Wilmington daily commercial., 1875-06-12
MISCELLANEOUS.
A NIGHT OF ALARM.

o'is child, with an absence of fear in her charac-
ter, aud consequent clearness Of perception in
all cases OF supposed or actual danger.
When was sixteen and Julia was eighteen
my father hired laborer named Hans Schmidt
n Hessian, who had been in the British service
ana who at the close of the war, had deserted
from his regiment
He was powerful man, with a heavy, ,imbrutod
countehance; ana Loth Julia and myself were
struck at tho very first with an intuitve dread of
him. The feeling in Julia hardly took the char
acter OF fear, but was rather OF loathpg
-, one evening she read OF horrible murder that
thrilled our bood and upon turning her ewes
from the paper, they encountered those OF Hans
Schmidt. There was something terrible in that
glance; and from that moment, she resolved that
tho villain should be turned away.
Ah her wishes and opinions were always OF
much weight with father, he gave Hans his dis
charge.
Soon after this, Julia and we're left alone in
the house, both our father and mother being alb
sent upon visit until the following day, and we
happened TO be with out a female servant at the
time, (for we never kept more than one.)
Az night we wont up to bed and had partly
disrobed, when Julia turned hastily to the win
dow.
81 declare" she said, "the evening is 10 pleas
ant that it is a pity to remain in doors. Idon't
feel a bit sleepy; let's so down upon the
lawn"
We descended the stairs. How little / i'm
agined what WAS in Julias heart Harry Irving
came up just AZ We reached the lawn. He was
only casually passing the house.
Julia engaged him in conversation and he
lively.
"Where are Tom, and Edgar, and Will she
asked.
"oh," replied Harry, "they arc over to my
uncle's. They will be coming back soon."
The three young men sooD appeared upon the
pt hair
approach and called us aside from tho door.
- Now, Mary, you need not be nervous" she
said. Keep quiet, and do not speak above
your breath. There il man under our bed
there, there !! and she clapped her hand over
my mouth" a man under our bed, and the
young Irvings are going to secure him"
They all provided themselves with heavy
sticks and then, guided by Julia ascended the
stairs
Az to myself, l could not follow them, but
remained trembling and leaned upon the door
steps. Never did | experience greater sense
OF relief than whenthe assailing party descended
looking partly ashamed and partly amused, hav-
ing found nothing to justify their sudden arma-
ment.
Julia was in an agony of modification and
wept piteously for, although but half con-
yinced that her apprehensons had been ground
less, the idea that she who bad never till now
feared anything, had placed herself 10 ludcrous
i'll the eyes OF those men, was insupportable.
The man, she said, must have taken the alarm
and fled out the back door, for she could not
have been 30 deceived.
Our young friends, more in'pity for her NOR
tfcation than from any belief IN the reality of
the night intruder, offered to remain in the vi
cinity till morning but she would not listen to
the proposition, and they took their departure.
was sorry to see them go, and watched their
forms till they were out OF sight, for the affair
of the evening had almost frightened mo into
Mysteries.
Julia, however, at once rushed to the chamber,
and ilinging herself on the bed continued bitter
ly weeping She had exhibited herself in a
which she despised and her man un-
der the bed would be the talk of the neighbor-
hood. l followed her but neither of us could
sleep.
Tie clock on the mantepiece struck eleven
and then stick, tick, tick" it went OH for the
next dreary hour. Julia at length ceased weep
ing, and lay III thought, only an occasional sigh
betlaying her wakefulness.
Again the clock struck but il had net reached
tho final stroke, when Julia leaping out of bed,
flung herself upon an immense chest at tho fur
ther end OF the room.
"Oh, Mary !" she cried, "quck quick He
ID here i cannot hold the lid-be will get out l'
There was indeed some living thing inside the
chest for, in spite of Julas weight the lid was
lifted, and then, the instinct OF self-preserya
tion overcame my terror, l sprang to her assis-
tance.
Whom or what had We caught2 Imagine
yourself holding down the lid of showmans
box, with boa constructor wrthing beneath or
keeping cage-top in its place by your weight
alone, with IL hyena struggling to tear Ills way
out and devour you.
But we were not long in suspense. Horrid |
execrations, half German, half English, chilled
our very hearts, and we knew that there, in the
only tho lid of an old chest was be- |
.woen ourselves and Hans Schmidt
At times it started up, and once or twice his |
fingers were caught IN the opening. Then, find |
ng our combined weight too much for his |
strength, it would become evident that he was
TO force out an end OF the chest |
But he could not work to advantage. Cramped |
within such limits, his giant power OF muscle |
was not wholly available he could neither kick |
nor strike with full force and hence his chief |
nope rested upon his ability to lift us up lid and
all.
Even then, in the absolute terror that might |
have been supposed to possess hers queer feel |
ing OF exultation sprang up into Julia's heart.
II was right, Mary she cried ".rhey won't |
think me fool now, will they shan't be
ashamed to sec Harry Irving !"
Poor Julia under the circumstances, the idea |
was really ludicrous but nature will every
where assert herself, and Julia hated u coward. |
Thump thump tLump Lid and side and |
end alternally felt the cramped powerful blows. |
Then came the lift,-the steady, straining lift, |
and Julia cbeered me when the cover shook and
rose and tremble'.
"iIe can't get out, Mary We are safe, only |
Just keep your full, weight on the lid, and don't |
De nervous either it is almost morning y
She knew it was not one O'Clock.
But one o'clock came. How l wished it was |
five ! And two o'clock came and three, and |
four and we hoped that our prisoner had
Welded to his fate which must now appear to |
him inevitable.
A small aperaturo at one end OF the chest, |
where there was fracture in the wood, sup. |
piled him with air, and hence we could not hope |
that he would become weak through suffocation. |
He was evidently resting from the very neces- |
sity of the case, for his exertions had been pro-
dieious There was Il faint streak OF morning |
in the sky and there, upon tho chest we Sat |
and sat and watched for tho CLEAN to broaden.
Suddenly there was r tremendous struggle be- |
meath us, as if the ruflan had concentrated all
his energies in final effort At my end OF the |
chest there was crash, and immediately the |
Germans feet protruded through the aperture |
that they had forced in the board. So horrible |
now appeared our position, that / uttered
scream, such as l do not think ever at any |
other time could have had the power to initiate.
To get OIL the lid, in order to defeat the move |
ment through the chest end would have INSTANT |
ly been our destruction therefore, still bearing
our weight on the chest we caught at the pro-
jecting feet. In doing this, however, we partial,
ly lost our balance and n sudden Draclng uloi
the muscular shape below so far forced open the
lid, that the head arms aud shoulders OF Hans
Schmidt were thrust forth, and, with feariul
clutch, he seized Julia by the throat.
Just then heavy crash was heard at The door |
below, the foot tramps springing towards us as |
t.a- -lrtn