Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1871-02-02

Silas Cas-. I had inde1 IA ,
him as one Of the most despefj II 4
praved characters that hauno a
settlements Of America. He >sner
ted = nay, IL was morally certo Ia 3
had committed more murders rnkle
| ries than any man in the uoeI - 4
had contrived to evade the q
though suspicion vas great, e Dns !,
proof. aud the wretch had alu enoe
the punishment be richly dee
As I looked at the diabo!ie = Il
fore me. was convinced that l NJ "a
no other than the notorious 81 -.
felt cold sweat burst out On = elsead
and q terrible dryness seixa *hsonl
A 6ead-likes ezcsesrica ess j, lte4tosl
over the wrctch's face as he notices thes
symptoms Of terror hi. thin lips wer
drawn back in q devilish grin; his green
ish eyes were fixed on me with the mali
cious gaze Of a cat watching q Gagged bird
Gathering all the resolution l coul,
muster. | replied
Il have heard of Silas Cass, but reall,
can't believe the stories they tell abou
him. Some people are born unlucky, ant
it has been the misfortune Of Cass to b,
placed in suspicious circumstances hu
there has never been any proof of hi guilt
and therefore | prefer giving him the ben
eft ef the doub,--in fact, I think he i
more sinned against than SHINING
The monster threw himself back AM
roarcd with laughter at what he though
my credu'ity. and pushin. the whiskey
bottle toward me. ordered me to drink.
l placed the bottle to my lips, and pre-
tended to take hearty draught, bat very
little Of the fiery liqail entered my mouth
Wal. you air queer cuss." said tn,
rnffian. Now, sl,ouldn'. be surpriset
if those saddle bags Of yours held a good
amount Of dollars
"A few replied; "and there is /.
tale belonging to them"
Just So" said Si.as, pushing the
whiskey-bo,tle toward me "S'posing yo,
take another pull"
/ took hold of the bottle and kent i,
glued to my lips for such a length oftirne
that Silas's eyes seemed ready to start on,
of their sockets.
Guess you're tall drinker, stranger, :
he said.
Yes" I replied, in as drunken avoice
as could assume; that's how I came
by those dollars"
Bully for you" grinned Silas. "Tve
heard of many a boy drinking himself oal
Of il fortune, but never one that drunk
himself rich"
Oh sighed I, with drunken earnest
ness, Il once was honest"
Once" said he, opening his eyes.
Eyes" I replied. ssf held Arlmce In
the broadway Bank as one Of the CHIEF
tellers; but | took to gaming and driuk-
ing. and lost all my money"
oval, that didn't make you rich ?"
mo; but in &. Of desperation emp
tied my till. and the dollars are there"
"Whew." whistled Silas. II CUES:
you did it up pretty spry!'
You haven't any cards about you p l
asked.
Il guess have, though" he replied
"s'posing We have game Of poker -
My heart beat with delight as he drew
a pack from his pocket. and. grasping the
cards. | commenced dealing them with
the assumed caserness Of regular game
stcr.
| saw the wretch cheat me every time
| lost and lost s.; still ! continued PLAYING
only rcpenting nay losses in n maudliu
drunken way that made my companion
roar with laughter. He commenced to
thoroughly enjoy himself directly he saw
my misery; he lighted his pipe and be.
gan smoking. He did no. pull out the
smoke as an ordinary man would have
done. but opened his mouth and let the
dense clouds roll round his horrible tusks
aud long. thin tongue. Each time he won
he seized the bottle and drank heavily Of
the whiskey. When the bottle was fin
ished. he produced another from u small
cupboard at the back Of the hut. This
soon disappeared, and was replaced BY
another; but the more he took the better
he seemed. As he swept up my dollars
he roared with delight. flingins his huge
legs about in the most grotesque manner
Tie began chanting bits Of songs, certain.
ly not fit for respectable society. Tc
make the scene more horrible. the storr,
withou; had become 50 violent that the
hut shook beneath the heavy claps Of thun.
der, aud the blue lightning flashed through
the cracks between the logs that compos-
ed the walls, perfectly paling the rcd igh,
of our FIRE. and nearly binding me.
Lost again - shoated alias. as he
swept up my las, few dollars. Hear how
the boys are playing skittles up above.
guess that bowling saloon pays. the,
play pretty constant. What's your mex
stake:'
Il haven't cent" groaned.
TN play You 6ve dollars against you,
saddle-bags."
/ knew they would be his anyway, and
therefore stakcd them. Need say / lost,
As Silas rose to procure some NOR,
whiskey, took the opportunity of scrib.
bling few lines OF the back Of an enyel
ope. which | slipped into slit in my coa.
lining.
He made me stake my horse. NV Goa
and waistcoat; in fact. everything pos
scssed. l lost all. and then thrcw myscl
back rs il in despair. bewailing my la.
fortune and rashness in having trusted .,
cards Silas seemed highly delighted viii
my melancholy. consoling me with ,h
assurance that there were plenty NOR
banks in the werld. and might reyai
my fortune. After bearing his ,auuss &,
some time ! pretended 10 cry mysel
asleep. but tonk care to place my face i,
such = position that ] could see all ths