When at last he spoke it was in a tone
of voice indicative of small interest in what he was saying. His
words rambled to their goal with the effect of happy accident.
"There are places in this neighborhood in which a human being
would be as hard to find as the flag that you and Governor
Hamilton have so diligently and unsuccessfully been in quest of
for the past month or two. Really, my son, this is a mysterious
little town."
Farnsworth's eyes widened and a flush rose in his swarthy cheeks.
"Damn the flag!" he exclaimed. "Let it lie hidden forever; what do
I care? I tell you, Father Beret, that Alice Roussillon is in
extreme danger. Governor Hamilton means to put some terrible
punishment on her. He has a devil's vindictiveness. He showed it
to me clearly awhile ago."
"You showed something of the same sort to me, once upon a time, my
son."
"Yes, I did, Father Beret, and I got a load of slugs in my
shoulder for it from that brave girl's pistol. She saved your
life. Now I ask you to help me save hers; or, if not her life,
what is infinitely more, her honor."
"Her honor!" cried Father Beret, leaping to his feet so suddenly
and with such energy that the cabin shook from base to roof. "What
do you say, Captain Farnsworth? What do you mean?"
The old man was transformed. His face was terrible to see, with
its narrow, burning eyes deep under the shaggy brows, its dark
veins writhing snakelike on the temples and forehead, the
projected mouth and chin, the hard lines of the jaws, the iron-
gray gleam from all the features--he looked like an aged tiger
stiffened for a spring.
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