The weekly Panola star. [volume] (Panola, Miss.) 1857-1881, 1872-05-11


org Same eld lpik Thought a
tio,Elf''
lie slowly unlocked ,ho door. an,
10 'wuag oIeu.
" Now, once u. the hsuie. the re.
vii be- easy. know every inch %
my ground nos The will i'll sSpt
have IN my gfaap and tear Il 4,
fragments. No: that will not do
the pieces might be recognized and
put together. I'll take it Into ths
woods, burn IL, every atom. aud
scatter It's ashes 20 the winds Thou,
Tracy linyood, you are a gentle
man tor llfe--a gentleman Of leisure
and luxury :"
7 lie closed The door after entering,
and found IL pitch dark around him.
The silence, too, in that old country
house, was the most intepse he had
known for years. Il was painful.
He could hear the beating of his
own heart, aud a strange ringing in
his ears, while an oldSfasbioued flock
IN the next room ticked SO dsmallv
nothing else was to be heard.
| lie now took from bic pocket a
dark lantern. Its little circular shaft
OF light shot out over the plain furni-
ture and rough walls, and danced
about ill it had showed every spot
in the room. There was n staircase
in one corner, and to this he glided
with a eat,lilse tread He had left
bis boots in the wood behind him,
and wash his stockipg,teet, There
was no point Of caution he had not
observed ~ iha'H.
He reached the staircase, and soft
ly opencdthe door Then he stopped
and listened Not q SQUAD wins 70 be
heard. 1t was the room immediate.
y above that he desired to reach,
and If no one slept there he' should
feel secure. He knew the rooms
probably occupied by Duncan and
Ella, aud they were ut the further
end OF the bpiIding but he had
feared that some farm hand pr servant
girl might occupy the, room he was
so anxious to visit. But il was cyl
IDENTIFY unoncupied, and nov the on
iy question was, should he find in the
secret receptacle what he soughtY q
The stairs creakcd beneath his
weight, but he ascended slowly and
patiently, and finally found himself
in the desired room. All was quiet.
There was a bed in the room, but ii
was empty, a,,.,......., toat,..
Good T.. he mnttered, as he ean>
tlopsly allowed bis Light ITO wander,
over the apartment. "They all sleep.
1t is as well for them. Let them
come on me now, and | will murder
them !" #u's# uo} '2'@f
lie set his lantern down on the
floor, and kneeled down himself By
a window that faced tho wood. Here
he set towork with a screw.driver,
to remove a strip of moulding from
beneath the window>sil. This done,
he inserted bis finger in an auger
hole, in the timber immediately be,
meath the window, pulled, and out
came a drawer, which had, been
nicely fitted into the timber. and |
seemed to be q part Of it. The cav>1
ity of the drawer was about cigh-
teen by six inches, with y depth of
about four inches. 1T was nearly |
filled with bugs OF coin and rolls Of /
paper money. These, Mr.. Tracy Lin.
wood, with sparkling eyes, hastily |
ira Isterred to his several pockets
and at the bottom Of the drawer,
came upon some legal-looking docn>l
ments. lie seized them with avidity,
and examined them by the light oil
his lantern. & lie. .snly took posses
sion OF one, aud that he stuffed into
his breast pocket, with o nervous
hand. s at .~aw4t f.aa+ H.. 4
It Twas the missing willl tnH r.
"Ab, ! have it now---I have III
nowW he muttered, grinding bis
teeth "and whoever takes it from
me, takes my life with it.p' l.. vi
Closing the clumsy drawer, he re
placed the moulding that 50 artfulIy
concealed it, though it was with |,
considerable nervousness that he
drove the screws into their places
again. He was impatient to be of,
and yethe did not wish to leave at
trace. OF his visit. At last it was
done, and he arose to his feet with
the lantern and screw driver IN his
hands. The will and money were
safely slowed in his pockets. That
bis hands might be asfree as posi- !,
bic, he also replaced biz screw.driver
in his pocket; but he failed to take
into account that his pockets were
quite full, and just as he thought he
had the instrument salty placed, 1t
fell with loud knock upon the floor
at the head OF the stars, and rolled
down the bare wooden steps with a
clatter that, under the becircumstances,
seemed louder than the din Of battle.
simultaneously, voices were heard
IN the next room, and persons were
heard leaping out upon the floor.
Robbers! Robbers shouted
female voice. f
where's my gun?'
"Stop thief" a sggf gs33 /
/, "Don't run, you're a dead mar Y
Tracy Linwood heard all this
within the space of a second, then
dashed down the stairs, flung open
The door by which he had entered, Il
md bounded away into the night,
till clinging to his lantern A win 4
low was raised, and the crack Of Il