(1- AU“. \— I /~\\‘- I ;u_“ Wmowmmn.uua »' n‘ ' . " .': “My. 'l J " ' _, .. av 1; heard a sharp crash, followed by a. flash in the water and a piercing cry. _ Marble shouted his companion’s name, 6 l returned. r R'I‘he old fool has fallen off and is drowned!” he exclaimed. “ But it was no fault of mine. Neither can I help him by standing here in this storm. I have had enough for one night. I don’t understand the meaning of that beacon. Ugh! how this rain pours down. I must seek shelter.” but no CHAPTER III. THE SPIRIT or THE SURF. “ BOAT, ’0!” “W'hereaway?” shouted the commander of the Sea Jewel as the cry came from the look- out. “ Just ofi! our lee quarter, sir, standing direct- ly in our course.” “ W hat do you make of it?” “ It holds but one person, sir, and that seems to be a Woman!” “ A woman? Great fire! I had hoped it was some one to help us out of this condemned scrape. Hand me my glass, Adlon. - “ Here, gunner, seep up that firing! Unless some one comes to our aid within ten minutes we are lost. Condemn these waters and all the pilots in Christendom. They—” A deafening pea! of thunder ended the irate skipper’s speech. As soon as it had ceased be seized his glass to look for the approaching boat. . ‘ If the scene seemed wild and tempestuous up- on the shorc, it was doubly so on the Sea Jewel, that was groaning and creaking, fearfully as it was driven before the tempest. . Again the minute gun sent out its appeal for help, while the vessel plunged more hopelessly than ever. lts commander had hoped to make port before night should come on, but a strong head-Wind had beat dead against him all day, and in strange waters he had missed his calculation. To add to his dlscomfiture the storm rose rapid- ly; and then, hemmed in by the rocks and reefs of Black Ledge Coast, the situation was far from assuring. ' Naturally passionate and easily incensed, Cap- Captain Morrows was unusually nervous and excited. The crew, reading in each other’s faces dread forebodings of peril, waited impatiently forthe reappearance of the boat. “ What do you make of it, captain!” asked the first officer, as a lull in the tempest followed the recent outburst. “ lt’fi a woman, sure! She is dressed in white, too. But, ’pon my soul, she rides the waves like a water witch l” “ Ahoy! There she comes!” cried an old sailor, excitedly, as the strange boat rose on one of the billows into sight to disappear the next moment in the trough of the sea. “ Shiver my timbers, if it ain’t the Spirit of the Surf! We are saved !” “ Spirit of Neptune!” thundered Captain Morrows. “ It’s a ghostly figure which can mean no good to us. “ Mr. Ashby, see that a storm staysail is rigged at once. We are drifting upon the rocks at a fearful rate. Great guns, how furious the gale grows!” Willing hands sprung to do the bidding of the officer, when the ship bore nobly up against the tempest—lashed sea. But the respite, if it could be called such, must be of short duration. Lurid flashes 'now followed each other in rapid succession, accmnpanied by the deafening crash of near-by thunder that seemed to rend the very air around them, while the billows lashed in wildest fury the surf—bound rocks and reefs upon which, with frightful peed, the wind in its giant power was sweeping the ill-fated brig. Over all a night of Cimmerian gloom was fast falling like a pail. In spite of their peril, the approach of the boat was watched with feverish anxiety. Like drowning men catching at a straw they watched and waited. “It is the Spirit!” exclaimed the old sea-dog as the figure in white reappeared upon the next swell of the upheaved deep. “ She has saved more than one good ship and she will save us.” “ Out upon you for a lubberl” roared Captain Morrows. “ What can a woman do in a storm like this?” “Ship ahoy! What ship is that?” rung in a shrill tone above the tumult of the elements. “ The Sea Jewel !” answered the skipper, “ lost in these condemned waters! We—” A pea! of thunder drowned his trumpet tone. “ Sea Jewel, ahoyl” came from the boat a minute later. “If you wish a pilot, lay to so I cancome aboard.” “ Not for a woman! Who are you,,anyway?” “ The Spirit of the Surf! I had come to save you. But, do as you like i” A mocking laugh was home to the ears of the distracted seamen. “ See! she is heading back!” cried the old tar, who had previously spoken. A groan went up from the crew. Captain Morrows gave utterance to a muttered malediction at his own folly. , “ She hesitates! She turns this way l"exclaim- ed a young man standing beside the skipper, “ She points toward the rocks.” Hastily raising his trumpet, Captain Morrows phouted at the full strength of his stentorian ungs: “ Spirit or mortal, if you can save us, come aboard l” “ Ay, ay, air!” As if propelled by superhuman hands the boat shot alongside. Light hands seized the grapplings, and with surfirising agility the strange pilot gained the 00 . “ It is her!” declared old Jack Seabell under his breath. “ And she never boards a ship ’cept in desperate cases.” Captain Morrows fixed his piercin gaze upon the girlish form; but his vision to! before the deep-blue eyes that met his with what seemed a supernatural light. he words upon his lips did away. One question filled the mind of every sailor present: Was she spirit or mortal? Her countenance seemed to bear a spiritual loveliness, while it was as hueless as the white raiment she wore. “ Umph l” exclaimed the bluff skipper, the first to recover his self-possession. “ Are you the only pilot they have at Black Ledge, miss?” “ I know nothing of the pilots of Black Ledge,” she replied in a tone that thrilled every listener. “ But see! there is no time to lose if you wish to reach the harbor. Trust your fate in my hands and you have nothing to fear.” “ I doubt it. No girl—” He was checked in his speech bya blinding flash, followed by a crash more deafening than any before. t was a moment of terrible suspense. " For God's sake, Captain Morrows, don’t hesitate,” cried a clear voice. “ Our only hope is in the girl.” It was young Dean Hammond who spoke. “ Go forward, miss,” cried Captain Morrows, huskily. “ Save us. or, by the soul of Neptune, your own life shall be the forfeit f” He might have added, as well as all their Own. Unheediug his threat or the looks of wonder from the others, the girl quickly stationed her- self upon the fore—yard-arm, from whence her orders were passed along to the helmsman in a clear, ringing tone. The Sea Jewel was speedily put before the gale, to be borne on at a mad rate to what seemed certain destruction. Higher and thicker rose the frowning rocks of Death Reef, telling only too plainly that the hidden dangers of the depths Were rapidly en- compassing all. Night had now fairly set in, and same the daz— zling glare of the lurid flashes, a sickening som- berness hung over the storm-riven scene. Forging its way furiously forward, the gal- laut ship soon left the open sea behind and plunged in among the towering rocks which spread their forbidding forms on either hand. The water was here lashed into foam-fiecked waves that broke upon the reefs With an ominous roaring and hissing so'und. . Feeling the strong vessel trembling beneath the terrible pressure brought to bear upon its timbers, the seamen looked forward with white faces, trying in vain to penetrate the gloom more than the ship’s length ahead. Still, apparently as Calm as if danger was un- known, the strange girl pilot stood at her post, directing the ship’s course in a confident tone that gave life and courage to the dismayed crew. As the first rocky point was safely passed, all began to breathe easier, and felt that in her hands their lives Were safe. But singularly enough, not so with Captain Morrows. A brute at heart, he lacked the moral courage of a man. i As he beheld the fearful vortex into which they seemed to be rushing to a certain doom, his rugged face grew ashen in its hue. He clutched the ship’s rail frantically and looking like a madman, he cried: “ We are lost! Girl, you will drive us on the rocks!” I Without heading his cries, she continued to call out her orders and watched with straining eyes the channel ahead. At that moment the distant peal of the bell reached their ears. _ As its notes fell on the stormy scene, a Wild cry rung from Captain Morrows. . “ ’Tis the bell of St. Julian!” he cried, “ we are saved!” _ _ Seeing, the next instant, that the girl-pilot paid no heed to the warning notes, but kept the ship upon her course, ignoring everything save the perils ahead, he shrieked: “ Girl, are you mad? Leave that yard or I’ll shoot you!” Only her white face turned for a moment to- ward him gave reply, as she cried: “ Hard a-port J” “ Ay, ay! Port it is!” “ Steady—” With a wild cry upon his ashen lips, Captain Morrows sprung to the helmsman’s side than- dering: I “ on’t mind that girl! Starboard—hard !” The terrified seamen glanced up, and his grasp loosed upon the spokes, when the ship lurched to the starboard, creaking and groaning in every timber. ‘ “Hard a-port— quick! for your life!” shrieked the sub-pilot, from aloft. Her tone aroused the helmsman to a sense of his duty, when he tugged at the wheel with frangc energy. “ 00]!” yelled Morrows, “that be]! is our only hope!” and, with a powerful blow he felled the seaman to the deck, to seize the spokes in his owu giant’s grasp and quickly bring the ship half a length on the starboard tack! A wild cry came from the girl as she realized the sudden change. “Port hard! or you’ll run us on Wrecker’s Reef! That bell leads to the Ribs of Death! Port! port! I sav! or we are all lost!” (To be continued.) SABBA'IHIIORN IN THE'COUNTRY. BY B S. KELLER. L0! in the east the morning sun uprises, Tlnting the dewdrops with its golden beam, The whistling cowboy’s pursedvuxi lip devises A psalm like strain along the pasture’s stream. The birds they ipe in alder bush and bramble Their softest ays in fond response; o'er dells And mountain ~ peaks where tangled bushes scramble, There steals the echo faint of Sabbath bells. THE “ Wanted: Woman; WhoWas the Blacksmith’s Daughter? BY ALBERT W. AIKEN. CHAPTER XIX. A STRANGE STORY. As the potent fumes of the chloroform at length spent their power the abducted girl awoke to a knowledge of her position. _ Slowly and feeny she opened her eyes, for the dose which had been administered was a terrible one, almost enough to conquer life itself, and it was only by a violent struggle that nature won the victory. In astonishment the girl looked around her; though half-stupefied, she could not help at once noticing the difference between the plainly-fur- nished room which she had occupied at the hotel in common with Sara. Pearl and the elegantly fitted-up sleeping apartment in which she now reposed. True, the peculiar, musty, sickening smell, which reminded one so much of a charnel-house, was plainly perceptible, despite the fact that pastilles had been burnt until their aromatic perfume hung in cloudlike rings of blue smoke in the air, and a cheerful fire burnt in the open grate st0ve which stood in the fire-place. “ What did it mean?" the girl asked. By what magic had the faded carpet, the old hair-cloth chairs, the dingy window curtains, and the general forlorn look of the hotel sleep- ing apartment been changed for Brussels ca t, silk-covered chairs, a. bed fit for a queen, an an air of luxury that would not have been amiss in an emperor’s palace? At first the girl could hardly believe that she was awake; it seemed so like the fantasy of a dream. She was not alone; a female sat by the win- dow, nestled in the embraces of an elaborately- cushioned rocking-chair; a book was in her hands, but her eyes were not upon the printed page, but wandering restlessly out upon the fair view of the swelling waters of the Sound that the window commanded. Naturally, at the first glance the actress took the form to be that of Sara Pearl, her mom— mate, although how she and Sara had come into this splendid apartment was a mystery, but, as she moved uneasily in the bed to get a better view of her surroundings, the other rose and at once advanced to the side of the couch. Then Helen saw that it was not Sara, but a stranger—a tail, stately woman, dressed com- pletely in black, with a really beautiful face, although it bore evident marks of care and anxiety; but one strange thing about the wo- man was the fact that her hair, which was a rich golden ellow in color, was cut of! quite short, cut f ly as short as a boy’s is usually worn. "‘ Are you better, dear?” the woman asked, kindly, standing by the bedside and gazing down upon the girl with a very strange, peculiar look upon her face. And then, as Helen looked up into the face of the woman, an odd idea came into her mind. The woman was a stranger; she knew that she had never seen her before, and yet it seemed as if she had. A conflict was going on in her mind. Reason said—“ You have never seen this .face before!” Fancy replied—“ Oh, yes, I have, often !” The girl closed her eyes for a moment; it was as if she was wrestling with the influence of a horrid dream; never before had she experienced such a strange feeling. Of course, the influence of the drug still clung to her, although she was ignorant of the strange events which had occurred. “ What is the matter? Where am If” Helen demanded, sitting upright in the bed. “ You have received a severe shock, dear, and you have been ill for uite a time. You rose in your sleep in the hate 'in New Haven and wan- dered out into the hall, and then, in the dark- ness, you fell down the stairway. My room—l happened to be stopping at the hotel that night on the way to my home here~was right at .the foot of the stairs, and your fall awoke me. rushed out to find you insensible in the ball. The doctor who was called said that you were threatened with hruin-fever———as you had re— ceived the whole shock upon your head—so when I found that you were a member of the troupe and that you would be left behind until you got Well, I concluded not to trust you to the mercies of the hotel folks, but had you brought down here to my country-house, where I could nurse you into health again.” ' “ Oh, you are very kind, madam!” the girl exclaimed “gratefully, never for a single instant doubting the truth of the story. “ Do not attempt to sit up too long,” the lady said, busying herself by arranging the pillows so that the girl could repose more Comfortably in a half-reclining Rosition. “ How long ave I been here?" “ Three days.” “And I have not been sensible all that time?" “ No, dear.” “ How strange it is,” the girl murmured, thoughtful! , “ f( .r it seems as if it was only last night that retired to rest.” “ When the brain is disordered we do not take account of time.” . “ Very true.” Never was there an imposture more complete; not a single doubt did the girl have. Her head ached from the effects of the drug, and natural- ly she felt faint and ill. , “You are very kind,” she continued, slowly. “ I fear that I never shall be able to repay you for this goodness to a stranger.” “Not exactly a stranger, my dear,” replied the other, with a pleasant smile, and then she movod the rocking-chair over and sat down by the bedside. Helen looked at her for a moment in a puzzled sort of way. “ Not exactly a stranger,” the other re— peated. “Your face does seem familiar to me, and yet the remembrance is more like the fantasy of a dream than anything else,” the girl remarked, thoroughly puzzled. “ I knew your family in England a great many years—more years than I should care to own to, for to do so would be to make myself out quite an old woman.” And the speaker smiled; but to the girl, de- spite the pleasant face of the woman, there was something odd and uncanny about the smile, and a restless spirit—good perhaps, and perhaps evil ——seemed to be lurking in the depths of the full blue eyes. As the fumes of the drug were more complete- ly neutralized the mind of the girl began to work with its accustomed clearness. The statement of the lady seemed to her won— derful, for, how on earth was it possible that any one—a stranger, too—could know anything about her or her family! .But the presumption came at once to her mind that the lady was laboring under a mistake, misled by her false stage name—a doubt which the other seemed to fathom. - “ You question the correctness of my state ment,” she observed, the same peculiar smile up— on her fnce which had so unpleasantly affected the young girl before. “ I think you must have made some mistake, madam,” Helen admitted. “Oh, no; I recognized you by your resem- blance to your family. I was not deceived by your stage name. Although I know very little of the theatrical life, yet I am aware that a great many of the player-people assume false names; of course there is no particular harm in it. Those brave enough to dare the glare of a public life can hardly be blamed for wishing to in part hide themselves behind a mask. I know what your true name is; it is a nod old English family appellation, and althoug not as pretty perhaps as you fanciful stage name, yet to my mind is far better. I recognized you the in- stant you appeared on the stage as Miss Sara Pearl.” ‘ “ Sara Pearl!” the girl exclaimed, in amaze ment; “ why, that is not my name. I am not Sara Pearl; my name is Helen Bell.” The lady contracted the pupils of her eyes in a Very peculiar way for a moment, and then she laughed outright. “ Well, that is a blunder; but, Sara Pearl or Helen Bell, you cannot deny that your right name is neither the one nor the other, but Halah Kunibell.” CHAPTER XX. A BIT or FAMILY HISTORY. HER true name coming from the lips of the strange lady astounded the girl. And, ten, she must be speaking the truth when she had said that she was acquainted with her family. “ You are willing to acknowledge then that your name is Halah Kunibell?” the woman re- marked after a pause. , “Oh, yes; why should ‘I deny it? I am not ashamed of the life that I have chosen, although by advice of one who was well acquainted with the stage I assumed another name. ’ The lady, although her eyes were fixed upon the face of the girl, was evidently paying but little attention to What she was saying. “ I knew your sister, once— our sister Hada; where is she? Is she living? hat has ecome of her?” she cried, abruptly, her naturally sweet voice suddenly becoming harsh and mechanical. “ My sister, Hada!” the actress cried, in amazement. “ Why, I never had a sister by that name!” “ No sister Hada?” And the lady bent her brows and almost scowled at the girl; so fierce was the expression upon her face and so wild the look, that a slight sentiment of fear crept over Helen. “ No, not to my ku0wledge.” “ How strange that they should deceive you and keep all knowledge of the unfortunate Hada from you!” the woman muttered, her tone angry and her mind evidently full of bitter thoughts. “Did I really have a sister named Hada?” asked the girl, her curiosity excited. “ Yes, a sister about tWi’nty years older than you are, I should judge; you are about twenty, are you not?” ‘ H Yes.” “ And where are our father and mother?” “ Both dead,” rep ied Helen. " Judge not. lest ye be judged !” exclaimed the lad , in a strange, mechanical sort of way. ‘ hey j caged—Judged harshly, not wisely; and now—well, the great book of mysteries is open to them, and they can tell whether they judged well or ill. But, how came you to come to this countryb Surely, it was a long journey for a young girl all alone—that is, if you came alone.” I “ I came with my father and mother when I wa‘s‘iavghild.” ati‘ cried the woman with startlin earnestness, “ did Sabban Kuniliell and his wifg co‘m§ to America?” “ And they died here?” “ Yes.” “How lon ago was it when the when did n.8,. die?” y came’ and ' “ They came when I was a child, seventeen or eighteen years ago; mother died first, and father only a few months ago.” “ That accounts for it,” the lady muttered, in her strau e way. “ Hada was your father’s daughter, at she displeased him and they part- ed,” she continued, addressin herself directly to the girl. “ There was ba blood between them; not all Hada’s fault, either, for, though she was wild and willful and loved her own way yet she was good at heart and dearly loved her parents. She came to this country, and when years passed on her heart softened to the parents With whom she had quarreled, and she wrote to them. The letters were never answered I pre- sume because they were never received, for the father, by your statement, was in America at the time: but evidently it matters not, for since Sabban Kunibell suffered you to grow up in ignorance of your elder sister, the andg‘ry feeling which he had for his willful child d not die out with the lapse of years. The quarrel be- tween the father and daughter was a bitter one. She had chosen a certain path in life, and was determined to walk in it; he, on the contrary, was determined that she should not, and with bitter emphasis he told her that if she persisted in her determination, from the time she quitted his house she would Cease to be his daughter, and that as long as he lived be Would never ac- knowledge her asa child. The daughter, fully as proud, as haughty and as stubborn as the father, answered him in kind. She had chosen her way, and she would Walk in it regardless of consequences. And she u as as good as her word. But when years passed, and the hot blood of youth became cooled by age and ex- perience, better feelings prevailed, and the dis- obedient daughter, repentant of her folly, would have become reconciled to her parents, but fate had willed it otherwise.” The woman bent down her head and fellinto a fit of musing, while the oung actress watched with wondering eyes. .‘lraug‘e thoughts were in her mind. Who was this woman, who, seem- ingly, was so Well acquainted with her family history? and was it really true that she had had an elder sister, Maria? The name was an odd Biblical one like her own. Her father had a strange fancy for such names, too. Ills numb. Was Sabban, her mother's Rachel; so Biblical names seemed to run in tho family. There seemed to be trth in her story, for she had described her father’s character exactly; although one of the kindest of men, yet he was lmplacnbly stubborn when his mind was made up; and now as she recalled events, there came to her recollection strange speecln-s which had escaped from her mother at times~specchcs which had puzzled her since, for she could not comprehend what they meant; but now that she had gained a knowledge of the existence of an elder sister, it was evident the speeches referred to her. The heart of the mother sorrowed for her first-born and refused to be comforted. Other strange thoughts, too, were in the girl’s mind. If this stranger knew so much about her family, was it not likely that she might know the reaSon Why her father had so carefully so- eluded himself from all the world? The young actress hesitated to put the ques- tion; she shrunk from revealing, even to this welleiuformcd stranger, that there was a mys- tery in her family which baffled her efforts to penetrate. Second thoughts told her, too, that, if the lady did not know that her father had come to America it would not be likely she would know anything about the causes which led him to take the step, for the girl was sure that the mystery which surrounded her parents’ life had its rise in England and not in this country. One question, though, she burned to ask, and she took advantage of her companion’s waking from her reverie to propound it. . “ Is my sister Hada alive?” she asked, slewly and with a timid air. It was the most natural question in the world under the circumstances, and yet, there was a subtle instinct in the girl's nature which warned her that the question would not be a pleasant one. “ Alive?” cried the woman, in a loud voice, a baleful light shining in her eyes; “ no, no! She could not live! She died long years a o, and that is what has wrecked all my life. f Hada Kunibell had lived I would be a far different woman to-day from wlfat I now am; but, I do not blame you, girl, although vou are of her race,” she hastened to add, perceiving a lmk of apprehensive wonder upon Helen’s face. “ You knew nothing about it: you had not made your a pearance in this world then. 0h, girl,girll ifp you only knew the misery that year sister caused me! it is enough to make a statue weep tears of blood—rich, warm, red blood l” The face of the woman became convulsed, and she wrung her hands together as if torn by fearful agony. Helen was‘really alarmed, for it seemed as if she was about to go into hysterics. But, to the scene came a sudden interruption. The door opened quickly, without the slight- est warning, disclosing three men, who im. mediately advanced into the mom. The wo- man sprung to her feet and cast a rapid glance at the window, as if she medicated an escape, but the foremost intruder held up his finger, warningly. “ Do not try that, madam l” he exclaimed; “ it is useless.” For a moment the woman glared defiantly in— to his face, but the firm and steady look of his eyes seemed to quell her rebellious spirit, for s owly she dropped her gaze to the floor. “W'hat is the meaning of this? Why have you brought this young lady here?” he asked, after the victory was won, and he cast an in- quisitive glance at the young girl. The reader has probably suspected who the three men were. Like bloodhounds on the scent the Professor and his followers had tracked the prey; but, like the hunter, who, knowing the den of the fox, hies straightway there with- out troubling himself to follow the animal through all his devious windings. after the chase begins, so the Professor, satisfied that his game would seek the secluded cottage, came there and surprised the inmates as we have de- soribed. “ One of my whims, that .is all,” the woman replied, sullenly. “. Are you acquainted with this lady l” he ask- ed, addressln the actress. “No sir; never saw her until-this morn- ing,”t.lzielen ansWered, wondering what it all mean “ Well, you have sustained no harm, so there isn't much mischief done. I will send a car- riage for you to take you to the depdt. The troupe have gone on to Merideu, and as there has been no real injury done I trust you will Roll: ne’eution the affair any more than you can 9 p. And then the three men and the lady de- parted. leaving the young actress a prey to the greatest wonderment. CHAPTER XXI. THE RELEASE. INOvain did Helen rack bar brains for some solution of this strange affair; none came: and when the carriage arrived to take her away, some two hours later, exactly as the stranger had said, she was still completely in the dark. She had dressed herself and was sitting by the window when the vehicle drove up, eagerly awaiting its arrival. She had been almost afraid to attempt to get up, her head felt so strangely, and she was apprehensive that her strength would fail her, but, to her astonishment, upon getting up, she found that, instead of being weak, she was fully as strong as ever. This was a sourceh off lamgeznent to her, for, of course, 3 e u iev. he stor in hrfiillncss. y y regard to ie carriage sent was a bug drawn b a single horse, and driven by the Iifizhman. y The actress recognized the man immediately as being one of the three who had departed only a little while before with the lady who had talked and acted so mysteriously. “ From this person I shall probably be able to find out what all this means,” she murmured as she descended the stairs. And, as she made; her way from the house, it occurred to her that it was very singular she did not encounter any one; the house seemed deserted. “Jump in, miss!” the Irishman exclaimed, as the made her appearance at the open door. Jump in. and ’ll have yees to the depdt in milghhtyiqiiiclk time. . e g r o .eyed the injunction; the driver a the whip, and off went the horse at a brill; Helen was amazed when she looked u 291‘; andldaaw tgiat she was in the counwytmslllig a no ea,o course that sh a???“ Sty} , e had been carried ow ck must have been.” she remark “ to have been carried all this distance, and fit not to know anything about it.” Tb: driver pureed up his lips, but did not The actress looked at him for a moment; she was meditating how to frame the questions which she intended to ut, but the Irishman was not deficient in shrew ness, and, by the expres- sion upon the girl’s face, be guessed what was phasing in her mind. _ “ You mustn’t ask me any questions, miss, if you pl’ase,” be hastened to say, thus antimpat- ing the girl's purpose. “ It is my business to dhrive yees to the depOt, but not to answcr any questions. The glntlcnlan what hires me toull me to be nfther kaping a still tongue in we head, and as he remarked, miss, ‘ least said the soonest mended.’ If yces do be aftber Wanting to talk about the Country, or the illigant wea- ther, or this beautiful b‘usto of a horse, I’m your man, but no questions, do ye mind i” and the speaker, as he finished, shook his headas much as to indicate that ho was granite itself as far as this resolution was concerned. “ There is only one question that I mn anxl'ous to ask,” the girl replied. “ liedad! perhaps that man may be as bad as ten!” ” I am sure it cannot displeese or give offense to any one, if you answer it.” _ “ Fnix! whether that is to boso or not I kin tell better when I hour the qm-stion.” “Undoubtedly; but it is a very simple one, and you need not answer it if you do not Choline, or if you think by answering you Will displnase your employer.” “ That is fair enough, anyhow; so fire away will it!” “ \Vlmt day of the weck is ibis?” Tho lrislnnun looked at his companion in per- fecl astoni-lnncnt. “ (lb, come, now, llllbfi; it's making game of me, ye are l” “ Indeed, I am not; I am in sober earnest,” the girl protested. “ And don‘t ya know!" “N0. sir. lilll not!" “ Why, it‘s Wednesday.” “ Wednesday!” the actress crlmi, in amaze- ment; “ and have I been sick and out of my head for a whole Wecl; l” “ What in the name of goodness are you talk- ing about? Shure! I saw you ploy on the stage in the Black Crook last night.” “ Last night!” Helen was amazed. “ Why, that lady said I had been sick and out. of my mind for some time.” . 'I‘no Irishman indulged in a low whistle, which was clearly indicative of great astmiish- nient. “ Oh, the born divil!” he muttered, under his breath. “Then shf: deceived me, and I have not been ill long. am it was last night that i played at the New Haven ()pera House-f" “ Yis; I was there mcself.” “ But why was this deceit practiced upon me?” demanded, Helen, in amazement not unmixed with indignation. “Aha, miss, now you come to the questions you see, and I gave you warning, fair and aisy, that I couldn’t answer. But if I can‘t answer the questions I can give you a bit of advice, and if ye are the sinsible lady that I think ye are, yees may be afther taking it!" the driver re- marked, impressively. “ Don’t say a. word about this affair to anybody. Take the advice of the ould glntleman, my master, and Pam the matter drop just where it is; it will do ye no good to be curious and maybe it may bring harm to some wan e se." “ But, all this is very mysterious and I do not understand it at all!” the girl could not help pxclanning. “True for yees, miss! Shore! there's a b‘ape of queer things in this world, but the best way to get along quiet and alsy is never to mind them the Pants bit, at all, at all.” The more the young actress under-ed the more puzzled she became, but know ng that she would not get any more explanation: from her compon- ion she held her pence. It did not take long to rcacb the dopm, and as it happened the Merlden train wasln “ailing. “ There‘s your train now, miss," o-Xt'lnlulmi the driver, after they had alighted from the carriage; “ you had better hurry right on board, min, for it will be 011' in a minute. I have the ticket for yew.” And so, almost before she knew it. she found herself seated in the car. The bell rung, the conductor's “ All aboard!” was shouted, and then the irishman placed a sealed enveh pa in the irl's hand. “ our ticket’s inside, miss; gOod-by, ma’am!" and he hurried from the car, jumping ofi’ just as the train moved away. Decidedly bewildered by all these strange cir- cumstances, our country girl Opened the envelOpe, which was addresSed to Miss Helen Bell. As the man had said, there was a railroad ticket inside, and with the ticket there was a note. She open- ed it and a twenty-dollar bill dropped out into her lap. The note, short and very much to the point, read as follows: “ Miss Batu—Inclosed please find twent dollars as a slight recompense for the trouble to w ich Von have been put, and the writer of these lines will take it as a favor if you will keep the matter a profound secret, as the publication of your adventure cannot possibly do on any good, and will most certainly do harm bot to yourself and others.“ There was no signature to this note, which was written in a firm, clerkly band. . Altogether the whole affair was a most aston- ishing one, and the more the girl reflected upon it the more bewildered she became. The twenty dollars she would not have aCcepted if she could have helped herself, but she couldn’t very well return It at present, yet she made up her mind that she would do so at some future time if she ever had the chance. Her train was only an hour later than the one On which the troupe had traveled, and being an “Express,” while the other was an ” Accom- modation,” she arrived in Meriden while the troupe were still at the (lei-6t. There had been a mistake in regard to the hotels. The one which had contracted to take the party discovered that it would not be able to spare rooms enough to entertain them all; so the mana ers were forced to skirmish round to provide a iding for these members who could not be kept at the principal house, and nding thesgtnegotlations all the party remain at the , the first rsons Miss Bell encountered up- on descendmg mm the cars were Sara Pearl and Gordon Mallory. “ I knew you would come!" Sara cried. anger- ly, rushing forward to take her friend by the hand. “ Yes, I came as soon as I could; b t 0 Sara, I have had such an aliventuml"uilel:d exclaimed. :2 And you didn’t go of? with that follow?" (lo of! with who?” The young actress was aigzzed. i i ra pr0( now both of the letters the one written to the manager by the false lie Silvio, and the few lines left in the sleeping apartment. can,%oargir:iiu: the wagging-rm)": where they a as so,’ to friend toward the door. mm' damn“ h“ In the waiting-nom, which was comparatively free from people, there was a full and free up ganauon between the two girls; and Sara, bob r acquainted with the world than the other speedily guessed the truth. . “ W e were both chloroformed; abducted, and if it hadn’t been for those men coming as they did, you can depend upon it that that rascal of a Cuban Would soon have made his‘appearnnce!” Sara eXclalmed. Shrer of wit as the actress certainly was yet it was not within the range of human will dpm for her to guess that the lady and the ( uban were one and the some, nor could she in the least explain the mystery of the. three men, but. her counsel in regard to the twentydollar millage: emiinejntl practical. urn t ot bya good 3i ht, m dear! It was given to you fmly; you gkeep d, or if you feel any compunctious about so doing, hand it over to me. haVen’t received anything to pay me for what I had to suffer.” advgdtzbzs {vats the end of the incomprehensible I . in s run or o c ‘ for the ambitious cou‘i‘itry gill?“ we" m “on then you were (To be continued~commenccd in N9. 518.) fin.“q)’m .- .—-—.--»~ -~ ‘7...— ~<~,“V~"-- A mN- mph.” 9 »- — o W! Iva—.m— e.- W» .— .- ~m».-...‘y-mw m»---—-—'rv—”vcw .......4._ ’I” ». a. . yozy: