Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1871-10-10
A Quaker Detective.

mother and daughter, aunt and niece,
governcss and charge, or might have
sustained any other relationship which
made it proper for two ladies to travel
together unattended.
The middle aged gentleman was
sprightly and talkative. Hesoon struck
up an acquaintance with the ladies,
towards whom, in his zeal to do, he
rather overdid the agreeable-bowing
and smiling and chatting over his
shoulder in way painfully suggestive,
at this time of life, of "crick" in the
neck. He was evidently a gay, Lo-
thario
The Quaker wore the uniform of his
sect, and confined his speech, as many
parliamentarian would save his cred
1t by doing, to simple "yeas' and
mays" AS for myself, l made it an
invariable rule of the road to be merely
locker on and listener.
Towards evening, / was aroused
from one Of those reveries into which
young man, without being either a
poet or lover, will some times fall,
by the abrupt query from the talkatiye
gentleman
"Are you armed, sir?'
81 am not" / answered, astonishcd,
no doubt, visibly at the question.
II am sorry to hear it," he replied;
"for before reaching our next stopping
place it will be several hours in the
night, and we must pass over a portion
of the road on which more than one
robbery is reported to have been com
mitted.'
The ladies turned pale, but the
stranger did his best to reassure them.
"Not that think there is the slight
est danger at present" he resumed,
"only when one is responsible for the
safety of ladies, you know, such a thing
as pistol in reach would materially
add to ones confidence"
your principles, my friend" adj,
dressing the Quaker, II presume are
as much opposed to carrying as to us,
ing carnal weapons"
"Yea,' was the response.
Have the villains murdered any of .
their victims?' the elder lady nervous ,
ly inquired. =
"Or have they contentcd themselves
MISUNDERSTANDING them" added .
the younger, i'll timorous voice. II,
Decidedly the latter" the amiable
gentleman fastened to give assurance; .
"and as none of us is prepared to )
offer resistance, in case of an attack, !
nothing worse than robbery can posi- :.
bly, bcfall us"
Then after blaming his thoughtless- =,
ness in having unnecessarily introduc- :
cd disagreeable subject, the gentle =
man quite cxcellcd himself in efforts u
to raise the spirits of the company,
and had succeeded so we'll by the time :"
night had set in, that all had quite for
gotten, or only remembered their fears -
to laugh at them. 9
Our genial companion fairly talked "'
himself hoarse. Perceiving which, he =.
took from his pocket package of y
newly invented Cough Candy and,
after passing it first to the ladies, he -
helped himself to the balance, and :, -
tossed the paper out of the window. "
He was in the midst of high en-. IL
cOmium on the new nostrum, more than
half the efficacy of which he insisted, J.,
depended on its being taken by suction, bo
when shrill whistle was heard, and &c
Immediately the coach stopped, while
two faces, hideously BACKED, presented vi
themselves, one at each window. a.
"SOrry to trouble YOU" said the man m,
on the right, acknowledging with ar
bow two lady-like screams from the til
back seat; "but business is business, ey
and ours will soon be over, if thing 20 III
w
"Of course, gentlemen, you will to
spare as far as may be consistent with tr
your disagreeable duty, the feelings of
these ladies'" appealed the polite pass w
cDger in his blandest manner. \,
"Oh certainly; they shall be first tr
attended to, and shall not be required W
10 leave their places, or submit to a di
search unless their conduct renders it hi
necessary" 70
"And now ladies'" continued the III
obber, the barrel of his pistol glitter So
ng in the light of the coachlamp, "be he
o good as to pass out your purses, ha
patches, and such other trinkets as by
,ay be accessible without too much al
rouble." pc
The ladies came down handsomely W.
I'd were no further molested. sc,
One by one the rest of us were sti