Army and Navy Weekly — page 30: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

(akaxa =| =— -_ gies Lil Om By William Marray Graydon Author of “A Legacy of Peril,” etc., etc, (“IN FORBIDDEN NEPAUL” was commenced in No. 15. Back numbers can be obtained from all newsdealers.) CHAPTER XXVI. A CLEVER TRICK. The leopard, confronted thus unexpectedly by the possibility of freedom, seized the chance as swiftly as its liberator could have wished, and before any one discovered what had been done. While the gate still quivered and creaked on its hinges, the beautiful crea- ture bounded lightly from the cage, disregarding the close presence of Hawksmoor and Nigel. Instantly, with a cry that was half snarl and half roar, it made a second spring toward the middle of the court, pounc- ing on one of a group of passing natives, and bearing the luckless man to the floor. ‘é The scene of confusion and terror that followed ex- ceeded Hawksnioor’s most sanguine expectations, and indeed he feared at first that the whirlwind he had let loose might result disastrously to himself and his com- panion. There was no warning. The first intimation of . the peril was the roar of the leopard—the scream of its prostrate victim. Those nearest the spot made no effort to rescue the man, but fled with the rest. In a moment the court was given over to the wildest excitement and panic, and the disguised Englishmen were quite forgotten. With hoarse clamor and yells of fright, the natives fled in whatever direction chance guided their footsteps—some to the main exit, some towards the narrow. passages at the side—while others lost their heads and darted aimlessly to and fro. And ‘the priests, mixed up in the throng, were not the least terrified. The Thibetan mastitfs,straining hard at their chains, added to the general din by loud and savage barking. The nabob’s elephant trumpeted furiously, and in the outer court, where the alarm and confusion had instantly spread, the horses were galloping madly about at risk of life and limb. In the meantime, while the panic held sway, the Englishmen lurked for a moment or two by the empty cage, waiting for an opportunity better than they had yet been offered. And their chance was not long de- layed. Simultaneously one of the mastiff broke loose and made for the leopard, and the elephant took it into his head to stampede across the court. The bound pounced pluckily on the leopard, and they rolled snarl- ing and growling among the still-fleeing people; with shrill and angry trumpeting the big quadruped charged like a fury on the combatants, knocking down and trampling more than one helpless native who got in the way. Under such circumstances, in such a turmoil of panic and noise, the golden statue of Durgadeva itself might have been stolen from its pedestal and carried bodily off without a witness to the deed. So it was an easy matter for Hawksmoor and Nigel—the former taking the lead—to slip unobserved behind the drapery that hung in the rear of the shrine—a place of refuge which fortunately none others had thought to take advantage of. Here the fugitives found themselvesin a dimly-ht space, with bronze gatesin front of them, and on either side a small door set in the wall. Hawksmoor turned to the one on the left, and it opened readily, revealing a narrow flight of stone steps leading downward. These they descended in darkness, having closed the door tightly behind them, and at a depthof perhaps twenty feet they came to a second door. This, which they were also careful to close, let them into a passage several yards wide, faintly lighted at intervals by tiny slits high overhead. They had now barred out all sound from the Court of the Shrine, and with a feeling of re- lief that was intensely welcome after the recent strain, they pushed aimlessly abead through the underground solitude and silence. ‘We are in luck, and no mistake!’’ Nigel said, final- ly. ‘‘Jove, what a pinch we had of it! It was your quick wit that pulled us through, Hawksmoor. They will have some lively tires up above before Mr. Leop- ard is safely tucked away in his cage again. And I would give a good bit to see the faces of Pershad Singh. and that old scoundrel Vashtu when they find that we are not in the net! What do you suppose they will do?’’ ‘¢They?ll probably hit on the truth,’? Hawksmoor re- plied, grimly, ‘‘and be following us up in the course of an hour or so.”’ ‘‘Heaven forbid!’’ muttered Nigel. ‘‘But don’t you think it more likely that they will conclude we changed our minds about entering the monastery—at least, on the first day of the offerings—and are still hiding amoung the meuntains?’’ ‘‘No, I don’t, Davenant. I believe they will be shrewd enough to suspect that we released the leopard, and our motive for doing so; and that will mean, sooner or later, a search in this underground part of the monastery. But we’ll hope for the best; I don’t by any means despair of pulling through all right.’’ “ And of rescuing Muriel?’’ Nigel asked eagerly. ‘‘It is maddening to think how close she may be to us at this moment.’’ ‘It is extremely unlikely that Miss Brabazon’s place of confinement is anywhere in this quarter,’’ Hawks- moor interrupted, ‘‘and at present I am not thinking of her rescue. The underground passage that Bhagwa1 Das told me about is separated from the river by a pe and if we can find the place we will not only e reasonably secure from discovery, but there is every reason to expect that Bhagwan Das will find means of joining us there to-night.’? ‘‘By Jove, that’s so!’’ exclaimed Nigel. ‘‘And he will be able to tell us where to find Muriel!”’ ‘*Very likely.’’ ’ ‘‘T hope we don’t miss the spot, then; happily there is plenty of time before evening. By the way, what do you think will be Ali Mirza’s fate?’’ ‘‘Sonmething connected with boiling oil or molten lead, or worse things—ultimately. But for the present his lite is safe enough; they will keep ‘him for purposes of identification in the event of our capture.’’ ‘‘T’m sorry for the poor devil,’’ said Nigel. ‘“Yes, I daresay they tortured him till he had to con-~ fess,’’ assented Hawksmoor. ‘‘This way, Davenant. We'll bear to the rigbt.’”’ It is needless to tell at length how the fugitives fared during the rest of that ill-begun day. Let it suffice to say that disappointment and failure steadily dogged SoCOUNM CORmiclboo