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SOSTOtK * L. C. "PAGE & 
 COMPANY * MCDCCCCX 
 

 '• 'fiirst Impression, September, 1910 
 
 r (fcy.CA. f^ru( 
 
 E le ctr oty pe d and Printed by 
 THE COLONIAL PRESS 
 C H. Si-monds & Co., Boston, U.S A. 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 The two young people took a mighty in- 
 terest in one another (See page 28) 
 
 Frontispiece 
 
 They set forth, presently, Harrison 
 
 RIDING A HORSE BESIDE LADY AlICIa's 
 SEDAN - CHAIR " 21 
 
 " He took up a pinch with clumsy and not 
 over - clean fingers " .... 
 
 " The cowardly villain ran him through 
 
 THE BODY " 
 
 " SO THEY WERE MARRIED " 
 
 57 
 
 74 
 
 M Clapped his hands to his bloody face, 
 
 HOWLING WITH PAIN AND FRIGHT " 
 
 94 
 
 Milt 785 
 
CHA C PTE% 
 OKE 
 
 %^M 
 
 
 HEY were tremendous 
 times. Governments 
 were going to pieces, 
 and kings and queens 
 were losing their 
 crowns, and sometimes their heads 
 also; the many-headed beast was giv- 
 ing his keepers an immense amount of 
 trouble. The air quivered with revo- 
 lution, and politics was a warfare of 
 the gods; the greatest figures in the 
 world's history were on the stage, and 
 acting mighty parts. England was on 
 the verge of anarchy, and highwaymen 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 plied their trade as actively on the 
 •; streets qf: lLondon as on lonely country 
 rpacls ; the, hardest-working man in the 
 : United., Kingdom was the hangman, 
 and his labors were in vain so far as 
 increasing the safety of life or prop- 
 erty was the object. The tide of re- 
 ligious sentiment had reached its low- 
 est ebb, and it was said that zeal for 
 godliness would look as oddly upon 
 a man as the clothing of his great- 
 grandfather. Sincere men, recoiling 
 from the emptiness of ecclesiastical 
 officialism, became sceptics and stoics; 
 they organized hell-fire clubs and 
 made it their fashion to repress every 
 sign of human interest or feeling, pre- 
 tending to believe in nothing but them- 
 selves, and to consider themselves as 
 not worth believing in. Duels were of 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 G 
 
 daily occurrence; every man carried 
 his life in his hand. Yes, they were 
 certainly tremendous times; and it 
 was during the maddest stage of this 
 terrific period that Harrison came 
 from Virginia to England to see his 
 son, who had wintered in the mother 
 country; and so it came about that for 
 the first time in thirty years he visited 
 Wycherly Castle, his birthplace and 
 the ancestral home of his family. 
 
 He left his coach to wait at the gate 
 and walked in through the grounds 
 alone. He had given his elder 
 brother, Lord Wycherly, no intima- 
 tion of his coming, which was a pro- 
 ceeding quite in keeping with his usual 
 ways. 
 
 Mr. Gerald Harrison, tobacco 
 planter and member of the Congress 
 
 3 
 
of a certain very small but very pug- 
 nacious and self-respecting republic, 
 was an uncommonly handsome man of 
 fifty-two; straight as an arrow, of 
 powerful build, and with the supple- 
 ness and activity of a youth. He was 
 faultlessly dressed in the fashion of the 
 time, from the silver buckles on his 
 shoes to the crown of his three-cor- 
 nered hat. Every garment that he 
 wore was a triumph of the tailor's art; 
 his hair was freshly powdered, his 
 cheek was smooth and rosy, and his eye 
 was very bright; his smile, although a 
 trifle cynical and scornful, was good to 
 see withal. He scanned the castle curi- 
 ously as he drew near to its weather- 
 beaten front, and laughed aloud. 
 
 " A little dirtier and more ruinous 
 without," said he, " and I doubt not, a 
 
 4 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 little draughtier and chillier within. 
 Gad, what a place to pass away one's 
 life in; I would rather live in jail! 
 Thank the kind fates for making me 
 the younger son! " 
 
 He drew a handsome box from his 
 pocket and took snuff, using great care 
 lest any should fall upon his spotless 
 waistcoat, or on the ruffled bosom of 
 his shirt; and then he walked up the 
 steps and plied the great iron knocker 
 lustily. 
 
 " Tell Lord Wycherly," said he to 
 the liveried footman who opened the 
 door, " that his brother waits." 
 
 The man gasped with astonishment, 
 then showed him into a room and went 
 away; presently he came back and 
 bade him follow. In a great upper 
 chamber he found Lord Wycherly, 
 
t 
 
 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 who arose and came across the room to 
 greet him; and though they were the 
 only children of their father, and had 
 not looked into each other's faces for 
 thirty years, they shook hands as calmly 
 as if they had parted but the day be- 
 fore. After the fashion of the cynical 
 cult to which they both belonged, it 
 was their pride to show neither feeling 
 or affection ; neither of the pair would, 
 under any consideration, have betrayed 
 emotion in greeting the other, espe- 
 cially in the presence of the footman, 
 who was just leaving the room. Lord 
 Wycherly was two years the elder, but, 
 though very like his younger brother, 
 he showed his age far more; his face 
 was wrinkled and careworn. 
 
 " Time has used you well, Gerald," 
 he said, admiringly, after they had 
 
talked awhile. " Egad, you look but 
 little older than your son. A fine boy 
 that; you should be proud of him." 
 
 " I should be proud to remember his 
 mother, rather," said Harrison, " for 
 his bringing-up was more her work 
 than mine. And I believe he is a pas- 
 sable young fellow." 
 
 " He is like you, and yet not like 
 you," said Lord Wycherly. " He has 
 little of the dare-devil disposition you 
 showed at his age; and which, if half 
 we hear is to be credited, you have not 
 entirely outgrown. Some strange 
 stories have come to London of the 
 doings of a Virginia planter whom 
 they call Hell-fire Harrison." He 
 shot a single keen glance at his 
 brother's smiling face. 
 
 " The name comes from a time some 
 
 7 
 
 £ 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 years back," said Harrison calmly, 
 " when a few of us heard that Hell- 
 fire clubs were the fashion over here, 
 and we must needs organize one. I 
 was active in it, and the more strait- 
 laced of our godly neighbors gave the 
 name to me; and it has clung." 
 
 " I can readily believe that it has," 
 said Wycherly grimly, " and that it has 
 not, in all ways, been amiss. Yours has 
 been the easiest lot, after all, Gerald; 
 you have had the best of me. New 
 soil, new people, new methods, and 
 liberty to take your own way; while I 
 have had to uphold the family name 
 on these exhausted acres, so hampered 
 by silly traditions that I dare not leave 
 the old rut, or change the antiquated 
 system in any part. Richard tells me 
 that your plantation brings you more 
 
 8 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 I 
 
 i 
 
 than all my rent-rolls bring to me, and 
 you can do what I have never done; 
 live as you please! Well, we could not 
 both have the luck to be younger sons, 
 but if 'twas to be done over, I should 
 try to wait and let you make your ad- 
 vent first. I see you still wear the old 
 sword. Let me look at it again? " 
 
 Harrison drew his sword, and gave 
 it to his brother, without speaking; 
 and the other inspected it with a curi- 
 ous smile, making the flexible blade 
 whistle through the air with a dex- 
 trous movement of his wrist. The 
 weapon was a rapier, of unusual, and 
 evidently of Oriental design, some- 
 what heavier than the dress swords 
 generally worn by gentlemen in those 
 days, double-edged for a little distance 
 back from the point, and sharp as a 
 
f 
 
 razor; a tool made for service, not for 
 show. 
 
 " Our father loved it," said Wych- 
 erly quietly, " because of the family 
 traditions attached to it. I hardly know 
 whether he was most pleased or sorry 
 when you asked for it on going away. 
 But it was yours by right; your equal 
 in handling it never lived. Has your 
 hand lost any of its juggler's cunning 
 with the sword? " 
 
 Harrison took the weapon without 
 answering, and stepped toward the 
 great window, formed of many small 
 panes of glass. On one of these, at 
 about the level of his face, a blue-bottle 
 fly was slowly crawling; he indicated 
 it to his brother by a gesture. Then he 
 held the sword at half arm's length be- 
 fore him, with the blade pointing 
 
 10 
 

 1 
 
 straight upward, and with a slight but 
 powerful movement of the wrist, 
 caused it to bend forward with a hiss- 
 ing sweep. The keen point flicked the 
 fly from the pane without a sound to 
 show that the glass had been touched. 
 Harrison sheathed his sword and sat 
 down, and the brothers took snufl, 
 smiling at each other; for an instant 
 the bars of their cynical pretence were 
 down, and they looked into each 
 other's hearts; but only for an instant. 
 
 " I remember well," said the elder, 
 " the night you cut the French Count's 
 nose in half with that same stroke." 
 
 They talked on for some time, 
 exchanging reminiscences of their 
 younger days, and then Harrison 
 said: 
 
 " I saw your coach made ready as I 
 
came up the drive ; were you about to 
 go away? " 
 
 " I was for London ; the house sits 
 to-night. But now that you are 
 here — " 
 
 " You will go right on, Richard. 
 My own coach waits at the gate. I 
 am going on to Farnham to see Alicia." 
 
 "Hah," said Lord Wycherly. 
 " Yes. Alicia will be glad to see you, 
 Gerald. She lives alone with her serv- 
 ants at Farnham Court; and you will 
 find that she shows her years even 
 more than I show mine. After her 
 husband died she fixed her whole heart 
 on her son ; and he grew up a fine fel- 
 low, very like your boy. But he was 
 killed, unfortunately, in his first duel. 
 Yes, go and see her; she always liked 
 you. I remember that we thought at 
 
one time you were going to make a 
 match of it." 
 
 She never thought so," said Har- 
 rison smiling, " nor did I. We were 
 only the best of friends. Yes, I think 
 she would be pleased to see me, and I 
 need not keep you from your seat 
 among the lords; I know there are 
 great matters pending. I will go on to 
 Farnham, and we will meet later." 
 
 And presently the brothers parted at 
 the door, with a farewell pinch of 
 snuff, a few courteous phrases, and an 
 air of calm indifference. 
 
 f 
 
WAS never so 
 pleased," said Lady 
 Alicia, " to see any 
 person in all my 
 life, as I am this 
 day to see you." 
 
 She sat in the pleasant drawing- 
 room at Farnham Court, and Har- 
 rison, bright-eyed and smiling, sat 
 across from her. 
 
 " I take that to mean," said he, " that 
 I am better worth seeing — " 
 
 "Don't flatter yourself! It is be- 
 cause I have need of you; you come in 
 u 
 
fL~£ 
 
 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 
 the very nick of time. But of that we 
 will speak later. And yes, my friend, 
 I am glad to see you for your own 
 sake ; to see how fresh and young you 
 look, although you make me sense my 
 wrinkles and sunken cheeks more 
 keenly. Do not interrupt me; you 
 know 'tis so. Women grow old faster 
 than men in these times, for we must sit 
 at home with our sorrows and let them 
 eat out our hearts, while you forget 
 yours in battle and diplomacy. Well, 
 never mind. I was delighted with 
 your son, Gerald, when I met 
 him during the one week I spent in 
 London last winter; a right noble 
 youth." 
 
 " As of course he must be, with my 
 example — " 
 
 " Chut, chut! If he does well, it is 
 15 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 i( 
 
 in spite of your example, and not be- 
 cause of it. And he is a splendid young 
 fellow ; even in these days of loose liv- 
 ing, he has no bad habits." 
 
 " One," said Harrison. " He will 
 go to church." 
 
 " Why, so I heard," said she, " and 
 I rejoiced that you had not been able 
 to make him into a case-hardened, 
 sneering cynic, like Wycherly and the 
 rest of you. His mother must have 
 been a rare woman, Gerald." 
 
 " She was, Alicia," he answered. 
 The change in his tone was very, very 
 slight, but she noticed it and under- 
 stood; and she changed the subject in- 
 stantly. 
 
 " Now, as to the matter I mentioned 
 awhile ago," said she. " Gerald, do 
 you remember Andrew Hogg? " 
 
 16 
 
" Ay; very well indeed." 
 
 " And do you, by any chance, re- 
 member his son? " 
 
 " A dark-faced little boy, when I 
 left England?" 
 
 "Yes! Dark-faced and sullen, like 
 his father, and with a worse temper, 
 even then." 
 
 "I remember; I cuffed him, once, 
 for torturing a helpless kitten. And 
 has he grown up to fulfill the brilliant 
 promise of his childhood?" 
 
 " He is a very devil! Drunken, 
 brutal, licentious, fearing neither God 
 nor man. He lives at Hackthorn Hall 
 with three ruffians he brought with 
 him from the wars, who are well 
 dubbed the bloody three; renegade 
 fighting men. He keeps no other 
 servants than these three; they are all 
 17 
 
 ^' 
 
HELL- FIRE HARRISON 
 
 good swordsmen, and more than one 
 life has been lost hereabout by incur- 
 ring their ill-will. Andrew is nearing 
 forty now; and as he grows older he 
 grows worse in every way. The coun- 
 try people call him ' The Black Hogg.' 
 He and his men are often away for 
 long periods ; 'tis thought that they go 
 far from home and play the highway- 
 man. When they are here, they spend 
 their days in sleeping, and their nights 
 in roistering at the hall, or at the Blue 
 Goose Inn, in Farnham village. The 
 whole county is afraid of Andrew 
 Hogg." 
 
 " And what, Alicia," said Harrison, 
 as she paused, " have I to do with this 
 merry gentleman? " 
 
 " Do you remember Janet Ainslie? " 
 " Oh, right well! Gad, but she had 
 
 18 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 spirit! She married Billy Chester, so 
 they wrote me." 
 
 " Sir William Chester; and he died 
 when their child, little Mary, was ten 
 years old. Then, after three more 
 years, Janet, being homeless and de- 
 pendent, and very proud, married a 
 squire of this neighborhood, Sladden 
 by name; and shortly afterward she 
 also died, leaving him to rear the child. 
 Sladden was a somewhat dull and stub- 
 born man, and he has grown duller and 
 more stubborn with the passing of the 
 years, but under his care Mary has 
 grown to be the fairest girl in all Eng- 
 land, and ' The Black Hogg ' has set 
 his mind on marrying her." 
 
 "Well?" 
 
 "Well? It is not well. Sladden 
 
 favors Andrew Hogg with all his 
 
 19 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 stupid strength, and they have sworn, 
 together, that the marriage shall take 
 place before the end of June, and 'tis 
 near the middle of May." 
 
 " But, Alicia, surely there is little 
 harm in a maid's being married against 
 her will? Why, she is not supposed 
 to have a will afterward, in any 
 case! " 
 
 " Not the least harm in the world," 
 said Lady Alicia, calmly. 
 
 " Even if she does not love him," 
 Harrison went on, " she will undoubt- 
 edly come to do so, if he flogs her fre- 
 quently enough? " 
 
 " And he will certainly do that," 
 agreed the lady. 
 
 Harrison took snufT, regarding her 
 with his bright eyes, and his most 
 cynical smile. 
 

 E 
 
 ■^— n^ 
 
 
L 
 
 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 " Oh, hang it, Alicia," said he, 
 " what do you wish me to do? " 
 
 " Why, sir," said she, knowing her 
 man perfectly, " but you are conceited! 
 I have not asked that you shall do any- 
 thing. What can you, a single man, 
 do against Hogg and his bloody three? 
 I have merely given you a bit of neigh- 
 borhood gossip, so that you might un- 
 derstand the situation and guard your 
 tongue; for I am, going to call on 
 Mary this afternoon, and you shall 
 ride along to protect me on the high- 
 way. It was for that I said I needed 
 you. The roads are not safe for a 
 woman with no protection but a couple 
 of footmen. While you are here, I 
 may go a-visiting." 
 
 " Humph," said Harrison. 
 
 So they set forth presently, Harrison 
 
 21 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 riding a horse beside Lady Alicia's 
 sedan-chair, and they passed the gates 
 of Hackthorn Hall before they came 
 to Sladden's farm, which was a little 
 further on. When the Virginian was 
 introduced to Mary Chester he drew 
 one quick breath of astonishment, and 
 owned to himself that Lady Alicia had 
 told the truth when she called her the 
 fairest girl in all England. He talked 
 with her for an hour, and found that 
 she had a pleasant wit, and that she 
 lacked not for a double portion of her 
 mother's spirit. 
 
 " I have come to England," he told 
 her as he was leaving, " seeking a wife. 
 Are you ready to receive proposals?" 
 
 " Oh, surely, sir," said she. " What 
 maid is not? " 
 
 " I do not seek for myself," he went 
 
 22 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 
 
 on, " but for my son ; and I have taken 
 a mighty fancy that I should like you 
 for a daughter-in-law." 
 
 " Thank you, sir! But is your son to 
 have no voice in the matter? " 
 
 " He is a very bashful youth. But 
 he is coming down from London in a 
 day or so, and he shall fall in love with 
 you." 
 
 "Ah! And can you make him do 
 that, sir? " 
 
 " If he is so stupid as not to do it, I 
 will flog him till he does." 
 
 " Oh, poor young man! What a 
 dreadful alternative!" 
 
 " And if you do not fall in love with 
 him," Harrison went on, " I will pull 
 your ears." 
 
 "My precious ears! I'll not let 
 them come to harm, sir. I think I love 
 23 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 your son a little already. And does he 
 take his bashfulness from his father, 
 sir? " 
 
 " I think so." 
 
 " I think so too ; for if you ever had 
 any, some one has taken it." 
 
 So they bade each other a laughing 
 farewell, and Harrison rode away be- 
 side the sedan-chair. Once out on the 
 highway, they saw coming toward 
 them a strange looking fellow, whose 
 spine seemed afflicted about the hips. 
 He wavered from side to side as he 
 walked, and flourished his arms as if 
 he found it hard to keep his balance. 
 Lady Alicia stopped her bearers and 
 Harrison at sight of him. 
 
 " See, Gerald," said she, " yonder 
 comes Dicky Dirk. When he was 
 born his mother was a servant at Hack- 
 24 
 
 t 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 tf 
 
 5> 
 
 thorn Hall; it was during the old 
 Hogg's time. Young Andrew had a 
 petty spite against this woman, and one 
 day he snatched the babe from her 
 breast and dashed it on the floor. Still 
 he held his grudge against her, and a 
 few months later, in a drunken rage, 
 he killed her husband, and she died of 
 a broken heart. The boy grew up to 
 walk as you see him; strangely crip- 
 pled about the hips, and yet he is said 
 to be as strong as a very giant in the 
 arms and shoulders. He carries a 
 great knife, and so got the name of 
 Dick o' the dirk, now shortened to 
 Dicky Dirk. He lives, the Lord knows 
 how, mostly by doing odd jobs for the 
 country people, and he rarely speaks, 
 even when spoken to. Dicky, this is 
 Mr. Harrison, of Virginia." 
 25 
 
 1 
 
m 
 
 " Give 'ee good day, zur," said 
 Dicky, wavering past them, and look- 
 ing neither to right nor left. 
 
 " Good day, Dicky," said Harrison, 
 riding on; and he performed the dif- 
 ficult feat of taking snuff on horseback, 
 with more than his usual carefulness. 
 Lady Alicia watched him closely, but 
 in silence. 
 
 " Alicia," said he, after a while, 
 " this Hogg of yours seems to be a rare 
 soul." 
 
 " Why, so he is ; and I have told you 
 only a few of his pleasant eccentrici- 
 ties." 
 
 " I think I will stay in the neighbor- 
 hood for a while; I was always fond 
 of Farnham. And to prevent scandal, 
 I will take quarters at the Blue Goose 
 
 Inn." 
 
 26 
 
4" 
 \ 
 
 He beamed upon her with his most 
 pleasant smile, but she shuddered and 
 grew cold, even as she felt that her 
 point was gained, for the thought 
 came to her that she had caused sen- 
 tence of death to be passed on Andrew 
 Hogg. Harrison went on quietly: 
 
 " I will write Richard, and have him 
 down to stay with me. Get up a party 
 of some sort for next week, Alicia, and 
 invite Mary Chester. I will bring the 
 boy, and we will trust in the Lord, who 
 does all things well — with proper 
 management on our part." 
 
 " Don't scoff," said Lady Alicia, " I 
 will give the party on Wednesday." 
 
O young Richard Har- 
 rison first met Mary 
 Chester at Lady 
 Alicia's party, and, be- 
 cause their curiosity 
 had been artfully aroused beforehand, 
 the two young people took a mighty 
 interest in one another. 
 
 " I've heard much of you, sir," said 
 she, as they sat together. 
 
 " We famous men are always being 
 talked about," said he. " And I have 
 heard much of you, sweet Mistress 
 Chester." 
 
 I 
 

 ¥ 
 
 " We famous ladies are always being 
 talked about," said she. 
 
 " Famous indeed," he answered. 
 " Lady Alicia told me that you were 
 the fairest girl in England; I was a 
 little doubtful at the time, but I will 
 swear now that she might have in- 
 cluded Scotland, Wales and the Con- 
 tinent." 
 
 " Why not America also?" she 
 asked. " But no doubt you have left 
 some one there who is fairer than I." 
 
 " In America," he replied, " most of 
 the good looks are given to the men, 
 as you may have noticed." 
 
 " Why, so I had," said she, " and yet 
 
 the men are not conceited, which is 
 
 very strange. But I must believe all 
 
 you say, for your father told me that 
 
 you were a most proper youth." 
 29 
 
" I respect my father too highly to 
 question anything he says," said the 
 young man. 
 
 " He told me," she went on, dar- 
 ingly, " that if you did not fall in love 
 with me you should be flogged." 
 
 " I never wilfully gave him cause to 
 flog me," said he, " and I shall not do 
 so now." 
 
 " And he said," Mary continued, 
 " that if I did not fall in love with you 
 he would pull my ears." 
 
 " Such beautiful ears shall never be 
 pulled; I shall see to it that you fall 
 in love with me." 
 
 Most of that evening they were to- 
 gether, and in a day or so he called at 
 Sladden's farm; and from that time 
 on it was evident that they were in 
 truth falling very deeply into love with 
 30 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 each other. Young Richard rode to 
 Sladden's every day, for he was no 
 slack wooer; and Lady Alicia looked 
 on, trembling for what might come to 
 pass, but with a thankful heart; Har- 
 rison looked on, bright eyed and smi- 
 ling, and was always near at hand 
 when the boy passed Hackthorn Hall; 
 Dicky Dirk, hiding in the bushes or 
 lurching along the road, looked on, 
 muttering to himself; and Andrew 
 Hogg looked on, cursing. Presently 
 he summoned Sladden to a confer- 
 ence, and the latter, a square-built, 
 square-jawed, square-headed man 
 of sixty, took his stepdaughter to 
 task. 
 
 " What do you mean, you hussy," he 
 demanded, " by letting this young cock- 
 erel come upon the place? Dost want 
 31 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 to see me pitch him out upon the high- 
 way? " 
 
 Now, though Mistress Mary had 
 received but little kindness from her 
 stepfather, she had never treated him 
 with disrespect, or disobeyed him un- 
 til he began trying to make her accept 
 the love of Andrew Hogg, but upon 
 that issue she was in open war with 
 him. 
 
 " Yes, sir," said she with a curtsey. 
 " I think I should much enjoy looking 
 on while you undertook to pitch Mas- 
 ter Harrison into the highway." 
 
 " His father's a dirty rebel," said 
 Sladden. 
 
 " But for your life, you dare not say 
 so to his face," said she. 
 
 " If you were my own daughter," 
 he growled, " full-grown as you are, 
 32 
 

 I would whip you till you took up 
 with Squire Hogg." 
 
 " If I were your daughter," she said 
 with her head held very high, " no 
 doubt but I would be willing to marry 
 Squire Hogg; but my father was a 
 gentleman." 
 
 " I shall forbid that whelp to come 
 on the farm," shouted Sladden in a 
 passion. 
 
 " And he'll come, none the less," 
 said Mary. 
 
 Sladden did not forbid Richard the 
 place, but when, on the next day, 
 Mary told the young man what had 
 happened, he urged her to marry him 
 at once, and she refused. 
 
 " We have known each other 
 scarcely three weeks," she said, " and 
 if we wed now, people will say 'twas 
 
 
f 
 
 f 
 
 1 
 
 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 but the fear of Andrew Hogg drove 
 me to you. Sir, I wish to be courted 
 with all due pomp and circumstance. 
 I sometimes think I like you very well, 
 but again I am not sure of it, nor am 
 I certain that you love me. Make me 
 sure of both, and I will marry you, but 
 I will not be driven to do so by Slad- 
 den and the black Hogg." 
 
 " By Heaven, they shall not hurry 
 you! " said Richard, looking very like 
 his father. " Take your time, sweet 
 mistress, for all of them. But I will 
 not say that I shall not hurry you my- 
 self; for I am asking you to marry me 
 because I love you. I am as sure of 
 that as if I had known you all my life. 
 And love me you shall, and marry me 
 you shall, and I am coming to see you 
 every day, Hogg or no Hogg, Sladden 
 
 34 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 or no Sladden, until you say yes to 
 
 1^/j 
 
 me. 
 
 And so he did, riding into the farm- 
 yard every day, tossing his bridle rein 
 and a coin to the stable boy, and re- 
 ceiving Sladden's sour look with a 
 high head and a careless smile. But 
 Hell-fire Harrison, having been told 
 all, redoubled his watchfulness, for he 
 knew that the crisis was at hand. 
 
 And it was; for sitting over their 
 liquor at Hackthorn Hall, Hogg and 
 the bloody three were taking counsel 
 as to the safest way of killing Richard. 
 
 " Meet the cub on the road, and run 
 him through," said Trainor, the most 
 reckless of the four, and the best 
 swordsman. 
 
 "Ay; but his father is always with 
 him, or close at hand," said Hogg. 
 35 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 " And they say he is the best swords- 
 man in England. Some of us will lose 
 blood if we try that, and why run 
 needless risk? Here is a better plan: 
 When the young whelp is safe at Slad- 
 den's to-morrow, Harrison will ride 
 back to the Blue Goose Inn to wait 
 until nearly sunset; then he will come 
 out to meet the boy and convoy him 
 home. Now, an hour before sundown, 
 let Trainor go to the Inn and get into 
 conversation with this rebel. Drink 
 with him, if he will, and fall to argu- 
 ing if he will not; quarrel, but do not 
 come to blows. Carry it off in such 
 a way that if he leaves 'twill appear to 
 the bystanders that he is afraid, but do 
 not cross swords, or he will do for 
 you." Trainor sniffed doubtfully, but 
 Hogg went on, " Keep him there until 
 36 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 
 \ 
 
 after sunset, and then get away; apol- 
 ogize and eat humble pie if you must; 
 you shall give it back to him later. 
 Meanwhile we three will settle the 
 young popinjay, and if the old one 
 attacks us here, later, we will meet 
 him at the door with our pistols, and 
 give him no chance to come to close 
 quarters. Will that do? " 
 
 The others accepted the plan, and so 
 on the following afternoon, as the sun 
 was getting low, Trainor set off for the 
 Blue Goose Inn, and shortly after, the 
 other three rode out upon the high- 
 way, and took their stand beneath a 
 clump of trees to wait for Richard. 
 
RAINOR found the el- 
 der Harrison sitting by 
 a table, in the tap-room 
 of the inn, with a bot- 
 tle of wine at his el- 
 bow. Sitting down, the ruffian pushed 
 the table so roughly that the bottle was 
 upset. Harrison, who instantly com- 
 prehended the whole plan, rose to his 
 feet and drew his sword. 
 
 "Draw!" said he to Trainor. 
 
 " You seek to provoke a quarrel, but I 
 
 bandy no words with a scoundrel of 
 
 your kidney. Draw, or by Heaven, I 
 
 38 
 
H 
 
 will run you through, where you 
 sit!" 
 
 "Would you murder me? "blus- 
 tered the fellow, as half willing, half 
 afraid, he slowly rose and drew his 
 weapon. 
 
 "No; but I will find out whether 
 you are the swordsman you are said to 
 be. On guard! " 
 
 They crossed blades, and after a few 
 passes had been exchanged, Harrison's 
 smile grew more contemptuous. 
 
 " I see that you cannot fence," said 
 he, " and so we may as well make a 
 finish of it. Look out, now; I am 
 going to slice your nose across the mid- 
 dle, and cut the sign of the cross on 
 your left cheek." And, with three 
 lightning strokes of his razor-edged 
 sword, he carried out his threat. 
 
 39 
 
"You are the devil!" cried the 
 bully, staggering backward as he 
 wiped the blood from his face. " I 
 will not fight you more! " 
 
 " You are easily satisfied, my 
 friend," said Harrison, wiping his 
 sword carefully and sheathing it, and 
 then he took snuff, smiling, while the 
 innkeeper hurried the wounded ruffian 
 away to the village leech. 
 
 So, half an hour later, when Hogg 
 and his two remaining scoundrels saw 
 Richard coming in the distance, it 
 happened that they also heard the 
 hoofbeats of a horse coming from the 
 opposite direction, and turning, saw 
 Harrison, who rode past them with a 
 courteous salute. Joining his son a 
 little way down the road, he turned 
 about, and the two came on together. 
 40 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 Hogg and his friends perceived that 
 Trainor had failed in his mission, but 
 they did not guess how grievously, and 
 they were puzzled as to what to do. 
 They discussed the situation hurriedly 
 for a few minutes, and then Andrew 
 burst out with a great oath, declaring 
 that the whole matter should be settled 
 then and there. They took their stand 
 in the centre of the highway, facing 
 the Harrisons, who were coming in a 
 walk, chatting carelessly together. 
 
 Andrew Hogg was a powerful man, 
 more than six feet tall and very mus- 
 cular; his swarthy face was bloated 
 and swollen by hard drinking, and he 
 wore his long hair unpowdered and 
 badly combed, while his dress was 
 slovenly. But he did not lack for 
 brute courage, nor did either of his 
 41 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 two companions, who were like him 
 in a general way. They were all good 
 swordsmen, and fighters of experience, 
 and they awaited with confidence the 
 coming of the Virginian and his son, 
 who now rode up and drew rein, see- 
 ing that the way was blocked. 
 
 " Good evening, gentlemen," said 
 Harrison. " What would you have of 
 us?" 
 
 " A pinch of snuff! " growled Hogg, 
 expecting a refusal. 
 
 Harrison drew his handsomely en- 
 graved snufT-box from his pocket, and 
 riding close to Hogg, presented it, 
 open, with a courtly gesture, and the 
 other, who did not use snuff was so 
 confused and taken aback that he took 
 up a pinch with clumsy and not over- 
 clean fingers. Harrison instantly tossed 
 
 
 
 t 
 i 
 
VV Willie 4 
 "i(dl fire Kwn 
 
 V^e Look up a p. nek) 
 yj«(l) clumsy &tu> 
 not oVrclean fm^trj 
 
(( ct c 
 

 w 
 
 
 remaining contents, 
 into the ditch beside the road. 
 
 " What do you mean by that? " 
 roared Hogg, his dark face turning 
 fiery red. 
 
 " I can feed swine," said the Ameri- 
 can with his most pleasant smile, " but 
 I will not root in the trough with 
 them." 
 
 "By Heaven!" shouted Andrew, 
 " be careful, or you will feel the 
 swine's tusk! " and he laid his hand on 
 his sword. 
 
 " Be careful yourself ! " replied Har- 
 rison, unmoved. " I am too much of 
 a Jew to eat pork, but just enough of 
 a Christian to kill hogs, especially 
 those possessed of devils." 
 
 Young Richard burst out laughing, 
 while the three ruffians sat hesitating; 
 
 43 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 the calm assurance of Harrison, and 
 his evident anxiety for a fight daunted 
 them. He faced them in silence for 
 several seconds, still sitting within 
 arm's length of Andrew; and then 
 as they made no move, he spoke again. 
 
 " If you dare not fight, draw aside 
 and let us pass," said he; and under 
 the compelling power of his steady 
 eye, the three involuntarily reined 
 their horses toward the roadside. The 
 father and son rode on slowly, convers- 
 ing as if nothing had happened; and 
 though they knew that their discom- 
 fited enemies had pistols in their hols- 
 ters, neither of the pair so much as 
 turned his head. 
 
 "We have them cowed," said Har- 
 rison. " I think we shall hear no more 
 from them." But in that he was mis- 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 m 
 
 taken, good judge of men as he was; 
 he underestimated Andrew Hogg. 
 
 That night Hogg and two of his 
 men rode away toward London, leav- 
 ing the wounded rascal, Trainor, alone 
 at Hackthorn Hall, and no one about 
 Farnham saw either of them for a 
 week. During this time young Rich- 
 ard's wooing progressed smoothly, and 
 his father relaxed his vigilance a little, 
 for he came to believe that Hogg, see- 
 ing only formidable and dangerous 
 opposition ahead, had given the whole 
 matter up. At the end of the week 
 came a surprise; for a Captain Keat- 
 ley, with an escort of half a dozen 
 troopers, appeared in Farnham village 
 with a letter from the King, request- 
 ing the presence of Gerald Harrison 
 at Saltire Castle, thirty miles away, 
 
 45 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 where his majesty was making a short 
 visit. 
 
 The letter merely set forth that the 
 King, learning that Master Harrison, 
 brother to his well-beloved Lord 
 Wycherly, had but lately come from 
 the United States of America, re- 
 quested the presence of Master Har- 
 rison, so and so; and as the audience 
 was set for the day following the one 
 on which Harrison received the letter, 
 it was imperative that he should set off 
 at once with the escort. The Virgin- 
 ian was caught napping; he did not 
 think of connecting Andrew Hogg 
 with the King's invitation, which he 
 supposed to be due to Wycherly's in- 
 fluence; he knew that his brother and 
 other liberal statesmen were working 
 to eradicate the ill feeling toward the 
 4 6 
 
 M. 
 
new republic which existed at court, 
 and he never once thought of refusing 
 to comply with the request, which was, 
 indeed, tantamount to a command. 
 Richard was at Sladden's farm when 
 the message came; so, after hastily 
 writing him a note bidding him exer- 
 cise all possible care and watchfulness, 
 Harrison rode over to Farnham Court 
 to bid Lady Alicia farewell for a day 
 or so. Her suspicions were instantly 
 aroused, and she became very anxious. 
 " I do not like this message, coming 
 at this time," said she. " If you go 
 away, I am afraid for Richard — and 
 for Mary. There is more in this than 
 we see, Gerald. It is only the fear of 
 you that has held Hogg in check so 
 long, and when he gets you away he 
 will do some devilish thing. I would 
 
 47 
 
you did not have to go, but the King's 
 commands must be obeyed." 
 
 "Tut, tut!" said Harrison. "You 
 are frightened at shadows. I do not 
 think our Hogg has influence enough 
 at court to have brought all this about; 
 it is not his doing. He and his crew 
 are away on some cut-purse expedi- 
 tion; we have scared them out. I 
 have left a word of caution for Rich- 
 ard, and hang it, Alicia, the boy is no 
 baby; he can take care of himself. If 
 I did not know that, I would stay for 
 all of fifty kings." Lady Alicia shook 
 her head reprovingly; in those days 
 the conservatives clung to an exagger- 
 ated respect for the pretensions of roy- 
 alty, for which the radicals manifested 
 an equally exaggerated contempt. 
 
 " Blaspheme not the Lord's 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 .tt 
 
 anointed! " said the lady. " But there 
 is only one man in England who is a 
 match for black Hogg and his bloody 
 three, and that is you, Gerald. Go, 
 since you must, and come back quickly. 
 I shall have no peace until I see you 
 again." 
 
 So, smiling at her fears, he kissed 
 her hand and went. It was well on 
 in the afternoon when he rode out of 
 Farnham with his escort. They had 
 planned to ride until after midnight, 
 for the moon was full, and then to lie 
 at Shoresby until morning, reaching 
 Saltire Castle early in the following 
 day. 
 
 Now, the King's invitation had been 
 brought about in this way: Hogg, 
 going up to London to devise some 
 means of getting rid of Harrison, had 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 fallen in with an American tory named 
 Cunningham, who hated the Virgin- 
 ian and all things connected with the 
 republic over seas, and who had some 
 influence at court. This man had im- 
 pressed Andrew with the danger of 
 meeting Harrison in fight, because of 
 the latter's almost supernatural skill 
 with the sword; and, by putting their 
 wits together, the two had formed a 
 cunning plan for getting him out of 
 the way. Cunningham had procured 
 the invitation to an audience with the 
 King, and had seen that the letter was 
 intrusted to Captain Keatley, an honest 
 but somewhat thick-headed soldier, 
 who was violently prejudiced against 
 republican ideas. The tory had inti- 
 mated to the Captain that in case Har- 
 rison should insult Royalty by declin- 
 50 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 ing the invitation he was to be brought 
 to Saltire Castle by force, and the sol- 
 dier, understanding that his mission 
 was to make an arrest under pretence 
 of an invitation to court, was quite pre- 
 pared to use strenuous measures. As 
 soon as the Virginian's back was turned 
 on Farnham, Hogg and his three vil- 
 lains were to waylay Richard and kill 
 him; and then, when Harrison re- 
 turned, they were to take refuge in 
 Hackthorn Hall and stand guard with 
 loaded pistols, trusting to shoot him 
 down before he could come to close 
 quarters. They had arrived at the hall 
 during the night previous to the com- 
 ing of the King's messenger, and they 
 watched the Virginian from a dis- 
 tance, as he rode away with his escort. 
 
UST at sundown on that 
 same evening, Richard 
 left Sladden's house 
 and started toward 
 Farnham village and 
 the Blue Goose Inn. He was on foot, 
 and he walked briskly along the high- 
 way, whistling a merry tune. He had 
 just passed the gates of Hackthorn 
 Hall when up from the grass where 
 they had been sitting, rose Andrew 
 Hogg and the bloody three, and saun- 
 tered out in front of him in such a way 
 as to bar his progress; and they stood 
 52 
 

 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 looking at him in evil fashion. Young 
 Richard saw murder in their eyes, and 
 he sent one swift glance up and down 
 the road, thinking of his father 
 whereat black Andrew laughed aloud. 
 
 " Useless to look for father to pro- 
 tect you, little man," he mocked. 
 " He's many a long mile on his way to 
 Saltire Castle. So you must fight your 
 own battle for once." 
 
 " I have no doubt that he is gone, 
 Hogg," said Richard coolly, " else you 
 four would not dare show your heads 
 abroad. Say what you want, you cut- 
 throat scoundrel, or get out of my 
 way." 
 
 " Oh! " said Hogg. " Now hear him 
 try to roar, this puppy who is pretend- 
 ing to be a lion's cub! Why, this is 
 what I want, my dear young friend. 
 
 53 
 
 *#■ 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 I want you to go back to London, and 
 never come near Farnham, or see Mis- 
 tress Mary Chester again." 
 
 " And what if I refuse your very 
 reasonable request? " 
 
 " We'll run you through the body, 
 and leave you lying here for the car- 
 rion crows to peck at." 
 
 " Do you want Mistress Mary your- 
 self, Hogg? » 
 
 " Ay, and mean to have her." 
 
 " If you were not such an infernal 
 coward," said Richard, as if consid- 
 ering, " how easily you and I might 
 settle this whole matter." 
 
 " What do you mean, whelp? " 
 
 " Let your three thieves sit down 
 again while you and I fight it out 
 without interference, and let the best 
 man have her. If you can best me 
 
 54 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 /ft 
 
 fairly, I will go back to London as you 
 say." 
 
 "Good!" roared Andrew, drawing 
 his sword. " Sit down, men, and watch 
 me clip this young cock's spurs. On 
 guard, boy, and you shall howl for 
 quarter, or I'll run you through." The 
 other three sat down upon the grass, 
 and the two men in the road crossed 
 swords. 
 
 We have said that Andrew Hogg 
 was a good swordsman; but he was 
 not long in learning that young Rich- 
 ard was a better one. The youth had 
 been carefully trained by his father, 
 and had a fair share of the latter's mar- 
 vellous skill. It was but a few mo- 
 ments until Hogg was bleeding from 
 a wound in the shoulder, and was 
 looking greatly worried and amazed. 
 
 55 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 Richard pressed the fighting, for he 
 hoped to disable his adversary and 
 take to his heels before the other three 
 could come upon him., knowing that 
 he had no chance against all of them; 
 but this opportunity was not to be 
 given him, for Andrew, hard pressed, 
 called for help and the other three 
 rushed to his assistance. Richard de- 
 fended himself gallantly, but without 
 hope. Attacked on all sides, he was 
 soon wounded in the sword arm and 
 disarmed, and two of his enemies 
 grasped him by the wrists while a 
 third, kneeling behind him, clasped 
 him about the knees. Andrew stood 
 in front, furious with his defeat and 
 the pain of his wounded shoulder. 
 
 "I'll finish you now!" he shouted, 
 presenting his sword's point for a 
 56 
 
^iH^^Sorf 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 3 
 
 thrust. Young Richard saw his deadly 
 purpose in his eye, and his own glance 
 wavered for a single instant; he was 
 young, and he loved, and it was hard 
 to die. Then his look grew steady 
 again, and he stood very straight with 
 his eye on Hogg's, and smiled while 
 the cowardly villain ran him through 
 the body. His knees gave way and he 
 sank in the dust of the highway, but 
 as he went down he swayed forward 
 and spit in Andrew's face. 
 
 "For her!" he whispered, as his 
 eyes closed. Hogg, frothing with 
 fury, raised his sword for another 
 thrust; but just at that instant there 
 came a strange moaning howl from a 
 thicket beside the road, and he held 
 his hand and stood glaring into the 
 shadows, for it was growing dusk. 
 
 57 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 f 
 
 The four drew close together around 
 the body of their victim, and stood 
 trembling; they were all superstitious, 
 and moreover, the dread of Hell-fire 
 Harrison was coming heavily upon 
 them. 
 
 " Let be!" said Trainor, tremu- 
 lously, grasping Hogg's arm as he 
 raised it again. " He's dead enough. 
 Come on," and the four started off 
 toward the Hall. As soon as they were 
 out of sight, Dicky Dirk came from 
 the thicket, lurching from side to side 
 in desperate haste. He bent over the 
 prostrate body for a moment, and then, 
 by exercising all the strength of his 
 powerful arms, hoisted it upon his 
 shoulders and staggered off toward 
 Farnham Court. 
 
 It was quite dark when he kicked 
 58 
 
 f 
 A 
 
open the great door and shambled into 
 the entrance-hall with his bloody bur- 
 den. Lady Alicia chanced to be at 
 hand, giving her servants some direc- 
 tions for the night. When she saw 
 what Dicky carried she screamed 
 aloud, for Richard's arms hung limp 
 on either side of his bearer's neck, and 
 his blood was dripping from his own 
 and Dicky's clothing; so she was justi- 
 fied in thinking him quite dead. She. 
 turned upon one of her two footmen, 
 like a fury. 
 
 " Take the best horse in the stable," 
 said she, " and ride toward Saltire 
 Castle. Kill your horse, if need be, 
 but overtake Gerald Harrison and tell 
 him Andrew Hogg has killed his 
 son! " And the man ran out instantly. 
 
 They carried Richard into Lady 
 
 59 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 Alicia's own room, and sent the other 
 footman for a physician; and mean- 
 while the lady and Dicky Dirk, who 
 had spoken not a word since coming 
 into the house, worked together to 
 stanch the flow of blood. Presently 
 the Farnham apothecary came, and re- 
 lieved them of their task. He was 
 well-skilled in dealing with wounds, 
 as were most of the surgeons of that 
 day, and he worked long and patiently 
 before Richard's condition was to his 
 liking. It was ten o'clock when he 
 turned to Lady Alicia and said: 
 
 " No vital part was touched, my 
 Lady; it was almost a miracle. With 
 the best of nursing, the lad will live." 
 
 "Thank God!" the lady gasped, 
 
 but Dicky, turning in silence, left the 
 
 house and went swaying off across the 
 60 
 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 fields toward Sladden's farm. Not- 
 withstanding his disability he got over 
 the ground rapidly, and it was less 
 than an hour later when, under his 
 hand, the heavy iron knocker woke the 
 sleeping echoes of the farmhouse. He 
 knocked continuously until he heard 
 footsteps within, and then stood wait- 
 ing. 
 
 . 
 
JLADDEN himself 
 opened the door a 
 very little; but a 
 heavy fist was dashed 
 against it, sending it 
 flying wide, and Dicky Dirk came 
 lurching in. The cripple's hands and 
 face were stained with blood, and his 
 clothing was soaked with it; his man- 
 ner showed excitement, and his look 
 was wild and fierce. The farmer, 
 knowing well the strength of those long 
 and hairy arms, kept out of his way, 
 staring in blank amazement. 
 
 M 
 
 t 
 
 a 
 ? 
 
 i 
 
9 
 
 " Where's Mistress Mary?" de- 
 manded Dicky. 
 
 " What's that to you?" growled 
 Sladden. " Get out, you villain; I 
 want to lock my door again." 
 
 "Will zee Mistress Mary," said 
 Dicky. 
 
 " You can't see her, you bloody ruf- 
 fian! What pot-house brawl have you 
 been into? Get out. Mistress Mary 
 has been in her bed these two hours." 
 
 " Call her." 
 
 " Now, curse your impudence! Get 
 out, or I'll call help to throw you out. 
 What do you want with her? " 
 
 "I'll call her zelf," said Dicky, 
 starting toward the stairway. He 
 knew the house well, having been 
 often employed there. Sladden sprang 
 before him with an oath, but the crip- 
 63 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 pie put his hand on his knife and came 
 on, and the Squire stepped aside. 
 Dicky went up the stairs, and knocked 
 at Mary's door, and it was quickly 
 opened by the girl herself. She had 
 been sitting at the window, looking at 
 the moon and dreaming of her lover, 
 and was fully dressed. She cried out, 
 when she saw her bloody visitor. 
 
 " Dicky," she said sharply, " is it 
 Richard?" 
 
 "Ay," said Dicky. " T hog met 
 un on t' high rowd, an' t' four fought 
 un, an 7 run swourd through un." She 
 leaned against the wall, with her face 
 as white as snow. 
 
 " Is he dead? " she whispered, trem- 
 bling. 
 
 " I carried un on back to Farnham 
 Court," Dicky replied, " an' t' leech 
 6 4 
 
 ! 
 
says a'll live, if un has good nursin'." 
 The color came back to her face with 
 a rush. 
 
 "Why, that he shall have, Dicky!" 
 said she. " Wait you for me," and 
 she began throwing some of her ap- 
 parel into a portmanteau. When it 
 was filled she turned again to the 
 cripple, who stood waiting at the door. 
 
 " Take me to Farnham Court," said 
 she, and they went down the stair to- 
 gether. Sladden, with two of the 
 farm-hands whom he had called, was 
 waiting in the hall below. 
 
 "What does this mean?" he asked, 
 astonished. " Where are you going? " 
 
 " I am going to Richard Harrison," 
 she said, " who was attacked upon the 
 road to-night by that cowardly mur- 
 derer Andrew Hogg and his crew, no 
 65 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 doubt with your full knowledge and 
 connivance." 
 
 "You shameless hussy! Will you 
 go to him unwed? " Her cheek grew 
 hot, and her eye flashed hotter still. 
 
 " Dicky," said she, " if yonder man 
 lifts hand to stop me, kill him!" 
 
 " I wull! " growled Dicky, drawing 
 his great knife and lurching forward; 
 and Sladden and his bumpkins backed 
 against the wall and let them pass. It 
 was midnight when they reached 
 Farnham Court, where Lady Alicia 
 greeted Mary with joyful astonish- 
 ment, and yet with an anxious face. 
 
 " How is Richard? " were the girl's 
 first words. 
 
 "He is conscious, Mary; full of 
 hope and courage, but very weak from 
 the great loss of blood." 
 
 66 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 a 
 
 ^ 
 
 t 
 
 "But will he live?" 
 
 " With proper nursing; so the sur- 
 geon says." 
 
 " I have come to nurse him." Lady 
 Alicia looked perplexed. 
 
 " But Mary — " she said, and hesi- 
 tated. She was thinking of Andrew 
 Hogg, and the fear possessed her that 
 when he heard of Mary's presence at 
 Richard's bedside he would come in a 
 rage to finish his work and carry the 
 girl away. And Mary, seeing her 
 hesitation and remembering Sladden's 
 insult, misunderstood her. She raised 
 her head high, and turned instantly to 
 Dicky Dirk. 
 
 " Dicky," said she, " will you do me 
 a kindness? " 
 
 " Ay," said Dicky, promptly. 
 
 " Then go to Farnham parsonage 
 67 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 for Vicar Slade, and bring him here; 
 bring him, Dicky, whether he will or 
 no. Tell him he is to marry me to 
 Richard Harrison, and then we shall 
 see who will keep a wife from her hus- 
 band." 
 
 Dicky wavered out into the night, 
 and Mary turned again to Lady Alicia, 
 with a heaving breast and a trium- 
 phant look. 
 
 " Will any one have a better right 
 than I? " she demanded. 
 
 The lady's eyes shone as she clasped 
 the girl in her arms and kissed her. 
 
 " It was not of that I was thinking, 
 Mary," said she. "But of — well, 
 never mind; you have chosen the 
 right way." She turned suddenly to 
 the sleepy footman, who was sitting in 
 the hall. 
 
 68 
 
 f 
 ! 
 
 i 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 " Thomas," she said, " what weap- 
 ons have we in the house? " 
 
 " Only a couple of muskets, my 
 Lady." 
 
 " Load them, and bring them here, 
 and keep the front door barred. Let 
 no one enter until you are certain that 
 he is a friend." 
 
 " You fear Hogg? " said Mary. " I 
 had not thought of him." 
 
 " God send Gerald Harrison back 
 before Black Andrew hears of this!" 
 said Lady Alicia. They put their 
 arms around each other, and went up 
 to the door of Richard's room, and the 
 woman who was watching whispering 
 to them that he had fallen asleep, they 
 sat down outside to wait. After a little 
 time, Dicky Dirk came, leading the 
 shivering clergyman by the arm. 
 69 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 Vicar Slade was a typical parson of 
 those times; a fox-hunting, gambling, 
 hard-drinking man of the world, very 
 much more rogue than saint; the 
 type of ecclesiastic who brought relig- 
 ion into disrepute, and drove men like 
 Gerald Harrison to the profession of 
 open atheism. In common with all 
 of Farnham, the Vicar was much 
 afraid of Andrew Hogg, and it was 
 evident that he was badly frightened; 
 his clothing was disheveled, and Dicky 
 grasped him tightly above the elbow. 
 
 " A was feard o' t' hog," said Dicky, 
 " an' wouldn't come; zo I browt 
 un." 
 
 " This is a most outrageous proceed- 
 ing, Lady Alicia," said the clergyman 
 in a quivering voice. 
 
 " It is not Lady Alicia's doing, Mr. 
 
 70 
 
a 
 
 Slade," said Mary, gently. " It was I 
 who sent for you, to exercise your holy 
 office in marrying me to Richard Har- 
 rison. Let him loose, Dicky." 
 
 " No," said Dicky, " a'll run off." 
 And he kept his grip upon the parson's 
 arm. 
 
 " I know enough of all this," quav- 
 ered the vicar, " to be aware that I 
 must answer to Andrew Hogg if I 
 marry you." 
 
 " Must answer to me if ee doan't," 
 said Dicky, putting his hand on his 
 knife. 
 
 " You are surely between two fires, 
 Mr. Slade," said Lady Alicia, smiling 
 in spite of herself, at the man's terror, 
 " for without doubt Dicky will do you 
 a mischief if you refuse to perform 
 this ceremony." 
 
 71 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 "That I wull!" growled Dicky. 
 
 " I call upon you to witness then," 
 said Slade, " that I do it under com- 
 pulsion, and in fear for my life. If 
 you have a prayer-book in the house, 
 Lady Alicia, have it fetched ; and then 
 I am ready, since I must." 
 
 They sat waiting until Richard 
 awoke, and then went together into 
 his room, Dicky keeping near the par- 
 son, with a watchful eye upon him. 
 When Mistress Mary saw the white 
 face upon the pillow she came very 
 near losing the self-possession she had 
 retained so bravely. She stopped 
 short, and stood for an instant with 
 both her clenched hands pressed 
 against her throat. Then she went 
 quickly to the bedside, and bent above 
 him, smiling. And seeing who it was, 
 72 
 
 I 
 
 i3. 
 I 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 
 he looked with wonder for a moment, 
 and then smiled back at her. 
 
 " Angel!" he whispered softly. 
 She stooped, and laid her cheek 
 against his. 
 
 " Richard, my dear love," said she, 
 " do not try to move or speak. You 
 are sorely hurt, and I have come to be 
 with you night and day. And I have 
 brought the parson to marry us, if you 
 will have me, Richard." 
 
 "Will I?" he whispered, smiling. 
 " Ay, and be run through fifty times 
 to get the chance." She put her finger 
 on his lips. 
 
 " You are only to say yes and no, 
 sir," said she, " and not to excite your- 
 self at all. Do you understand? " 
 
 " Yes and no, sir," said he. She 
 drew a ring from her finger, and 
 
 73 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 placed it under the poor nerveless 
 hand, which lay upon the cover. 
 
 " It was my mother's wedding ring, 
 and shall be mine," she said. " When 
 the time comes, I can slip my ringer 
 into it; do not try to raise your hand. 
 Dicky, you have been our friend this 
 night, and you shall give me away. 
 Go on, Mr. Slade; we are ready." 
 
 So they were married, with Lady 
 Alicia and the serving-woman for wit- 
 nesses ; and Dicky Dirk gave the bride 
 away. Then Mary put them all out 
 of the room, and sitting down beside 
 her husband, held his hand and sang 
 to him softly until he went to sleep 
 again. Day was breaking when all 
 this was over, and Lady Alicia sat 
 down in the hall, with her one foot- 
 man and her two loaded muskets, to 
 
 74 
 
5 
 
 \ 
 
, C 6 •« ■ 
 • . • o • e 
 
 c C 
 
 c l 'c c ■ 
 
 I C C C < 
 c c t C < . 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 watch for Andrew Hogg, while Dicky 
 Dirk hurried off across the fields, 
 weaving from side to side and clutch- 
 ing at the air in his haste, and reaching 
 the gates of Hackthorn Hall, sat down 
 to wait for Gerald Harrison. 
 
CHA VTETi 
 SEVEK 
 
 ARRISON and his es- 
 cort rode in a leisurely 
 fashion along the road 
 to Saltire Castle, be- 
 guiling the time with 
 pleasant conversation. The night air 
 was cool and fresh, and the moon was 
 shining brilliantly. The two gentle- 
 men rode abreast in front, with the 
 troopers following a little way behind. 
 It was past midnight, and they had 
 come in sight of the lights of Shoresby, 
 where they were to rest until morning, 
 when they heard a horse galloping 
 76 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 &lf* 
 
 
 hard behind them, and drew rein to 
 see what the occasion of such haste 
 might be. And the rider proved to 
 be Lady Alicia's footman, bare-headed 
 and splashed with mud, who rode up 
 and spoke to Harrison. 
 
 " My Lady sent me, sir," said he, 
 " to tell you that Andrew Hogg has 
 killed your son." And he added: " I 
 saw his body brought in." 
 
 Captain Keatley cried out in horri- 
 fied astonishment, and turned sharply 
 to Harrison. An instant comprehen- 
 sion of the whole plot came to the Vir- 
 ginian. He realized that Lady Alicia 
 had been right, and that the King's 
 invitation had been procured to get 
 him out of the way while his son was 
 murdered. But whatever passed in 
 his mind, his countenance did not 
 
 77 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 change in the least, and his voice was 
 calm and natural as he answered: 
 
 " Ah ! In that case, much as I re- 
 gret to lose your pleasant company, 
 Captain, I suppose I must turn back." 
 He waited an instant for a reply, and 
 then slowly turned his horse about. 
 
 Captain Keatley hesitated in some 
 perplexity. He had been very favor- 
 ably impressed by Harrison, and he 
 felt a keen sympathy for the man who 
 met such dreadful news with so gal- 
 lant and unwavering a front; and also, 
 there began to dawn upon his mind a 
 suspicion that he, himself, had been 
 made an instrument in carrying out 
 some vile plot. On the other hand, 
 he had his instructions from Cunning- 
 ham, and his almost superstitious rev- 
 erence for the King's command, and, 
 78 
 

 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 for a moment, he could not decide 
 between his sympathy and what he 
 conceived to be his duty. As the 
 American started his horse on the 
 backward way, Keatley found voice, 
 and said: 
 
 " But, sir, his Majesty ordered me 
 to bring you to him, and if I re- 
 turn without you, what shall I tell 
 him?" 
 
 Harrison slowly turned his horse 
 about again, coming face to face with 
 the soldier; he rode up until his 
 horse's head overlapped the captain's 
 thigh, and their faces were scarcely 
 twelve inches apart. The moonlight 
 fell full on the Virginian's counte- 
 nance; he was smiling pleasantly, but 
 Keatley's blood ran cold as he caught 
 his look, for his eyes were like coals 
 
 79 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 of fire, yet when he spoke his voice 
 was soft and low. 
 
 " Tell him," said Harrison, " to go 
 to Hell!" Captain Keatley leaned 
 backward as if he had received a blow, 
 and uttered an exclamation of horror. 
 
 " And tell him," the other went on, 
 " that if I had believed you to be a 
 co-conspirator with Andrew Hogg in 
 this, I would have run my sword 
 through you the instant I had the 
 news. Good morning, Captain." He 
 wheeled his horse about for the third 
 time, and rode back past the troopers 
 in a walk, and no one lifted a hand 
 to hinder him. Captain Keatley rode 
 on to Saltire Castle, and reported sim- 
 ply that Harrison had turned back 
 on hearing of the death of his son, and 
 
 that he had thought it right to let him 
 
 80 
 
 
 f 
 
 A 
 
go. So great was his admiration for 
 the American's courage that he never 
 mentioned the affront which had been 
 offered to Royalty. 
 
 Once out of earshot of his escort, 
 Harrison gave his horse the spur, 
 leaving Lady Alicia's man to follow 
 at a slower pace, and rode with all 
 speed toward Farnham. At the first 
 tavern he secured a fresh mount, leav- 
 ing his own steed for the serving-man 
 to bring along. What passed with him 
 during that lonely ride, whether he 
 laughed or cried or kept his stoical 
 composure through it all, no one will 
 ever know. He dearly loved his son, 
 and he believed him dead, and his 
 heart must have burned with a fierce 
 lust for vengeance upon the murder- 
 ers, but when, in the early morning, 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 he sprang from his saddle at the Blue 
 Goose Inn, his face was as serene as 
 ever. He went straight to his apart- 
 ment, exchanging no word with any 
 one, and there he removed all traces 
 of his rapid ride by a bath and a 
 change of garments. The sun was just 
 rising when, immaculately dressed, 
 and with every frill and ruffle in its 
 place, with his hair freshly powdered 
 and his rosy cheek smooth shaved, he 
 set off afoot and at a careless pace 
 toward Hackthorn Hall. No one was 
 astir at the inn save the lout of a stable- 
 boy who had taken his horse. No one 
 yet knew of the happenings overnight, 
 and so he went on, still believing that 
 his son was dead. As he entered the 
 gate of Hackthorn Hall, Dicky Dirk 
 
 rose up beside him. 
 
 82 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 " Been waitin' for ee," said Dicky. 
 
 " How came you so bloody? " asked 
 Harrison. 
 
 " Picked up thy boy." 
 
 " Hah! Yes. Well, Dicky, what do 
 you want with me? " 
 
 " To zee ee kill Hogg." 
 
 "No, Dicky," said Harrison, "I 
 will do this work quite alone. I want 
 neither help nor spectators." He was 
 about to start on, but Dicky stopped 
 him by throwing up one of his huge 
 hands. 
 
 " Look ee! " he said, and his hoarse 
 voice trembled in a sudden outburst 
 of rage, " Hogg broak ma back; killed 
 ma fayther with swourd, an' broak ma 
 moader's heart. I've carried dirk for 
 vifteen year to kill un, an' by Goad, 
 I'll zee un die." Harrison stood quite 
 83 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 still for a moment, gazing into 
 cripple's passion-distorted face. 
 
 " Ay, ay? " said he. " Well, Dicky, 
 your claim seems to take precedence 
 over mine; though I am sorry for it. 
 Come on, then, you shall not only see 
 him die, but you may finish him your- 
 self." He started on, and Dicky fol- 
 lowed at his heels. 
 
 They walked slowly up the grav- 
 elled drive which led to the house, a 
 strangely paired couple indeed; the 
 smiling, splendid gentleman, looking 
 about him with an air of half indiffer- 
 ent interest as he sauntered along, and 
 behind him the blood-stained cripple, 
 beating the air with his huge hands, 
 and making fearful grimaces in the 
 sudden giving way to his long hidden 
 hatred of black Andrew Hogg. 
 84 
 
 *u 
 

 Hogg and his men had held high 
 carnival all night, celebrating the 
 murder of Richard, and as day was 
 breaking they had decided that 
 Trainor should stand guard in the 
 grounds with his pistol, against the 
 possible coming of Harrison, while 
 the others went to sleep. They had 
 been in their beds but an hour or so 
 when the Virginian arrived, and 
 Trainor, sitting at the foot of a great 
 tree beside the driveway, was drowsing 
 also, with an empty bottle beside him. 
 So Harrison walked up to him, and 
 stood for a moment looking down at 
 the nodding head and bandaged face. 
 
 " Kick him awake," he said to 
 Dicky, and the cripple brought one 
 of his heavy hands down on the sleep- 
 er's head with a resounding slap. 
 85 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 Trainor leaped to his feet on the in- 
 stant, and seeing at the first glance who 
 his visitors were, he proved his readi- 
 ness by firing his pistol, which had 
 been ready in his hand, point blank at 
 Harrison. The Virginian sprang 
 aside, and Dicky struck up the fellow's 
 arm, so the bullet went wide of the 
 mark, and Harrison, whipping out his 
 sword, ran the man through. He fell 
 upon the driveway, and Dicky, bend- 
 ing over him and seeing that the 
 sword-thrust had gone rather low, 
 drove his dirk with great precision 
 through the ruffian's heart. Harrison 
 drew a handkerchief from his pocket 
 and wiped his sword carefully before 
 sheathing it; and Dicky wiped his 
 knife upon his bloody sleeve. 
 
 " You seem to have a good work- 
 
 S6 
 
ARR I 
 
 
 man's taste in these matters, Dicky," 
 said the American as they started on. 
 " You do not like to leave an imper- 
 fectly finished job behind you." 
 
 When they came to the front of the 
 house, Harrison paused and inspected 
 the silent building reflectively; he ex- 
 pected to be fired at from the windows, 
 but nothing of the kind happened, and 
 there was no sign of life. 
 
 " They must be still asleep," he said 
 to Dicky. " I wish we had a way to 
 break down the door." 
 
 " Wait," said the cripple, shambling 
 of! around the house, and presently he 
 came back carrying a great axe. He 
 went up the steps, and swinging the 
 tool with all the strength of his power- 
 ful arms, began to batter at the lock 
 of the heavy oaken door. The sound 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 of the crashing blows reverberated 
 through the house like thunder, and 
 Harrison kept close watch upon the 
 windows, but still he saw no sign of 
 life. Presently, the thick wood about 
 the lock having been beaten to frag- 
 ments, the door swung open, and the 
 Virginian stepped in with Dicky close 
 behind him. 
 
 f 
 
ROM across the en- 
 trance hall came three 
 pistol shots in quick 
 succession, but the bul- 
 lets whistled harm- 
 lessly above Harrison's head, for the 
 nerves of Hogg and his two remaining 
 scoundrels were not in condition for 
 effective target practice. After ca- 
 rousing until nearly daylight, they had 
 been aroused out of their first drunken 
 sleep by Dicky's crashing blows upon 
 the door, and tumbling out of bed half- 
 89 
 
^d 
 
 
 H E L L- F I RE 
 
 dressed, as they had retired, they had 
 run down the stairs carrying swords 
 and pistols. When Harrison stepped 
 inside the door they fired hastily, and 
 now, their firearms which had been 
 their chief reliance against the terrible 
 Virginian, being empty and useless 
 they dashed them to the floor and drew 
 their swords. They were truly a 
 loathsome sight as they stood huddled 
 together by the farther wall; their 
 uncombed hair hung in tangled masses 
 about their bloated and desperate 
 faces, and the fear in their burning 
 eyes was like that of rats caught in a 
 trap. Stepping at once between them 
 and the stairway, Harrison came on, 
 smiling and calm. At a little dis- 
 tance from them he halted and drew 
 his sword, and then clapping it under 
 90 
 
 
 J 
 
 I 
 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 
 his arm, took a pinch of snuff. Re- 
 turning the box to his pocket, and care- 
 fully brushing off a speck which had 
 fallen on the front of his ruffled shirt, 
 he saluted courteously. 
 
 " Good morning, gentlemen," said 
 he. " I am sorry to disturb you so 
 early, but my business is urgent; I 
 have come to rob the hangman of a 
 job." 
 
 At that, Andrew Hogg knowing 
 that he must fight for his life as he 
 had never fought before, burst out in 
 cursing and sprang forward, calling 
 out to his men, and the three fell upon 
 Harrison. And now Dicky Dirk, 
 looking on, saw such an exhibition of 
 skill in fence as few have witnessed in 
 this world. Harrison's sword became 
 a glittering wall of steel; it seemed to 
 91 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 encase him from head to foot like a 
 suit of armor. He did not leap and 
 spring about to dodge their thrusts, 
 but stood still, beating aside their 
 blades with his own flying weapon. 
 His quickness of eye and hand, his 
 strength of arm and wrist, were mar- 
 vellous; it was the skill of a wizard, 
 a prestidigitator, rather than that of a 
 merely expert swordsman. They could 
 not reach him with their thrusts or 
 blows, they could not even make him 
 give back an inch, or step aside; and 
 they were compelled to keep in front 
 of him by Dicky, who, whenever one 
 of them stepped out to take the fencer 
 on the side, came quickly in behind the 
 fellow and made him jump toward the 
 front again for fear of getting the 
 huge dirk between his shoulders. And 
 92 
 

 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 so the fight went on for several min- 
 utes. 
 
 Then Harrison laughed out sud- 
 denly, a ringing laugh, which echoed 
 through the house above the sound of 
 clashing steel, and panting breaths, 
 and muttered curses. 
 
 " It is time," he said. " Let us fin- 
 ish." He made a quick forward stroke 
 with his sword, so deadly swift that 
 the blade sung with a shrill whistling 
 note; and one of the two henchmen 
 of Andrew Hogg went down with his 
 throat cut, his head being nearly sev- 
 ered from his body. 
 
 "Richard!" said Harrison softly, 
 and though he smiled, his eyes were 
 terrible to see. Another lightning 
 stroke pierced the other ruffian through 
 the heart, and Andrew, now mad with 
 
 93 
 
 *#,] 
 
HELL- FIRE HARRISON 
 
 fear, faced Harrison alone. The Vir- 
 ginian dropped the point of his sword 
 and stepped back. 
 
 " Hogg," said he, " I came to kill 
 you; but I found Dicky on the same 
 errand, and his rights to be your execu- 
 tioner seem to precede mine. You 
 made him fatherless and motherless, 
 and the crawling, staggering thing he 
 is, while you have only made me child- 
 less. Dicky shall kill you, Hogg, but 
 I will put out your eyes first. On 
 guard!" And they crossed swords 
 again. 
 
 It was soon over. Two dextrous 
 strokes of the razor-edged blade, and 
 the point was slashed through each of 
 Andrew's eyes; he dropped his sword 
 and clapped his hands to his bloody 
 face, howling with pain and fright; 
 
 94 
 

 
 and Dicky, laughing as fiends may 
 laugh in hell, lurched forward, and 
 driving his great knife through the 
 black villain's heart, left it sticking 
 there. 
 
 They left the house without a word, 
 and walked out to the highway. There 
 Harrison paused, and said quietly: 
 
 " Is my son's body at Lady Alicia's, 
 Dicky? " 
 
 " A' bain't no boady," said Dicky. 
 " A's livin'." 
 
 " What? " cried Harrison sharply, 
 startled for once out of his composure. 
 
 " I zaw Hogg run un through, right 
 yonder," said Dicky, " while t'others 
 held un fast; a' stood straight, an' spit 
 in t' hog's face when swourd went 
 home. I picked un oop, an' carried 
 un vor dead to Farnham Court; but 
 
 95 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 t' leech says un'll live, if has good 
 nursin'." 
 
 " Now, by all the gods!" cried 
 Harrison. " But this is the greatest 
 news man ever told to man! Good 
 nursing, sayest thou? Why, that he 
 shall have, Dicky." 
 
 "Zo Mistress Mary zaid," said 
 Dicky. 
 
 11 What? " 
 
 " I went to t' farm at midnight," 
 said the cripple, " an' to her bedroom 
 door, an' told her. ( Why then/ says 
 she, ' good nursin' he shall have/ an' 
 packed her portmantle. Sladden 
 would stop her, an' says she, c Dicky, 
 kill him.' Zo I pulled dirk, an' Slad- 
 den run." 
 
 " Go on, thou bravest-hearted knight 
 that ever stood by lady in distress," 
 96 
 
 Y 
 
 5 
 

 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 said Harrison. " What happened 
 next? " 
 
 " When we coom to t' Court," said 
 Dicky, " t' Lady was for not lettin' 
 maid stay; an' Mistress Mary zaid to 
 me, ' Dicky, go bring Parson Slade 
 to marry me to Richard; we'll zee 
 who keeps wife from her husband.' 
 Zo I browt parson, and a 3 married 
 un." 
 
 " Now, by all the gods! " said Har- 
 rison again, but very softly now, and 
 somewhat as if he choked, " but here's 
 a lady! A right noble lady, on my 
 soul! And what more, prince of story- 
 tellers?" 
 
 " No more," said Dicky. " I came 
 here to wait for 'ee. An' now t 5 hog is 
 dead I've nowt to stay here for; will 
 'ee tak me to Ferginny? " 
 
 97 
 
HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 " Will I take you? Ay, that I will. 
 Whither I go, thou shalt go, and my 
 people shall be thy people; unfortu- 
 nately for the rest of the quotation, I 
 have no God, but if ever I find one, 
 he shall be thy God also, Dicky." 
 
 " Doan't woant no Goad," said 
 Dicky Dirk. 
 
 Lady Alicia, still watching with her 
 loaded musket, greeted Harrison with 
 joyful relief when, serene and smiling, 
 he came a half hour later to Farnham 
 Court. 
 
 " All's well," said she, " now that 
 you are here to protect your own. I 
 have been in dreadful fear lest Hogg 
 should come with his bloody three to 
 finish his work and carry your daugh- 
 ter away." 
 
 " Hogg and his bloody three will 
 
trouble no one more, Alicia," said he, 
 " for Dicky Dirk and I have been to 
 Hackthorn Hall." 
 
 She was silent in awe for a moment, 
 ;> well knowing what his words implied. 
 
 " What word did you send the King, 
 when you turned back? " she asked. 
 He laughed at this, truly a woman's 
 question at such a time. 
 
 " I sent him word," said he, " that 
 he might go to Hell!" Lady Alicia, 
 trained to the greatest reverence for 
 Royalty, cried out in horror. 
 
 " Do not be alarmed, my dear Ali- 
 cia," said Harrison, taking snuff. 
 " Now that things have turned out so 
 much better than I thought, I shall 
 not insist upon his going; I will write 
 Wycherly this morning to tell him so. 
 And now, how is Richard?" 
 
 99 
 
^Zr% 
 
 HELL-FIRE HARRISON 
 
 " Doing well, and happy in the love 
 of his dear young wife; thank God! " 
 
 " Why then," said Hell-fire Harri- 
 son, " it will be the first time in forty 
 years, but I think, Alicia, that I shall 
 have to say Amen! " 
 
 THE END. 
 
 TOO 
 
Commencement Baps 
 
 By Virginia Church 
 
 i2mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . . $1.50 
 
 Mrs. Church's new college story is based on the 
 well-known play of the same name which had such 
 a successful run last season, and it is hard to imag- 
 ine a more truthful picture of college life than is 
 here depicted. It all happens at that most interesting 
 time of the college girl's career, Commencement Sea- 
 son, which brings with it a round of receptions, par- 
 ties, coaching expeditions, Junior Proms, fudge 
 feasts, and the happiest and merriest of times. 
 
 There are girls and girls, scores of them, all 
 through the tale, and all interesting ones, too — 
 there's Kate Wells, the most popular girl of the col- 
 lege, and Lorraine, her chum, quiet, dignified and 
 sweet, who plays the role of an indulgent sister. 
 And there's the twins, who really ought not to be 
 twins at all, their tastes are so unlike, one preferring 
 men, and the other sports ; not to mention the slangy, 
 masculine girl, who goes in for athletics, and the 
 dainty little college flirt. 
 
 Of course there couldn't be any plot if a man were 
 not allowed to enter in, and as Penny, the roly-poly 
 Freshman, observes — " It's nice to see trousers 
 around sometimes, anyway " — ■ some mighty nice 
 chaps are allowed to enter on the scene. Then there 
 are three distinct love affairs in the plot, all in ad- 
 mirable contrast. 
 
 Girls who are in school and college will find in 
 " Commencement Days " types that they have known 
 among their own classmates, graduates will pick out 
 old friends, and older women, whose school days are 
 among their sweetest memories, will find that girl 
 nature is much the same in this day as it was in 
 theirs. 
 
'tOyy* 
 
 %ty Court of Xucifer 
 
 By Nathan Gallizier, author of " Castel del 
 Monte," " The Sorceress of Rome," etc. 
 
 With four illustrations in full color by the Kin- 
 neys $1.50 
 
 Mr. Gallizier's new book, completing his Italian 
 trilogy, of which " Castel del Monte " and " The 
 Sorceress of Rome " have already been published, is 
 a brilliant historical romance woven around the fa- 
 mous and notorious Borgia family, the main theme 
 touching upon the perfidy and cunning of Cesare 
 Borgia, that brilliant and unprincipled son of Pope 
 Alexander VI. 
 
 Mr. Gallizier has chosen a most interesting field 
 for his historical romances, and in his new book he 
 tells with vividness and daring of the glamour and 
 stir of the old days in Rome, the corruption of 
 church and state, and the subsequent downfall of 
 " The Imperial City." 
 
 Of "Castel del Monte" and "The Sorceress of 
 Rome " the critics have written as follows : 
 
 "The author displays many of the talents that 
 made Scott famous." — The Index. 
 
 "There is color, there is sumptuous word-painting 
 in these pages ; the action is terrific at times ; vivid- 
 ness and life are in every part; and brilliant de- 
 scriptions entertain the reader and give a singular 
 fascination to the tale." — Grand Rapids Herald. 
 
• 
 
 
 ^tlmenp of tije #rcf)ato 
 
 By L. M. Montgomery, author of the " delightful 
 and irresistible Anne books," " Anne of Green 
 Gables " and " Anne of Avonlea." 
 Cloth decorative, with four full-page illustrations 
 in color by George Gibbs . . . . $1.25 
 Miss Montgomery's new book — a charming love 
 story — has again for its setting the author's favor- 
 ite Prince Edward Island. Kilmeny Gordon, the 
 heroine, is certain to prove as dear to the hearts of 
 old and young readers alike as did her predecessor, 
 Anne Shirley, "the dearest and most moving and 
 delightful child since the immortal Alice," according 
 to Mark Twain. 
 
 The following quotation from one of the early 
 chapters will be sufficient to give a clue to the story. 
 " Under the big branching white lilac tree was an 
 old, sagging wooden bench; and on this bench a girl 
 was sitting playing an old brown violin. Her eyes 
 were on the faraway horizon and she did not see 
 Eric. For a few moments he stood there and looked 
 at her. ... To his latest day Eric Marshall will be 
 able to recall vividly that scene as he saw it then — 
 the velvet darkness of the spruce woods, the over- 
 arching sky of soft brilliance, the swaying lilac blos- 
 soms — and amid it all the girl on the old bench with 
 the violin under her chin. . . . Her loveliness was 
 so perfect that his breath almost went from him in 
 his first delight of it. Her face was oval, marked in 
 every cameo-like line and feature with that expres- 
 sion of absolute flawless purity found in the angels 
 and Madonnas of old paintings — a purity that held 
 in it no faintest stain of earthliness. . . . There was 
 something very child-like about her and yet at least 
 eighteen sweet years must have gone to the making 
 of her." 
 
E Salter of Virginia 
 
 By G. E. Theodore Roberts, author of " Hem- 
 ming, the Adventurer," " Captain Love," etc. 
 i2mo, cloth decorative, illustrated by Louis D. 
 
 Gowing $150 
 
 Theodore Roberts is one of the younger writers of 
 to-day whom the critics have been watching with in- 
 terest, as he is a born story-teller and the possessor 
 of an unusually fine literary style. 
 
 The scene of his present story is laid in the old 
 chivalric days of colonial Virginia, although part of 
 the action takes place upon the high seas, and the 
 scene shifts for a short time to England, Spain and 
 to the unsettled parts of North America. 
 
 The story develops the boy and girl love affair of 
 the Cavalier and a typical Southern beauty, Isobel 
 Dariza. The characters are admirably drawn and the 
 reader follows with breathless interest the adventures 
 of Francis Drurie, the Cavalier, through his stirring 
 adventures on land and sea. 
 
 " A Cavalier of Virginia " is easily the finest story 
 Mr. Roberts has yet given the reading public, and 
 is assured great popular success. 
 
 " The narrative is replete, from first to last, with thrilling situations, 
 deadly dangers encountered and overcome, intrigue, treachery, the sound 
 of battle, the song of the sea, and then peace and love."— Wilming- 
 ton Every Evening. 
 
 " It is a story of engrossing interest and cleverly told." — San 
 
Cfce 3Leao of honour 
 
 By Norval Richardson 
 
 i2mo, cloth decorative, illustrated . $1.50 
 
 If this book is a criterion of what is to come, Mr. 
 Richardson will take high rank among American 
 novelists. His writing has a beauty of phrase, a 
 poetry of expression that is unusual, and joined to 
 this is directness and power. 
 
 His plot is well conceived and well executed and 
 his characters are living, breathing men and women 
 whose fortunes are followed with ever deepening in- 
 terest. 
 
 The scene of the story is Natchez, Miss., in about 
 1830, and the central character is Sargent Everett, a 
 young lawyer, in whom many will recognize a por- 
 trait of the Hon. Sargent Prentiss. Indeed many of 
 the incidents of the story are drawn from the early 
 life of that prominent statesman and silver-tongued 
 orator. 
 
 Young Everett's struggle for recognition, his final 
 success, his brilliant progress in his profession, are 
 matters of absorbing interest. His love, his hope, 
 his struggle with self, his temptation, and his renun- 
 ciation, and always his steadfast following of the 
 lead of honor, form the theme of this remarkable 
 novel. 
 
fflV Heart an* £tepfmnte 
 
 By Reginald Wright Kauffman, author of 
 " Miss Frances Baird, Detective," etc. 
 Cloth decorative, illustrated with two portraits in 
 color by A. G. Learned . . . . $1.25 
 
 A goodly tale of love and mystery, with the scenes 
 for the most part laid in New York and Paris, deal- 
 ing with the intrigues and causes celebres of the 
 Austrian Court. The story is woven around the 
 Countess Stephanie, a Polish conspirator, and con- 
 tinues also the stirring career of the American girl, 
 Frances 'Baird, the heroine of Mr. Kauffman's de- 
 tective story of that name. A novel to delight the 
 heart of every lover of fiction. 
 
 " The story goes with a fascinating rush which is most entertaining, 
 and so thoroughly imbued is the reader with the spirit of the plot that 
 he is almost sorry to end the mystery with the last chapter, even if the 
 ending is a most happy and logical one." — Boston Globe. 
 
 " Parisian life in Bohemian circles is picturesquely described, and 
 probably there has never been a better word painting of restaurant 
 gaiety than Mr. Kauffman's account of the famous ' Abbaye ' with 
 its brilliant gathering." — Philadelphia Item. 
 
 " This story is remarkable for its color and momentum." — Chicago 
 Daily News. 
 
 " A lively story, crowded with incident and leaving the reader to a 
 consideration of various dramatic happenings both in this country and 
 in Europe, is told by Mr. Kauffman in his story. The tale will hold 
 the attention closely. It is quite the best thing that Mr. Kauffman 
 has yet done." — Observer, Utica, N. Y. 
 
\ 
 
HELL-FIRE 
 HARRISON 
 
 
 W 
 
 M.111785 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY