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heh the Victoria Oross, which: he won in bint the streets of 'Delhi, snd yet. here be ig | M0 : with terror a shivering wi startling at 'every noise, in the most ful corner of he world. | Oh, the Shy of it, West! Remember what I have already told you ~=hat it is no iful at imaginary : but one which we have every res: to be "real. It is, an be expressed in words. If all goes well, hy will i ees us ..at Branksome on. ih our fondest love | jo Doth of you, ever, m r nds, yo attached | ohdaunt'" 2 L) iThig letter was a great relief to us '8s' i ua know: that: the brother: aud sis. "ter ure under no. physical restraint; but our powerlessness and inability even 10 da heh. ea ams better than ves was little shaft of ening. Fifty times a doy we 4d ourdelves and Asked czch other from ter' this peril wad to' be expected: but "the more we thought ot? eo more hopeless did any solution appear, Iu vain we combined our experi- entes snd pieced together every word which had fallen from the Hijo of any in- _ mate of Oloomber which might be. sup: posed" to bear directly or indirectly 'up- onthe subject. At last, weary with fruitless speculation, we were fain to try and drive the matter from our thoughts, consoling - ourselves with the reflection that in a few more days all restrictions would be removed, apd. we should be able 10 deazn from onr friends' own lips. Those few intervening days, however, would, we feared, be dreary long ones. And eo they would, had it not been for a new and moet unexpected 'incident, which di verted our 'minds from our own troubles and gave 'them something fresh. with which to occupy themselves, CHAPTER XI. October had broken auspiciously with a dright sun and a cloudless eky. There in the morning heen a slight breeze, and a few. little white wreathe of vapor drifted here and there like the scattered feathers of some gigantic bird; but as the day wore on, such wind ae there was fell "completely 'away 'and the air bé- came. close and stagnant. The sun blaved down with a degree of heat which was remarkable so late in 'the season, and iw shimmering Nase 1av upon the upland moors 'and concealed the Irish mountains on 'the other side of the Channel, sen itself rose and fell in a long, heavy, oily, roll, sweeping slowly landward, and breaking sullenly with a dull, 'monoton. ous booming wpon the rock-girt shore. To 'the Anexpetionoed all seemed calm and eaveful, but to those who are accustomed read "nature's warnings there was a dark menace in air and sky and sea. My sister and 1 walked out in'the after- noon; sauntering - elowly- along the mar- gin of 'the great sandy spit which shoots oo, out into the Irish Sea, flanking upon one side the magnificent Bay of Luce, and on the other the more obscure inlet of Kirk- mafden, on the shores of which the Branksome property is situated. It was too sultry to go far; ed we eoon seated ourselves upon one of the sandy hillooks, overgrown. with faded 'grass-tufts, which extended along the coast line, and which from nature's 'dykes 'against the en. oroachment of the ocean. Our rest was goon interrupted by the serunching of heavy boots upon the shingle; and Jamie. gon, "the old man-o'swar's-man whom I have 'alréady had occasion to mention; made his' appearance, with the flat oir. cular: net-upon his back which he for shrimp catching. He eame toward us upon seeing ug, 'and said in his rough, kindly way that he hoped we. would not take it amiss if he sent ne up. a dish of shrimps for our tea at Branksome. aye make a good catch before a storm," he remarked. "You think there is going to be a storm, then?" I asked. utd Sven 4 marine could see aa puswered, & Ng a great wedge of tobacco 'into his cheek. 'Fhe Moors over near Oloomber are just white wi' gulls and Kittiowakes. What d'ye think they come ashore for exoépt to. escape having all the feathers blown out o' them? I mind avi' Charlie wellnigh * blew ui under the EUDA.G. the fare; for All| nay b our 'engines and RrGpallers." "Have you ever known a wreck in these ~Pparta?" I seked, "Lord Jove ye, sir, it's a famous place the was ata) the {Library of Pekin,' work be when it wae 0 x + 4 "The. abri edition in' the Imperial biug his hand eof ob 8 § tog "oonsists ol volunio of an average weight of five pounds. Thea "the preface, which: must 3 a Ao a an 0 Sama-v 9 ol, with he Brabmanas i bo sompleted in ese' than ten RL the family Soming to ta task about the date , the twelfth. genera: tion completing the work, while the thir. seonth might occtipy itself upon the im] ex." "wind how are our descendants to live, sir," 1 asked with «, smiles, curing, the H progress of this 'great unde ng "That's the worst of you, Jack," my fa- ther ovied 'petulantly." "There is. nothing practical about you. Instesd of ¢onfining your attention to the working out of my noble scheme, you begin raising sll eorts of absurd objections. It is a were matter of detail how our descendants live, 80 long as they stick to the Disrmas.; Now I want you to' go up to the bothy of Pergue Mo: Donald and see about the thatch, and Willie. Fullerton has written to say thatiyp.., hie milk-cow fs bad. You might look in upon your way and ask after it." I started off upon my 'errands, hut 'be. fore doing so I took a look at the baro- meter upon the wall. The mercury had sunk to the. phenomenal pofht of twenty- eight inches. Clearly the old sailor had not- heen wrong in his interpretation of, natpre"s signs. As 1 returned over the moors in the evening the wind was bBlow- ing in short angry puffe, and the western horizon was Hea with, sombre clouds | which stretched their long ragged ten. tacles Tight mp to' the wenith. = Againet their dark background one or. two livid sulphur colored splotches showed up mas \ignant and menacing, while the surface of the sea had changed from the appéar: ance of burnished. quicksilver to that of ground glass. A low moaning sound rose up from the ocean as if it knew that trouble wae in store for it. Far out' in the Channel I saw a single panting; eager steam vessel making "its way to Belfast Lough, and the large bark which I had obgerved in the. morning. still beating about in the offing, endeavoring to pass to the northward. = At mine o'clock 'a sharp breese wae blowing; at ten it had. fresh. ened into a gale; and before midnight the most farious etorm was ragivg which: I oan remember upoh "the weather. beaten a8t. en tah A 1 sat for some time in' our ymall oak: paneled sitting-room iistenivg . to- the soreéching and howling 'of the blast and to the rattle of the gravel and pebbles as they pattered against the window, =~ Na- ture's im orchestra 'was playing its world-old piece: with a compass which ko 1 : light flickered over them we from the shore 'that these' strangers wore rod feses, and . a mie of Hout Soroomage in Thiers was 1ittls time, however, f "to | DAY consist of light. screer al ta po aE eh ele ped. Old seed hai very low be made to save the Poor sodden group of | by gh i vin, ilo humanity - who 'implored our ase! vitality, or none at all, doubtle The nearest lifeboat was. in 'the: is 'often 'offéred for sale. Consid others pushed us off, an ay through She ayisling- 2 ; staggering and recoiling lore | great. sweeping billows, but still steadily de creasing the distance between the bark and ourselves. pA t seemed, however, that our efforts were fated to be in vain, As we mounted upon surge I daw a. giant wave, "all | weed seeds. ; the others," and coming after them 3 | such adnlterants have driver following a flock, sweep" down. tp." ema on the vessel, curling her great green oat aro chased in foreign 'countries over the breaking deck. With & ding, | statement, often riving. sound the ehip split in two Where Se the terrible serrated Buck of the: Hane sl | grade weeds sex reel was sawing in er keel. The after: rted for the purpose part 'with the broken mizsen "atid the Po ty Cr ek Te tye ce Eg as a 2s water an yanis wile Y 5 oscillated helplessly abouts Sut of good. ited. precious" balance upon the rocks. tity of : of fear, went up from. the 'wreck would cost the «dealer more, echoed from the beach, but by the] ing 'of Providence ehe kept 'afloat . Ral Sy MAT of Th Ay. reso IV mal 8 Ww. WW ¥, 1 3 not got hall way upon our return, how- 4 18 gountry, is Sk gr % \ TA OE nivel ior wan sinoR sha castle - A r od ex or ui et in tinguishing the sigpal Tight, hig the wild fd le 7 eat denouement from our iow: "the rg Sompetitien ¥ith-os adulter- r friends upon. the Te. Were Ge) in Songratelasion snd praise, nor were: ant 9 higher B12 Te a ranged from the deep Jiapason of the | 1 8 hriek of thundering surge to the t the scattered shingle and the keen pip~ 'ing of frightened sea birds. . Once for an cot instant I opened the lattice window, but a gust' of wind and rain: game' bluater< ing through, bearing with it a great sheet of seaweed, which flapped down upon the teble. It was;all I conld do to close it |g again in the face of the blast. My sister and my father had retired' to their rooms, but' my thoughts weve too. active for sleep, 80 I continued to sit' and Emoke by the smoldering fire. What was Soing on in the hall now, 1' wondered? hat 'did 11'Gabriel think of. the storm, and how did it affect the old man who wandersd about in the night? Did he welcome thése dread forces of nature ae being Of the same or- der of things us his own tum thoughts? was 10. mark a in Would he regard this sudden being. in any way - connected with mysterious fate { me that : slept a souple of ould Nou some one tugging us- alder, Bitting ny y. my - bedside, and that it wa his grasp which I felt on' beach in case 1 but I fear it is up in bed, dim light that my father |. half be released atonce. x Tepid instance of this has been r is ried. 1 one end of mixed himself aome rope tied to his wrist and the. father "and myself: an ac-|other end to a runaway cow, a "If it: hadn't. been for you. sir, and your | Curve en-year-old 'boy Was , brave fellows," he said, smiling across at|OVEr sha rocks for one-f me, "we .should he; ten. fathom 4 7 | & mil Sudly injured 1 I th ab Teas old vib aad wel § {ha eaky old tub and wel a ME Ay tened at~a pass- the owners nor I are likely hearte aver her." No ~ "1 am afraid," sald my father sadly {208 . | "that we shall never see your three pas: sengers. again. I have left men they should, be washed me, 2 | sould have lived for a moment among le surge." = "(To be continued.) : . Unreasonable Turk ey. dip EA Not long 880, in & western mass ket. town, an Irishman was observ-|is infed 'with a live turkey under his arm. The turkey was squawking) 5 id! and gobbling in &