The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1858-10-14
RAVENNA. THURSDAY, OCTOBER IA; 1858


and be scragged foFit-that would pay nice.
". Fetch the knife, and have no more jawi
orwe shall Waksthe chap, instead OF send.
ing him up quietly to spend his Christmas in
Heaven, without an invitation.'' He chuck.
led, and the old fellow seemed equally de.
lighted at his sons wit !; then taking up the
candle, went of to bring the knife. \ 70
All their motions had been no noiselesslv
performed, and the conversation carried on
in . tone 30 wonderfully clear, though low,
that was astonished o. tho perfection they
had attained in their hOrrid craft. During
the fathers absence, the son was not idle.
He actually loosed the collar Of my shirt,
and then stood quietly awaiting the others
return. ......
You could never imagine, unless placed
in similar circumstances, what multitude
Of thoughts passed through my mind in a
few minutes. I verify believe that every
Christmas with accomplishments of fun and
feasting at which | had assisted since was
the height Of the table, was all reviewed in
turn. Then I thought Of the morrow, and
the fair girls had left, aud how an hour be.
fore. | was full Of hope, that ere another
Christmas came round. should call one my
own. Still found time for earnest prayer,
and to think Of oil sorts Of experiments to
escape my impending fate. Once fancied
now there was only one to contend with |
might do something; but just then the touch
Of the muscular hand on my throat remind.
ed me that movement would cause my in.
stant destruction. And indeed Ihave often
wondered that the fellow did not strangle
me in his impotence. How bitterly did
reproach myself for not raising an alarm
when the footsteps drst became audible.
At length the fellow fairly gnashed his
teeth with rage. and uttering smothered
exclamation Of "Hang the tippling beast,
he's at that wine sgain ~ he also left the
apartment to recall his truant parent, and to
fetch the implement OF murder. ....
Now was the time, and you may believe
| lost none. The instant no left the room,
l was On my feet noiselessly / approach.
ed the door, dashed il to, and turned the key
and shut the bolt, lighted the gas, and once
more stood, my heart ready to jump into
my throat with joy and thunkfulness, with
my trusty pistols in my hand. ,.s ... 81
There was no chance of their re-entering,
for their skeleton keys lay on the bench,
and every article Of plunder was there also /;
for intending to return, they had not con.
veyed it from the room. 4- .t ..
] made noise enough from the window !
my hostess and her damsel, now reused,
joined tho choTGs and soon, at the head Of a
host Of alarmed neighbors and q couple OF
policemen, we searched the house from top
to bottom. One Of the men I knew had
left the premises, as 1heard him dash over
the area railings, and down the street but
the elder rufiian we discovered stupidlydrunk
in the cellar, the danger Of his position not
having sufficed to prevent his indulging his
favorite propensity, when the temptation
was 60 strong. t'..
We found they had gained admittance by
cutting away the zinc from the pantry win.
dow, their skeleton keys having made the
rest easy. 's.' #''' .''.'" w.
Bill, the younger ruffian, was too well
known to escape detection. He was cap.
sured in few hours. and both he and his "a
ther eventually obtained free passage to q
distant land in vessel provided for that pur.
pose BY Her Most Gracious Msjesty. ..
The sffair made a prodigious sensation
and became the lion Of all Christmas par.
ties that year and the extraordinary sym.
pashy manifested by certain fair individu.
al atthe recital Of my story, brought about
a most satisfactory explanation. My next
Christmas dinner was eaten in my own hap.
Py home with her as its mistress. at.
/ have often blessed my stars that good
Mrs. Wingate was not member OF the To.
tul Abstinence Society; for had it not been
for the liberal rktlenishing her cellar under.
went few days before Christmas, in readi.
ness for sons and daughters who we're to Ga.
ther round her, and celebrate in her house
that true home festival, my throat would
have been In no condition to perform It's
functions when the time arrived. I I
Thus have / told the only adventure Of
any consequence In which | ever played .
part, and lel me add, that whereas rich and
poor alike welcome Christmas as . season
Of joy and thankfulness, { doubt whether
any feel more keen emotions Of the kind
than I do, since II recalls to my mind an
additional mercy vouchsafed at that period.
or Ia hundred people ere running .
race you cahnot expect 10 win the prize BY
walking. Tho moral Of which tethafk 10
the we'll. authenticated fact that the great
est men have always bsen the greatest
workera. II il NOT simply hundred you
are conlending with Whatever the course
OF Life, where there 10 Prize worth striv.
ing Tor, there are Jealous tens OF thousands
arrayed against you. A-SpirI Of the Times.
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