Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1871-12-02

the tones Of a gentleman, 'sthat nothing can
save Joe johnson from the rope? Poor fellow,
IL does look like t. But, my dear Professor Joe |
johnson Is fortunate enough to have in me a |
devoted friend, as well as brother / have I'M |
dertaken TO save him. and he sball be saved. In /
order 10 this end IL viii be necessary 20 remove
from the face Of the earth not UG.y the stomach
OF his miserable wife wonder, but also my dear
Proiessor-I'm sorry 10 be obliged to say it, for
friend-yourself az we'll"
saw that he was in deadly earnest.
Your death must apparently result from
aecident-at least, 50 Il must seem % the author
tiles My brother Is in Jail and they will not
suspect me-"
What terrible deed was in his brain hatching7
VS. he going To murder me? The hard-earned
knowledge OF score of years L would have
given for power TO utter one single cry.
He took me in his arms and placed me a chair,
he produced another rope.
Was it myself who was to hang instead Of Joe
johnson?
an arm Of the hanging chandelier. This was
altogether too slight a supper. even for one OF
my slender frame. Ii was not to be hanging
then.
To one end Of the rope he attached weight,
and raised il, by pulling the other six or eight
feet from the floor. The loose end he secured to
the sink. Was he mad? Did he mean TO draw
me under this weight, and send me out of the
world in novel way by letting 1t fall and dash
ing my brains out?
TO the sink end he attached long yellow
Under the weight on the floor he placed the
can of nitro glicerinsi recognized the yellow
string; IL vas a fuse and would burn sixty
minutes. IL would burn across the marble slab
there was ne hope Of its ignitIng any substance
that would warn my friends.
do you begin to see through it?" asked Joe
JOhnsons brother.
believe 1 cursed him with my eyes. 1 could
only breathe through my nostrils, and great
veins were swelling and growing hot in my fore
head.
Drawing match from his pocket, he lighted
and applied 1t to the fuse, that little tyrant that
gave a man an hour to live, and killed him at
the end Of it-that little irresponsible terror
that, less than merciful Providence, told a man
the second he was to die, ii fright and horror
slowly the fame crept, snake-like, around the
Irvine.
"In one hour" said the prisoners brother,
"you will be in heaven or he'll. viii watch
with you for half an hour, and the other hall
You will spend alonc-p To-
He sat down some minutes in chair, watch
ing the fame. Then he arose and took the piece
Of porcelain, with the murderers mark theron,
from the table, and shock his head gloomily.
g. am chemist enough to know it Is arsenic"
betrayer of the guilty! Science, thou wouldst
kill my brother. Thou shalt save him. Let US
see in whose hands thou art most powerful Here
IL maj who by thy aid bid the poison spirits up
rises and writes in brilliant characters the foul
confession on this piece Of porcelain. But be
hold, ohi scicneei 1t is no sooner written than,
by thy aid, the whole confession and thy chosen
servant are annihilated. Let the good professor
use hischemicals, the bad brother only asks-a
little can Of nitro.glycerinei"
i heard this speech, indeed; but, great
| heavens. il was my eyes, and not my ears, that
| were busiest thenl For, beneath the table,
covered by the crimson cloth of which have
before spoken, and which faced, appeared the
| head OF a child. The hair was rumpled, and the
| blue eyes were Just opening from sleep. The
1 intelligent forehead was wrinkled strangely. II
| was my boy, Billy. | WAS afraid he would cry
spapa-" II he did, the implacable man would
Add the murder OF the child to the murder Of the
| father.
But my boy did none of this. He had, I sup
rose, crept under the table unknown to me, and
fallen asleep there. tried TO tell the little fell
low to hide again, and wait for the final half
hour when my tormentor would be gone.
whether he understood me or not, aided by
| what he had heard, L did not know; but he
ing HE hand lightly at me, and then shaking his
INST at the schemer watching 50 belligerently his
| fire agents
The half hour wore slowly away. o heavens,
what agony did sufferI-not for myself, but for
my child. A light noise might discover his
| presence; the match might run its thsther
sooner than was expected He might be muir.
dered or blown to pieces.
The fuse burned on-on. The half hour is up
The brother OF the murderer rises to go! JOyl
Commit your soul ~ Gods keeping, /" he said.
"YOu hold the evidences of my brothers guilt.
| Nothing can save you now"
With that he turned to take his hat from the
| hidmy priceless boy. Something attracted his
| attention He held out his hands and leaned
forward Thought he had dtscoveredmy boy.
| No, he was lifting something In either hand
the wires OF the ell ctric batteryi In another in
slant my boy had leaped from under the table
! and was turning the crank fast and furiously.
The murderer's brother was in the power of
my boy. He could not drop the wires; he was
helpless and motionless How my boy cried for
help. The old eollegerung again. The prison.
er's brother added his voice to my boys in ago
ny. He begged, he beseeched-all his nerves
were racked-great waves of galvanism leaped
surged, and trembled, and Jared over every sem
sitve nerve and fiber. Still my boy was infiex-
fble, and shouted and turned faster. Upper
ceived, upon the marble, in the tract OF the
burning fuse was q pool OF inffammable oil. In
an instant great length had BURNED away 1t
would just last five minutes and no more.
Father" shouted my boy, |" If no assistance
comes, this villain must die with US; dare not
< let him tree. Help help! help!
Alas i could not answer him.
I But some one else did. Thank God! The
Z fuse Is burned up! The rope Is on fire, the
/ nitro-glycerine! The door opens, Tom Rich
l ards on a midnight visit to the sick, has heard
/ the cry. He comprehends all, seizes the can IN
his hand-the weight descends, indeed, but on
| not the death-deahng OIL No, down Il goes
/ through the Office door, down, down, like an
/ evil spirit, to give back q dull, metallic echo
! from the stones OF the cellar beneath.
We are saved!
Joe johnson, the prisoner, was hung, but his
brother remains UNPUBLISHED by the law, for he
| stabbed himself with q knife, ard thus escaped
the hangman's rope.
1