Show ahe vale of aragam B by y fred luthor lu thor of 1 ciz blade ar 9 Pi cardu d W V I 1 CV cavi Vi tv bati t marf ill C S Z V CPS THE STORY in the city of N new or orleans e ang in 1811 1821 loren gardien garde recon recently aly an officer under general jackson Is surprised by the appearance in ancient spanish costume of two men and a woman whose beauty enchants him resenting tile the arrogance of the elder or of the two men garde cards fights with him and wounds him lie ile learns his opponent Is adolfo do de fuentes Fuen tec colonel in the spanish army in venezuela garde overhears a plot to overthrow spanish rule in venezuela discovered he fights but Is overpowered and made prisoner on the santa lucrecia Luc ship bearing arms for the venezuelans Venezuela ns on board are the cone conspirators p fraters fra tors the lady of oc his lovo love her brother polito and do de fuentes from the girl garde learns earris her name Is dulce lamar aina lie he loves her bu but t does not reveal h his I 1 3 1 love ov e the vessel Is wracked and garde reaches arlies re the venezuelan shore alone ile he encounters a stranger and sees do dulce ice the stranger who Is captain Mo monahan ol of tho the british legion under bolivar urges gardo garde de to join the venezuelans Venezuela ns but his mind Is set on again seeing dulce monahan Mo directs him to friends in caracas there supplied by Bro monahan nahan with the secret sign of the patriots he Is welcomed at the revolutionary headquarters garde attends the wedding of 0 dulce and do de fuentes dulce recognizes him and leaves de fuentes at the altar she Is torn from gardes arms ile he escapes finding garde dulce tells him her wedding to do de F fuentes was to have been the price of gardes life they reveal their mutual love garde Is made prisoner from do de fuentes garde learns that dulce has disappeared ile he Is rescued from prison by a revolutionist manuel CHAPTER VI continued 10 I 1 laughed softly for or I 1 saw another chance at life and another chance to win the glorious lamartina Lamart lna it if bolivar has haa many men like you manuelm manuel M we turned toward the south and ran for half a mile stopping at last in the gloom afforded by a tall adobe building here we found two horses one saddled saddle for travel and the other already bearing a man Pol itol I 1 cried for the riders head and throat were almost concealed by the folds of a bandage ills shoulders shook in silent laughter I 1 supposed and lie he whispered something unintelligible and tutored tuc ed toward the other horse cut but polito my friend I 1 objected you cannot do this thing it will wreck your career and and you owe me no sacrifice I 1 cannot let you rather would I 1 seek the firing squad the gauntleted gauntlet cd hand that put upon my shoulder shook a little ile tried to speak gasped caught at ills his throat and went off into a convulsion of coughing manuel spoke deep earnestness in ills his voice you must do as we suggest senor for many things of importance depend upon it we plan a swift stroke senor and your assis assistance t Is necessary in our planning besides you owe your life to those who follow bolivar have not a score of men this r ait jeopardized their lives for thee have not cot IV I 1 now I 1 was ashamed for the crafty manuel spoke only truth yes my friend said 1 I 1 I threw a leg over the horse and the swarthy sailor proffered a pistol which I 1 pocketed I 1 put a hand on ills his shoulder if bolivar needs a nother another arm senor lie he will find nine mine strong enough and very willing indeed for I 1 owe him much viva I 1 said the sailor point your horses toward tile the southern cross and ride throughout the night ride swiftly for the mounts you have are the best this city affords sunrise should find you beyond Ocum ocumare are where the lines of bolivar begin and where yon will find safety now bodlos A pleasant trip to both of youl with the naming flaming southern cross to point the way with the glory of the tull lull moon above the open country ahead a line horse between my knees and a companion well perhaps my companion comp anlon did lack necessary companionable qualities yet I 1 could attribute some of ills his silence to ills his cold and the rest of it to the black thoughts that must possess him tor for no man turns ills his back upon ills his country with a light heart with a sidelong glance I 1 studied the lithe figure that even the black and gray cloak could not entirely hide A perfect night polito eh lie ile nodded you are silent my friend ile he turned his head to give me one swift look then regarded the road again 1 I inest must thank you polito for the part you took in my escape this night adolfo planned to have me shot tomorrow morning so my life Is yours this brought a gasp no moro more and I 1 tried again do you know my friend I 1 ventured where your els als ter is ue lie was silent and I 1 continued 1 I have told the senorita of my love and failed miserably as I 1 deserve lie ile offered no comment she told me today in the home of the good tomas that tomorrow she would wed de fuentes no lie he whispered not nol A sort of sacrifice my friend for what she imagines I 1 have done for her a thing that makes melove me love her very much but slie she would not he said not row now there Is no need besides 10 now cow I 1 laughed adolfo will marry no one tomorrow polito nor the day after nor for many days because the proud colonel will never go into the cathedral and stand up be fore the people of caracas with the face that he will be wearing tomorrow polito put out a gauntleted hand what he questioned you tou have 1 I have done everything but kill him my friend and manuel and his bis courageous stayed me just in time something in my blood calls for his life we are proud polito and he lies has called me ladrone in new orleans did he not try to kill me polito nodded and many weary miles were put behind us before another word was spoken the moon was yet an hour above the crest of the carabobo Car abobo hills bills when we passed through the sleeping hamlet of cua cos and turning our horses toward the so southeast uth east took the broad road that led to ocumare Ocum are from ocumare we went south again between fields of cane and malze maize and of melons barely visible in the graying dawn swiftly we took the gentle ascent approaching the broad range that Is the barrier beewen the waters of the orinoco and the caribbean sea we thundered through a canon and a pass opened out ahead of us a wide pass on tile the southern rim of a vast amphitheater here wo we stopped our panting horses and surveyed the scene ahead of us beyond the pass would lay manifestly the valley of tho the orl ori noco and the valley of the orinoco would be we knew under control of 0 those who served bolivar bolhar polito Poll to I 1 said 1 I do not know why you approach the lines of the revolutionists you are therefore in danger for a spanish officer in the hands of venezuelans Venezuela ns who have heard ere nils mils of bucayan would have little chance for its his life ocumare Ocum are with safety tor for you lies not so far behind Us ile he sat eat with head averted 1 I do not core care he whispered could we not you abrow your life away senor besides the senorita dulce will surely need you iou nut dut senor he whispered will I 1 think it had bad been ills his desire to ask what chance 1 I in spanish uniform might have boe with the followers of bolivar but an interruption came an interruption in the guise of a body 0 of f armed hoi horsemen semen who approaching from the southward appeared in the pass weapons gleaming in the morning light 1 I am terrified senor 1 I 1 turned upon my companion in amazement for polito would never have hate said bald that mother of G d S enorata what madness is this I 1 had ridden beside her through the night had talked of many things what had I 1 said what stupid blunders tied had I 1 made I 1 had professed a deathless love loe for her and had failed to see through a simple als disguise alse ulse but tor for that look of terror in her eyes I 1 should have laughed III 1 I I 1 would leave caracas senor she had given ghen herself into in to my keeping had bad permitted me to tell her of my love ali ah that was a n joy I 1 now the tha horsemen let out wild yells and bore down don upon us there Is no safety liere here for you e showed white teeth in a pleased gini gi r if you do not like the span ar kp senor why the uniform one must get through the lines of maln this uniform has hai been borrowed for the occasion and the fornier rc owner of it doubtless nurses a woken broken head I 1 smiled reassuringly li bt met no response in his eyes yoet artour 0 ur story Is interesting senor now tell me it if your desire to serve us u I 1 is s sincere why you aided the spanish officer to escape what could I 1 say could I 1 tell him that the spanish officer was the senorita lamartina Lamart lna fiancee of colonel de fuentes and that 1 I coming to offer service to bolivar had sent her back to the safety of the spanish lines could I 1 have hoped to make him believe such a preposterous tale perhaps said the officer after what he must have considered it a sufficient wait perhaps this companero of yours was the dauphin in dla aulse debyl eh we might just as well call him the dauphin I 1 said hopelessly lie ile offered another mirthless smile bucayan Tu cayan senor has left an evil flavor in the mouth and the blood of many spaniards will be required to wash it out ile he transfixed me with an accusing eye who sent cent you here manuel said L I 1 lie ile gasped you tou say manuel sent you aye the swarthy manuel the clever ugly sailor who happens to be ba that portion of 0 the brain of bolivar which operates in caracas humph he growled he consid ered my horse and I 1 saw an acquisitive gleam in his black eyes A fine aln horse senor aye et a gift from manuel he would look well under a colonel dont you think very well senor though unfortunately tuna tely I 1 do not expect to become a colonel now he laughed but his eyes were cold and his laughter was not a pleas ant thing to hear the wings yo yon 11 will soon possess senor will render the use of a poor earthly horse unnecessary how I 1 wanted to thrust my fist into that smiling face of his to discompose the even order of his teeth to get my fingers ile he must have sensed my murderous pas passion slon for lie he uttered a short command and two of the llaneros grasped me by the arms this officer with the bandaged head whose sa safety fety seemed so prec precious totis a thing to yo you senor you do not tell me who he Is the dauphin will do as well ax as anyone said 1 I very well one life Is little enough to spind spend to save the dauphin I 1 congratulate grat ulato you the sun senor Is just coming over the rocky crest of D f yonder mount mountain aln an excellent alm alma 0 indeed you may view it ns as you dl die e it Is more than many a poor veno vena nuelan has been permitted to do the soldiers must have anticipated the wishes of their colonel for a squad ad of eight swung into line b between face us and the sun turned to face me grounded their grins and we waited I 1 ted TO DB CONTINUED D bin then hen en wen went to a rear room of the lavirn V rn and washed ills his face and hands preparatory ep to dinner on his return the stranger was still prostrate on the floor that man got up yet dun bun asked water was thrown over tile the vanquished quis lied bully and after ho he had fully recovered he departed a wiser if not a better man lie he was never seen again in bun became the hero of Clays claysville ville and the story of that blow was carried all along that section of the national road efforts were continually made after that to match bun with others of the pike boys who were famous for the fastic prowess but bun always declined to be drawn into any more fights kelley told every detail of that famous encounter to anyone who would listen for years after it occurred david gordon six feet tall and weighing pounds of solid bone and muscle but peaceful like bun also was driving a stage coach of washington at the time and many efforts were made to get tho two men together in a ring tradition has it that the two men had a reciprocal fear of each other but they never collided and it never was settled who was the better man 0 1931 western ti irn Newt union |