Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1861-05-23

III tHS nan HhII'INdIy Co7hulhe VI Tory
refuge. This is murderer Of Paoli,
named Delaney.
They met by accident, ard now they
fought, not with sword and rife, but with
long and deadly hunting knives they
struggled twining and twisting on the.
green sward.
Atlast the tory is downtown on the
turf, with the knee Of the continental on
bis breast-the upraiseI knife flashed
death in his face
Quarters! yield" gasped the tory as
the knee was pressed on his breast. "Spare
Ine / yieldr'
"My brother, " said the patriot in a
tone Of deadly hate "my brother cried for
quarters on the night of Paoli, and even
as he clnng to your knees you stuck that
knife into his heart. O, will give you
quarters of Paoli"
And as his hand was raised for the blow
and his teeth was clenched with deadly hate
he paused for moment, then piuioned
the tory's arms, and with a rapid stride
dragged him to the verge of the rock, and
held him quivering over the abyss.
Mercy" gasped the tory turning ashy
pale by turns, as that awful gulf yawned
below. "Mercyl have wife and child
at home-spare me.'
The continental with his muscular
strength gathered for the effort, shook
the murderer once more over the abyss,
and then hiased bitter sneer in his face
My brother had wife and two chill
dren. The morning after the night of
the Paoli that wife was a widow, those
children orphans. Would you not like
to go and beg your life Of that widow
and her orphans"'
The proposal made by the continental
in mockery and bitter hate was taken in
serious earnest by the tcrror-stricken to-
ry. He begged to be taken to the wild
ow and her children, and to have the priv
iege of begging his life. After mo-
ment of serious thought, the patriot SOL
dier consented, He bound the tory's arms
still tighter, placed him on the rocks
again, and led him to the woods y quiz
ct cottage embossed among the trees
broke on their eyes. They entered the
cottage. There, beside the desolate
hcarthstone, sat the widow and her chill
dren.
She sat there, matronly woman Of
about twenty-three years, with a face
faded by care, deep, dark eye, and
long black hair hanging in disheveled
state about her shoulders. On one side
was a dark-haired boy of some six years,
on the other side girl one year younger,
with light blue eyes. The Bble-an old
venerable volnme-lay opened upon the
mothers knee. And now the pale faced
tory flung himself upon his knees, and
confessed that he had butchered her hus-
band on the night of Paoli, and begged
his life at her hands.
Spare me for the sake of my wife and
child"
He had expected this pitiful moan
would touch the widows heart but not
one relenting gleam softened her face.
"The Lord shall judge between Us" ,"
she said, in cold, icy tone that iroze the
murlerer's heart. "Look the Bible is in
my lap. will close the volume, and
tins boy shall open it and place his finger
at random upon line, and by that you
! live or die"
This was strange proposal, made il
good faith Of a wild and dark superstition
of olden times. For a moment the tory
pale as ashes, was wrapped in deer
thought-then, in faint voice he sig
nifcd his consent.
Raising her dark eyes to heaven the
mother prayed the Great Father to direct
the finger of her son. She closes the
| book-she handed it to the boy, whose
cheek redeemed with loathing as he gazel
upon his fathers murderer He took the
Bible and, opened its holy pages at ran
dom, and placed his finger upon verse,
There was silence. The continental
soldier, who had sworn to ayenge his
brothers death, stood with dilating eyes
and parted lips. The culprit kneeling
upon the floor, with his face like ooloreC
clay, felt his heart leap to his throat.
Then in a clear bold voice the widow
read this line from the Old Testament
1t was short, yet terrible:
THAT man shall die"
Look! The brother springs forward to
plunge the knife into the murderer's heart
but the tory pinioned as he is, clings tc
the willows knees, He begs that one
more trial may be made by the little girl
that child of five years old, with the Gol
: den hair and laughing eyes.
, The widow consents. There is an aw
: ru pause! With smile in her eye, and
without knowing what she was doing
, the little ai,l opens the Bible as it lay OF
her mothers knee; she turned her tac'
away, and placed her finger upon line
The awful silence grows deeper, lh'
deep drawn breath of the brother, an'
the broken gasp of the murderer. aIon'
dirturbed the Stiffness; the widow am
dark haired boy were breathless. III
little girl as she caught feeling OF aw
from those around her, stood breathless
her face turned aside, and, her tiny iii
gers resting on the line Of life and dealt
At length gathering courage, the vic
ow bent her eyes on the page and rea'
It was a line from the new Testamen
"Love your enemies!'
{ Now look how wonderful are the wa.
, of Heaven. That very night as the WIZ
t 6w sat by her hrcSide-sat there win
'orrsbal baart and hot eyelidS, thlnklu