The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1860-08-08
Sflisttuautous,
Skating for Life.

1.-THE following fragment Of q most thrill
ing nurative is taken from the American
Union. To understand the point, it is me-
cessary to premise that Julius Olier, half.
caste, had barbarously murdered the brother
OF Mr.. Wes,herelt Compneys, rich Cana.
dian, who resolved upon deadly vengeance.
1t is this gentleman himself who narrates
how he sought for the accomplishment If
his sim.
Night after night lay concealed on the
border Of the river Scugog, awaiting the
murderer. | was armed with pistols and
wore skates. Skating was az amusement
which had excelled in when a school boy,
tnd facility in the srt was OF the most i'm,
portance to my Scheme of retributon. At
length he came. Itwas an exquisite night;
the white expense around sparkled in the
sheen Of q Canadian moon, which sailed
calmly through q cloudIess sky. could
have shot the villain as he skated BY me
within fifty yards but could not risk the
chance and besides, my vengeance cried
for sterner fate than death BY the pistol
No sooner was he past my hiding place, than
with o shout OF exultation I started on his
track. Oler swerved moment to see who
his pursuer was then, quick as lightning,
tried TO double up the river again. But had
anticipated this and with cooked pistol
in either hand, barred his passage. With
a curse. he turned and sped quickly down
the ice.
And now the race for life began. Mile
after mile we swept slong in silence. An
awful portentious silence it was, through
which nothing save the hollow boom of the
swift steel cutting its way over the impris.
oned Scugog. The moon lit me nobly to
my vengeance. He could not escape me,
for found with savage glee TINT was a
notch for even the most swift footed Indian
Olier became aware Of this, too, for now and
again he would skate close to the weods,
looking 10 vain for an aperature. But no ;
there was but one out let from this walled
in river and that was over the folls 81!
Faster and fOs'er yet we skated toward
the cataract. 1t could not be far eff.
pictured to myself what Oilers thoughts
might be. Did he know whittier he was
Fastening ? or Ind that awful light yet to
flash on his guilty mind ? The half.breed
made answer to my thought. saw him in
the pale simmer start convulsively, and
throw his arms into the air but he dared
not stop, and on he darted again with yell
of despair, which echoed weird!ke up the
channel. Another sound came to my eors
and knew what had caused that cry Of ago
ny to burst from ODier it was the dull thuD.
der of the falls We were nearing them
fast. Sill the walls of snow shut in my
victim, and every moment lessened his frai
hopes of escape. One chance was left him
Ito distance me, and hide somewhere in
the snow from my scrutiny. Vain hope -
the wing of bird could scarce have saved
him!
Hoarser and louder grew the noise of the
waters. II ! thanked the Almighty in fran.
tic prayer that the murderer was delivered
into my hand, humbly trust that msy be
forgiven now. From the time had fire,
started on Oilers track, we maintained ex.
hctlv the same distance between us-per.
haps hundred or hundred and fifty yards
/ still grasped my loaded pistols, ready fol
any stratagem on the part Of the murderer
And now the crash Of the falls came loud
and ominous on the ear.
Another five minutes would decide the
hunt. Suddenly, Olier turned and stood al
boy. He was not armed; l felt certain o.
that all along, for otherwise be would have
measured strength with me before. With
out abatiug my pace, / skAted down upor
him, holding a pistol in each hand. Sill
my purpose was as 6xedas ever only to shoe
the william 90 last resource. When wa
within twenty yards of him. the coward fal
tered, and again turned swiftly down ,heriv
er. With yelling laugh l pursued him
pressing still more holly on his, track.
Deafeniug was the roar Of the cataract
high into the pale sky ascepded the mist 0
the sprsy, through which the splintered line
Of the moonlight darted in rainbov.iinte
beauty. could see directly the jagged lin,
of the ice, where II was broken BY tbs, rap
ids immediately above the cataract i; and be
yond I could trace the dark Volume Of th
!. seugog, as it emerged from itss prison. 4