For Love and Glory.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8173, 5 July 1906, Page 2

For Love and Glory.

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

CHAPTER XXII.-Continued. ? __ I ( Radoliffe had been wise enough to drop down the very instant he severed relationship with hia late chariot, aud flattened himself out < humbly enough in the dußt of the ' road, ntierly regardless of hia gar- f menta beyond the fact that ere now 1 he bad congratulated himself upo« having worn a dark-sergo suit instead of white flannel, his ordinary i warm weather garb, which, by its 1 conspiauouauesa, [vanzt ■ havh long since betrayed him. Would tbey diceover bis absence I immediately, or could tnia hold off i untl the open, with its moonlight, i wan reached? i If the latter, it would give him q, i m.nute or so to recover, and either oonoenl himself in the maze alongside or commence a retreat over I the road towards Sown. He was allowed on immediate ; ohance neither way, it appeared. i Jhe cart was, perhaps, Jen jardß i away, and Armand, believing himself quite safe, had already arisen to bis hanria and knees, intending to . sprint along the back trail in a lively mnnnuer, wben, without the least, ; warning son;e lumbering figure i came elam against him and fell on ] his back. ! Of course, it was the fourth member of the party, a Filipino, and j possibly t,he very chap who had prev- < ioualy knocked him on the head with so much dexterity. i He might bave been sauntering i long there in the rear, with the dis- < tinct purpose of stumbling upon ' anything odd that came to pass, and in this it appeared he was i eminently successful. Now, Radoliffe could not very well I cherish a healthy regard for a man ■ who, with no nrovooatiou, could clip , a fellow such a beastly below over the : bead as to render it problematical . whether of Me favourite hats i could be made to fit decently under a fortnight. tfesidee, the Filipino and he were not of the same mind—he wanted to take a walU, and the other chap waa quite as determined to detain him until the guard could come up for an interview. When people disagree to this extent, it is really time they should part. .That was the trouble. The sturdy, little, brown man was so sot in his way of thinking that he tried to clasp his arms around the other, an argument that promised no end of trouble to Armand if successful. , Thau the American failed to appreciate the warmth of affeotion betrayed by his new Filipino brother vas man if eat in his deoidedly hostile move. He had. by agility and great good luck, he managed to twist himself around so as to come face to face with his adversary. As his -right arm was free, he forthwith began a rapid telegraphic code of Dounding upon the shock of hair that thatched the brown man's cranium, using his pistol as a key —and bis message was an urgent call, judging from- the ready response it brought. For the recipient started to howl with he very first olick, and his whoops increased in the ratio of Afmand's sending. The worst of it was, he fellow was so taken up with this oharm of being used as a human telegraph sounder that he forgot to roleaae his fierce grip—iudeed, the worse he was beated, the mure desperately the poor wretch clung; perhaps he felt like a drowning man, and his hold upon the American was the straw which held out elastio aud elusive hopes. And bis racket had told the truth to others, who were 'coming in bot haste. CHAPTER XXIII. WBEN THE CLOCK STRUCK MIDNIGHT. There was need of haste, need of strenuous resistance, against the fate that threatened the young American on all sides. He had at first some little regard for that devoted cranium of the wretch who embraoed him with the maudlin pertinacity of one who had partaken too heavily of Indian hemp; jbnt, realizing how be might presently be undone by such folly, he began to put more musoular force into the blows rained upon the other's thaob. Perhaps a Filipino may have a bard «Kull, but it is not proof against siob hammering as a stout and willing arm may produce with a bit of steel. The shrieks degenerated into frightened ories—bate and rage gave place to absolute terror, and in turn these sounds were merged Into gasps. Then Radoliffe, with a tremendous pressure burst the bands of human flesh that bad threatened disaster. It was high time. The others had arrived with a rush. Perhaps they failed to fully understand tbe exact nature of a the tragedy that was taking place; but, given a little common sense, they should be able to hazard a guess, and understand that the American, who had already brought them so much trouble, was in the rsokftt When Armand could finally throw the half Insensible Filipino aside, he made no attempt to gallop off; the ballanoe cf this sweet gang waa too nearly upon him, and the turning of bis back might bo productive of disaster. Knowing how ardently they hated him, and could rejoice over his disoomfortare, or even death, ho wasted no time in useless regrets, bat began tbe bombardment. Such promptness amazed the allies.

aud aroused all the caution which tbey may have inherited from num erous ancestors. Tbey thought only of escape. Arniand had it all his own way. He set off a few fireworks, but it was not his intention to denude his weapon of all its valuable charges, ao that it speedily became necessary to call a halt As the others had plunged ' wildly into the tnioket on either side of the road, it was just as well he wasted no more lead. Now be beat a masterly retreat. He desired to take advantage of the consternation which bis sudden attack had brought unon the allies, and with that idea in view, bend- ( inn low, as might a hunter in stalking hia game, he ran lightly back along the road. The only sounds he heard besides the chirping of insects in the weeds wfafe the groans of the chap he had patted so warmly on ton, and the stunning exclamations of iho dis- - gusted Spaniard. Tlk.se latter came from the brush, ' where, doubtless, the eleg* nt Don B Juan wag hugging a palmetto tree; 1 if debarred by a cruel fate from I performing prodigies of valour, he 1 saw no reaosn why he should not 1 philosophically utilize the occasion I to think up some more rare swear I words that might never have occur- g red to him under less exciting circumstances. Truly, this same Don Juan wus a most remarkable and proficient fellow, who had delved into many dead language* in order to increase his forcible vocabulary. Perhaps'he aspired to championship honours in this line. Armand was quite content to let him continue his flood of invectives —it proclaimed that the said Don Juan was m anything but an amiable | frame of mind, thanks to the drastic treatment hia plans had reoeived at he hsnds of the hated American, who seemed the particular favourite of the gods, and fated to win not only in love, but also in war. It would, ferbaps, have pleased he young man a little better had it been the Spaniard upon whose head he had beaten his enthusiastic tattoo, hut luck had not favoured to him suoh an extent, and he must consequently, rest upon souh honours as had fallen to his banner. He continued to beat his masterly retreat. The road seemed clear, and he had little, fear that a vigorous pursuit would be made, for those fellows entertained a healthy respeot for the weapon he carried, knowing that the American would doubtless shoot to hit next time. There were a couple of bullets left, and as he was, unfortunately, unprovided with a further assortment, he could noi, recharge the empty chambers. Never mind—two shots, if fired with discretion, could be depended upon to reduce his enemies to a mearge one, against whom he might with confidence pit himself. He ran on. The exercise did him good; the more he kept it up, the better he liked it, for as bis blood circulated with the movements of limbs and body, a generous warmth began to take place of his former chilly feeling. Yes, he was, on the whole, to be congratulated on tne general state of his health, oonsideriug what it might have been—all but that bump on his head, which was very sore, although Armand stood ready to wager a prett.v penny the fellow who had given it to him was in wcse straits over the condition of his skull. A mile had they come? It wad hard to desoribe, for he could not be sure of the time he had spent in the bull cart' When near the" verge of unconsciousness. Several times he felt alarm, as some sound in his rear gave him the impression that the foe pursued, bent upon bringing about hia discomfiture. Once he even whirled round and half jrcuohed to receive the eager leap of an enemy; but the 1 night breezea stirred the branches, the great, shiny leaves glittered and rustled in the oalm moonlight overhead, insects and night birds gave out their several cries from the dense obaparal close at hand, b'Jt to his relief tnere was never a sign of danger. So he came in sight of Manila and her myriad lights, while the distant notes of band music throbbed on the air. Radoliffe heaved a sigh of relief. The adventure then was over. He only regretted that no opportunity had as yet arisen whereby he could lay hands on the papers Tessie yearned to repossess. That might come later. If Jonly the two worthies would think to go aboard their yacht before midnight; this they evidently might be expected to do under ordinary conditions, but these were different. However, suoh comfortable quarters might appeal irresistably to their love of ease, and nothing like it was tto be had for love or money in the city of Manila. (To be continued.)