G/h Javelin/ 
 
 **s 
 
 Gould Jincoln
 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 A Javelin of Fate
 
 Javelin of Fate 
 
 by 
 Jeanie Gould Lincoln 
 
 Author of'Marjorie's Attest,''' "An Unwilling Mead, 
 "A Pretty Tory," fife. 
 
 " He who will not when he may, 
 When he will, he shall have nay." 
 
 Old Englith prwtrb 
 
 BOSTON AND NEW YORK 
 HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY 
 
 Che ftmersi&e pres$, Cambridge 
 1905
 
 COPYRIGHT 190$ BY JEANIE GOULD LINCOLN 
 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 
 
 Published November igof
 
 TS 
 
 TO N. O. T. 
 
 To her who shared my rapture and delight 
 When o'er my life its brightest sunshine fell ; 
 
 To her who shares with me the lonely night, 
 And, sharing thus, her love the clouds dispel. 
 
 Washington, D. C. 
 August -5, 1905.
 
 Contents 
 
 PROLOGUE 
 
 I. In the Virginia Mountains . . i 
 
 II. Marah n 
 
 eo AFTER TWENTY YEARS 
 
 fez 
 
 I. At Conrad's Ferry . . .25 
 
 II. Mrs. Vansittart's Ball . . 38 
 
 III. The Man who Vanished . . 63 
 
 IV. A Daughter of Eve . . . 82 
 V. The Web of Circumstance . .102 
 
 VI. A Dangerous Hazard . . 112 
 
 w VII. The Misadventures of a Night . 132 
 
 VIII. Petit Jean Gossips . . 155 
 
 IX. From the War Office . . .169 
 
 3 X. By Woman's Wit . . .184 
 
 XI. At Peyton Hall . . . .200 
 
 g XII. Face to Face .... 215 
 
 XIII. At the Stroke of Twelve . . 238 
 
 | XIV. The Mills of the Gods . . 248 
 
 ^ XV. The Rankest Rebel . . .259 
 
 XVI. The Javelin Strikes . . .284 
 
 449797
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 PROLOGUE 
 
 Chapter I 
 
 In the Virginia Mountains 
 
 " EF yo' don' hurry a little, Uncle Cy, 
 them hens won't never get inside the 
 shed 'fo' the storm," said Aunt Polly, in 
 the soft musical drawl which seemed 
 to suit her ample chest as it ended with 
 a faint chuckle that is indescribable. 
 " 'Pears like we was fittin' f o' a second 
 Deluge, judgin' by the last fortnight's 
 rains, an' thar ain't no possible way as I 
 can study out fo' climbin' the mountain, 
 even 'lowin' that the Ark an' ole Massa 
 Noah was waitin' at the top to take yo' 
 an' me 'mong the passengers." 
 
 "Hi! Shoo, shoo! " responded Uncle
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 Cyrus, obediently pursuing the three 
 hens who were ducking in and out of 
 the bushes at the back of the cabin. 
 "Kin yo' 'tend to dat yaller rooster, 
 Polly? He's done hid hisself 'hind yo' 
 bar'l ob rain-water, an' he '11 dodge 
 roun' an' roun' unless yo' head him off 
 mighty spry." 
 
 Aunt Polly's chuckle deepened into 
 a laugh as she stepped cautiously out 
 side the cabin door and produced from 
 her pocket a few grains of corn which 
 she threw invitingly in front of her. 
 The hens, recognizing the familiar 
 sound, responded by a wild and simul 
 taneous rush in her direction, tumbling 
 over each other in their eagerness, but 
 the yellow rooster, having cautiously 
 extended his beak and one claw in pro 
 file around the barrel, promptly re 
 treated behind it with a defiant crow 
 which completed Uncle Cy's discom 
 fiture.
 
 In the Virginia Mountains 
 
 " 'T ain't no use," grumbled he, as 
 the second hen bounded into the friendly 
 shelter of the shed with a final cluck; 
 " dere 's nuffin' what '11 fotch dat rooster 
 'cept some pieces ob watermealyon 
 rind. Did yo' clar 'em up after dinner, 
 Polly?" 
 
 "Go 'long, Cy; d'yo' 'spose I didn't 
 remember 'bout that ? The rinds is 
 standin' on the shelf 'longside the milk- 
 in' pail ; jest yo' get 'em an' I '11 watch 
 the rooster' till yo' come back. Be spry, 
 now; land alive, that's a mighty black 
 cloud settlin' on top Silver Mountain." 
 
 Silver Mountain, so called from an 
 abandoned mine, partly prospected, from 
 which its owners had been driven by 
 lack of funds, was a spur of the Blue 
 Ridge Mountains running down into 
 the Shenandoah Valley, and there had 
 been quite a little village of huts and 
 cabins at its foot during the running 
 days, which were abandoned when the 
 3
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 company failed. Times were better 
 now, and a small but quite thriving 
 town lay to the west of it. Upon the 
 mountain road above there were few 
 houses. The nearest neighbors that 
 Uncle Cyrus and Aunt Polly laid claim 
 to were five miles lower down, and con 
 sisted of half a dozen white families, 
 old denizens of the mountains, a store, 
 and a few negro cabins. Four years 
 previous the pair had appeared on the 
 mountain, selected their location, and, 
 with the assistance of a few friendly ne 
 groes from the village, Uncle Cy had 
 put up his cabin and bestowed within 
 it what few belongings he had brought 
 in the cart which carried them thither. 
 Over at " the store " people said that 
 Aunt Polly was a manumitted slave, 
 and her superior air and manner, her 
 more carefully spoken language, to 
 gether with her straight black hair and 
 olive-brown skin, seemed to give an air 
 4
 
 In the Virginia Mountains 
 
 of truth to the story. She was still 
 comely, looking even younger than 
 her forty years. Her capabilities as 
 a nurse and skill in handling the sick 
 made her in great demand among the 
 mountaineers, especially with children, 
 of whom she was unusually fond and 
 tender. 
 
 The yellow rooster obstinately main 
 tained his position, deaf to Aunt Polly's 
 coaxing voice, aided by an inviting scrap 
 of watermelon thrown artfully in the 
 path to the shed, and the rain began to 
 fall in great drops as the wind tore and 
 rushed through the tall trees which 
 rocked behind the cabin and down past 
 the clearing at the turn of the road. 
 
 " I declare for it," called Aunt Polly, 
 raising her voice, as Uncle Cy stood 
 holding the door of the shed, " I 've a 
 mind to let that fool rooster jes' stay out 
 for to punish him." 
 
 "Hi! dat's a mighty big one," cried 
 5
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Uncle Cy, as vivid lightning flashed 
 through the heavy air, and a crash of 
 thunder rolled down the mountain side. 
 "Come 'long inside, Polly; I '11 ketch 
 him now, suah." 
 
 "Hark! there's some one coming 
 down the road, Cy." Aunt Polly's 
 quick ears caught an unusual sound, 
 and the pair paused on the threshold of 
 the cabin. " The good Lawd save us, 
 what's that?" 
 
 It was a voice a woman's raised 
 in a shriek of such agony and terror that 
 it rose even above the howling of the 
 wind, and as it suddenly ceased there 
 came in view around the bend of the 
 mountain road a pair of maddened 
 horses and a rough two-seated wagon. 
 Standing in it, bareheaded, was the fig 
 ure of a girl, and as the wagon swayed 
 from side to side, she dropped the reins 
 and poised herself as if for a leap. 
 
 " Don' do it, honey," shrieked Uncle 
 6
 
 In the Virginia Mountains 
 
 Cy, running toward the flying horses; 
 but almost before the warning was spo 
 ken the crash came, and the team van 
 ished around the upward path, leaving a 
 senseless figure on the road at his feet, 
 as the tempest burst overhead with a 
 howling violence which, accustomed 
 though he was to such storms, almost 
 appalled Uncle Cy. 
 
 Standing inside the door, which she 
 had prudently closed lest the cabin 
 should be deluged with water, Aunt 
 Polly waited for Uncle Cy's voice out 
 side, and presently she heard him, pant 
 ing from excitement and fatigue, at the 
 threshold. 
 
 " Open, quick, Polly, f o' de lan's sake ; 
 she 's mighty light, but 'pears de wind 
 'ull drag her out of my arms ef yo' ain't 
 spry." 
 
 Planting her portly person against the 
 door to prevent too sudden opening for 
 the wind (which might wrench it from 
 7
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the hinges), Aunt Polly slowly retreated 
 as Uncle Cy pushed cautiously inside, 
 and staggered breathlessly toward the 
 rather rickety calico-covered couch 
 which adorned one side of the room. 
 
 "Pore chile; she looks like she was 
 daid. Jest lay her down comfortable, an' 
 help me fasten dis yer door, Cy. D' ye 
 know whose team that was ? " said Aunt 
 Polly. 
 
 " Dere won' be no stoppin' dose 
 horses till dey gets to de clarin', ef dey 
 don' plunge off de precipice, Polly. 
 'Pears to me 'twas Kiah Peaseley's 
 wagon. I done tole him las' month ef he 
 would buy dem colts dey is boun' to make 
 him pay fo' his foolishness, but yo' can't 
 argufy wif a man 'bout horses, never." 
 
 Aunt Polly apparently paid no heed 
 to his reply, for her deft hands were 
 busy with the fainting girl, who lay mo 
 tionless on the rough bed where Cy had 
 placed her; the long dark hair had 
 8
 
 In the Virginia Mountains 
 
 blown back from her face, which was 
 more than usually beautiful, and the 
 waxen pallor that overspread it began 
 to alarm Aunt Polly, experienced nurse 
 that she was. 
 
 " 'T ain't no use keepin' her here, Cy," 
 she said. "Jes' help me carry her into 
 the oder bedroom, den you wring out 
 hot cloths an' fotch 'em as fas' as you 
 can. The kettle 's bilin' a'ready. Easy 
 now, Cy. Pore little lady; she 's one of 
 the quality no mistakin' that." 
 
 Very gently and carefully the good 
 souls lifted the unconscious girl from 
 the couch and carried her into the room 
 beyond, which was little more than a 
 closet, but where Aunt Polly had be 
 stowed an old-fashioned single bedstead 
 which she regarded with much vener 
 ation, and never permitted Cy to use. 
 The neighbors had often " wondered " 
 why Aunt Polly indulged in the luxury 
 of a spare room, but as any inquiry as 
 9
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 to it or its contents was always met with 
 a certain air of dignified frigidity, which 
 Aunt Polly could assume when she de 
 sired, their curiosity had never been 
 satisfied, and was only commented upon 
 when Aunt Polly was beyond hearing 
 distance. 
 
 The storm raged on with unusual vio 
 lence; the wind howled and shrieked 
 around the lonely little cabin for hours, 
 tearing down saplings and one great 
 tree which stood behind it. Inside, the 
 comely slave-woman fought her battle 
 with Death, using every means in her 
 power to alleviate pain and save life. 
 And when, far on toward the dawn of 
 another day, the wind stilled and a pale 
 moon forced its feeble rays through the 
 trees, a mournful little wail penetrated 
 the cabin, telling that a soul was added 
 to the world, as Aunt Polly laid care 
 fully in Uncle Cy's arms a newborn 
 child. 
 
 10
 
 Chapter II 
 
 Marah 
 
 " IT 's mighty mysterious," mused Aunt 
 Polly over her washtub, as she stood 
 outside the cabin door. " Three weeks 
 ago this day the accident happened, and 
 we ain't no wiser. 'Pears like Missy 's 
 'fraid to trust me, pore chile; I p'intedly 
 led 'round the conversation, an' she 
 shies like a sheared horse every time. 
 Dare 's that baby, now Comin'," she 
 called out, wringing her hands free 
 from soap, and starting for the cabin 
 door. "Don' take her, Missy; I '11 feed 
 her in a minute." 
 
 Apparently Aunt Polly's admonition 
 was unheeded, for the baby was shout 
 ing lustily in its cradle as she entered, 
 and the mother was sitting close by the 
 window in an old armchair, her great 
 ii
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 dark eyes fixed on the changing clouds 
 drifting over the mountain peak, her 
 hands clasped tightly in her lap. She 
 did not even turn her head or take the 
 trouble to reply. Aunt Polly took the 
 warm milk off the stove, settled the cry 
 ing baby in her soft, comfortable lap, 
 and fed it deftly with a pewter spoon 
 from the bowl which she stood on a 
 chair beside her. The baby gurgled 
 softly between spoonfuls ; lacking a 
 bottle, Aunt Polly had already taught 
 it how to take its food, and the tiny 
 creature cuddled its fists under its chin 
 and presently slipped offinto quiet slum 
 ber, Aunt Polly crooning a hymn softly 
 as she watched its eyelids close. Then 
 she rose, laid the child in the old cradle, 
 and walked over where the mother sat, 
 with eyes still looking vaguely up at 
 the skies. 
 
 " Missy," she said respectfully, "why 
 won' yo' trust me? Chile, I knows yo' 
 12
 
 Marah 
 
 has had trouble; it's borne in upon my 
 min' yo'se been hardly used. What can 
 Cy an' me do for yo' ? Don' yo' know 
 I 'd like to help yo'?" 
 
 The girl's eyes were turned slowly 
 upon the kindly brown face. 
 
 " No one can help me," she said. 
 There was not a trace of feeling in her 
 low, trained voice; she answered, that 
 was all. 
 
 Aunt Polly looked at the beautiful, 
 tragic face for a moment, then she 
 pulled up the one other chair the room 
 possessed, and sat down beside her. 
 
 " Missy, I don' know how yo' come 
 hyar, an' I don' ask. But the touch of 
 them baby ringers has opened my heart, 
 an' I 'm goin' to tell yo' part of my story, 
 ef yo' '11 listen." 
 
 No response; the silent figure sat as 
 before with eyes fixed on the mountain 
 top. Aunt Polly sighed; then went 
 quietly on with her story. 
 13
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 " I was raised a good way from hyar ; 
 't ain't worth while to make Missy listen 
 to all that. But when I was young I 
 was pretty, an' I was peart an' full of 
 my jokes, an' on the plantation I sutainly 
 was petted an' spoiled. My Marster 
 was mighty proud of me, an' I was 
 brought up in the house, like my mo 
 ther was before me. There was a rea 
 son, Missy, for that; I Ve no call to be 
 ashamed of it. That cradle, there, come 
 from a house whose name is mighty 
 well known in ole Virginny. 
 
 " I never quite knew how it all began, 
 but when Marster married a fine madam 
 from New Orleans, troubles seemed 
 hoverin' 'roun' from the time she set 
 foot on the plantation. I had lots of 
 beaux, but I 'lowed I was mo' fond of 
 Marster Nelson's Jim than the young 
 fellers on our place, an' finally Mar 
 ster said we should have a weddin' 
 an' a dance for all of us to celebrate it. 
 H
 
 Marah 
 
 Madam for the fust time took some no 
 tice of me, an' gave me a nice gown to 
 wear, an' Marster fetched me a veil an' 
 flowers, an' I sutainly was proud an' 
 happy when Jim an' I stood up on the 
 lawn an' was married by Brother Jen 
 kins, the Methodist parson from the 
 Four Corners. But, somehow, it seemed 
 that Madam had supposed I was goin' 
 to live over on Marster Nelson's plan 
 tation after we was married, but my 
 Marster put his foot down, an' said he 'd 
 no intention of havin' Polly go 'way; 
 Jim could come over an' see me, an' 
 we could have one of the cabins in the 
 quarters, but he'd never let Polly go, 
 an' there was no use argufyin' 'bout it. 
 "After a year, Missy, my little girl 
 baby was born, an' I was jus' as happy 
 as the day was long. She was so peart, 
 an' not so brown, even, as me; 'most 
 the color of yo' baby, over there in my 
 cradle. An' when she was nine months
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 ole the storm broke over my haid, 
 like the storm the other night, Missy, 
 an' it felled me to the ground." 
 
 The cabin was very quiet; only the 
 sound of Aunt Polly's sobs, as she burst 
 into tears. The girl turned from the 
 window; there was something of hu 
 man interest in her eyes at last, as she 
 fixed them upon Aunt Polly. 
 
 "That chile was Jim's an' mine, Missy, 
 but no earthly power could convince 
 the Madam of it. She hated that pore 
 little baby all the more because she had 
 none of her own, an' she made Marster's 
 life a hell for months. Finally he came 
 down to my cabin an' tole me all; an' 
 he said that Madam insisted that the 
 chile should be taken 'way from me an' 
 sold. Sold, Missy! my own little baby 
 girl, an' then he wept an' begged me 
 to forgive him. I fainted dead away; 
 an' when I came to I was in a ragin' 
 fever, an' for weeks after pore Jim 
 16
 
 Marah 
 
 nursed me day an' night, 'most crazy 
 with grief, for while I laid there hoverin' 
 between life an' death, they sold my 
 baby, an' from that day to this I have 
 never seen her, never held her in the 
 arms that are longin' for her." 
 
 " And you cared f " 
 
 Aunt Polly raised her head. The slow 
 bitter words fell so softly on her ears 
 that she doubted she had heard aright. 
 
 " Chile," she cried fiercely, as their 
 meaning dawned upon her, " are yo' hu 
 man ? The beasts of the field love their 
 young; don' yo' love yours? " 
 
 "No. I hate it." The slumberous 
 eyes woke at last; such misery, rage? 
 and despair dwelt in them that Aunt 
 Polly fairly shuddered. Of what did 
 those awful eyes remind her? 
 
 "Missy, Missy, go down on yo' knees 
 an' ask the good Lawd to forgive yo' 
 befo' worse happen to yo'." 
 
 " If there was a God such as you be-
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 lieve in I should not be here," said the 
 girl coldly. " Well, what became of your 
 child?" 
 
 Aunt Polly's lips quivered; her ten 
 der heart yearned over this poor young 
 thing, half mad with the unutterable pain 
 of her despair. 
 
 " She was sold 'way down South, 
 Missy. Trouble came hard on me jus' 
 then. Jim never was strong again after 
 nursing me through the fever; he caught 
 cold, an' went into a gallopin' consump 
 tion, an' died six months later. Then 
 Marster's heart began to feel for me, an' 
 he came to my cabin late one night 
 an' gave me my freedom papers, an' tole 
 me I had better slip away an' never let 
 nobody know I had 'em unless some 
 one tried to arrest me. An' I went, an' 
 by an' by, Cy an' I foun' each other an' 
 we was married, an' after while Cy went 
 back to the ole plantation, an' Marster 
 let him fetch the things what belonged 
 18
 
 Marah 
 
 to me from my little cabin, an' at last 
 we came up this yere mountain, an' hyar 
 we expect to live till we die." 
 
 Aunt Polly paused to wipe away her 
 tears. The girl laid her hand on her 
 arm. 
 
 " Would you like to keep that baby ? " 
 she said, turning her eyes reluctantly 
 upon the cradle. 
 
 " What yo' mean, Missy? Nurse her 
 for yo'? How long?" 
 
 " For me ? Yes," with a scornful 
 smile that sat ill upon the young face. 
 " I cannot say how long, but I will 
 pay you well." 
 
 The baby stirred in its cradle; Uncle 
 Cy's voice was heard from the clearing 
 singing, " How firm a foun-da-tion ye 
 saints of the L-ord," as he came toward 
 the cabin. The girl rose hastily from 
 her seat, and, going inside the little room, 
 closed the door. 
 
 The moon came up late that night 
 
 '9
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 over Silver Mountain, bathing the trees 
 with its radiance, and making the rude 
 cabin look picturesque and beautiful. 
 Aunt Polly had crept out of bed to feed 
 the baby, and sat dozing beside the 
 cradle where she had laid the child, when 
 she was startled into wakefulness by a 
 soft footfall on the floor behind her. 
 
 " Do not wake Uncle Cy," whispered 
 her strange guest. " Come outside the 
 cabin and hear what I have to say to 
 you." 
 
 Aunt Polly crept quietly behind, and 
 the girl opened the door, going a few 
 steps beyond, under the oak-tree in the 
 clearing. She had tied a dark silk hand 
 kerchief over her hair; her long black 
 dress looked too heavy for the slender, 
 delicate frame, and her sombre eyes 
 were full of the pathos which her words 
 and tone belied. 
 
 " I am going to leave you," she said; 
 "you saved my life, and although I 
 20
 
 Marah 
 
 had far rather died, I am grateful for 
 your care. Try to forget me; you will 
 never know who I am; you can never 
 trace me. A hard, strange fate has left 
 me at your door; I am going out into 
 the night; in the night I will remain." 
 
 " And the baby " cried Aunt Polly. 
 " Missy, yo'se more than welcome to 
 stop; wait till yo'se stronger " 
 
 "I am quite well, thank you," the 
 girl replied coldly, repelling the sym 
 pathy so kindly offered; "keep the 
 child and and I suppose you 
 must call it something " Her voice 
 broke suddenly with an accent of de 
 spair. " Call it Marah that is a fitting 
 name for it." 
 
 To Aunt Polly's ear the name came 
 as a familiar sound. 
 
 " Mary ! why, that was my baby's 
 name ! " 
 
 The stranger heard, but did not cor 
 rect the blunder. 
 
 21
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 "Better so," she said under her 
 breath; then aloud, "You are a good, 
 kind soul; I told you I would give you 
 money; here it is. In that purse is two 
 hundred dollars " 
 
 "Oh, Missy, I don' want all that 
 money; 'pears like yo' don' trust Aunt 
 Polly." 
 
 " I did not mean to hurt you." Her 
 tone was more gentle, and Aunt Polly 
 seized the opportunity. 
 
 " Chile," she said solemnly, all the 
 poetry and deep feeling of her race 
 coming to her lips, " does yo' know 
 what yo'se doin'? Ef yo' desert yo' 
 own little baby the Lawd will sutainly 
 punish yo' where it hurts most. In the 
 long years to come them baby fingers 
 will draw an' draw, an' pull yo' heart 
 strings till perhaps they '11 break with 
 woe." As she spoke she laid a firm 
 but gentle hand on the girl's arm, but 
 the mere touch seemed to goad her 
 
 22
 
 Marah 
 
 into sudden fury. She wrenched her 
 self away with such violence that Aunt 
 Polly staggered back against the oak- 
 tree to keep from falling. 
 
 " Woman, who are you who dare to 
 use such words to me! I do what I 
 please, and neither God nor devil shall 
 stop me;" and before the listener could 
 recover herself to reply, the girl had van 
 ished down the mountain side. 
 
 With a gasp of horror Aunt Polly 
 gazed after the flying figure. She knew, 
 now, where she had seen those eyes 
 before.
 
 AFTER TWENTY YEARS 
 Chapter I 
 
 At Conrad's Ferry 
 
 IT was night on the Potomac River; 
 not the clear starlit night of a more 
 northern latitude, but with a slight mist 
 in the air, and the soft soughing of a 
 southerly wind which perhaps indicated 
 rain. On the southern bank just beyond 
 the bluff were a score of straggling 
 houses, chiefly wooden shanties, with 
 two or three negro cabins nearer the 
 water, and at the edge, where the bank 
 shelved down to the shore, was the 
 ferryman's hut, and anchored just below 
 it was his bateau, a rough, flat-bottomed 
 boat, so-called from its resemblance to 
 those of the Canadian frontiersmen, and 
 25
 
 A Javelin of Fate * 
 
 used to ferry horses as well as foot pas 
 sengers. 
 
 The ferryman stood in the door of 
 his hut looking out on the river. A shot 
 in the distance had startled him, and he 
 was trying to locate it as he peered into 
 the night. 
 
 "Dar's trubble, suah as yo' born," 
 he muttered, half aloud. " 'Pears like 
 somebody's comin' bofe ways. I su- 
 tainly heered a pistol, an' dar 's a boat 
 'tween hyar an' de Point. Reckon I 'd 
 better light the lantern so dey '11 know 
 whar de landin' is." 
 
 " Let that lantern alone," said a low, 
 determined voice, as a man rose sud 
 denly from the ground behind him. 
 " None of your confounded signals, or 
 I '11 bring the Union pickets down at 
 once." The remark, being emphasized 
 by a muzzle of a revolver displayed per 
 ilously near the negro's head, was in 
 stantly obeyed, and the ferryman replied 
 26
 
 At Conrad's Ferry 
 
 with alacrity : " Law, Marse, what fo' 
 yo' talk dat a way to ole Mose ? " 
 
 " Because I know you, you rascal, 
 and have for years," was the reply, with 
 a short laugh, as the stranger lowered 
 his hand. " Here 's something to assist 
 your memory, which somehow seems 
 less active than mine." 
 
 The ferryman's hand closed eagerly 
 over the money thrust into it, and he 
 bent forward to gaze at the face so near 
 his own. 
 
 " Marse Peyton, fo' suah ! How you 
 get hyar, sah ? I heard yo' was shut up 
 in Richmond." 
 
 " So I was, Mose, and in several other 
 tight places." 
 
 " Dey 'd hev to be mighty tight to keep 
 yo' in," chuckled the negro. " 'Member 
 how yo' an' Miss Champe clumb into 
 de ole tulip-tree from de room whar 
 Madam locked yo' up when yo' was 
 'bout ten year ole ? And yo' come down 
 27
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 to Cynthy's cabin whar I found yo' both 
 when de whole fambly was runnin', an' 
 shoutin', an' huntin' fo' yo'. I sutainly is 
 glad to see yo'. Do yo' want me ter 
 ferry yo' across ? " 
 
 "Hush!" said the other softly. 
 "There are two boats, Mose, or there 
 will be very soon. One is coming down 
 from Point of Rocks, the other is hug 
 ging this shore. Listen! " 
 
 The faint sound of a cautiously dip 
 ping oar directly under the bluff reached 
 the keen ears in the doorway, and the 
 two men went hastily down the narrow 
 path at the foot of which lay the bateau. 
 A small skiff glided alongside as a hail 
 came from the centre of the river, - 
 "Ferry, ahoy!" 
 
 "Light your lantern, Mose," said 
 Peyton Randolph hurriedly, as he 
 stepped on board the bateau and bent 
 forward to lend a helping hand to the 
 occupants of the skiff. One, an elderly 
 28
 
 At Conrad's Ferry 
 
 man, was rowing; the other, a slender, 
 boyish figure with a short military cape 
 drawn closely around him. 
 
 " Ferry, ahoy! " came the call again, 
 this time sharply and sternly. Mose 
 swung out his lantern. 
 
 " Bar's de patrol, Marse Peyton, com 
 ing back from Point of Rocks. Dunno 
 who dese folks is p'rhaps yo' do, 
 sah." 
 
 " Have you the paper, Rod ? " whis 
 pered Peyton to the boy, who jumped 
 lightly aboard the bateau. " It 's devilish 
 unlucky you are an hour late." 
 
 " Could n't help it," muttered the lad; 
 " the information only reached us late 
 this afternoon. Take care of these ci 
 garettes; they are rather scarce down 
 below." 
 
 "Slip back into the skiff, Rod, and 
 
 lie still under the shadow of the bluff 
 
 until the patrol boat lands no, wait 
 
 where you are! " came the hasty coun- 
 
 29
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 termand. The other boat was now 
 alongside, and Peyton went quietly for 
 ward to meet the party as they stepped 
 off. 
 
 "Fo' de Lawd," chuckled Mose to 
 himself as he saw the encounter was 
 inevitable, " Marse Peyton jes' de same 
 debbil he uster be, 'fraid o' nothinV 
 
 " Who are you, sir? " said the officer 
 as he discovered the figure moving 
 towards him by the light of Mose's 
 lantern. "And where do you come 
 from?" 
 
 " Peyton Randolph of Baltimore, very 
 much at your service, sir," returned 
 the Southerner courteously. " I have 
 been spending a few hours with my 
 cousin, Captain Furness, by his invita 
 tion, and have my pass if you desire to 
 see it." 
 
 "Furness, of the First Maryland Re 
 giment," said the Union officer, raising 
 his cap with equal politeness. " My 
 3
 
 At Conrad's Ferry 
 
 name is Phillipse, captain in the Third 
 Regiment of Cavalry, regulars." 
 
 " Here is my pass," said Peyton, hand 
 ing him the paper, and uttering a private 
 thanksgiving that, so far, all was well. 
 " I was just about crossing the river 
 when your hail came " 
 
 " Sthop that, ye young divil, what '11 
 ye be afther " A sound of scuffle be 
 hind them, and Peyton followed Captain 
 Phillipse as he darted back on the ba 
 teau, where a big blue-coated sergeant 
 was holding a slight form by the shoul 
 der, as the boy struggled to escape from 
 his burly hands. 
 
 " What 's the matter, O'Brien ? " asked 
 the captain sharply. 
 
 " The b'y, sor, was slippin' down the 
 side ave the bateau when I see some 
 thing glitterin' on the deck, and as I 
 was steppin' to pick it up the youngster 
 hit out wid his bit of a fist in me face, 
 and grabbed the thing before me eyes." 
 3 1
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 "And what business had you with 
 my property ? " asked the boy angrily. 
 " I had dropped my cigarette case. Re 
 turn it to me instantly." 
 
 Peyton turned sick and cold. By 
 what unlucky chance had he lost the 
 package just intrusted to him. His hand 
 went swiftly to his side pocket, it was 
 empty ! 
 
 " Hand the cigarette case to me," 
 ordered Phillipse. " Release the young 
 ster, O'Brien. And who are you, sir?" 
 
 " My name is Rodney Mason." The 
 boy shook himself free as O'Brien 
 stepped back, and advanced toward his 
 questioner. 
 
 " Where are you from, and what are 
 you doing on the river ? " 
 
 " I am from Rockville, Maryland. I 
 came out to fish this afternoon on the 
 river, as I frequently do. There is a 
 small string of fish in the skiff, if you 
 care to look for them." 
 3 2
 
 At Conrad's Ferry 
 
 " And how came you to be on this 
 side of the river? This is hardly an 
 hour for fishing." 
 
 "Of course not," with a laugh. "But 
 the mist came up quickly, and caught 
 us. I am only lying here until it lifts, 
 you see it's clearer now; I can see a 
 few stars." 
 
 The boy's tone was so entirely frank 
 and easy that Phillipse's dawning sus 
 picion vanished. The little party had 
 drawn nearer the lantern as they talked, 
 and were now directly beneath it, and 
 as Peyton's eyes fell upon the lad's 
 face (from which his cap was pushed 
 back) he turned pale with sudden 
 alarm. 
 
 "Good God! It's not Rod!" was 
 the thought that almost escaped him, 
 and he bit his lip to suppress an excla 
 mation. 
 
 " So this pretty trifle is yours," con 
 tinued Captain Phillipse, turning the 
 33
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 case over in his hand. " Is this tiny 
 cipher a death's head ? " 
 
 " Yes," answered the boy with a short 
 laugh. 
 
 " Rather an odd conceit, though a 
 trifle gruesome. I '11 open it with your 
 permission." 
 
 The boy watched him as his ringers 
 sought the spring; then a rougish smile 
 crossed his face as the box flew open 
 and revealed four very innocent look 
 ing cigarettes. 
 
 " Mose, hold that lantern closer," 
 said Phillipse, inspecting them care 
 fully as they lay in his palm. "Will 
 you smoke?" he asked suddenly, ex 
 tending his hand. Without an instant's 
 hesitation the boy took one. 
 
 " Will you supply the match ? " asked 
 he coolly. Captain Phillipse caught the 
 boy's slender hand in his as he spoke, 
 and took the cigarette from him. 
 
 " Select another," he said with a 
 34
 
 At Conrad 's Ferry 
 
 searching glance which made Peyton 
 shiver; "I wish to examine this." And 
 he deftly unwound the paper, holding 
 it up to the light as he did so. 
 
 " Such a pity to waste the tobacco," 
 murmured the boy softly, with a mali 
 cious twinkle of his hazel eyes which 
 did not escape his questioner. Jack 
 Phillipse was conscious of a sudden 
 subtle irritation. He longed to shake 
 that boy with all his might. But he 
 smiled calmly instead, thereby produ 
 cing secret fury in the breast of his 
 captive. 
 
 "There are three left; have patience 
 for a moment." In exasperating silence 
 the Union officer deliberately unrolled 
 each one, and finally, after a thorough 
 inspection, placed all the papers safely 
 in his pocket, from whence he drew 
 his cigar case. 
 
 " Let me make good the loss of the 
 tobacco, and return your property, 
 35
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the case. Is that your boat along 
 side ? " 
 
 " Yes," said the boy, picking up his 
 cape from the deck where it had fallen 
 during his scuffle with O'Brien. " I 
 don't smoke cigars, but let me make 
 you a present of my fish and we will 
 call it square." 
 
 " No, thanks, I won't deprive you of 
 them." The Union officer bit his mus 
 tache to conceal a smile. Jack Phillipse's 
 sense of humor had saved many a situ 
 ation, and there really seemed no reason 
 for detaining this very handsome, teas 
 ing specimen of boyhood. Though 
 why the little rascal should look as 
 pleased as if he had outwitted him Jack 
 could not divine. 
 
 "You may go, youngster," he said 
 kindly; "but take my advice and don't 
 try fishing in these waters again, or you 
 may find it dangerous to your personal 
 liberty." 
 
 36
 
 At Conrad' s Ferry 
 
 "Good-night, I'll not forget," an 
 swered the mocking voice as the boy 
 stepped into the skiff, and the little boat 
 swept out from the shore and vanished. 
 
 Phillipse watched the boat out of 
 sight, and then turned back where Pey 
 ton stood waiting. 
 
 " Do you return by the ferry, Mr. 
 Randolph ? Can I do anything for you ? " 
 
 " Nothing, thanks. Tell Furness you 
 saw me safely off. Good-night." 
 
 The rope creaked as old Mose swung 
 the bateau round, moving slowly from 
 the bank; and standing forward, gaz 
 ing into the night, Peyton Randolph 
 heaved a sigh of relief as he said to 
 himself, 
 
 " By Jove, that was a close shave ! I 
 wonder what dare-devil scrape Champe 
 will contrive to fall into next."
 
 Chapter II 
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 Two men walked briskly down Frank 
 lin Street and paused for a moment 
 at the door of the Maryland Club. One 
 of these, tall and slender, and with a 
 somewhat military bearing, slipped on 
 a bit of ice which had wedged itself be 
 tween the bricks of the rather irregular 
 pavement, and, but for a timely hand 
 extended by his companion, would have 
 fallen. 
 
 " Take care, Fitz, it J s bad luck to re 
 turn to your native land on your knees," 
 said the older man laughing, as he 
 helped him to rise. 
 
 " The soil of * My Maryland ' is wel 
 come to my homage; I assure you I 
 felt like hugging the paving stones, and 
 the swish of the surface drainage of old 
 38
 
 Mrs. Vansit tart's Ball 
 
 Baltimore was music to my ears when 
 I rattled down from the train last night." 
 
 " You Ve done yeoman service for 
 the Cause across the water, my lad, and 
 there are a few men inside the door 
 who'd like to tell you so. Your uncle 
 can afford to wait a while; come in 
 now, and know the joy of a rousing 
 welcome." 
 
 " I can't refuse especially with that 
 crowd in the window," answered Fitz- 
 hugh Tilghman, springing up the steps, 
 while Denbigh followed more slowly, 
 and, entering the big, old-fashioned cor 
 ner room of that most exclusive of clubs, 
 encountered a hubbub of exclamations. 
 
 " Fitz Tilghman, safe and sound ! " 
 
 " Hallo, old man, where 's the 
 meerschaum pipe you wagered me ? " 
 
 " Fitz himself, same as ever, only 
 bigger and a trifle browner " 
 
 " What a din," said Denbigh. " You '11 
 addle the lad's head among you. He 's 
 39
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 not the only one who 's turned trumps. 
 Fisher Lattimer came with him." 
 
 " Where is he now, Denbigh ? " asked 
 an elderly man, as the youngsters 
 crowded around Fitz. "This town 
 is n't a very safe place at present. 
 Those cattle at McHenry keep plenty 
 of spies, and you never know when 
 you hit a secret service man." 
 
 " It will take rather a clever fellow 
 to trace some of the counterplots," said 
 Denbigh, dryly. " Our women are too 
 infernally sharp, as a rule, to be de 
 tected. Queer old world this, anyhow. 
 Let 's try a game of poker." 
 
 In the bay window Fitzhugh was de 
 manding news with an insatiable appe 
 tite. Well born, well bred, he was a 
 fine type of the dashing Southerner of 
 his day, and, added to much personal 
 good looks, he possessed a charm of 
 manner that made him not only well 
 beloved of women, but of men also. 
 40
 
 Mrs. Vansittart 1 s Ball 
 
 Brave almost to rashness, he had only 
 been restrained from joining the Con 
 federate army because he was assured 
 that he could be of more use to the Cause 
 by executing secret missions abroad. 
 From one of these he had but just re 
 turned, and after an absence of a year 
 was heartily glad to find himself once 
 more at home in that hot-bed of seces 
 sion, time-honored Baltimore, where 
 more plots and counterplots grew and 
 flourished during the Civil War than 
 in any city north of Mason and Dixon's 
 line. 
 
 " You 're just in time for the opening 
 of the gay season, Fitz," said Innes Pe- 
 gram. 
 
 "Oh, yes, the Vansittart ball," 
 chorused the rest of the crowd in the 
 window. 
 
 " Vansittart? " said Fitz; " don't know 
 the name here." 
 
 " Vansittart ? Biggest banking house 
 4 1
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 in Antwerp and Amsterdam," said Pe- 
 gram. 
 
 "That's where I do know them," 
 said Fitz, with a laugh. " Square with 
 you fellows; I've a letter somewhere 
 introducing me to the Madam from the 
 junior member of the house, Van Der 
 Boch." 
 
 " Have you, indeed," said Pegram, 
 a trifle eagerly. " Then perhaps you '11 
 be good enough to explain to us what 
 brings them to Baltimore." 
 
 " Don't give me credit for too much 
 knowledge. Some transactions with 
 Van Der Boch took me to Amsterdam 
 just before sailing for home, and he gave 
 me the letter I spoke of, saying that the 
 widow of Vansittart, the head of the 
 firm, had recently gone to America to 
 take up her residence in Baltimore. I 
 know the Vansittart house and gardens, 
 which cover a square, in Amsterdam, 
 and upon my expressing surprise that the 
 42
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 lady should leave so fine a residence, was 
 told that she is an American by birth, 
 and wished to bring her young daughter 
 out among her own people. What sort 
 are they, Pegram ? Has society opened 
 its arms and formally taken them to its 
 exclusive heart? " 
 
 " My mother is about to accomplish 
 that feat. Mrs. Vansittart's mother was 
 a Spanish Creole from NewOrleans,and 
 far away in the dark ages the families 
 knew each other, so the Mater made 
 out the lists for her ball, and to-night 
 Miss Cecile Vansittart makes her bow 
 to all of us, you, I hope, included." 
 
 " Have n't presented my letter, how 
 the mischief can I have the audacity to 
 intrude ? " 
 
 " I '11 take you under my wing," said 
 Pegram genially. " Reckon you '11 pass 
 muster, Fitz. Come home and dine 
 with me first." 
 
 "If I do Uncle Sid will scratch me 
 43
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 out of his good books. Thanks, Pe- 
 gram, I '11 meet you at any hour this 
 evening that suits you, and like no 
 fun better than a ball. Where 's Den 
 bigh?" 
 
 "In the card-room," said Pegram; 
 and with a good-by nod to the crowd 
 Fitz made his way out of the club and 
 started up Franklin Street. 
 
 Some two months before, the exclu 
 sive and dignified residents of Mt. Ver- 
 non Square had been roused to quite a 
 flutter of excitement by the reopening 
 of a large and handsome house which 
 occupied one corner of the square. It 
 belonged to the heirs of an estate, and 
 had stood empty for some years because 
 none of them felt quite equal to the ex 
 pense of living in it, and naturally much 
 interest centred in the new occupants. 
 These proved to be a widow and her 
 young daughter, who brought with them 
 a retinue of servants, fine horses, beau- 
 44
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 tiful old furniture, and pictures, from, 
 it was whispered, a very fine residence 
 abroad. After due deliberation for 
 she made no move hastily Mrs. Van- 
 sittart called upon Mrs. Pegram, and it 
 was speedily noised abroad that the 
 widow of the great Amsterdam banker 
 had chosen to pitch her tents in Balti 
 more, and Baltimore the social part 
 of it came with all Southern warmth 
 and courtesy to make her welcome. 
 
 Mrs. Vansittart stood in front of her 
 mirror, and gazed long and critically 
 upon the picture it reflected. She was 
 too well aware of her great beauty for 
 vanity; her chief care, at the moment, 
 being that her toilet should be beyond 
 criticism. She might have posed as a 
 Court Beauty by Velasquez, so Spanish 
 her type, so royal the jewels that flashed 
 on her neck and in her hair. Her hus 
 band, who was many years her senior, 
 45
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 had spent almost fabulous sums to fill 
 her caskets, deeming himself fully re 
 warded by one of her rare, fascinating 
 smiles. Somewhat above the ordinary 
 stature of women, she carried herself 
 with much grace and dignity, and the 
 masterful dark eyes denoted her indom 
 itable will and courage. Her face was 
 one of great power, whether for good or 
 evil depended largely upon her mood, 
 and that, too, had its element of uncer 
 tainty. Her poise, mentally, might be 
 above or below that of her surround 
 ings, but the bystander would never be 
 the wiser. And it was this atmosphere 
 of mystery of possibilities which 
 perhaps formed her greatest, certainly 
 her most dangerous weapon. At her 
 pleasure, no one could exceed her power 
 of fascination, and when Evelyn Van- 
 sittart resolved upon conquest it was 
 usually but an affair of time; she never 
 failed to carry her point with utter dis- 
 46
 
 Mrs. Vansittarf s Ball 
 
 regard of any obstacle that lay in the 
 path of her desires. 
 
 Her eyes glanced approvingly from 
 the jewels in her hair to the train of her 
 velvet gown. A tap came on the door 
 of her room and a playful voice said, 
 
 " May I come in ? Oh, mamma, I Ve 
 caught you for once posing before a 
 mirror." 
 
 " Saucy child, of course I am ' pos 
 ing,' if you choose to call it so. Remem 
 ber that I have to conquer Baltimore 
 and these terribly stately neighbors," 
 answered Mrs. Vansittart, with the soft 
 tone in her voice that only her daughter 
 had power to call forth. "Come in and 
 be inspected, Cecile; I think Virfollet 
 has done her best with your gown." 
 
 Out of a diaphanous mass of tulle 
 somewhat modified from the exagger 
 ated balloon-like style of the sixties, 
 rose the girlish shoulders and flaxen 
 head of a fairy-like creature. So fragile, 
 47
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 so ethereal, that a touch of pathos was 
 added to the admiration which her lovely 
 features and wistful violet eyes called 
 forth. But, as if in direct contradic 
 tion to her physique, the joyousness of 
 her disposition, her playful manner, and 
 the exquisite kindliness that seemed to 
 prompt her every thought won love and 
 admiration for Cecile Vansittart from 
 those with whom she came in contact. 
 And to-night she was that charmingly 
 unspoiled product of nature, a very 
 young girl on the eve of her first ball. 
 
 " Mamma, you are superb ! " cried 
 Cecile. " This new, strange Baltimore 
 will be taken by storm when it sees 
 my beautiful mother. I like your gown 
 even better than the one I remember 
 you wore at the Court ball before papa 
 died." 
 
 " You must have seen it in your 
 dreams," said Mrs. Vansittart lightly, 
 gathering up her fan and gloves from 
 48
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 the toilet table. " You were not more 
 than six years old, and what did you 
 know of gowns ? " 
 
 "But I do remember," insisted Cecile, 
 following her mother from the room; 
 "and I heard papa tell Vrouw Van 
 Der Boch the sensation you made in the 
 dance, and how the Russian Minister " 
 
 " Hush, child, my triumphs are 
 past; yours to come. Do you hear the 
 music ? " The soft strains of a waltz 
 came floating up the staircase, and Mrs. 
 Vansittart followed Cecile's eager feet 
 down to the drawing-room, where Mrs. 
 Pegram and a few other guests had 
 already arrived. The house filled rap 
 idly; society kept earlier hours in those 
 days, and by twelve o'clock the ball 
 was at its height, with all the easy grace 
 and enjoyment of a Southern city height 
 ened by the pleasure of new surround 
 ings. Baltimore social life at that period 
 was a sea which required a skillful pilot, 
 49
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 for, outwardly gay, the waters were full 
 of shoals and rocks for the unwary. 
 Partisan feeling ran high, and one could 
 never be certain when one would en 
 counter the traitor or the loyalist. In 
 deed, it depended entirely upon one's 
 point of view where to fit the appel 
 lation. The high-bred society woman 
 who was sending "aid and comfort" to 
 the enemy (perhaps carrying informa 
 tion in her innocent-looking work-bag) 
 would be found dining with another, 
 equally well known as a Union sympa 
 thizer, each, perhaps, feeling that she 
 would dearly love to do a bit of private 
 detective work on behalf of whichever 
 side she favored. This partisanship 
 added greatly to the unrest and excite 
 ment of the day, and as there were on 
 active service in both armies, Federal 
 and Confederate, many of the proudest 
 names in Maryland, the air was full of 
 distrust and vague apprehension, no one 
 50
 
 Mrs. Vansittarf s Ball 
 
 knowing when or where a bolt from 
 the blue might fall. 
 
 The dancing had begun when Fitz- 
 hugh Tilghman ran hastily up the broad 
 steps of the Vansittart house, and turned 
 to touch the bell. A tall figure followed 
 him, and as the door opened a voice 
 behind him said, " Is this Mrs. Van- 
 sittart's ? " 
 
 "Yes," answered Fitz courteously, 
 stepping a little aside to permit the 
 stranger to enter. As the light struck 
 his eyes he saw the glitter of a gilded 
 shoulder-strap, and with a surprised 
 stare recognized the blue uniform. 
 
 " Have n't you made a mistake ? " he 
 asked, somewhat curtly. "This is a 
 social affair." 
 
 " I am well aware of it," returned the 
 other calmly. " I am here, as I presume 
 you are, by Mrs. Vansittart's invita 
 tion." 
 
 " I beg your pardon," answered Fitz,
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the gentlemanly instinct overcoming his 
 surprise and irritation. "I had forgotten 
 that this house might be considered for 
 eign ground." 
 
 " And as such safe for belligerents," 
 said Jack Phillipse, handing his cap and 
 muffler to the waiting servant. 
 
 "That you, Fitz?" called Innes Pe- 
 gram from the drawing-room door. 
 " Why so late ? Hurry, old man, I want 
 to introduce you to a partner for the 
 cotillion." 
 
 "Who the devil's that?" asked Fitz, 
 aside, as the officer passed inside the 
 door. "What's a Yankee doing in this 
 assemblage ? " 
 
 " Shut up," said Pegram good-na 
 turedly. "He is one of the Federals 
 stationed at Fort McHenry, and hap 
 pens to be some kin to Mrs. Vansittart. 
 Probably our hostess knows nothing 
 of the politics of our social caldron, 
 though I am pretty certain that my 
 52
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 mother would not have allowed his 
 name to pass on her list. Come on, Fitz; 
 Peyton Randolph is to lead the German 
 with Miss Vansittart; I want to present 
 you before it begins." 
 
 Cecile had left her post at her mo 
 ther's side, and was dancing merrily. 
 Mrs. Vansittart, with Colonel Denbigh 
 in attendance, received Pegram and 
 Fitz most graciously. 
 
 " You hardly need the letter you 
 speak of, Mr. Tilghman, for Van Der 
 Boch wrote me in regard to it, and 
 moreover I heard of you often through 
 the Tilghmans in London, who are old 
 and valued friends. Ask Mr. Pegram 
 to present you to Cecile Ah, Jack, 
 I began to fear you were not coming to 
 my house-warming." 
 
 Jack Phillipse, bowing over the hand 
 
 she extended, saw Fitz turn away, and 
 
 Denbigh draw himself up with a stiff 
 
 salute. Neither action was lost upon 
 
 53
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Evelyn Vansittart, who, smiling se 
 renely, faced the situation. 
 
 " Colonel Denbigh, you will let me 
 present to you my cousin, Captain Phil- 
 lipse. My house is neutral ground, 
 where all my friends and acquaintances 
 are welcome." 
 
 ("And by Gad, sir," quoth the courtly 
 old colonel, when relating the incident 
 next day at the club, " when she looked 
 me in the eye with that fascinating smile, 
 and that air of noblesse oblige, damned 
 if I did n't have to submit to her sover 
 eign will and pleasure, and talk with 
 the Yankee captain for an eternity of 
 five minutes.") 
 
 " I fear you are a trifle late to find 
 a partner for the cotillion," continued 
 Mrs. Vansittart, after Denbigh had ex 
 cused himself. " But there are several 
 girls here who, I am told, are Union 
 sympathizers, and who will be glad to 
 meet you. Have I asked too much of 
 54
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 your good-nature in begging you to 
 come to-night, Jack? " 
 
 "Certainly not. You don't know how 
 impervious I am growing to the pointed 
 avoidance of the Southern women. 
 They look so maddeningly pretty, these 
 Baltimore girls, when they trip across 
 the street for fear of meeting a blue uni 
 form. I met one the other day who had 
 such a twinkle of mischief lurking in 
 her hazel eyes that I wanted to doff my 
 cap, and would have done so except 
 that it would have been misunderstood 
 and promptly resented. It will take all 
 your Old World finesse and diplomacy 
 to steer among the social rocks of Bal 
 timore." 
 
 " But I shall succeed," was the calm 
 reply, as she found the pretty girl she 
 sought, and left Jack snugly ensconced 
 beside her. 
 
 Among the most fiery of Southern 
 sympathizers in Baltimore were the 
 55
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Lovells, three very pretty, dashing girls, 
 who were usually just getting into or 
 emerging from some treasonable scrape 
 which kept their friends in constant 
 terror of a clash with the authorities. As 
 yet, most of their escapades had such an 
 element of dare-devil humor that they 
 had been allowed to go scot-free, but 
 the sight of a blue uniform was sure to 
 inspire the trio with wrath and a desire 
 for vengeance. The prettiest of the three 
 sisters, Joan, a tiny creature (known 
 familiarly as " the pocket edition "), no 
 sooner spied Jack Phillipse on the floor 
 of Mrs. Vansittart's ballroom than she 
 set her pearly teeth as she waltzed past 
 him with Innes Pegram, and bethought 
 what she could do to annoy this obnox 
 ious Yankee. 
 
 " What can our hostess be thinking 
 
 of ? " she murmured in Pegram's ear. 
 
 " The idea of having that wretch 
 
 here! Why don't you take him by 
 
 56
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 the collar, and tell him he 's not 
 wanted." 
 
 " Can't," said Pegram briefly. " Civ 
 ilization demands courtesy in other 
 people's houses." 
 
 He knew Joan well, and was always 
 greatly amused with her violent hatreds, 
 even while inwardly sympathizing with 
 them. 
 
 " Courtesy be sent to Hong Kong! 
 I '11 make you a bet that I '11 manage to 
 rid ourselves of that specimen of Uncle 
 Sam within half an hour." 
 
 "Joan," warningly, as he looked 
 down at the wickedly dancing brown 
 eyes, " for heaven's sake don't dis 
 grace us socially in the eyes of a new 
 comer." 
 
 Joan laughed, but would not promise, 
 and Pegram said no more, knowing that 
 argument would only tend to produce 
 the effect he wished to avoid, but trusted 
 that whatever plot she was meditating 
 57
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 would prove more mischievous than 
 serious. 
 
 "The German," as the dance now 
 called the cotillion was known in the 
 sixties, was a polite game of romps, 
 where all manner of figures were intro 
 duced, according to the fancy or whim 
 of the leaders, some of which would 
 now be called absolutely childish, but 
 in those days only provoked fun and 
 frolic. Joan Lovell, watching her op 
 portunity cleverly, contrived to get near 
 the leader of the band, who, sheltered 
 behind a mass of tall plants, was turn 
 ing over his music during a pause in 
 the dancing. Hablemann, a big German 
 who conducted the dance music for all 
 fashionable Baltimore, had, luckily for 
 Joan's scheme, been obliged to leave a 
 subordinate to fill his place for the latter 
 part of the evening. In her most coax 
 ing voice Joan begged a favor of him. 
 When the next figure came did he think 
 58
 
 Mrs. Vansittarfs Ball 
 
 he could introduce the music of a song 
 when she waved her handkerchief 
 a song the dancers would all join in 
 and sing? 
 
 " Vy, yes, of course," said the good- 
 natured musician, blushing deeply at 
 the honor of being addressed; "any- 
 ting dot de young lady vish." Where 
 upon Joan whispered a name, and then 
 fled precipitously, nearly falling into 
 Peyton Randolph's arms as she did so. 
 
 "Just looking for you," said he, as he 
 whirled her off. " This is quite a new 
 figure, and I '11 explain it." The floor 
 was vacant, but in the centre stood a 
 chair, and after a turn or two he stopped 
 beside it. 
 
 " Now, Miss Joan, you are to hold 
 this small mirror; and Miss Vansittart 
 will bring up, behind you, two men. 
 You look in the mirror, and inspect first 
 one, then the other; pass your handker 
 chief over the mirror which reflects the 
 59
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 face of the unlucky fellow you don't 
 desire to select as partner, then hand 
 the mirror to the one you wish to dance 
 with." 
 
 " But what if I don't wish to dance 
 with either ? " cried Joan. " Can I go on 
 until the right one comes?" 
 
 " Of course, but don't be too cruel." 
 
 Joan settled herself and her flounces 
 comfortably in the chair, and with dan 
 cing, mischievous eyes felt that Fate was 
 playing into her hands better than she 
 could have expected. All round the 
 room every one was watching the new 
 figure. Cecile brought up two men, 
 only to receive a coquettish negative 
 flirt of the handkerchief over the mirror. 
 Then, two more, equally undesired; 
 but as Cecile turned back, laughing, to 
 seek others for the capricious lady's 
 choice, Fitz stood in her path, and she 
 took his hand. 
 
 " Will you try, Mr. Tilghman ? And 
 60
 
 Mrs. Vansittarf s Ball 
 
 I must have another. Captain Phil- 
 lipse, please come with me." 
 
 Jack, who happened to be standing 
 with his back to her, turned instantly, 
 regardless of the glare with which Fitz 
 honored him, and in a second the trio 
 stood behind Joan's chair. She held up 
 the mirror deliberately, stared at Jack's 
 handsome reflection in it for a brief 
 second, then wiping it out vigorously, 
 she waved the scrap of lace in the air, 
 and darted to her feet as the well-known 
 strain burst forth from the orchestra, a 
 song instantly taken up by every South 
 ern sympathizer's voice in the room : 
 
 " Hurrah, hurrah, for the Bonnie Blue Flag, 
 That bears the single star ! " 
 
 Fitz put his arm quickly around Joan's 
 waist, and she thrust the mirror into 
 his hand, whispering, "Didn't I do it 
 well ? " in his ear as they danced down 
 the floor. 
 
 The Union officer drew himself up 
 61
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 as if on parade, and stood motionless in 
 the centre of the room, though his flash 
 ing eyes and heightened color told that 
 the insult was keenly felt. Randolph 
 made a hasty movement in his direction, 
 but before he could reach him, Cecile, 
 all unconscious of the cause, but feeling 
 the antagonism in the air, had laid her 
 hand on Jack's arm. 
 
 " This makes you my partner," she 
 said sweetly. " I did not have time to 
 explain the figure. Shall we take a 
 turn ? " 
 
 From her post in the doorway, where, 
 with a mixture of wrath and amusement 
 she had been witness to this extraordi 
 nary scene, Mrs. Vansittart said to Den 
 bigh, at her elbow, 
 
 "Brava! the child has saved the 
 situation. I wonder who played the 
 trick?"
 
 Chapter III 
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 CECILE VANSITTART slept late the 
 morning after her ball, and her maid, 
 Stephanie, had twice tiptoed across the 
 dressing-room before a very sleepy 
 voice said softly, 
 
 " Is that you, Ste'phanie ? I think I '11 
 have my chocolate in bed unless mamma 
 is waiting for me." 
 
 "Madame ordered the carriage and 
 went out half an hour ago, Mam'selle; 
 Andrd has the chocolate at the door. I 
 trust I did not spoil Mam'selle's beauty 
 sleep?" 
 
 Cecile drew herself up daintily from 
 
 her pillows as the maid brought in the 
 
 breakfast tray, and proceeded to eat 
 
 her rolls with unabated appetite, chat- 
 
 63
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 ting merrily with Stephanie at the same 
 time. 
 
 " You should have called me earlier, 
 Stephanie ; I have n't an idea of the hour, 
 but I promised to ride out to Dalkeith 
 House this morning with Joan Lovell 
 and Mr. Tilghman, and I am afraid I 
 have missed my appointment." 
 
 "A message came for Mam'selle," 
 said the maid. " I think Andrd put the 
 card on the tray." 
 
 " Oh, here it is," disappointedly. 
 " They 've gone on without me. Never 
 mind," more cheerfully. " Turn on my 
 bath, Stephanie, and send a message to 
 the stable that I wish my horse at the 
 door in half an hour. And I '11 have the 
 new groom instead of Martin ; he knows 
 the country here, and Martin is apt to 
 lose his way." 
 
 " The man of color ? " - hesitated 
 Stephanie, uncertain whether to say 
 negro, and with the politeness of her 
 64
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 race avoiding the more common epithet 
 of " darky." 
 
 " Yes. Scip, I think they call him," 
 said Cecile, laughing. " And fetch my 
 green habit." 
 
 A proud and self-satisfied African was 
 Scip as he stood at the door of the Van- 
 sittart mansion half an hour later. Those 
 were the days of the " intelligent contra 
 band," and the wave of circumstance had 
 brought him from " down Souf " into his 
 present position in Baltimore. Crossing 
 the lines, Scip had first found employ 
 ment with the quartermaster's men; 
 then, one day, a volunteer captain had 
 corralled him as a servant, and, in due 
 course of time, brought him to Wash 
 ington when ordered there on staff duty. 
 Jack Phillipse had fallen heir to Scip 
 when his first " marster " went to the 
 front again, and he, in turn, finding that 
 Mrs. Vansittart needed a groom to 
 complete her household corps of ser- 
 65
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 vants, had secured the situation for 
 him with the understanding that he 
 was, in a way, responsible for his good 
 behavior. 
 
 " Laws, Marse Captain," quoth Scip, 
 with an indescribable air of drollery and 
 confidence peculiar to his kind, " I 'se 
 'tended hosses since I waz knee-high 
 to a grasshopper, an' I done tole yo' 
 p'intedly dat I waz body servant to 
 young Miss- No, Marse Captain, I 
 airft done tole yo' -what young Miss, 
 an' I don' mean ter; dat belongs to de 
 life down Souf. But I '11 serve faithful 
 wharever yo' put me, sah." 
 
 Scip's chief pride was Cecile's pretty 
 blooded mare, but next to that the Van- 
 sittart livery appealed to him, for its 
 claret color and white facings quite ful 
 filled his idea of elegance, and this was 
 his first order to accompany his young 
 mistress. He had groomed the mare's 
 satin coat till it fairly shone, and he 
 66 "
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 stood holding both horses by the bridles 
 as Cecile came smilingly down the steps 
 of the house. 
 
 "Good-morning, Scip; do you think 
 you can put me up ? " 
 
 Scip's chuckle deepened into a dis 
 play of all his ivories; Cecile put her 
 foot in his hand and sprang lightly into 
 the saddle. The mare danced a little, 
 and Scip waited for orders before mount 
 ing. 
 
 "Which way, little Missy? " he asked 
 respectfully. 
 
 "I shall have to ask you that, Scip. 
 I have n't learned Baltimore streets 
 very well as yet. I wish to go to Dal- 
 keith House, Mrs. Pegram's," directed 
 Cecile. 
 
 " Dat 's out Relay way, Missy, oh, 
 yes, I know whar 't is, right well." 
 
 It took some little time to get through 
 the streets, Cecile found, for the pave 
 ments were anything but regular, and 
 67
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 wet moreover and muddy. It was a re 
 lief when, following Scip's directions, 
 they finally struck a dirt road and found 
 themselves outside the city limits. Dal- 
 keith, a fine old Maryland house, was 
 on the post road of olden times; and the 
 approach was somewhat winding after 
 reaching the gates which stood hospita 
 bly open. Cecile rather expected to see 
 Joan Lovell and her cavalier in the 
 wide portico, but apparently no one 
 was in view. Dismounting, she threw 
 her reins to Scip and went quickly up 
 the steps as he led the horses away. 
 The house, large and wide, was a dou 
 ble one, with parlors on either side of a 
 hall which ran through it from front to 
 back, the door standing, Southern fash 
 ion, unlatched. Cecile pushed it open, 
 and seeing no one within, turned to the 
 right and entered the large square par 
 lor. Back of that, with folding doors 
 between, was the library, which at first 
 68
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 she thought was empty also. But as her 
 eyes accustomed themselves to the light, 
 she saw, seated by a window at the ex 
 treme end of the room, a man, who, with 
 his head resting on his hand, appeared to 
 be plunged in deep thought. She could 
 see him perfectly; he was strikingly 
 handsome, with a long, sweeping mus 
 tache worn cavalry fashion, which ac 
 corded well with his clear-cut features. 
 Cecile hesitated; she did not like to 
 advance, and was equally unwilling 
 to retreat. Where was Mrs. Pegram, 
 and why was the house so seemingly 
 deserted? In her annoyance at the 
 awkwardness of her position the riding 
 crop which she held escaped from her 
 fingers, and in falling hit the edge of 
 a table, making a slight noise. Then a 
 strange thing happened. From a figure 
 of repose the stranger became instantly 
 the incarnation of activity, for without 
 pausing to look in her direction, he 
 69
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 placed one hand on the open window-sill 
 beside him, and bounding lightly over 
 it with the skill of a practiced athlete, 
 vanished! 
 
 Cecile gave a little gasp, half fright, 
 half amazement; then she turned and 
 fled into the hall. 
 
 "Why, my dear child," said Mrs. 
 Pegram, coming down the staircase as 
 she spoke, " I did not know you were 
 here. Have you been waiting long?" 
 
 " Only a moment," said Cecile, too 
 bewildered to conceal her embarrass 
 ment. " I went into the parlor, and 
 oh, Mrs. Pegram I am afraid I dis 
 turbed your guest." 
 
 A singular expression flashed across 
 her hostess' fine face, then she said gen 
 tly, with her usual composure : - 
 
 " My guest? I have none at present. 
 Joan and Fitz Tilghman left some time 
 ago. They thought you were not com- 
 
 ing." 
 
 70
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 "But the gentleman, Mrs. Pegram, 
 certainly he was sitting in the win 
 dow" 
 
 " Which window ? " Mrs. Pegram 
 cut her short as she led the way into 
 the parlor. " There is no one here, 
 Cecile." 
 
 " He was there, I am sure, and he 
 sat in that large chair," stammered Ce 
 cile, unable to reconcile a burglar theory 
 which flashed through her brain with 
 the face and beauty of the mysterious 
 stranger. 
 
 " Then where is he ? " asked Mrs. 
 Pegram tranquilly. " What became of 
 him?" 
 
 " Dear Mrs. Pegram, he jumped out 
 of the window." 
 
 Mrs. Pegram's gaze of mild incredu 
 lity was beautiful to behold. She hesi 
 tated a second, then she laid her hand 
 on Cecile's arm. 
 
 " Cecile," she said, looking the girl 
 7'
 
 A jfavelin of Fate 
 
 directly in the eyes, " there was no one 
 there. Do you understand me, my dear ? 
 Ton saw no one ! " 
 
 For the second time in twenty-four 
 hours Cecile's fine breeding rose to the 
 emergency. The real truth never en 
 tered her puzzled little head, but she 
 repeated naively, 
 
 " I saw no one." Then, with a twin 
 kle of her blue eyes which proved her 
 possession of American humor, she 
 added, with conviction, " It was a ghost; 
 that is why I was frightened." 
 
 Mrs. Pegram longed to give way to 
 laughter, but the situation was too se 
 rious. More than one life might hang 
 in the balance of fate were her visitor 
 discovered, and she dared give no con 
 fidences. 
 
 " As in England, many old Maryland 
 houses have their family ghost, Cecile. 
 Some day, if you would be interested 
 to hear it, I may tell you of ours." 
 72
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 "And a secret chamber?" asked 
 Cecile eagerly. " I saw one in an old 
 mansion in Amsterdam which was said 
 to have been used by the famous Beg 
 gars of the Sea. But yours would not 
 be as old as that, would it ? " 
 
 Again Mrs. Pegram experienced the 
 sensation of skating over very thin ice. 
 
 "What a romantic child you are; 
 your Old World simplicity is a contrast 
 to our girls'." 
 
 " But your girls are delightful, dear 
 Mrs. Pegram. Though" she hesitated, 
 coloring brightly. 
 
 " Though they do take liberties," 
 finished her hostess, glad to change the 
 conversation. " I was greatly vexed 
 with Joan LovelPs trick last night. It 
 was a distinct liberty, and as such re 
 quires an apology. Joan told me that 
 she wrote a note asking for forgiveness 
 this morning." 
 
 "Which is granted," said Cecile 
 73
 
 A jfavelin of Fate 
 
 readily. Her mother had given her a 
 hint after the ball that it was better to 
 pass over the matter without discussion, 
 especially here Mrs. Vansittart grew 
 emphatic especially not with Mrs. Pe- 
 gram. And Cecile was doing her best 
 to obey the suggestion. 
 
 " Stay and have dinner with me," 
 urged Mrs. Pegram, after half an hour 
 had been given to chatting about the 
 ball and its great social success. " I am 
 old-fashioned enough to cling to my 
 three-o'clock hour for the meal, and to 
 day Innes is coming out from Baltimore 
 to dine with me." 
 
 " I should love to stop, but we are 
 dining out to-night, and to-morrow you 
 are coming to us. Will you order the 
 horses for me; I really must start at 
 once." 
 
 During Cecile's visit, Scip had been 
 having an experience of his own which 
 caused him great fright and much re- 
 74
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 flection. The drive, around which he 
 led the horses, took two turns before 
 arriving at the stable door, and the sec 
 ond one brought the back of the man 
 sion in full view to the passer-by on the 
 road. Scip, sauntering along, talking 
 half aloud to his horses as he went, saw 
 a tall figure vault quickly out of the li 
 brary window to the ground, and then 
 dart behind a thick box hedge which 
 effectually concealed him from the 
 house, but not from the negro's keen 
 eyes, which fairly rolled in his head 
 with excitement and surprise. 
 
 " Fo' de good Lawd's sake ! " gasped 
 Scip, promptly interposing the mare's 
 body between himself and the box 
 hedge, " Ef it ain't Marse Gineral ! 
 How'd he come hyar; to cotch me, I 
 wonder? Reckon not, Marse Gineral. 
 Yo' done get dis yere niggar no mo'. 
 Spec I 'd better git inside dat stable 
 mighty spry." Scip fairly flew along 
 75
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 between the trotting horses, and did 
 not draw a free breath until he found 
 himself, panting and almost gray with 
 fright, safe within the stable door. 
 Once there, however, his wits returned 
 to him, and he proceeded to ingratiate 
 himself with the Pegram retainers, and 
 by cautious questioning endeavored to 
 obtain some information regarding the 
 apparition of the fleeing guest But old 
 Cicero, the gray-haired coachman who 
 had "b'longed to de fambly an' bin 
 raised dar," was as astute in his way as 
 Scip, and, moreover, had not much pa 
 tience with any " contraband " or " Lin- 
 cum sogers," so he listened with old- 
 time politeness to all Scip had to say, 
 and whenever a question was slipped in 
 replied to it by asking another in such 
 an artful and apparently innocent fash 
 ion that Scip recognized the ruse, and 
 resolved to tell " Marse Captain " the 
 whole story on the first opportunity. 
 76
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 The last flying fold of Cecile's riding 
 habit had disappeared through the gates 
 before Mrs. Pegram felt secure enough 
 to return to her library. Once there, she 
 walked to the window and looked care 
 fully out; then, closing it, turned back 
 to see the man she was watching for 
 walk quickly forth from behind a large 
 Japanese screen which adorned one cor 
 ner of the room. 
 
 " Upon my word, Augusta," said he 
 easily, " you do spring surprises on 
 one! If I had known the intruder at 
 my back was that very pretty girl I 
 think I should have stopped and taken 
 the chances, trusting to luck and your 
 infinite fund of resource rather than 
 give her such a fright." 
 
 " Do you mean to say that you ac 
 tually came back and were behind that 
 screen all the time she was here ? " 
 
 " Certainly. I found I was in full 
 view of the stable while behind the 
 77
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 box hedge, and I stole in through the 
 side door and ensconced myself com 
 fortably here. I knew you would not 
 come further than the parlor, and the 
 calm audacity with which you endeav 
 ored to convince your visitor that she 
 had not seen my very substantial self 
 merits my highest admiration." 
 
 Mrs. Pegram joined in the laugh as 
 he sat down beside her. 
 
 " What was I to do ? " she said rue 
 fully. " I did n't dare tell her who you 
 were, as I did Joan Lovell. The child 
 has only recently come to the United 
 States, and has very vague ideas as to 
 the Civil War. Whatever she thinks, 
 and when she has time to reflect she 
 very possibly may guess that you be 
 long to the Confederate Cause, I know 
 she will not mention the incident be 
 cause of the unwritten law noblesse 
 oblige" 
 
 "And then," he went on, " you asked 
 78
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 her to stay to dinner, and I had visions 
 of another ' ghostly ' exit." 
 
 " Nonsense ; my invitation was merely 
 facon deparler. I knew I was perfectly 
 safe in giving it, and it seemed inhos 
 pitable not to do so. Stop teasing, arid 
 tell me your plans, and what I can do 
 for the Cause." 
 
 His face changed instantly; the quick, 
 alert look, the stern lines of his mouth 
 told the man of action and set pur 
 pose. 
 
 "You cannot do much at present. 
 Hampton is planning another raid; this 
 time one even more daring than his 
 last; and I take command in one direc 
 tion, while he leads in the other. More 
 than this I cannot tell you, but any news 
 which you may obtain through social 
 sources news of movements that is 
 authentic helps us; that is, if any 
 thing can help a losing Cause! " 
 
 " For heaven's sake, don't say that! " 
 79
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 she cried. " Fitz Tilghman brings help 
 and money from abroad; there are dis 
 sensions even now at the North ; there 
 is an organized move in Canada" 
 
 " Of little avail," he said sadly. 
 
 " Do I live to hear you abandon the 
 Cause ? " she said in keen reproach. 
 
 " I ? Never! You mistake me, Au 
 gusta. The last drop of my blood be 
 longs to the South. But we leaders see 
 the beginning of the end, and seeing it, 
 struggle on. I have no right to discour 
 age you ; you know I am always rather 
 a pessimist." 
 
 She looked at him compassionately, 
 her fine eyes full of tears. 
 
 " I never knew what changed you so 
 utterly in those days of long ago. I date 
 it back to that dreadful trip to New 
 Orleans from which you returned aged 
 years." 
 
 He looked at her for a moment in 
 silence. A dark flush mounted his 
 80
 
 The Man who Vanished 
 
 bronzed face, his eyes burned with an 
 emotion she could not fathom. 
 
 " I would rather not lift the stone 
 from that grave," he said with concen 
 trated passion. " It holds all my youth, 
 my faith, indeed, my every hope. 
 And it bears a woman's name." 
 
 " I guessed as much," she murmured 
 softly; but, Gaspard" 
 
 " Hush," he said, springing from his 
 chair, " that is Cicero's whistle." 
 
 They listened a moment; again, un 
 der the window of the room, sounded 
 the note of warning. 
 
 " I must to cover." He moved swiftly 
 toward the door as he spoke, and she 
 followed him. " Next time I '11 come 
 by night, and send you word in advance. 
 Tell Innes I meet two of our men to 
 night in Baltimore at the old place. 
 Good-by; God bless you;" and, leav 
 ing a kiss on her upturned face, he was 
 gone.
 
 Chapter IV 
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 " I DECLARE, Champe, it warms the 
 cockles of my heart to see you devour 
 that batter-bread. Your appetite con 
 vinces me that the stories of starvation 
 parties down in Richmond have solid 
 foundation." 
 
 " Solid ? " quoth Champe Randolph, 
 taking another half slice. " Did you say 
 solid, Aunt Sue? Solid in foundation 
 alone, then. t Trifles, light as air,' in 
 fact, almost air itself is what we poor 
 souls have been subsisting upon; yes, 
 and it's getting worse every day." 
 
 Miss Susan Lindsay (affectionately 
 known as " Aunt Sue " to all her large 
 circle of friends and acquaintances) set 
 down her coffee-cup and made on 
 slaught upon the fried chicken with a 
 82
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 view to replenishing Champe's already 
 well-filled breakfast plate. 
 
 " I am forced to remind you that I 
 did n't leave there yesterday," remon 
 strated Champe ; " and I 'm not qualify 
 ing for a Strasburg goose. Enough, 
 enough, Aunt Sue." 
 
 With this assurance, Aunt Sue was 
 fain to be satisfied, although she cast a 
 lingering glance at the fat ham on the 
 sideboard, and even suggested some 
 spiced pickle which stood temptingly 
 at hand. Then she settled herself com 
 fortably in her chair and demanded the 
 latest news from the beleaguered South 
 ern city. 
 
 " It seems mighty dangerous to have 
 you running the blockade, Champe. Do 
 you ever reflect what those low-down 
 Yankees would do to you if they catch 
 you coming through the lines? I don't 
 see how Peyton ever consents to let 
 you take such risks." 
 83
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " Can't help himself," said Champe 
 lightly. " The dear boy knows he can 
 trust me to take care of myself, though 
 I do give him a fright occasionally." 
 And she laughed at the recollection of 
 the scene at Conrad's Ferry. " I do not 
 expect to try it more than once again. 
 And, oh, Aunt Sue, it 's the gay, wild 
 drop of blood in my veins that comes 
 straight down from my cavalier ances 
 tor who fought with Prince Rupert and 
 died for the King. I just can't help 
 it" And Champe, rising, playfully 
 pulled Aunt Sue over to her favorite 
 chair near the big bay-window and sat 
 down on a low seat beside her. 
 
 They were dear friends, those two, 
 and not only because of the near tie of 
 kinship between them, for when Mrs. 
 Randolph died she made Miss Lindsay 
 joint guardian with her brother to her 
 boy and girl. There was money ga 
 lore for both children, but Aunt Sue 
 84
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 took Champe to her own home, where, 
 except for two years passed in a Rich 
 mond boarding-school, she had spent 
 most of her life. When the Civil War 
 broke out Champe happened to be vis 
 iting in Richmond, where she remained 
 for more than a year, and where her 
 belleship made her, literally, the toast 
 of the South. Returning to Baltimore, 
 her beauty and wit gave her the pres 
 tige accorded to a favored few, and 
 therefore it was little short of a marvel 
 how she contrived to aid "the Cause" 
 without detection. Perhaps some of her 
 victims might have told, but so far their 
 silence had been the pledge of their 
 loyalty. 
 
 " Aunt Sue," said Champe, after they 
 had asked and answered questions for 
 half an hour, " I had one queer adven 
 ture not so long ago that I must tell 
 you. Beside, there is a question in 
 my mind whether " She hesitated, 
 85
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 blushed, shook her head doubtfully, 
 and went on : "I had started from Cul- 
 peper Court House with Percy Hu- 
 ger (Cousin Alice's youngest son, you 
 know) to go for a short visit to Orlean, 
 and took advantage of the escort of 
 Carey Estes (of Longstreet's staff ), who 
 was carrying dispatches. We had to 
 cross the Hazel River, and as we were 
 looking for the ford, a man, dressed in 
 a suit of butternut cloth, dashed out 
 from the bushes on the river bank, and 
 begged for a horse to enable him to 
 cross. He had been wounded in the 
 left arm, and somehow he appealed to 
 me. He wanted to join General Early's 
 command; and he told a straight enough 
 story, but the difficulty was that our 
 horses, which were none too well fed, 
 were too spent to make the ford and 
 return for him. So Percy rather curtly 
 refused him our aid. The man looked 
 so disappointed, so half-frozen and for- 
 86
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 lorn, that I offered to mount him behind 
 me, as I had a big black horse which I 
 knew was safe to carry double." 
 
 "Good heavens!" ejaculated Aunt 
 Sue. " Well, after all, you could n't 
 well refuse a poor soldier and a 
 wounded one." 
 
 "Just what I thought," said Champe, 
 with an odd little laugh, " especially as 
 I was morally certain he never would 
 know me again. Even you would have 
 been puzzled to recognize me, for I 
 wore an officer's gray hat, pulled down 
 low over my brow, to keep off the snow 
 which was falling in a light flurry, and 
 my riding visor over my face com 
 pletely covered every feature except 
 my mouth and eyes. He had great 
 difficulty in mounting, but at last with 
 the trooper's aid we got him up and 
 started. Just fancy the scene! The 
 river was unusually swollen from re 
 cent storms, and partly filled with ice, 
 87 '
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the snow was falling, and the cutting 
 wind seemed to penetrate our very 
 bones. The men went in advance of 
 me, and the horses struck out gallantly; 
 we were nearly across when the soldier 
 almost lost his balance, but feeling him 
 slip, I managed to grip his arm and pull 
 him up until Percy's orderly came to 
 my relief. But I can tell you, Aunt 
 Sue, I was dreadfully frightened for a 
 minute; I thought I'd see him drown 
 before my eyes." 
 
 " What became of him ? " asked Miss 
 Lindsay breathlessly. 
 
 " When we got to the top of the bank 
 Percy dismounted and pulled him off, 
 and as we were about to leave him I 
 pointed out a little hut, not far away, 
 where I knew he could find shelter, 
 and I think I said he might tell the in 
 mates that a lady from Richmond, a 
 friend of Colonel Mosby's, sent him 
 there for a night's lodging." 
 88
 
 A Daughter of Rve 
 
 " That was fine," said Aunt Sue, with 
 enthusiasm. " You saved a man's life." 
 
 " Yes," replied Champe, with rueful 
 countenance; "but I saved it for 
 the wrong side ! " 
 
 " Bless my soul, child, what do you 
 mean ? " 
 
 "Now, that's just the question, and 
 I 've never settled it. Aunt Sue, that 
 man was a Yankee." 
 
 " A -what? " Miss Lindsay could not 
 believe her ears. 
 
 " A Union soldier, and even worse, I 
 suspect, an officer." 
 
 " Do you mean to tell me, Champe 
 Randolph, that you knew he was an 
 enemy and you deliberately let him go 
 free, the viper! " 
 
 Champe straightened herself, and the 
 color flew to her face as she said hotly: 
 
 "Yes, I did. Aunt Sue, I couldn't 
 betray him. When the horse lost its 
 footing, and he nearly fell off, he gave a 
 89
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 short exclamation, well, I 'm not sure 
 that it was a pious one, and his accent 
 was unmistakably real, downright 
 New York. Aunt Sue, look me in the 
 face and tell me whether viper or 
 not you would have then and there 
 denounced him?" 
 
 " On consideration no ! I 'd be 
 ashamed of y ou if you had." 
 
 " There ! " cried Champe triumph 
 antly, as Aunt Sue rapped out this un 
 expected reply. " My conscientious 
 scruples vanish." 
 
 " You need n't crow over it," said 
 Aunt Sue, aware that she had fallen 
 into the trap so mischievously laid for 
 her. " But why do you imagine he was 
 a Yankee officer?" 
 
 " First, because of his voice and 
 manner; secondly, I Ve run across him 
 again." 
 
 "Not here, in Baltimore? Oh, my 
 dearest child, do be careful. You will 
 90
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 certainly get caught in some of your 
 mad scrapes." 
 
 " No, not here." Champe did not dare 
 divulge where; Aunt Sue's proprieties 
 would never forgive the boy's disguise 
 which, so far, Champe had succeeded 
 in keeping a profound secret. " I did 
 tease him so Good heavens! what 
 has happened ? " 
 
 Both women sprang to their feet as 
 something crashed against the win 
 dow-pane just behind Miss Lindsay's 
 chair. 
 
 " It 's only a snowball, rather better 
 aimed than usual. I '11 just warn those 
 boys across the street," said Aunt Sue, 
 throwing up the window as she spoke. 
 Opposite the house were six or seven 
 small boys, and one, a half-grown lad, 
 evidently the culprit, stood gazing in 
 their direction with his hands behind 
 him. As Aunt Sue raised the sash, he 
 let fly what looked to be another ball, 
 9 1
 
 A y awe/in of Fate 
 
 for it landed plump and fairly at 
 C - :-. --. ? . ' : -: : :. 
 
 "Don't scold them," whispered 
 Champe in Miss Lindsay's ear as she 
 pounced on the tiny packet and slipped 
 it behind a convenient sofa pillow. 
 "There's a policeman coming up the 
 street, and I dom't want that boy caught. 
 It's Billy.** 
 
 Whoever the lad was,, or what his 
 errand, the instant he beheld Champe's 
 face at the window he took to his heels, 
 and with the smaller boys flying after 
 him Klrg the tail of a kite, the ^tiyq 
 party disappeared around the nearest 
 corner. The fat policeman crossed the 
 street and touched his hat to Miss 
 Lindsay. 
 
 "Sure, it 's thim limbs ave b'ys what's 
 always gettin 9 in mischief, ma'am. If 
 they cracked your window it *s mesetf 
 that 11 lock 'em up." 
 
 No Hama|w done, thank yon; they 
 
 44
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 gave me rather a fright as I was sitting 
 close bj. Don't lock them up, this time ; 
 they don't often get snow enough here 
 to play balL" 
 
 tt It 's throe for ye, ma'am. Good- 
 day," and he passed up the street. 
 
 Champe, on the sofa safely out of sight, 
 was unrolling the packet. It proved to 
 be a small piece of paper, many times 
 folded around a square bit of metal, the 
 sort of thing used for weighing down 
 riding habits or jackets. There were 
 a few words written on the paper. 
 Champe read them eagerly: 
 
 "Estes court-martialed on account 
 of failure of movement in November. 
 Your evidence necessary for acquittal. 
 Come at once by upper Potomac. Em 
 ploy Dutch Hans." 
 
 Aunt Sue, having closed the window, 
 was startled by a cry of anguish from 
 Champe, who, deathly pale, was crum 
 pling the paper with nervous fingers. 
 93
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 " It 's bad news," she said briefly. 
 " I shall start back to-night if I can pos 
 sibly manage it. Carey Estes has been 
 court-martialed." 
 
 " What on earth have you to do with 
 that? Oh, Champe, do not, I beg of you, 
 run into danger again." 
 
 " But I must, Aunt Sue. Carey was 
 with me I have just told you we 
 crossed the Hazel River together. The 
 movement for which he carried orders 
 failed, and he is court-martialed. It 
 must be urgent or I would not be sum 
 moned. I must go at once and find 
 whether the Lovells have any informa 
 tion. Don't worry, dear Aunt Sue. If 
 Peyton appears during my absence ask 
 him to wait for me here. I '11 not be 
 long." 
 
 Jack Phillipse had been having a par 
 ticularly busy time that morning in the 
 adjutant-general's office, and started to 
 94
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 make his way back to Fort McHenry 
 about noon. Walking down North 
 Charles Street, where he had promised 
 to meet a brother officer before taking 
 the horse-cars which would carry him 
 near the Fort, he saw a small crowd 
 collected on the corner of St. Paul Street, 
 and stopped a moment, preferring not to 
 elbow his way through it as most of the 
 spectators were women. Jack's experi 
 ence had taught him that the sight of 
 his blue uniform was a signal for avoid 
 ance on the part of many of the South 
 ern women, and as he took up a position 
 on the curbstone there was a little fall 
 ing back of several of them; in fact, 
 only three apparently held their ground 
 in his immediate vicinity, and they were 
 so engrossed in what they were looking 
 at that they did not cast a glance in his 
 direction. Up the street came a squad 
 of men, and Jack saw that it was a pro 
 vost-marshal's guard, surrounding eight 
 95
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 or ten prisoners, some of them in the 
 war-worn Confederate gray uniform. 
 As they neared him sufficiently for 
 the faces of the prisoners to be seen, 
 suddenly, from the crowd, rang out 
 clearly a woman's voice, of startled 
 surprise, 
 
 "Page Tucker!" 
 
 Instantly there was a word of sharp 
 command, the soldiers halted, and the 
 sergeant in charge started to advance on 
 the little crowd. Jack, who was aware 
 that the cry had come from a girl who 
 stood beside him, heard a low whisper, 
 intended for his ear alone, 
 
 " For God's sake, don't let them ar 
 rest me ! " 
 
 "Then keep quiet," he said sternly, 
 without even a glance in her direction. 
 The squad had halted directly in front 
 of the spot where Jack stood. The pris 
 oners were eagerly surveying the faces 
 nearest them, except one man, a tall, 
 96
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 well-poised figure, who stood twirling 
 his eyeglasses rather carelessly as he 
 fastened his coat collar. 
 
 " Who spoke there ? " demanded the 
 sergeant, pushing nearer the curbstone. 
 No one. answered, and one of the wo 
 men laughed. Jack took a step forward. 
 
 "I think the call came from the 
 centre, Sergeant Evans," he said. The 
 sergeant turned and saluted. 
 
 " I did n't see you, sir," he said re 
 spectfully. " My orders are to arrest any 
 person who endeavors to communicate 
 with the prisoners." 
 
 " Was the name called that of one of 
 the prisoners ? " 
 
 " I don't know, sir. Shall I inquire ? " 
 
 Jack looked at the man with the eye 
 glasses, who met his gaze with a cool 
 stare of indifference. He opened his 
 lips to order the sergeant to pass on, 
 when a small boy rose from the curb 
 where he had been crouching, and, point- 
 97
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 ing a dirty finger at the girl who had 
 spoken, called out with the impishness 
 of the street gamin, 
 
 "That's her! I seen her when she 
 hollered." 
 
 The little crowd had melted swiftly 
 away during the colloquy between Jack 
 and the sergeant, leaving only an elderly 
 woman who had mounted the steps of 
 a house in front of which they were 
 standing, a man with a market basket 
 on his arm, and the girl, whose eyes 
 Jack now met for the first time. 
 
 "You young rascal, you saw nothing 
 of the kind." Jack laid a strong hand 
 on the imp's shoulder. " This young 
 lady is here under my escort, sergeant. 
 No further investigation is necessary. 
 Move on ! " 
 
 The sergeant wheeled and saluted, 
 the squad swung into line, and the small 
 boy, now thoroughly frightened, twist 
 ing himself free from Jack's angry grasp, 
 98
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 scuttled down the street and disap 
 peared, leaving Jack and the girl facing 
 each other. There was a second's pause 
 as the provost-marshal's guard passed 
 on its way; then Jack said in a careful 
 undertone, 
 
 " Will you pardon me for claiming 
 an acquaintance? It was the only way 
 out of an embarrassing situation." 
 
 " You may escort me as far as the 
 next square," was the unexpected reply 
 as Champe Randolph flashed an elo 
 quent glance upon him. " I thank you 
 more than I can say. An arrest at this 
 moment would have been a great mis 
 fortune, and I should not have provoked 
 it but for my surprise at seeing an old 
 friend and playmate a prisoner when I 
 thought him miles away in the South." 
 
 " I am very glad to have been of ser 
 vice," Jack answered, a little bewildered 
 with her beauty and gracious manner, 
 and at the same time haunted with an 
 99
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 idea that he had seen her before. " Pray 
 think no more about it. It is a pleasure 
 to have saved you annoyance." 
 
 " And I," said Champe, with a mis 
 chievous smile, as she paused in front 
 of the house where she intended call 
 ing, " I rejoice in the courtesy accorded 
 by a Union officer to a rebel." And 
 with a gay, teasing laugh she ran up 
 the steps as Jack bared his head in 
 farewell. 
 
 " Where on earth are you going, 
 Phillipse ? " called a familiar voice be 
 hind him as he continued down North 
 Charles Street, and Ned Harris caught 
 up with him. " I 've been chasing you 
 for two squares. Your orders have 
 come." 
 
 " What are they? " demanded Jack. 
 
 " Report to General Averill for staff 
 duty in the Shenandoah Valley. You Ve 
 passed the corner where we were to 
 meet, and my astonished eyes beheld 
 
 IOO
 
 A Daughter of Eve 
 
 you with about the last woman I ever 
 expected to see escorted by a United 
 States officer." 
 
 " Indeed ! And why so, may I ask ? " 
 " Because she is the greatest belle 
 and rankest rebel of all Baltimore, 
 Champe Randolph, Peyton Ran 
 dolph's only sister."
 
 Chapter V 
 
 The Web of Circumstance 
 
 EVELYN VANSITTART sat in her luxu 
 rious library alone, and before her, on 
 her desk, lay an open letter. Twice 
 had Andre*, her footman, brought in a 
 card upon a silver salver only to have 
 his mistress dismiss him with a brief 
 " not at home." It was rather a dull 
 afternoon following a sunny morning, 
 and Cecile had gone out on horseback 
 with Fitz Tilghman, who had become 
 her devoted cavalier, leaving her mo 
 ther to what Mrs. Vansittart called 
 " my European affairs." But it was not 
 Amsterdam nor her vast interest there 
 and elsewhere which had chained her 
 thoughts. She was indulging in a re 
 trospect which she seldom allowed her 
 self, she was alone with her past. 
 
 102
 
 The W^eb of Circumstance 
 
 Taken abroad by her mother, after 
 her father's death, at barely nineteen 
 years of age, she met, while visiting at 
 an historic English home, Guysbert 
 Vansittart, a banker of Amsterdam. 
 More than twice her age, a man of great 
 fortune, much culture, and by no means 
 ill-looking, he had (against all his pre 
 conceived ideas of what he considered 
 admirable in a wife) fallen desperately 
 in love with the beautiful American. 
 The wooing had been short, and three 
 months after their first meeting the 
 wedding had taken place at St. George's 
 with a pomp and brilliancy that grati 
 fied the soul of Evelyn's most ambitious 
 mother. She in her turn married, shortly 
 after, an Englishman of family, thus 
 cutting off all connection with the land 
 of their birth except such ties as were 
 represented by their lawyer and man of 
 affairs, whose office was merely to attend 
 to their property in America. 
 103
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Guysbert Vansittart came of good old 
 Holland stock, and Evelyn took and 
 held a position of much distinction in 
 her new home. But to the day of his 
 death, which occurred when Cecile was 
 twelve years old, Vansittart carried the 
 consciousness that he had never pene 
 trated the depths of his wife's heart. He 
 adored her; she was only kind. With 
 the patience and phlegm of his race, the 
 man endured his lot, consoled by the 
 thought that if she could not return 
 the passion with which she inspired him 
 she at least bestowed it upon no one. 
 And had he been content to die as he 
 had lived in that belief, perhaps his pass 
 ing would have been easier; for the fruit 
 of the Tree of Knowledge is as bitter 
 to-day as it was in the Garden of Eden. 
 But just before he died, as Evelyn stood 
 alone beside him, he opened his dimmed 
 eyes and said softly, 
 
 "Well-beloved, it comforts me to 
 104
 
 The W^eb of Circumstance 
 
 know that thou hast never loved as I 
 love thee. Assure me of that before we 
 part." 
 
 A wave of temptation surged over 
 Evelyn. Why not seal her long deceit 
 with one little lie? But the inherent 
 truth at the base of her warped nature 
 asserted itself, and with lips that grew 
 pale in the telling, she cried fiercely, 
 
 " Man, you know not the meaning of 
 the word love ! I have loved and lost 
 all! " 
 
 With a choking sob Guysbert Van- 
 sittart turned on his pillow and died. 
 
 During all the years that followed 
 the tragedy of her youth, Evelyn dis 
 played one singularly strong character 
 istic, she never made a confidante. 
 Her agony, her despair, was locked in 
 her own breast; so was her desire for 
 vengeance. Her secret, known but to 
 one other, had, through a curious train 
 of circumstances, been absolutely unsus- 
 105
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 pected, and for years she had been 
 quietly planning her return to America. 
 And now, in the letter that lay before 
 her, came the announcement that the 
 weapon was being fitted to her hand, 
 the only person who could help to 
 avenge the past was, in answer to Eve 
 lyn's summons, hurrying to her side. 
 
 The fire burned low on the hearth, 
 the gray shades of evening began to 
 gather in the sky, but Evelyn sat on, 
 unheeding, until the rattle of horses' 
 hoofs on the pavement caused her to 
 raise her head. She rose quickly, but 
 before she had time to touch the bell, 
 the library door opened, and Andre* 
 ushered in a tall, spare, elderly woman, 
 wearing a long dark cloak and bonnet 
 of ancient fashion. 
 
 " Xante The'rese, at last, at last," said 
 Evelyn, in a voice that, although low, 
 told of repressed excitement. 
 
 " Mon enfant, mon co3ur ! " cried the 
 106
 
 The If^eb of Circumstance 
 
 woman, showering kisses on the hand 
 extended to her, and continuing in rapid 
 French with the slight patois of a New 
 Orleans Creole of the lower class, 
 "After all these years to see you 
 again ; oh, heart of my heart and 
 still so beautiful so young! " 
 
 " My looks belie my feelings," said 
 Evelyn sadly, as she undid the woman's 
 cloak and led her to an easy-chair. 
 " You make me feel a child again, Tante 
 Therese. And are you well, quite well ? 
 I could wait no longer to see you, or I 
 would not have demanded your coming 
 in winter." 
 
 " But, what difference ? I would have 
 gone even across the ocean had you 
 called me." 
 
 Evelyn drew her chair close to the 
 other, and the conversation went on in 
 low tones, but always in French, as the 
 Creole's English was halting and diffi 
 cult. 
 
 107
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 "Are you content with me, mon 
 coeur ? Has all been done as you wished 
 in these years of absence? What ser 
 vice can I render now ? " 
 
 " First, tell me of your journey. You 
 came as I directed when I wrote you 
 from Amsterdam, and reached Cincin 
 nati safely?" 
 
 "Yes, yes; there were friends to the 
 Cause in each stopping-place; but that 
 dirty, smoky city, bah ! I hated it." 
 
 "And you still have our chain of 
 communication kept open, Tante The*- 
 rese? The information I was able to 
 furnish by your last report was of in 
 calculable value." 
 
 " I paid good gold for that, mon 
 enfant. But the poor people, ah, my 
 heart aches sometimes for those who 
 have lost all." 
 
 " I have no pity to spare," said Eve 
 lyn coldly. " The innocent always suf 
 fer with the guilty. But of one thing I 
 1 08
 
 The If^eb of Circumstance 
 
 must make sure, Tante Therese; now, 
 more than ever, it must not be sus 
 pected that I have any connection with 
 the secret organization of which you 
 are the nominal head. To make this 
 secure, I have taken a small house on 
 Linden Avenue which you will call 
 your own, and where I can easily com 
 municate with you by a system which I 
 will explain. There are spies all around 
 us, spies who are Federals, spies who 
 are Confederates, and our moves must 
 be made with extraordinary caution. 
 My servants, with one exception, I 
 brought with me from Amsterdam, and 
 I shall take you, myself, this evening, in 
 my own carriage, to the house, where 
 you will remain. Is Petit Jean already 
 in the city ? " 
 
 " He came ten days ago, and I have 
 his address here in my reticule." 
 
 " He will live with you, of course, 
 and he is safe. And now, Tante Thd- 
 109
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 rese, tell me of yourself, and hold my 
 hand in yours as you used to, long ago." 
 For a brief instant her voice softened, 
 but as the Creole poured out her story, 
 she regained her usual proud serenity, 
 and they sat there talking while the mo 
 ments flew by, until the gathering dark 
 ness was upon them and Andre* entered 
 with the lamps. 
 
 " Order the carriage," said his mis 
 tress. " I am going out for an hour." 
 Then, as he closed the door, she drew 
 close to The'rese and whispered in tones 
 that faltered in spite of herself: "Tante 
 The'rese, tell me of him!" 
 
 " Oh! La, la! " came the answer, in a 
 venomous whisper that sounded like the 
 hiss of a serpent. " M'sieu le General " 
 
 "Not his name," interrupted Evelyn 
 fiercely. "Do not speak it even when 
 we are alone." 
 
 The'rese nodded; her beadlike eyes 
 glittered underneath their drooping lids, 
 no
 
 The If^eb of Circumstance 
 
 " He is brave, that soldier," she mut 
 tered. "He fights, I am told, comme 
 le diable. Those Yankees would give 
 much to capture him, it is said. When 
 Beast Butler came to New Orleans he 
 disappeared. He is in Virginia now 
 with the General Hampton. Oh, yes, he 
 is cunning like the fox, and he escapes 
 the traps we lay for him, always." 
 
 " He will not escape me ! " 
 
 The Creole nodded again; then she 
 said softly, 
 
 " Mon cceur, we will work together. 
 Do you think I forget? Do you think 
 I forgive? I, who carried you in these 
 arms that night when I found you at 
 the foot of the mountain " 
 
 " Tante The'rese, how dare you ? " 
 
 " Pardon," the voice said humbly. 
 "I thought" 
 
 " I forbid you ! We deal only with 
 the present. The future shall avenge 
 the wrongs of the past."
 
 Chapter VI 
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 " RIDE steadily, but not too fast through 
 the streets of the town, and avoid any 
 appearance of over-anxiety. Go down 
 this street to your left until you pass a 
 small country store standing by itself, 
 with a barn on the same lot, but at a 
 distance from it. Then go to the right, 
 and follow the road, it 's a pike road, 
 and has an old toll-gate. Probably the 
 keeper will not hear you, but if he does 
 there is no harm done ; he has long 
 since ceased to collect toll. Half a mile 
 farther on you '11 find the Lawtons' 
 house, they will know best how to 
 pass you through Charlestown." 
 
 The speaker, a small man, riding a 
 big gray horse, extended his hand in 
 a farewell grasp to Champe Randolph, 
 
 112
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 who mounted on a good-looking bay, 
 sat listening to his directions. 
 
 " One moment," said she, detaining 
 him. "What am I to do with this 
 horse ? " 
 
 " Leave him at the Lawtons', and I '11 
 send a boy after him to-morrow. Good- 
 by, and good luck attend you." 
 
 Champe gathered up her reins, and 
 started cautiously down the main street 
 of the little town called Duffield's De 
 pot. It was six o'clock, and a cold raw 
 morning. In the dim light of dawn the 
 houses looked gaunt and forlorn enough, 
 but the hour was admirably chosen for 
 Champe's purpose, as no one seemed 
 astir except two men who emerged 
 from a barn with a market wagon, and 
 an old woman who was trotting along 
 the path with a covered basket on 
 her arm, from which a clucking sound 
 indicated that she carried chickens. 
 Champe passed through the town in 
 "3
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 safety, and then put her horse to a can 
 ter along the pike road. It was some 
 distance, she found, to the old toll-gate, 
 but no one was stirring even there. The 
 gate itself had been partially wrenched 
 from its hinges, and stood leaning against 
 the house. Champe looked up as she 
 went through, and caught a glimpse of 
 a woman's head as a hand pushed the 
 thin calico curtain aside; but no sound 
 followed, so she galloped on, and after 
 another ten minutes saw the comfort 
 able, old-fashioned house she was seek 
 ing appear in the growing light of 
 the winter morning. In ordinary times 
 Champe would have hesitated to make 
 her first descent at that untimely hour 
 upon a perfectly unknown family, no 
 matter what their reputation for hospi 
 tality; but so sure was she of a wel 
 come from sympathizers of the beloved 
 Cause that she rode boldly up to the 
 front door, and springing from her 
 114
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 horse's back, she passed the reins around 
 a convenient pillar, and walking across 
 the veranda, rapped smartly with her 
 crop on the panel of the door. For some 
 seconds there was no reply; then she 
 heard a door open and shut inside, and 
 presently a negro came running around 
 the side of the house. 
 
 " Howdy, Missy," he said, with a 
 respectful scrape of his foot. " Shall 
 I take de hoss to de stable? Young 
 Miss '11 be down shortly; yo'se mighty 
 welcome. Please cum' 'roun' to de side 
 do' an' I '11 let yo' in." 
 
 Champe thanked him, and turned to 
 follow, when the door opened, and 
 a sweet-looking girl on its threshold 
 said, 
 
 " Oh, do come in. We were expect 
 ing you, but not until later in the day." 
 And she extended a friendly hand to 
 her visitor. 
 
 " I am Champe Randolph," saicj the
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 newcomer, " and shall be most grate 
 ful for your aid and assistance." 
 
 " And I am Phoebe Lawton. I think 
 mother has known you in Richmond, 
 but whether she did or not, we are just 
 as glad to do what we can for you. I 
 got the message by * underground ' last 
 night, only we did n't know which way 
 you were coming, up from Richmond, 
 or out of Washington." As she talked 
 the girl led the way through the hall 
 and up the staircase to a big room full 
 of old-fashioned furniture, and pulling 
 up the window shades, smiled a wel 
 come to her guest. 
 
 " I 'm sure you must be tired and 
 hungry. The servants will have coffee 
 ready in a very few minutes, and if you 
 will lie down and rest I will send your 
 breakfast at any hour you wish to 
 your room." 
 
 " By no means," said Champe. " I '11 
 wash my face and hands, drink my 
 116
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 coffee, and join you when you take 
 breakfast." 
 
 "Very well," said her hostess. "But 
 you had better take my advice and try 
 to rest a while," and with another smil 
 ing nod she closed the door. 
 
 Two hours after, Champe was eating 
 a real Southern breakfast and enjoying 
 it greatly as she chatted merrily with 
 her hostess. 
 
 Mrs. Lawton, a kindly faced, delicate 
 looking woman, whose husband and 
 two sons were in the Confederate army, 
 had shown so much kindness to the 
 wounded and sick Union soldiers that 
 she had been given a pass by the 
 general commanding to come and go 
 as she pleased from Charlestown, and 
 although she was well known as a 
 Southerner, no overt act had been laid 
 at her door, and she had, so far, been 
 spared visits from the provost-marshal 
 at Duffield's. But Mrs. Lawton, while 
 117
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 she would give all aid in her power to 
 those needing it in order to go through 
 the lines, had conscientious scruples 
 against using her pass except for the 
 purpose for which it had been given, 
 and therefore she was casting about for 
 some device by which she could con 
 trive to send Champe through Charles- 
 town in a disguise clever enough to 
 deceive the lynx-eyed Union officer 
 who occupied the provost - marshal's 
 office. 
 
 " How much time have you to spare ? " 
 she asked, after Champe had explained 
 the necessity of haste on her er 
 rand. 
 
 " It is imperative that I start at once," 
 replied Champe. "Colonel Mosby will 
 reach Berry's Ferry within two days, 
 and unless I can manage to meet him 
 there I am sure to fall into the hands 
 of the enemy, which would be fatal ! If 
 I can have military escort I shall be 
 118
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 able to cross the Blue Ridge as I have 
 done before, and reach Orange Court 
 House in safety." 
 
 " If that be the case we must push 
 you forward. Phoebe, do you think we 
 could manage to disguise Miss Ran 
 dolph as a German market-woman?" 
 
 "Capitally, mother!" cried Phoebe. 
 
 "You see," explained Mrs. Lawton, 
 " the principal traffic between here and 
 Charlestown is in that form. You will 
 have to obtain a permit to go in, and 
 another to get out, and the only person 
 who can procure them for you without 
 exciting suspicion is Dutch Hans. He 
 has done more for the Cause by passing 
 Confederates through the lines than any 
 one in this vicinity, and you can trust 
 him implicitly." 
 
 " I was told to find him, and shall 
 be delighted to make his acquaintance. 
 What is to be done to transform me 
 into a market-woman ? " 
 119
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " In the first place," said Mrs. Law- 
 ton, surveying Champe's slight, elegant 
 figure with a smile, "you must take off 
 that very stylish green habit, which we 
 will hide under some bags of potatoes 
 in the cart, as you will need to resume 
 it on the other side of Charlestown. 
 Then I shall have to stain your hands." 
 Champe gave a little shudder. "It's 
 not agreeable, but butternut juice is 
 excellent and will come off. Come up 
 to my room, where I have the necessary 
 articles, and we '11 see what dress is 
 needed." 
 
 " Well," said Champe, inspecting her 
 hands after the staining process had 
 been completed, " I have tried a good 
 many experiments, but this is my first 
 attempt with butternuts, and I call it 
 a huge success." 
 
 "Yes," said Mrs. Lawton from the 
 depths of her closet where she was 
 hunting through her wardrobe, " I 've 
 1 20
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 great confidence in it. How will this 
 skirt and jacket do, Phcebe ? " 
 
 Champe beheld the faded old linsey- 
 woolsey gown with dancing eyes. She 
 was in her element now, and proceeded 
 to gather its voluminous pleats around 
 her shapely waist with but scant suc 
 cess. 
 
 "A needle and thread, dear Mrs. 
 Lawton," she demanded, and sat down 
 on the floor with Phoebe to help her. 
 " I shall have to stuff that jacket; 
 luckily for me it 's cold weather." 
 
 " Here 's an old felt hat, and a worsted 
 muffler to tie over it. You must be care 
 ful to conceal your mouth and teeth, 
 as I cannot stain them, unfortunately." 
 
 Champe laughed gleefully. Her ex 
 quisite mouth and even more perfect 
 teeth were the envy of every woman 
 who knew her, and Phoebe sighed, al 
 most in despair as she looked at them. 
 
 "Don't let that muffler down for a 
 
 121
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 second; you've no idea how it would 
 give you away." 
 
 " It 's a capital disguise," said Mrs. 
 Lawton. "Phcebe, run down and have 
 Jake take the farm horses (the old pair, 
 Captain Rollins might recognize the 
 others) and hitch them to the covered 
 cart. Then hide Miss Randolph's habit, 
 riding hat, and fur cloak under the 
 potato bags, and just add some turnips 
 and winter cabbage for Hans; he'll be 
 sure to have some one to give them to. 
 And as soon as all is ready, call us, and 
 we '11 come down to the side door." 
 
 In due time the cart was brought 
 round, and Jake, grinning and chuck 
 ling, helped the queer looking market- 
 woman to clamber inside on the broad 
 seat. Phoebe climbed on the step to 
 give a few final directions to Champe. 
 
 " Remember, it 's only about five 
 miles to Hans' cabin. It 's a little yel 
 low house, back among the pine-trees, 
 
 122
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 and has a boot-and-shoe sign nailed to 
 a tree out in front. You may very likely 
 meet other market people, but you don't 
 need to do more than nod to them in 
 passing; they won't molest you. But 
 do be careful of. the Union picket guard; 
 don't mistake the turn I told you of at 
 the second milestone, and you need n't 
 fear them after passing that point. Hans 
 will see to the horses, and return them. 
 Good-by, good-by! " 
 
 Both women stood waving her a God 
 speed as she rattled off in the springless 
 cart, turned out of the gate and disap 
 peared down the road. 
 
 The farm horses proved rather good 
 nags at a pinch, and Champe passed the 
 second milestone without adventure, 
 and jogged contentedly on until she 
 spied the little yellow house in the midst 
 of a pine grove. The queer sign, with 
 its shoe painted nearly the size of its 
 boot, swung to and fro upon a tree 
 123
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 alongside the road; and as she drew up 
 her horses, she saw in the window a 
 pleasant, fat face which she was sure 
 belonged to the Dutch shoemaker. He 
 came slowly out of his door, down the 
 little path, and eyed her rather suspi 
 ciously as she beckoned him to ap 
 proach. 
 
 " Vote you vant mit me ? " he asked, 
 resting one hand on the wheel of the 
 cart as he peered up into her eyes. " I 
 has all dot market stuff vot I vants here 
 in mine cellar." 
 
 Champe put up her hand and, loosen 
 ing the disfiguring muffler as she spoke, 
 said quietly, 
 
 " But you will find room for these. 
 They come from Mrs. Lawton's and 
 the ' old plantation.' " 
 
 " Ach, ' beyond the lines,' " said the 
 
 Dutchman, returning the countersign, 
 
 while an amused smile crossed his face 
 
 as he surveyed her. "And vot can 
 
 124
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 ole Hans do for you? Vere be you 
 going to?" 
 
 "Back to Richmond," said Champe 
 boldly. "And you must help me to 
 get through Charlestown, and then from 
 there to Berry's Ferry." 
 
 "I see, I see; an' you vants pass. 
 But vere you go to sthop after Charles- 
 town? You can't make journey in cold 
 vedder so far to-day." 
 
 " I must trust to find some house for 
 shelter," said Champe, as Hans climbed 
 into the cart, and she rolled her muffler 
 closely around her face. " Have you 
 got the passes that are necessary?" 
 
 " I gets dem to de provost-marshal's 
 office. Vere you tink? And, lady, you 
 must not speak von vord, you under 
 stand? Let me do all de talking." 
 
 As the houses and church spires of 
 
 Charlestown could already be seen in 
 
 the distance, it did not take them long, 
 
 even with the jog-trot of the horses, to 
 
 125
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 reach there, and Hans drew up the cart 
 before the door of the provost-marshal's, 
 whose office was on the principal street. 
 There were several soldiers in blue uni 
 forms standing about, who plied Hans 
 with questions when the corporal went 
 inside to obtain the necessary papers 
 for him, and they fingered the vegeta 
 bles at the back of the cart, one of them 
 pretending to steal a cabbage, which he 
 tried to stuff under his coat. The good- 
 natured Dutchman turned the laugh on 
 him by throwing him another, and was 
 so successful in engaging the attention 
 of the guard that the men did not at 
 tempt to bandy jokes with his compan 
 ion. After waiting fully half an hour, 
 during which time Champe felt more 
 nervous than she had ever done when 
 she had only her own quick wit to rely 
 upon, the coveted papers were handed 
 them, and they were free to depart. 
 " Good luck, Dutchy," called one of 
 126
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 the men after them; "if yer don't sell 
 all that stuff, we '11 relieve yer of the 
 trouble of carrying it back." And his 
 good-natured guffaw followed them 
 down the street. 
 
 Hans took a somewhat circuitous 
 route to reach the outskirts of the town, 
 and Champe noticed that he seemed to 
 be looking for some one. They finally 
 stopped in front of a rather pretentious- 
 looking white house, from which there 
 came slowly forth a solemn-faced negro. 
 At a sign from Hans, he filled his arms 
 with the vegetables, and then said in a 
 whisper, 
 
 " Any orders for to-day ? " 
 
 " Go to the cabin and meet us," said 
 Hans. " And, Toby, I vants de sorrel 
 horse. You un'stand ? " 
 
 Toby nodded soberly and disap 
 peared. 
 
 "Dot's all right," continued Hans, 
 driving off. "And now, lady, de vay 
 127
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 is clear. Ve go to Toby's cabin, and 
 dere you takes off dese tings, and can 
 ride vere you vants to go. Here is your 
 pass, don't lose dot." 
 
 Just beyond the town, and standing 
 by itself, was a decent-looking cabin, 
 which Hans pointed out as their desti 
 nation. Toby, he informed Champe, 
 was a tobacco smuggler, and added 
 that, if the lady wished, he could ac 
 company her to Berry's Ferry as guide. 
 Champe climbed out of the market cart 
 at the cabin door with a sigh of relief. 
 It had been a hard ride in a cart with 
 out springs, and she was glad enough 
 to unpack her habit, cloak, and hat, and 
 leave off her uncomfortable disguise. 
 There proved to be quite a clean room 
 inside the smuggler's cabin. When she 
 came out she found Toby holding a 
 horse with a lady's saddle on its back, 
 and Hans preparing to start on his re 
 turn home with the cart. He refused 
 128
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 all compensation, to Champa's surprise, 
 and then told her she could leave the 
 horse (a pretty sorrel mare) at Berry's 
 Ferry with the ferryman, as Toby would 
 be going there in a few days and would 
 fetch it back to Charlestown. He held 
 the stirrup for her as she mounted, and 
 she shook the reins and rode rapidly 
 away. 
 
 Notwithstanding the day was still raw 
 and cold, and that Champe was begin 
 ning to realize she had breakfasted 
 somewhat early, the exhilaration which 
 she always felt when on horseback, and 
 the spice of danger which was involved 
 in her crossing the lines was enough to 
 restore her somewhat jaded spirits, and 
 she began to enjoy herself thoroughly 
 as she rode on through the country, 
 now sparsely inhabited. For months this 
 had been the debatable ground of both 
 armies; plantations held one week by 
 the Federals would be raided the next 
 129
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 by Mosby, Hampton, or Stuart, and the 
 luckless owners either despoiled by the 
 one or content to give what they had 
 left to the other. 
 
 Riding along at an easy canter, she 
 came to where the road wound through 
 a pine grove, and suddenly, as she 
 neared the end of the trees, she heard 
 the rattle of a gun, and a voice cried, 
 
 "Halt!" 
 
 Champe drew up her horse instantly, 
 and a picket guard filed out, surrounding 
 her. She looked at them quickly; they 
 appeared to be Germans, possibly be 
 longing to Sigel's corps. Then she drew 
 out her pass, and as she unfolded it, 
 glancing casually at it for the first time, 
 she saw, to her horror, that she was 
 described thereon as a market-woman! 
 Why had she been so foolhardy ? How 
 should she account for her green habit 
 and the mare? 
 
 The corporal took the paper she coolly 
 130
 
 A Dangerous Hazard 
 
 handed him. There was an instant's 
 pause, then, quick as a flash, Champe 
 realized the situation. The man was 
 holding the pass upside down; he could 
 not read English ! 
 
 " It is all right," said she, smiling 
 down at him, though her heart did beat 
 a trifle faster. " I had it from the pro 
 vost-marshal at Charlestown two hours 
 ago. You see it has the printed head 
 ing," and she touched the paper with 
 her whip, devoutly praying that his 
 comrades were as ignorant as he. 
 
 The corporal touched his cap; it was 
 his first week of service in the Valley, 
 and this beautiful, sweet-voiced girl ap 
 pealed to his soft Teutonic heart. There 
 could be nothing contraband about her. 
 
 " Dot ? s all right, lady," he said, re 
 leasing her rein as he spoke ; and Champe 
 dashed off., turning in her saddle to see 
 him standing, cap in hand, watching 
 her as she made good her escape.
 
 Chapter VII 
 
 The Misadventures of a Night 
 
 " You sent -for me, general ? " Jack 
 Phillipse pushed aside the curtain of the 
 tent and saluted. The general sat at 
 his camp table writing hurriedly, and a 
 trooper, armed and ready for instant 
 service, stood at his back. 
 
 " Sit down, Captain Phillipse," said 
 the general, pushing a stool toward 
 Jack, as he threw down his pen. " Ser 
 geant, you will report to Captain Phil 
 lipse in half an hour with an escort of 
 twenty men, ready for a night ride. You 
 may go." 
 
 The trooper saluted, and left the tent 
 as ordered. Jack sat waiting for in 
 structions. 
 
 " Information received from Wash 
 ington requires my sending out a scout- 
 132
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 ing party at once. The secret service 
 men say that there is a house this side 
 of the Blue Ridge which is used as a 
 rendezvous for a particularly clever set 
 of rebel spies. So far we have not 
 been able to locate the plantation, but 
 it is narrowed down to one of three in 
 this vicinity. There is necessity for 
 speed, as Mosby is known to have 
 started from below, and is likely to be 
 in communication with this very point." 
 He pulled a map toward him and bent 
 over it for a minute. " The plantation 
 ought to be about here," indicating 
 the spot, "almost in a direct line with 
 Berry's Ferry. The house stands on a 
 wooded rise of ground, and there is a 
 ravine not far from it. It is somewhat 
 difficult of access because of the pine 
 woods, and you must use great cau 
 tion in approaching it. Sergeant Finley 
 has scouted here before, and I think 
 you will find him useful. After to-mor-
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 row evening report to me at Winches 
 ter; until then the command remains 
 here." 
 
 The day, which had been chilly, with 
 a raw, cold wind blowing, had cleared 
 by nightfall, and as Jack left the tent to 
 get his horse and join the men assigned 
 to the scouting party, the stars were out 
 and there was a crispness in the air 
 which bespoke better weather. Jack 
 much preferred active service to his 
 detail at Fort McHenry, and since re 
 joining the army in the Valley had been 
 almost constantly in the saddle. And 
 yet, as he walked briskly along, he was 
 thinking of the Monumental City, seeing 
 a pair of mischievous hazel eyes and a 
 graceful figure that somehow haunted 
 him with the tantalizing, elusive memory 
 of past acquaintance. 
 
 Jack led his little command in a south 
 east direction for about an hour, then, 
 coming to a fork in the road where two 
 '34
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 roads met, the sergeant rode forward 
 and, saluting, said, 
 
 " Beg pardon, captain; if you turn to 
 the right here I think we will strike the 
 plantation you are searching for. It lies 
 over the brow of that hill, and there 's 
 a ravine alongside of it." 
 
 "How much farther?" asked Jack, 
 turning his horse in the direction indi 
 cated. 
 
 "Two miles, as the crow flies, sir; 
 three by the road." 
 
 Proceeding cautiously along, Jack 
 reached the top of the hill, and then, 
 drawing rein, looked carefully about. 
 The pine woods, dark and gloomy, con 
 fronted him on the east; the road skirted 
 them as far as he could see in the clear 
 starlit night. 
 
 " The path where we can enter is a 
 stone's-throw from here, sir," said the 
 sergeant. " It 's some distance after we 
 are inside the woods before you reach
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the house. The road winds considera 
 bly." 
 
 " Can we make a de'tour and approach 
 through the ravine, Finley ? " 
 
 "Just as the captain pleases," said 
 the trooper. " Shall I ride forward and 
 reconnoitre ? " 
 
 " Go slowly, and I '11 follow you." 
 
 In this order the little troop moved 
 silently on through the trees for perhaps 
 a quarter of a mile, when they came 
 suddenly upon an open space that had 
 evidently been a lawn, beyond which 
 stood a wide, low house with the usual 
 broad veranda running around the front 
 and one side. Jack dismounted noise 
 lessly and threw his rein to Finley. 
 
 " Sergeant," he ordered, " hobble the 
 horses in the ravine with a trooper to 
 guard them. Place a cordon of men 
 around the house, being careful that 
 they are hidden from view by the trees. 
 Allow no one to pass the lines going to 
 136
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 or from the house, and station a picket 
 on the road to warn us of approach from 
 that quarter. When this is done, meet 
 me at the barn." 
 
 Jack gazed up at the house as he 
 slipped quietly through the trees toward 
 the barn. It looked deserted and mel 
 ancholy, the wreck of what had been 
 a fine old mansion. One of the pillars 
 which adorned the front was badly bat 
 tered, and part of the veranda railing 
 had been torn off, and hung brokenly 
 upon the ground. There was not a sign 
 of life about the place save a faint gleam 
 of light in an upper window. Jack crept 
 cautiously to the barn, which stood a 
 short distance from the house, partly 
 hidden by the pines. The barn door 
 was carefully latched, with a stick thrust 
 through an iron staple. He pulled it 
 out, and, dragging the door open, en 
 tered, leaving it ajar. As his eyes be 
 came accustomed to the semi-darkness
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 inside, he saw there were several empty 
 stalls, but a restless movement in one 
 betrayed the presence of a horse. As 
 he made his way slowly toward it, he 
 stumbled, and, stooping down to push 
 the obstruction aside, he ran his hand 
 over what proved to be a lady's side 
 saddle. At that moment the horse, re 
 cognizing the presence of other horses 
 in the vicinity, neighed shrilly. Jack 
 sprang forward, and feeling his way 
 into the stall caught the mare's nose 
 and held it tightly, stroking the animal 
 gently as he did so. For a moment he 
 stood straining his ears for a sound, 
 then, hearing nothing, slipped back and 
 crept out of the barn. Standing in the 
 shadow of the building, he heard a door 
 open on the veranda; then a voice 
 said, 
 
 " Dey 's nuffin' de matter, honey. 
 Dat's jus' de mare in de barn. Reckon 
 she 's kinder lonesome, dat 's all." 
 '38
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 " I 'm afraid she 's loose in the stall," 
 said a girl's voice in reply. " I '11 just 
 step down to the barn and see if it 's all 
 safe. Keep the door open till I return, 
 Judith." 
 
 Jack darted around the corner of the 
 barn, and nearly fell into Sergeant Fin- 
 ley's arms. Gripping him by the wrist, 
 Jack muttered in his ear, 
 
 " Don't molest the girl. I 'm going to 
 enter the house in her absence. Remain 
 on guard in sight of the windows. If I 
 need you, I '11 manage to raise the shade 
 in the room where you see that light. 
 If I fire my revolver, rush the men in 
 side at once." 
 
 The house door was now partly open, 
 and by the light of a candle, which the 
 old negro woman had placed on a table 
 in the hall, Jack saw, as he drew nearer, 
 that in its general plan the house was 
 like most of plantation houses, with a 
 hall running through from front to back.
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 The entrance to the barn could not be 
 seen from the doorway, and that fact 
 was evidently causing dismay to the 
 waiting negro, for she walked across 
 the veranda, talking to herself as she 
 scrambled down the steps. 
 
 " I had n't oughter let Missy go dar 
 'lone. P'raps dey mought be a strag 
 gler hidin' in de barn. Nebber can 
 tell whar dese Yanks is boun' to turn 
 up." 
 
 Jack saw his opportunity and prompt 
 ly took it. As the old woman tottered 
 down the path he darted across the few 
 feet of lawn between him and the house, 
 and with an agile spring landed on the 
 veranda where the broken rail hung 
 down. In another second he was inside 
 the hall. It was empty, and, as he cal 
 culated, the staircase was at the right, 
 with a turn at the landing above. 
 
 Taking this in at a rapid glance, he 
 was about to pursue his search when 
 140
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 a voice behind him said, clearly and 
 coldly, 
 
 " Who are you, sir, and what are you 
 doing here ? " 
 
 And then, two simultaneous excla 
 mations as they faced each other. 
 
 "Captain Phillipse!" 
 
 "Miss Randolph!" 
 
 The girl recovered herself first, and, 
 with every nerve tingling with excite 
 ment, her spirits rose to meet what she 
 feared was a desperate dilemma. But 
 her gaze was steady, and her smile un 
 troubled as she met his astonished eyes, 
 and her most malicious imp of mischief 
 prompted her to quote : 
 
 " Oh, ' Come you in peace, or come 
 you in war ' The latter, judging by 
 the revolver in your belt. Surely, Aunt 
 Judith and I are hardly foemen worthy 
 of your bullets ? " 
 
 She took up the candle as she spoke, 
 and motioned Jack to follow her inside 
 141
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the parlor door. As he did so, the 
 shapely figure in its green habit supplied 
 the chord of memory which had, so far, 
 eluded him, and springing to her side 
 he said eagerly, 
 
 "I know you now! You rescued me 
 at Hazel River when I was half-dead 
 with cold and hunger." 
 
 "Thereby ' affording aid and comfort 
 to the enemy ' Well, and you repaid 
 me the other day in Baltimore when you 
 sent the provost - marshal's sergeant 
 about his business." 
 
 " But I fear I took unfair advantage 
 of your humanity. I found that butter 
 nut suit on a poor dead fellow who lay 
 in the thicket, and you must have sup 
 posed you were helping one of your own 
 soldiers, not a despised Yankee. For 
 give the ruse, and let me thank you 
 again with all my heart." 
 
 A brilliant blush dyed Champe's 
 cheeks. Some new-born reticence for- 
 142
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 bade her to confess that she had pene 
 trated his disguise. Besides, she hated 
 Yankees; that this one was daring, 
 dashing, and manly after her own stand 
 ard did not make it necessary to 
 Heavens! she had forgotten who was 
 upstairs. Pray kind fortune this col 
 loquy had not been overheard. 
 
 " I think you have made the score 
 even, Captain Phillipse. But what 
 brings you here at dead of night? May 
 I offer you some refreshments, or sup 
 ply you with a map of the country in 
 case you have lost your way ? " 
 
 Then Jack remembered. " The rank 
 est rebel of all Baltimore," that was 
 what Ned Harris called her. And in 
 this house, supposed to be a rendezvous 
 for traitors and spies. It was his turn to 
 color hotly now. 
 
 " I cannot tell you how much I regret 
 that my errand involves what I fear may 
 cause you discomfort. I am ordered to 
 H3
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 search this house and surrounding plan 
 tation for enemies to the Union sup 
 posed to be concealed here." 
 
 " Why not say rebels ? " she said, 
 with curling lip. " Do you mean that 
 you will arrest me ? " 
 
 " Not unless you give me cause," re 
 plied Jack gravely. " I must obey my 
 orders, Miss Randolph." 
 
 "Then I will come with you," said 
 Champe, seizing the candle. 
 
 Jack looked her in the face. There 
 was wrath and defiance in her eyes, but 
 not treachery; well, he would trust her 
 so far. 
 
 " Lead the way," he said, bowing 
 courteously as he stepped aside, and 
 Champe noticed with a thrill of resent 
 ful admiration that he did not offer to 
 draw his revolver. She flitted down 
 the hall, but at the staircase he laid a 
 detaining hand upon her arm. 
 
 " Upstairs first," he said firmly. 
 144
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 " There is a light in one of the upper 
 windows which I wish to investigate." 
 
 " It is in my room," returned Champe 
 haughtily. " But I believe the Union 
 officers are no respecters of persons," 
 and as she uttered the taunt she blew 
 the candle out. 
 
 With a mad rush Jack reached the 
 landing. He felt her soft form press 
 against his arm as he flung himself for 
 ward to find the turn, where her know 
 ledge of it gave her momentary advan 
 tage. At the head of the stairs he could 
 see a faint thread of light under the sill 
 of the door they were seeking. There 
 was a sweep of her skirt, a smoth 
 ered exclamation as he caught her in his 
 arms staggering against the door, which 
 opened suddenly, and flung them head 
 long inside the room. 
 
 " Release that young lady, sir," said 
 a cold voice. 
 
 Jack's hand closed on his revolver 
 H5
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 as he struggled to his feet and wheeled 
 sharply around. Seated at a desk in 
 the centre of the room was a man in a 
 gray uniform, holding a pistol in each 
 hand, and both covering Jack. Well 
 known in the Valley was that face and 
 form; since the death of Jeb Stuart, this 
 man was held the most daring and reck 
 less of all the cavalry leaders of the 
 South, save one. 
 
 " General Laf onte ! " 
 
 "Well, sir," said the Confederate 
 with cool irony, " you appear to know 
 me. To what do I owe the honor of 
 this visit?" 
 
 " I demand your surrender," retorted 
 Jack. " My troop surrounds the house. 
 You are my prisoner." 
 
 There was a crash, a sudden flare of 
 the lamp which the Confederate officer 
 flung on the floor, then darkness, as 
 Jack shouted, 
 
 " Miss Randolph, for God's sake, don't 
 146
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 move ! " and, aiming at the ceiling, 
 fired his revolver. 
 
 No answer; but the rush of men 
 across the lawn, and the tramp of feet in 
 the hall. 
 
 " This way, sergeant ! " shouted Jack. 
 " There 's a candle somewhere at the 
 foot of the staircase. Fetch me a light 
 at once." 
 
 He could hear the old woman below 
 scolding and imploring in the same 
 breath, as he stumbled around the room 
 thick with the fumes of the extinguished 
 lamp. His hands trembled; where was 
 Miss Randolph ? Then in the darkness 
 a low laugh floated on his eagerly lis 
 tening ears, 
 
 "Checkmate!" 
 
 It was hardly more than the softest 
 whisper, but when the sergeant and 
 his troopers rushed on the scene the 
 light disclosed a young woman seated 
 calmly in a big rickety armchair, and 
 '47
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Captain Phillipse leaning against the 
 desk revolver in hand. His prisoner 
 had disappeared. 
 
 Jack gave a quick glance around the 
 room. There were two doors, one by 
 which he had entered, and another 
 which he wrenched open. It proved 
 to be a closet, empty, except for a fur 
 cloak which he recognized as having 
 seen Champe wear on the Hazel River 
 bank. 
 
 " Take two men and go through the 
 rooms on this floor, sergeant. I '11 
 search the attic. Are sentries still 
 posted ? " 
 
 "Yes, captain." 
 
 " No one has passed you coming up ? " 
 
 " No, sir. I left a guard below. No 
 one could escape that way." 
 
 " General Lafonte is concealed in the 
 house, somewhere. Secure him without 
 injury if possible. Let one of the men 
 guard this door until I return." 
 148
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 " Beg pardon, captain," interposed 
 Finley as Jack was rushing away. 
 " There was signaling of some sort 
 going on from the room above, per 
 haps it is the attic. I saw a light flash 
 twice, and one of the men reports see 
 ing a mysterious gleam like a lantern 
 from the north side at least a mile 
 away." 
 
 " On a height, or lower down? " 
 
 " It appeared to be high up, sir; either 
 in a tree or from a house." 
 
 " Very good, sergeant." 
 
 Jack followed the men to the door of 
 the room, then turned back to where 
 Champe sat regarding him with her tan 
 talizing smile. 
 
 " Why do you do this thing ? " he 
 asked angrily, in a voice for her ear 
 alone. " What right have you to risk 
 your life as you did just now? " 
 
 " Because I love my cause," she re 
 torted vehemently. " You would die to 
 149
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 save your flag, why not I for mine ? 
 Go, search for General Lafonte; you 
 will not find him." 
 
 It seemed, indeed, as if Champe was 
 correct in her assertion, for, although 
 Jack and his troopers went carefully 
 into every hole and cranny of the old 
 mansion, the Confederate seemed to 
 have vanished. The sentries reported a 
 second time that no one had passed the 
 lines. The house seemed empty, except 
 for a half-dozen negro servants vary 
 ing in age from ten to sixty years. Only 
 one room of the fifteen through which 
 they went appeared to have been re 
 cently occupied, and that, the one where 
 the sergeant had detected signal lights. 
 The ashes of a wood fire on the hearth 
 were still warm, and hidden hastily 
 under a pile of blankets in the closet 
 were tools used to tap telegraph wires. 
 Evidently the information furnished by 
 the secret service had been correct; 
 '5
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 the mansion was used as a rendezvous 
 for spies and conspirators. 
 
 Baffled by the singular escape of his 
 important prisoner, Jack finally made 
 his way back to the room where he 
 had left Champe. The sentry stood 
 motionless at the open door, saluting 
 as his officer passed in and closed the 
 door. Involuntarily, Jack smiled as his 
 eyes fell on the figure in the armchair. 
 With her head pillowed on the edge of 
 the desk near which she sat was Champe, 
 fast asleep, as untroubled as if in her 
 own pretty room under Aunt Sue's 
 hospitable roof in Baltimore. 
 
 Jack looked down at her for a minute 
 in silence. Then he opened the closet 
 door, and taking down her fur cloak, 
 laid it gently across her lap. His men 
 were eating a hasty meal reluctantly 
 furnished them by Aunt Judith in the 
 kitchen, and he had ordered the horses 
 fed and watered before starting on their
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 way. He knew how weary Champe 
 must be, for he surmised that she had 
 been many hours in the saddle. Why 
 disturb her at present? So he threw 
 himself into a chair and watched her as 
 she slept. How fair she was, how 
 captivating, with her soft voice and 
 gracious smile, and yet how daring 
 and recklessly brave ! Would any other 
 woman sleep so tranquilly in a house 
 full of the enemy's soldiers, herself in 
 danger of arrest and a Northern prison ? 
 She was " the rankest rebel of all Balti 
 more." How the words haunted him! 
 Even so, she had saved his life when 
 in dire plight, and now evil fortune 
 compelled him to arrest her. Stay, did 
 it so compel ? And as he reached this 
 point in thought, Champe stirred in her 
 chair, and awoke. 
 
 For a moment her hazel eyes were 
 full of bewilderment; then she caught 
 Jack's earnest gaze, and remembered.
 
 Misadventures of a Night 
 
 "Did you find him?" she asked, with 
 the roguishly defiant glance that Jack 
 had been dreaming of. 
 
 " Why do you ask ? " he said, looking 
 down at her gravely. " There is some 
 secret hiding place in the mansion I am 
 convinced. I am also certain that you 
 will not divulge it." 
 
 "Do you meditate razing it to the 
 ground to find out, after true Yankee 
 fashion ? " 
 
 His eyes blazed; and, to her after 
 amazement, Champe involuntarily fal 
 tered, 
 
 " I beg your pardon ; that was un 
 generous," and rising, impulsively ex 
 tended her hand. 
 
 Jack turned pale as he took it in his 
 and held it firmly. 
 
 " What are you made of ? " he said 
 passionately. " A woman like you 
 could conquer a world! Will you give 
 me your word of honor to quit this wild
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 work, and let me send you on your way ? 
 I, of course, remain here Good 
 God ! the enemy I " 
 
 With a flying leap Jack and the sentry 
 at the door cleared the stairs together. 
 In the hall below blue and gray coated 
 men were struggling for mastery, and 
 shots fast and furious from outside told 
 the story. Champe rushed to the win 
 dow and threw it open. In the pale 
 light of dawn she could distinguish the 
 faces of the gray troopers, and she knew 
 them well. They were the men she had 
 come to meet, Mosby's command, and 
 there, in hand-to-hand conflict with 
 Jack, was the wiry form of the South's 
 most famous guerrilla chief, John 
 Mosby.
 
 Chapter VIII 
 
 Petit Jean Gossips 
 
 IN a little house on Linden Avenue 
 Therese Trudeau was busy in her 
 kitchen. The amount of fuel necessary 
 to heat her small stove had seemed a 
 terrible waste to her frugal French 
 mind, and she was using, instead, a 
 brazier with a handful of coals, having 
 secured that somewhat obsolete article 
 at a junk shop. She was preparing din 
 ner, and \hepot-au-feu contained some 
 thing savory, for the most appetizing 
 odor arose from it as Therese drew out 
 a table from the corner, and proceeded 
 to lay the cloth, talking softly to herself, 
 after the fashion of those who live much 
 alone. 
 
 " Petit Jean is late. This is the third 
 time in two days that I wait, for what
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 use to let the food spoil by taking it off 
 the fire. Worse still, to cook it too long. 
 I wonder what his absence signifies? 
 I am, myself, disturbed. We hear no 
 thing yet from that country below. Ma 
 dame sent my last news to the Bureau 
 in Washington, and by this M'sieu le 
 General will be caught in the net of 
 those who fish for him. Sacre! that I 
 should have to work for these pigs of 
 Yankees ! But yes, it is all for her, mon 
 cceur, my foster child; and to avenge 
 her wrongs Therese will give her life. 
 Ah, he conies at last! " and placing her 
 cup and saucer carefully on the table, 
 The'rese went to the back door of the 
 kitchen and unlatched it. 
 
 "Well arrived, lazy one," she said; 
 " come, eat, or the dinner is spoiled." 
 
 Petit Jean was not a small boy, as 
 
 his name would indicate, but a man of 
 
 middle age, under size, but of rather 
 
 sturdy build, with shrewd face and a 
 
 156
 
 Petit yean Gossips 
 
 pair of keen, dark eyes. His eyebrows 
 were bushy, and he wore a short beard, 
 carefully trimmed. His corduroy suit 
 was clean, but patched in several places, 
 and on his head was a green peaked 
 cap with ear-flaps pulled down and fas 
 tened under his chin. 
 
 "Tais-toi, Tante Thdrese," he said 
 good-naturedly, removing his cap, and 
 pulling up a chair, while she set the 
 smoking food before him. " I have been 
 hard at work as always. Listen, I will 
 tell you while we eat." 
 
 The'rese seated herself beside him, 
 and, helping him liberally to the stew 
 of rice and chili-peppers, fixed her 
 beadlike eyes on his face as he con 
 tinued : 
 
 " I have been helping Pieter in Ma- 
 dame's stable this morning. There was 
 much to do, as Mam'selle came back 
 from an early ride before breakfast, and 
 needed the horses again this afternoon.
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 And the new black man and I became 
 quite friends while washing and rubbing 
 down the beasts." 
 
 " Oh ! the groom who rides with 
 Mam'selle. Well?" 
 
 "Yes. Scip, they call him, also* con 
 traband' of which, recollect, we had 
 many in the days of Beast Butler, la 
 bas, in New Orleans. And, behold, he 
 comes from Baton Rouge and the old 
 plantation we know of." 
 
 " Petit Jean, thou art sure he is not 
 lying?" 
 
 "What cause for lies to me? No, 
 Tante The'rese, he is one of the Lafonte 
 slaves. You see, he heard me talking 
 with Pieter (and queer work do Pieter 
 and I make of it, at times; he with his 
 Dutch-French, and I with my French- 
 English, but we understand each other, 
 oh, yes), and he, the negro, is quick, 
 and knows enough of our language to 
 try and overhear what Pieter and I were 
 158
 
 Petit Jean Gossips 
 
 saying. He was in the stall next us, and 
 once I heard him laugh, and, to confirm 
 my suspicions, by and by I came and 
 was friendly with him, and drew him 
 into talk. He was afraid at first, but 
 presently, when I spoke in praise of the 
 Proclamation (which is to these negroes 
 as if it were the sacred Bible) , he began 
 to speak more freely, and said he had 
 come up from Louisiana with his mas 
 ter, a rebel officer, and then worked his 
 way one night into the enemy's lines to 
 the Army of the Potomac. He slipped 
 once in his talk, and what do you sup 
 pose, Tante The'rese he got out the 
 name before he thought Laf onte ! " 
 " Thou didst not betray surprise ? " 
 " Am I a child ? No. But after much 
 sympathy and parade of love for the 
 brave Yankees on my part, the negro 
 confided that he had seen his master 
 not long ago here." 
 
 " Here, in Baltimore, Petit Jean ?
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 Where, then, are our spies that no re 
 port was brought to me ? Who has dared 
 to be false to our oath ? " 
 
 " Doucement, chere tante; I have 
 made a discovery. You know we have 
 never been able to detect who the per 
 sons are in the city through whose aid 
 many rebel officers steal across the lines 
 into Maryland. We knew these were 
 some high-up people, grand folks, in 
 short. Well, I have found one of these. 
 I do not speak it well, but it is the house 
 where Mam'selle rides so often with the 
 young man who is always at her side." 
 " I know, I know, M'sieu Teelman " 
 "Yes, that is the name. But the 
 house, Tante The'rese, it is too hard 
 for me. You will find out its name 
 from Madame, perhaps. The General 
 Lafonte was there; the negro says he 
 saw him jump out of the window, and 
 hide in the hedge, one day when ManV- 
 selle was making a call." 
 160
 
 Petit yean Gossips 
 
 "And did he, the negro, report it?" 
 
 " He was too frightened; he thought 
 at first that perhaps his master had come 
 to carry him back, but when his wits re 
 turned, and he remembered that blessed 
 Proclamation, he decided he was in no 
 danger, and, so far, has told no one. 
 You can see, however, that we have 
 friends in that house ; it may be useful." 
 
 " More useful than you know," mut 
 tered the old Creole. " Petit Jean, you 
 must take a message to Madame at 
 once." 
 
 "I am ready," responded the man, 
 pushing back his chair. " But we can 
 not reach her at this hour." 
 
 Tante Therese disappeared for a min 
 ute, and Petit Jean took that opportu 
 nity to wash his hands at the sink. As 
 he was searching the dresser for a towel, 
 she returned from the other room with 
 a sheet of note paper in her hand. On 
 it she had scrawled two small crosses 
 161
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 in red ink. This she put into an en 
 velope which looked strangely out of 
 place, for it bore a blue and gold mono 
 gram, and was addressed in beautiful, 
 flowing handwriting (Mrs. Vansittart's 
 own), and might, from its outward ap 
 pearance, be an invitation to dinner. 
 
 " Give this to Stephanie, Petit Jean. 
 She has her directions how to deliver 
 it. And do thou return to me quickly; 
 I have other work for thee before night 
 fall." 
 
 Petit Jean took the note, placed it 
 carefully inside his cap, as before, and 
 obediently left the house. 
 
 During the month which followed his 
 return to Baltimore, Fitzhugh Tilghman 
 had made two discoveries which ap 
 peared to him of vital importance. The 
 first was that Cecile Vansittart was a 
 charming girl; the second, that he was 
 madly in love with her. Many a love 
 162
 
 Petit Jean Gossips 
 
 affair, off and on, had had Fitz for its 
 hero; but they were light and evanes 
 cent as the wind, and as he had always 
 played the game fairly, he felt he had 
 no burden on his conscience because of 
 them. But now, " the light that never 
 was, on sea or land " had thrown its 
 glamour around him, and with all the 
 ardor of his warm, impulsive nature the 
 young Southerner determined to woo 
 and win her. 
 
 The wooing had been after his own 
 fashion. It amused Cecile at first to 
 have flowers, music, invitations for co 
 tillions, and riding parties planned in 
 her honor, showered upon her; to see 
 a pair of dark eyes looking wistfully 
 into hers, to hear a musical voice soften 
 when it spoke her name. With the shy 
 reticence which her foreign education 
 had fostered, she looked upon these at 
 tentions as simply good manners com 
 bined with a desire to make her feel 
 163
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 thoroughly at home in her new sur 
 roundings. But of late there had come 
 a subtle change which Fitz was keen 
 to notice. No more, perhaps, than a 
 little blush at meeting, a lingering of 
 her hand in his when parting, or a pretty 
 excuse to keep him at her side, only 
 these, but enough for romance, enough 
 for Love's young dream! 
 
 Cecile had promised to join a riding 
 party given by the Lovells, but her 
 favorite horse cast a shoe as Scip was 
 bringing him to the door, so that, much 
 to her disappointment, she had been 
 obliged to dispatch the groom with her 
 explanation and regrets. She stood on 
 the steps with a decidedly mournful 
 countenance as she watched Scip lead 
 the horses away; but as she was about 
 to turn into the house a dashing rider 
 spurred around the corner of the square, 
 and Fitz flung himself from the saddle 
 at her door. 
 
 164
 
 Petit Jean Gossips 
 
 " We feared you were not coming," 
 said he, giving his rein to a small darky 
 who was lounging conveniently at hand 
 near the curb. " Keep that horse there, 
 boy, and don't pull too hard on the bit, 
 d' ye hear ? " Then, mounting the steps, 
 "I met Scip and the horses, and sent 
 my excuses by him to Miss Joan. I 
 wanted so much to see you. May I 
 come in ? " 
 
 Cecile wondered whether mamma 
 would quite approve of a visit unchap- 
 eroned; but then Joan Lovell, and Rose 
 Murray, and the other girls whom she 
 knew, frequently received men alone. 
 It was very pleasant, this American 
 fashion, and perhaps she might dare, 
 this once. So, with a rather guilty throb 
 of her heart, Cecile led the way to the 
 drawing-room, thereby rushing upon 
 her fate as Andre opened the door. 
 
 The drawing-room was a somewhat 
 stately apartment, full of treasures in 
 165
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the way of carved chairs, wonderful 
 cabinets, and old tapestry. It would 
 have been the delight of a connoisseur, 
 but as Fitz followed Cecile he found 
 himself devoutly wishing for a cosy 
 nook, just large enough for two, instead 
 of all this magnificence. He felt certain 
 that she would establish her small per 
 son in one of those huge chairs where 
 she would be nearly lost to sight, and 
 expect him to sit decorously and sol 
 emnly opposite her in another. The 
 humor of the surroundings in contrast 
 to his purpose struck him, ardent lover 
 that he was, and he bit his lip to con 
 ceal a smile as he said, boyishly, 
 
 " Can't we sit in the library ? I 
 have n't my ' company manners ' with 
 me this afternoon, and nothing less suits 
 this Old World atmosphere." And then 
 he stood still, half-fearing he had been 
 too audacious with this convent-bred 
 maid. 
 
 166
 
 Petit yean Gossips 
 
 Cecile, who was in advance of him, 
 gave a gay little laugh. 
 
 " I thought you had lived long enough 
 in the Old World to have absorbed it. 
 The library, of course, if you prefer 
 Oh, Mr. Tilghman, please, please give 
 me that! " in a tone of abject entreaty, 
 as Fitz stepped forward quickly and 
 lifted from the polished wax floor, 
 where she had dropped it, a man's rid 
 ing gauntlet, which he instantly recog 
 nized as one of his own. 
 
 " You left it last week on the table," 
 stammered Cecile, now a picture of 
 confusion and pink blushes that stole 
 down even to her pretty throat, " and 
 I put it in my pocket, here," touching 
 the breast of her habit, " and I must 
 have just pulled it out with my hand 
 kerchief Oh, Mr. Tilghman, what 
 do you what can you think of me?" 
 and she lifted her artless eyes to his as 
 she tried to seize the telltale glove. 
 167
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " It 's what you think of me that con 
 cerns me most," said Fitz, as he boldly 
 took possession of both hand and gaunt 
 let. "We won't mention 'Mr. Tilgh- 
 man,' but you may say anything you 
 choose to Fitz. Don't you know, you 
 little darling, that I adore you, and I 
 want you for my very own ? " 
 
 And then it seemed to him as if a 
 singular transformation took place; the 
 walls of the room he had thought so 
 forbidding stretched out and faded 
 away, and he saw only the sweet, smil 
 ing face of the girl he loved as he and 
 she entered their earthly Paradise.
 
 Chapter IX 
 
 From the War Office 
 
 "AND so my Cecile really wishes to 
 leave me ? What shall I say to this new, 
 strange man who audaciously desires 
 to carry her away ? " 
 
 Mrs. Vansittart's usually tranquil 
 voice had an undertone of emotion at 
 variance with her playful words, and 
 Cecile, quick to detect the change, 
 threw her arms around her mother's 
 neck. 
 
 " Have mercy on my laces," said the 
 lafter, smiling. "What would Vrouw 
 Van Der Boch say to such a display of 
 irregulated excitement?" 
 
 "Vrouw Van Der Boch is in Amster 
 dam, praised be heaven, and my dear, 
 beautiful mother knows that the air of 
 America has bewitched me." 
 169
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " The air of America has much to 
 answer for. Is that what you said to 
 Fitz Tilghman ? " 
 
 " I don't remember what I said," 
 Cecile blushed rosily. "Was it very 
 dreadful that he spoke to me first ? " 
 
 " Very; the proper Amsterdam fash 
 ion would have been quite different." 
 
 " I *m afraid we were both in the 
 wrong," sighed Cecile penitently. " Fitz 
 told me he knew he ought to be sitting 
 on one of those big carved chairs ask 
 ing you for the honor of my hand in 
 marriage; but that sounds so stilted 
 and awful, much worse than in our 
 own language." 
 
 "The air of America again, Cecile! 
 If you cannot remember what you said 
 to Fitz, perhaps you will tell me what 
 Fitz said to you ? " 
 
 "I I don't just know how it 
 happened," said Cecile, shyness over 
 taking her, but so accustomed to obey 
 170
 
 From the W^ar Office 
 
 her mother's smallest request that she 
 was nerving herself to repeat the little 
 scene wherein the gauntlet figured. " It 
 was all my fault, for the glove fell out 
 on the floor and I don't know in the 
 least how it ever got there, I had hidden 
 it so carefully it was Fitz's glove, you 
 know and I was so dreadfully fright 
 ened and " She paused, breathless 
 and confused, as her mother interrupted 
 her with a laugh, a laugh so full of 
 genuine merriment and sympathetic 
 feeling that it startled Cecile, whose 
 wondering eyes recalled Mrs. Vansittart 
 to the cold repression of her ordinary 
 manner. For one brief instant a mem 
 ory of her own girlhood had responded 
 to the touch of Love, the Enchanter, 
 only to die again as the tragedy of her 
 life rose like a gaunt spectre before 
 her. 
 
 " Never mind," she said gently. " It 
 was hardly fair to ask, and I did not 
 171
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 mean to tease you. Keep those blushes 
 for your lover." 
 
 "But you don't object, you will 
 not refuse him ? " cried Cecile. " Indeed, 
 indeed, I love him dearly." 
 
 Mrs. Vansittart surveyed her for a 
 moment in silence. Then she .said 
 gravely, 
 
 " Have I ever denied you anything? 
 Be happy, dear, for life lies all at your 
 feet. Send Fitz to me when he comes; 
 I liked him from the first. If I had not, 
 do you think I would have permitted 
 him to wile your heart away ? " 
 
 After Cecile left her, Mrs. Vansittart 
 went to her desk and, opening a private 
 drawer in it, took out a telegram, which 
 she read carefully twice. 
 
 " Strange," she thought, as she 
 smoothed the yellow paper; "it does 
 not seem as if I could fail this time ! " 
 
 She glanced at the silver clock on 
 the mantel, then moved across the room 
 172
 
 From the W^ar Office 
 
 to touch the bell, but as she did so 
 Stephanie entered with a tray on which 
 lay a card and an envelope with a blue 
 and gold monogram. Mrs. Vansittart 
 took up the card. 
 
 "Is the bearer below?" she asked. 
 
 "Yes, Madame; the gentleman was 
 shown into the library." 
 
 "Very well; say I am coming down." 
 
 As Stephanie left the room Mrs. Van 
 sittart tore open the note. Her eyes lit 
 as she saw the red crosses made by 
 Therese. 
 
 " News and of him" she thought 
 breathlessly. Then she threw the paper 
 in the grate fire and went downstairs. 
 
 In the library she found a quiet, 
 sober-looking man in civilian's dress, 
 but with an indefinable something in 
 his appearance which suggested mili 
 tary training. 
 
 " Is this Mrs. Vansittart ? " he asked, 
 bowing politely, as she motioned him
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 to a chair. " I have brought an answer 
 to your letter to the Secretary. We 
 have to guard all news of movements 
 in the Valley with more than ordinary 
 caution just now, and it was deemed 
 inexpedient to write a reply." 
 
 " I am much indebted to the Secre 
 tary," she replied. " I am naturally 
 anxious to hear tidings of my kinsman, 
 as it is now a week since a rumor of 
 his capture reached me." 
 
 "Captain Phillipse, in pursuance of 
 information received from trustworthy 
 sources, had gone to the Peyton plan 
 tation, which, although deserted by its 
 owner, we suppose to be a rendezvous 
 for rebel spies. From a trooper of his 
 squad, who managed to escape by the 
 ravine near the house, and who reached 
 our lines at Winchester, we learn that 
 Captain Phillipse, after making prisoner 
 General Lafonte and a young woman 
 who was also in the house, was, with
 
 From the W"ar Office 
 
 his escort, surprised and taken prisoner 
 by Colonel Mosby, the guerrilla, and is 
 probably still in the hands of the enemy. 
 The Secretary desired me to add that 
 there will be an exchange of prisoners 
 next month, and that he will make every 
 effort to have Captain Phillipse's name 
 upon the list so soon as we ascertain to 
 what prison he has been consigned." 
 
 A question sprang to Evelyn Vansit- 
 tart's lips, but she did not deem it pru 
 dent to ask it. Instead, she said, 
 
 "Thank the Secretary for his very 
 great kindness. I hope to do so in per 
 son soon. Are you, may I ask, a mem 
 ber of the secret service of which you 
 spoke ? " 
 
 " My name," said her visitor gravely, 
 " is Bennett, and I am detailed from my 
 regiment for special service in the War 
 Department in cases where certain 
 knowledge of military matters is im 
 perative. My orders come directly from
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 headquarters, and I have nothing to do 
 with the regular organized force you 
 refer to. The Secretary asked me to 
 mention this to you; he wished you 
 to know that I am to be trusted." 
 
 Accustomed though he was to read 
 ing faces, the keen, penetrating gaze that 
 this dainty woman of the world fixed 
 upon him almost startled the soldier. 
 
 " I desire proof," she said barely 
 above her breath. 
 
 "Is this sufficient?" he answered, 
 throwing back the lapel of his coat and 
 displaying a tiny Maltese cross in white 
 enamel carefully hidden under it. 
 
 "The number?" she queried briefly. 
 
 " Seventeen." 
 
 Evelyn leaned back in her chair and 
 smiled. 
 
 " The information in regard to the 
 Peyton plantation and its possible in 
 mates came through my agents," she said. 
 
 The soldier sprang to his feet. 
 176
 
 From the W^ar Office 
 
 " Then, madam, you are " 
 
 " Hush ! " she raised her white hand 
 imperatively. " Such knowledge as you 
 have just gained you will keep inviolate. 
 Not even to the Secretary can you di 
 vulge it. General Lafonte appears to 
 have escaped; do you know anything 
 further of him ? " 
 
 "Nothing, madam." 
 
 " When were you ordered to return 
 to Washington ? " 
 
 " By nightfall." 
 
 " Then there will be time for you to 
 go to this address." 
 
 She wrote on a tablet the number of 
 the Creole's house on Linden Avenue 
 and gave it to him. 
 
 " Be there at three o'clock. Show 
 your badge to the old French woman 
 who will open the door. She will give 
 you what information I desire to send 
 to Washington. That is all. Good- 
 
 morning." 
 
 177
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 Half an hour later the Vansittart car 
 riage drew up in front of the little house 
 occupied by Tante The'rese, and Eve 
 lyn, followed by her footman carrying 
 a hamper filled with nicely tied parcels, 
 mounted the steps. It was generally 
 known in the neighborhood that the 
 old Creole was frequently the recipient 
 of kindness and assistance from the lady 
 who came to visit her, and these gifts 
 were attributed to her visitor's philan 
 thropy and benevolence. All of which 
 proved an admirable cloak for the real 
 motive of her benefactress, and pre 
 vented suspicion in case of prying or 
 inquisitive persons. 
 
 In a few words The'rese told the story 
 which Petit Jean had related, pouring 
 out maledictions on the heads of those 
 who had permitted so important an oc 
 currence to pass unsuspected. 
 
 " But it shall not happen again," she 
 cried; "though I trust the fox was 
 178
 
 From the W^ar Office 
 
 caught in the old mansion where we 
 heard he had taken refuge. Has Ma 
 dame had news to-day ? " 
 
 "The worst," said Evelyn bitterly. 
 " He has again escaped. But sooner or 
 later he will come across the lines and 
 enter Baltimore." 
 
 " Why do you think so ? Is there any 
 other reason known to you for his com 
 ing than his desire to obtain aid and 
 information for the Southern cause ? " 
 
 " Listen, Tante Therese, and betray 
 the confidence to no one. He will re 
 turn, because the woman he comes to 
 see at Dalkeith House is his sister." 
 
 Therese gave a gasp of dismay. 
 
 " But you, mon coeur, what danger, 
 what peril ! Surely you are mad to ven 
 ture to remain in the city." 
 
 Evelyn shook her head with a cold 
 smile. 
 
 " I am in no danger. She, Mrs. Pe- 
 gram, is the eldest of the family; Gas- 
 179
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 pard, the youngest She never saw me 
 in the old days. When we were in New 
 Orleans she was married and living here. 
 There is nothing whatever in her mind 
 which connects me with her brother. I 
 took the chance of his silence. A cow 
 ard will keep his own secrets. I went 
 boldly to see her after my arrival here. 
 She was necessary to me, and I pre 
 ferred to be upon such terms that I 
 could watch her without suspicion. My 
 mother had visited her family at the 
 Baton Rouge plantation, and it was all 
 easy of accomplishment. Who would 
 think of looking behind my record ? My 
 marriage, my brilliant life in Amster 
 dam and Paris, my large means, my 
 cordial hospitality, do you think my 
 beauty and finesse cannot carry me 
 through? Bah, Tante Therese; have 
 you forgotten that what your foster- 
 child wills she obtains?" 
 
 The pride, the arrogance of her air 
 180
 
 From the W^ar Office 
 
 and words carried conviction to the soul 
 of her listener. Full well did The'rese 
 remember the indomitable will which 
 had moulded even adverse fortune and 
 used it for her own ends all these years. 
 She seized Evelyn's hand and kissed it 
 with passionate affection. 
 
 " Yes, heart of my heart, you have 
 reason; but for one moment I was 
 alarmed. Forgive me," she begged 
 humbly. 
 
 There was a pause, during which 
 Therese bustled about the room un 
 packing the hamper and carefully put 
 ting away its contents, part of which 
 she carried into the kitchen. When 
 she returned she found Evelyn bending 
 over a small table on which she laid a 
 sheet of paper. 
 
 " There will be a messenger here in 
 half an hour to Whom you will tell the 
 story of General Lafonte's visit to Bal 
 timore; suppress all that refers to any 
 181
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 connection with me. He will cooper 
 ate with you in regard to the espio 
 nage to be maintained over Dalkeith 
 House. I have written the names and 
 locality, with full directions, here, for 
 him." 
 
 The'rese took the paper, folding it 
 carefully, and slipped it inside the reti 
 cule which hung at her side. 
 
 " How soon can you communicate 
 with the Peyton plantation ? " 
 
 "Oh, but that is easy; our 'under 
 ground ' route is safe and sure." 
 
 Evelyn drew a letter from her bo 
 som. 
 
 " Then this must go at once. Be 
 certain that it falls into no other hands 
 than his." 
 
 " If M'sieu le General be still in the 
 Valley it will not fail to reach him 
 quickly. If he be gone to Richmond it 
 will be harder and longer." 
 
 " Do your utmost, Tante The'rese ; 
 182
 
 From the War Office 
 
 but exercise great caution. Adieu for 
 to-day." 
 
 She gathered her furs about her 
 stately figure as she swept out to her 
 carriage. The waiting horses champed 
 at their bits and tossed their heads as 
 they were driven rapidly away. But 
 the woman sank back upon the cush 
 ioned seat with her hand on her heart, 
 striving vainly to repress the agony 
 which her memory of the past had 
 awakened.
 
 Chapter X 
 
 By Woman's Wit 
 
 "THIS is the best plan that suggests 
 itself to me, Miss Randolph. It will 
 hardly be possible to cross to-day, and 
 the nearest and safest place to bivouac 
 is the Thorntons' old house just below. 
 I shall send the men and prisoners 
 ahead, except my escort and Captain 
 Phillipse, and meet them at Manassas 
 Gap, where we cross the mountains day 
 after to-morrow. You will find it better 
 to wait with me at the Thorntons, as a 
 long ride in this cold weather might be 
 too much for your strength." 
 
 "Then I think I will return to the 
 plantation for the night, and join you 
 there to-morrow. Peyton is somewhere 
 in the vicinity, and it is necessary for 
 me to see him before going to Rich- 
 184
 
 By Woman s 
 
 mond. He was to meet me last night, 
 but failed to appear. In the mean time, 
 before I leave you, Colonel Mosby," 
 Champe's roguish smile danced in her 
 eyes, "have I your permission to say 
 good-by to my prisoner? " 
 
 They were standing on the bank of 
 the Shenandoah River. Mosby, mount 
 ed on a splendid gray horse, wore the 
 complete uniform of a Confederate 
 colonel, surmounted by the inevitable 
 gray slouched hat of the Southern sol 
 dier; Champe, in her green habit, was 
 riding the sorrel mare. Before them 
 lay the ford known as Berry's Ferry, 
 and behind them sat the mounted troop 
 ers of Mosby's command. In the centre, 
 carefully guarded, were the little squad 
 of captured Federal soldiers, and be 
 yond, between two armed men, rode 
 Jack Phillipse. The river, partially 
 frozen over, was impassable for the flat- 
 bottomed bateaux anchored at the ford, 
 185
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 and as the ice was not sufficiently strong 
 to allow the men and horses to cross on 
 it, Mosby was compelled to change his 
 plans to suit the emergency. 
 
 " Certainly, if you desire to. Take 
 care, Miss Randolph, or your beaux 
 yeux will do the poor fellow more 
 harm than our bullets. I can picture 
 how you were able to detain him until 
 my arrival last night." 
 
 Privately, Champe did not think he 
 could, remembering her very apropos 
 nap; but she did not feel compelled to 
 enlighten him as she rode back to where 
 Jack was standing. As she reached his 
 side, the horse ridden by the trooper 
 on his left (bearing the familiar "U. S." 
 on his flank) bolted suddenly, and his 
 comrade seeing that the prisoner was 
 sufficiently guarded by the surrounding 
 troopers, turned to his assistance; there 
 fore being out of earshot for the moment, 
 Champe improved her opportunity. 
 1 86
 
 By Woman s Wit 
 
 " Listen carefully," she said softly, as 
 Jack lifted his cap in salutation. " You 
 stay to-night at a house near here. A 
 veranda runs around it, and a large 
 tree overhangs its roof. An agile man 
 could reach the ground from the room 
 above by its branches." 
 
 The trooper was nearing them again, 
 and she spoke barely above her breath, 
 leaning forward in her saddle as the 
 mare swerved a little in quick obedi 
 ence to her pressure on the rein. 
 
 " A death's-head cipher escaped you 
 once, this time be more vigilant! 
 Corporal," to the trooper now along 
 side, "Captain Phillipse has dropped 
 his cigarette case ; pick it up." 
 
 And to Jack's unspeakable amaze 
 ment she pointed with her whip to the 
 ground, where a small object that he 
 recognized instantly lay half-buried in 
 the slush where she had skillfully 
 thrown it. 
 
 187
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " I J m going to say good-by," she said, 
 extending her hand frankly as Jack 
 thrust the case into his nearest pocket. 
 " I go back to the plantation to-night. 
 Have you any message for Peyton ? " 
 
 " My hearty thanks," said her be 
 wildered victim, retaining enough pre 
 sence of mind to clasp her hand eagerly 
 in his, but quick to comprehend that 
 her mention of her brother conveyed 
 warning. Champe wheeled her horse 
 and rode rapidly away, while Jack, 
 prudently restraining his impulse to 
 watch the graceful figure out of sight, 
 obeyed the order to put his horse in 
 motion, and continued up the road 
 guarded as before. 
 
 As he rode along his thoughts were 
 busy trying to solve a problem as old 
 as Time itself, the caprices of a 
 woman. What did she mean, this 
 girl whose moods were as changeable 
 as the wind, and who, disguised as a 
 1 88
 
 By If^oman s 
 
 boy, had braved him so successfully? 
 He put his hand against the cigarette 
 case hidden in his pocket, and smiled 
 involuntarily as he recollected how 
 cleverly she had tricked him at Conrad's 
 Ferry, and his irritation at being baffled. 
 What a dullard he had been not to 
 recognize those dancing, mischievous 
 eyes when she taunted him last night! 
 What could be her reason for giving 
 him the case, and what were its real con 
 tents? He had been carefully searched 
 by Mosby's men upon his capture, and 
 as there was nothing to arouse suspi 
 cion in the trooper who, obedient to 
 Champe's command, had picked it up, 
 he would be able to retain it until he 
 had penetrated its secret. 
 
 The Thornton house, to which Mosby 
 was making his way, proved to be a 
 rather better preserved habitation than 
 most of those left in the Valley. It was 
 occupied by two elderly women, sisters, 
 189
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 and four servants, all that were left of 
 many slaves. The old ladies had a ter 
 rible fright when the troop rode through 
 their gates, imagining the intruders to 
 be Yankees; but being reassured by 
 the slouched hats and gray uniforms, 
 they came timidly out on the veranda 
 and gave Mosby a most cordial and 
 delighted welcome. 
 
 The guerrilla chief proved a more 
 kindly captor than Jack had expected. 
 After carefully investigating the small 
 room upstairs, where he proposed to 
 confine his prisoner, to see that the 
 windows were nailed up, and the lock 
 of the door secure, he gave Jack a cor 
 dial invitation to come down to supper, 
 which the old ladies were endeavoring 
 to prepare for their unexpected guests. 
 Fortunately, having captured a quantity 
 of supplies from a Federal train during 
 his Northern raid, Mosby had a pack- 
 horse with his escort, which proved a 
 190
 
 By tf^omans Wit 
 
 veritable godsend to the sisters, for, 
 with many distressed apologies, all they 
 were able to set before them was a dish 
 of hominy and a pitcher of milk. Their 
 joy when a trooper brought in a bag of 
 coffee, a sack of flour, hams, sugar, and 
 a paper of tea, was a revelation to Jack, 
 and he felt a throb of sympathy as he 
 realized what war grim war had 
 been to these and many another South 
 ern woman. 
 
 With the curious bonhomie that 
 characterizes most soldiers when not 
 in actual conflict, the Confederate and 
 Federal officers ate their supper to 
 gether, Mosby proving himself a most 
 agreeable companion, finally producing 
 half a dozen fine cigars, which he laid 
 on the table with a twinkle of his deep 
 gray eyes. 
 
 " Your commissaries know what 
 good tobacco is," he said, lighting one, 
 and he heaved a contented sigh as the 
 191
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 fragrant smoke curled up overhead. " I 
 return my compliments and thanks to 
 General Torbert, whose train I captured, 
 being quite sure that I appreciate my 
 spoils much more than he will his 
 losses." 
 
 At last, as the early twilight was 
 deepening into night, Jack was escorted 
 upstairs and locked carefully into his 
 room, which was supplied with a candle 
 and a small fire. Mosby, who accom 
 panied him to assure himself again 
 that all was safe, gave a short laugh as 
 he saw Jack's eye go quickly to the 
 chimney. 
 
 " No chance for you there, captain, 
 it 's too narrow. You 're safe till to 
 morrow, and I shall leave a sentry at 
 the door; good-night." 
 
 Jack heard the key click in the lock, 
 
 and then, in his turn, began to scrutinize 
 
 his surroundings. Candle in hand, he 
 
 inspected the two windows. From the 
 
 192
 
 By ff^omans 
 
 outside he had seen that they opened 
 on the roof of the veranda, as Champe 
 had said, but, granting that he had the 
 necessary tools, he could not extract 
 the nails which had been put there 
 without a noise which the sentry would 
 be sure to hear. He threw himself into 
 a chair with an impatient sigh. Even 
 yet he did not dare to open the ciga 
 rette case lest Mosby should make his 
 appearance suddenly, notwithstanding 
 the precautions he had already taken 
 to make his prisoner's escape impos 
 sible. Jack took out his watch, laid 
 it on the table, and sat there, deliber 
 ately watching the hands tick on for 
 full twenty minutes. Then, with ears 
 strained to catch every sound, he pulled 
 out the cigarette case. 
 
 It was a pretty trifle, as he had called 
 it when seen by the light of old Mose's 
 lantern at Conrad's Ferry, and as he 
 searched eagerly for the hidden spring
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 he wondered what it had concealed 
 then. What was it she said ? " The 
 cipher escaped you once." By Jove! 
 that 'was it, of course. The case had 
 evidently been filled again, for the first 
 spring, which he found easily, opened, 
 and there were four cigarettes, as inno 
 cent-looking as those he had destroyed. 
 He pressed his fingers on the diamond- 
 studded death's-head; it remained in 
 tact. Perhaps it had some connection 
 with the other spring. No, that failed 
 also. As he again placed his fingers on 
 it he moved his hand gently to the 
 right; the skeleton head turned half 
 way round, the crossbones sprang up; 
 and lo, a false bottom lay open before 
 him. In it was a tiny file of highly tem 
 pered steel, a coil of wire, and a scrap 
 of paper tightly folded. Jack hastily 
 hid the file and wire inside his coat, 
 inspected carefully the curious mech 
 anism of the death's-head, swung it 
 194
 
 By Woman s Wit 
 
 back into place, and unrolled the paper, 
 which contained several penciled lines 
 without signature. 
 
 "If you escape on this side of the 
 Blue Ridge, follow the ravine back to 
 the plantation. Judith has instructions. 
 Password, ' Conrad's Ferry.' ' 
 
 Jack sprang to his feet in almost uncon 
 trollable excitement. She had planned 
 this before they left the plantation. 
 Fate had played into her hands by mak 
 ing the crossing at Berry's Ferry im 
 passable, and now she had gone back. 
 By heavens! he would get there and 
 see her once again if he had to run the 
 gauntlet of all Mosby's command with 
 only his own unaided fists. He could 
 see her smile, her lovely mouth, and the 
 exquisite turn of her throat as she had 
 lain there asleep, trusting to his honor 
 as a gentleman to protect her. God 
 bless her! thumped Jack's heart; and 
 then he pulled himself together, pressed
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the paper to his lips, and, holding it over 
 the candle, watched it burn, and threw 
 the ashes carefully on the fire. 
 
 An hour passed ; two hours. Jack 
 sat by the table thinking. It was now 
 ten o'clock, and the house was appar 
 ently quiet, its inmates asleep. Again 
 he examined the windows, but the panes 
 were small, and the outside blinds 
 wooden. As he stood before them, al 
 most in despair, he was conscious of a 
 strange pungent smell which penetrated 
 his nostrils. It was smoke; either the 
 house or some of the outhouses were 
 on fire! 
 
 Jack took out the wire Champe had 
 given him and walked softly to the 
 door of the room. Very gently he in 
 serted the end of it in the keyhole by 
 aid of the file and found that he could 
 turn the locl^, Slowly, surely, the wire 
 was accomplishing the work; he 
 paused and listened. Not a sound; had 
 196
 
 By Romans Wit 
 
 the sentry been withdrawn, perhaps 
 not placed there ? The smoke was now 
 increasing perceptibly; evidently the 
 barn was on fire, for he could see a glare 
 from the outside, and then, as the lock 
 finally yielded to his hand, there sounded 
 on the still night the long-drawn shriek 
 of a frightened horse. 
 
 Jack heard the rush of footsteps in 
 the hall and on the stairs, and creeping 
 softly outside, closed the door behind 
 him, then tiptoed through another door 
 which he saw open at his left. Once 
 inside he stood perfectly still. There 
 was a very faint light from a smoulder 
 ing log on the hearth, and by it he saw 
 a big, old-fashioned, four-posted bed 
 stead in the centre of the room. Evi 
 dently the occupant had just left it, for 
 the bed was empty and the bed-clothes 
 were thrown back. It was the work of a 
 minute for Jack to close the door, shoot 
 the bolt, and rush across to the window. 
 197
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 He raised it, threw his leg cautiously 
 over the sill, and drew himself carefully 
 out on the veranda roof. Then, mind 
 ful of the faint light behind him, he de 
 liberately shut the window, pushed to 
 the wooden blind lest he should be seen 
 from below, and crawled cautiously 
 down the sloping roof to reach the 
 branches of the friendly tree which 
 overhung it so thickly that even then 
 they afforded some shelter. A few steps 
 brought him to the end of the roof, and as 
 he poised himself with his legs over the 
 edge he heard a voice below him say, 
 
 " Hold the nag for a minute, Frank; 
 I Ve got to rush back and see if the 
 colonel's gray is safe. Old Martin is 
 in a blue funk; it was his pipe that did 
 the mischief." 
 
 Jack peered over the roof. By the 
 
 light of the fire he could see that the 
 
 horse held by the trooper was one of 
 
 those belonging to his men, and he knew 
 
 198
 
 By Woman s Wit 
 
 that it was fresh. With an agile spring, 
 such as he used to make in the old 
 "Gym " at West Point, where he was a 
 practiced athlete, he launched himself 
 into mid-air and landed fair and square 
 on the back of the astonished horse, who 
 reared and plunged as Jack grasped 
 him by the mane, and the reins were 
 dragged from the trooper's hand. The 
 attack was so sudden, so artfully planned 
 and well executed, that Jack was a 
 dozen yards away before the Confeder 
 ate could snatch his revolver from his 
 belt and fire. Jack's hand went invol 
 untarily to the holster. Yes, thank God ! 
 there was a revolver left by the 
 "Johnny Reb " who had bestrode his 
 new mount so proudly that morning. 
 Another dash, a swerve to avoid the 
 trees when he reached in safety the road 
 beyond the gate, and then Jack drew a 
 long, free breath as he realized that, so 
 far, he had made his escape.
 
 Chapter XI 
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 AFTER the second mile Jack drew his 
 rein and proceeded more cautiously. 
 He remembered that Mosby had made 
 passing reference to some of his squad 
 ron who were lagging behind, and it 
 would be evil fortune, indeed, if he 
 should chance to fall foul of them. His 
 wisest plan, perhaps, would be to strike 
 off in a northwesterly direction, hoping 
 to reach Opequan Creek where he could 
 cross it and get through to Winches 
 ter, avoiding the small towns that lay 
 in his way, which either Federal or 
 Confederate might be occupying, as 
 events ruled. But first, he must reach 
 the Peyton plantation as Champe had 
 bidden him. Her directions were, no 
 doubt, the result of her knowledge re- 
 200
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 garding the Confederate movements, 
 and it would be folly to disregard them 
 even if he wished, which he did not, 
 and his blood quickened and thrilled 
 as he thought how soon he should look 
 into her eyes again. 
 
 The ravine, through which he was 
 directed to go to reach the plantation, 
 intersected the main road, and Jack 
 was racking his brain to remember the 
 exact point where he could find it, 
 when his horse began to prick up its 
 ears and give indication of alarm. Jack 
 listened eagerly; very faintly he thought 
 he could distinguish the sound of hoof- 
 beats on the road ahead. In a second 
 he threw himself off the saddle and, 
 leading his horse, plunged into the pine 
 woods on the left. Then, holding the 
 animal firmly by the nose to prevent 
 its whinnying, he cocked his revolver 
 and waited. 
 
 Presently there loomed in sight two 
 20 1
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 riders. They were walking their 
 mounts and talking in tones which 
 were distinct enough to reach the lis 
 tener. One of the men wore civilian's 
 dress; the other, under a long cavalry 
 cloak, evidently was in uniform, for 
 Jack could hear the click of his sabre 
 against the stirrup as they came to a 
 halt nearly opposite him. 
 
 " I must see Mosby to-night," said 
 the latter in the soft Southern intona 
 tion, which Jack instantly recognized 
 as belonging to his whilom captive, 
 General Lafonte. "But I do not think 
 I shall accompany him back to Rich 
 mond. There is work for me here, and 
 I gladly take advantage of your offer to 
 return to the plantation and lie perdu 
 for a few days until I get my orders 
 from General Lee. How long do you 
 remain in this vicinity? " 
 
 " I leave for Baltimore to-night," said 
 the other, and Jack, leaning forward 
 202
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 cautiously, saw that the speaker was 
 Peyton Randolph. " I was on my way 
 to the plantation when we met, and 
 must leave you now, general, to go 
 there. The road seems safe to-night, 
 but when you come again, take the 
 ravine, which is a short cut, and you 
 will strike it by a bridle path a few rods 
 to your right." 
 
 Jack shrank still farther into the 
 shadows as Peyton raised his whip and 
 pointed straight in his direction; then 
 with a courteous good - night to his 
 companion he wheeled his horse and 
 trotted up the road, where Jack lost 
 sight of him as he disappeared beyond 
 the pines. 
 
 It was close upon midnight when 
 Champe Randolph, raising the shade, 
 looked out of her window across the 
 lawn with somewhat anxious eyes. 
 Three times had she repeated the ac 
 tion, at intervals of half an hour, and 
 203
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 now she was almost sure she saw a 
 figure move cautiously from one tree 
 to another. She lowered the shade and 
 darted out into the hall. 
 
 " Aunt Judith," she called softly, "be 
 ready to open the door quickly. I think 
 some one is coming across the lawn." 
 
 As she spoke she ran swiftly down 
 the stairs, and was just in time to see 
 a tall figure slip across the threshold 
 while Aunt Judith hurriedly closed and 
 bolted the door behind him. But it 
 was not her brother who clasped her 
 hand in both of his, but a man wearing 
 the hated Federal blue, who gazed 
 down into her face with eyes that 
 thrilled her very soul with their pas 
 sionate feeling, and whose breathless 
 voice said, 
 
 " I have come to thank you with all 
 my heart and soul for your angelic good 
 ness to me before I am once again a 
 prisoner. There is some one hard on 
 204
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 my track. I had only time to slip off 
 my saddle, throw it into the bushes, and 
 set my horse free to gallop away, hop 
 ing he would be pursued by the rider 
 who was following me, while I ran 
 into the ravine and gained your door. 
 Hide this; I may be searched again," 
 and he thrust the cigarette case into 
 her hand. 
 
 Without a word, but with indescrib 
 able swiftness, Champe seized Jack by 
 the wrist and dragged him inside the 
 parlor. The light from the hall shone 
 dimly against the heavy oak wainscot 
 ing, which was black with age and 
 set in square panels around the room. 
 Stooping down, her deft fingers pushed 
 one of the carved leaves that ran like 
 a wreath around its base; the panel 
 moved noiselessly out and disclosed a 
 dark aperture, the secret chamber of 
 Peyton Hall. 
 
 "You are safe till I release you," 
 205
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 she whispered. "It may be daybreak 
 before I come, but I will not fail you." 
 
 Her hand rested for a brief second 
 in his, and then the panel swung back 
 into its place as silently as before. 
 
 Aunt Judith, snuffing the candle in 
 the hall, felt Champe's hand press her 
 shoulder. 
 
 " Remember, Judith," said her mis 
 tress firmly, " not one word to Mr. 
 Peyton; you understand ?" 
 
 "Laws, yes, honey; you done tole 
 me twice a'ready. Whar fo' yo' tink 
 Judith gwine to play spy after all dis 
 yer miration? Dar's Marse Peyton now, 
 chile; doan yo* hyar his whistle?" 
 
 Champe darted to the front door and 
 threw it open. Her brother stood at 
 the foot of the steps holding his horse, 
 and she ran down to greet him. 
 
 " Call one of the boys to take my 
 horse. I must be off before four 
 o'clock," he said. " Lafonte told me 
 206
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 you were here, or I should not have 
 stopped as I am pressed for time, but 
 I have news for you, Champe. Come 
 inside." Then, to a gray-haired negro 
 who came hobbling up from the almost 
 deserted servants' quarters, where he 
 had been fast asleep, his master said 
 quickly: " Have you seen any straggler 
 about the place, Pomp? Perhaps I'd 
 better come down to the barn with 
 you. I chased an apparently riderless 
 horse that I heard dashing about the 
 pine woods near our gate, but could 
 get no trace of his rider, nor any sign 
 of other horsemen who may have pur 
 sued him." 
 
 "No, Marse Peyton, I done see no 
 body 't all. Miss Champe tole me ter 
 keep watch, an' I 'se been sittin' an' sit- 
 tin' in de winder wot oberlooks de house 
 an' de barn, an' not even a jack-rabbit 
 hab run 'cross." 
 
 " Not many rabbits left to run," said 
 207
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Peyton good-naturedly, as he followed 
 Champe inside. 
 
 She went down the hall, but he called 
 her back, taking the candle from the 
 table as he did so. 
 
 " There is a fire in the dining-room," 
 she said, as he walked to the parlor 
 door. " I 'm afraid that one is out. Aunt 
 Judith, bring a fresh log here, please, 
 and get ready some refreshments for 
 Mr. Peyton before he goes." 
 
 Peyton set the candle down on the 
 parlor mantel, and, turning, surveyed her 
 with such gravity that Champe cried 
 out, 
 
 " What is it ? You look as if you were 
 the bearer of bad news." 
 
 "So I am; Estes Carey" 
 
 " Not found guilty by court-martial ? " 
 
 "No, dear," he said gently. "He is 
 dead" 
 
 Champe gave a sharp cry. 
 
 "Dead! Oh, Peyton, do you mean 
 208
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 that I am too late, that he was 
 shot?" 
 
 "No; though I fear that would have 
 been the verdict. He was found dead 
 in the room where he was confined at 
 Orange Court House. It was an em 
 bolism of the heart." 
 
 Champe gave a gasp, and stumbled 
 blindly into the nearest chair. 
 
 " I shall never forgive myself," she 
 moaned. " Why did I let him stay that 
 evening! " 
 
 "What do you mean?" asked her 
 brother sternly. " Had you anything 
 to do with those belated dispatches? 
 My God, Champe, I trust you were not 
 mixed up in that affair. This comes of 
 my permitting you to " 
 
 " Stop ! " she cried passionately. " I 
 am my own mistress, and accountable 
 to no one for my actions." 
 
 " Were you engaged to Estes Carey ? " 
 
 "That is a question I shall not an- 
 209
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 swer. But I do know that he was kept 
 for more than an hour at the house 
 where we stopped after crossing Hazel 
 River, because the horse which should 
 have been in readiness for him was in 
 the field and could not be caught, and 
 he spent that time with me. I know the 
 exact hour at which he left, and it was 
 to give this testimony that I was hurry 
 ing south." 
 
 There was a pause ; Champe endeav 
 ored to regain her composure. She 
 suddenly remembered that every word 
 they spoke could be heard by the occu 
 pant of the closet behind the panel. 
 
 " You can at least save his memory 
 from reproach," said Peyton. " It was 
 the discrepancy in the time which made 
 the worst feature of the charges against 
 him.,* Poor Estes; I loved him well." 
 Then, seeing his sister's eyes fill with 
 tears, he added in a lighter tone, " Gen 
 eral Lee has determined " 
 
 210
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 "Wait a moment," she said, inter 
 rupting him hastily, fearing that valua 
 ble information might reach ears for 
 which it was certainly not intended. 
 " I am freezing here, Peyton; come into 
 the dining-room. I am sure you must 
 be starving, and we can talk there while 
 you are eating supper." 
 
 Jack's vigil would assuredly have 
 proved a long one to him in the 
 cramped quarters where he was con 
 cealed, but for the fact that it was 
 provided with a mattress and several 
 pillows, whereon he ensconced him 
 self comfortably after Champe and her 
 brother had left the room, and fell 
 asleep. He woke with a start as a 
 light flashed in his eyes, and instinc 
 tively he grasped his revolver as he 
 sprang to his feet. But it was Judith's 
 kindly black face that met his gaze, not 
 the fair smiling one of which he had 
 been dreaming. 
 
 211
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " Come along, Marse Captain," said 
 she softly. " I 'se got some corn pone 
 an' aigs in der oder room fo' yo', an' 
 Pomp 's on de hunt f o' yo' saddle whar 
 Miss Champe said yo' hid it in de 
 
 ravine." 
 
 "Thank you, aunty; but who will 
 supply the horse? I sent mine flying 
 through the woods last night, and no 
 doubt my pursuers caught him." 
 
 " 'Deed dey did n't, sah. Dat hoss 
 ob yourn 's got mighty good hoss sense. 
 I doan know whar yo' sent him, but 
 Pomp done fouri* him 'bout an hour 
 ago standin' whinnyin' outside de barn, 
 talkin' to li'le Missy's mare. De sense 
 ob dat hoss ef he 'd come dar jus' ten 
 minutes befo' he 'd hev struck Marse 
 Peyton goin' out. Spec dat hoss am a 
 good Yank, too, sah." 
 
 Jack echoed Judith's chuckle, but 
 kept his eyes on the door of the dining- 
 room, praying that Champe would ap- 
 
 212
 
 At Peyton Hall 
 
 pear for one farewell word before he 
 rode away. There was a faint light of 
 dawn in the sky as he came into the 
 hall, and in the semi-darkness he saw 
 her at the foot of the stairs. 
 
 " I must hurry you away," she said. 
 " At any moment one of our officers 
 might appear, and I should be power 
 less to- help you." 
 
 "You have done everything," he 
 said, looking at the fair face where the 
 trace of tears was visible, and seeing 
 added beauty in the touch of sadness 
 they had brought. 
 
 " And now you know the secret of 
 Peyton Hall," she added more lightly. 
 " There is a concealed stair in the wall 
 which leads from the room above to 
 this below. It opens with a spring of 
 the same sort; that explains how Gen 
 eral Lafonte was able to elude you so 
 cleverly. Captain Phillipse," she hes 
 itated, and a brilliant blush dyed her 
 213
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 face, "I trust when you cross this 
 threshold that you will forget all that 
 I would wish forgotten " 
 
 Again his eyes seemed to read her 
 soul as her voice faltered. He took her 
 hand. 
 
 "I will remember nothing but that 
 you are the bravest and most generous 
 of women. There are other w6rds I 
 would like to add" 
 
 She drew her hand away. 
 
 "No, no," she cried, "not now!" 
 
 Another moment and Jack was in the 
 saddle, but as he spurred his horse from 
 the door,' the memory of her voice, as 
 it trembled on the last word, carried 
 comfort to his otherwise aching heart.
 
 Chapter XII 
 
 Face to Face 
 
 THE mansion at the corner of Mt. Ver- 
 non Square was brilliantly lighted. 
 Mrs. Vansittart was giving a dinner, 
 evidently a large one, judging by the 
 carriages that rolled up to her door. 
 The guests were chiefly young people, 
 with the exception of Mrs. Pegram and 
 Colonel Denbigh, for the dinner was 
 considered as an announcement of Ce- 
 cile's engagement to Fitz Tilghman; 
 news of which had come rather sud 
 denly to social Baltimore, accustomed 
 though it was to war-time love affairs 
 and marriages. But just before the hour 
 for the guests to assemble an apparently 
 unfortunate contretemps occurred. Mrs. 
 Vansittart was about to descend the 
 215
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 stai^ase when Stephanie came running 
 down the hall. 
 
 " If Madame pleases, here is a note 
 which the bearer says is most impor 
 tant. I told him Madame was occupied, 
 but he insists that he will wait for a 
 reply." 
 
 Mrs. Vansittart broke the seal and 
 ran her eyes over the penciled lines it 
 contained. 
 
 The man -whose arrest you directed 
 will be at Dalkeith before midnight. 
 At what hour shall I proceed ? 
 
 BENNETT. 
 
 For a moment Evelyn's hand trem 
 bled; then she turned back to her bou 
 doir, where Stephanie followed her, and, 
 seating herself at her desk, wrote rapidly 
 in reply, - 
 
 " At twelve o'clock. Await my com 
 ing." 
 
 She sealed the envelope. 
 216
 
 Face to Face 
 
 " Give this to the bearer. Order my 
 coupe to be at the door in fifteen min 
 utes; then return to my room." 
 
 Mrs. Pegram had arrived early and 
 was with Cecile, watching the girl, who, 
 with radiant face, was drawing on her 
 gloves, when Mrs. Vansittart came has 
 tily into the room. 
 
 " Cecile, my darling, I am so very, 
 very sorry to have anything happen to 
 alter our plans for to-night, but poor 
 Tante Therese is suddenly taken ill and 
 in great danger. She has sent for me, 
 and I must go to her at once. Mrs. Pe 
 gram will, I know, do me the great kind 
 ness to preside in my place at dinner, 
 and stay with you until I return. I have 
 ordered the blue bedroom arranged for 
 you," to Mrs. Pegram, " as I may be 
 detained late." 
 
 " Oh, mamma, how very unfortunate ! 
 Can you not wait until after dinner? 
 Fitz and I will be so, so disappointed; " 
 217
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 and Cecile looked ready to burst into 
 tears. 
 
 " Of course I will take your place at 
 the dinner-table," said Mrs. Pegram, 
 " but I think I must go home to-night, 
 as I brought my carriage in town, and 
 it will wait for me. But, with Cecile, I 
 wish you might be here for at least part 
 of the dinner." 
 
 " I must explain that Tante The"rese 
 is my foster-mother," said Mrs. Vansit- 
 tart. " Indeed, she deserves all the care 
 I can give her for her devotion to me 
 in my youth. Try and get on without 
 me, dear; I will hasten back as soon as 
 I am able to leave her." 
 
 Half an hour later the Vansittart car 
 riage drew up at the little house on 
 Linden Avenue. Petit Jean opened the 
 door. 
 
 "You need not return for me," said 
 Mrs. Vansittart to her coachman. "I 
 will get a carriage and drive home when 
 218
 
 Face to Face 
 
 I am ready," and she entered the house 
 as the servant drove away. 
 
 Tante The'rese, standing in the front 
 room, was confronted by Evelyn, who, 
 with pale face and gleaming eyes, laid 
 her hand on her arm, whispering, 
 
 " Success at last ! He has fallen into 
 the trap, and is at Dalkeith House, where 
 I am going to meet him. Send Petit 
 Jean for a carriage, be sure he gets a 
 good swift horse, no matter what the 
 carriage is like, and I wish him to 
 drive. Let him lose no time." 
 
 Tante The'rese disappeared by the 
 kitchen door, and Evelyn paced the 
 floor until her return. 
 
 " Do I go also, my heart ? " asked the 
 Creole. 
 
 "No. For years I have waited and 
 prayed for this hour, the hour of my 
 revenge; now I will meet him face to 
 face, alone. There is a fire in my veins 
 that seems to consume me." 
 219
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 She loosened her fiir cloak as she 
 spoke, and Th6rese saw that she was 
 in evening dress. 
 
 " Mon enfant! " she exclaimed in dis 
 may; "such exposure in this weather 
 and the drive is long." 
 
 " I had no time to change my dress. 
 I was giving a dinner for Cecile. It has 
 happened well, Tante The'rese. I have 
 been expecting the news for days, but 
 it came only half an hour ago, and most 
 fortunately his sister is at my house, 
 where she will stop till I return. For 
 tune favored me so far. I was obliged 
 to make the excuse that you were des 
 perately ill in order to leave them. Re 
 main here and watch till Petit Jean 
 comes back." 
 
 " Let me go ! " implored The'rese. " I 
 fear for thee, and yes, I fear him 
 as I feared him years ago." 
 
 Evelyn's cold smile was not good to 
 see. She had partially regained her usual 
 220
 
 Face to Face 
 
 composure, but Tante Therese knew 
 too well the volcano that smouldered 
 beneath her calm exterior, and, as she 
 said, she feared. There was a sound of 
 wheels rattling over the cobblestones, 
 and she raised a corner of the window- 
 shade to look out into the street. 
 
 " It is Petit Jean with the carriage ; 
 but wait. There will be no foot-robe to 
 keep out the cold. Take my long black 
 cloak, it will serve." 
 
 She took the cloak off the nail where 
 it hung, and accompanied Evelyn down 
 the steps, tucking it carefully around her 
 as she sat in the carriage, while her 
 mistress gave Petit Jean the necessary 
 directions. 
 
 " Dieu vous garde ! " whispered the 
 old woman, kissing the hand she held. 
 " Remember he once beguiled thee. 
 Trust him no more, not even if he 
 should plead for mercy." 
 
 She stood watching the carriage till 
 
 221
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 it turned the corner, then, going inside, 
 she locked the door securely and sat 
 down to wait. And as she waited, her 
 thoughts were busy with the past, 
 that past which had made a desperate 
 woman of Evelyn Vansittart. 
 
 From the banks of the James River, 
 where he was one of the largest planta 
 tion owners, Evelyn's father had gone, 
 when a young man, to pay a visit in 
 New Orleans, and from there brought 
 home a bride, the petted daughter of a 
 Spanish Creole. The marriage had not 
 been a happy one; he was a handsome, 
 easy-going fellow, too weak to rule his 
 high-spirited wife, too indolent to resist 
 the temptation to deceive her rather 
 than incur the bursts of passionate tem 
 per to which she was addicted. He was 
 always much beloved of women, and 
 his wife, no doubt, had cause for the 
 insane jealousy, which included even 
 his comely slaves. Indeed, Evelyn's 
 
 222
 
 Face to Face 
 
 birth had been hastened by one of her 
 jealous outbursts which he endeav 
 ored to soothe by sending the innocent 
 cause of it away from the plantation. 
 They never had another child. Evelyn 
 owed most of the care which envi 
 roned her to The'rese, the Creole, who 
 had accompanied her mother to the 
 James River plantation, and whose de 
 votion to the child she nursed became 
 idolatry. Tante The'rese, as she was 
 called in the pretty foreign fashion, 
 was seldom separated from her charge, 
 and when Evelyn, a girl of sixteen, was 
 sent to a finishing school in New Or 
 leans, Therese accompanied her. There, 
 at the home of one of the young Ameri 
 can girls, a schoolmate, where more 
 freedom was allowed than would have 
 been possible among the Creoles, she 
 met Gaspard Lafonte. On the liaison 
 which followed it is unnecessary to 
 dwell, but it was to The'rese that Eve- 
 223
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 lyn went in her despair. Gaspard, loving 
 her to distraction, finally awoke to her 
 peril, and endeavored to make every 
 reparation in his power. In haste and 
 secrecy they perfected their plans for 
 marriage, and Evelyn left New Orleans, 
 under pretense of a recall to her home, 
 to meet him. But from that day until 
 now neither word nor line from him 
 had ever reached her. It was owing 
 to a singular chain of circumstances, 
 which accounted to her family for her 
 absence, that she had been able to pre 
 serve her secret unsuspected, unknown 
 to any save her faithful foster-mother. 
 How clearly The'rese remembered the 
 agony and despair of it all, as she sat 
 there waiting, grim and relentless as 
 Fate itself I 
 
 The wind whistled shrilly through the 
 
 oaks and pines around Dalkeith House, 
 
 and a few big flakes of snow seemed 
 
 the forerunner of a storm. A figure, 
 
 224
 
 Face to Face 
 
 wearing a tightly buttoned coat which 
 reached nearly to his heels, came cau 
 tiously up the carriage road which 
 wound around the lawn to the front 
 door. When nearly there, the man 
 paused, hesitated, and then drew more 
 closely into the shade of the box hedge, 
 totally unaware that another figure, 
 shorter and more powerfully built, had 
 crept along on the other side of it, 
 and kept pace with him. The stranger 
 evidently knew the place well, for he 
 made the circuit of the house twice 
 before going to a small side door at 
 the end of a covered passage which ran 
 down to the stable. Then he gave a 
 long, low whistle, and rapped twice on 
 the panel. There was a moment's pause, 
 then the stable door swung open, and 
 some one came up the passage from the 
 other end. 
 
 "Who dat?" demanded the voice of 
 old Cicero, as he hobbled along the 
 225
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 brick walk. " Dere ain't nobody home. 
 De Lawd save us an' bless us ! how 
 cum yo' hyar, Marse Gaspard ? " 
 "My sister how is she, Cicero?" 
 " Miss Augusta, sah ? Sholy she 's all 
 right. She 's gwine in to Baltimo' dis 
 ebenin', an' Jim drove 'caise I 'se been 
 havin' a misery pow'ful bad lately. But 
 doan stan' hyar, Marse ; cum right inter 
 de house. It mought be dangerous ef 
 anybody wuz 'round, tho' I ain't seen 
 nobody hyar lookin' or searchin' fur 
 some days, sah." 
 
 Following the negro, General Laf ohte 
 entered the library, and Cicero lit the 
 lamps, first drawing the shades down 
 carefully. The room was empty, but 
 the blazing wood fire gave out gener 
 ous warmth, and he sat down beside 
 it, grateful for the rest and comfort it 
 suggested, while Cicero went out to 
 forage for supper. Returning with a 
 tray plentifully filled, and a bottle of 
 226
 
 Face to Face 
 
 wine, the old servant waited upon him 
 respectfully, talking as he did so. 
 
 " Shall I order a bed made ready for 
 you, sah? De servants is all gone to 
 bed 'cept Miss Augusta's maid, an' 
 she's soun' asleep in de kitchen; jes' 
 left her dar." 
 
 " I think not, Cicero." Lafonte looked 
 up a trifle wearily. "From what you 
 say, my sister is perfectly well. The 
 message which I received spoke of her 
 serious illness; and although I can im 
 agine no reason for treachery, coming 
 as it did through the usual source, per 
 haps it is best for me to depart as I 
 came." 
 
 " Sholy yo ? won't go widout seein' 
 Miss Augusta, sah ? She 'd feel terribly 
 upset to miss yo'." 
 
 " I would be safer in the city, Cicero. 
 You recollect what a narrow escape I 
 had the last time I came up." 
 
 "Well, den, Marse, ef yo'se sot upon 
 227
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 goin' I '11 saddle a hoss fur yo'. Yo'se 
 nearly daid beat, an' ef yo' mus' go, trus' 
 to de boss's legs radder than yo' own. 
 Sit right hyar by de fire, an' 't won't 
 take dis niggar long to saddle up, an' 
 I '11 cum an' let yo' outer de back do' 
 myself." 
 
 Cicero hustled off, resolving to attend 
 to this matter without calling one of 
 the " boys " to assist him as he usually 
 did, but as the faithful old soul ambled 
 down the brick walk to the stable a 
 strong arm seized him from behind, 
 a gag was thrust into his mouth before 
 he could utter a shout for help, and he 
 was dragged as quickly as his struggles 
 would permit into the stable, where he 
 was laid on the floor and securely bound. 
 
 After waiting some twenty minutes 
 for the negro's return, Gaspard Lafonte 
 thought he heard the sound of wheels 
 crunching the ground on the side of 
 the house. He glanced at his watch; 
 228
 
 Face to Face 
 
 it might be his sister returning from 
 Baltimore, or it might be dangerous 
 intruders. He sprang swiftly to his feet 
 as the door opened and closed behind 
 a woman's graceful form. As his eyes 
 fell upon her he staggered and caught 
 the table to save himself from falling, 
 and a gasping cry escaped him, 
 
 "Eve! Eve! Oh, my God!" 
 
 She stood before him in all her won 
 derful beauty; the costly furs dropped 
 from her shoulders, which gleamed 
 white and shapely as they rose above 
 her low-cut gown. Her face was pale 
 as death; her eyes sombre, yet full of 
 fire. 
 
 "Gaspard Lafonte, what have you 
 to say to me, the woman whom you 
 betrayed and deserted in her hour of 
 utmost need ? " 
 
 " Eve, my darling! " 
 
 He tried to take her in his arms. 
 She raised her white hand and struck 
 229
 
 A jfavelin of Fate 
 
 him in the face, a mere touch, but it 
 stung him to the heart. He groaned 
 aloud as he released her. 
 
 "You thought that?" he asked. 
 
 She made no reply; with a look of 
 utter scorn she waited for his answer 
 to her accusation. 
 
 For a moment there was silence as 
 the man strove for self-control. Twice 
 he tried to speak, but only an inartic 
 ulate murmur reached her ears. He 
 turned from her, walked swiftly across 
 the room, and then, recovering himself, 
 faced her with eyes as stern and un 
 yielding as her own. 
 
 " How dare you condemn me un 
 heard ? " he said. " I, who have spent 
 years of sorrow in which I searched 
 vainly for you, exhausting every clue; 
 I, whose soul was so passionately bound 
 to yours that no other love could enter 
 there; I, who would have mourned you 
 as dead rather than deem you unfaithful. 
 230
 
 Face to Face 
 
 Could you not give me the benefit of 
 the doubt?" 
 
 " No ! " The pitiless word was her 
 sole answer. 
 
 " Eve, you must you shall hear 
 me." 
 
 She inclined her head with the 
 haughty grace for which she was famed, 
 and sank into a chair. Not by the 
 quiver of an eyelid would she show him 
 how the old fascination was beginning 
 to exert itself; Therese had been wise 
 to warn her. He remained standing, 
 leaning one hand upon the table as he 
 faced her, his words coming slowly and 
 distinctly at first, then quickening into 
 passionate appeal. 
 
 "When I left you with Therese to go 
 home and arrange my affairs, it was 
 with the understanding that we were to 
 meet in Mobile, as I was not known 
 in that city, and be married* As I told 
 you, by a clause in my father's will I 
 231
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 could inherit nothing if I married before 
 I was twenty-five, and I then lacked 
 two years of that age. Therefore I went 
 to Baton Rouge to collect a small leg 
 acy which had been left me by an 
 aunt, for I needed the money to use for 
 you in your coming trial. I sold my 
 securities and started down the Missis 
 sippi to hasten to your side. That night, 
 as our boat was indulging in the almost 
 inevitable race with a rival steamer, 
 she caught fire, a frightful accident 
 followed, and many of the passengers 
 lost their lives. I was fortunate in se 
 curing a rail to which I lashed myself, 
 but as the steamer sank a falling timber 
 struck me. I was picked up the follow 
 ing morning at Bonnet Quarre, where 
 I had floated, unconscious from a frac 
 ture of the skull. I fortunately fell into 
 the hands of a skillful doctor who tre 
 panned me, but for days after the oper 
 ation, my life was despaired of, and 
 232
 
 Face to Face 
 
 when at last I was able to be carried to 
 New Orleans, it was only to be placed in 
 a hospital. When I left there, though 
 hardly able to travel, I went at once to 
 Mobile, to find that both you and The'- 
 rese had disappeared, leaving no address 
 behind. I searched the city ; I went 
 nearly mad with anxiety, for I dared 
 not write to you at your home, or seek 
 you there. When I ventured, six months 
 after, to visit Richmond I learned that 
 your father had died, and you, with your 
 mother, had gone abroad to remain in 
 definitely. Then the bitter knowledge 
 forced itself upon me that, without a 
 word, you had cast me off, and that our 
 secret must be kept at no matter what 
 cost to me. This is my story my 
 reply to your accusation. What is your 
 answer to me ? " 
 
 Although every word and tone car 
 ried conviction with it, Evelyn steeled 
 herself afresh against him, as she broke 
 233
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 forth with the fire and passion of her 
 girlhood, 
 
 " Your suffering is as a feather-weight 
 in the scale of mine! What can you, a 
 man, know of the shame, the degrada 
 tion that I, a mere girl, endured for 
 years? And yet I broke a good man's 
 heart when I told him that I had loved 
 only once ! " 
 
 Lafonte made a hasty step toward 
 her, but she waved him back, and went 
 on more calmly, 
 
 "Therese and I went, as you directed, 
 to Mobile, and there, for two awful 
 weeks, I waited for your coming. I 
 was becoming less able to travel, but 
 we dared not stay, as the woman in 
 whose house we were grew suspicious, 
 and plied us with questions we could 
 not answer. Finally The'rese decided 
 that it would be better to return to 
 Virginia; she knew of a quiet spot in 
 the mountains where her brother had 
 2 34
 
 Face to Face 
 
 been employed as a miner. The com 
 pany had failed, and the mine had been 
 abandoned, but he still remained there. 
 To that refuge she proposed to take 
 me, and accordingly we set out. The 
 memory of that journey is a confused 
 one; it seemed to me as if it would 
 never end. A constant fever consumed 
 me, and the thought of your desertion 
 was driving me mad. One day we 
 reached the handful of houses called a 
 village that lay at the foot of the moun 
 tain. TheVese and I took breakfast, such 
 as it was, in a little cabin inhabited by 
 these mountaineers, who, in their simple 
 way, made us welcome. She insisted 
 that I should remain there while she 
 went around the base of the mountain 
 where she thought to find her brother's 
 cabin. I dreaded to have her go, and 
 for two days I stopped there alone. 
 The third day a sort of frenzy seized 
 me, and I decided I would try to find 
 235
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 The'rese. I procured a rough, two-seated 
 wagon and induced the owner to drive 
 me up the mountain. A thunder-storm 
 came up suddenly; the horses, young 
 and badly broken, became terrified 
 and bolted, throwing out the driver. I 
 caught the reins and tried to guide them, 
 but only for a few rods, when I was 
 thrown violently to the ground. I knew 
 nothing more until I woke to conscious 
 ness days after in a little cabin where a 
 kindly slave woman had cared for me 
 through an illness that was nigh unto 
 death!" 
 
 "Oh, my darling, 7 ' the man cried 
 impulsively, " how you must have suf 
 fered!" 
 
 "What was the bodily pain to the 
 anguish of my soul," she answered 
 bitterly, "the soul that has never 
 ceased to feel its shame. Enough of that. 
 When I recovered I found The'rese, 
 nearly distracted by my absence, at the 
 236
 
 Face to Face 
 
 foot of the mountain, and together we 
 went back to the plantation on the 
 James River. The night that I arrived 
 my father died. His death at that time 
 changed all my life Hush, what was 
 that sound ? " 
 
 " Only the silver clock on the mantel 
 striking the quarter," said Lafonte. "It 
 is almost midnight." 
 
 Evelyn sprang to her feet. She had 
 forgotten that she had betrayed this 
 man. The hour for which she had 
 longed with such revengeful passion 
 was almost at hand. Could she, now, 
 do this thing? " He saw her great eyes 
 soften and glow as they were raised to 
 his; he opened his arms and she fell 
 blindly into his embrace as she cried, 
 
 " Gaspard, my love, my love ! I must 
 save you before the clock strikes 
 twelve ! "
 
 Chapter XIII 
 
 At the Stroke of Twelve 
 
 " WHAT do you mean ? " asked La- 
 fonte in amazement. 
 
 " You have been followed. This 
 house is watched, and you are in danger 
 of arrest the moment you attempt to 
 leave it." 
 
 " How did you obtain your informa 
 tion?" 
 
 " From the person who gave the or 
 der," she said calmly, her indomitable 
 courage coming to her aid as she met 
 the penetrating glance of his eyes. 
 " There is no time for explanation ; we 
 have not a moment to lose. How did 
 you gain admittance to the house?" 
 
 "With Cicero's help. I signaled to 
 him, and we came in by the north side 
 door to which I have a pass-key." 
 238
 
 At the Stroke of Twelve 
 
 " Thank heaven ! Give it to me." 
 
 " But, Eve, dearest," 
 
 She had vanished through the door 
 way before he had time to complete the 
 sentence. In a brief minute she returned 
 carrying The*rese's long black cloak, 
 which she flung around him. 
 
 " Come with me, and step softly," she 
 whispered, clasping his hand in hers. 
 " You must go out the way I came 
 in, through the conservatory, which 
 is not lighted. Outside the door stands 
 my carriage. Jump inside it and crouch 
 down on the floor, covering your head 
 and shoulders with the cloak I gave 
 you." 
 
 They had made their way swiftly 
 through the darkness, and Evelyn 
 opened the outer door of the conserva 
 tory, past which ran the carriage road. 
 Petit Jean sat on his box, stamping his 
 feet to keep them warm. She turned 
 the knob of the carriage door so gently 
 2 39
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 that the man did not even look around, 
 and Lafonte buried himself inside as 
 she gave the order to the servant. 
 
 " Drive slowly around to the front 
 door and await me there," she said. 
 
 With breathless haste she stole back 
 to the room she had just left and glanced 
 at the clock. It was seven minutes to 
 twelve. 
 
 Taking Lafonte's gloves, which lay 
 on the table, she ran into the hall and 
 dropped them at the foot of the stairs. 
 Then she went to the side door and 
 locked it carefully, placing the key in 
 the bosom of her gown. Drawing her 
 furs around her, she walked to the front 
 door and stepped outside, being careful 
 to close it behind her. There stood the 
 carriage, and as she entered it a figure 
 which she recognized dashed around 
 the corner of the house. With a steady 
 hand she let down the window and 
 leaned out, facing the new-comer. 
 240
 
 At the Stroke of Twelve 
 
 "You have just three minutes," she 
 said, as Bennett bared his head respect 
 fully. "I would try the side door by 
 which he entered, first. But be careful 
 to get away with your prisoner before 
 Mrs. Pegram returns, which she may do 
 at any moment. How many men did 
 you bring? " 
 
 "Three, madam; two are with me; 
 'one stationed at the gate below." 
 
 " And the word ? " she questioned. 
 
 " Massachusetts ! " 
 
 "Thanks; good-night." 
 
 The carriage rolled swiftly along to 
 the gates of Dalkeith. Petit Jean paused 
 for an instant as Evelyn gave the coun 
 tersign, and then her low laugh of tri 
 umph was smothered on Lafonte's breast 
 as he rose and clasped her to his heart. 
 
 Out on Linden Avenue the old Cre 
 ole kept her watch faithfully. Twelve 
 o'clock, then one, sounded from the 
 clock of a church-tower near by, but it 
 241
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 had almost time to strike again before 
 Tante Therese heard horses' feet click 
 on the cobblestones at her door. She 
 crept softly to open it; to her infinite 
 surprise two figures came hastily up the 
 narrow steps and into the house instead 
 of the one she had expected. 
 
 " Mon Dieu I " she gasped, as Evelyn 
 threw her arm around her neck and 
 whispered, 
 
 "Tante The'rese, it is he, Gaspard; 
 do you hear? And all is explained. 
 You must hide him in the room above 
 till I come to-morrow, and then we will 
 get him away in safety. Do you un 
 derstand, Tante Therese?" and she 
 stamped her foot imperiously at the 
 bewildered and enraged old woman. 
 
 "I hear," she muttered. "What did 
 I say, mon coeur? M'sieu le General 
 has the persuasive tongue; oh, yes, he 
 has used it often before." 
 
 " The'rese, how dare you ? Do not 
 242
 
 At the Stroke of Twelve 
 
 mind her, Gaspard; she is old, but" 
 suddenly changing her tone "she is 
 faithful." 
 
 " Always, to thee, mon cceur," came 
 the humble answer; but Evelyn did 
 not see the baleful glance shot at La- 
 fonte under the bushy eyebrows as the 
 woman lit a candle in silence and pre 
 pared to take her visitor upstairs. 
 
 " I will come to-morrow as early as I 
 can. Guard him as you would your life, 
 Therese," said Evelyn, and in a moment 
 more she left the room and the house. 
 
 General Lafonte followed the Creole 
 up the narrow stairs, and was ushered 
 into a small but exquisitely neat room 
 where stood a bed, a table, and several 
 chairs. Therese walked over to the win 
 dows and drew the shades, closing the 
 blinds also. Then she set the candle on 
 the table and addressed him. 
 
 " It is some years since we met, 
 M'sieu le General," she said. " When I 
 243
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 saw you last you were making plans to 
 have a marriage ceremony performed. 
 You have satisfied Mam'selle, grace 
 de Dieu, but you have still to answer 
 to me for your base desertion of the 
 child I reared and love so well." 
 
 She spoke in rapid French, with an 
 air of dignity which struck Lafonte, 
 and appealed to him as no furious out 
 break would have done. Therefore he 
 answered her with courtesy and pa 
 tience. As Evelyn had said, she was 
 old but faithful. 
 
 "Sit down, The'rese," he replied, 
 handing her a chair, and seating him 
 self as he spoke. 
 
 " Merci, M'sieu ; I prefer to stand." 
 
 But he insisted, and in as few words 
 as possible repeated the story of his 
 accident on the Mississippi River, the 
 detention in the hospital in New Or 
 leans, and his search for Evelyn after 
 ward. The'rese listened with an out- 
 244
 
 At the Stroke of Twelve 
 
 ward air of much respect. Inwardly, 
 she was laying her plans. 
 
 " Could M'sieu but have seen Mam'- 
 selle that night on the mountain, he"- 
 las ! It was moonlight, and I, distracted 
 that I was by her disappearance, had 
 gone to the door of the cabin where 
 my brother had made shelter for us, 
 I thought I heard a sound of feet in the 
 still, still night. Oh, those horrible silent 
 woods, and the mountain high above! 
 I can see them now. The moon 
 showed the shadows more plainly, and 
 it seemed to me that one of them was 
 moving. Behold, it came nearer, and it 
 was Mam'selle, in her long black gown, 
 so tall, so white, so like a spirit that I 
 thought it was her ghost until she sprang 
 into my arms sobbing as if her heart 
 would break. M'sieu should have seen 
 his work that night as I saw it." 
 
 " Good God, woman, have I not told 
 you that I did all in my power" 
 245
 
 A ^Javelin of Fate 
 
 "But yes, M'sieu; men, the best 
 of them, know not how women suffer. 
 Mam'selle did not recover from the 
 shock of her accident and the birth of 
 the child for months " 
 
 "A child, The*rese! Was there a 
 child born to me ? " he cried, absolutely 
 stunned by this revelation. 
 
 The woman looked at him through 
 her half-closed eyelids; she knew now 
 where to strike. 
 
 "I should not have spoken, pardon, 
 M'sieu. If she, Mam'selle, did not tell 
 M'sieu, it is not my place to give infor 
 mation." 
 
 Lafonte sprang from his chair in un 
 controllable agitation. A child, Eve 
 lyn's child and his, the thought was 
 supreme happiness. Was his lonely life 
 to be consoled at last, his starving heart 
 fed? 
 
 " Answer me," he said sternly. " Was 
 it- born dead? Why do you seek to tor- 
 246
 
 At the Stroke of Twelve 
 
 ture me by withholding what I have a 
 right to know ? " 
 
 " It was born alive, M'sieu. It was 
 a girl. More than this I do not know. 
 M'sieu must ask Mam'selle. I have, 
 without intention, spoken when I should 
 have been silent. I ask pardon. If 
 Mam'selle wished M'sieu to know, she 
 would no doubt have told him." 
 
 She had planted her sting neatly; she 
 saw him color hotly, and heard the half- 
 uttered oath below his breath. She 
 rose and curtsied respectfully. 
 
 "I hope M'sieu will sleep well. He 
 need have no fear of arrest; The'rese 
 always obeys Mam'selle. Good-night, 
 M'sieu."
 
 Chapter XIV 
 
 The Mills of the Gods 
 
 THE morning had dawned clear, bright, 
 and frosty, before Gaspard Lafonte 
 closed his eyes. At last the heavy 
 sleep of fatigue came to him, and The'- 
 rese knocked twice at his door before 
 he replied to her. She brought him 
 the usual French breakfast of rolls and 
 coffee, and with it a note from Evelyn, 
 which he tore open as soon as the 
 Creole left the room. In it she said 
 she could not come to the house before 
 afternoon, but she implored him to stay 
 in hiding until she had perfected her 
 plans for his escape from the city. 
 
 " I am coming to you, my own," she 
 
 wrote, " the moment I am released from 
 
 entertaining some guests. How I hate 
 
 them you may imagine, as I hate any- 
 
 248
 
 The Mills of the Gods 
 
 thing that keeps me from your dear 
 embrace, so longed for all these hor 
 rible, maddening years. Keep saying 
 over and over ' she is coming,' and be 
 fore you know it I will be with you." 
 
 But, notwithstanding her promise, it 
 was late when the Vansittart carriage 
 appeared at Therese's door. Petit Jean 
 admitted her, and she went at once up 
 stairs, only pausing long enough to tell 
 the Creole that all was going well, and 
 to bid Petit Jean to admit no one; her 
 carriage would wait. 
 
 Never, even in the days of her girl 
 hood, had Evelyn been so beautiful as 
 at that moment, and Lafonte fell, as of 
 old, under the spell of her marvelous 
 fascination. It was with a start that he 
 finally recollected what The'rese had 
 told him, and there was a joyous ring 
 in his voice as he said, 
 
 " And so, Eve darling, there was a 
 child, a little girl. Tell me where she 
 249
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 is that I may clasp both my treasures 
 to my heart." 
 
 She had been smiling up in his face, 
 and at first did not catch his meaning. 
 Then, to his infinite surprise, he saw 
 her look change. A sort of frozen hor 
 ror crept into her eyes; she turned pale 
 even to her lips as she gasped, 
 
 "A child, Gaspard? I do not under 
 stand what you mean ? " 
 
 "Our child," he said tenderly. "Can 
 you not imagine what that means to 
 me ? The'rese told me " 
 
 " The'rese ! " She tore her hands from 
 his, and stood coldly defiant before him. 
 " Indeed ! And, pray, what did she say 
 to you ? " 
 
 His look of utter astonishment stung 
 her, but she waited for his answer. 
 
 " Surely you cannot misunderstand 
 me ? She said that we had a living 
 child, a girl. Where is she ? " 
 
 " I do not know." 
 250
 
 The Mills of the Gods 
 
 It was the same pitiless tone which 
 he had heard the night before. His face 
 grew stern as he listened, but he con 
 trolled himself admirably. 
 
 "Eve, look me in the face and tell 
 me the truth." 
 
 She raised her eyes with her usual 
 superb courage. She had not lied to a 
 dying man, why do so now? 
 
 " You wish the truth, well, you 
 shall hear it. There was a child, born 
 of your sin and mine. Do you think I 
 would ever look in its face again? I 
 left it there in the mountains, and I pray 
 God that it is dead." 
 
 " Eve ! " he gasped. " Are you hu 
 man? Even the wild creatures of the 
 fields and jungles love their young. Do 
 you not love yours ? " 
 
 Where had she heard words like 
 these before? Who had said that, she 
 wondered dully? 
 
 " I have but one child," she said, 
 251
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 and each word fell clear and cold as ice 
 on the man's tortured heart, "Cecile 
 Vansittart. Ask me no more." 
 
 He looked at her in silence. Pale 
 with concentrated passion, he seized her 
 hands. 
 
 "Is that your last word? Then hear 
 mine. If our child lives, I command 
 you to find her. Until you do we are 
 strangers." 
 
 With a gesture of utmost scorn, Eve 
 lyn turned from him and walked toward 
 the door. A despairing cry burst from 
 him: - 
 
 " Eve, Eve, for God's sake, consider 
 what you are doing." 
 
 For one brief second her step fal 
 tered, she half turned toward him. 
 Then she bowed her head, and without 
 a word left the room. Listening, he 
 heard the clatter of her horses' feet as 
 she was driven rapidly away. 
 
 Lafonte, exhausted from the terrible 
 252
 
 The Mills of the Gods 
 
 disclosures of the past twenty-four hours, 
 threw himself on the bed and tried to 
 think out clearly what his next move 
 could be. He knew that he must return 
 to his command as quickly as possible, 
 and that when night fell he could escape 
 from the city. Evelyn had assured him 
 that all was safe, but now he chafed un 
 der the necessity of accepting her assist 
 ance. He had his own means of evading 
 the authorities, and he resolved to use 
 them as soon as darkness enabled him 
 to venture into the streets of Baltimore. 
 So thinking he fell asleep. 
 
 The street lamps were burning dimly, 
 and night had fallen when he woke. 
 Some one was rapping on his door, and, 
 seizing his revolver from beneath his 
 pillow, he unlocked and opened it. 
 
 "Is M'sieu ready? "asked Therese. 
 " Petit Jean says all is arranged. Will 
 it please M'sieu to descend?" 
 
 He followed her down the stairs where 
 253
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the man stood waiting; then he turned 
 back and pressed a paper intoThe'rese's 
 hand. 
 
 " Give that to Mam'selle," he said. 
 "It contains an address that will always 
 reach me. Adieu." And beckoning Pe 
 tit Jean to follow, he passed out into the 
 night. 
 
 TheYese stood in the doorway, look 
 ing eagerly up the street. At the corner 
 she could see two dark figures just be 
 yond the lamp. 
 
 " Not in my house," she muttered ; 
 " I will keep my oath so far. But 
 perhaps we will not need this address 
 which M'sieu has intrusted to me." 
 
 Lafonte and his companion had 
 reached the corner, and were about 
 to turn it, when the two men whom 
 The'rese was watching closed in upon 
 him. There was an instant's struggle, a 
 shot, then another, and Bennett, spring 
 ing out from his concealment to the 
 254
 
 The Mills of the Gods 
 
 assistance of his comrades, laid his hand 
 on Lafonte's shoulder. 
 
 " Do not compel me to cripple you, 
 general," he said, picking up the re 
 volver, which had fallen in the scuffle. 
 " Here are my orders." 
 
 Lafonte glanced at the paper extended 
 to him. By the light of the lamp he 
 read : 
 
 WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, D. C. 
 Arrest General Gaspard Lafonte, and 
 send him to Fort McHenry, thence to 
 Fort Lafayette. By order, 
 
 EDWIN M. STANTON, 
 
 Secretary of War. 
 
 Petit Jean had been struggling vio 
 lently with one of the men, not recog 
 nizing Bennett, who wore his uniform, 
 and he took advantage of the pause to 
 slip off as fast as his legs could carry 
 him. Having no idea of Therese's 
 treachery, the honest fellow thought 
 2 55
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 that the best thing to do was to notify 
 Madame, in whose wonderful power he 
 had the firmest faith, and he set off 
 to carry the information of General 
 Lafonte's capture, going by the most 
 circuitous route lest he should be 
 tracked. In this way much time was 
 lost, but when he finally reached Mt. 
 Vernon Square, he perceived at once 
 that something unusual was taking 
 place. There were lights flying to and 
 fro in the upper chambers of the Van- 
 sittart house, and before the door stood 
 a doctor's gig. Petit Jean stole back 
 into the alley and sought the stable. 
 No one was there; he could hear the 
 murmur of voices in the kitchen, and 
 he crept cautiously to the door, think 
 ing to find Stephanie. From where he 
 stood he could hear her voice, relating 
 some story between her sobs. Then he 
 distinguished Scip's tones. 
 
 " De good Lawd knows I done tole 
 256
 
 The Mills of the Gods 
 
 Peter nebber to let dose young bosses 
 go outer de stable do' widout de heavy 
 curb bits," he groaned. " But Peter 
 was on de box wid de madam all de 
 evenin', an' dat fool Andre took li'le 
 Missy's message to come quick wid de 
 coupe 'caise she mus' go an' meet Marse 
 Tilghman at de Calvert Street station, 
 an' so Jacques jes' hitched up, an' was 
 'round to de front do' befo' I could get 
 in my livery cote, an' dat 's how dey all 
 got off widout me." 
 
 "Yes," sobbed Stephanie, as Petit 
 Jean, forgetful of all, pushed his way 
 inside, and joined the group of fright 
 ened servants. "Jacques says that at 
 the corner of Saratoga and Liberty 
 streets a boy, unrolling a parcel, let 
 the white paper fly out of his hand, and 
 the wind carried it directly into the 
 face of one of the horses. He shied, 
 then both of them bolted down that 
 steep hill to the corner of what you 
 257
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 call oh, Lexington Street, where was 
 coming a heavy coal cart. The coupe 
 struck the cart, and was overturned 
 with Mam'selle inside, and" Here 
 Stephanie's voice failed her. 
 
 Petit Jean leaned forward. 
 
 "Just one little mark on her pretty 
 temple," sobbed the girl. " The doctor 
 says she was dead when Jacques lifted 
 her up. Ciel! do you hear that?" 
 
 Through the house rang a shriek of 
 mortal agony. Petit Jean crossed him 
 self devoutly, and fell upon his knees 
 rocking to and fro, as Evelyn Vansit- 
 tart's voice sounded down the hall with 
 a heartbreak in every tone, 
 
 " Oh, God, my child, my child! "
 
 Chapter XV 
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 IT was spring in the land, that spring 
 of 1865 which told the end of the great 
 Civil War. Richmond, the beleaguered 
 city of the South, bleeding in every pore, 
 but fighting gallantly to the last, had 
 surrendered; and from both North and 
 South there went up to heaven a sigh 
 of relief that the long tension of years 
 was ended. The Monumental City was 
 rent in twain between joy for her boys 
 in blue and grief for those who had 
 worn the gray. Among the women who 
 did not hesitate to express their feelings 
 was Miss Susan Lindsay. 
 
 Sitting in her parlor one morning 
 
 with two of her intimate friends, she 
 
 was holding forth to most interested 
 
 listeners. For Miss Sue had had her 
 
 259
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 experience of what it was to be at issue 
 with the government, and it was by no 
 means to her liking. 
 
 "You heard, my dear," she said, 
 addressing Mrs. Pegram, " that I was 
 swooped down upon and whisked off to 
 Fortress Monroe before I had time to say 
 Jack Robinson or put on a clean collar. 
 And I never knew until yesterday who 
 supplied the information that sent me 
 there. Never mind his name," with 
 an indignant sniff, "I shall get even 
 with him sooner or later, poor, mis 
 erable white trash that he is, he can 
 wait. You know, Augusta, that I, as 
 well as a good many other women here 
 in town, at the beginning of the war 
 had the Confederate flag painted on the 
 inside cover of my watch. I presume 
 you have yours on at this minute, 
 haven't you?" pausing in her speech 
 to gaze regretfully at the emblem which 
 Mrs. Pegram displayed with pride. " I 
 260
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 was standing that morning at the win 
 dow, having just finished my breakfast, 
 when I saw Cousin James Henry come 
 limping up the steps, and I went out to 
 the door to save his coming further, as 
 I strongly suspected he had a message 
 for me from Champe, who was off again 
 on one of her scampers to Richmond. 
 He pushed me inside in a hurry, and 
 said: i Susan, I can't stay a minute, for 
 I've been trying to distance the pro 
 vost marshal. Some one has lodged in 
 formation against you, and they will be 
 sure to search the house; so get any 
 thing that relates to the Cause out of 
 sight as fast as you can ; ' and off he 
 scuttled down those steps, and I rushed 
 upstairs, racking my brains to remem 
 ber what on earth I had that was con 
 traband of war. 
 
 " Martha, my maid, one of pa's 
 slaves, who 's taken care of me for 
 twenty years, was running down- 
 261
 
 A Ravelin of Fate 
 
 stairs with a package of letters, which, 
 harmless as they were, only filled with 
 family details, had come across the 
 lines. I told her to stick them in the 
 kitchen fire, as I did not want the smell 
 of burning paper in my bedroom. All 
 of a sudden I remembered my watch 
 and that telltale flag. Where on earth 
 could I hide it from those hateful, pry 
 ing Yankees ? I could n't throw it away, 
 and there was no time to bury it in the 
 yard, as we did the silver on the plan 
 tation, and, as I was expecting to hear 
 the doorbell ring every minute, what 
 do you suppose I did ? " 
 
 She paused dramatically, with up 
 raised hand. 
 
 "What?" gasped Mrs. Pegram and 
 Mrs. Lovell in the same breath. 
 
 " I sat down deliberately and licked 
 it off I" 
 
 Gravity was impossible with Miss 
 Sue's dancing eyes in evidence, and 
 262
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 both women shrieked with laughter, in 
 which she joined. 
 
 " I wonder it did n't poison you," said 
 Mrs. Pegram as soon as she could 
 speak. 
 
 "Well, I did have my doubts, so I 
 was busy scrubbing my tongue when 
 the provost-marshal appeared. Did n't 
 I have fun with him, though! I gave 
 him my opinion on a good many sub 
 jects before he got me into a carriage 
 and carried me down to the boat." 
 
 " I don't doubt it," said Mrs. Lovell. 
 " I only wish I could have heard you." 
 
 " You see," continued Miss Sue, 
 " there 's a heap of difference between 
 these volunteer Yankee soldiers and the 
 regulars, especially those officers who 
 belonged to the old army. Pa lived and 
 died under the Stars and Stripes, sim 
 ply because the Stars and Bars had n't 
 been born in his lifetime, and I can 
 just tell you that when I reached Old 
 263
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 Point and happened to strike some of 
 the men who 'd gone back on their 
 States and hung on to Uncle Sam's 
 coat-tails, they were mighty kind and 
 polite to me. There never was such 
 a fool thing as dragging me off and 
 arresting me, anyhow. They could n't 
 prove a thing against me as long as I 
 had attended to the watch, which might 
 have been evidence of my proclivities, 
 and they had to send me back after I 'd 
 put in three weeks in a casemate at the 
 Fort. But there was one Yankee young 
 ster who really made an impression on 
 me. He was a gentleman." 
 
 " What did he do for you ? " asked 
 Mrs. Pegram. 
 
 " It was at City Point this happened, 
 one chilly March day. I was on board 
 the boat, which was to transport a lot 
 of other unfortunates like myself to Fort 
 Monroe, where a wise and beneficent 
 war secretary was sending us. I had 
 264
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 on an old bombazine gown, which I 
 p'intedly adhered to during my cap 
 tivity, and I had tied a white worsted 
 nubia over my Fanchon bonnet to keep 
 my ears warm which that ridiculous 
 bonnet did n't accomplish. Altogether 
 I expect I did look like an antiquated 
 frump, not at all a female to attract a 
 young man by my personal beauty. As 
 I sat there, all huddled up, on the deck, 
 a vender came along the dock with a 
 tray full of just the nicest looking real 
 old Virginia plum-cake. For the mo 
 ment it made me downright homesick, 
 and, without thinking where I was, I 
 said aloud, ' Oh, how I do want a slice 
 of that plum-cake ; I have n't seen any 
 such for years ! ' I was too far away to 
 call the man, but I watched him selling 
 it to a party of men on the dock: pre 
 sently I forgot all about it. Just as the 
 boat was to start, a tall, mighty hand 
 some fellow in Yankee uniform, with 
 265
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 the yellow stripes of the cavalry, ap 
 proached me. You need n't look horri 
 fied, Augusta; I do know a good-looking 
 man when I see one, even if he has the 
 misfortune to wear detestable colors. 
 He marched up, took off his cap, laid 
 a white paper parcel in my lap, and 
 without a word dashed back over the 
 gang-plank. When I opened the par 
 cel, there was a generous supply of the 
 plum-cake I 'd been wishing for." 
 
 " I hope you threw it overboard," 
 said Mrs. Lovell indignantly. " It was 
 in miserable taste, so bold and push 
 ing on his part." 
 
 " That was just it," returned Miss 
 Sue, with a queer sparkle in her eye 
 which Mrs. Pegram appreciated. " If 
 he had n't been bold I should probably 
 have thrown it at him, instead of which 
 I ate it down to the last crumb, and 
 was sorry I could n't thank him for his 
 kindness to an unknown cake-hungry 
 266
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 frump. Have you heard from your 
 brother lately, Augusta?" 
 
 " The last letter was from Fort La 
 fayette," answered Mrs. Pegram. " He 
 is well, though very tired of the con 
 finement. We hope to have him at lib 
 erty ere long. Where is Champe, Sue ? 
 I thought she would be coming up 
 soon." 
 
 " I should be awfully worried about 
 Champe except that Peyton is with her. 
 They were at Danville by last accounts, 
 and are working up that way, I think. 
 You know she left Richmond on the 
 last train that came through. I only 
 wish I did know where she is to-day." 
 
 " Don't worry, Sue. Champe has the 
 faculty of falling on her feet. Good-by, 
 and be sure you come out to Dalkeith 
 on Wednesday." 
 
 It is rather a blessed thing that one's 
 wishes are not always gratified, as, in 
 this particular instance, Miss Sue's de- 
 267
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 sire to know Champe's whereabouts 
 would have brought her dire dismay. 
 For that daring young woman, at the 
 very moment when her beloved relative 
 was sighing for knowledge, happened 
 to be seated on a wood-pile, where, with 
 her head pillowed on a nice clean pine 
 knot, she was fast asleep. 
 
 The wood-pile was located near a 
 station on the Richmond and Danville 
 Railroad, and the fact that a fire was 
 raging not far from her was a mere 
 trifle in Champe's estimation compared 
 with her obtaining a nap. From which 
 it may be inferred that she was, as us 
 ual, taking the chances with a reckless 
 disregard of consequences which was 
 eminently characteristic. 
 
 Leaving Richmond with her brother, 
 she had gone to Danville, where they 
 stayed until after Lee's surrender at 
 Appomattox. And now they were mak 
 ing their way North to the nearest out- 
 268
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 post of the Union army in order to 
 return to Baltimore. Many had been 
 Champe's adventures on the way, and 
 the cause of their present detention 
 was the burning of a railroad bridge at 
 Clover Station, which compelled them 
 to cross the river on a bateau. For 
 tunately, on the northern side Peyton 
 had discovered a hand-car, which had 
 been seized by two darkies for their 
 own use, who, however, being amenable 
 to reason backed by two silver dollars, 
 were induced to accompany them and 
 push the car. Champe's small trunk 
 was mounted on it to be used as a seat, 
 but as the novel cavalcade was about 
 to start on its travels, one of the wheels 
 proved insecure, and Peyton, with the 
 assistance of the negroes, was repairing 
 it. Hence the nap on the friendly wood 
 pile. 
 
 "Wake up, Champe," said Peyton 
 with a hearty laugh, helping her to de- 
 269
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 scend from her perch. " Your prancing 
 steed is ready, and I think we can man 
 age to make the next station, where, 
 perhaps, the trains are running again." 
 
 Champe mounted into the hand-car 
 and sat on the trunk, and they contin 
 ued their journey, keeping up a most 
 amusing interchange of banter over 
 their varied adventures. Five miles 
 were made in this fashion, and then, as 
 they began to feel decidedly hungry, 
 arose the question of foraging for din 
 ner. 
 
 " I cum frum de oder side ob de rib- 
 ber, Marse," said one of the darkies, 
 "but Jim done tole me dis mawnin' dat 
 dere's a white folks house 'roun' hyar 
 whar he cum frum." 
 
 " How far away ? " asked Peyton. 
 
 "Not fur, Marse," spoke up Jim; 
 " roun' de next curve see! " 
 
 Peyton looked in the direction pointed 
 out, and could distinguish the chim- 
 270
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 ney of a house between the trees, so 
 the men trudged cheerfully along, and 
 in due time they came to a standstill 
 nearly opposite the welcome habitation. 
 Leaving Peyton to guard the car, lest 
 the men should take advantage of their 
 absence and abscond with the trunk, 
 Champe climbed down and walked 
 briskly across the fields, from which the 
 fences had disappeared, and nearing the 
 house she beheld a woman, wearing 
 a pink sunbonnet, standing on the 
 porch. Champe waved her handkerchief, 
 and received an answering friendly sig 
 nal. Peyton, watching them from his 
 post of observation on the car, saw the 
 two rush into each other's arms as 
 Champe's face was buried in the pink 
 sunbonnet. 
 
 "Champe Randolph! Well, I never 
 was so glad to see anybody in the whole 
 course of my life," gasped its owner. 
 
 " Murray Leigh, where did you 
 271
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 come from ? " was the answering query. 
 " And, what 's more to the purpose, 
 what are you doing here ? " 
 
 " Waiting for a chance to get escort 
 to Baltimore. I knew some of our peo 
 ple would be sure to take this road 
 north, and I came here straight from 
 Richmond because the owners of this 
 place are some of our kinsfolk. Is that 
 your brother out there in that hand-car? 
 Well, of all the droll conveyances 1 
 But I don't care ; I 'm going with you 
 if I have to walk behind and help push 
 it" 
 
 " We won't require you to do that," 
 laughed Champe. " At the present mo 
 ment I 'm out for forage. Can you help 
 us?" 
 
 " We are just about to take our noon 
 day meal of corn pone and buttermilk," 
 said Murray with mock ceremony, 
 "and cordially invite Mr. and Miss 
 Randolph to come and assist us to make 
 272
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 way with it. Oh, Champe, the very last 
 chicken we had was carried off by a 
 perfectly horrid weasel last night, and 
 I nearly wept when I found its tail- 
 feathers reposing down under that 
 cherry-tree," and she pointed with 
 tragic finger to the scene of the theft. 
 
 " Be thankful it was n't a perfectly 
 horrid Yankee who confiscated it; the 
 bare idea of delicious buttermilk makes 
 me thirsty. Have you anybody whom 
 I can send to watch that car while Pey 
 ton joins us ? " 
 
 "Not a soul; our last boy, Jim, 
 marched off yesterday. He has period 
 ical disappearances, however, and may 
 turn up again." 
 
 " I presume that 's the very darky up 
 on the track with our car. We picked 
 him up at the river." 
 
 " Then I want him," said Murray, 
 preparing to rush off and capture the 
 runaway. " Have him bring up your 
 273
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 trunk, and we can manage a room for 
 you. Peyton can have the lounge in 
 the parlor, and you can stop here over 
 night, and we '11 plan some way to go 
 off together to-morrow." 
 
 It was a merry party that sat down 
 to eat corn pone and drink butter 
 milk, notwithstanding their precarious 
 situation and lack of many necessities. 
 Murray's cousins were eager to have 
 news of any sort, and they made their 
 new acquaintances heartily welcome. 
 On inquiry, Peyton found that a neigh 
 bor of the Leighs might be able to 
 provide him with a more comfortable 
 conveyance than the hand-car, and that 
 the nearest Union outpost was Meherrin 
 Station, the camp of the Sixth Corps. 
 
 After a good night's rest and break 
 fast Champe came flying down next 
 morning to find a most unique estab 
 lishment in front of the door. It con 
 sisted of a Tennessee wagon to which 
 274
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 were harnessed a horse and a mule 
 abreast, and a second horse leading 
 tandem. Mr. Williams, the friendly 
 neighbor, had provided as escort his 
 overseer and a negro driver, who rode 
 the horse. Inside the wagon stood two 
 rocking-chairs, which Champe declared 
 were a stroke of genius, and an im 
 provement on the hand-car. Peyton 
 and the overseer perched themselves 
 on the trunk, Champe and Murray took 
 possession of the chairs; and with many 
 grateful thanks the little party pursued 
 their journey. 
 
 Late that afternoon, Jack Phillipse, 
 whose regiment belonged to the famous 
 Sixth Corps, rode over to headquarters 
 with a message from his colonel to 
 General Meade. On his way back, as 
 he was passing the quarters of the Sixth 
 Vermont Regiment, he saw a queer- 
 looking vehicle, in front of which rode 
 an old darky wearing a much-patched 
 275
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 red coat, and carrying a white handker 
 chief on a long stick. The sentry, who 
 was laughing heartily, brought his gun 
 to salute, and endeavored to recover 
 his gravity as the officer drew up along 
 side. Jack looked at the conglomerate 
 quadrupeds, and the ancient retainer 
 who bestrode one of them, but with 
 instinctive courtesy to the inmates of 
 the wagon, whom he took to be South 
 ern refugees, he said gravely, 
 
 " Can I be of service ? " 
 
 As his eyes caught sight of the rock 
 ing-chairs he bit his lip to conceal a 
 smile; but the next instant the waiting 
 sentry saw his officer snatch off his 
 gauntlet, and, cap in hand, bend from 
 his saddle to take a small hand ex 
 tended to him. 
 
 " Good-evening, Captain Phillipse," 
 said Champe politely. 
 
 " By Jove ! " quoth Peyton Randolph 
 to himself, as he sprang from the wagon. 
 276
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 " That 's devilish quick of Champe. 
 She must have taken a good look at 
 him that night at Conrad's Ferry. 
 Thank heaven, he won't recognize her." 
 
 Jack, whose bronzed face had turned 
 scarlet with surprise and delight, re 
 covered himself as he met a warning 
 glance from the hazel eyes, but he was 
 still too bewildered to do more than 
 repeat his offer of service as he shook 
 hands with Peyton, who asked to be 
 taken to General Meade's headquarters, 
 as they wished to surrender in due form. 
 
 " Certainly, I will go with you, Mr. 
 Randolph; but if the ladies will drive 
 to the building used as our hospital, 
 they can be better accommodated there 
 than in the tents which we usually fur 
 nish. The mess of my regiment is there 
 also, and I hope you will all join us 
 at supper." 
 
 Peyton thanked him, and Jack rode 
 with the little party to the hospital, 
 277
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 where he left them with the surgeon 
 in charge, and then sought General 
 Meade. 
 
 Champe and Murray found them 
 selves very comfortably placed in a big 
 room, rather lacking in furniture, but 
 provided with two beds, and scrupu 
 lously clean. But the movement around 
 the hospital, the changing of the guard, 
 the soft sound of distant bugles in the 
 little world of camp life, made Champe 
 feel sad and lonely, and when Peyton, 
 who evidently did not approve, came to 
 consult her as to their going to supper 
 in the mess-room, she laughed at his 
 scruples and went cheerfully down 
 stairs, glad to be diverted from the 
 softened mood which, for some reason, 
 she feared. 
 
 Fortunately for Peyton's peace of 
 
 mind, Murray devoted herself to him, 
 
 and it was left to Champe to meet the 
 
 officers, including the colonel, which 
 
 278
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 she did with an easy grace and apparent 
 oblivion of their hated Yankee uniforms, 
 which made Jack admire her more than 
 ever, for he knew how few Southern 
 women would have made such a sacri 
 fice even to good manners. And some 
 how a faint ray of hope was thereby 
 vouchsafed him, and he registered an 
 inward vow that he would dare fate on 
 the first opportunity. That opportunity 
 came sooner than he had hoped for. 
 
 After supper the colonel proposed 
 that for the amusement of their guests 
 a double quartette of the enlisted men 
 of his regiment should be sent for, and 
 for nearly an hour they listened to the 
 songs the war had called forth. Finally 
 the colonel glanced at his watch, and 
 rose. Some good angel or perhaps 
 the little god, Dan Cupid may have 
 whispered in his ear, for, to Jack's sur 
 prise and infinite gratitude, he said, 
 addressing Peyton, 
 279
 
 A yavelin of Fate 
 
 " If you will walk over to my tent 
 with me, Mr. Randolph, the papers 
 which you require will be ready for 
 signature." 
 
 " Let me find my hat, colonel, and 
 I '11 join you at the door," said Peyton, 
 vanishing, and the courtly old officer 
 turned to Champe, - 
 
 " There is one pretty sight you should 
 be made acquainted with that we can 
 offer you. Phillipse, when it is time for 
 1 taps ' take Miss Randolph to the ve 
 randa on the south side, and let her see 
 the whole camp answer the call. Good 
 night." 
 
 Champe's color rose. Two officers 
 with whom she had been talking stood 
 either side of her, and had heard the 
 colonel's innocent little trap sprung. If 
 she refused to go, they would consider 
 it a snub for Jack, and she had n't a 
 shadow of an excuse ready, not even 
 a cold. Murray was talking to one of 
 280
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 the singers, and had not heard. Jack's 
 pleading eyes met hers for an instant. 
 Better have it over at once, she 
 always did hate Yankees ! 
 
 " If you come now," said Jack ea 
 gerly, past caring whether he gave him 
 self away to his brother officers, " we 
 shall be just in time." 
 
 Out on the veranda the scene was a 
 novel one. Below, and stretching away 
 in the distance, lay hundreds of white 
 tents with twinkling lights. There was 
 the hum and stir of a multitude in the 
 air, softened and subdued by distance; 
 above, the stars, and around them the 
 soft atmosphere of a Southern spring. 
 Champe felt the sadness and the longing 
 again steal upon her with overwhelming 
 power, and as Jack spoke her name she 
 startled him and herself by bursting into 
 tears. 
 
 " Champe, Champe," he caught both 
 her hands, "what is it?" 
 281
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 " It 's nothing," sobbed Champe 
 desperately. " You made me come, and 
 I '11 never forgive you, never! " 
 
 "Never is a long time," said Jack 
 with cheerful assurance, gathering her 
 up in his arms, " and I am going to 
 spend part of it in telling you that I love 
 you with all my heart." 
 
 " I Ve known that for some time," 
 answered a disdainful voice somewhere 
 in the region of his coat-sleeve, " but 
 what I don't know is whether I hate 
 you quite enough for a Yankee." 
 
 " I am perfectly willing to be hated," 
 retorted triumphant Jack, kissing the 
 pretty little ear which alone was visible. 
 "Anything more you wish to be assured 
 of before you deign to look at me ? " 
 
 " Yes," in a small voice that quavered 
 suspiciously; "promise that you '11 never 
 tell Peyton that I locked you up in the 
 secret chamber at the plantation." 
 
 "Never!" 
 
 282
 
 The Rankest Rebel 
 
 "And Jack," he smiled as he re 
 cognized the mischievous inflexion, 
 "you must always let me have the 
 Stars and Bars flying in my room." 
 
 " You may have a whole stand of 
 them in the front hall," promised Jack 
 recklessly, " but they '11 have to float 
 side by side with the Stars and Stripes, 
 my darling." 
 
 Out on the night, far in the distance 
 sounded the bugles. "Put out the 
 lights." Champe raised her head and 
 kissed him on the lips. 
 
 "Jack," with a little sigh of deep con 
 tent as she laid her head on his shoul 
 der, "I don't know what you think about 
 this, and you probably won't believe 
 me, I call it an ' unconditional sur 
 render.' "
 
 Chapter XVI 
 
 The Javelin Strikes 
 
 THE anteroom leading to the office of 
 the Secretary of War was full to over 
 flowing. Since the surrender of Lee and 
 the collapse of the Confederacy there 
 had been an increase in the crowds that 
 came to the War Department, and the 
 patience of the " Iron Secretary " was 
 taxed to the utmost. But on this spring 
 morning the attention of many of the 
 visitors was drawn to one of their num 
 ber, a very beautiful and regal-looking 
 woman dressed in deep mourning, and 
 accompanied by an old French servant 
 who watched her with the deepest so 
 licitude. To the surprise of the waiting 
 crowd, the strange lady, after a brief 
 fifteen minutes, was approached by a 
 bowing official, and, greatly to the envy 
 284
 
 The Ravelin Strikes 
 
 of those who had spent days of fruitless 
 effort to obtain an interview, she was at 
 once passed through the sacred portal, 
 leaving her attendant in the anteroom. 
 
 As Evelyn Vansittart entered the Sec 
 retary rose and came forward to meet 
 her with great cordiality. 
 
 " My dear madam," he said, conduct 
 ing her to a seat, "why did you not send 
 me word you were in town? I would 
 have come to your hotel, and need not 
 have given you the annoyance of wait 
 ing in the crowd who daily torment 
 me." 
 
 " I came," answered Evelyn, " be 
 cause I have a personal favor to ask, 
 and it seemed to me more appropriate 
 that I should seek you than you me." 
 
 "There is no favor, Mrs. Vansittart, 
 that you could ask which would be in 
 any way a fit return for the very great 
 service you have rendered the govern 
 ment. It was only made known to me 
 285
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 recently, that to your clever and well- 
 planned organization I owe much val 
 uable information obtained from rebel 
 sources, and you must permit me to 
 express my genuine admiration for your 
 work, and to extend my individual 
 thanks for your patriotism and gener 
 osity." 
 
 Evelyn surveyed him a moment in 
 silence. 
 
 " Do not credit me with too much 
 patriotism," she replied; "it was more 
 the excitement of the game. Where 
 the pawns on the boards are human 
 lives, Mr. Secretary, the hazard of the 
 moves is its fascination." 
 
 He fixed a penetrating glance upon 
 her. This was a woman after his own 
 heart. 
 
 " And the favor, dear madam, which 
 you came to ask ? " 
 
 Evelyn hesitated for a second, and 
 the man, watching her behind those 
 286
 
 The Javelin Strikes 
 
 eye-glasses which served admirably to 
 conceal his thoughts, smiled, and said, 
 
 " It is granted." 
 
 She turned pale, as if under great 
 stress of emotion. 
 
 " I will not tax your time and patience. 
 I wish to take a short trip into the moun 
 tains of Virginia, and as I am told it is 
 a most unsafe thing to do in the present 
 unsettled state of the country, I came 
 to request that you give me an escort, 
 a military one, if necessary. Is it too 
 much to ask ? " 
 
 The Secretary leaned back in his 
 chair, but though evidently surprised 
 he said, 
 
 "No; it can be arranged. When do 
 you wish to go?" 
 
 "As soon as possible. On the result 
 of my mission depends the life and 
 health of one very dear to me. I have 
 suffered much, I can endure no 
 
 287
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 " You have my deepest sympathy," 
 he began, then waited, as he saw the 
 agony that filled her beautiful eyes. 
 
 She put out her hand as if to ward 
 off a blow. 
 
 "I thank you; but I cannot, even 
 yet, discuss it. There are griefs we 
 must bear alone. Of such is mine." 
 
 She paused to regain the composure 
 she had momentarily lost. Then she 
 handed him a slip of paper. 
 
 "I have written the locality, so far as 
 I know it, and this is the memorandum. 
 May I ask how soon my escort can be 
 ready ? " 
 
 " In two days," replied the Secretary, 
 glancing at the paper. " Are you stay 
 ing at Willard's?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 " I will call on you there to-morrow, 
 and if there be anything further that lies 
 in my power to arrange for you, com 
 mand me." 
 
 288
 
 The Javelin Strikes 
 
 He took Evelyn's hand in farewell, 
 and she knew that once again a man 
 and a great one had yielded to her 
 charm and fascination. But as she left 
 the room the astute Secretary said to 
 himself, 
 
 "That woman has a secret which no 
 one will ever share." 
 
 When Evelyn returned to her hotel 
 she went directly to her room, and, sit 
 ting at her desk, wrote a letter which 
 she addressed to Fort Lafayette. 
 
 "Gaspard," she wrote, "circum 
 stances and you have conquered me. 
 Out of the depths where my soul has 
 been plunged, I stretch out my hands to 
 you. I am going into the mountains to 
 find the child our child, Gaspard. If 
 she be alive I will bring her to you; then 
 will you take me to your arms again ? 
 My desolate soul cries out to you. 
 Come to me, then, my love. Why should 
 any lesser tie separate you and me ? " 
 289
 
 A jfaveiin of Fate 
 
 She sealed the envelope, and then a 
 thought crossed her mind; she smiled 
 with a touch of her old imperious tri 
 umph, saying half aloud, 
 
 " The Secretary shall forward it for 
 me. Even the censor will not meddle 
 with an envelope that bears his frank." 
 
 With the magic of orders signed by 
 the all-powerful War Secretary, and 
 her own unlimited money, Evelyn did 
 not find her journey to the mountains 
 as difficult as she had expected. She 
 left Tante Thdrese in Washington to 
 await her return, and on the third day 
 from starting reached the little village 
 she remembered so well. As she came 
 near the scene of her former terrible 
 experience she found herself unwillingly 
 going over each detail of it. Once more 
 she saw Aunt Polly's kindly face bend 
 ing over the old cradle; again she heard 
 her voice saying, - 
 
 " In the long years to come dose 
 290
 
 The avelin Strikes 
 
 baby fingers will draw, and draw, and 
 pull your heartstrings." 
 
 Ay, the slave - woman's prophecy 
 was coming to pass. Could it be pos 
 sible that the child she had forsaken 
 and scorned would unite the heart 
 strings that had snapped asunder when 
 Cecile lay dead in her youth and beauty 
 before her. 
 
 It was a sunny May morning when 
 Evelyn started to go up the mountain. 
 She left her escort in the village with 
 the exception of the corporal, whom she 
 took with her in the wagon she had 
 procured. No one seemed to know 
 anything about Aunt Polly. She made 
 many inquiries among the cabins at the 
 base of the mountain, but the denizens 
 thereof only shook their heads; they 
 remembered no such person. There 
 were some people who lived way up 
 on Silver Mountain, one of the men 
 said, but no one answering to her de- 
 291
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 scription of Aunt Polly and Uncle Cy. 
 Thdrese's brother was dead, and his 
 family had moved away; that clue was 
 lost. Evelyn's heart began to fail her. 
 Was it possible that she really cared to 
 find the child? 
 
 Evelyn's own recollection of the sit 
 uation of Aunt Polly's cabin was vague. 
 Beyond that wild flight down the moun 
 tain side at night she had nothing to 
 guide her memory. So, when they 
 came to a cabin about halfway up, Ev 
 elyn bade the driver stop, and, climb 
 ing out of the wagon, went to its door. 
 A rather tidy looking woman opened 
 it; she was evidently a mountaineer, 
 but she proved more intelligent than 
 the others. Yes, surely she did remem 
 ber Uncle Cy and his wife, for her sis 
 ter, Sabria, had nursed her when she 
 died, two years ago. And Uncle Cy, 
 why, he got killed by a falling tree 
 afore that. 
 
 292
 
 The Javelin Strikes 
 
 Evelyn's heart sank. Where, then, 
 was the child ? She dared not ask. 
 
 " Can you tell me where the old cabin 
 is? " she said, after a moment's thought. 
 " I think I would like to see it." 
 
 "Why, sho'ly, lady; it's jus' round 
 the bend of the road thar. My sister, 
 as I wuz sayin', she that tuk care o' 
 Aunt Polly, she 's livin' in that cabin 
 now. She 's a lone widder woman, 
 Sabria, an' Aunt Polly's darter lives 
 thar with her jus' them two critters." 
 
 "Aunt Polly's daughter !" exclaimed 
 Evelyn, her heart beginning to throb. 
 " She never had any children that I 
 knew of." 
 
 " Laws, yes ; that 's what we 'uns 
 call her. But Aunt Polly wa'n't her 
 real mother. She allus said Mary was 
 adopted." . 
 
 Evelyn put out her hand and stead 
 ied herself against the door-post. Over 
 her heart rushed a warm pulsation. It 
 293
 
 A "Javelin of Fate 
 
 had lain frozen in her breast so long 
 that the new sensation frightened her. 
 But her self-control returned, and after 
 thanking the woman she walked back 
 to the wagon. 
 
 " I find that the cabin I am looking 
 for is just around the bend of the road," 
 she said to the corporal. " I will walk 
 there. Wait here till I return." 
 
 The cabin was not more than a quar 
 ter of a mile distant, and Evelyn saw 
 it as soon as she reached the turn 
 spoken of. The trees had grown, and 
 the cabin looked larger. Yes, there had 
 been another room added; and as she 
 drew nearer she saw that there were 
 some flowers growing in the little gar 
 den. She walked up the path and 
 knocked gently at the door. There 
 was no answer, and after waiting a lit 
 tle time she rapped once more. Then 
 she noticed that the door was ajar, and 
 she stepped quietly inside the cabin. 
 294
 
 The Javelin Strikes 
 
 The room was empty. How familiar 
 it looked, even after all these years. 
 There stood the old lounge against the 
 wall, and beyond it the rocking-chair 
 where Aunt Polly used to sit with the 
 baby on her lap. She wondered if the 
 little room she slept in had the old 
 cradle in it still, and as the thought 
 crossed her mind, she glanced at the 
 door which led into it. 
 
 Some one was inside, for a low croon 
 ing noise came through the partly open 
 door. Evelyn walked across the cabin, 
 and, pushing the door open, paused on 
 its threshold. On the floor sat a girlish 
 figure, rocking herself to and fro, play 
 ing with a string of threaded scarlet 
 berries. In her hands, long and shapely, 
 her small head, her curved throat, her 
 masses of dark hair, she saw repeated 
 her very self. Evelyn uttered a low cry, 
 and as the girl raised her head, she 
 stepped eagerly forward. There, be- 
 2 95
 
 A Javelin of Fate 
 
 neath her gaze was the same oval face, 
 the clear olive skin; but the great soft 
 eyes which met hers, what were 
 they? 
 
 In them no light of reason had ever 
 dawned, no soul was ever born; and 
 the low crooning sound that issued from 
 the soft red lips was only meaningless 
 babble. 
 
 " Ef yo ? desert yo' own little baby the 
 Lawd will sutainly punish yo' where it 
 hurts most." 
 
 Was that the handwriting on the 
 wall? 
 
 With unspeakable horror, Evelyn 
 Vansittart stood for a moment trans 
 fixed. Where the tragedy of her life 
 had begun, it ended.
 
 (fflbe Ritorrsibr 
 
 Electrotyfxd and printed J>y H. O. Houghton & Co. 
 Cambridge, Mast., U.S.A.
 
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