Des Moines courier. ([Ottumwa] Iowa) 1848-1854, 1851-05-23

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riverside he stopped down, and hastily
fastened on a pair of skates, which he
had carried in his pocket for the last
few days TO be ready for any extraordi-
nary emergency; and then taking the ice,
skinned over the frozen stream with
the swiflness of the wind.
HAS nobody pair of skates!" shout
ed Col. Turk, striking his forehead with
gesture of wrath and yexa,ion.
81 have,' answered one of the mob;
"but shall certainly not try them ON the
ice such night as this" ~ m
"Be quick-give them 10 mel" exs
claimed Turk, in tone of fiery impa-
tience .A
The skates were produced, the eager
Colonel tied them on; and then swear
ing dreadful oath that he would bring
back the preachers scalp or leave his
own, he began The perilous chase. Oh!
there is no daring like the courage nspi-
red by the passion for revenge!
In the meanwhile, Mills had approach
ed the farther shore, when he discovered
the startling apparilion of armed men on
the bank. He knew at glance what it
meant. The mob, to prevent any of
the Mormons from escaping. had sta
toned guard beyond the river. He
instantly turned his course down the
stream, when whole platoon let of
their rifles, but The distance was too con.
siderable. A hail of bullets ratified a.
round him on the ice without injury
IL will foil the fiends yet" he said to
himself, and put forth all his speed
Mills flew away, when he became con-
scious that some one was pursuing him.
He slackened his velocity. and gradually
wheeled about to obtain view of his
enemy. But the latter was still too re-
mote for an accurate survey, and the
Mormon uttered aloud a mad prayer
"God grant me that it may be Col. Turk,
and | am willing to die!''
On rushed the pursuer-on, still on,
like an avalanche. The noise Of his iron
skates could be heard above the roar of
the northern blast, and his dark form
l"oned in the glittering moonbeams,
large in stature as giant. As he drew
nearer, the young preacher smiled yeno-
mously. He recognized the arch perse-
cutter, Col Turk, and he laughed out:
right laugh that rung over the frozen
river like the wild scott of some demon,
when he saw the other unsheatb his
cleaning knife. Mills then immediate
ly pulled his own from its scabbard, and
started off, so as to avoid the coming
shoch, which might otherwise prove fi-
tai, by the mere force of the collision of
both. .... .. ... .r.. ....ff
And then began series of rapid and
cunning revolutions to secure the advan-
tage in this new mode of combat, the
most terrible ever conceived. They
marked the smooth surface of the ice
with circles, eclipses, angles, squares,
parallelograms, and almost every possi-
bic figure of plain geometry; but each
seemed perfect skater, and could not
find the other at fault, or take him un-
prepared. They passed repeatedly with
in three feet of each other, and made
quick thrusts which pierced to the bone!
And still the cold grew more intense,
and the wrathful wind howled on, while
their manGuvers had somehow carried
them farther down the river, where the
crusted ice was thinner, and cracked
fearfully beneath their tread.
Finally the Mormon took the desper-
ate resolve to terminate the strife by sac
raficing his own life so as to make cure
of that of his foe at the same time. In
the following rush, he no longer turned
aside to avoid direct collisions, and frus-
trated the attempt of the lyncher to that
end by swerving slightly inwards from
right line.
They met at full speed, and the shock
was like that Of the crush OF adverse
comets. AT the moment OF their fall
the quaking ice split beneath their weight,
with deafening roar, and the wild wat
ers, boiling and kissing like hell, swal-
lowed them forever--the prosecutor and
his victim, both victims now!
But the river still rolled ON Its way to
the sea; the stars all shone as bright and
as beautiful as of old in the morning of
creation, when the angels of God chan
ted their birth song; and the wrathful
wind of winter howled on over the icy
graves of the enemies 40 more!