The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1849-05-01
sah THE DOG, III ann
WHO wAs,Too,FAITHFuL FOR HIS,
uu53t MASTER. DIR
BY WNl. WItiTGORp.

Bf Whi. 'WIiTGOKU. r-'.'
In the bleakest and most barren por-
ton of the County of Derbyshirc, Eng
land, there lived long time ago, man
and his wife of the name Of Pollard. -
The former was a keeper of the Turn
pike-gate, and he had only been, mar.
ried some two or three months, when
the circumstances occurred of which VIC
are about to write. The small Toll.
House in which he lived, was situated
at point, where the roads meet, and
in a place where the scenery was singu-
larly wild aud dreary. 1t stood in a
deer hollow formed by two chains Of
high hills, whose sides were covered with
naught but continuous surface of dark
brown heath, or occasional bushes of
prickly gorse. Not another house was
to be seen for miles, and the only cvi-
dcnce of life were in the few filocks of
sheep, which were here and there brow
sing along the mountains sides; or the
mail coach, and few carriers wagons
which at wide intervals passed along
the road. The only person who ever
raid visit to the Toll House was a
butcher named Gonfrcy, who called on
each Saturday for the purpose Of sup
plying the Pollards with fresh meats.
Mr.. Pollard had lived iii his present
abode during several years previous to
his marriage; and being of very cour-
agcous disposition, and having become
accustomed to the loneliness Of his
place Of residence, he was not much af.
fcctcd thereby; but his wife, who had
ever been accustomed to living in
populous town, and being withal of
very timid nature, and now lived in
constant state of alarm and dread; more
particularly whenever her husband paid
a visit to the nci yhboring town for such
nccessarics as they required. And
what tended to increase this feeling of
alarm to a still greater extent that part
of the country was at that time infested
by band of lawlcss men, who almost
nightly robbed and murdered some un-
fortunate traveller, or broke into and
plundercd some lono farmhouse, nor
could the utmost vigilance of the author
tiles succeed in detecting them. Of
these men she lived in daily dread, lest
they discovering that her husband was
possessed ola large sum of money-thc
saving of former ycars-sh should seize an
opportunity when he was from home,
and murder her to obtain it.
She frequently pressed her husband
to give up his situation, and remove to
some other place Of abode, but he in
variably laughed al her fears. assuring
her that there was not the least danger,
as none but themselves were aware OF
the fact of his possessing the money i'll
question. One day in December, lie
received letter informing him that his
father was lying at the point Of death,
and who earnestly wished to see him be-
fore that event took Place. This letter
gave him great uneasincss; for, apart
from the grief it occasioned at his IA
theirs situation, if he went he could not
possibly return before the following day,
as his parents residence was more than
thirty miles distant, and his wife would
be obliged to stay and take care of the
"gatc." lie must 80 howcvcr--l,c
could not refuse his fathers dy ing re-
quest. When he impaired his inten-
ton to his wife, she was seized with the
utmost terror, earnestly cntreatcd hun
to forego his resolution; nor was it un-
til after long time, during which he
had used the most strenuous cndeav-
ors to sooth her and to calm her fears,
that he could venture to proceed Oh lis
journey.
1t was SATURDAY, ..orning when he
started, and one oi the drcaricst days
of the season. The snow lay thick OF.
the ground, and still continued to fall
heavily, causing the face of the sur.
rounding scene to look more wild and
lonely than ever. AS Mrs. Pollard sat
in the sluall front apartment of the
house, her fears gradually increased
moro and more, as her ina .ination con
jurcd upa thousand dread forcbodings
and almost fancied that each sound of
the wind whistling through the valley,
was some one even now about to break
into the place. Time sped, when at
length, as Gonfrcy the butcher ap-
proachcd, her terror had attained to
such a height that she determined to
ask him to stay in the house with her,
until her husbands return.
This Gonfrey was tall, powerfully
built man, about forty five or fifty years