Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1870-07-14
91lrrtrO 5lli5tflInnn.
THE sHARPER'S PERIL


TO see such ou article as that in my pos
session, but fit ism ctrango thing for mo
TO have o Bible, the way ! came by It Il
stranger have had it for three years; !
shall keep il as long as ] live.
Three wears ago was living on my wits
in tae city of ST. Paul Perhaps ] gam
bled some perhaps you Will call 1t swind'
hing
ktap events there was o chap ont there,
rich Young scapegrace who loved to be
heeced, aud no one loved to fleece hum bet
ter than Dick, and one day he came to me
looking very miserable,
"Dick, said he, i've lost my watch "A
poor old turnip- but the old woman gave
it to me just before she died, and Wouldn't
lose il for farm.
Imade some inquiries, and soon found
that the watch had gone into the Virginia
backWoOG settlement.
How found IT ont is nothing to you. |
told Tom about it,
"Well," be said, as ticlled as child,
"all we have got to do is to put an officer
on tho track,
"You must make a sweet baby" Inter
rupted "Why, mp there they shoot an
officer on sight
II would give FIVE hundred dollars said
Tom pnssionotely "rather than | would
lose that watch
Done" | said, and the next morning |
started for Lake Howard, forty.seyen miles
in the droary woods dressed like back
wooasman, with o couple of Derringers in
my pbckots and mounted on an animal
tha' was once horse, which bought
for SOS. A droary woods il was To say
nothing Of the awful roads, the backbone
of nv noble steed was q source of misery,
for | ha1 no saddle, that would have eX-
cited suspicion ut once, So was glad at
the end of the second day, when five miles
from the lake, TO stop at q log howell by the
roadside.
The family were preparing their evening
meal making il into mush when lenter-
ed, and | wos about TO toke my place at
the table, when the old nan looked at me
sadly
young man, said be- Il see by your
looks that yoa don't know tie Lord,
you are right there old man, said,
He's stranger to me-
Aud then the old fellow groanod and I'M
media'ely produced the identical Bible you
see before YOU,
'Hcar the words Of wrath, he said, be-
ginning to read, and queer work he made
Of il, kicking his mental Sims against all
the big words.
pmdEtl> attention to him, but got
somehow vague impression that his mind
was not on his reading, Still | did not set
him down MS a hypocrite as should in
stont'y had he been anywhere else but
there, whore hypocrisy seemed so supar-
fuous.
Wicked as | was, was rather pleased
than otherwise to find symptoms eff pety
IN that God torsakon place. Tue reading
and tbe supper over the oil man said In
qurrgly;
Nehbo yer going into Virginia settle,
meut
"rhats just where am going, re.
piled,
"phen ityou take that ring With YOU,
violence viii he done you, Them people
don't know the Lord.
Sure enough, like q coniounded fool, a,
the wistSt oiuS may be at times, had worn
Mv emerald ring all the way.
young man,, said the old Teller again,
"vhat air yau driving ap Never boa hypo.
critic, you are deceiyug people; You are
no laboru' man The Lord De merciiul e
YOU.
''Rirht again, old stiek.in-the mad
sai3 Il AM no laboriug man never did
wpgG for living, and never Will l don't
muj telling You, ON account Of your re,
markable piety, that I'm up here on q little
business tor friend, Perhaps YOU can
help. ia which case You can earn dolla,
or ivo Perhaps you don't know such .
fellow Meulmou Austin Merrimau"
"a desperate man, SAWS the old fellow
with q shudder, "who knows no, IL,
Lord"
perhaps ! said, "he's sport, gay
aud festive sort Of s wood chopper MAY