Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1874-07-29
Whole No. l55.

innocent OF evil, and with good
will to every body. He was q
smooth, plausible man of the world,
of forty, with such pleasant, easy
address as will often captivate a
young man and though unedu-
Gated, he had the rare art of hiding
his ignorance. He gained COM
plete control over me-for q pur-
pose, as / now well know.
/ was a brokers confidential
clerk, and had key to the Office
and a combination to the safe. My
employer was one Of the kindest
men-he paid me well and trusted
me implicitly. Slade was cunning
enough to know that no direct
assault on my honor could succeed,
and so with an artfullncss that was
almost satanic, he set himself 10
work to lay a snare for me. 1t was
not hard thing to do. He way
laid me, after busines hours, and
introduced me to the gay and de-
praved company of gambling hells
and drinking saloons he treated
me to sumptious living, and caused
others to do the same, and in few
months ! was involved in extravi-
CANT expenditure. had contract
ed large bills with the restaurants
and livery men, and my creditors
began to be importunate. They
clamored for their money, and l
was in daily dread of o discovery
by my employer. I feared the re-
suits of such discovery-for |
well knew his horror of all kinds
of fast living and debts contracted
for it. But the crisis was at hand.
/ was threatened with an immediate
suit-something must be done be-
tween that sunset and the next
morning. Slade was at my elbow,
with proposition to plunder Mr..
Tremorne's safe and divide the
proceeds. / repelled him, at first
with horror; he persisted, remind
ing me of my situation, and-but
there is no need that I should trace
all the steps that led to my fall. ]
yielded and the robbery was accom-
plished the same night. We both
had hand in it, and we divided
the seven thousand dollars we got
from the safe. We went different
ways; but before l had gone a
hundred miles the telegraph over
took me. Terror stricken and
overwhelmed by the certain conse-
quences of my crime, l confessed
it on the spot and in the same
breath betrayed my companion.
did not intend to /; but the truth
came out before l could check it.
The telegraph was set to work
again and Slade was arrested. We
were both indicted for the crime.
l plead guilty at once and was put
on the stand as q witness against
him. / knew perfectly well that ]
could secure light sentence by
simply testifying to- the truth but
1 could not bring myself to do ii
and l refused to say word. Yet
after all this, as it seemed, Sam
Slade could hate me for five years,
and leave me with a bitter threat
of vengence! lie was adroitly de-
Tended on the trial but the jury
found him guilty and we both re-
ceived the same sentence.
For five years l worked beside
this man, in the convict shop; but
prison diciplin is strict, and we had
never exchanged word, nor had
so much as look betrayed his feel
ings; but now l knew that all this
time he had been nourishing his
vindictive passion, waiting for the
day of discharge, that he might
persecute me.
AS thought of all this, I walked
more rapidly along the road, and
when l reached the village, l had
decided what l would do. 1t wa:
to go as far as the little mon.
ey l had received from the superin'
tendent would carry me, and con-
ceal myself in some obscure noof
until the mans anger had cooled
and he had turned to some othe
pursuit than-myself. l did no
know him.
l took the cars and rode all day
and getting off at a large town.
would not stop there, but footed
! ten miles more across the country
, the same night, to little place
t where ! thought might venture
to stop. | lay down in a shed til
morning, and then went out to seel