Democrat and sentinel. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1853-1866, 1858-12-08

collect was that he screamed out, not that he |
loved me, but that he would try to love me,
and then he rushed back to the house as fast
as he could.
The next time 1 saw him, my sword was
in my hand, and he was lying stiff and cold
at my feet. [ took him up in my arms and
laid him gently in thicket. My wife was
not at home that day, nor was she to return
till the morrow. Our bedroom window, the
only one on this side of the house, being but
few feet from the ground. I resolved to get
out through it in the middle of the night and
bury my victim in the garden. l had not the
slightest idea, at that moment, that had
frustrated my own scheme, and that when
the pool would be dragged and no dead body
forthcoming, the property must remain IN
allegiance, as L meant to confirm the belief
that the child was lost or had been stolen
For the present all my thoughts were cen
tered on the necessity Of hiding every clue to
my crime.
What [ endured when the servants came
ard told me the child was missing, and when
the messengers, which [ despatched in all di-
rections, returned to Inform me their search
had been in vain, no words can possibly de-
scribe. That same night buried him. But
now the worst remained to be done; and that
was to face my wife, and give her hopes that
ued to do with such show of sincerity, as [
believe, that no suspicion rested on me. The
next thing l did was to seat myself at the
bedroom window, from whence l could watch
all day long, the spot where lay my dreadful
secret. 1t was plot of ground that had
been recently dug up, ready for laying down
fresh sods, ana had chosen it as the one
where the marks of my spade would be least
likely to attract notice. The Workmen who
were laying down the sods must have thought
me crazy. l was continually calling TO ger
on faster, aud occasionally running out to
help them, and stamping on the ground while
( I kept urging them to greater haste. Their
task was finished before night, and l now
felt comparatively secure.
fell asleep at last that night-but what
troubled sleep it was, and what frightful
dreams we're there! | fancied [ saw now a
hand, now head, raising out of that unhal-
lowed spot Of ground And each time that
. awoke out of this horrid nightmare, L crept
10 the window to convince myself it was only
on idle fancy of my distorted BRAIN. Then
skunk back to bed but only to endure the same
torments over and over again. Once l dreamt
that the child was still alive, and that | had
never attempted its life; and the waking from
this dream was more dreadful than all the
rest.
Next morning L again took my place
at The window and never turned my eyes off
the fatal spot, which, though now turned in
to a grass plot, only presented to me the ap-
pearauce of an open grave. If one of the
farm servants passed by, [ expected him to
sink in; if bird alighted upon the grass,
dreaded lest he should become the instrument
that was to bring my crime to light; and
every breeze that blew across it seemed to
whisper Murder" There was nothing an
innate or inanimate, let it be ever SO insignif-
cant, but what seemed endowed with the
supernatural power Of upbraiding me fof my
hcinous crime.
Ny wife, who was as superstitious in her
way as | was in mine, and was in despair at
the chld's disappearance, was bent on con-
suting wise woman" residing in our
neiphborhood, supposed to have the power OF
reading the DEGREES Of fate by spirit rapping
| accompanied her most reluctantly, but pre-
ferrej being present, lest the sybil should
infuse any suspicious of my CRIME into her
mind On my wife's asking the question -
"Where is the boy?" the answer returned tC
the rapping was found to spell out the words
with its mother ~ My wife was deeply
! affected, and | was ready to sink into the
ground though blushed and said the woman
spoke nonsense. With its mother. Aye, il
! had a double Specification to my ears-with
his mother in heaTcu, aud in the bosom OF
: his mother earth Repeated experiments
and appeals to the spirit still brought back
those dreaded words; and | began to think
, the woman knew more than she pretended to
and had seen me bury the corpse on the fatal
night.
\ few days after a comrade of mine, who
had served abroad, came to visit me unex-
: / RI 4 of ubn | had
never seen before | could not, however
resolve to lose sight of the grass plot, and as
it was a fine summers evening, | told the
servants to bring a table and bottle of wine
into the garden | then placed my own chair
over the grave. and thus, feeling sure it cod
not be tampered with, [ endcavored to make
} myself easy and to enjoy my glass. My
!, comrade expressed the hope that my wife was
well, and was not keeping her room, and tha
she had not been driven away by their ap
pearance.
was obliged to stammer out in reply the
story of the child's disappearance. Th'
soldier, who was a stranger to me, did no
look me in the face, but kept his eyes fxet
on the gronnd all the while [ was talkiug
which caused me the greatest uneasiness.
: fancicd he suspected the truth. [ asked hin
abruptly whether he thought-bu. L brok
down without finishing the sentence.
whether think the child has been mur
) dered p said he, with mild look ''Oh
: no what could any man gain by murderin!
poor innocent child?"
, [ could have told him what man game,
by such deed, for no one knew better thar
did; but remained silent, though l shiy
cred as if had the ague.
Seeing the state of excitement was in
they endeayored to comfort me with the hop
the child might yet be found, when we sud
: i . Joon Ioul .nJ 10 r