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Show their arm ippealingly and shrieked in terror. The wand of an evil magician had touched the .'cene, and transformed it in a twinkliDt;. Smoke already oozed from several openings, proving to Charlie that his hopes of the fire being trifling -were groundless. It was most serious. The holocaust of the Parisian Charite Bazar was about to be repeated repeat-ed in New York; and that St. Patrick's Pat-rick's day would be marked as the most grewsome Gotham . had ever known. I Charlie now had a- better chance to push ahead. . Already he feared he had delayed too long. There were many people and much excitement in the side street, but it was of course not to be compared with the avenue where the crowds had gathered to witness the parade. Straight to the door Charlie dashed. A man stood there endeavoring to keep out those who had no business inside, for it is well known that daring dar-ing . thieves will take advantage of heart, even his bold warrior spirit! might have quailed a little. ' It is just as well perhaps, that these things are mercifully hidden from our view just as well that we need only grapple with each difficulty as it appears ap-pears in view, instead of crossing bridges before we come to them. The day dawned. There was more or less of a bustle in the air. New Yoric contains more sons of Erin than probably any Irish city outside out-side of Dublin. . And these patriotic exiles never neglect to fittingly celebrate St Patrick's Pat-rick's day, no matter what the weather may be. Charlie felt he must have something to distract his attention. Artemus was not in sight, the daily paper had been exhausted, and as a last resort he sauntered out to watch the crowds. Never once did he wander far from the hotel, which fact, later on, he was inclined to believe was a special dispensation dis-pensation of Providence. The magnet was there that held him. He smoked and walked, and so the time dragged by until the hour of fate arrived. A WARRIOR BOLD. Ev ST. OEOIiQE BATHBORNE, ' tlT? Ui" m,iont" "T BPiL; W. -Br. jaei., mdowV, CaprZ CpyrUhl. mu Street ,nd Smlt)i Njw y CHAPTER XH.-(Contlned.) We must have another deal, that's Jl. Perhaps a better and more generous gen-erous lover will appear the next time one who will appreciate little favors at their true value. You can consider . yourself dismissed," with a wave of the hand that should have struck dumb terror into the heart of the other, but which, on the contrary, only excited his secret mirth. "Thanks, but ' I shall take my discharge dis-charge only from the proper authority, author-ity, and in this case that does not happen to be ahem! Capt. Brand." "Very good. Remember, I am her father, and the rightful custodian of our family honor. Perhaps I may resort re-sort to other and more drastic measures meas-ures should you continue to force your unwelcome attentions upon my daughter." such occasions to ply their nefarious trad, even if they do not at times even create the opportunity. Ten men could not have kept our Charlie from pushing in. He shouted that he was a guest, and then rushed inside; nor did the man, after one look at his haggard face, attempt to say him nay. Charlie avoided the office, where men swarfaed, and orders were shouted shout-ed that could never be obeyed. His business was aloft. She was there exposed to a frightful fright-ful death, and he felt that he lived but to save her! . So up he bounded, three steps at a time, - One thing he must remember the W'indsor was famous as a caravansary caravan-sary where a stranger might easily lose himself in the many passages. To do so now would be indeed fatal to all his hopes. He ' found smoke everywhere, and even fancied he could hear the crackling crack-ling :of flames, though the whole place was in such a turmoil that one could not be sure of this. He also met numerous persons, flying fly-ing this way and that, maddened with fear. . ..." . Some hardly knew whither they went, and appealed frantically to this cool-headed man beseeching him, for heaven's sake, to tell . them where the stairs could be founds. Nor did he fail to direct them, every one, even while he pushed on to the next flight. Up, up, hgwBntsHlL.'"0jing sm0ke circling along-, hails, ' through which women staggered, shrieking their appalling distress. Charlie, the better to see and be out of the anticipated jam, had mounted a convenient carriage-stone standing in front of a dwelling house half a block from the hotel. Great as was the excitement around him, it seemed to be doubly intensified intensi-fied further along the line of march, especially in front of the hotel. - He saw the procession break at this point melt away as it were. Men ran toward the hotel in squads, waving their arms wildly. Was it an opportunity to quench the thirst that frequently burns Irish throats on this glorious holiday? Charlie knew of yore all about the battle of the Boyne, and how an j orange flag arouses the hatred of a St. Patrick's day parader even as the red flag stirs the maddened bull to frenzy. . Had some bold and incautious soul dared to invite immolation by thus flaunting in their faces the color they despised? .. He supposed this must be the case. To his surprise, however, the excitement ex-citement spread the crowd pressed madly forward, mounted officers came galloping back, shouting out something some-thing that at first he could not catch. Never to his dying day would Charlie Char-lie Stuart forget the intense anxiety of that moment when he 'seemed to feel as though the fate of empires was at stake and then he heard distinctly above the roar the stentorian voice of a leathern-lunged officer: "Turn out! The avenue Is Impassable! Impass-able! The Windsor hotel is on fire! Turn out!" Doubtless that stentorian shout 'You would find me ready and willing will-ing to give you back as good as you send, sir." "Why, you young scamp, I could break every bone in your body, if I chose," almost frothing at the mouth with rage. "Better not try it, captain. In New Tork state they electrocute for murder, mur-der, and it's a worse fate than hanging, hang-ing, which you know has terrors enough never to be forgotten." Charlie, acting upon the spur of the moment, could not help giving him this little thrust. It was a keen one. The other's jaw dropped, his eyes momentarily rolled in a spasm of agony, and the sweat seemed to break out upon his brow. Charlie saw and was satisfied. He had given the conscienceless wretch a body-blow in return for his rile threats. Capt. Brand's spasm lasted but a brief space of time, and then he recovered re-covered his self-possession. There was a peculiarity about the captain that seemed "very marked A when in a rage his eyes became quite bloodshot, and glowed like the orbs of a hyena upon the deserts of which he loved to talk. And just now they were fiery, indeed. in-deed. .The look he gave Stuart had-mur-der in it, though Charlie showed no 6ign of alarm. Here, in this public place, the man would never dare assault him. Besides, Charlie possessed the idea that he could hold his own at anv time against the fellow. True, . he was smaller than the captain, but a life devoted to occasional dissipation must have sapped some of the astonishing aston-ishing powers which a generous nature na-ture had originally bestowed upon the worthy man of many faces. But Capt. Brand restrained himself reason had not quite deserted him. He smiled grimly, and there was' a world of meaning in his sardonic look. "Very good, my hearty! You have chosen to throw down the glove, and from this hour it's war to the knife between us. You may live to rue the day you made an enemy out of one who held out the olive branch. Depend De-pend upon it, Arline Brand is not for you. A fond parent must guard the Interests of his sweet child. Go your way, young sir; and when' next me meet it will be as foes to the death. I wash my hands of you." sent a suuuuenug cuui t to many - u heart when those who heard it glanced glanc-ed up at the massive pile and comprehended compre-hended the hundreds of precious lives that were endangered. To none could it appeal with more irresistible - force than to Charlie Stuart. All his hopes and ambitions on earth were centered there the girl he loved with heart and soul was far up in the doomed structure, perhaps asleep, under the influence of an opiate, after a wakeful night with an aching brow. , . At first his blood seemed congealed congeal-ed into ice. , . Then it leaped through his veins like boiling lava, fresh from the throat of Vesuvius. Charlie did not waste time in reflection. re-flection. , . - Time was worth more than' money now, worth all the world to him. He had leaped to the pavement like a deerhound, and dashed toward the hotel in great bounds. Some men would have lost their wits, but it seemed that the greater, the emergency the keener became his mind.- -'"'- "'-"' - There were comical . elements injected in-jected into it, of course, but no one had the heart to laugh. Charlie knew in his heart a dread-" ful calamity was impending nothing short of a miracle could save the great structure now, and the days ' of miracles appear to be past. Perhaps scores of human lives would be sacrificed to the demon of fire mostly . helpless women, employes em-ployes or guests, who had been viewing view-ing the parade from the upper windows. win-dows. The mere fact that such a draught passed through the halls from these open windows would hasten the total demolition of the whole structure and make it more certain. Had Charlie no sacred duty of his own to perform, he would have gladly devnted all of' his time toward effecting effect-ing the rescue of these terrified girls. As it. was, he could only think of Arline. ; Her lovely face was before his yes and seemed to plead with him to make haste. ., The smoke, was growing even more dense', and he had to push close to the doors to distinguish the numbers. In order to make sure that he was on the right floor.' ; - At last this knowledge came to him, - CHAPTER XIII. . , . . The Fateful" Hour. . Charlie- looked after the retreating figure of Capt Brand, and was in doubt whether to take him seriously or consider his. threat a huge joke. He soon ' resolved ' to dismiss from his mind Capt. Brand and all he typified, and seek repose. : He gained the sanctity of his room, and, lighting the gas, sat down to have a last deliberation ere retiring. AH seemed capable of running in a smooth groove, but "the best laid . schemes of mice and men gang aft agley," Bobby Burns tells us, and who . has not found it true in his own experience? ex-perience? Charlie retired. Whether he slept ' soundly or not concerns us little, but under the circumstances it is hardly probable that his slumber was vvery refreshing. -? There was too great a load on his mind.'-- . ' : - ' "'. ! He felt very; much as a man mighty who stands upon the brink of a precipice. preci-pice. . . , v-Success v-Success or failure his whole future fu-ture depended upon one little word-was word-was balanced In the hollow of a girl's hand. Charlie's previous bitter experience had caused him to feel more or less caution, with a shade of distrust toward to-ward the gentle sex, and against this he had to fight. Could he have known what lay be-t be-t fore him, under what fearful condi tions he was fated to win his sweet- Even-as he ran and elbowed his way through the .excited crowd ;with irresistible force, he" was mapping out. a plan of campaign. ; V . " . ' Really there seems no limit to the human mind its capacity is astonishing astonish-ing it rises to .'meet the emergency regardless of what is needed. - ; Now, even - when thus fighting his way through the crowd, Charlie saw the hopelessness'-of attempting to reach the main entrance on the rave-" nue, - . i ' ". . , ; The space for half, a block -was' densely packed with a whooping mass of humanity, "partly imbued with . the eager curiosity . that always distinguishes distin-guishes crowds the world over,, and. at the. same time a chivalrous desire to be of use somehow. - . -' If he desired to reach that door he must perforce walk over the heads of the packed crowd. A better plan suggested Itself. He remembered a side entrance which would admit him much more easily. " ' Now he was at the corner. ' , He took one look up and around. The picture was impressed, upon the tablets of his memory forever. No longer were handkerchiefs and green ribbons waving from the numerous windows of the hotel instead, in-stead, panio-Jtricken girls threw out .' The opportunity was in his grasp. " Here the same conditions seemed to abound there was smoke in plenty, frenzied maids and flying figures darting threugh it all like spectres. r . Charlie was somewhat out of breath as a- result of his steady climb, but otherwise in good physical condition. He : had the number of Arline's rooms well in his mind the house had been crowded, and these were the best at her service, though the clerk had promised her a suite near the McKinleys after that day.. . - What if he could have made a mistake mis-take in any way? The wretched consequences con-sequences almost paralyzed him to even think of it. Eagerly he had scanned each flying or crouching female figure he met, in the hope that he might thus discover the one he sought But as yet he had not found her. Even in that smoke-laden atmosphere atmos-phere he knew he could not mistake her figure, while one note from her voice must have thrilled him through and through. (To be continued.) |