Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-02-17
MISCELLANEOUS.
THE SHAN VAN VO6HT.-A TRUE
STORY.
CHAPTER 1.
By REBECCA HARDING DAVIS.

IT was just outside of Mr.. Kelsoe's own
farm gate that he and Tom met Mr..
Knapp The clergyman had been riding
hard, Tom noticed, and looked scared and
excited; so Tom promptly pushed his
shaggy pony between his fathers horse
and the hedge to hear all that was going
on. s
"The rebels are here, and in force, Mr.
Kelsoe; there can be no doubt about it.
Jarvey saw with his own eyes last night,
large bodies of men, masked, crossing the
road yonder. They are secreted IN your
woods. Your own servants are no dpubt
in league with them" ~
"That can't be, father" cried Tom "a
grily. ~.
Mr.. Kelsoe put his hand gentl, lite
Toms shoulder. utt
"There is no trusting any of thgog
Mr. Knapp went on excitedly.
cret league includes every Milesian II iai
man. Your foster brother, or the y, A
nurse in your chimney corner, may ler
pledged to poison you, or to stab y al
your bed"
Mr.. Kelsoe shook his head. II thiAnS
know these people better than you, 'spie
said mildly. ,Inr
"What did they do last week in u Pc
gal? In Sligo? Plundered every leo 4
lists house of arms-then burned cad
killed as they went. And our distl his
unprotected by single soldier. ell
you, Mr. Kelsoe, there's murder i. The
air! Look to your house tonight,
He rode away hurriedly, and MIX lsoe
and Tom logged on leisurely. Rm
looked down uneasily through the d.,
ening evening, at the stretch of blRe
woods below the hill He fancied myss i
rious shadows Of masked men passinV,N
and fro.
"Father, is it true that the rebels h!eNe
dane as he says in Sligo? ?" -, wa
II am afraid it is, Tom" "A
"The hounds I'd like to Gs N
come after our arms It wouldiey me
satisfaction, father, to have crestert one
of that rabble, with my fowlings cece !"
There is something to be sa !. on their
himself; "there is somethingSlways to be
said on the other side" Toms father had
always been a member of the Church Of
England, but Nature meant him for q
Quaker.
"They are thieves and murderers!''
"They are Gods creatures, my SON."
As soon as they reached the house, Tom
rushed up stairs to clean his fowling. piece.
He had only owned it a week.
Tom Kelsoe was 10 years old; just the
age of Tom Waters here beside me. He
was big, broad -chested fellow, too, and
could throw any boy Of his size ct like
this other Tom. They had the o.. ae hon
est, freckled faces, and shock of black
hair, and chapped, red hands; and there
was lot of string, and nails, and top, and
a wormy apple, in Tom Kelsoes pocket,
precisely as there is in Tom Waters now.
But this Tom wears cheviot sack, dull
and decorous that Tom was to be seen
afar off,in his blue roundabout, gay with gilt
buttons; this one shoves his way through
q great public school, and chatters glibly
Of chemistry, geology, and steam engines;
the other pored over heavy Latin books,
with an humble, awkward tutor, who
taught sons of the gentry the humani-
ties" or he cut high pigeon wings in the
air with his legs, before his dancing mas
ter, practicing contra dances, jigs, and
strathspeys. Our Tom whistles lie
sabre de man PEREZ" and plays base ball !;
the other Tom trotted after the whipper-
in, before day, to see the hounds throw of,
shouting,
I" A ssusherly wind and cloudy sky
Proclaim It hunting morning,
With hey no, tivy tantivy hot"
or he coursed for hares over the snow
covered turf. One hurrshs for Grant; the
other prayed every night for King George
and Queen Charlotte. Tom Waters il q
Jolly, wideawake boy yet, and means to
be President; the other Tom was long
ago laid to rest, an old, white headed
man. For our story II Of nearly 4 century
ago; and the rebels whom Tom Kelsoe
feared belonged to little island, where
the fields are green, and the people hot
tempered ell the year round.
Tom polished his gun vigorously. Kit
Cassidy held the oil and bits Of leather.
Kit WAS Toms foster brother.
I'd Ike chance at one Of the rebels
with this Kit - -s.sssazs
I" Its yerself q wud be the shure shot,
1asthef Tom I" go. ~ esss'ss
armss" (boasdngly). "They never owned
egun"
NThov Wur'nt allowed any.-no more