(Copyright.) ERIC DACRES:

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 25 September 1914, Page 7

(Copyright.) ERIC DACRES:

By William Murray Graydon, Author of 'Under the White Terror,' -'In the Name of the Czar,'Etc, Etc.

A Romantic Story of Adventure during the Matabele War. ♦ ■

♦ — PART 12. ' " Curse you, keep your mouth shut !" snarled Haygarth. " Its just as well that Churton is deadhe would have made things infernally hot for me after that quarrel." "Yes, that is true," Mynhart assented, meaningly. Haygarth looked at him with a frown which melted as quickly into a genial smile. "Come, we won't row about it " he said. "It will be easy to cover the thing up. Of course you will stand by me, Jacobus ?" There was a hidden menace in the ! question, and the Boer hesitated for a second or two. "It must be as you say/ he replied,with sullen submission. Haygarth darted to the door, Stood listening, gazed in all directions. He untied Churton's horse, headed it towards the north, and gave it a cut with a switch that sent the animal on a gallop across the clearing and into the bush. Then he re-entered the house, looking cool and relieved. "It's all right," he # said. "Now we'll set fire to the place, and the Kaffirs will get the blame. Give me a match, Jacobus." "I have none," the Boer answered. Haygarth had none himself, nor did he find any when he rifled the dead man's pocket. Next he hurriedly searched the house from room to room, but with no better success. It was impossible to strike a light. "Curse the luck ! What are we going to do ?" he growled. "Leave at once," replied Mynhart. "We must not be seen in the vicinity." "There is time enough. The scouts and waggon can't come up for another hour." "But the column will wait on this side of the drift for Churton," said the Boer, "and when he don't return they will send back for him." "That's true, I'm afraid," Haygarth exclaimed, in alarm. "He was ready to leave when we arrived. By •love, a party may be here at any minute ! Come along ; there is no time to hide the body. When it is found the shooting will fall on the Kaffirs." "And what story will you tell, Fergus ?" "That we did not pass near the house. I have it all schemed out and will explain on the way. Come, we must rejoin the column as soon as possible." They hurried from the house, glancing furtively at the dead man, who lay stiffening where he had fallen. Outside all was quiet, and mounting in haste, they rode due south for a distance of several hundred yards. Then they turned' to the west, and after Haygarth had explained his cunning plan to his companion, they spurred on at a gallop through the bush. Twenty minutes later, having struck the proper course where it led over a wooded hill to the Lomena river, the two saw the long-looked-for column below them. It was halted close to the water, and with thick bush on the other side. The sun shone on the iron-covered waggon and on the huddled line of waiting men and horses. All was peaceful and quiet. Waving their hands and hurrying, Haygarth and the Boer galloped down the rough trail and into the midst of the column. Hearty cheers greeted their arrival, and they were instantly surrounded by a swarm of men, mounted and on foot, who plied them with various questions. Some women and a couple of children also hurried to the spot from the waggon. "I can't talk to, you all at once," shouted Haygarth, smiling on the assemblage. "Give me a chance. I'll tell you one thing, though. I'm glad I've found you this side of the drift. There's danger somewhere ahead—a 'Vj^ whqle impi of Matabele." ▼ \ Ttais statement caused general condonation and a buzz of voices, and as soon as he could get a hearing-, Haygarth told in a few words how Dcin Shurlock and Gordon's scouts had arrived at Fisher's store that afternoon with news of the impi, and how himself, Mynhart, and* Eric Dacres had pushed on ahead to overtake and warn the column. "And where is Eric, Fergus Haygarth ?" The voice belonged to Doris Churton. She had pushed forward through the throng, her lips parted, her eyes filled with fear, and her face more beautiful than' words can tell. "Where is Eric ? —tell me !" she cried. One could have sworn the deep pity on Haygarth's face was sincere. "My poor girl," he replied, "it would be mistaken kindness to hide or delay the truth. Dacres is dead —killed by the Kaffirs. He died like a. brave man." A shriek rose on the air—another and another. Then the voice was stilled. Doris had swooned, and sympathetic women bore her off to the waggon, bent on giving her such aid and comfort as was in their power. To the awe-struck and curious men Haygarth gave a brief and truthful account of Eric's fate,.

"It's rough on trie girl," said Jim Harkness, the leader of the column. "She's lost her lover, and the chances are beginning to look bad for her uncle." 6 "Humphrey Churton !" interrupted Haygarth, in surprise. " What's wrong ? Is he not here ?" "No," said a man next to Harkness ; "he dropped behind the column to look up some hidden stuff in his house —wouldn't let any of us go with him. And he hasn't come back yet. That's why we are waiting here." "By the way, you chaps must have passed the house," exclaimed Harkness. "Did you see nothing of Churton ?" Haygarth shook his head sadly. "We didn't get within three hundred yards of the house," he answered. "Just in that neighbourhood we ran across half a dozen Matabele lurking in the bush, and we had to sheer off to the south. We only struck the trail again back beyond the hill-crest." "And shortly before we heard two distant shots," said Mynhart, who had been nodding assent to his companion's statements ; "so it looks I much us though" "Yes, I'm afraid poor Churton is done for," broke in Harkness. "The Kaffirs have waylaid and shot him." With one accord the men seemed to share this opinion, and numerous expressions of sorrow testified to the regard and affection in which Humphrey Churton was held. "We'll exact a heavy reckoning from the devils," Ilaygarth cried, with flashing eyes. "It won't be long until Gordon's scouts arrive, and then we will be strong enough to push on to the fort, in spite of the Matabele." "Perhaps the scouts will bring some word of Churton," Harkness disconsolately suggested. "He may have escaped from the Kaffirs, and been driven" Just then several of the men shouted loudly, and others joined in the tumult. Haygarth turned in th^ saddle and glanced up the wooded slope behind him. What he saw brought a swift pallor to his cheeks and a muttered oath to his lips. CHAPTER XXVIII. THE DEAD ALIVE. A mounted man was coming down the hillside towards the column, his head and shoulders rising above the nock of his steed. Horse and rider were at times visible, at times hidden, as the zigzag trail dived from low timber to tall. It was impossible as yet to recognise the man, but a guilty conscience had flashed a terrible thought into Haygarth's mind. Littlt wonder that his cheeks turned pale and that he .swore under his breath! Was this Humphrey Churton coming ? he asked himself. Had the suppose:! corpse been merely feigning death ? An instant's reflection convinced Haygarth that-he was ' mistaken, and he dismissed the mad idea with a curse at his own stupidity. But without exception, the other men, being none the wiser, believed that their missing comrade was returning in safety. They shouted ami cheered with delight; looking towards the horseman and waving to the signals as he advanced at a trot. Suddenly he swerved aside into thicker bush, hoping evidently to make a shorter cut, and for a few moments he was hidden. Then he emerged in the open near the base of the hill, and immediately those who were watching him uttered cries of disappointment. "It's not Churton, after all !" exclaimed Harkness. He was right. The*norseman wias a slim and beardless man :he was hat less, and a bandage was- tied round his head. Me came closer, watched in silence, and then he was recognised by Jacobus Mynhart. "It's Dacres," the Boer declared, stolidly. "By Jove, so it is !" Haygarth cried eagerly. "How he escaped is a miracle ! " , Amid a din of eager and surprised voices Eric Dacres rode into the throng and halted. It was his own horse he was riding, and his rifle was across his back. He dismounted leisurely, and now it was seen that his face, hands, and clothes were streaked with damp earth. Haygarth sprang forward with a splendidly-feigned delight and gladness. "My dear fellow," he cried, half-embracing Eric, "is it indeed you ? I could have sworn you were dead ; we saw you shot. But how did you escape ? Tt is marvellous —marvellous !" "Yes, I agree "with you," said Eric, as he returned Haygarth's hearty clasp. "At all events, here I am, safe and sound ; and I car tell you it is a relief to find the column all right." His gaze wandered towards the waggon. "I hope you'll forgive us for leaving you behind, old fellow," said Haygarth. "There seemed not the slightest chance for you, and ther the Kaffirs were pressing us hotly" "I know," Eric interrupted. "It'j all right. I should have done jusl the same under the circumstances. I don't wonder you believed it was all up with me." "How did you escape ?" askec Harkness. "Were you really hit ?' "Yes," replied Eric, "but with mj usual good fortune" Just then a woman's voice, raise< in a cry of joy, drowned hi: words. The news had reachec Doris,/ and hurriedly leaving tin waggon she had caught a glimmpsi of Eric. The crowd parted a; she ran to the spot, her loosenet hair streaming behind her. Eric": arms opened, and the girl reelec

half-fainting into them. I t it was a thrilling, delicious mo- ■| merit for both—a reunion almost too! 1 sacred for words. They remembered i ! the long- weeks they had been apart, ! L j the tragic circumstances under which j they had last been together. They ' forgot they were not alone—they j ■ cared nothing for the crowd that encircled them. Eric whispered pas- j sionate words of endearment to the girl as he held her tightly. Doris nestled against his bosora, her 5 arms clasped round his neck, sobbing between her incoherent ati tempts to speak. So they stood for nearly a minute, and the rough men about them were deeply stirred by the scene ; bloodshed and broken hearts had ■ been so common of late that they • could appreciate such a happy meeting of lovers. Haygarth looked on l with a benevolent smile, and the ! s Boer watched him with mingled ad- ] s [ miration for the man's consummate • powers of acting and scorn of his black and treacherous crimes. i "Cheer up, Doris," Eric whispered huskily, a tear rolling down his . cheek. "Don't cry—we are together . again, and nothing shall part us in the futtire." , "They told me you were dead," the, , girl replied, gently disengaging herself and glancing- half-defiantly at the throng. "Oh, God has been so , good, Eric ! Night and day T have b prayed for your safety, and now we are together." "Yes, by God's mercy !" He kissed . her on the forehead and turned to the men. "Of course you have al- , ready heard the news," he said. "You know the danger—that a Mat tabele impi is probably on the . other side of the river ?" There was a general murmur of assent. j "It's fortunate that you halted here," Eric continued. "Gordon's scouts will arrive presently, and then you must decide whether to ( return or push on towards the fort." " We'll push on," Harkness answered. "It's fairly open travell- „ ing beyond the drift, and when the ( others come up I'm thinking we'll have a large emough force to keep off a whole impi of Matabele. Besides, it'll do no earthly good to turn back.' This opinion was unanimously api proved ; to a man the column was i bent on fighting its way through, > if need be, to Thorntree Fort. "It's not certain," said Eric, > "that the Matabele are across the - Lomena. it is quite possible that they are on this side and close by. ■We ought to be keeping- a sharp • watch." s "We haven't neglected that," i Harkness declared. "A couple of i men are scouting out yonder." With a sweep of his hand he mdi•- --• cated the bush that stretched pars allel with the river beyond the ■ column. "Come and rest, Eric," said Doris, I touching his arm. "You are tired, and your head has been hurt. "There's sound advice for you," '. broke in Haygarth. "You do look fagged out, old chap—a bit of a ; sleep will do you no end of good. ■ But first tell us how you got away L from the Kaffirs. fm awfully • anxious to have that mystery clear- " ed up." i "I'll spin the tale in a/ew words," > Eric replied, glancing half-anxiously at Doris. "When the Kaffir bullet 1 hit me I though I was a dead man ; the pain was so stinging that \it turned me giddy, and 1 sort of . fell forward in the saddle. I knew the horse had taken fright and . swerved to one side into the bush, and about a minute later a, limb 3 of a tree jerked me off his back, s I wasn't hurt a bit by the fall, and las luck would have it, 1 landed , right beside a narrow crevice under i a kopje into the hole—T could hear the Kaffirs screeching near by—and , I found a sort of cave there. I stuffed the opening with grass, and i then I discovered that instead of i being badly wounded, the bullet had only grazed one side of my head. It I was a mere scratch, and 1 tied my s handkerchief around it to stop the bleeding. By this time I was feel- - ing all right. The Kaffirs didn't s i appear. They probably chased the L j horse, and as i was anxious to get ,to the column, 1 finally ventured 1 out. "Well, I hadn't gone more than a l quarter of a mile through the bush ■ , before I ran across my horse feed- , | ing quietly, and mighty glad 1 was ;; to get in the saddle. After a little i { search I picked up the trail and t followed it at a gallop." i "Then you came by my uncle's | house ?'' Doris interrupted, in hurLj ried and alarmed tones. "Did you 3 see nothing of him ? Oh, I forgot I i that he had not returned ! It was i because I was so glad to see you, > Eric." -1 The men also had temporarily for- ' gotten Humphrey Churton in the ex- ! - citement of the past few minutes, | 1 t and now their grave looks and whis- i i I pers deepened the terror on the | l girl's face. Eric, for the first j time missing the man. eagerly de--3 manderl an explanation. It was t quickly given i )v Darkness, and Hay- . garth and the Boer1 added their own | 3 ominous little story. i j "It looks bad." Eric exclaimed, ! 1, hoarsely. "1 saw no Kaffirs on the ' j way, but I hoard a couple of faint y shots soon ai't.er I left the cave, ' which at the (hue I naturally con:1 nected with Haygarth and Myn- : s hart. It's tnm that I passed Chur-' 1 ton's 'house, and 1 pulled up there c a moment because the door was c open. But 1 could see no one in- ' s side, and there was no answer to :1 my shouts ;so 1 rode on as fast as s I could" ■ 1 Doris uttered a pitiful scream.

"~'y poor uncle !" she cried. "He is dead —the Kaffirs have shot him ! I shall never sec him- again." With a moan of despair the girl tottered and sank down in a faint. Eric picked her up and bore her tenderly to the waggon, where he reluctantly left her to be cared for by the other women. Then he rejoined the men, who were gathered round the tall figure of Harkness. " There ain't any show worth speaking of for poor Churton," the leader was saying loudly ; "but it will be some comfort to make sure of his fate. Half a dozen of us will ride back to the house and search the bush in the vicinity." This proposal was hailed eagerly, and one of the first to raise his voice in favor of it was Fergus Haygarth. As he spoke he shot a warning glance at Mvnhart, whose face was beginning to show the uneasiness he felt at this turn of affairs. CHAPTER XXIX. IN A TIGHT PLACE. Harkness started to pick out the men he wanted, and he had chosen about half the number when the sharp crack of a rifle was heard at, no great distance, followed almost I immediately by a second report and a shrill yell. The shots came from some point beyond the waggon, and they at once stopped the proceedings and caused general alarm. The men, mounted and on foot, instinctively huddled around the iron-cov-ered vehicle, from the ends of which the white, anxious faces of the women were peering out. None doubted that the two scouts who were patrolling in the vicinity had run across some Kafh'rs, though an element of mystery was added to the affair by a silence that lasted for several moments. Then the swift and mufiled clatter of hoofs was heard, and into the open space by the river galloped one one of the two absent men, Moberly by j name. The message of danger was plainly stamped on his face, and as he jerked his panting horse to its haunches he cried, hoarsely : "Get ready ; we must fight for our i lives ! There's a whole impi of Kaflirs coming yonder ?" "Where's Grey ?" a chorus of voices demanded. "Dead—shot through the heart." An angry buzzing hum arose, mingled with the clink of lowered weapons and the jangle of cartridge belts. A couple of women screamed hysterically, and bronzed and bearded faces paled a little. "Where's the impi ?" Harkness demanded ; and his ringing, masterful voice seemed to restore confidence and allay incipient panic. "Not far back ; they will be here in five minutes," Moherly answered harriedly, pointing behind him along the course of the river. "''A couple of the devils have been spying about here, and we stumbled on them as they were slinking back. One of them shot poor Grey, and I dropped him the next instant. The other got into the bush before I could fire again, and then I saw the impi swarming over a ridge a couple of hundred yards off—scores and scores of the black fiends." This .statement left no doubt that the enemy referred to was the impi seen that morning by Shurlock's party, and that it had discovered the column and was advancing to attack it. The situation was extremely critical, and the place was unsuited for making a stand by reason of the surrounding bush. And then the tremendous odds— about thirty white men opposed to a force of Kaflirs th::!, probably numbered five hundred or. a thousand ! What was to be done ? For a moment confusion reigned, some' suggesting one thing am! some another. Then Harkness. who possessed qualities that would have fitted him for a military leader, quieted the noisy tongues by an imperative gesture. "I'm going to give my orders now," he cried, his keen eyes glancing this way and thai. " Our first duly is to the womrn, and the safest place for them is on the other side of the river. Thou; who are unmounted—there are nine of you, I think—will escort the waggon across the drift. Dave Jurison, I put you! in command. "The rest of us will cover the retreat of the women," Harkness continued ; "and the way to do that! is to advance along the shore so! none of the Kaflirs can get up to' the shallows of the drift and wade across. We will strike . the first blow, check or demoralise the im-! pi, and then join the waggon. Once we are in force on the other side' we can easily hold the drift until j Gordon's column arrives." i The plan of operations was explained ilearly and concisely, and ' was received with general approval and enthusiasm. One or two of the men disagreed with Harkness, thinking that ail might cross the drift at once, before the enemy could come within shooting distance ; but these yielded to wiser counsel. No more than two or Ihree minutes had now elapsed since Moberly brought the news, and not a second was wasted in further delay. lAs the team of eight mules swung round to take the slope leading to the water, Eric rude alongside the rear end of the waggon and with one hand lifted the hood. Doris looked up, a pitiful picture of grief, with swollen eyes and tear-stained cheeks. ''Eric !" she gasped, "I have heard all. Oh, must you go ?" "Yes, darling ;it is my duty," he replied. "But keep a stout heart, and don't fear for me. We shall check the Kallirs with a few volleys, and then you will see us rid-

ing across to join you." His voice trembled in spite of his re-assuring smile. "Remember that I have only you left," the girl moaned, heedless of the other occupants of the vehicle. "If I lose you I shall die" The summons to start rang from. Harkness' lips, whips were cracking and the waggon had begun to move down the slope. Eric tried to say farewell, but something seemed to rise in his throat and choke htm. He kissed his hand to Doris, and as he let the hood drop, her last words fell on his ear—"God keep you, dear !" Then he turned his steed and rode after his already-advanc-ing companions. Twenty bronzed and resolute men, plucky to the core, ready and eager to face peril for woman's sake ! Firmly seated in the saddle, with rifles and revolvers handy, they trotted forward in a straggling line that stretched from the base of the hill to the edge of the river. Eric v/as near the centre, and as the thicker bush began to close in he glanced over his shoulder. He saw the waggon, its iron-sheeted sides glistening in the late afternoon sun, creeping towards the opposite bank of the Lomena. It was already some yards out from the shore, the mules splashing through the shallow waters of the drift, the escort of armed men wading in a sort of cordon, and here and there a woman's white face peeping from beneath canvas or iron. An instant later, and the scene was blotted out. Moberly and Harkness led the way, and a couple of hundred yards were covered at a trot without hearing or seeing a trace of the foe. Then was reached the trickling gully of a stream that fed the river, beyond which rose a gentle and sparsely-wooded slope. "I'm thinking there's hot work ahead of us," said Haygarth, as the horses floundered through the mhv bed. "Yes," assented Eric, who was next to him, ."I daresay we'll fin!! the Kaffirs behind that ridge. They certainly can't be far off" "Listen !" Harkness interrupted, sternly. Above the rustling patter of the hoofs was heard a humming sound —a sound that rose louder and nearer on the air, and was made by hundreds of gliding feet, and the rattle of guns and assegais against hide-covered shields. Then of a sudden a mighty blended yell broke out hoarsely, and with that guns began to go off in two and threes. "The devils have sighted the waggon from the shore," cried Harkness, "and they are firing at it. Forward, men ! Now is our time to strike !" Up the tangled slope rolled the straggling line of horsemen. In. a trice they were on the crest, hot for the fray, and yet confronted by a sight that might well have made their stout hearts falter — a farreaching stretch of thin bush, seemingly choked to right and left with a black, on-rushing horde of Matabele warriors—an impi of them at the. very least ! CHAPTER XXX. The sudden appearance of the white men had one good effect instantly. The Kaffirs on the river flank of the impi ceased firing at the waggon in its passage, and were seenj running towards the main body. But there was no wavering, no sign of retreat. With defiant screeches the black horde came on, delivering a straggling volley that fortunately went high. "They mean business," shouted Harkness ; "but we'll give them a. taste of a charge. Keep well together, and fire rapidly. Now, forward !" It was perhaps a foolish move, since, the safety of the waggon having been secured, it would have been possible to retreat and cross the fording. But the men had old scores to wipe out with the Kaltirs, and they were only too glad to obey their leader's order ; so with a burst of cheers they swept down the slope and on through the bush, firing volley after volley from the saddle. Heavy loss was inflicted on the front tanks of the impi, and the advance was checked. The dusky wave rolled back a little, doggedly firing rifles and hurling assegais. The troopers came to a stand, still | blazing away at the scurrying • black forms amid the bush. There \ were now two gaps in the line—a horse was dead and a man had been run through by an assegai. ! "Keep it up !" cried Harkness. | "Give it to them hot ! We've checked the cowardly dogs !" I But the retreat had been either a j ruse to draw the white men on inIto thicker bush, or else the discovery that their foes were so few in number fired the Kaffirs with a sort 'of fanatical courage. At some distance off a big induna, with his I.air coiled in a sleek ring, suddenly mounted a rock. He marie : frantic .gestures, yelled a few sen-t'.'im-s at his followers, and then , leapt down before a rifle could be aimed at him. The effect of this dramatic incident was speedy and startling. From hundreds 'of throats rose a ' deafening clamour, and as one man I the impi surged forward. The bush \ was alive with running figures, span- : gled with the gleam of rifle-bar- ' rels, assegais, and bright-coloured ; shields. j (To be Continued.) s —. j Landlady : "You make an awtful | noise with that cornet." j Lodger : "Well, I'm sorry to hear j it." Landlady : "So's everybody else."