Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-02-17
MISCELLANEOUS.
THE SHAN VAN VO6HT.-A TRUE
STORY.
CHAPTER l.
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.
"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 tho
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 ,;,2-
grily. ~
Mr.. Kelsoe put his hand gent, lite
TOMS shoulder. utt
"There is no trusting any of theioR
Mr.. Knapp went on excitedly.
cret league includes every Milesian Il siiaf
man. Your foster brother, or the I, A
nurse in your chimney corner, may ier
pledged to poison you, or to stab yoNfa;
your bed"
Mr.. Kelsoe shook his head. IT thir.ns
know these people better than you, spte
said mildly. I'M
"What did they do last week in ii p..e-
gal? In Sligo? Plundered every lco
lists house Of arms-then burned cAd
killed as they went. And our distll h.is
unprotected by a single soldier. u sell
you, Mr.. Kelsoe, there's murder i,l4he
air! Look to your house to-nightn,E
He rode away hurriedly, and Mrsa soc
and Tom logged on leisurely. Qm
looked down uneasily through the d.
ening evening, at the stretch of biz
woods below the hill. He fancied myst
rious shadows Of masked men passin a
and fro.
"Father, is it true that the rebels b. e
dane as he says in Sligo?" ~
~ am afraid it is, Tom"
"The hounds I'd like to Sc IN
come after our arms! 1t would1sy ame
satisfaction, father, to have a crabtME one
of that rabble, with my fowling kece p
"There is something to be 50 on their
side," Mr.. Kelsoe said, as iGlking to
himself; there is something, always 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 murderersl"
"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 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 st like
this other Tom. They had the sane hon
est, freckled faces, and shock of black
hair, and chapped, red hands; and there
was lot of string, and nails, and q top, and
a wormy apple, in Tom Kelsoe's 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 of, in his blue roundabout, gay with gilt
buttons; this one shoves his way through
a great public school, and chatters glibly
of chemistry, geology, and steam engines;
the other pored over heavy Latin books,
taught sons of the gentry the humane
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,
"A ssutherly wind and Z cloudy sky
Proclaim II hunting morning,
With hey no, tivy tantivy hot"
or he cOursed for hares over the snow.
covered turf One hurrahs for Grant the
other prayed every night for King George
and Queen Charlotte. Tom Waters 10
jolly, wide-awake boy yet, and means to
be President; the other Tom was long
ago laid to rest, an old, white headed
man. For our story is Of nearly Z century
ago; and the rebels whom Tom Kelsoe
feared belonged to little island, where
A. n 10 -
tempered all the year round.
Tom polished his gun vigorously. Kit
Cassidy held the oil and bits Of leather.
Kit was Toms foster brother.
"Id like chance at one Of the rebels
with this Kit"
It's yerself a. wud be the shure shot,
1asther Tom |" $50 $50
"What can those wretches do with
arms!n (boastingly). "They never owned
sgun." 4
"They wur'n't allowed any,-no more