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Show Mf 1 IB CCOn-PlT BAWW fSCUTCHEONl " B Copyright. 1906, by Dodd, Mead Ct Comptnv. H CHAPTER Bflflf In Which Young Woman Troipaitot. M"" I n. SHAW was a tall young man of thirty or thereabouts, smooth faced, good looking nnd nthlct- I lc. It was qulto true that ho B woro a rod coat when trumping through a his woods and vales, not because It HB was fashionable, but hecnuso he hnd a VVB vague horror of being shot at by souio ftwAwf nearsighted Nlmrod from Mnnhnttnu. Aa A crowd of old college friends bad Just AwH left him alone In the hills after spend- HAH Ing several weeks at his place, and AH his solo occupation these days, astdo HB from directing the affnlrs about tho HB house and grounds, lay In the efforts H to commune with nature by means of BK n shotgun nnd n fishing rod. Ills most HjHj constant companion was a pipe, his HHJ most loyal follower a dog, B As ho oauntcrcd slowly down tho rlv- Bflf er road that afternoon, smiling retro- BBJ spcctlvely from time to time ns he Hjf looked Into tho swift, narrow stream BBJ that had welcomed his adversaries of Bflj tho morning, ho llttlo tliought of tho BBJ encounter In storo for him. Tho little BBJ mountain stream was called a river by BBJ courtesy because It was yards wider BBJ than tho brooks that struggled linpo- H tcntly to surpass It during the rainy H season. But It was deep and turbu- H lent In places, nnd It had a roar at H times that commanded the respect of B the foolhardy. H "The poor devils might have drown- Aj cd, eh, nnnapartc?" he mused, ad- BB dressing the dog nt his side. "Con- BB fothded nuisance, getting wet aftct BB all, though. Lord Iiazclhurst wants BB , war, docs he? That log down tbcro Is BB tho dividing lino In our river, cb? And BH I havo to stay on this side of It. By BJ Oeorgo, bo's n mean spirited person, BB and It's his wife's laud, too. I won- BB dcr what she's like. It's a pity a fcl- Bfl low can't havo a quiet, decent sum- Bfl mcr up hero In the bills. Still" light- Bfl ing his plpo "I dare say I 0111 give Bfl as well as I take. If I stay off his BB land they'll have to keep off of mine. BB Hullo, who's that? A man, by George, B but ho looks like a partridge As I BL live, Bonaparte is pointing. I In, Im, PflBj that's 0110 on you, llony!" Mr. Shaw stepped Into tho brush at the side of H the path and watched the inoviMiicntH Hj of the mati at the "lojr," now les4 (linn H 100 yards nway. Hj IOrd It.irelhurst, attired In his blow H corduroys and his tan walNtco.it, iu fl talnly suggested the paitildgo as he M hopped nimbly about In the distant B foreground, cocking his cars from flj time to tlmo with all the aloofness of HJ that wily bird. He was, strango to re- Bj late, some little dlstnnce from Bazcl- HJ hurst territory, an actual If not n con- BJ flUcnt trespasser upon Shaw's domain BJ Ills hoi so, however, was tethered to a BJ sapling on tho bafo side of tho log, BJ comfortably browsing on Ilazelhurst BJ grass. Itaudolph Shaw, an unseen oh- BJ server, was considerably mystified by H the actions of his unusual visitor. HJ Ills loidshlp paced back and forth H with a stride that grew (Inner as time BJ brought lorth no hostile Impediments. H Ills monocle ever and anon was direct- H cd both high nnd low In search of Shaw H or his henchmen, while bis fnco was H rnpldly resolving Itself Into a bloom of fl rage. H "Confound htm," his lordslilp was fl muttering, looking nti his timepiece B with stern disapproval, "he can't ex- B pect mo to wnlt hero nil day I'm on fl his land, and I'll stay here as long s I B like!" (At this Juncture ho Involunta- fl rily measured tho distance between H himself and tho log.) "I knew It was I all n bluff, his threat to put me off. I Hang It all, whero Is the fellow? I won't go up to bis beastly house. I I won't gratify him by going up there I even to glvo him his orders. Demmed I cad, blowhard! Five o'clock, confound I him! I dare say he's seen mo and has I crawled off Into tho underbrush. He's I nfrald of mo; he's a coward It Is as I feared. I can't seo tho rascal. There's I only ono thing left for me to do. I'll I pin n note to this tree. Confound him, I ho shall hear from me. He'll have to I read It." I Whereupon his lordship drew forth I a largo envelope from his pocket and proceeded to fasten It to tho trunk of I a big tree which grew In the middle of I tho road, an act of premeditation which I showed strange powers of prophecy. I now could he, except by means of Kl . clairvoyance, have known before leav- ,.? , Ing homo that bo was not to meet his flj enemy faco to face? As Mr. Shaw afterward read the noto nnd tossed It Into the river, It Is only fair thut tho world should know Its contents whiles It hung unfolded to tho bark of the tnll tree. It said In a very scrawling hand: "Mr. Shuw, I havo looked nil over this end of your land for you this afternoon. Yon doubtless chooso to avoid me So bo It. Let 1110 stato oneo nnd for nil that your conduct Is despicable. I cumo hero personally to tell'you tc keep off my land henceforth and forever. 1 will not- repeat this warning, but will Instead, If you iierslst, take such summary sum-mary measures bh would befit a person per-son of your Instincts. I trust you will feel the Importance of keeping ofT." I To this hU lordship bravely signed himself. ' hTs'vTirtHi nhil Tift) tip fot clortinspw-tlon, clortinspw-tlon, "he'll not soon overlook what I've said In that letter, confound hlml" Ho had not observed the npproach of Itandolph Shaw, who now stood, pipe In hnnd, some twenty paces behind him In the road. "Whnt the dovll are you doing?" demanded de-manded a strong bass voice. It had tho effect of n cannon shot. Ills lordship leaped half out of his corduroys, turned with agonizing abruptness toward the tall young tnnn nnd gasped "Oh!" so shrilly that his horse looked up .lth a start The next Instant his watch dropped forgotten forgot-ten from his tlngcrs.and his nimble llttlo legs scurried for territory lieyond the log. Nor did he pause upon reaching that supposedly safe ground. The swift glance he gae the nearby river was stgulllcant as well ns apprehensive. appre-hensive. It mou'il him to Increased but unpolished haste. He leaped frantically for tho saddle, scorning the stirrups, lauding broad-Bide, broad-Bide, but with sulllclent nervous energy ener-gy In reserve to scramble on and up-ward up-ward Into the sent. Once tbcro he kicked the aulmnl In tho ttnnks with both heels, clutching with his knees and reaching for the brldlo rein In the same motion. The horse plunged obediently, but anno to n stop with n Jerk that almost unseated tho rider; the sapling swayed; tho good but forgotten for-gotten rein held firm. "Hn!" gasped his lordslilp as tho horrid truth liccame clear to him. "Charge, Bonaparte!" shouted tho man In the road. "Soldiers!" cried tho rider, with n wild look among the trees. "My dog." called back the other. "Ho charges at tho word." "Well, you know, I saw scrvleo In tbc nrmy," apologized bis lordslilp. with a pale smile. "Get ep!" to the horse. "What's your hurry?" asked Shaw, grinning broadly ns he came up to tho log. "Don't don't 3011 dnro to step over that log!" shouted Ilazelhurst. "All rlL'hr. I spo! hut. nfler nil. what's the rush?" The other was puz-tled puz-tled for tho moment. "I'm practicing, sir," he said un- 1 steadily, "how to mount on a run, dcmmlt. Can't you see?" 1 "In case of tiro. 1 Imagine. Well, you made excellent time. By the wny, what has this envelope to do with It?" "Who nre jou, sir?" "Shaw. And you?" "You'll learn when you read that document. Tako It homo with jnu." "Ah. yes; I see It's for me Why don't you untie that hitch rein? And what tho dickens do you menu by having hav-ing a hitch rein auyivny? No rider" "Coufouud your Impudence, sir! 1 ' did uot come hero to receive lustruc-1 tlous from you, dem you!" cried his lordship deDantly. Ho had succeeded at that moment In surreptitiously slashing the hitch rein In two with his pockctknlfc. Theru wns nothing now to prevent him from giving tho obtrusive obtru-sive young man n defiant fnrewoll. "1 am Lord Ilazelhurst. Good day, sir!" "Just a minute, your lordslilp," called call-ed Shaw, "No doubt you were timing yourself a bit ngo, but that's no reason why you should leave your watch on my land. Of course I've uothlng ngulust the watch, and, while I promise prom-ise you faithfully that nuy humnn being be-ing from jour side of the log who ventures oer on my side shall be ejected In ono way or another, It would seem senseless for rao to kick this timepiece Into tho middle of next week." "Don't you dare kick that watch It's a hundred years old." "Far be It from mo to tako advantage advan-tage of anything so old Don't you wnnt It nny longer?" "Certainly, sir I wouldn't part from It." "Then why don't yon come over and get It? Do you expect me to break the rulo by coming over on to your land to hand It to you?" "I shouldn't cnll that trespassing, don't you know." began his lordship "Ab! NccrthelesK. If you want this watch you'll hae to come over nud get It" "By Jove now that's a demmed mean trleli. I'm ununited Heastly annoying I sa,. would you mind tossing It up to me?" "I wouldn't touch It for SKI Uy tho way, I'll Just tend this note of yours" Lord Bnzelhurst neruuisly watched him ns he read, his heart lightened perceptibly per-ceptibly as lie saw a good humored smllo struggle to the tall young man's face, It was, however, with some mis giving that he studied the broad shoulders shoul-ders and powerful frame of the erstwhile erst-while poacher "Very good of you, I'm sure, to warn me " "Good of me? It wns Imperative, let me tell you, sir No man can abuse my servants and tramplo all over my land and dlstmb my tlsh"- "Kxcuse me. but I haven't tlmo to listen to nil lh.it The note's sufficient You've been practicing the running mount until It looks well nlgb perfect to me, so I'll tell you whnt I'll do. I'll step back thirty paces and then yon come over and get the watch If you'ro not afraid of me--nnd I'll jM-ojjUae"- "Afnld? Dcmmlt. sir. dlilti't I sny I was .l.uid Ilazelhurst? Of the guards. Jj. and the Seventy-first? Conf" "You come over nnd get tho wntch niul then see If you can get back to the I1111.se and mount bctoio I get to the log. If I bent you there, you lose. How's that?" "I decline to ninke n fool of myself. Hither you will restore my wntch to me or I shall Instantly go before tho YnifBn. "Afraid? Didn't I say I was Lord Bazalhurst?" authorities nnd take out n warrant. 1 came to sec you on business, sir, not folly. Lady Bnzelhurst herself would have como had 1 been otherwise occupied, occu-pied, nud I want to assure you of her contempt. You nre n disgrace to her countrymen. If you ever put foot on our land I shall have you thrown Into the river. Dcmmlt. sir, It's no Inugh-Ing Inugh-Ing mntter My watch, sir." "Conic- and get It." "Scalawag!" "By Ocorgc, do you know If you get too personal I will como over there." Bnndolpb Shaw advanced with a threatening scowl "Hn. hn!" laughed his lordship shrilly. "I dare you!" He turned his horso's head for home nud moved off a yard or more. "Whon! Curso you! This Is the demdest hoisc to manage l'u ever owned. Stand still, confound you! Whoa!" "He'll stand If you stop licking him." "nnlloa! Hey. Ilazelhurst!" enmo a far distant wileo The luhersarlcs glanced down the ro.id and beheld two horsemen approaching from Hazel-hurst Hazel-hurst Villa tho duke and the count. "By .loe," muttered his lordship, suddenly deciding Unit It would not bo coincident fur them to appe.ir 011 the scene at lis present stage, "my fl lends me calling me Her ladyship doubtless doubt-less Is near at hand She rides, jou know I mean dem on! Wouldn't hnve her see jou for a foitune Not another won), sil! ou have 111 01-ders 01-ders Stay off or I'll -throw you off!" This last thie.it was almost shileked und was plainly he.i'id by the two horsemen "By Joe, he's facing the fellow." said the duke to the count. "'.va eet Shaw? I'aibleit!" "I'll scud some one fur that watch Don't you dare tu touch It," said Ills lordslilp in tones baiely audible '1 lieu he loped off to meet Ills fileuN and turn them back before they came t close for comfoit. Itaudolph Klu.u laughed heartily as he watched the retreat. Seeing tho newcomcis bait and then tin 11 abruptly back Into tin-It tracks, he picked up the watch ami strolled off into the woods, taking a Bhort cut for the dirt road which led up to his house. "1 had him begging for mercy," ev plained his lordship as he rodo along "I was on his land for half nn hour be foio ho would come within speaking distance. Comu along. 1 need n drink " Young Mr. Shaw came to the load In duo time nud paused, after his climb, to rest on a stone nt the wayside. He wns still u mile from homo nnd In tho loneliest part of his domain. The Ilazelhurst Ila-zelhurst line was scarcely a (punier of a mile behind him Trees and underbrush under-brush grow thick and Impenetrable alongside the narrow, winding road. Tho light of henven found it dllUcult to strugglo through to the highway bo-low. bo-low. PJcturesquo but lonely and somber som-ber Indeed wero his surroundings. "Somo ono coming?" he said aloud, as Bonaparte pricked up his cars and looked up tho road A moment later n horse nnd rider turned the bend a hundred ynrds away nnd cniv - ' toward I' 11 He started tj his ml with au ex lamatiou. Tho rider was a woman, and sho was making her way leisurely toward the Bazelhurst lands. "Lady Bazelhurst. I'll bet my hat," thought he with a quiet whistle. "By George, this Is awkward! My first trespasser Is lu petticoats. I say, she's a beauty a lipping beauty Lord, Lord, what do such women mean bj giving thcmscUes to little rats like Hazel hurst? Oh, the shame of It! Well, It's up to me If I cpoot to 'make good' I've Just got to file her off these grounds." Naturally ho expected to be veiy polite po-lite about It Instinctively so He could not have been otherwise. Tho horsewoman horse-woman saw him step luto the middle of tho road, smiling oddly but deferentially. deferen-tially. Her slim figure straightened, her color rose, nnd there was a yes. there was a relieved gleam In her eyes. As he drew near be advanced, bat In hand, bis face uplifted In his most winning win-ning smile tjavcjtluK. more of welcome 1 tin 11 or repeuenre "1 beg jour pardon," he said; "doubtless "doubt-less yon are not aware that this Is proscribed pro-scribed land ' "Then jou are Mr Shaw?" she asked, ask-ed, checking her horse with premeditated premedi-tated surprlso nud nn cmphnsls that puzzled htm. "x"cs, madam," he responded gravely, "tho hated Shaw. Permit me," and ho politely grasped tho brldlo rein. 1o her nmnzement he deliberately turned nnd begnn to lend her horse, willy nil-ly, nil-ly, down the road, very much ns If sho wero n child taking her Orst riding lesson. les-son. "Whnt are you doing, sir?" she exclaimed ex-claimed sharply. There was n queer flutter of helplessness lu her voice. "Putting jou off," ho answered laconically. la-conically. She laughed In delight, nnd be looked up with n relieved smile "I'm glad you don't mind. I hnte to do It These feuds are such beastlj things, you know. Ono has to live up to them whether ho likes It or not" "So you are putting mo off jour plnco? Oh. how lovely!" "It Isn't far. jon know Just down by those big rocks. Your line Is theie Of course." he went on politely, "you know that there is n feud." 'fll. Id I'.n lii.i.nt t ., .lla.ltH(I..l Besides, I met Tompkins nnd .Innies this morning. Pardon me, Mr Shaw, but I fancy I can get on without bo Ing led. Would you mind" "My dear madam, there Is no alter native I lime taken n solemn ow per sonallj to eject all Ilazelhurst tres passers from jnj plai e You forget that I am. Ij juuruidcis, to be thrown luto the ilvei "fl all that Don't be alarmed! I dim 1 mean to throw jon Into the rler " "By mj orders? It seems to me thnt you lunc confuted me with Lord Ba zclhnrst " "Heaen lias given me keener per ccptlon, jour ladjshlp. I have seen bis lordslilp " "Ah, may 1 Inquire whether he was particularly rovgli with yon this after noon?" "I trust I am too chivalrous to an swer thst question." "You nre quite dry " "Thank yon. I ilesere the rebuke, all right" "Oh. I mean mhi linxen't been In ttie river" "Not since morning Am I walking loo fast for jou?" "Not at all. One couldn't ask to Input In-put off more considerately " "By Jove," he said Inwiliintniily, his admiration getting tho hotter of him "I beg your pardon," with sllghtlj elevnted eyebrows. "Do you know, you're not nt all what I lmnglned you'd be." "Oh? And I fancy I'm not at all whom you Imagined me to be." "neavensl Am I ejecting nn Inuo- cent bystander? You are Lady Bazelhurst?" Bazel-hurst?" "I nm Penelope Drake But," sho added quickly, "1 am an enemy I am Lord Bazclhurst's sister " "You you don't mean It?" "Arc you disappointed? I'm sorry." "1 nm i.tnggeiecl and a bit skeptical There is 110 teseinblauce" "I nm 11 bit taller," she admitted carefully. "It Isn't ilieadfully Immodest, Immod-est, Is It. for one to hold comerse with her captor? 1 am In jour power, jou sec." "On tho contrnrj-. It Is qulto the thing. The hciolnc always coinerses with tho villain lu books. She tells him whnt sho thinks of him." "But this Isn't n book, and I'm not a heroine. I nm tho adventuress. Will j-ou permit me to cxplnlu my presence on your land?" "No excuse Is necessary. You wen-caught wen-caught red handed, nnd you don't hae to say anything to Incilmlnnto yourself further." "But It Is scocely a hundred feet to Mir Hue. In u verj few minutes I shall be hurled relentlessly from jour land and may never lme another chance to tell why I dared to cntuio ocr here You see, you have n haunted house on your land, nnd 1" She hesitated "I seo. Tho old Kenwood cottage on tho hill Been deserted for years Kenwood brought his wlfo up hero In the mountains long ago and murdered her. Site mines back occasionallj. they say; mjKterloiiH noises nud lights and all that. Well?" "Well. Tin crj much Interested In spooks. In spite of the feud I rode un lioiv for a peep at tho bouse I 'i tr nn- - s n itcMilutc looking place I dl l:i iislih1. of course Why '1 !i t i I' "r It down?" Mil ' ;i"lc' the ghost of bouse ! 'dti., rimt would be heartless i'i-lie- 11 M-ixes as au attraction to lu iir.: l,nrx to uiv otherwise 1111 nlliliiug p'acc I'm terribly sorry the fortunes 1 f war prewnt mo from offering to take jou through the house But as long as jou remain n Hazel hurst I can't neglect my vow. Of course, I don't mean to say that you can't come nnd do what you please over here, but you shall bo recognized and trented as 11 trespasser." "Oh. that's Just splendid! Perhaps I'll come tomorrow." "I shall be obliged to escort you from the grounds, you know." "Yes. I know." she said agreeably ne looked dazed nnd delighted. "Of course I shall come with stenlth and darkly Not even my brother shall Uiniw of 1 ij plans" '('ertalnlj not." he said with alae rltj. Thi'- were Hearing the line 1 "llrpencl on me" "Depend on jou? Your only duty Is to scare 1110 off the plnce." "That's what I mean I'll keep sharp watch for you up at tho haunt Pd house," "It's more than a mile from the lino," she advised .dm "Yes. I know," said he, with his friendliest pmlle. "Oh, by the way. would you mind doing jour brother 11 favor. Miss Drake? GIYci him !!)! wntch. Hc-or-he must have clroipofl it while pursuing me " "Yon rail?" She accepted the watch with surprise and unbelief. "Here Is tho line. Miss Drake," he evaded. "Consider yourself Ignomln lously ejected, llnvo I been unneces snrlly rough and expeditious?" "You hnvo had a long nnd tiresome walk," sho sold, settling herself for n merry clip. "Plense don't step on our side." Ho released tho brldlo rein and doffed his bat "I shall bring my horso tomorrow," bo remarked significantly. "1 may bring tho duke," she snld sweetly. "In thnt case I shall line to bring nn extra ninn to lead his horse It won't mntter." "So this rock Is the dividing line?" "Yes; you are on the safe bUIo now -and so aui I, for that matter. The lino Is here." and ho drew n broad line In tho dust from ono sldo of tho road to tho other. "My orders nre that you are not to ride across that lino at your peril." "And you ore not to cross It either at your peril ' "Do you dare me?" with nn eager step forwnnl "lioouuy "Good by 1 I say. arc you sure jou can Unci tho Kenwood cottnge?" lie called after her The answer mine hack through tho clatter of hoofs, ae conipanlecl by 11 smllo thnt seduced his self possession i shall lliul It lu time." I'm- 11 lung time lie stood watching her as she raced down the road. "At mj iierll," he mused, shaking Ids head with a queer Hindu "By George, that's fair warning enough She's beautiful " At dinner that night the lion Pene lope rcstcncsl the wntch to her broth cr, much to Ids embarrassment, for he had told tilt duke It was being repair cd In town "It wasn't this watch that 1 meant, old chap." ho nnuounced Irreverently to the duke, qulto red In tho fncc. "Where illd jou find It. Pen?" She cnught the plea in Ms eye and responded loynlly "You dropped It, I daresay, In pur Biilng Mr. Shaw." Tho poslthe radiance which followed dismay In his watery ejes com lined her beyond all doubt thnt her brother's encounter with the tnll Mr. Shnw was not quite creditable to Ilazelhurst nrms Kho listened with pensile IndllTcreiice to the oft lepeatecl story of how he had muted the "Insufferable cad." en couraged bj the support of champagne and the solicited uppioMil of two eje witnesses She could mil lepiess the mixed feelings of scorn simnie and pity, as she sunojed the iirtin of men who so mercilessly tlnjul i'ie healtlK fnlr faced young tnnn with 11 gentle strength The hori p-iru hud been auuineiili'il dining tl' d i ! the 1 irl. ' of .1 h If I a dozen men unci woim 11 fiom t!,e itj ( br.ilu fagte I. llHis 1, -id kiiiiiiI. The big collnte now wn- full. Ihe coin f pany miiii leic for three weeks at least She- looked ill end., till- ricdi iIimihuih f; joilllg Ki l-.hwoiii.iu. nud wmideled ,: how she w if I 1 eiiduit the stateness of 1 life. Theie was mime ie!h X In the i'i mgli. . that the men would tuiike tM to III good I00KI11; ,oii!i: iiinied women ' at leat i..,t nl t' I' nts 11 ml but 1 S : M - "Hare ii tho line, Miss Drake." depressed her In turn to think of thu leftover husbands who would make love to her. "Why Is It that Evelyn doesn't have real men here llko this Mr, Shaw?" sho found herself wondorlug vaguely ns tho night woro on. To bo Continued |