Monmouth weekly herald. [volume] (Freehold, N.J.) 1854-1860, 1858-07-29
yRNAI AND BUS mss DIRE10RY-ITs AIM. TO AMUSE. TO INSTRUCT. TO }
tFREEII0ED9N j. THURsDEY MORNING July % 1858.

FREEHOLD.
rather peculiar, l backed myself thfoug
the door, followed by the host. Whe
the door was closed, | could hear 10y
murmuring, and an oath or two uttere,
IN vehement tones.
The landlord hurried me up a feebl
pair of stairs, and a few yards from til
landing pushed open a door and babe N,
enter. | glanced around the apartment
and showed by my action, that / was dis
satisfied with its appearance.
1t Is the best | can do for you, stran
ger, and you needn't be afraid Of then
fellows down stairs they won't hur
anybody
i shall not be alarmed" l replied, al
he closed the door and descended tn,
steps. | was somewhat ANNOYED at The
appearance of things, and determined tc
place myself in the best possible position
OF defence. | examined my quarters
closely, and found the door had no fas
tenlng whatever, nor was there anything
convenient with which it could be Sc
cured.
Determined not to be baf1ed, I tore a
strip of board from the wall, and with
my knife cut a piece sufficiently long to
make a brace from the lower clete of the
door to the floor. Then with my pocket
knife | bored holes in the causing at the
upper end, and drawing several nails
from the wall, | drove them in with the
handle of my large knife. Having ex-
amined the walls, and apprehending no
sreachery from them, | secured the win
dow, and then turned my attention to the
floor. Beneath the bed 1 discovered a
trap Doors and its discovery made my
hair stand on end. [ found it opened
downward, and the possibility OF securing
it strongly seemed hopeless.
Once | thought Of removing the bed
and then watching as a trapper does a
hole in the ice for game. But that would
not do, fer should | SUCCESSFULLY repulse
the urstR ffuder- or 1 no 4onga had a
doubt Of being in. a Robbers Roost-it
would leave a hole open which would
expose me t their fire. AT length a
plan came to my relief. I moved the bed
over the door, and taking the clothes off,
threw the chat bed upon the floor, and
directly over the suspected trap. But
Oh! horror what a discovery [ made.
The bed was saturated with blood, and
IN many places hard from the gore which
had dried in it.
Having thus fortified myself, I took a
seat on n end of the bed, with nv sad
die bags close by me, my knife in one
hand, and my revolver in the other. and
my ammunition convenient, in case /
should need it. | blew out my light, and
in darkness awaited the denouement Of
the plot, How long | had waited I could
not tell, but in spite of my p%erilous stu
alton, my eyes grew heavy, and | was
almost overcome with sleep. But my
easy moving Of the bed aroused all nv
perceptive faculties, and in an instant |
was wide awake. 1t moved several times
quite easy, and then all became quiet. |
listened a few moments, but could hear
nothing Presently a faint whisper from
an adjoining room came my eyes follow
ed the direction, and | saw a small stream
OF light pouring through an opening in
the partition. ! stole softly to the spot
and listened q moment. | then put nv
eye to the opening, and had a fair
view of the operations inside.
SO horrible was the sight [ then beheld
that its recollection will never be erased
from my memory. Hanging from the bed.
and with his head nearly severed from
his body, was an old grey headed man,
while the purple current Of life was stead.
lily streaming from the cash. [ reeled a
moment with dizziness, and was about to
Withdraw from the scene, when the door
opened very softly, and a person entered.
| looked again, and three Of the men I
had seen in the bar room were standing.
near the dead man.
Why, Hans" said one, II thought
you had fixed him by this time
Wen have trouble with that custom.
Ell" replied Hans, shaking his head, he
is upto something. he put his bed over
the trap
The deviIr they both exclaimed,
and looked at each other in surprise.
I'VE must manage him somehow said
Hans, for he has money, | am certain Of
that"
Hadn't we better attend to that ere
gal, 6rst7'
Yes, the old man is fixed, now for the
gal 2" and picking up the light, they left
the room.
What girl? thought |. Is it possible
some person as unfortguate as myself has
bean compelled tol stop here,
! listened eagerly, and presently a
crash cane, followed by a shrill scream /:
| sprang towards my door, but reeollect.
ed that | had it well secured. / hesita-
ted Q moment, when another scream more
terrific than the first, followed By a sharp
report Of . giste.l. ~ was but The work
OF q moment unfastenmv door and
dash OUT As I sprang into the passage
| met two men who fred almost silnulta.
%neous, but without effect. I~leyeled my
revolver, and sent the contents Of one
barrel through the head Of one, who tu1m.
bled heavily down stairs, d&gging ii:
companion with him.
| rushed into the room and found the
lgirl sheltered behind a bed, keeping Hans