Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-02-24
MISCELLANEOUS.

MISCELLANEOUS.
THE DEAD MANS BELL.
"My child crying again" said Tom Nor.
ley, i've minutes after had been In his
house, periodically referring TO the sur
gerry bell.
"W0rse than any child" said I. ~
never heard such bell; II doesn't ring,
It tolls" It might have been knell, such
WAS lie solemn, deep toned clangor. "Why
on earth don't you change 1t for some
thing more professionals It's enough TO
Tighten your patients into dts"
Ill tell you when ! come back" he
replied; and Tom Morley went to the
surgery to see what was wanted.
had taken Crawford on my way In .
Journey to Exeter, because knew Tom
Morley, who had recently come into some
considerable property in that little town
where he was practising a. surgeon, and
because there was some queer circumgtan.
ces connected with his settlement In
Crankford, Of which l wished to learn
the particulars; and he was such q bad
correspondent, II was no good writing to
him. His house was very old fashioned
one. It stood askew In crooked street
ofa crooked town, and every room seemed
arranged corncrwise, ~ TO consist of
beams, and angles, and recesses.
"Well," said Tom Morley, returning to
the room after having seen his patients,
"now, about the bell. Why don't change
Il for more musical one Because I oWe
nearly oil / have to that bell. Come and
look ct It,"
followed him up stairs, and along =
winding dark passage on the first dOor,
'+ill We came 10 It, large and heavy iron
bell covered with cobwebs, remarkable
Tor nothing, 70 my mind, bat it, sire and
It, hideous noisinesA Tom Get Il . swing.
ang till Il produced deafening peal 20 That
my head ached.
AThcre," said he, with evident relish
for the hOrrid noise, VI - long a. ! have .
surgery, / hope that will always be my
surgery bell Il has been the unconscious
instrument Of punishing crime, Of aveng.
Ing re sss ds: 3d.. and Of justice to DO
We came down stairs again, and whom
comfortably seated by the hresidc, Tom
Morley toll me the story.
You must know that this poky little
house, and that big gabled barn next to Il
on the right hand side, which ID sufficient.
y assuming TO he digni6ed with the title
Of edifce," once upon time formed one
h0use-one great crooked bit Of insight
lines that might have been built during
an earthquake BY Manx architect /; Il
could mot have been crOokedeS. The then
owner Of the place used 70 live In the largo
house, whilst his butler and the butlers
wiSe (the owners housskeepey) inhabited
the smaller one n which We are now slt-
TIM At that time the great house Was .
dne0ne h IT. way, wall furnished, and
well kept mp; but when Through circum.
stances which / need not msntion) the
property came into my fathers posses
ION, near twenty years ago, hs made two
houses Of Il, lived In the big one himseli,
and lot the little one.
Ny hther, Mr.. Isaac Morley, Wa called
bad landlord he seldom had tenant
stay In the smaller house long In fot, he
allowed Tito 30 almost 70 wreck and ruin,
Or want q the necessary external repairs;
bat then he sufsred thelaFge house, which
- inhabited himsslH 70 AL into amilar
state Of decay. Il was mot that no was .
poor man, but because he hAd . morbid
dialike 70 part with his money. Some
people called my Athw miesr iif1nding
n00ay IN his own house, and sloattng
over Il with some deCres Of satiS(Agtiol,
make person . miDeI, people were justi.
ID n calling him on. But - was not .
misee n tie Ordinary ssnse Of The tsrm.
HIs hoarding at home bad grown out Of >
nlebee1ne whiah neeEly rolned hin IN
seS0 ~ ~ 1ooel haak q which nneA Of
III noasy Va dspodted hA0 hlled; and