The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1869-06-02
without him, she began 10 be seriously

a holt might have struck him. But at day
light she heard the fronG-door open, and a
slow tread como up the stairs. The vile Of
a chief constable should I've above the sus
picion of trepidation, but it was so unlike
his ordinary step, that it made her heart SO
pit pat. However, it was her husband
whose noble spirit something had evidently
cast down. Instead of kicking his boots
across the room, as usual, he drew them of
and then sat in his stockings thinking.
john said she, in much confusion and
alarm, what is the matter, my dear? Have
you not caught them albatrosses III mean
alpinos."
| Yes. ma'am, they're safe enough. But
the deuce of it is that, in their absence, there
has been another burglary. Mrs. Colonel
| Peewit's house has been broken into just in
the same way,-through the second floor
back window. It'snothing less than magic,
for that had a mignonette-b and there is
no mark of ladder to be found there
neither I've had my bulls eye over every
square inch of it."
"Lor John"
There was nobody in the room " went
on the chlef-constable, musing, land the
window was open, so that the thing might
have been done easy enough when he had
once got there. But how he ever did get
tbere,-that the question,-unless the devil
had wings"
"But the devil has wings!" was Mrs.
Stotts involuntary exclamation; the good
lady was so flustered by her late anxiety,
that, for once she spoke in hurry.
You will presently cause me to imagine
that have made a second mistake in my
life ma'am-in having married FOOL was
her husbands stern rejoinder. Then he
went on soliloquizing. The thief, whoever
he was, took the same things,-rings and
pins, and such-like,- but he also took
plated inkstand. That looks as if he did
not know his trade. And yet, to have eff
fected an entrance just where nobody would
have thought such thing practicable, he
must have been most uncommon cunning.
Cunning9 No, for then l should see the
thing rs plain as the church tower It's
downright unaccountable. How is it human
ly possible that things can he stolen out of
second-fOor window without ladder or
anything to climb up by, unless its water
spout,-that's what want to know. And
what's more, even if he got up, how did he
ever get down again 2
Hearing these remarks put aloud, and in
an interrugative form, Mrs. Stott thought it
incumbent upon her to speak, and the more
so, as she had ingeniously elaborated
theory of her own to account for the whole
mystery.
''If nobody could have got in from the
outside, John, people as was inside could
have done it easy enough. 1t was one of
them trapesing scrVant-girls, who dresses so
fine, and is always wanting money to buy
gewgaws you may take my word for it"
i don't suppose, ma'am,' returned the
chiefconstable, with supreme contempt,
that the bench of justices would take your
word for it even if was weak enough to do
So which am not. The servants are all
above suspicion, both at Sir Roberts and
Mrs. Peewit's, that was the first thing as we
looked to, of course. But even if it were
otherwise, do you suppose that thieving is
an epidemic that it should break out in one
household to-day, and in another tomorrow,
as this has done? You had better 90 to
sleep. ma'am, and leave me to think the
matter out alone Which, accordingly,
this great man, having drawn his nightcap
on, the better to consider in, proceeded to
do. Two burglaries on two following
nights, in town under his personal super.
lntendence, and nobody yet in custody2
He had never imagined that such plot
could befall his 'scutcheon.' It was not
impossible, in town so slenderly guarded,
that ladder might have been EMPLOYED
without detection, but most certainly in
neither OF these cases had such an instrument
been used. The flower boxes had. in both
instance, projected beyond the sill, so that
the top of any ladder must have rested on
them, and left its mark. There was also no
trace OF the foot of it in the soil below, or
sign OF an attempt to remove such trace
although, IN the case of Sir Roberts house,
there was fower-bed Immediately beneath
The window Mr.. Stott, in short, brought
Ill his intelligence to bear upon this pro-
olem in vain, and nothing came out OF it
out headache.
The next night The mayors own house was
'obbed in precisely similar manner.
1t was on Friday, and the local papers
which came out the next day, published
econd and third editions, to describe the
ietaIls. Besides the burglary, sort of sa-
;rllege had been committed. The thief had
'ctually possessed himself with the municipal |
mace. This beautiful object, although in.
valuable, had apparently excited |
lis greed, for he had dragged it out of its
'ase as far as the window and thence let
fall with report that had alarmed the
louse, and dented the ground below
" men the door was opened, however (Which
he servants declined to do until the proper au.
iiorltles arrived), the marauder had vanish
ID, and with him the emblem of authority
IS well as pair of his lordship's boothooks'
mere happened to be nothing kept in that
Dom but the mayors boots and the town
mace. But the incident was of course as
to Mr.. Stott as though the re-
'slia had been plundered. He felt that his
reat reputation was giving way under
hese repeated shocks. while the rest of the
onstabulary were of course overwhelmed
nth disgrace; and the Tory newspaper
penly advocated " stringent measures and
ne calling out of the yeomanry.
i suppose sighed his wife, upon this Sat-
raay afternoon, there is no chance of your
olng with me tonight to the show? And
ct it seems such pity, after that civil Mr.
nav has sent US these tickets, and you knowvl
never ENJOY anythlng--let it be wild beast
'ses.or what not, without you, John. How
ne they look, with this picture of the lion
I'd the uDicorn-though the bill says as the
licorn is dead-with Shaw's show. pat
nized by all the crowned heads of Europe,
d admit the bearer with his autograph
the corner, in red ink Why, the NAV.
s own invitations are not more splendid
Don't talk of the mayor, woman, for that
axes me think of the mace replied her
sband with shIyer Il don't wish to see
y show but one, and that's the man that
Die tLat mace, with pair of handouts ON
m, or what would be better still, a stand
g underneath bit of wood, with rome
ound his neck, and parson by his side.
1t there, it's no good WISHING. JJnon INV