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As the tone lowered, darkness seeht a clearer light But what the phenomenon was, Stern could not tell For the source of the faint, diffused illuh the vapor was hidden; it seelow, off there so-curtain that veiled whatever land this strange weird place ue, silent, di with bent brows, just as Dante described the lost souls in Hell peering at Virgil in the eternal night A dreaorous muscles of the pair who now had borne hi entity

"Beatrice! Beatrice!" he called "Are you all right? Don't mind about me--just look out for yourself! If they hurt you in any way, shoot!"

"I'!" He heard her voice, and then he saw the girl herself Unaided she had cla, she sought to reach him But hands held her back, and words of hard command rose from a score of lips

Stern had only time to see that she was as yet unhars that bound his feet

Then he was pushed forward, away frohostly sea up an acclivity of s stiffly, by reason of his cramped muscles, he stumbled onward, while all about hiirl, who followed--ca, pinkish eyes and pallid faces showed ghastly by the torch-glare, as,theue, they climbed the slope

Even then, even there on that unknown beach beside an uncharted sea at the bottoht with joy of his revolver which still swung on his hip

"God knoe're going to talk to these people," reflected he, "or what sort of trouble they've got ready to hand out to us But, once I get ht hand free--I'm ready for whatever comes!"