The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-01-18

rich; and asked her to give me emoneyifOr
old fellOWship's sake. didn't threaten
to dog her, mind that, you. owed her
already moro than | could pay her back,
unless | were to do for her what she'd
done for me years ago, Well, she gave
me money, and did so twice again; but
the fourth time, when I'd come to watch
for her going out to see if | couldn't |
get lump sum from her to take me ont
Of the country, | saw her go to jew
! eller's shop. Then | thought that if !
could follow her in, and lay hold of
something whilst the man was serving
| her, it would save me the trouble of |
! begging. looked through the window,
and set eyes on lot of rings; so |
walked in, and whilst the man was lift
ing me down a clock, | whipped up
three of the hoops so quickly that I'm |
| blessed if Mara herself saw me do it. |
| But, when that man turns round, what |
does he do but stare at ME, so that |
| knew he suspected me of something. |
Then | got into panic; for | knew, if |
he missed the rings, he'd follow me ont
and have me quOdded. Then it would
have been fifteen years for me, at least |
for the Charleys have been wanting me
for some time about other things. If
could have put back the rings into the
tray, I'd have done it; but COuld't; his
eye wouldn't have let my hand get so
near the COnnter as an inch. So |
dropped the things into Mara's pocket,
which it wasn't difficult for me to do; as
| was next her. | thought they wouldn't
suspect lady like her" Here she
paused to gasp, and moancd, "Oh my
poor headn
"And the murder ten years agO?" ]
inquired.
she asked, not excitedly, but with Il
dull glare in her eyes.
Nothing about your share in it" was
my cold answer.
"What!n she asked, with an accent of
cunning doubt, "nothing even to her
husband ~
"She has kept your secret entirely"
} replied quietly.
: A flush rose to the woman'S cOlorlesS
face; she covered her face with one of
: her hands and, for the first time pro
+ badly for many years, her voice lapscd
into something like sOftnesS. "LOOk
: here" she exclaimed; " there are some
, women who are born devils and others
angels. 1t was murdered that police
! man; but, as had been good to Mara
Z and her mother in days before, i'll fact
7 before, got to know Jem, she took the
, murder on herself; because, as we knew,
, the Judges would have hanged me, OF at
S least shut me up for life, whereas she
D being young, and having never been
2 put in prison as had, it was easy to
I make it manslaughter in her case. Let
| me tell you she didn't know Jem was
| a crackSman. When | gave her those
1 Jewels he had stolen, to put in her box
: for my own was full of 'em-I told her
5 he was a traveller for a jewelry 'ouse
l and she thought him an honest man,
D and me one like herself. When heard
e her sentenced to penal servitude
}, though, and saw how pluckly, for my
: sake, who wasn't worthy to lick the mud
t. off her boots she sWOre it was her little
I hit of q fist that had killed the Charley
J.! | was half druv' to close her lips by
e kissing 7em, and to cry, Don't believe
= her, my lord; it was me that did it =
y But then they would have parted me al
my life from Jem; and that | couldn't
e have horne for loved Jem then"
|. 1t was of no use to waste time in re,
I proaches. "YOu can repair some of the
g evil yon have done, if you will swear
, all you have just said before Il magis
+; trate and witnesses"
e "Go and fetch 'em,n she mrrmured
Il sinking back on her mattress; "but b.
s uuick about it; and you needn't b'
= afraid about bringing Charleys. The,
a may take ME to the prison, if they like
e I should die more comfortably there.
is And once again this being, who hat
is once been woman, laughed hideOusly
IL VI.
is In the present generous condition o
our law, Il person who has not commit
9 ted an Offense, and been imprisoned fO
=: it, can only be discharged, on proof o
n his innocence, by a pardon from he
- Majesty, forgiving him for that Oftens
II which he has not committed. In du
70 course-that is, after month or two o
official objections, correspondence
I clerk -doings, and the rest Of it-MarG
% obtained a Queens pardon. The negO
s. tiatiOns had been kept secret from Mars
N Her husband brought her the pardon,
and her child at the same time; and
,, was little Mara, now grown to he. fiv
10 her mothers white bed in the prison in
~ firmary. Then Arthur knelt down, ant
" bowling his head over his wife's hant
;e said with humble alteration, owe, knO7
90 your secret, Mara
n Her poor sweet dying face lit up wit
a. the last splendid radiance which the su
n sometimes sheds over the evening of
u dav which has been cloudy and full {
If storms. She twined her arms round ht
~ husbands neck, and round her child
70 and whispered to them both, "YOu wi
in forgive me, Arthur, for not havin
rv told you all. But Jesse had been GOO
> to MS, when nobody else had; and /
q suffer few years in her stead as q II
nj turn for that was not too much. But
an think now ought to have told you a
M when we were going to be married; fl
+y YOU are the kindest, nohlest soul in tt
r world, and yOu would have forgiven m
or I feel. Only the word prison sounds
Sc dreadful that was afraid that shou
~ lose your love, dear, dear boy, if pr
cR nOunced it; and to have lost your lO'
ed would have killed me. Those people
'ar that little sea-place had frightened n
81 by their cOldness, and felt so frient
r. less"
IN a. Her breath was failing; but, after
me- pause, she kissed the little Mara, al
= nestled her head on Arthurs shOulde
ii q" Arthur, dear, rs little Mara grows Il
ed you will teach her this, won't You tn
,ds- If she ever meets with any one who
in quite abandOned-quite, as ! was t
10 YOU took me-she is to make friend
mt her, and not listen to What the WoT
of says"
nd =
ESSAY ON THE WHEELBARRow.-
,ed YOU have occasion to use a wheelba
ae; row, leave it, when you are throu
ni- with it, in front of the house with t
lad Handles towards the door. A Whet
lad barrow is the most complicated thi
to fall over on the face of the eart
Isl n a man will fall over one when no npy