The Union. [volume] (Georgetown, Del.) 1863-1866, 1864-04-01


of terror, which began to troop wildly
round me, and claim me for their own,
Whittier had that white face vanishedI
kept on asking myself the question again
and again. In the first strangeness of the
discovery l had flung aside my broken
knife, and now felt an utter aid invin-
ciblo disinclination to rise from that far
corner, search for it on the floor and re-
sumo my labors on the door. How sud
denly the evening had darkened! Was
that hand which touched my cheek in
the dusk? Whose hand? And hush
was not that Whisper rustic close be-
side me? Would the floor creak so loud
ly unless some one wkom l could not see
were walking across it2
Above the loud howling of the wind l
heard wild shrieks of demoniac laughter.
There were wild creatures abroad that
night, such as the daylight never looked
upon. They called me by name-they
shouted to me to join them; and far away,
along the finty highroad, heard more
of them coming with quick tramp
They were mounted on their emon steeds,
and they would carry me away with them
out of that terrible house, and we should
gallop ali night with the storm.
Be still, ye throbbing pulses! Grant
me q moments respite-give me time for
one last prayer, ere sense and reason de-
sert me altogether!
Louder and louder came the tramp of
the horses; no demon ateeds those, but
veritable animals OF flesh and blood A
minute OF terrible suspense, and then l
heard loud knocking at the front door,
\ and the confused sounding of several
voices all talking at once. The first
knock dissipated all those weird co5web
fancies of an over-wrought brain, which
had held me powerless but a moment be-
fore l sprang to the window, flung open
the easement, and cried for help. know
not what l said, but next moment, as it
seemed TO ME, saw myself surrounded
| by half-a-dozen kindly faces, and lelt that
Twas safe
My rescuers proved to be par y Of jo-
vial farmers, returning from distant fair
In a few brief sentences, l gave them an
, outline Of my story--a story which re-
ceiyed ghastly confirmation when they
; and the treacherous landlord lay dead
= the latter in corner OF the room, closl
e to an overturned wateg-jUg, with a bulle
D through his BRAIN; holding in cue kand
a longxsharp, bowte-kniln, an
= Is5 80 h ~ SO
e in half sitting posture, stabbed to tn
6 heart; holding, firmly clenched in on
y hand, tie pistol with which in Lhe one.lss
t moment granted him On earth, he ha
}, wrought such swift Vengeance on his nun
! derer. When we entered the room til
b face Of Jaeeby was invisiblc--hidden fror
: US by the loose dimity curtain, which hum
e from the head OF the bed; and which tn
I, wind, when it burst open the badly-se
cured easement, and rushed into the room
!, had lifted up and flung tenderly over tn
y dead mans face, as ii in reverent pity a
:, SO sad spectacle The bed stood Jus
g behind the angle Of the entrance into TIA
u room; and from the position OF the body
i the face, when uncovered, was fully re
e Aected in the oval glass, which stood 0
the dressing-table, NEARLY opposite the foe
g OF the bed. A further examination II
1 vealed that both the pedlar's box and pocl
!, cts had been ritled Of their contents.--
e This, evidently, could not have been til
! work OF the landlord his care4r had bee
70 cut too short tor that whatever his ult
v mate intention might have been. Th
"a robbery was, therefore, set down as th
( work OF the nlulatto woman and youn
y savage, Bnd steps were at once taken
le procure their arrest; which desirable col
g at Liverpool as they were about to embar
: for Australia. Some OF the property
Z, the murdered man was found in the
le possession. The woman's version of Il
u ahair was as follows:
y She stated that she was awakened son
:. time in the night by loud cry of " Mu
- 4 der~ quickly followed by pistol-sht
" " and heavy fall That being too frigl
= ened to get out Of bed, she lay tremblil
:. and listening for more than an hour, af,
~ which she summoned sufficient courage
.JJ .I5 creep stealthily out of the house, and ma
.,@ on1 her way to the loft over the stable whs
'bs the young savage slept; that togeth
- they had, after time, ventured up stai
- where they found both Jacoby and t
- landlord dead. This must have occurr
= while lay insensible in the room. Th,
ID thereupon, they had loaded themselv
~ 81 with the property of tie dead man, a
W. - absconded together. As there was no
,st idence to prove any cemplioity on tht
81 part in the murder, their version Of t
Il affair was taken as the correct one, a
,re punishment was meted out to them aecol
yas inely.
". l may just say, in conclusion, that
,e- was afterwards discovered by the pol
NO that the landlord of the lonely inn wat
sn, notorious forger of whom they had ID
on long been in Search man originally
in some education and breeding, but wA
,he numerous misdeeds had at length hi
the his ordinary haunts so hot for him, t
he found it advisable to withdraw h
the self a year or two from public notice, .
an bury his talents in the distant wilds
the Cornwall.---M Y AtbioR. a.La
the ------=s'------e--- II
nv DEcrIT.-Whsn once eorcealment or
the ceit has been practiced in matterS where,
,or- should be fair and open as day, eonkde