Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1869-06-10
pal Mace This beautiful object, although not in.

pal uacc. 1HlS DedutlIul OU1ect, dftuuuSu uOb III
trinsioally valuable, had apparently excited hi
greed. for be had dragged it as far as the window
and thence let it fall with report that had alarm
ed the house, and dented the ground below
When the door was opened; however; (which tht
servants declined to do until the proper author
ties" arrived), the marauder had vanished, ane
with him this emblem of authority, as well.as
pair Of his Lordship' s boot-hooks. There happen
ed to be nothing in the room but the mayors boots
and the town mace. But the incident was, o.
course as distressing to Mr.. John Stott as though
the regalia had been pluudered. He felt that hii
great reputation was giving away under those re-
peated shocks; while the rest of the oonstabulary
were, of course, overwhelmed with disgrace; and
the tory newspaper openly advocated stringent
measures" and the calling out Of the ysomanry.
II suppose" sighed his wife upon this Satur'
day afternoon, there is no chance for you to 60
with me tonight to the show? And yet it seems
such pity, after that civil Mr.. Shaw has sent US
those tickets; and you know never enjoy any.
thing-let it be wild beastesses or what not-whh.
out you, John. How fine they look, with this
picture of the lion and the unicorn, though the
bill says the unicorn was dead-with Sha'o's
.Sbo,c, 'patronized by all the crowned heads Of
Europe, and admit the bearer with his auto
graph in the corner, in red ink! Why, the may
or's own invitations are not more splendid.
'Don't talk of the mayor, woman, for that makes
me think of the mace, >" replied her husband with
a shiver. II don't wish to see any show but one,
and that's the man that stole that mace, with a
pair of handouts on him, or, what would be better
still, a-standing underneath bit Of wood with a
rope round his neck and a parson by his side,
But there, it's no good wishing. Upon my life, ]
sometimes wonder if the Devil himself is not ado
ing on it all to vex me- ....-- ... = ..
"Lor, John, you make me creep!' o.. =. -. .
"Well, I can't make you fly, reckon, replied
Mr.. Stott surly land yet that's what this fel'
low can do, confound him!' He's like bird of
the air, "a bird of prey" '''. -
81 "Well, John, do you know can't help some
times thinking would not have mentioned
it unless you habitat, perhaps, after all, it is
bird! You know magpie is thief by nature. y
"And SO you suppose magpie could have stol-
en- the town mace, do you? Why, you are greater
fool than the newspapers '...
"I forgot the mace, John, j" observed Mrs: Stott,
humbly. ..-...... -,~... .. q.
II wish / could forget it, growled the chief
constable "You had better put on your bonnet,
aud take my ticket round the corner to Mrs Jones,
who will be glad enough to go with you; only take
care Shaw don't keep you both, and put you in a
cage for pair of owls. There, I'm sorry to- be 50
rude Mrs, Stott but the fact is, I feel as shall
90 out of my mind unless tackle this mystery
and must be left alone to think it out. ....
So Mrs. Stott obedient wife as she was, attired
herself in gorgeous apparel and, accompanied by
her friend and neghbor the parish doctor 3 wife,
honored Mr.. Shaw's menagerie with her presence.
It was sort Of fete which that practical student
of Natural History (which included some knowl-
edge of ,mankind) had given to the inhabitants
of the town, and everything was on very splendid
SCALE The show was lit up by lows of chandeliers,
made Of circlets of wood and candles, from the lat
ter of which, as they of necessity hung very low,
the talow dripped upon the heads Of the compa-
n.y. but that was not found out till the next morn
ing. :,
The door and cages had been thoroughly swept
and garnished, and some attempt had even been
made, by unguents and spices (or, in other words,
chlorate of ime,) to mitigate the odor that hangs
about all establishments devoted to the reception
of wild beasts. But it must be confessed that this
last refinement was failure-it was like the jar of
altar, which, ''do what you will, the scent of the
roses would cling to it STILL" only in this case the
perfume was the result Of combination; the n.y.
epa and the muskrat, the royal Bengal tiger and
the marmoset each contribute their soupcon. In
place Of the usual Snowman, Mr.. Shaw himself,
with an elegant white wand, pointed out the vari-
Gus objects Of interest explained their habits and
narrated anecdotes of their extraordinary sagacty
The moukeycages, as usual, were the chief attrac-
ton; thel .DAocent gambols, and the remarkable
penchant they exhibited for biting each others
tails were the admiration Of the behoders. Mrs.
Stott, while regarding these parodies upon man
kind with contemplative air, was very nearly
indeed, literally within half an inch or so-paying
q great penalty for her philosophic abstraction. Z
ribbed face baboon, of gigantic sze looked not un-
like one of Mr.. Cooper's Indian heroes in his war
paint, made snatch at one of her fingers, which,
loaded with rings, happened to be ungloved, for
she had just been taking refreshments.
''Your charms even vanquished the brute crea-
ton, Mrs. Stott," observed the clerk to the con-
stables wife; "the enamored animal seeks your
hand"
"Yes; but, like the rest Of the male sex, for
what is in it, Or on it," replied Mrs. Jones, who
had been all hciress in small way, till her husband
removed that invidious distinction by spending all
her money.
The ribbed-faced baboon screamed with disap-
pointment, and swung by his rope headforemost,
and with his eyes Shut for the rest ofthe evening.
1t was l, A. M, and the chief eonstable's wife
had been in bed since midnight, but she had not
yet fallen asleep She was awaiting the arrival of
Mr.. Stott in hopes that he might have some good
news to tell her. or to comfort him with her SYM
pathy in case he hadn't. 1t was beautiful night,
and she had left the window open, through which
the soft, fresh air came gratefully enough after the
atmosphere of the menagerie. She would be able
to catch the majestic football of her lord while it
was yet great way of, and she was listening for
lit. Presently through the deep summer stiffness,
sounded human step, which, albeit not that she
was expecting, seemed familiar to her. 1t was a
step which, although it moved with quickness,
had slight limp such as she had noticed in the
gait of Mr.. Shaw. Yet he had himself assured
her that very evening that he was man of early
habits, and always shut up his house on wheels
before twelve o'clock It was most unlikely that
on the night of his fete, of all nights he should
have made an exception to this salutary practice
and yet she knew no other step than his like that
T. Il. Il A.