The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1872-11-29

him-he was the only gentleman who had
ever been quartered there before except
themselves and hung him up inside the
door as warning to any other rash lntru-
der who might seek to enter without Il sui
table recommendation from his last place.
The result was as might have been anti
cipated. Mrs. Cassim, alarmed at her hus-
bands absence, sent Ali to look for him.
He went to the cavern, and, on finding his
murdered brother, felt almost as badly cut
up as his brother was. He packed the last
four sad remains of his brother in one of
the sacks which were on the mule he
brought along, and then, to balance it
make accounts square with his brother, as
it were-thoughtfully stuffed the other
sack with gold and things, SO that, as he Of
terward reckoned it, his brothers "four
quarters on one side of the mule were equal
to thirteen hundred thousand six hundred
and forty-three dollars and fifty cents on
the other" 1t is rarely that brother can
be made so useful, dead or alive, especially
with only four quarters.
The next business, after getting his quad
rilated brother home, was to bury him
without creating suspicion among the
neighbors. To account reasonably Tor his
death, q servant was sent for some drug
store whisky, under pretence that Cassaim
wanted it for medicinal purposes, so when
it was given out next day that whisky kill
ed him, no one thought anything strange
of the circumstance at all.
There was an old cobbler who lived on
the corner hard by, who opened his stall
very early in the morning to accommodate
any who having been drinking hard the
night before, wanted an early "cobbler."
He consented to sew Cassim together for a
consideration, and was accordingly blind
they wanted "yellow fair stitch and di.
vided," or just common "black welt !"
but Ali, who knew nothing of the shoema-
ker's lingo, said he thought his brother had
been welted enough already; ".just go
ahead and sew him up" The cobbler per:
formed very neat job, though he left a
stitch in his side that Cassim probably new
err got over. He offered to halfsole him,
too, and set up his heels, but further servi-
ces were declined.
Cassim was buried the next day with be-
coming honors, and the various societies to
which he belonged attended the funeral;
each of them holding meetings afterward
and passing resolutions of respect, which
were published next day in all tile papers
Engrossed copies of these resolutions were
presented to the afflicted widow, but after
kicking around the house for few DAYS
they were sold for old rags, the widow mar
rying again. 1t is impossible with the
space have, to infinitely follow the various
stratagems employed by the robbers to
learn who it was that possessed the secret
of the cave. Suffice it to say, they at length
did, and plans were laid for his destruc-
ton.
One day the captain of the Forty Thieves
came to Ali Baba's house Che had moved
into Cassim's brown stone 'front.' and pre-
tended he was dealer in petroleum. He
had large quantity of non-explosive oil
in casks, which he desired to store with
him for few days. Certainly" said Ali,
who was the soul ofhospitality troll it right
into my parlor," which was done. Now, some
of these casks contained non-explosive oil,
while the others were filled with something
almost as deadly, though not quite-mur-
derous robbers. 1t was shrewdly conjec-
tured by the robber chief that if the oil did
not blow up the whole family, which was
probable, his men would dispatch them
during the night.
The plot failed, however. The servant
girl who had been setting up in the kitch-
en- pretty late with her young man, went
to replenish her lamp, which was getting
low, and discovered the robbers. She
finished them all by boiling some oil and
pouring it in upon them through the bung
hole-not the only instance by any means
where men have been ruined sin OIL" This
narrow escape Of the Bahia family from de-
struction should be warning to people not
to allow strangers to roll petroleum casks
into their front parlors.
The robber chief, being thus left alone,
advertised in the papers for forty more
thieves, determined to begin business anew,
and hoping by industry and close attention
to business to merit fair share of public
patronage.
But he was so overrun with ex-Con-
gressmen, absconding Bank Officers, dis
honest Post-masters, Indian Commissioners
ex-Revenue officers, managers of defunct
Gift Enterprises, City Councilman and
Others, that he was driven nearly distract.
ed. Instead of forty, there were at leas,
forty thousand of them, and being disgust
ed he concluded to go out of the thieving
business altogether, it was getting too low
He persisted in the house of Ali Bahia
where he had penetrated in disguise fol
the purpose of settling that old account
with Ali. The servant girl who performed
so neat job for his followers recognized
him, and finished him with carving knife
The story is supposed to be all a lie, but
it is no more Ali than Cassim.
The career of the Forty Thieves, instead
of proving a salutary warning, seems to
have inspired emulation, for the number is
certainly multiplying every day.
An AdrOit Sell.
One day n gentleman called at the store