Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1848-04-28

| instantly retired as before and ], fearing |
I to interrupt the current of the adventure,
{ forebore in ANY wise to obslruct his escape. .
/ walked thus backward and forward, bun.
I die in hand, for eight or ten minutes, when
| the wicket was opened once more, aud the
woman had spoken TO already, stepped out
| into the lane and said-
"Stand back little bit, an follow US,
and don't for the life Of you drop that"
! Almost at the same time two other fg.
/ ures came forth mufled carefully as the
first, and heard a female voice from with /,
in the wicket, pouring forth. as It seemed
\ 60 me prayers, and blessings, interrupted
with sobs. The door was cautiously closed
| from the inside, and heard the key slowly
aud carefully turned in the rusty lock and
as these sounds were audible, the litlle par
" began TO move forward, while |, in ODE
dieace TO orders, brought up the rear, car
ryiRg the parcel carefully in my arms.
The person in the centre Of the three
appeared to be feeble, and to advance with
pain, and as she did so, leaned heavily upon
the OF hers.
Thus we proceeded, until we reached
the end Of this lane, and turned into anoih-
err as solitary aad ill-lighted. As the party
before me passed under the lamp at the cor
ner, one Of the women upon whom she in
the middle was leaning, exclaimed
Give me them, my jewel they ate bet
ter of where we are going"
A nd thus saying, she drew OF two or
three rings that glitIered upon the fingers
that pressed her arm. and slipped them into
her pocket This done, they relapsed into
tota silence. and, full OF curiosity for the
issrIe, followed close upon their steps.
We had now walked, though very slowly,
for nearly ten minutes. when, in dark
spot, close under broad gateway, they
stopped.
THANK God, we are so far" said one Of
the women "sit down on that my darling
for minute; !" and so saying, she laid a
shawl. which she folded up into the fashion
Of a cushion, upon the top Of one OF the
sho ri upright stones which protected the
cor ners OF the piers and upon this rude
seat the silent, and as il seemed, exhausted
hgu re, sank down. The woman who had
Just acco.ted me, now beckoned me to her,
and taking the bundle from me said:
-'Now run down there, and bring up a
chair from the stand at the second corner. y
She indicated the direction with her hand,
and l. exerting myself to the full as much
as If | had personal stake in the enter
prise, IN which thus found myself, through
sheer 'Eanlonless. actively 10, olved-ran at
my ut most speed upon the errand, and
quickly returned with the desired convey.
ance.
/ Into this. the feeble woman who had
, been resting as have described, was hur'
RED, and the chairman having received d.
rec tinns to follow the two others, and IN
5 turn to follow them, we all trndged onward
S for forty minutes and upwards, in absolute
silence.
e By this time we had penetrated consider
+. ably beyond Werburg-street, and were nov
= entering the Liberties, aud turning abruptly
: into short, dark, dilapidaIed street. the wo
: man stopped in front OF tall, dingy house
c aud after inspecting its exterior, and Inter
o changing few words, they signed TO thu
II chairmen to sit down their conveyance
,. Some one had probably been watching 70
III ats arrival from one Of the many dark win
!. .dows which overlooked the street, for sh
l. who had sat in il was hardly disengage'
n from the chair. when the hall door wa
IT steadily opened, aud grimy, suspicion
d looking girl, with a wrelched candle il
Ie one hand, and shading her eyes with tn
IS other, peeped out,
n, give me that" said the woman who hat
at spoken TO me and who seemed to have com
,e Gnand OF the expedition, at the same tim
ty entering, and taking the candle from heI
as while she drew the door fully open.
H. IAN right ?" she added inquiringly, glanc
w ing significantly upwards.
a "Ay, everything" rejoined the otheI
as sleepily, at the same time the other two W.
IS, men entered and passed silently on toward
a the stairs.
IT. ''Pay the men, now, and come in you
an self" added the woman addressing me.
i. fortunately had about me enough TO satsi
re the chairmen. which, as it seemed, was IN
m province to do, and, having dismissed then
us followed my conductress into the hous
m, and surrendered the bundle into her hand
as She turned the key in the hall door, an
Ter beckoned me into dilapidated wainsco,e
/ a backroom, on the window.sill Of which 81
CHI placed the dip candle, which faintly llghte
us this nhosptable apartment, and pointing
nat the only piece of furniture that gnrnish'
rus its walls, a solitary, clumsy chair, Plac'
TO there, ! supposed in anticipation OF my
in rival, she said
lis "Wait there, my good man, I'LL con
the back by.and.by and you know the resi-"
wn As she spoke to me, for the first lin
'ss' saw her counlenance, which was about
ugly aud sinister a one as ever behel'
very nearly resembling the lineamenls us
for ally ascribed in fairy tales, and other sn
adj authentic records, to witches oil the NAL
ear nant kind yellow skin, hooked nose,
yht wide mouth, with few carious langs,
marvellous prominence of chin, gave
the ditional effect to pair Of eyes, whose her
and ral-like yiyaciiy seemed scarcely rect
net, ciabe with the evident antiquity oil
Iak- features; and though her head was son
inr- what sunk upon her chest, yet her orlg'
why activity seemed TO have suffered lit
us abatement from years This woman's COZ
ienance, ! confess, impressed me most
,un, iavorably with respect TO the object OF tn
ling arrangements and could not help en'
e a tanning vague and unpleasant suspicion
true medilaied fonl-play, and Impending q
# thta III. lnNnFp1