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- ' ' ' ' '. : ' " ' - . , i . w . - - *. V ISSUED TWIOB-A-WBBK?WBDNH8DAT AND SATURDAY. l. k. orist 4 sons, PubUshem. } % ^amilg gewsgsger: 4?r 111? promotion of thij political, JSoqial, g-gricultunal and (%omtnet;cial Interests nf tht; JSoufh. )T LSco" Scra VOLUME 43. YORKVILLE, S. C., SATURDAY, APBIL 3, 1897. NUMBER 87. THE GREA1 TRAIh BY PAUL LEI( Copyright, 1896, by J. B. Ljppincott Comj Synopsis of Previous Installments. In order that new readereof The En qotrer may begin witn tne iouowing installment of this story, and understand it just the same as though they had read it k all from the beginning, we here give a synopsis of that portion of it which has already been published: Chapter I.?Dick Gordon, Yale graduate, goes in for hard work. Prom the Chicago and Alton railroad repair shops he is gradually promoted and finally works up to the position of superintendent of a western railroad?the Kansas and Arizona. The story opens with an account of a trip by rail of Mr. Cullen, a railroad vice president, over the lines of the K. and A. Gordon is asked to meet Cullen and party and pilot them through. In the party are Madge Cullen, with whom Gordon falls in love ; Lord Ralles, an Englishman, in love with Madge, and Captain Ackland, brother of Lord Ralles. Talk turns on train robbers. Madge would like an adventure with hold ups. So would Ralles and Ackland. While horseback riding near Santa Fe, Gordon points out among convicts working on a railroad grade Jack Drute, a train robber under a 14 year sentence. Madge speaks to the convict, who answers gruffly. nTT *VQpftT iu imnoH hv V>UAriAZ\ XX.?-XUU *w? ju.mvv. Madge's invalid brother. On a special | train all go on westward. While Mr. Cullen, his elder son and the two Englishmen play poker aud Gordon and Madge enjoy the moonlight on the rear car the train is held up by bandits. CHAPTER IH. \ A night's work on the alkali plains. I hurried Miss Cullen into the car, and, after bolting the rear door, took down my Winchester from its rack. "I'm going forward," I told her, "and will tell my boys to bolt the front door; so you'll be as safe in here as in Chicago " In another minute I was on my front platform. Dropping down between the two cars, I crept along beside?indeed half under?Mr. Cullen's special After my previous conclusion, my surprise can be judged when at the farther end I found the two Britishers and Albert Cullen standing there, in the most exposed position possible. I joined them, muttering to myself something about Providenoe and fools. "Aw," drawled Cullen, "here's Mr. Gordon, just too late for the sport, by Jove." " wen,-" Biuu uuru xvtviie-ts wo vo had a hand in this deal, Mr. Superintendent, and haven't been potted. The scoundrels broke for cover the moment we opened fire." By this time there were 20 passengers about our group, all of them askr ing questions at once, making it difficult to learn just what had happened, but so far as I could piece the answers together the poker players' curiosity had been aroused by the long stop, and, looking out, they had seen a single man, with a rifle, standing by the engine. Instantly arming themselves, Lord Ralles let fly both barrels at him, and in turn was the target for the first four shots I had heard. The shooting had brought the rest of the robbers tumbling off the cars, and the captain and Cullen had fired the rest of the shots at them as they scattered. I didn't stop to hear more, but went forward to see what the road agents had got away with. I found the express agent tied hand and foot in the corner of his car, and, telling a brakeman who had followed me to set him at liberty, I turned my attention to the safe. That the diversion had not come a moment too soon was shown by the dynamite cartridge already in place and by the fuse that lay on the floor, as if dropped suddenly. But the safe was intact Passing into the mail car. I found the clerk tied to a post, with a mail sack pulled over his head, and the utmost confusion among the pouches and sorting compartments, while scattered over the floor were a great many letters. Setting him at liberty, I asked him if he could tell whether mail had been taken, and, after a glance at the confusion, he said he could not know till he had examined. Having taken stock of the harm done, I began asking questions. Just after we had left Sanders two masked men had entered the mail car and while one covered the clerk with a revolver the other had tied and "sacked" him. Two more had gone forward and done the same to the express agent. Another had climbed over the tender and ordered the runner to hold up. All this was the regular programme, as I had explained to Miss lmm n rnriafiAti which I had never heard of being done and of which I couldn't fathom the object. When the train had been stopped, the man on tho tender had ordered the fireman to dump his fire, and now it was lying in the roadbed and threatening to burn through the ties, so my first order was to extinguish it and my second was to start a new fire and get up steam as quickly jks possible. From all I could learn there were eight men concerned in the attempt, and I confess I shook my head in puzzlement why that number should have allowed themselves to be scared off so easily. My wonderment grew when I called on the conductor for his tickets. These showed nothing but two from Albuquerque, one from Laguna and four from Coolidge. This latter would have looked hopeful but for the fact that it was a party of three women and a man. Going back beyond Laniy didn't give "K.&A. ; I ROBBERY.; N 1 :ester ford. j ?ny. ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ I found the express agent tied hand and' foot. ( anything, for the conductor was able to . account for every fare as either still in the train or as having got off at some ( point My only conclusion was that the robbers had sneaked on to the platforms J at Sanders, and I gave the crew a good , dressing down for their carelessness. Of course they insisted it was impossible, but they were bound to do that. ( Going back to 97, I got my telegraph Instrument, though I thought it a waste if time, the road agents being always ( taraful to break the lines. I told a Brakeman to climb the pole and cut a wire. While he was struggling up, Miss Cullen joined me. "Do you really expect to catch them?" she asked. "I shouldn't like to be one of them," I replied. "But how can you do it?" "You could understand better, Miss Cullen, if you knew this country. You I see every bit of water is in use by J ranches, and those fellows can't go more 1 than 50 miles without watering. So we 1 shall have word of them, wherever they ' go." 1 "Line cut, Mr. Gordon," came from , overhead at this point, making Miss ' Cullen juihp with surprise. "What was that?" she asked. I explained to her, and, after making ! connections, I called Sanders. Much to ' my surprise, the agent responded. I was so astonished that for a moment I : could not believe the fact. 4 'This is the queerest hold up of which ' I ever heard," I said to Miss Cullen. "Aw, in what respect" asked Albert J Cnllen's voice, and, looking up, I found ' that he and quite a number of the passengers had joined us. "The road agents.make us dump our fire," I said, "and yet they haven't cut the wires in either direction. I can't see j how they can escape us." "What fun!" cried Miss Cullen. "I don't sec what difference either makes in their chance of escaping,'' said Lord Rallea While he was speaking I ticked off the news of our being held up and asked the agent if there had been any men about Sanders, or if he had seen any one board the train there. His answer was positive that no one could have done so, ( and that settled it as to Sanders. I asked ^ the some questions of Allan town and ( Wingate, which were the only places we had stopped at after leaving Coolidge, getting the same answers. That eight men could have remained concealed on any of the platforms from that point was impossible, and I began to suspect magic. Then I called Coolidge and told , of the hold up, after which I telegraphed the agent at Navajo Springs to notify the commander at Fort Defiance, for I i suspected the road agents would make for the Navajo reservation. Finally I j called Flagstaff as I had Coolidge, di- ; rected that the authorities be notified of ] the facts and ordered a special to bring out the sheriff and posse. "I don't think," said Miss Cullen, "that I am a bit more curious than most i people, but it has nearly made me frantic to have you tick away on that little machine and hear it tick back and not understand a word." ; After that I had to tell her what I had said and learned "How clever of you to think of counting the tickets and finding out where people got on and off! I never should have thought of either," she said. "It hasn't helped me much," I laugh- < ed rather grimly, 4 'except to eliminate every possible clew." J "TVinir rkmhaKlxr rlirl steal on at one of the stops,'' said a passenger. I shook my head. "There isn't a stick of timber nor a place of concealment on j theso alkali plains," I replied, "and it i was bright moonlight till an hour ago. It would be hard enough for one man to get within a mile of tho station without being seen, and it would be impossible for seven or eight." "How do you know the number?" asked a passenger. "I don't," I said. "That's the number tho crew think there were, but I myself don't believe it." "Why don't you believe the men?" asked Miss Cullen. "First, bccauso (hero ia always a tendsncy to magnify, and, next, because she road agents ran away so quickly." "I counted at least seven," said Lord Etalles. "Well, Lord Ralles," I said, "I don't svant to dispute your eyesight, but if they had been that strong they would aever have bolted, and if you want to lay a bottle of wine I'll wager that svhen I catch those chaps we'll find there sveren't more than three or four of them." "Done!" said he. r 1? ? T ^omii fn I i^eavmg uio gruup, x wcuu lumwu jet the report of the mail agent He had pat things to rights and told me that, though the mail had been pretty badly mixed up, only one pouch at worst had been rifled. This, the one for registered mail, had been cut open; but, as if to increase the mysteiy, the letters had been scattered, unopened, about the car, Dnly three out of the whole being missing, and those very probably had fallen into the pigeonholes and would be found on a more careful search. I confess I breathed easier to think that the road, agents had got away with nothing, and was so pleased that I went back to the wire to send the news of it that the fact might be included in the press dispatches. The moon had set, and it was so dark that I had some difficulty in finding the pole. When I found it, Miss Cullen was still standing there. What was more, a man was close beside her, and as I came up' I heard her say/ indignantly: "I will not allow it. It is unfair to take such advantage of me. Take your arm away or I shall call for help!" That was enough for ma One step carried my 160 pounds over the intervening ground, and, using the momentum of the stride to help, I put the flat of my hand against the shoulder of the man and gave him a shove. There are three or four Harvard men who can tell what that means, and they were braced for it, which this fellow wasn't He went staggering back as if struck by a oowcatcner ana ^ay aown uu uio gruuuu a good 15 feet* away. His having his arm around Miss Cullen's waist unite adied her so that she would have fallen, too, if I hadn't put my hand against her shoulder. I longed to put it about her, but by this time I wanted to do only what I thought she would wish and so restrained myself. Before I had time to finish an apology to Miss Cullen the fellow was upon his feet and came at me with an exolama-' tion of anger. In my surprise at recognizing the voice as that of Lord Bailee. [ almost neglected to take care of myself; but, though he was quick with his fists, I caught him by the wrists as he closed, and he had no chance after that against a fellow of my weight. "Oh, don't quarrel!" cried Miss Cullen. Holding him, I said, "Lord Ralles, I overheard what Miss Cullen was saying, and supposing some man was insulting her I acted as I did." Then I let go of him and, turning, said, "I am very sor ry, Miss Cnllen, if I did anything the sircumstances did not warrant," while inrsing myself for my precipitancy and for not thinking that Miss Cnllen would never have been caught in such a plight with a man unless she had been half willing, for a girl does not merely threaten to call for help if she really wants aidLord Ralles wasn't much mollified by my explanation. "You're too much in a hurry, my man," he growled, speaking to me as if I were a servant. "Be a bit more careful in the future." I think I should have retorted?for his manner was enough to make a saint mad?if Miss Cnllen hadn't spoken. "You tried to help me, Mr. Cordon, and I am deeply grateful for that," she said. The words look simple enough set clown here. But the tone in which she said them and the extended hand and the grateful little squeeze she gave my fingers all seemed to express so much that I was more puzzled over them than [ was over the robbery. CHAPTER IV. BOME RATHER QUEER ROAD AGENTS. "You had better come back to the car, Miss Cnllen," remarked Lord Ralles after a pause. But she declined to do eo, saying she wanted to know what I was going to telegraph. And he left us, for which I wasn't sorry. I told her of the good news I had to send, and she wanted to know if now we would try to catch the road agents. I set her mind at rest on that score. "I think they'll give us very little trouble to bag," I added, "for they are so green that it's almost pitiful." "in not cutting rne wires? suo iukoi. "In everything," I replied. "But the worst botch is their waiting till we had just passed the Arizona line. If they had held us up an hour earlier, it would only have been state's prison." "And what will it be now?" "Hanging." " What?" cried Miss Cullen. "In New Mexico train robbing is not capital, but in Arizona it is," I told her. "And if you catch them they'll be hung?" she asked. "Yes." "That seems very hard." The first signs of dawn were beginning to show by this time, and as tho Bky brightened I told Miss Cullen that I was going to look for the trail of the fugitives. She said she would walk with me, if uot in the way, and my assurance was very positive on that point. And hero I want to remark that it's saying a good deal if a girl can be up all night in such excitement and still look fresh and pretty, and that she did. I ordered the crew to look about, and then began a big circle around the train. Finding nothing, I swung a bigger one. That being equally unavailing, I did a i larger third. T7ot a trace , of foot or hoof within a half mile of the cars! I had heard of blankets laid down to conceal a trail of swathed feet, even of leathern horse boots with cattle hoofs on the bottom, but none of those could have been used for such a distance, let alone the entire absence of any signs of a place where the horses had been hobbled. Returning to the train, the report of the men was the same. "We've ghost road agents to deal with, Miss Cullen,"I laughed. "They come from nowhere, bullets touch them not, their lead hurts nobody, they take nothing, and they disappear without touching the ground." "How curious it is!" she exclaimed. "One would almost suppose it a dream." "Hold on," I said. "Wedohavesomething tangible, for if they disappeared they left their shells behind them." And I pointed to some cartridge shells that lay on the ground beside the mail car. "My theory of aerial bullets won't do." "The shells are as hollow as I feel," laughed Miss Cullen. "Your suggestion reminds me that I am desperately hungry," I said. ' 'Suppose we go back and end the famine." Most of the passengers had long since returned to their seats or berths, and Mr. Cullen's party had apparently done the same, for 218 showed no signs of life. One of my darkies was awake, and he broiled a steak and made us some coffee in no time, and just as they were ready Albert Cullen appeared. So we made a very jolly little breakfast." He told me at length the part he and the Britishers had borne and only made me marvel the more that any one of them was alive, for apparently they had jumped off the car without the slightest precaution and had stood grouped together even after they had called attention to themselves by Lord Bailee' shots. Cullen had to confess that he heard the whistle of the four bullets unpleasantly close. "You have a right to be proud, Mr. Cullen," I said. "You fellows did a tremendously plucky thing, and, thanks to you, we didn't lose anything." "But you went to help, too, Mr. Gordon." said Miss Cullen. That made me color up, and after a moment's hesitation I said: ' 'I'm not going to sail under false eolors, Miss Cullen. When I went forward, I didn't think I could do anything. I supposed whoever had pitched into the robbers was dead, and I expected to be the same inside of ten minutes." "Then why did you risk your life," she asked, ' 'if you thought it was uselees?" I laughed, and, though ashamed to tell it, said, "I didn't want you to think that the Britishers had more pluck than I had." She took my confession better than I hoped she would, laughing with me, and then said, "Well, that was courageous, after alL" "Yes," Isaid. "I was frightened into bravery." "Perhaps if they had known the danger as well as you, they would have been less courageous," she continued. And I could have blessed her for the speech. While we were still - eating, the mail Clerk came to my car and reported that the most careful search had failed to discover the three registered letters, and they had evidently been taken. This made me feel sober, slight as the probable loss was. He told me that his list showed they were all addressed to Ash Forks, A. T., making it improbable that their contents could be of any real value. If possible, I was more puzzled than ever. At 0:10 the runner whistled to show he had ste:im up. I told one of the brakemen to stay behind and then went I So we made a very jolly little breakfast. into 218. Mr. Culleu was still dressing, but I expressed my 'regrets through the door that I could not go with his party to the Grand canyon; told, him that all the stage arrangements had been completed and promised to join him there in case my luck was good. Then I saw Frederic for a moment to see how he was (for I had nearly forgotten him in the excitement), to find that he was gaining all the time and preparing even to get up. When I returned to the saloon, the rest of the party were there, and I said goodby to the captain and Albert. Then I turned to Lord Ralles, and, holding out my hand, said: "Lord Ralles, I joked a little the other morning about the way you thought road agents ought to be treated. You have turned the joke very neatly and pluckily, and I want to apologize for myself and thank you for the railroad." "Neither is necessaiy," he said air- J ily, pretending not to see my hand. I never claimed to have a good temper, and it was all I could do to hold myself in. I turned to Miss Cullen to wish her a pleasant trip, and the thought that this might be onr last meeting made me forget even Lord Rallea "I hope it isn't goodby, but only an revoir," she said. "Whether or no, yon must let ns see yon some time in Chicago, so that I may show you how grateful I am for all the pleasure yon have added to our trip." Then, as I stepped down off my platform, she leaned over the rail of 218 and said in a low voice, "I thought yon were just as bravo as the rest, Mr. Gordon, and now I think yon are braver." I turned impulsively and said, "Yon would think so, Miss Cullen, if yon knew the sacrifice 1 am making." Then, without looking at her, I gave the signal, the bell rang, and No. 8 pulled off. The last thing I saw was a handkerchief tt*nttitifr nfP t ha rvl nf 0*1 ft When the train dropped out of sight over a grade, I swallowed the lump in my throat and went to the telegraph instrument I wired Coolidge to give the alarm to Fort Wingate, Fort Apache, Fort Thomas, Fort Grant -Fort Bayard and Fort Whipple, though I thought the precaution a mere waste of energy. Then I sent the brakeman up to connect the cut wire. "Two of the bullets struck up here, Mr. Gordon," the man called from the top of the pole. "Surely not!" I exclaimed. "Yes, sir," he responded. "The bullet holes are brand new." I took in the lay of the land, the embers of the fire showing me how the train had lain. "I don'twonder nobody was hit," I exclaimed,1 'if that's a sample of their shooting. Some one was a worse rattled man than I ever expect to be. Dig the bullets out, Douglas, so that we can have a look at them." He brought them down in a minute. They proved to be Winchesters, as I had expected, for they were on the side from -which the robbers must have fired. "That chap must have been full of Arizona tanglefoot to have fired as wild na V>? did." T pin/ml a ted and walked over to where the mail car had stood to see just how bad the shooting was. When I got there and faced aboutr, it was really impossible to believe any man could have done so badly, for raising my own Winchester to the pole put it 20 degrees out of range and nearly 40 degrees in the air. Tet there were the cartridge shells on the ground to show that I was in the place from which the shots had been fired. While I was still cogitating over this the special train I had ordered out from Flagstaff came in sight and in a few moments was stopped where I was. It consisted of a string of three flats and a box car and brought the sheriff, a dozen cowboys whom he had sworn in as deputies and their horses. I was hopeful that with these fellows' greater skill in such matters they could find what I had not, but after a thorough examination of the ground within a mile of the robbery they were as much at fault as I had been. "Them cusses must have a dugout n An 1 r\ vj ' + 'Q ' CT(~\t JLUgli ttUUUlO, 1V1 W1CJ V/Uiuuu v u Q<>v away without wings,".the sheriff surmised. I didn't put much stock in that idea and told the sheriff so. "Waal, round up a better one," was his retort. Not being able to do that, I told him of the bullets in the telegraph pole and took him over to where the mail car had stood. "Jerusalem crickets!" was his comment as he measured the aim. '' If that's where they put two of their pills, they must have pumped the other four inter the moon." "What other four?" I asked. "Shots!" he replied sententiously. "The road agents only fired four times," I told him. "Them and your pards must have beeu pretty nigh together for a minute,' then," he said, pointing to the ground. I glanced down, and, sure enough, there were six empty cartridge shells. I stood looking blankly at them, hardly able to believe what I saw, for Albert Cullen hud said distinctly that the train robbers had fired only four times, and that the lust three Winchester shots I had heard had been fired by himself. Then, without speaking, I walked slowly back, searching along the edge of the roadbed for more shells; but, though I went beyond the point where the last car had stood, not one did I find. Any man who has fired a Winchester knows that it drops its empty shell in loading, and I could therefore draw only one conclusion?namely, that all seven discharges of the Winchesters had occurred up by the mail car. I had heard of men supposing they had fired their guns through hearing another gooff, but with a repeating rifle one has to fire before I one can reload. The fact was evident that Albert Calleu either had fired his Winchester up by the mail car or else had not fired it at all In either case he had lied, and Lord Ralles and Captain Ackland had backed him up in it. TO BE CONTINUED. Maceo'8 Successor Captured.? A telegram of Monday from Havana, tells of an engagement that occurred in Cuba on Sunday with important results. A large force of Spaniards encountered about 100 insurgents. The insurgents were unable to retreat, and there was hot fighting for about an hour, when the insurgents dispersed as best they could ; leaving 10 killed and a number of wounded on the field. Among the wounded was General Ruiz Rivera, who succeeded to the command of the forces in Pinar del Rio on the death of General Maceo. General Rivera was taken to the prison at San Cristobal, where he is likely to have a hard time of it. He may be put to death. INVALIDS AND VISITORS. When a patient is very ill, as a rule be desires, above all things, to be let alone and not worried. It is an easy matter to be overzealous in one's attentions to tbe sick, and to force one's presence upon tbem, in season and out of season, may display a sympathetic nature, but it displays also very poor judgment. Indeed, it sometimes happens that overzealous people actually rendet, by their want of tact, tbe discomfort of illness more grievous than it need be. Their well-meant attentions area source of annoyance to tbe physician, and of worry to the patient; yet their efforts are so obviously prompted by kindly motives that every one shuns the ungracious task of pointing out bow far they fall short of their aim. No one should think for a moment oi.entering me sick room uuieew put* ticularly requested to do so, and usually the exercise of one's judgment, . wbeu so admitted, will quickly determine whether or not the visit should be cut short. No one likes to inform a visitor that his or her presence is harmful to the patient. Nevertheless, it is sometimes, for the patient's sake, absolutely necessary to do this. Unfortunately, there are people who regard it as a personal affront to be told that the doctor has forbidden the ' admission of visitors into the sick room. They somehow feel that their efforts have been snubbed, and that some hidden motive has prompted the order. Persons suffering from chronic disease, or who are only partially indisposed, may generally receive an almost unlimited amount of attention without barm. To such, indeed, a pleasant call from a friend, involving harmless and cheerful gossip, often means a period of self-forgetfulness and a buoying up of spirits that is not only enjoyable, but health-giving. Books, flowers and fruit are nearly al 1 j i : 1: j ways weicutubu uj uu luvnuu, bo iuuvu for the sake qf the kindly thought as for the gifts themselves. Shut out, to a great extent, from outside interests, one appreciates such consideration from one's friends and relatives.? Philadelphia Ledger. . / . The Fear of Thundee.?"Electric storms are far less dangerous than the majority of people imagine," writes , Edward W. Bok in The Ladied' Home Journal. "That a severe lightning storm is terrifying admits of no question, and will sometimes bring uneasiness to the heart of the strongest man. But the real danger is slight. The ' chance of lightning striking a house, for example, is not one in a million. Particularly is this true in cities, strung as most of them are with electric wires. The greater danger from electric storms is in the country, and even there the danger may be lessened if the simplest and most common-sense of precautions are exercised. The surest electric conductor is a draught, and if, when a thunderstorm approaches, it is seen that all windows and doors liable to occasion a draught are kept closed, the danger is at once reduced to a minimum. If a woman is "caught" out in a thunderstorm the safest shelter is a house; the most dangerous a tree, particularly an oak tree. It is a peculiar, but nevertheless a proven, fact, that the oak is the most susceptible of all trees to a current of electricity. Over fifty per cent, of trees struck by lightning storms during one summer, the government statician tells us, were oaks, while the beech tree was the least harmed. Therefore, the worst possible place of shelter in an electric storm is under an oak tree, while by oil n/lilo tV>o aafoat nlnPM in in a hntisft ( 1A UUUOj WUV UMtvuv - ? .. ? and out of a draught. * * The actual danger (from an electric storm) is, in truth, not from the lightning nor the thunder, but from the nervous condition into which women allow themselves to fall. And this is a danger which they can avoid. A little calm thought and a few grains of commonsense will do it." Justifiable Elation.?The Washington "Star" chronicles the fact that a somewhat elderly gentleman entered his own bouse one day last autumn with such a.ldbk of self-satisfaction upon his countenance that bis wife was at once struck by it; and like a faithful spouse, she proceeded to put him on his guard. "Richard," she said, "I hope you have not forgotten that pride goeth before a fall. "My dear," was the reply, "I am perfectly familiar with that admonition. . And I have reason to fear that in my case it applies in a litteral as well as in a figurative sense. But I can't help it." "You are not usually this way." "I know it. When I was graduated at the head of my class in college I u-n? as meek and modest as the last man on the list. When I was elected to office and ran away ahead of my ticket, I could have defied anybody to accuse me of showing the least elation. When I won my first big lawsuit, I endeavored to bear success with the same philosophy which I should have felt was proper in defeat. When I got my picture in the paper as a leading citizen in my community, I could have defied any of my old-time friends to detect the slightest difference in my behavior. "But this case is difference. I hope you'll bear with me, but I've just ridden my bycycle three times round the block without falling off', and I just can't help putting on airs." <r