The Argosy — page 219: what you’re looking at

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

202 - Up on the Moor. But confound it all! there must be some better way out of the scrape than that. Carew will send out to look for me, of course, and some- body is bound to turn up here before very long ; I shan’t have many hours to wait.” In spite of the sanguine prediction, when night again closed in on the lonely hut Mr. Fairburn found himself obliged once more to accept the shelter of the lean-to, and the scanty accommodation it offered. Nor did the return of morning bring any sign of succour. Squire Carew and his search parties being, unfortunately, very busy dragging peat-holes on the opposite side of the moor. But when the second day, too, began to draw towards its close, and still no sign of deliver- ance, the prisoner’s patience and his hostess’s scanty store of provisions were alike exhausted by the extraordinary demands made upon them. ‘Give me out the abominations!” Mr. Fairburn at last exclaimed, in the tone of a man resolved to do or die. ‘*Give me out the abominations! I’d as soon be shot down for a runaway convict as spend another such day as this! Perhaps, as it’s getting towards gloaming, I may have the luck to reach a friendly shelter before the police pounce upon me. If not, I must just tell my tale and trust to their having a few grains of common sense in their heads.” Half an hour later a tall figure in parti-coloured raiment might have been seen in the twilight making rapid way along the little track which led from widow Trownson’s cottage down to A——. “Who goes there P—stand, or I fire!” ‘Thanks! On the whole, I think I prefer standing.” And to the surprise of the mounted patrol, into whose hands he had fallen, the suspicious-looking pedestrian advanced to meet them with a very different gait from the slouch acquired in prison-yards. Naturally they suspected a ruse, and kept him well covered with their rifles. ‘“‘J assure you,” went on the stranger, ‘‘ I am quite rejoiced to meet you, for I was just beginning to fear I had lost my way yet once more on this delightful moor of yours. Besides, Jam sure to fare better in the hands of intelligent officers like yourselves than if any of the yokels had chanced to catch sight of me first.” ‘““'That’s very fine talk, my man, no doubt,” said the senior constable, grimly, ‘‘ but you don’t catch old birds with chaff, you know; so we'll just trouble you to walk here between us down to A , and give account of yourself to Inspector Fox. I needn’t warn you to be up to no tricks—you'll not be such a fool as to try them on with two armed and mounted men beside you.” lortunately for the captive “ the shades of night ” were falling very fast when the little procession entered the quiet country town, and they reached the police-station almost unobserved. Here they found the inspector engaged in drawing up a report, but he rose hastily at the appearance of the patrol. ‘Well done, Burton! So you’ve got the fellow after all! There CONMICLOOOKS.(e©)