Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1873-05-03
THRILLING ADVENTURE.



For cool resolution, the following incl
dent related 10 me by my friend, cannot
well be surpassed. Madame Pauline
Lucea usually resides in the Victoria
strasse, Berlin. Last spring, however,
she occupied, temporarily, at some dis
tance outside the city, a gartenhaus, or
country-house, consisting Of only spa
cious. rambling basement story, sur
rounded by veranda. One night, about
ten o'clock, she was sitting there in her
bedroom. Her chair was placed before
her toilet table, which was lighted by
wax taper on each side of the glass.
The two iapers We're not sufficient to
illuminate the rooms very brilliantly, and
the further end lay buried In a sort of
semi-obscurity. Madame Lucca was busy
reading some letters concerning engage
meuts when suddenly she imagined she
heard q noise. She looked round, but,
seeing nothing, concluded she had made
a mistake, and resumed the perusal OF
the letters. She had forgotten all about
the noise when she heard it again. This
time, instead of looking around, she hap
pentd without moving her head, merely
| 10 raise her eyes to the glass. She be-
held reflected in ii the face of man
peering cautiously from out cupboard
| behind her. AT first she faneied she was
dreaming. She quietly looked again. No
il was no dream. Thert was the man
whom she now recognized as having been
formerly In her service, whence he had
been discharged for general bad behavior.
She had also suspected him of purloining
several objects which she had missed
from time TO time, but not being certain
on this point, she had Kept her suspicious
TO herself. Yes, there be was there
could be no mistake about the matter.
Madame Lucca's first impulse was to
start up and give the alarm. But there
was not another habiation within mile
or two, and she recolleeted that the only
person beside herself in the boEse, was
her maid, who, though a very good girl,
and extremely attached to her mistress,
was by no means celebrated for her
nerve. The other servants, including the
gardner and coachman, had been granted
permission to attend a friends wedding
some miles of, aud were not to return ill
the next day. II flashed across her mind
that the man, who as she knew, had been
lettering about the nelghborhood for two
or three DAYS, had learned that she would
be alone, and meant to rob the house or,
perhaps, murder her, if his project oI
robbery could not De executed Without
the preparation of the greater crime
What was to be donel Again she glanced
toward the mirror The eye was still
there, glaring on her through the gloom
All at once she remembered that a revol
, yer belonging to her husband, the BaroI
J Won Rhadeu, ought to be lying on a shell
! in the dining room but she was no
! quite sure. "If il Is there, and II eouli
I only get it," she thought, 81 should no
o mind" While she was rejecting knocl
e was heard on the door of the room. sh
4 saw the man instantly draw back int
l. the cupboard. and close T. after him. sh
( felt relieved that those two horrible eye
. were taken off heri they seemed TO piere
y her like daggels.
4 "Come in - she said.
d Her maid entered.
is 81 thought you had gone to he'd, m
A good girl" observed Madame Lueea,
toni. of unconeern'