The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1874-04-24
MY ROBBERS AND NY q HOST.

very silly but L cannot help II. As Tor
bull. would rather never see the country
than run the chance of meeting such
creature. 4 dog is thought To be very
harmless anialal-a domestic animal-and
the ''friend of man. He Is not. however.
the friend of woman-or at least of
nervous woman like me. The Romans
used 10 paint Care caneUl. beware OF the
Dog" az their front doors: but such
warning would have been unnecessary in
my case. am always fully Beware" of
il. Every iarm-yard in the country has a
dog. and don't like farm-yartlS.
Nv widowed sisIer-in-law 1.-THE fat one)
and myself once lived i'm such place a
whole summer. From sunset 10 sunrise
was in a perfect fright. from fear of rob
bers; ana when the days grew shorter.
and the nights longer. the place became
insupporfable. and | fled from it. The
usual nightly programme was as follows:
NV sister-in-law. who occupied the same
apartment as myself. would fall asleep a.
soon a. her head touched the pillow. and
leave nae aprey 10 my terrors.
If the wind was up. l at once began TO
picture 10 myselfa band of rufiians effect
ing forcible entry into all the rooms be-
low stairs, and giving shouts of triumph
AT the ease with which they accomplished
their purpose. We could not afford 10
keepa man servant. and even If we had
done 20. | should have always imagined
him the acc0mplice of the burglars. or
coming upstairs upon his own account
with a caTving-knife concealed in a scuttle
OF Goals, az had once read of in book.
However one very wet and dark night
she got pretty fright herself. Ii was
little past midnight. The drip, drip, drip.
was eeaseless. | heard the back door go
d .Fsf .ff ffi.I ~.
lence-and then that "pit-a-pat'' knew so
well. Of feet coming up the stairs
Charlotte y cried /. i'm an agony. "they
really are, this time. Wake, wake. -
Rubbish am wide awake"
They are just outside the door they
are listening at'the keyhole. Hark''
= certainly hear caves dropping was
her heartless answer. .-but it's only the
rain on the roof
= tell you said solemnly, '.there are
robbers IN the"
Here something fell in thedrawing-room
with hideous crash. Ia an instant. and
before could recover from he sort of col
lapse into which this shock had thrown
me. Charlotte had Topped out OF bed.
seized the lamp. and was about 10 hurry
from the room. Mo- said she. pansing
in the doorway. "it's better that they
should not see me. but that | should see
them"
Ii was certainly much better. consider
ing tharlotte's very slight attire. that the
robbers should not see her: but why she
should want TO see the robbers was quite
unintellieible to me.
: stop,- cried / but the fatal deed was
done, and was left in darkness.
Dreadful a. il was to accompany her
upon such an expedition. il seemed
thousand times worse To remain in the
room. and trembling in every limb, hur-
ried after her.
To reach the drawing.room il was neces-
sary 10 pass through the dining-room. 1t
was pitch dark. but could hear her breath
ing hard a. she made her way round the
table that occupied the center of the room. !
rear lent me wings, and hurried round
the other way to meet her. and rushed into
her arms Just as she was feeling for the
drawng-room doorway. She uttered
shrill scream, and fell on the floor in dead
faint. | had forgotten that the poor dear
did not know | was pursuing her. and she |
very naturally took me for the robbers.
suppose fainted too, for the first thing I
remember was hearing loud purr close To |
my ear. which proceeded from our favorite |
cat, who, having knocked down the fire
irons In the next room (Which was the
".
to assure us that there was nothing the |
matter.
In July | received an invitation to the |
seaside, which thought il safe to accept. |
MY host and hostess lived at Disney Point. |
IN Cornwall, very lonely spot, il is true. |
but one in which no burglary had ever
been committed within the memory of
woman. There were no bad people,
wrote my friends. who were aware of my |
nervous peculiarities. within hundred |
miles Of Them When | reached their |
house, was really inclined to believe that
this was the case. A more beautiful and |
retired spot IL was impossible to imagine.
IL was the grandest seacoast had yet Wis |
tied. was not at all afraid of the sea-
when | was upon the land I am not |
airaid-at least. tcos not. until the terrible |
catastrophe occurred which am about TO |
relate-of supernatural apparitions. When |
announced my intention. one evening. of |
going up the hill to sketch the churchyard |
by moonlight. there arose quite a rude tit |
ter in the drawing-room
surely not alone. Mary Anneg Let |
one OF my girls go with YOU"
4" What Is there TO be afraid Of in a |
churchyarrl
|" But i i so lonely up there, my dear.-
"What OF that. -
was resolved 10 exhibit my independ- |
ence; but at the same time she need not |
have reminded me that il was so lonely |
up there" did not expect to find Disney |
churchyard the center OF fashion. or the !
scene OF an excursion picnic at ten o'clock |
at night, Of course: her remark was un-
necessary, and at the same time IL made |
my blood run cold. However, when the |
moon rose. 30 did |, and. sketch-book In |
hand. tOiled up to the old church WHAT |
ever might be the matter, there was al |
WAYS wind up there, and even in that |
still summer night 1t was wandering about |
the grasses of the graves, and whispering |
INTO ne ear OF the stone Cargoyles Of the |
church.