The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1871-05-04

They next proceeded to open her bureau
by force, emptied its cash-box, and lin
ally filled large basket with the linen,
silver-ware, and other articles previous
ly selected with this view. When these
things had been accomplished, one of
the men returned to the bed.
"Where is the other money!" he de-
manded, with ferocious air which
froze the blood in Aunt Jerusha's veins.
As the gag in her mouth made an an
swer to this question a physical impos-
sibility, the terrible cudgel was once
raised in a threatening manner.
The unfortunate woman had already
closed her eyes with mental prayer
recommending her soul to Him that
gave it. Then the other ruffian seized
his comrades arm.
"Let her alone !" said he. ." We have
no time to waste on her. 1t may even
now be too late for the early train"
With growl and deep curse, the
fellow suffered himself to be led away.
Aunt Jerusha's eyes mechanically fol-
lowed the pair as they passed close to
the window on their way to the cham
Der door but though it was clear,
bright summers night, she failed to dis
tinguished their features. The lower
part of their faces was concealed by a
bristly beard, while forehead and nose
were shaded by slouched hats so COM
pletely that there seemed no possibility
of identifying the scoundrels hereafter,
even if she were lucky enough to meet
them face to face.
Could it really be that the wicked
were to triumph and crime go unwhip-
ped by justice? Would not Tabitha
awake and give the alarm, or the watch
man on the beat come to the relief of
those whose lives and property were in
trusted to his vigilance and protection ?
But intensely as Aunt Jerusha listened,
nothing was heard save the faint creak-
ing of the front door, and then the sound
of footballs as the rufians rapidly passed
down the sidewalk.
All was quiet at last, and then waned
slowly away the most painful night in
Aunt Jerusha's whole life. She now for
the first fully realized the intense horror
and disgust of having been in the power
OF such monsters. From every corner in
the room she imagined that she saw eyes
fercely glaring at her as she lay help
lessly bound and gagged, and her heart
almost ceased beating whenever mouse
glided across the floor or an owl hooted
in the adjoining woods. The singing
pains IN her tied limbs, and the horrible
gag which almost choked her, added
thus excruciating bodily to mental suf-
| fering.
While undergoing torture which be-
gan at last to appear SO intense and ag-
onizing that she repeatedly implored
death to end them, matters outside went
on as usual. The clocks of the town
continued to strike the hours. With
every new round the watchman's club
struck the customary blow on the pave
ment. The early dawn of summer
morning tinged the sky with roseate
hue; the first faint twitter of the birds
was heard /; at the corner of the street
the baker took down his shutters. At
last the tramp of heavy-soled shoes an
nounced that Tabitha was up and STIR
ring. First she set to sweeping the
front steps and sidewalk, no doubt flirt-
ing as usual with the good-looking milk
man who supplied the family over the
way, giving no thought to her wretched
mistress.
"Is there any one in this wide, wide
world who thinks of me at all I" Aunt
Jerusha mentally asked herself; and
now, when it was perhaps too late, she
understood for the first time in her life
the full significance of the Scriptural
phrase" 1t is not good for man to live
alone"
But the longed-for hour of release
came at last. Curious to ascertain what
could have caused her methodical mis-
tress to violate all established prece-
dent by oversleeping so long her u.s.
ual time, Tabitha stole quietly up stairs
and peeped through the open door into
Aunt Jerusha's bedroom. There she
lay, the poor martyr, with her prefer
naturally-distended CLASSY eyes steadily
fixed on the entrance, and the gag in
her mouth
For a second, Tabitha stood as if she
had been turned, like Lots wife, into
pillar of salt. Then, uttering piercing
Shrek, she flew down stairs and out into
the street with the cry of Help! help 4!
murder thieves"
Accident Tor was it Providence p
would so have it that Peleg Brent hap
pened ut that very time to pass down
the street. Need we say that he imme-
diately fastened to the rescue, and was
the first to enter the sufferers room
What happiness, what joy, to find that
the adored of his youth and the hope of
his maturer years still lived! What &C.
stasy to think that it should have been
reserved for him to free her numbed
limbs, to whisper words of sympathy
and cheer into her ear, and to carry the
first draught of cooling water to her
parched lips
We drop here the curtain for a few
minutes, leaving the pair to their feel
ings, until the arrival of the neighbors
interrupted their tete-a-tete.
There, then, she lay, the poor martyr,
chastely covered with the bed-clothes
up to the tip of her chin, giving detailed
accounts of the preceding nights expe-
riences to successive detachments of
wondering neighbors and friends. The
exclamations of the auditors, the lament
atoms of Tabitha, the running COM
mentaries of Peleg, were quite melodra-
matte in their way. But the most har-
rowing feature in the drama was the
despairing expression with which Aunt
Jerusha persisted in reiterating the
words: "I would resign myself to the
loss of all, if had only saved my pre-
cious watch ]!
The heart of Peleg fairly bled, and he
registered solemn VOW. Availing him
self of temporary lull in the prevail
ing Babel of tongues, he approached
closely to his friends bedside, and grave
ly said: "Mrs. Wiggins !-Jerusha II