New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1858-11-25

In the year 1920, when the present state Of Ala,
bama was comparative wilderness, d gentleman by
the name OF Saunders came from neiehooring State
into ore Of It's eastern COMMITTEES in quest Of place Of
settlement. He was well dressed and well mounted
and Travelled alone
At the close Of d fatigung days ride, he stopped
at house Of entertainment which was the nucleus OK
central point OF struggling, backwoods village con-
tanning some fifteen or twenty inhabitants The host
was grim, sour ylsaged man, with small sinister
looking eyes, which twnkIed like burning points be-
meath the heavy fringe Of the prominent .browg
The tavern building seemed 70 have been left in an
unfinished condition by the woFkmen, and looked
ruinous and old, for want Of paint and repairs
On entering the bar.roOrn, which was dinpy half.
lighted apartment, Mr. Saunders foHnd few men
very ordinary in both dress and appearance engaged
in retailing to each other the gossip and news Of the
neiehborhood. He seated himself in their midst and
awaited in silence the announcement Of supper
After eating q hearty meal, feeling both fatigued
and drowsy, he requested to be conducted to bis
room. The landlord, taking lamp in one hand and
the saddebags of the traveller in the other went out
Of the barroom into the yard, requesting Mr. Saun'
deFs TO follow him.
At the extreme end Of the tavern buildings, they
assembled a flight Of rude steps to an upper story.
Entering narrow, dark passage, MI. Saunders was
shown into small, uncomfortable room, furnished
with bed, one chair and q small table. The land
lord placed the lamp on the table, babe bis guest
good night, and retired.
As the door Of the room was without lock or fast
enIng OF any sort Mr. Saunders placed the table and
1 chair against it, blew out the light and lay down.
4 Overcome with fatigue and dr0wsiness he soon fell
asleep but almost Immediately awoke quiYerinr in
every hmo, and IN state of extreme mental pertur-
2ation He had dreamed vivid and frightfuI
| dream.
In his vision, he saw a man, grim and dark, as
cendng the outer steps to the passage which led to
his room. lie bore long, gttering knife in his
hand, and came up the steps with slow and silent
/ tread. At sight Of him feeling Of apprehension
presentiment that danger was nigh came over the
/ dreamer He spraDg out of bed, opened his door
and stepped out into the passage. Opposite to his
he another door, through which he felt i'm
/ PEELED to seek escape. Opening it, be saw hole
in the middle Of the floor over which the tnbers Of
bedstead we're extended, the cord hanging down to
the floor beneath. As he was in the act Of Selling
this to let himself down, he aw0ke and found that it
was ALA dream. He was still in bed, and the chair
/ and table remained in the position he had placed
! them against the door,
After revolving the dream in his mind for few
moments, bis nerves became quiet, and he again fell
to sleep, dreaming the identical dream over and
awoke, as before, trembling and afrighted.
! He got out Of bed, removed the chair and table
from the door, and opening it, what he had failed
to observe before that there another door close
shut opposite to his room. The full moon had risen
and litup the passage and upper rooms Of the inn,
which were without shutters, with radiance almost
! of day. Curiosity aud the excitement of his dream
prompting, he stepped across the passage and gave
/ the opposite door gentle push with his hand It
flew wide open and displayed to the eyes Of the now
startled traveller the very objects and arrangement he
had seen in his dream. In the middle 5f the room
Llefe was q large nUiE Ilaue Lne removal short
pieces Of plank across it lay the uncorded tmbers
Of bedstead from which depended sstout rope that
reached almost to the floor Of the room below.
Thoroughly alarmed by this literal and utterly IN.
explanabe vertfcation Of his dream, Mr. Saunders
returned to his own room, dressed himself in great
haste and with his saddle bags thrown over his ARM
stepped cut upon the platform at the head of the
stair steps. His intention was to leave the tavern
and ii possible, get lodgings for the night, at a re-
spectacle looking house he had passed on the outs
! skirts OF the village. The next morning he could
send for his horse and pay his bill by a messenger,
and thus avoid explanations which might prove I'M
pleasant both to the landlord and himself.
The shadow OF large tree, which stood few
yards distant from the building, fell upon the plat
form, and nearly half of the stair steps, A brilliant
moonlight rested the yard and all other objects on
that side of the tavern.
Just as Mr.. Saunders stepped out on the platform,
/ be saw q man come round the corner Of the house.
and walk in the direction Of the steps, He held a
large butchers knife In his right hand and looked
| wsttuly around him as he advanced. As soon as he
came to the bottom step, he began to ascend the
stairs with slow and silent tread. In appearance,
movement and weapon, he was the exact counterpart
Of the image seen by Mr.. Saunders in bis dream.
/ What was the traveller to do un8rmed as he was,
to escape the menacing peril? He felt glued to the
4 spot upon which he stood by the very mminence of
the danger which apparently confronted him.
To leap from the platform to the earth would em-
peril both life and limb. face to face encounter
with an armed man could only end in bis being
4 desperately wounded Immediately killed. Nor
there ever time to escape through the room with
hole in its floor, for the desperate had already
mounted to the highest illuminated step, and was
only few feet distant from Mr. Saunders. Summon
4 ing all the resolution he could command he cried
! out, " Who comes there r.
! Startled by the voice, the man threw up his face
/ and Mr.. Saunders at once recognized him as the
| landlord of the inn. Without saying a word he
turned almost down the steps, and hurried round
the of the house in the direction he had come
Mr., Saunders Immediately descended the steps him
self and walked, with laggard steps to the house
on the outskirts Of the village where after some en-
treaty, he procured lodgings for the night.
Early the next morning, he sent messenger for
his horse, with money to pay his bill. He made no
mention of the occurrences of the previous night but
as soon as his horse was brought, mounted and re-
sumed his journey.
/ Some years afterwards he met his former host face
to face, upon Of the streets of Columbus Georgia
They mutually recognized each other, but in a mo
ment the quondam landlord threw down his eyes,
seemed much abashed and hurried quickly by with,
i out saying word.
Was murder really medtated in this case and
was the dream, which aroused the intended victim,
veritabe premonition sent to rescue him from i'm
pending death These are questions which the wri-
ter will not undertake to answer. He can vouch
however for the literal truth of the facts herein re-
lated. They were communicated to him by the Rev.
r. N. Saunders. of Alabama, son OF the gentleman
to whom the monitory dream was vouchsafed.
j. W. T,