A Daughter of Maryland — page 70: what you’re looking at

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

A DAUGHTER OF MARYLAND. 53 Maze along the overgrown roadway distinguished from the unbroken earth by its carpet of green grass and slightly raised surface. Walled in by dense woods, the abandoned road grew fainter and darker as they advanced, until Aurian had to stop occasionally to part the intruding growth with her whip, to escape the attacks of the interlocking branches. ~ An unnatural silence hung over the scene, even the song of the river dying away to a low murmur. Once the sharp hiss from a near-by clump of hazels warned the riders of the close proximity of a venomous reptile, and immediately after a gray, sinuous form wriggled itself around an anthill and disappeared among the leaves beyond. The ruined mill stood about a mile from the main road, and Aurian was beginning to think they had taken the wrong course after all, when she caught sight of a skeleton- like structure through the trees ahead. ‘*We are almost there, S’posen!’’ she said, with a breath of relief.. ‘‘I am quite sure I can see the old Granary. ’”’ ‘*1 s’pecs’ dat am so,’’ replied her companion with a dubious shake of the head; ‘‘but I wanter tell yo’ no good am comin’ ob dis harum-darum bizness. Dem § ha’nts hain’t pussons to be meddled wiv, suah. Huh! I fot I heerd dem den. Dar! dar dey go suah! De good Lord forgib dis po’ darky fo’ follerin’ his——” ‘‘Stop your noise, you silly scarecrow,’’ warned Aurian, listening intently for a repetition of the faint sound borne to their ears. She hadn’t long to wait before it came louder and plainer than before, the unmistakable cry of a person in great agony. S’posen nearly fell from his seat, while his dusky feature grew yellow under the spell of his fright and a cold perspiration of horror broke out in huge beads all over his ebony countenance. ‘*Oh, de good Lord! how’s I goin’ to git ’way from dis drefful place wiv dat fool gal——’’ Aurian checked his cry of terror with a stroke of her oT micboo . a P » e de 7 - . _ . r ha chy re: oy ee he s,s Pee ee