The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1860-03-17

young woman, and my conductress, re-
ceiving from her a small fiat candlestick
led the way upstairs, requesting me to
follow her.
For the last few minutes very serious
doubts of the prudence ofmy conduct in
thus intrusting myself to the guidance of
a perfect stranger, in such u locality,
had been passing through my mind, which
were by no means dlsspated by the APP
pearance of the house had entered.-
However, it was now too late to retreat,
and after momentary hesitation ascen-
dcd the stairs. When we reached the
second floor, the young woman led the
way into an apartment and requested me
to be seated, while she prepared her
mother, who she said occupied the cham
Der above, for the visit Of a stranger.
She then left me.
The room in which found myself was
in miscrably dilapidated condition.
The paper which had once covered its
walls hung in strips in various places !;
the plaster of the ceiling had fallen away
here and there, and several pancs of glass
were wanting in the windows, their places
being supplied by paper rudely pasted on
the sash. The furniture was in keeping
with the apartment; ragged carpet, an
old horse hair sofa, wooden table, three
or four broken. backed, rickety. looking
chairs completed the inventory. The
whole, di'nly illumincd by the light of
the solitary, tallow candle, looked gloomy
enough. ! approached one of the win
dows, threw 1t open and cndeayorcd, rs
we'll as the darkness would permit, to
discover what aspect the neighborhood
presented in that direction. The room
was, as l had conjcctured, in the rear of
the house, and looked out upon small
courtyard, shut in on every side bv the
rear or side walls Of the adjacent build
ings. But two windows were visible in
any of them, and in neither was there a
light or other indication of the rooms to
which they belonged being occupied. |
closed the window and returned TO my
seat by the table. The vague sense of
uneasiness had experienced when first
entered the house was rapidly becoming
very positive apprehension Of some inl
pending danger.
AS nearly as could Judge l had been
alone about quarter of an hour, and |
resolved that l would wait FIVE minutes
longer, and then, should no one come,
endcaver to find my way downstairs and
into the street. drew out my watch
it wanted twenty minutes to eleven. |
waited patiently the time had proposed,
and then prepared to leave the apart
ment. What was my dsmay when, on
turning the handle of the door, discov-
cred it be locked on the outside.
In an instant the whole peril of my
situation flashed upon me. My worst
fears babe fair to be realized. How
blindly had | fallen into the trap set for
me, to which the gold so carelessly dis
played at the jewellers window, had
doubtless, been the incentive. The story
so pathctically told me, has been, Of
course, tale invented, most probably,
on the spur Of the moment, to excite my
compassion. 1t had succeeded well. 1t
was clear | was to be robbed, perhaps
murdered. Why not had, myself,
recol!ected-and l cursed my faulty as
| did so-told the woman whom had
accompanied to the house, that | was a
perfect stranger to the city, and there
fore, she would argue, not likely, should
any evil befall me, to be missed for sew
eral days at least. recalled, too, vivid
ly, the momentary CLEAN of satisfaction
which had lighted her features when |
made the avowal.
What was to be done Were there
no means of forcing the lock Yes at
the Fireplace. stood an old fashioned
brass fender, inside of which was set of
tire-irons. The poker-not the small
piece of iron, crooked at one end, most
generally in use in this country, but u
straight bar of steel, about three feet in
length-would enable me to break open
the door without difficulty. ! instantly
seized it, and was about to use it for that
purpose, when Il moments reflection
made lie pause. The noise should not
fail to make in breaking open the lock,
could not but warn those who had sccur-
ed 1t that | was conscious of my danger,
and endeavoring to escape. Once in the
passage, a sudden blow might dash the
light from my hand, and, assaulted in the
dark, on the narrow staircase, | should
have but little chance to defend myself.
Escape by the window was, as had al
ready seen, impracticable. resolved,
therefore, to await the event, where |
could at least see and confront the peril
which threatened me. was armed; |
carried in the breast-pocket OF my coat a
brace of single barrelcd pistols, and it
was not without satisfaction recollected
that ! had but the day before fearing that
the sca-air might have affected them,
drawn the charges and carefully reload
ed them. had, however, found but
solitary percussion cap in the case, and
had been obliged to replace, on one pis-
tol, the old one. Of the efficiency of
that weapon, therefore, had considera-
bic doubt; the other, | believed, might
be depended upon. The poker, too,
thought, as l glanced at it, would enable
me, it things came to the worst, to sell
my life not chcaply. But, suppose my
self opposed, not to a single assaiiant,
but to two, or perhaps even three men
men land knew that London, like every
large European city, must number hun-
dreds, if not thousands such,) rendered
desperate by habitual poverty. and like