at an angle
of forty fitfc degrees, while regulat
ing a drop of honey, which hung from
its mouth. Often two or thre? of the
hungry ones would come to the feast
at the same time. A major would stand
afflicted with “situation on the brain”- g
which, however, is but a patriotic anxl- ■]
ety for the success of the union army,
and a desire to demonstrate how easily
it can be brought about, and how cer
tain it Is to be achieved. In front *-f
every hotel, and at every street corner.
you will see little groups of honorabh
opposite in the same position as the | gentlemen, and gentlemen who are n«;
u*. „tii, .r m i «jrVi f ho r.fcrhani
honey-bearer, a minim would stand al
most erect, reaching up from below,
while another major would assist at the
sweet banquet by stretching over thc»r
backs, and thrusting her mouth into the
midst of the fun. Then drop after drop
was fed out by the honey-bearer, and
licked up by the eager home-guards.
GRADUAL GROWTH.
This same method of feeding obtains
between the living honey-jars, or ro
tunds, and the workers, when the lat
ter are in need of food. The former
are evidently regarded by the workers
as storehouses, very convenient and port
able, and they receive roe care and pro
tection always /bestowed on the queen,
virgin females, and larvae. As soon as
their bags are filled, they are dragged up
the walls to their allotted pla'ce on the
roof, and there, from time to time, are
visited by the patient little worke-rSj
who tenderly wash and brush them.
When any accident happens to the nest,
and the chamber in which are the honey-
bearers, is broken, the workers all rush
so honorable as they might be, perhapi,
discussing the relative positions of Le?
and Grant with great vehemence, art
demonstrating how Grant wiil flan*
I,ee and get to Richmond, or how Lf*
will flank- Grant and try to get to Was*
ington—every proposition happily illus
trated by an engraving with tiie poir:
of a walking-stick in the dust of tie
sidewalk. (Washington is a good plae
for such illustrations. You can always
sketch out a map of the world, eith*-r
in the dust or the mud on the sidt-
walk.) The “artist” makes a straight
line—"That’s Grant s army."
"Yes, very well," says the bystander.
Another slight line—"That’s Lee."
"Of course, that's plain enough."
“Well, here’s Richmond"—and the artist
perforates a little mud heap In the rear
of both lines.
The problem is now pretty neany
solved. With the whole sidewalk to op
erate on, it would be very strange it
Grant couldn’t swing his line around
into the rear of Lee's and march into
tlie rebel capita). In the ardor of their
from the minims. This strange trans
formation comes from the distension of
the abdomen and the crop. Both of
these- organs are wonderfully elastic, al
most as much so as rubber, and the hon
ey foragers who habitually gather the
most honey by and by find their abdo
mens enlarging more and more, until
finally the permanent rotund state Is
.reached. Then they take their ease
henceforth on the roof, and work no
more forever. Happy honey-jars!
fn Mexico, where the honey-ants have '
became filled with the honied liquid that 1 * on -g been familiar friends, they
tlemen,*’ he proceeded with a broad
smile, “to a stage in the performance
which Is p'r'aps the most romantic that
this palatial tent has ever seen. It is
my pleasure to inform you that, over and
was oozing from the galls
VIGILANT SENTRIES.
Some of these excrescences, not all,
it was found, exuded a white, transpa
rent, sugary snip, which issued slowly
from several points. That explained why
the wise ants lapped up a drop, then
passed on to another, and then presently
returned to look for mor.t at the first
point. The galls that yielded this sne-
charine liquid were gTeen In' color and
soft. Inside of them were the Imma
ture larva of the gall fly, and It was
the irritation and wounds oa-used by
their growing at the inner surface of the
gall that caused the flow of sugar
through the thinning walls at points
where their sharp beaks had penetrated
them. The galls were all small, none of
them more than three-eighths of an Inch
in din-meter. Some of them were hard
land dark In color, and these the ants
were seen to pass by as unworthy of no
tice. And soon they were, iftri they were
ary. a tiny hole at the top revealing
the fact that the gall fly nod escaped,
and that the honey found had evapo
rated.
It was midnight when the honey gath
erers started on their homeward march,
which was naturally slower than their
outward bound pace. They were chal
lenged by sentries who had been left to
guard the homo entrance. Not a sin
gle ant of all those honey laden thou
sands was permitted to go b'low with its
treasure, until lt had crossed its anten
nae with a sentinel, and, presumably,
given the countersign.
Not all the returning foragers were
equally laden. Some of the little minims
carried the most extended honey bags.
And just here comfs in a custom both
curious and comical. The guards and
sentinels that were left at home, natural
ly got hungry, while the foragers had
had the opportunity of eating all they
wanted while filling their market bas
kets. Therefore the honey-laden ants
were made to give toll of their sweets
to the hungry home-guards, before they
were allowed to go below. The method
e d , |D ' " ar lnenas , roey ar P serv- - above the awards already presented, we
Wedai S - 8 s P ec ’ a * dish at banquets and Shave three consolation prizes. These,
“ending feasts. The mass of amber col
ored sweet breads look quite tempting to
a native, and are regarded as a great
delicacy. The honey-ants are not only
served whole, but often the honey is
pressed from them, and used on the ta
ble to be eaten with bread, just as we
prizes.
ladies, are the biggest on record. They
consist of nothing less than these three
bachelor gentlemen.” He Indicated hi*
fellow judges.
At a sign fgpm him each placed an arm
about his companion's waist. The hiss
ing of a vast indrawn breath sounded
our. cites use the honey of bees. After | f rom ( b e assemble. "And you, gentle
all, what Is the difference? Is it not
all in the name, and perhaps also, in the
quantity?
LEAVES FROM AN OLD SCRAP
BOOK.
Continued from Second Page
time no information has been received
of either the boat or crew.
" 'I am of the opinion that the torpedo
being placed at the bow of the boat she
went Into the hole made in the Housa-
tonic by explosion of the torpedo, and
did not have power sufficient to back
out, consequently sank with her.
'I have the honor to be, general, very
respectfully your obedient servant,
(“ 'Signed.) M. M. GRAY.’
“ ‘Captain In charge of Torpedoes.’
‘ ‘To Major General D. H. Maury Dis
trict of the Gulf, Mobile, Ala.’ ”
STREET CORNER CAMPAIGNING.
The Washington correspondent of the
Cincinnati Commercial got off the fol
lowing happy hit at street-corner cam
paigners-
Washington, May 2, 1864.
Everybody In Washington seems to be
men, it will inrerest you to hear that
the ladles have accepted their prizes with
the graciousness that marks their sex."
The hoarse protest of Elizabeth Har-
iner's father were drowned In lour mur-
m-urings of amazement. The three blusi.
ing girls after a struggle with their coun
tenances brought to each a smile that
would have delighted a photographer
The evidence of aquieacence was con
vincing. Romance was :n the air.
Mr. Blinker prepared to step from his
pedestal.
"It only remains for me to say, ladies
and gentlemen, that Blinkers' World
Famed Circus will remain here until the
ceremony of marriage nas been fully com
pleted. The entire company welcomes
the charming brides, and that concludes
our entertainment tonight."
Job Yardsley found himself in the out
er darkness with Sally Magin still upon
his arm.
"It wasn’t bad. was It?” he ventured,
"for—for a lark, you know?"
Sally took a firmer clutch of his arm.
“It's a lark that’s got a plain ending,
she said. "With all them witnesses I
should think damages for breach 'u-i
come to a bit more than the price of th?
Maypole."
‘T wonder, I do wonder," mused Job
dully, "if them bothering circus people
knew of my offeix"
"Is lit likely?" retorted his future wife
with asperity.
DENTISTRY i&sr * *•
DR. S. W. FOSTER. Dean. 100 N. Butler St.. Atlanta. Ga.
Mtn Thi. I S ’ nd m * Catal ° eu ° N °' 2 •~- of Southern Dental College.
r 1
To-Dwy
I J NAME
ADDRESS
CREAM OF NEWSPAPER PRODUCTION,
THE BEST OF ITS CLASS IN AMERICA,
SAYS MINISTER OF THE TRI-WEEKLY
C ARROLLTON, ALA.—-Editor Constitution: Have seen and read your new
paper, The Tri-Weekly Constitution. IT IS BY MANY ODDS THE VERY
BEST OF ITS CLASS PUBLISHED IN AMERICA—THE QREAM OF
NEWSPAPER PRODUCTION, THE ACME OF PRINTER'S ART, THE NEWS
OF THE WORLD THREE TIMES A WEEK, THE BEST AND THE CHEAP
EST PAPER OF ITS KIND IN THE WORLD. I want to help the enterprise hy
sending you my check to coyer one year’s subscription to “The Tri-Weekly” and
Sunny South. Trusting the paper will receive the support it merits from all lovers
of good reading matter, I am very truly yours,
REV. E. P. SMITH, Carrollton, Pickens County, Ahi
to them, and lose no time In hauling 1 patriotism the citizen campaigner!
their living honey-jars to a place of safe- 1 usually neglect to give Lee a chance t«
ty. Thl s was what some of the more j fortify—or even to fall back before the
courageous w'ork-ers sought to do when ! invincible columns of the union leaders,
our scientists intruded into their city of j "Here's Grant; there's Lee, and here's
narkneSs, but alas, they found no place j Richmond"—all done in two strokes and
of safety left to them. j a dot of the walking stick. Carlyle's
These rotunds or honey-bearers, are “Illiad In a nut shell" Is no where, com-
not, as one would naturally suppose, a | pared with this laconic demonstration of
distinct -class by themselves. Careful the great problem of Grant v. Lee.
Investigation has proven that they are 1 Walking-stick strategy is the thing after
gradually evolved from th e workers I a11 - 11 win break the backbone of the
themselves, from the majors, and even ' rebelllon n llicke r tha n anything I know
THROUGH STRESS OF COMPETI
TION.
Continued from First Page.