Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1871-03-09
A Fatal Mistake.


years ago, three friends, wild fel
lows enough, who had seemingly
linked their fortunes for better OF
for worse, aud who, whatever theil
luck, were constantly in each
others company.
These young men were Charles
Chester, Harry Bray, and Edward
Warren. They were more broth
erly than many brothers, more
akin than many kinsmen. True to
each other, even when women and
money were between them. Da-
mon and Pythias, with a twin De-
mon added. For a long while they
had been very poor; at last fortune
favored them. Each had q certain
sum, by no means contemtible,
slowed away in the leather belt he
wore about his waist Each car
ried s gold watch, and each wore a
suit of clothes, supposed by him
self to be the latest style, and
choicest fashion. Moreover, their
revolvers were perfect, silvermoun-
ted, and rejoicing in multiplicity
of barrels; for without these it
would be quite impossible to main
tain a position in this quarter of
the world in any society.
How they came by these posses
sions, we will not inquire too par
ticularly. They we're neither bur
glars nor highwaymen, but dice
and betting may have helped them
to the winning of their little for
tunes, They were not over scrupu-
lous; but they would have knocked
any man down who had neglected
to address them as gentlemen, and
used those wonderful revolvers
promptly on any stranger" who
objected to drinking with them /;
and, consequently stood rather
high in the community. Certainly,
lin their conduct to each other they
were faultlessly honorable and
miraculously generous.
One day soon after 'luck" had
come to its best, letter directed in
q tremulous woman's hand to
"Charles Chester" was handed to
that member of the trio, in pres
ence Of the other two The young
fellow seized it eagerly, tore it
open, read it through, and tearing
oil MS pvle, .1,read its contents be-
fore him upon the table anu sam.
ted it over. Having done so he
burst into tears, and vely unwisely
and profanely cursed himself for
extravaganza, and requested for
himself all sorts of uncomfortable
things here and hereafter, a pro-
ceeding which seems to relieve
some men extremely, though why,
it would puzzle the unenlightened
to declare. The cause of all this,
as his comrades soon discovered,
was that his mother had written to
him from her little farm in a South
ern State to tell him a doleful tale
Of Sickness, death amongst the
stock, etc, and Il final crash, A
mortgage was almost due, and the
old people would find it impossible
to meet it, they would be sold out
and left homeless in their age.
cit will kill your father,' wrote
the mother, ''and | shall die with
him"
II did it all,n said the young
fellow. sobbing openly "My
debts and my Wild ways eneum-
bered them at first, and now look"
And he pointed to the gold upon
the table, and began his profane
litany again. The mortgage was
three thousand dollars, and he had
but two thousand.
us that all n cried Ned Warren,
hauling at his belt.
"Good Heaven! What does he
take me for?' cried Harry Bray,
furiously. give hundred apiece
and The expenses of the journey is
about the figure. There go to the
old folks. Wen sec about your
horse while you pack your bag"
This set the other at his oaths
again; but in joyful style this time.
They were trumps and bricks, and
by everything he could think Of
he'd do for them if there were any
need of it.
"He'd pay them back if he lived,
and he'd-bless them;' and SO
off into sobs again, at
which they left him to recover, re-
turned with horse and a we'll
filed pocket flask, and saw him set
forth upon bis mission as though |
the cold folks" had been their old |
folks also.
They waited for news from him,
but none came, They waited |
quietly at first, then inpatiently |
at last they heard this: He had |
never been seen at home, or by |
any one who knew him since the
day on which they had shook
hands with him. Some terrible
tate had befallen him in the lonely
places over which he had journeyed
alone. To doubt him never enter