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About The Falls City tribune. (Falls City, Neb.) 1904-191? | View Entire Issue (Jan. 22, 1909)
SYNOPSIS. CHAPTER T, The story opens with the ■shipwreck of the steamer on which Miss Benevleve Leslie, an American heiress, 1/ord Winthrope. an Englishman, and Tom Blake, a brusque American, were passen gers. Tile three were tossed upon an un inhabited island and were the only ones not drowned. Blake recovered from a drunken stupor CHAPTER IT.—Blake, shunned on the boat, because of tiis roughness, became a hero as preservers of the helpless pair. The Englishman was suing for the hand of Miss Leslie. Blake started to swim back to the ship to recover what was left. CHAPTER III Blake returned safely. Winthrope wasted Ids last match on a cigarette, for which lie was scored by Bloke. Their first meal was a dead fish. CHAPTER IV.—The trio started a ten mile hike for higher land. Thirst at tacked them. Blake was compelled to carry Miss Leslie cm account of weari ness. Ho taunted Winthrope. CHAPTER v.--They entered the jun f e- That night was pass, d roosting high oc a tree. CHAPTER VI Tile next morning they descended to the open again. All three constructed hats to shield themselves from the sun. They then feasted on ■ ocoanuts, the only procurable food. Miss Leslie showed a liking for Blake, but de 1* eto,i hjs roughness CHAPTER VII.—Led by Blake they es tablished a home in some cliffs. Blake found a fresh water spring. CHAPTER VIII.—Miss Leslie faced an unpleasant situation. They planned their campaign. CHAPTER IX. Blake recovered his i urvevor's magnifying glass, thus insur ing fire. He started a jungle fire, killing large leopard and smothering several cubs. They started at once, Miss Leslie it. the lead. As they rounded the point nbe caught sight of the smoke still rising from the cleft. A little later f he noticed the vultures which were streaming down out of the sky from nil quarters other than seaward. Their local point seemed to be the trees at the foot of the cleft. A nearer view showed that they were alighting in the thorn bushes on the south border of the wood. Of Blake there was nothing to he seen until Miss Leslie, still in the lead, pushed in among the trees. There they found him crouched beside a small fire, near the edge of the pool, lie did not look up. His eyes were riveted in a hungry stare upon several pieces of flesh, suspended over the llames on spits of green twigs. Hello!" he sang out, as he heard their footsteps. "Just, in time, Miss Ji nny. Your broiled steak'll lie ready is short order.” "Oil, build up the fire! Tin simply ravenous!” she exclaimed, between im patience and delight Winthrope was hardly less keen; v<t his hunger did not altogether blunt his curiosity. "I say, Blake,” he inquired, “where Bid you get the meat?” Slow it, Win, my hoy. This ain’t ; packing house. The stuff may be ti lgh. but it’s not—er—the other iliing. Here you are. Miss Jenny. Chew it off the stick.” Though Winthrope had his suspi cions. he took the piece of half-burned Hi sh which Blake handed him in turn •unil fell lo eating without further ques tion. As Blake had surmised, the roast proved far oilier than tender. Hunger, however, lent it a most ap pi tizing flavor. The repast ended v ten there was nothing left to devour. I-.;tke threw away his empty spit and ,-ose to stretch. He waited lor Miss i oslie to swallow her last mouthful and then began to chuckle. What’s the joke?” asked Win tbrope. Blake looked at him solemnly. "Well now. that was downright 'lean of me,” he drawled; "after rub 1 ig (hem. to laugh at it!” Robbing who?” The buzzards.” You’ve fed tts on leopard meat! It s—it's disgusting!” I found it filling. How about you, M.ss Jenny?” Miss Leslie did not know whether to : tgh or to give way to a feeling of nausea. She did neither. Can we not find the spring of which ’tit spoke?” she asked. I am thirsty.” Well, I guess the fire is about burnt r , t,” assented Blake. "Come on; we'll (■< e.” The eleft now had a far different as cot from what it had presented on their first visit. The largest of the trees, though scorched about the base, still stood with unwitliered foliage, ■ lie harmed by the fire. But many ? their small companions had been t illed and partly destroyed by the heat and flames from the burning brush. In , aces the fire was yet smouldering. Blake picked a path along the edge : the rill, where the moist vegetation, hough scorched, had refused to burn, t iter the first abrupt ledge, up which ake had to drag his companions, the scent was easy. But as they climbed around an outjutting corner of Hie steep right wall of the cleft. Blake : uttered a curse of disappointment. He could now see that the eleft, did not run to the top of the cliff, hut through it, like a tiny box canyon, The sides rose sheer and smooth as walls. Midway, at tlie highest point of •he cleft, the baobab towered high ; cove the ridge c-cst, its gigantic intnk filling a third of the breadth of the little gorge. Unfortunately it stood close to the left wall. "Here’s luck for you!” growled Blake. “Why couldn’t the blamed old tree have grown on the other side? We might have found a way to climb it. Guess we'll have to smoke out another leopard. We're no nearer those birds’ nests than we were yes terday.” “By .Tove, look here!" exclaimed Winthrope. "This is our chance for antelope! Here by the spring are bamboos—real bamboos—and only half the thicket burned.” "What of them?" demanded Blake. “Bows—arrows—and did you not agree that they would make knives?" “Umpli—we'll see. What is it, Miss Jenny ?" "Isn't that a hole in the big tree?" “Looks like it. These baobabs are often hollow." “Perhaps that is where the leopard had his den," added Winthrope. “Shouldn't wonder. We'll go and see.” “But, Mr. Blake,” protested the girl, “may there not be other leopards?” “Might have been; but I'll bet they lit out with the other. Look how the tree is scorched. Must have been stacks of dry brush around the hole, 'nough to smoke out a fireman. We'll look and see if they left any soup bones lying around. First, though, here’s your drink, Miss Jenny.” As he spoke, Blake kicked aside some smouldering branches and led the way to the crevice whence the spring trickled from the rock into a shallow stone basin. When all had drunk their (ill of tlie clear cool water Blake took up ids club and walked straight across to the baobab. Less than :10 steps brought him to the nar row opening in the trunk of the huge tree. At first he could make out noth ing in the dimly lit interior; but the One Moment After Another Passed, and He Stood Poised for the Shock. fetid, catty odor was enough to con vince him that tie had found the leopards' den. lie caught the vague outlines of a long body, crouched five or six yards away, on the far side of the hollow. He sprang back, his club brandished to strike But the expected attack did not follow. Blake glanced about as though considering the advisability of a retreat. Winthrope and Miss Leslie were staring at him. white faced. The sight of their terror seemed to spur him to daredevil bravado; though his actions may rather have been due to the fact that he realized the futility of flight, and so rose to the requirements of the situation ilti' grim need "To stand and face the dancer. “Get behind '1 b nibros'" he called, and a lb \ I u • • obeyed, ho caught up a stone and Hung it in at the crouching beast. He heard the missile strike with a soft thud that told him he had not missed his mark, and he swung up his club In both hands. Given half a chance he would smash the skull of the female as he had crushed her blinded mate. One moment after an other passed, and he stood poised for the shock, tense and scowling. Not so much as a snarl came from within. The truth flashed upon him. “Smothered!” he yelled. The other saw him dart In through the hole. A moment later two limp grayish bodies were flung out into the open. Immediately after Blake reap peared, dragging tlie body of the moth er leopard. “It's all right; they're dead!” cried Winthrope, and he ran forward to look at the bodies. Miss Leslie followed, hardly less curious. • “Are they all dead, Mr. Blake?” she inquired. “Wiped out—whole family. The oh! cat stayed by her kittens, and all smothered together—lucky for us! Get busy with those bamboos, Win. I'm going to have these skins, and the sooner we get. the c-ub meat hung up and curing, the better for us.” "Leopard moat again!" rejoined Wlnthrope. “Spring leopard, young and tender! What more could you ask? Get a move on you,” “Can I do anything, Mr, Blake?" asked Miss Leslie. “Hunt a shady spot.” "But I really mean it.” “Well, if thiit's straight, you might go on along the gully, and see if there's any place to get to the top. You could pick up sticks ou the way j hack, if any are left. We'll have to | fumigate this tree hole before we adopt it for a residence.” "Will it be long before you finish with your—with the bodies?” “Well, now, look here, Miss Jenny; It's going to be a mess, and 1 wouldn't mind hauling the carcasses clear down the gully, out of sight, tf it was to be the only time. But It's not, and you have got to get used to it, sooner or later. So we'll start now.” “I suppose, it I must, Mr. Blake— Really, 1 wish to help.” “Good. That's something like! Think you can learn to cook?" “See what I did this morning." Blake took the cord of eocoanut tl her which she held out to him, and tested its strength. “Well, I’ll be blessed!” he said. “This is something like, if you don't look out, you'll make quite a camp mate, Miss Jenny. But now, trot along. This is hardly arctic weather, and our abattoir don't include a cold storage plant. The sooner these lambs are dressed, the better.” CHAPTER X. Problems in Woodcraft. T WAS no pleasant sight that met Miss Leslie’s gaze upon her return. The neatest of butchering can hardly be termed aesthetic; and Blake and Win thrope lacked both skill and tools. Be tween the penknife and an improvised blade of bamboo, they had flayed the two cubs and haggled off the flesh. The ragged strips, spitted on bamboo rods, were already seat ing in the fierce sun-rays. Miss Leslie would have slipped into the hollow of the baobab with her armful of fagots and brush; but Blake waved a bloody knife above the body of the mother leopard, and beckoned the girl to come nearer. “Hold on a minute, please,” he said. "What did you find out?” Miss Leslie drew a few steps near er, and forced herself to look at the revolting sight. She found it still more difficult to withstand the odor of the fresh blood. Winthrope was pale and nauseated. The sight of his dis tress caused the girl to forget her own loathing. She drew a deep breath, and succeeded in countering Blake’s expectant look with a lialf-smile. “How well are you getting along!” she exclaimed. “Didn’t think you could stand it. But you’ve got grit all right, if you are a lady,” Blake said admiringly. “Say, you'll make it yet! Now, how about the gully?” “There is no place to climb up. It tuns along like this, and then slopes down. But there is a cliff at the end, as higli as these walls.” “Twenty feet.” muttered Blake. "Confound the luck. It isn’t that jump-off; but how in—how are we going to get tip on the cliff? There’s im cvcnasiiHK iim ni omeieues in those birds’ nests. If only that bloom in’—how’s that. Win, me b'y?—that bloomin’, hlawsted baobab was on t’other side. The wood's almost soft as punk. We could drive in pegs, and climb up the trunk.” “There are other trees beyond it," remarked Miss Leslie. "Then maybe we can shin up—’’ “I fear tile branches that overhang the cliff are too slender to bear any weight." ' And it's too infernally high to climb up to this overhanging baobab limb.” ''! say," ventured Winlhrope, “if wo had an ax. now. we might cut up one of the trees, and make a ladder.” “Oh. yes; and if we had a ladder, we might climb up the cliff!” “But, Mr. Blake, is there not some wav to cut down one of the trees? The tree itself would be a ladder if it fell in such a way as to lean against tile cliff." "There's only the penknife,” an swered Blake. "So I guess we'll have to scratch eggs off our menu card Spring leopard for ours! Now, if you really want to help, you might scrape tlie soup hones out of your boudoir, and fetcli a lot more brush. It’ll take a big fire to rid the hole of that cat smell.” “Will not the tree burn?” “No; these hollow baobabs have green bark on the Inside as well as out. Funny thing, that! We’d have to keep-a fire going a long time to burn through.” "Yet it would burn in time?” “Yes; but we're not going to—” "Then why not burn through the trunk of one of those small trees, in stead of chopping it down?” "By—heck. Miss Jenny, you've got an American headpiece! Come on. Sooner we get the thing started, the better.” Neither Winlhrope nor Miss Leslie was reluctant to leave the vicinity of the carcasses. They followed close after Blake, around the monstrous bole of the baobab. A little beyond it stood a group of slender trees, whose trunks averaged eight inches at the base. Blake stopped at the second one, which grew nearest to the sea ward side of the cleft. "Here's our ladder,” he said. "Get some firewood. Pound the bushea, t Hough, before you go poking Into them. May be snakes here," "Snakes'.’ oh!" cried Miss Leslie and she stood shuddering at the dan gor she had already Incurred. The lire had burnt Itself out on a bare ledge of rock between them and the baobab, and the clumps of dry brush left standing in this end of the cleft were very suggestive of snakes, now that Hlake had called attention to the possibility of their presence. He laughed at his hesitating com panions. "Go on, go on! Don’t squeal till you're bit. Most snakes hike out, if you give them half a chance. Take a stick each of you, and pound the bushes." Thus urged, both started to work Hut neither ventured Into the thicker clumps. When they returned, with large armfuls of sticks and twigs, they found that Hlake had used Ills glass to light a handful of dry bark, out In the sun, and was nursing It In to a small flte at the base of the tree, on the side next the cliff. "Now, Miss Jenny,” he directed, “you're to keep this going- not too big a fire—understand? Same lime you can keep on fetching brush to fund gate jour eat hole. It needs it, all right." "Will not that he rather too much for Miss Leslie?" asked Winthrope. "Well, if she'd rather come and rub brains on the skins,—Indian tan, von know,—or—" "How can you mention such things before a lady?" protested Winthrope. "Heg your pardon, Miss Leslie! you see, I’m not much used to ladies’ com pany. Anyway, you've got to see and hear about these things. And now I'll have to get the strings for Win's bamboo hows. Gome on, Win. We've got that old tabby to peel, and a lot more besides.” Miss Leslie's first impulse was to protest against, being left alone, when at any moment some awful venom ous serpent might come darting at her out of the brush or the crevices in the rocks. But iter half-parted lips drew (irmly together, and after a mo ment's hesitancy, she forced herself to the task which had been assigned her. The fire, once started, required little attention. She could give most of her time to gathering brush for the fumigation of the leopard den. She had collected quite a heap of fuel at the entrance of the hollow, when she remembered that the place would first have to tie cleared of its accumulation of bones. A glance at iter companions showed that they were in the midst of tasks even more revolting. It was certainly disagree able to do such things; yet, as Mr. Blake had said, others had to do them. It was now her time to learn. She could see him smile at her hesitation. Stung by the thought of his half contemptuous pity, site caught tip a forked slick, and forced herself to en ter the tree-cave. The stench met her like a blow. It nauseated and all but overpowered her. She stood for sev eral moments in the center of the cav ity, sick and faint. Had it been even the previous day, she would have run out into the open air. Presently she grew a little more ac customed to the stench, and began to rake over the soft,, dry mold of the den floor with her forked stick. Bones!—who had ever dreamed of such a mess of bones?—- Idg hones and little bones and skulls; old bones, dry and almost buried: moldy bones; hones still half covered with hits of flesh and gristle -the remnants id' the leopard family's last meal. At last all were scraped out and flung in a heap, three or four yards away from the entrance. Miss Les lie looked at the result of her labor with a satisfied .glance, followed by a sigh of relief. Between the heat and her unwonted exercise, she was great ly fatigued. She stepped around to a shadier spot to rest. With a start she remembered the fire. When she reached it them were only a few dying embers left. She gathered dead leaves and shreds of fibrous inner hark, and knelt beside the dull coals to blow them into life. She could not hear the thought of hav ing to confess her carelessness to Blake. The hot ashes flew up in her face and powdered her hair with their gra\ dust ; yet she persisted, blowing stead ily until a shred of hark caught the sparks and flared up in a tiny flame. A Utile more, and she had a strong fire blazing against the tree trunk. She rested a short time, relaxing both mentally and physically in the satisfying consciousness that Blake never should know how near she had come to failing in hot trust. Soon she became aware of a keen feeling of thirst and hunger. She rose, piled a fresh supply of sticks on the tire, and hastened back through tin cleft toward the spring. Around the baobab she came upon Winthrope, working in the shade of the great tree. The three leopard skins had been stretched upon bamboo frames, and lie was resignedly scraping at. their inner surfaces with a smooth-edged stone. Miss Leslie did not look too closely at the operation. "Where is he?” she asked. Winthrope motioned down the cleft. "I hope he hasn't gone far. I’m half famished. Aren’t you?” "Really, Miss Genevieve, it. is odd, you know. Not an hour since, the very thought of food —” "And now you’re as hungry as I am. Oh, 1 do wish lie had not gone off just at the wrong time!" "He went to take a dip in the sea. You know, he got so messed up over the nastiest part of the work, which I positively refused to do—” "What's tiiat beyond the bamboos? There's something alive!" "Fray, don't tie o.larnied. It Is—or— | It's till right. Miss Gcncviev<\ I as *utre you." "Hut what is It'.’ Such queer noises, ’ and 1 see something alive!" "Only the vlutures, if you must know. Nothing else. I assure you." “Oh!" "It is all out of sight, from the spring. You are not to go around the bamboos until the that Is, not i today." "Old Mr. make say that?" "Why, yes to be sure, lie also said to tell you that the outlets were on the tOP shell'." "You mean—?" "His way of ordering you to rook our dinner, Really, Miss Genevieve, I should he pleased to take your place, hut l have been told to keep to this. It is hard to take orders from a low fellow—very hard for a gentleman, you know," Miss Leslie gazed at her shapely hands. Three days since she could not have conceived of their being so rough and scratched and dirty. Yet her dis gust at their condition was not on tirelv unqualified. "At least I have something to show for them," she murmured. "I hog pardon," said Winthrope. lust look at my hands like a serv ant's! And yet I am not nearly so ashamed of them as I would have fancied. Ii is very amusing, hut do you know. I aetually fool proud that 1 have done something -something useful, I mean." “Useful’.’- I cull it shocking, Miss Gen evieve. H Is simply vile that people of our breeding should bo compelled to do such menial work. They write no end of romances about cast ways; Imt 1 fall to see tho romance in scraping skins Indian fashion, as this fellow Flake calls ii." "I suppose, though, we Hhould re member how much Mr. Blake Is doing for us, and should try to make the best of the situation," "It has no best. It Is all a beastly muddle,” complained Winlhrope, and he resumed his nervous scraping at the big leopard skin. The girl studied his face for a mo ment, and turned away. She hud been trying so hard to forget. Ho heard her leave, and called after, without looking up: "Please remem ber. He said to cook some meat." She did not answer. Having satis fied her thirst at the spring, she took one of the bamboo rods, with its haggled blackening pieces of flesh, and re turned to the fire. After some little experimenting, she contrived a way to support the rod beside the lire so that nil the meat would roast without burn ing. At first, keen as was her hunger, she turned with disgust from the dab by sun-seared (lesh; but as it began to roast, tile odor restored her appetite to full vigor. Her mouth fairly wa tered. It seemed as though Winthrope and lllake would never come. She heard their voices, and look the bam boo spit from the (ire for the meat to cool. Still they failed lo appear, and, unable to wait longer, she began to eat. The cub meat proved far more tender than that of the old leopard. She had helped herself to the second piece before the two nten appeared "Hold on, Miss Jenny; fair play!” sang out lllake. "You've set to with out tooting the dinner horn. I don't blame you, though. That smells mighty good." Both men caught at the hot meat JZ By Evening She Had Her TreeCave in a Habitable Condition, with eagem 'ss. and Wlnthrope promptly forgot ail else in tlit* animal pleasure oi satisfying Ills hunger. Hlake, though no less hungry, only waited to till Ids mouth before inves tigating the condition of the prospec tive tree ladder. The result of the attempt to burn the trunk did not seem encouraging to the others, and Miss Leslie looked away, that her face might not betray her, should he; have an inkling of her neglect. She was relieved by the cheerfulness of his tone. "Slow work, tills fire business—eh? Guess, though, it’ll go faster this after noon. The green wood is killed and is ! getting dried out. Anyway, we've got to keep at It till the tree goes over. This spring leopard won’t last long at the present rate of consumption, and we ll need tlie eggs to keep us going till we get the hang of our bows.” "What is that smoke back there?” interrupted Miss Leslie. "Can it be that the fire down the cleft has sprung up again?” "No; it's your fumigation. Yon had plenty of iirtish on hand, so I heaved i it into the hole and touched it off. | While It’s burning out you can put tf* time gathering ring grass and leave* for n hod." ' Would you and Mr. Wlnthrope mind breaking off some bamboos for me?" "What for?” Miss Leslie colored and hesitated. "1 I should like to divide off a corner of the place with a wall or screen." Wlnthrope tried to catch Blake’s eye; but the American was gazing at Miss Leslie's embarrassed face with a puzzled look. Her meaning dawned! upon hint, and he hastened to reply. "All right, Miss Jenny. You can build your wall to suit yourself. But there'll be no hurry over it. Until th<* rains begin, Win and I'll sleep out la the open. We ll have to take turnabout on watch at night, anyway. If we don't’ keep up a lire some other spotted kitty will he sure to come nosing up th« gully." "There must also he lions In the vi cinity." added Wlnthrope, Miss Leslie said nothing until after the last pieces of meat had beea handed around and Blake sprang tip to resume work. “Mr. Blake," sin* called, in a low tone; "one moment, please. Would if save much bother If a door was made and you and Mr. Wlnthrope should sleep Inside?" "Well see about that later," replied Blake, carelessly. The girl bit her 11 p, and the tear* started to her eyes, liven Wlnthrope had started off without expressing hi* appreciation. Yet he at least should have realized how much It had cost her to make such sin offer. By evening she hud her tree cave— house, sh<* preferred to name It. to her sell In a habitable condition. When tile purifying fire bad burnt itself out, leaving the place free from all odor* other than the wholesome smell of wood smoke, she bad asked Blake how slu* could rake out the ashes. Hlu advice was to wet them down where tney lay. This was easier said than done. Fortunately the spring was only a few yards distant, and after many trips, with tier palm leaf hat for bowl, the girl carried enough water lo sprinkle all the powdery ashes. Over them she strewed the leaves and grass which she had gathered while the lire was burning. The driest of the grass, ar ranged in a fur corner, promised * more comfortable bed than had been her lot for the last three nights. During (Ills work she had been care fill not to forget the tiro at the tree. Yet when, near sundown, she called till' third meal of leopard meat, Itlukx grumbled at I tie tree for being what, he termed such a confounded lough prop ositlon. "Good thing there's lots of wood here. Win," he added. "We ll keep this fire going till the blamed thing top ples over, If it takes a year." “Oh, bill you surely will not stay so far from the baobab tonight!” e* claimed Miss Leslie. “Hold hard!" soothed Blake. "You've no license to got the jumps yet a while. We'll have another lire by the baobab. So you needn't worry.” A few minutes later they went, back to the baobab, and Wlnthrop began helping Miss Leslie to construct a bamboo screen in the narrow entrance of the tree-cave, while Blake built the second fire. As Winthrope was unable to tell time by the stars. Blake took the first wateh. At. sunset, following (he en gineer's advice, Winthrope lay <iown with his feet to the small watch fire, and was asleep before twilight, had deepened into night. Fagged out by the mental and bodly stress of the day, he slept so soundly-that it seemed lo him he bn dl> lost consciousness when lie was roused by a imigli hand on his forehead. "What is it?" lie mumbled. " 'Bout one o’clock," said Blake. "Wake up! 1 tan overtime, ’causa 1 lie* morning watch is the toughest. But l can't keep 'wake any longer.” "I say, this Is a beastly bore,” re marked Winthrope, sitting up. "ITn-m." grunted Blake, who was al ready on his bark. Winlhrope rubbed his eyes, rose wearily, and drew a blazing stick from the tire. With Ibis upraised as a torch he peered around into the darkness and advanced towards the spring. When, having satisfied his thirst, he returned somewhat hurriedly to ths lip , he was startled by the sight of a pale face gazing at him from between the leaves of the bamboo screen. "My dear Miss Genevieve, what is the mutter?" he exclaimed. “Hush! Is he asleep?” "Hike a top." "Thank heaven! Good night." "Good-night- er—I say. Miss Gen evieve—” Hut the girl disappeared, and Wiu ihrope, after u glance at Blake's placid face, hurried along the cleft to stack • he other fire. When he returned ho noticed two bamboo rods which Blake had begun to shape into bow staves He looked them over, with a sneer at Blake's seemingly unskillful workman ship; but lie made no attempt to finish the bows. ( onlinucil next week. R R. ROBERTS DENTIST Office over Kerr’s Pharmacy Office Phene 260 Residence Phone 271 John Wietse ATTORNEY Practice in Various Courts. Collections Attended To. Notary Public. FALLS CITY