Dallas herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1849-1873, 1869-05-15
The old Carimaa---An alse.t-



ley, or "Pap Ainsley," as he Wa
familiarity called, was tho owner o
a hand cart, aud earned living By
conveying miscellaneous packages
from one part of the city to another
and receiving therefore the sum o.
tily cents per load, When not en-
plOyed, no could always bo found
on the corner Of Montgomery anu
California streets, Ills hair and
long beard were quite gray, krd AZ
limbs feeble; and as ho could mol
shove rs heavy a load through tbs
deep sand or up tho steep grade
above him as tue stalwart Ient0n
on tho opposite corner, thereby
losing many q job aud many dol
lar, all tho light loads in tho neigh
borhood fell 10 his lot, aud kind
hearted men not unfrequontly tray-
eled square or two out of their
way to give an easy job TO old "Pap
Ainsloy."
Four years ago last September,
having two or three dozen volumes
to transfer to my lodgings, | gave
Pap Ainsley the task of tnnsporta,
tion. Arriving at my room just rs
no had deposited the last armful on
tho table, and observing that the
old man looked f,,tlgued alter climb,
Ing thfec flights OF stairs two or
three times, l invited him to take n
glass of brandy-a bottle of which
| usually kept in my room for mod
ical and sporific purposes. Although
grateful for tho invitation, he polite
ly declined. L was astonishod.
"Do you never drink" said |.
Every seldom" he replied, drop.
ping into n chain at my request, and
wiping tho perspiralion from his
forehead.
"Wcll, ifyou drink at all" l in
sisted, "you will not find as fair an
excuse in the next twclvomonth for
indulging, for you appear fatigued
and scarcely able to stand"
"To be frank" said the old man,
81 do not drink now. | have not
tasted Intoxicating liquors for fifteen
years sincc-"
"Since whcn?" inquired thought
lcssly, observing his hesitation.
Tho old man told iic sixteen years
ago he was n well-to-do farmer near
Syracuse, New York. lie had one
child, a daughter. While attending
n boarding school in that city, then
q girl Of sixteen years Of age, she
formed an attachment for q young
physician. Acquainting her father
with the circumstances, he fatty re-
fused his consent to q union with a
man he had never seen, and, remov-
ing hor from school, sent q note to
the young gallant with the some
what pointed information that his
presence in the neighborhood Of
Ainslcy farm would not meet with
favor. ......
The reader, of course, surmises
tho result. for such q proceeding
could have but one result. In less
than u month there was an olope-
ment. The father loaded his double
barrel shotgun andswore vengeance,
but, failing to find the fugitives, he
took to the bottle. His good wife
impldi'ed him not to give way to
despair, and he accused ,hcI Of en-
couraging the elopement.
In three months tho wife died;
and at the expiration of year,
whom the young people returned to
Syracuse from Connecticut, where
they had remained with the parents
of the husband, they learned that
the old man had squandered his
money and was almost destitute.
Learning of their arrival, Ainsley
drank himself into q frenzy, and
proceeded to tho hotel where they
were stopping, attacked The hus,
band, wounded him in tho arm by
a pistol shot, and attempted to take
the life ofhis daughter, who happily
escaped uninjured through heinter-
position of persons brought to the
spot by the report of the pistol.
hinsley was arrested, tried and
acquitted on the plea of insanity.
The daughter and her husband re-
turned to Connecticut, since which
time ths father had not heard from
them. He was sent to lunatic
asylum, from which he was dis
missed after remaining six months.
In 1851 he came to California. He
had followed mining for two years,
but his strength was unequal 10 tho
pursuit, and he returned to the city,
purchased d hand cart, and-the
rest Is known.
aSince them" concluded the old
man, bowing his face in his hands
in agony, "I have not tasted liquor,
nor. have / seen my child"
/ regretted that Ihad been so in
quisitive, and expressed to the suf-
fercr the sympathy i really felt for
him. After that / seldom passed
the corner without looking for Pap
and never saw him but TO
think of the sad story he had told
me. t raa
One chilly, drizzly day in Decem-
Der following, a gentleman having
purchased a small marble-top table
at an auction room opposite, proffcr-
ed to the old man the job of carry
ing il to his residence in Stockton.
Not wishing to accompany the car
rier, he had selected tho face giving
the best assurance of careful deiiy-
cry of his purchase.
Furnished With the number of
the house, the old cartman, after a
trying struggle with the steepascent
of California street, reached bis des-
and deposited The table in
the hall. Lingering moment, Tho
a