Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1862-03-07
FRIDAY. MARCH 7. 1862.

aud, sendiog Martha 10 bed With an injone-
ton to let no more scarccrows Into the
house, locked himself up again 10 bic Own
room.
Having taken out some money for the
necessary travelling expenses Of tho morrow,
be produced stout black cloth froek-coai |;
then. opening q .cam inside shs breast. be
Inserted the bank no,os. aud with needle
and thread SUCCESSFULLY closed the APERTURE.
After this, perhaps as much from i0rcs Of
habi, a. any taing el'e. bo locked the empty
boz IN which his money had hitherto been
kept, and which had Gla.s marked out
side Ito throw thieves OF tho 'cent), put IL
IN Q closet. aud went 10 bed. quite jubilant
iu the Consciousness. of having at last settled
the tno,ty point concerning tho disposition
Of hi. money. Now be said to himself.
i shall be comfortable. Neither thieves
nor inceodiar,cs will End much 10 harm /.
nothing bat tho old hous. which the frst
can, steal. or myself. Who sleep too light
10 be caught IN e Ere The old houss.
a. he called 10 vas q tumble down. rambling
place. with timber enough IN IL for hall q
dozen modern babitations. Bot there 10 not
much use in my describing IL. Tor IL ~a'
burned TO the ground .hat'ery nigh, every
raf,er. beam and plank; there Vas nothing
left IN the morning but -four smot ps ~all'.
and . great black charged heap. witch
steamed in the s.ill falling rain. Ralph,
however. Was no, caught. The roaring Of
the storm. which did not abats ,ill sunrise,
bid the sound OF the cracking fAmes while
u swept them on bot b. heard them. and
rushed out oi his room Will. !, MAS yet only
allsd with smoke.
There Was already crowd around. Tor
the village Was elo.s by halfdressed.
u.elo-. crowd. which stood to wind~Ard OF
the sams-. Into ihi. Ralph ran bsiore he
cell knew whore hs WAS then. suddenly
rccollec,ins tha, be had left his money be-
hind. bs made a. n hs wJuld enter again,
bu, q q zen hand. restrained him.
My money he shoa,ei. as he struggled
10 free him-.if-' my money Rbbhcrs! Let
me 20 or all swear you have done It all
your,cl,e." hut they would no. LEI tie
old man return. for hs va. ~ frantic that
they fel, iear' for hi. safety.
Atla.,a young man. ~ho Was sell known
Tor HI. i~a,- OF daring. said I'D 70 With
out word. Il b,h. Was lsfi behind; bot
no, Tor your box. SIR. without . price,
Fifty pounds. then = shouted Ralph
cit, pounds A boz IN my room in =
clO.,!
What !. II like'' sAid the other.
Gla..-slas- marked on the top
I Od he dashed aud in about i've minutes
returned Sith the hoI m bis hand. Ralph
caught IL IN hI. arm. and unlocked IL ior he
Away. had .lrp, with hs key s'So' h''
neck. and hal !, still. then staggered lev
p,c-. backward, and Tell in.en.Ibl. TO the
ground. The SoI vi. empty. In the agony
Of his irish, he had forgotten the coat, to
which he had o. recently transferred the
note. bat. when be looked Tor then IN their
old place, the remembrance Of hi. oeeupa'
ton she pro iou- evening" aished upon him,
and he Tell ~ is he bad been struck and -
he was. bu, ny no mortal hand. TIE VIII
| la,s doctor. uho by hi. time had inlned the
crowd, tec.ins III. puI'c, and looking al
him by the light Of the bla,e. said at once
Il lle ba. q paraly,ie stroke. i. there any
one belonging 20 him under whose charge
he can be pai''
Bot no, .oul stepped forward. lie bad
no, a friend in the place. Old M'r'ha. the
only other inmate Of his house, WAS missing,
tiIl they ioupd her afterwards. dead, be
meath great heap OF blacsened ,iIes.
They were about to lay him. ior the pre-.
en,. IN an Clubhouse which vas untouched,
when q stranger, pa.hing his way through
the crowd. came. and. looking on him, said
Leave him to me. WAS with him late
last night. Iam-his friend"
i So they made way and the stranger tool
him to the village inn. bad him lAid IN
bed. and "a, watching by his side oil thai
day. No one but the doctor wHs admitted
and when be came out into the fro OF ques
,ions which met him down stairs, oil the,
could get out OF him Was
Il did not know Mr.. lloldfast bad irient
90 near; be could not nur-e him moro ten
derly h he were an only brotber.
IL which speech the doctor showed mor'
,.gasi,y than he supposed. Bot he kept Il
him,slf the strsngsr's intimstion that h
would pay ell expenses attendant on the siei
man. treatment. For John Holdlass wa'
no, ruined; no had bsen bankrupt. IL b
true. bu; not di.honorably and already .s'
years hal elapsed since that time. duiinl
which time he had made some return towards
. compstrpcy indeed. he had lsIterly mad
such successful purchases in the vicinity o
n rising town. that be had corpe back u
England for the eIpress purpose OF lay'n:
hi. plane before his brother, aud inducing
him To embark HE fortune IN the proPert,
which nov insured . sale and large return
L..A L..