Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-06-01
VOLUME XXVI.

| WIZ AOA "O IaNO AOAO W SBdlS. 4NOW,
boys"
Another flash and roar, and again the
voice of Mr.. Oakley:
Fire steady, boys, and take good aim.
Don't waste powder"
A dead silence ensued.
They're cowed, father. They are sneak
ing off to cover" exclaimed Simeon.
Mot They'll they are only contriving
some new deviltry. John and Matthew,
round with you to the back of the house.
Grace-my God where did that shot come
from p as with sharp cry, Reuben, the
eldest, leaped three feet in the air, and fell
forward, on his face, stone dead.
Mrs. Oakley sprang forward and threw
herself on his body. The fair-haired eld-
est boy was her darling. Another shot
came crashing through the window, and
bedded itself in the opposite wall.
Aim at yonder tree," shouted Mr..
Oakley. ~ saw the CLEAN of rifle stock
among the leaves. Seel the oak yonder."
A third shot whizzed so close past US as
to make us start back; and then our un-
erring rifles answered back, and down
through the boughs went dark body,
striking with a heavy "thud " against the
ground
"He is silenced," exclaimed Mr. Oak
ley, with a CLEAN of stern satisfaction
shooting across his face.
Here there was silence of longer dur
alton than any which had preceded it and
we were at loss to know whether they
had drawn off and given up the attack.
This, however, my uncle doubted, for he
was accustomed to the tactics of those
willy foes At last he remarked:
Where can they be hiding? l see
none of the rest"
Father, Father" called Grace, in an
agonized tone.
Mr. Oakley ran hastily into the back
room, where she was. A stalward man in
a hunting frock, and so bronzed as to make
it almost doubtful if he was white or red,
had swung himself from an adjoining tree,
on to the balcony and was trying to force
himself through the little window.
As MIR. Oakley rushed forward, he drew
his hunting knife that he wore in his belt,
but seizing the sharp edge in his bare
hands, the infuriated father wrested it
from his grasp by main strength, and
plunged it up to the hilt in his breast.
A fierce yell and-a harmless volley from
those in ambush, received this new defeat,
and then came another of those ominous
pauses.
"What can they be about?" uttered
Simeon, who was again at the lookout.
1AOy pillIis5 up LAY dull DIuSIIWOCu.
They surely do not dream of firing the
house?"
1.-THE door, the door!" gasped Grace.
Right" exclaimed her father "The
girl has more wit than all of us. We must
barricade the hall.
Never mind the shutters, said Mrs.
Oakley, who had regained her marble COM
posure. '"We will bar them," and she be-
gan to draw the bolts.
Mr.. Oakley hesitated, for the task was
one of danger, but there was no time, and
chairs, tables and sofas were piled up at a
short distance from the door, in what was
really a formidable barricade, guarded as it
was by the unerring rifles. The smell of
the burning wood and the smoke that fill
ed the hall, now grew almost intolerable.
Mr.. Oakley placed us on the stair case and
exhorted his sons anew to stand close, and
take good aim. A portion of the door
fell in. Mr.. Oakley raised his rifle, and
Walter Van Culyer, who was the first to
spring in, staggered and fell back with a
but a second and third of these deadly
volleys brought them to stand No man
cared to expose himself to such certain
death.
Mr.. Oakley turned impetuously to his
sons:
"Give 'em another, boys; we'll beat 'em
off yeti" But mute shake of the head
was the only answer. The powder was
exhausted. For moment deadly pallor
overspread his face; the next, his voice
rang out, clear and firm as ever:
"Close upl Draw your knives! We
will sell our lives as dearly as possible"
"Come on! their powder is OUT" shout
ed man, who, with half dozen others,
had succeeded in scrambling over the bar
ricade, and making his way toward the
little group.
You had better be careful. Our wo-
men have their knitting-needles yet" re-
torted Mr.. Oakley, derisively."
We'll take care of you and the women
both," returned the ruffian, aiming a
blow at Simeon, that brought him to the
ground.
A spasm contorted Mr.. Oakley's stern
features for a moment and then, with q
strangled sob, he threw himself headlong
upon his assailaEts.
Kill him-cut him down-he's the
devil himself" shouted dozen voices ;
but in a moment arose another and far diff
ferent cry.
"The rebels-the rebels are upon us p
And laundering on, trampling the cow
ardly wretches down under the horses
hoofs, came Mark Warner with his light
horse troop. In an instant all was con-
fusion. No one thought of anything but
flight; and the enraged Americans moved
the flying tories down like grain.
Then burst forth all the emotions so long
pentup. Father and sons threw them
selves into one another's arms; Grace
tainted; and Mrs. Oakley's stony compo-
sure melted into flood of hysterical
tears.
Ours was a joyful, and yet sad house
that night-for although we had been de-
livered, as it were, from the very jaws of
| death, yet the bodies of our dead were
with us.
All! children! these times were sad
times-trying times! There was we'd
| ding afterwards between Mark and Grace,
and danced as merrily as any of them
but poor Mrs. Oakley wore mourning to
the end of her days; and the last words on
her lips were the names of her murdered
sons. And greatly affected, my grand
mother took off her spectacles and wiped
her ewes