Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1855-01-26


2 corner : which suggested to me comfortably
S enough, how much my friends here m lde orl
FIRE - for when had ever thought so highly
of the corner, since the days when ] connect
! cd it with Jack Horncr However, as decli-
} ned, Ben whose touch on all convivial in
struments is perfect, drew the table apart,
and instructing my Travellers TO open right
, and lef. on either side of me, and form round
the fire, closed up the centre with myselC and
my chair, and preserved the order we had
kept at table. lie had already, in tranquil
manner, boxed the cars of the inattentive
boys until they had been by imperceptble
| degrees boxed out of the room aud he now
rapidly skirmshcd the sauce female into the
High street, disappeared, and softly closed
the door.
This was the time for bringing the poker
to bear on the billet of wood. tapped it
three times, like an enchanted talisman,
and brilliant host of merry-inakcrs burst
out Of it, and spOrted off by the chimney
rushing up the middle in fiery country
dance, and never coming down again. Mean
while, by their sparkling light which threw
our lamp into the shade, I filled the glasses.
and gave my Travellers CHRISTMAS l--CHRisT-
MAS Eve, my friends, when the Shepherds,
who were Poor Travellers too in their way,
heard the Angels.sing, 'On earth, peace
Good will towards men -
to think that we ought to take hands us we
sat, in Difference to the toast or whether any
one Of us anticipated the othcrs, but ut any
rate we all did it. We then drank {, the
memory of the good Master Richard Watts.
And l wish his Ghost may never have had
worse usage under that roof, than it had
from us
1t was the witching time for Story telling
Our whole life, Travellers, said l. is sto-
ry more or less intelligi giblc-generally less
hut we shall read it by clearer light when
it is ended. fr one, am 50 divided this
night between fact and fiction, that | scarce
know which is which. Shall we bcguile the
time by telling stories in our order as we
sit here y
They all answered, Yes, provided | would
begin. | had little to tell them. but | was
boupd by my own proposal Therefore, after
looking for II while at the spiral column of
smoke wreathing up from my brown beauty,
through which could almost have sworn |
saw the effgy of Master Richard Watts less
startled than usual, | fired away
In the year one thousand seven hundred
and ninety nine. relative Of mine came limp
ing down, on foot, to this town of Chatham.
| I call it this town, because if any body pre-
sent knows to nlcety wnere nu6Iiusltr dnds
and Chatham begins, it is more than do
He was u poor traveller, with not a farthing
room, and he slept one night in bed that
will be occupied tonight by some one here.
My relative came down to Chatham, to
enlist in a cavalry regiment, ira cavalry rcgi-
ment would have him; if not to take King
Georges shilling from anv corporal or ser
geant who would put bunch of ribbons in
his hat. His object wis to get shot but he
thought he might as well ride to death as be
at the trouble Of walking.
Air rol,t;ra'o
but he was better known as Dick. He drop
ped his own surname on the road down, and
took up that of Dou bledick. lie was passed
as Richard Doubledick aged TWENTY-FIVE ::
hight, five feet ten native place. Exmoutt :;
which he had never been near in his life
There was no cavalry in Chatham when he
limpcd over the bridge here with half shoe
to his dirty foot, so he enlisted into rcgi-
@nd 5rcttt Gi ttG qe on and was glad to get drunk
You are to know that this relative of mine
had gone wrong and run wild. Ills heart
was in the right place, but II was sealed up.
Il9 had been betrothed to good and heauti-
tul girl whom he had loved better thnn She
or perhaps even he-bolioved but, in an evil
hour, he had gived her cause to say to him,
solemnly, Richard, never will marry any
other mau. | will live single for your sake,
bat Mary Mlrsaal's lps--hcr name was
Mary Marshall never address another
word to YOU on earth 60, Richard Heaven
forgive YOU - This finished him. This
brought him down to Chatham This made
him Private Richard Doubledick, with a
determination to be shot.
There was not 4 more dissipated and rock
less soldier in Chatham barracks, in the year
one thousand seven hundred and nnety-nine
than Private Richard Doubledick. lie asso-
ciated with the dregs of every regiment. He
was as seldom sober as he could be, and was
constantly under punishment. II became
clear to the whole barracks that Private
Richard Doubledick would very soon be
hogged.
Now, the Captain of Richard Doublcdick
company was young gentleman not above
five years his senior, whose eyes had an ex
preston in them which affected Private
Richard Doubledick in very remarkable
way They were bright, handsome, dark
eyes--what are called laughing eyes gencr-
ally, and. when serious, rather steady than
seyere-but, they were the only ewes now l.tt
in his narrow world that Private Richard
Doubledick could not stand. Cnubashod hv
evil report and punishment, defiant of every.
thing else and everybody else. lie had bat +,
know that those eyes looked at him for n
moment, and he felt ashamed. lie could not
80 much as salute Captain Taunton in the
street, like any other officer. He was re-
preached and confused, troubled by the mere
} possibility of the Captain ; looking at him
In his worst moments he would rather turn
back and 20 any distance out of his w,v tb.n
encounter those two handsome, dark, bright
eyes.
: One day, when Private Richard Doublcdick
came out of the Black Hole, where no had
been passing the last eight-and- forty hours,
and in which retreat he spent a good deal of
: his time, he was ordered to botake himself 10
Captain Taunton's quarters In the stale
and squald state of a man Just out of tbs
; Black hole. he had less fancy than ever for
being seen by the captain but he was nor .,
mad yet as to disobey orders, and consequent.
" went up to the terrace oyerlooking tbo
-, do ,rot,nJ ,rba,o ,Lo oa.,.-, . '0