The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1871-05-26
4 FATAL MISTAKE.

| long time they had been very pool
| at lsst fortunes favored them. Eacl
of. I'd . certain sum, by no mean
cd, Stemptible, slowed away in th
Oh her belt he wore about his waist
ch carried gold watch, and eacl
re 9 suit Of clothes supposed b.
Wnisef to. be, the latest style ant
!, b'1oicest fashion. Moreover, their re
,,yolvers were perfect, silver-mounted
and rejoicing In a multiplicity Of bar
/ rels; for, without these it would b,
quite impossible to maintain posi-
tion in this quarter Of the world il
fra How they came by these possessions
We viii not inquire too particularly
They were neither burglars nor high
waymeil, but dice and betting may
have helped them to the winning o
their little fortunes. They were not
over-scrupulous; but they would have
knocked down any man who had
neglected to address them as gentle
men, and used those wonderful revol-
vers promptly on any stranger who
objected to drinking with them, and
consequently, stood rather high in the
community. Certainly, in their con-
duct to each other they were faultless-
ly honorable and miraculously gen
erous. - 80 i' i- d l
One day, soon after "lucl' had come
to its rest, q letter, directed in a wo-
mans tremulous hand. to "Ctarles
Chester" was handed to that mem
Der Of the trio, in the presence of the
other two. The young fellow seized
it eagerly, tore it open, read it through
and, tearing off his belt, spread its
contents before him on the table, and
counted it over. Having done SO, he
burst into tears, and very unwisely;
AMI profanely ours I'd himself for ex-
travagance, all sorts of uncomfortable
things here and hereafter, a proceed
ing which seems to relieve some men
considerably, 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 tell him doleful tale
of sickness, death among the stock,
etc., and final crash. A mortgage
was almost due, and, as the old people
would find it impossible to meet it,
they would be sold out and left home.
less in their old age. "It will kill your
father" wrote the mother, "and /
will die with him." --,t6
III did it ALL" said the young fellow
sobbing openly. ''My debts and my
wild ways incumbered them at first,
and now look" :
And he pointed to the gold upon the
fahIo ond hnpop h;o rrofa,o 1;top,,
again. The mortgage was So, 600, and
he had but $1,000. h'i..'f'
''Is that all?'' cried Ned Warren,
hauling at his belt. .1 -tt
"Good heavens! What does he
take us fol?" cried Harry Bray, furi-
ously. '.Five hundred apiece, and
the expenses of the journey are about
the figure. There, 60 to the old folks
Wen see about your horse while you
This set the other at his oaths again;
but in a joyful style this time. They
were trumps and bricks, and by every
thing he could think of he'd do it for
them if there were any need Of it. B.
"He'd pay them back, if he lived,
and then-he'd bless them" and so
checked off into sobs again, at which
they left him to recover, returned
with horse and well filled pocket
flask, and saw him set forth upon his
mission as though the "old folks" had
been their old folks too. b..
They waited for news from him, but
none came. They waited quietly at
first, then impatiently. At last they
heard this: He had never been seen
at home, or by anyone. who knew
him since the day on which they had
shaken hands with him. Some terri
BILE fate had befallen him in the lonely
places over which he had journeyed
alone. To doubt him never entered
their minds. That he was as true to
them as they to him they well knew,
and one thought filled each mind.
They must discovered his fate, and if
it We're what they supposed, avenge
MIN.
So, one bright morning, well mount
ed well armed, and followed by. a favo-
rite dog, a hound, which would by no
means be left behind, the two set forth
in search of their lost comrade. They
took the road he must have taken,
and asked at every tavern and cabin
for news of him. One old man re-
memoered him we'll; another man
pointed out the dangerous place in the
road leading past precipice to
man of his lost friends description;
but at that point the clue was lost.
After much travel and many inquire
es, our comrades began to fear that
they should have paused to examine
the rocks and ravines at the foot of
the precipice alluded to ere they pro-
ceeded further, and determined to
turn back and do SO. They came to
this resolution about nightfall, and
just as they reached the borders of
little farm, which bore evidence of
careful tillage. Upon this land also
stood farm house, from the crevices
in the shutters of which streamed
long bars of ruddy lamp-light, and
whence the sound of music was plain
Iy heard. 1t was the only dwelling
within sight, T
"We will stay here" said one
friend to another, "until dawn, and
then return" ts-.
That the house was not an inn did
not matter to either of them. Hospi-
tality was never refused in the land to
anyone at that day.
They rode boldly up to the gate and
gave loud halloo. In an instant the
door opened, and they could see with
in a sudden panic in lively dance,
as all heads turned to see what had
caused the interruption. l
"Can you let us sleep here to-night?"
inquired one of the friends, as one asks
who fears no refusal.
"Certainly, gentlemen" said a
pleasant voice, "You're welcome.
You'll find a stable there, and corn
for your horses. Our man Jack is on
the floor tonight; but here is lantern
if you'll tend to yourselves"
"All right, stranger" said Harry,
"and thank you, too"
The two men led their horses into a
stable, already full. Ned watered
them, and secured them for the night,
and would have left the stable at once
but that one of the animals attracted
Harry's attention. He turned back to
look at him; examined him from head
to foot, turned red and pale, and sud
denly clutched Ned's arm.
"You remember the horse we
bought for Charles Chester" he
asked.
"Yes," said Ned.
"Look at the fellow" said Harry
eyes, the very one. The ar on the
forehead, the scar on his foreleg, the
color, the height! Nel, it's Charley:
horsew
at is the horse,n said Ned, slowly
"Harry, if Charley had lived to go, hi
horse would have gone with him."
"The owner of this animal may
| know all We want to hear" said Har
1 ry UIt WON'T he good news Nod ~