Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1854-12-28

i larger open space. fasSlng Dy carVeu
stone fountain, full of dry growth of moss,
! they saw decayed house with its outbuild-
ings. The house was of gray stone, and
seemed to lean against slender round tower, Z
bound with ivy to the topmost turret. There
was terrace besore it with glass, and there
were yestiges of fiower-beds. Over the arched
entrance-gate were set up three pairs of de-
caying antlers; into the wall at the side of it
! was fixed rusty chain with an iron collar, to
which there was yet attached the skeleton of
a dog. All was silent, the flight had set in;
/ the birds were in their nests; and in the old
house it was evident that no man lived. The
door stood half open The two entered.
Though uninhabited, the house was not
unfurnished. Rusty guns and hunting knives
hung on the walls, mouldering benches were
in the outer hall; an inner room, of which the
window was darkened by the foliage of an
untrimmed vine, had two soiled cups upon its
table and a rusty coffee-pot. There lay on
| chair near it, half knitted stocking. Out of
this room, a door led into a smaller chamber,
full of hunters tools, in which there was
a bed still tumbled; and there was, among
all the mans furniture in that room, a chest
containing a woman's clothing and the clothes
of little children In the recess of the win
dow a silver Guy was set up, as in the place
of honor; and ON a table by the bedside lay
an old hunters cap. a hymn-book, and a
Bible 1.-The books" said the young English
man, twill tell us who lived in this house"
Opening the Bible, he read to his companion
| the household chronicle set down on Its first
leaf
lift St. Bartholomew's Day My
father, Hans, Christoph, died. The lord
count, who was present, made me his success
sor as head forester. Hans Conrad Ducker."
1852. st. Fabian's Day. / married
Gertrude Maria, peasant Steinfurfs daughter.
Was on the above day, thirty-one years old,
and my wife will be nineteen next St Bridget's
My happiness is complete. May heaven bless
our union p
s1753. On the twelfth of July our first
child born. He shall be called Hans Chris
toph. A cross follows and the remark, ssDied
at midnight on the first of January, ammo
/ 1855"
| '1755 Annunciation Day. Our second
He shall be called after my brother Peter Mi
chael " A cross follows, and the note, ''Died
on St. Walpurgis, 1857"
..1s55. ST. Hubertas Day. Won the sill
yer cup with a master shot. The lord count
praisedm my shooting before all the gentlemen"
s'1756. st Anne's Day A daughter
born to me. Heaven bless her. She shall
be called Gertrude Johanna"
.'1756. st. Egidius' Day Ny wife Ger
trude Maria died of shot in the wood.
will Rot curse her. God be merciful judge
to us both"
"1771 My lord the old count died on st.
Valentines Day. The young Lord Leonard
Joseph Francis takes his place"
There was no more to read. One entry
in the list excited exactly the same thought
in the lovers. This man it was evident had
killed his wife on st. Egidius' day; and they
had ON the same date, whispered their hearts
/ love over the murdered woman's grave. Then
again, why did the old huntman register his
sons as born into household but his daughter
as born only to himself? These things the
lovers noticed as they read the little chroni-
Gle; but they spoke only of the hunting cup,
the marksmans prize, still in the window,
looked at it, and returned into the other cham
Der. Another door seemed to lead from it
into other rooms. They walked in that di-
rection, and the young man saw that they
were following a trail of dark stains on the
floor. He did not point them out to his COM
| panion. The door led to narrow stair; per-
haps the trail was there, but there was no
light by which it could be seen. The stair
led to a room that had been prettily furnished
and of which the window opened upon broad
terrace that swept back towards the wood
the moon had just risen, and shone through
this window. One pane had been broken,
splinters of glass lay close under it. The ta-
4 BILE was overthrow, broken lamp was on
the floor also a book hansomely bound,
which seemed to have been ground under the
heel rather than trodden upon, by strong
man. The English lady stopped to pick it
up, but as she did SO she saw by the moon
light, stains upon the oaken boards, which
made her suddenly recoil and lean, trembling,
on her lover for support. They looked to-
wards the sofa, an old piece of furniture COW
cred with blue damask; upon i, too. there was
large dark stain, and over it the bright
moon cast the shadows of the two young peo-
pie. The shadow of young man erect-the
shadow of young girl olinging to it, vio-
lently trembling.
'sLook lookt Eustace," cried the girl,
'.Those are not our shadows !"
4. .Indeed, love, they are
s'Did you not tell me this was st. Egidius'
day."
Both started, for there was a sudden fut-
ter in the room, distinctly heard. The young
man saw and pointed out that this was moth
ing supernatural. Beside an impressed bed
in one corner of the room, there were some
more handsomely bound books upon a table;
all in ilded red morocco covers. One of
them lay open, and the evening breeze that
entered through the broken pane of glass had
touched some of its leaves.
. ssThe lovers are long timo absent, whis-
pered partners to each other. as they danced
s their last dance on the grass about the guide
| ,,<,st ssTf they he lost In the wood. and we