The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1868-03-21

ana gave the autnOflCl6S lcS-Ooi lof uOIfCsty
Van Dieman's Land has grown distasteful to me.
You see have got my eccentricities. ,,',v
"What object brings you hereY Why do you
disturb me at this time of night!"
II have merely called in to pay You friendly
visit, and cancel an old obligation. That's al"
and he laughed with bitter irony.
"What is it that yoS desire ?"
81 desire ten years of seridom spent in Van
Dieman's Land. Hark, Fielding, you have
| caused the sun of my life to go down whilst
was still young What will compensate for the
three thousand six hundred and fifty days blot
ted from the calender of my existence? What
will remunerate for the iron chains that bound
my legs and eat into my flesh, or for the robbers
jacket that defiled my back? I answer, blood
1t was your cursed testimony that placed me in
the felon cell, and consigned me to a felon's
ignominy and exile" .trfsts
As the man spoke the muscles of his chest rap
idly rose and fell, indicating the terrible conflict
that was raging within.
"Your crime has been terrible one" interpos-
ed Nina, attempting to divert the current OF
his fierce anger from her father.
"Ha, you allude to the transaction of that tenn
pestous night f'Ie SLisG gl 70 J
81 do"
81 was poor" urged the wretch, half in vndi-
cation of his offence "Would you have me
starye, with such a golden prize within my
grasp? The conyentionalties of life despised,
just as the rich despised me. All this hypocrit-
ical cant about honesty is mere moonshine. l
have been honest too long, l would do the same
thing again tomorrow under the same circum-
stances without oompunction.
'The laws of God or man recognize no such
right, sir. You have outraged society" said the
girl boldly.
"Bravey spoken, no doubt; but your hippancy
fails to convince me of the contrary. What is
society at the best demand, but a conclave of
periured villains, where he who denounces loud
est against fraud, but waits the chance to cut his
neighbors throat in secret and those pious men
who profess to be the best guardians of morality,
are the most fragrant violators Of chastity? What
is the difference, ask you, between my crime
and that of the deyout merchant who charters a
ship for some foreign port, when after affecting a
good insurance upon her cargo, wishes that she
might go down in the storm, without regard TO
loss of human life? What recks he of the misery
of others, or what cares he for the consequences
that ensue, SO that he enrches his own Golfers by
the transaction Are not our cases paralleled,
only mine leans little more to the side of virtue;
for his desires had been deliberately evil from the
beginning, whilst had the courage to seize up
on my project on the instant, and boldly put it
into execution! But enough of this. l am here
tonight to vindcate my OATH l have sworn to
be revenged"
For PHYS sake do not use such threats! You
surely would not injure sick and helpless
man !"
"The ID would not !" exclaimed Sherrick
brutally.
Deliberately throwing back the folds of his
cloak he drew a pistol from his belt, and slowly
raising it TO level with the sick mans head,
said: .Et
yielding, you have had your day tbs is
miner 4
Quick as lightning Nina OWNED his murder
Gus intention, and flung herself heavily across
his outstretched arm, grasping him round the
waist The hammer of the pistol fell, and the
contents entered the side of the couch, whilst
the second pistol was jerked from his belt and
rolled he ply along the floor, discharging its con-
tents in its transit
"Hell!" shrieked the infurlated man, sam /
to be foiled thus by girl ?" ..Hs
With violent effort he hurled Ninna, manned
and screaming, to the opposite side of the apart
ment, and then removing his sword from its
cane scabbard, said:
Nothing after all SO reliable as the cold
steel" ...,~,... ....,,.. ,....
AS he spoke CLEAN of fendish triumph light
ed up his features for he was inwardly gloating
over the protracted agony that he was causing
his victim. Quickly approaching the bed, he was
about to plunge his sword into the eick mans
body, when a well-dirscted blow from a heavy
stick feled him to the floor. That stroke was
given by Ernest Fielding.
By one of those singular condolences which
men SO often attribute to chance, but which in
reality, nothing less than interpositon of
Providence Ernest Fielding and Sherrick tray
eed in the same steamer from Liverpool and &C.
cupied berths in the same state-ro0m. From va
rous inquiries which Sherrick had made of
young Fielding, whom he did not know, relative
to his father well from the ncoherent threats
uttered by him during his sleep. Fielding was
disposed to be alarmed. Az all events he deter
mined 20 watch him, closely. He moreover OBJ
served that Sherrick had a large scar on one side
of his face, and he fancied that his general fea-
lures were not unlike those so often described by
his father as belonging to the villain that light
ed the false beacon on the headland 1t was only
a ooiecture of negative character with him to
be sure, but the association OF ideas in his mind
were peculiarly suggestive The steamer, after
a boisterous and pretracted voyage, arrived safe
ly in rort, rs we have already observed, and Ern-
est Fielding, after first attending to a special
commission, which he had to deliver the moment
that lie arrived, appeared upon the scene describ-
ed in the cottage almost too late to save his faith
er's life H.
The blow inflicted by Fielding fractured one
of Sherrcks temple bones, from which inamma-
ton of the brain resulted, destroying life in u
few days Thus ended the life of that desperate
man, unrogretted by single person that knew
HIM III former years.
EHeash OF English EGings "a Queens.
William thn Cnr1unro, lial FROM, annrn,ou a