The star. (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1874-1875, 1875-03-12
HIDING IN A COFFIN.

| And has never been taken up again.
HIDING IN A COFFIN.
had ridden hard and fast, and was
astonished to find myself coming into a
struggling sttlement. On the course
which 1 should have taken there was
| nothing of the sort. Somewhere had
crossed the right trail and taken the
| wrong one. Almost any traveller in the
| border sections would have been glad 10
thus stumble upon place for food and
rereshment. Not so with myself. In
the breast pocket of my coat carried
| five thousand four hundred and ninety
odd dollars, United States money. had
received this amount from Maj. Gen. r.
M. Lacey, and it was to be Carried
through to Fort l., and placed in
the hands of Col. Asa F. Southard, to
defray necessary army expenses.
| There were only two men in the bar.
room when l entered; the landlord and
| the hostler.
Strolling carelessly about the room,
managed to glance out of the window.
My heart leaped into my throat, tor in
the man outside-I ecognized-from de.
scription of him-Bill Wolf-one Of the
most desperate characters that ever fig.
There was huge red mustache. the
thick, hairy throat, and the shoulders
haunched up around his head, suggest.
ing the shape Of mammoth clam-and
the voice with a deep down intonation
like the plop, plop, plop of water hurried
ly leaving u jug. II the description Ol
the notorious renegade is inelegant, it
has the merit of truthiulness, and must
therefore be excused.
l went through with my supper In
form, but whatever appetite might have
felt on my entrance into the inn, had
vanished with my discovery. After u
time the other fellow came in, having
been out, he said, to look after the ami
mails, and they also ordered supper.
Now was my time to leave, which did
in a careless manner.
1t was quite dusk outside, but the
hostIer was fitting about the stable with
his lantern, which emitted but a little
more etfulgent light than a white bean
would have done, but he graciousiy
brought out my steed at the order, and,
mounting, | thankfully trotted away.
After riding q mile or more 1 heard a
faint sound and drew up my horse one
moment to listen. No chance travellers
ever rode like that. 1t meant pursuit.
/ gave my steed a Calling lash and she
broke INTO convulsive gait, lfove her
body up with one or two plunges, STUN
bled. going down from her knees to her
nose, and pitched me literally heels
over head. For an instant L was para
lived with astonishment, the next |
seized the bit to fetch up the fallen ami
NAL. which had in the meantime under
gone strange metamorphosis. She had
lost her white face on or in the grass,
and, passing my hand between her eyes,
[ found the hair was wet.~ In an instant
[ was examining the white teges. My
horse had been peculiarly marked with
white legs and face and l found these
sticky with white-wash. WHAT then
Simply my trappngs had been transfer
red to another animal, gotten up to ex-
actly represent mine in the evening.
This discovery brought an appalling in-
terpretatlon of the oncoming horselnen.
| gave the horse the whip as soon as his
unsteady legs were we'll under him, and
sent him a securing on ahead, while
ran Oft to the right, making for little
hollow, dry ravine. Here to my pro-
found astonishment discovered lone
cabin, or hut, about the dimensions of
an ordinary country loghouse, and, i'm
pulsively dashing up to this, 1 gave a
rapid succession OF knocks. A shrink
ing, pale, and covering woman opened
it.
"What is itY was her first question,
noticing my breathless haste.
sis there any chance TO hide here-my
horse has thrown me and believe a
party OF desperadoes are close UP with
me-"
mo, no; there is no place." she gasped,
her quick ear catching the sound Of the
coming horsemen. This is all the room
there is-and there is neither cellar MOI
attic"
sBut this?' 1 exclaimed rushing to1
dark object in The corner.
s'It's cofin," was the quick response;
'sbut there's no other chance-they are
turning up to the door-get in."
1 had barely time to place myself in
this receptacle for the dead, when a
hoarse voice-one that knew by the de.
scription which had Of it-called out;
.'Here you, Dick"
The woman threw her apron over her
head and opened the door.
"Where's DickW
"He hasn't come back yet" returned
the woman..
"oh, he arn't-Jen, hev yer hurd a
horse go by to-nightW
eyes, only little while ago-a small
man?"
"Yes-driving like the devil"
81 guess" she said, and then paused
"you can hear the horse now," teigning
to-1isten.
After a moments glance inside the
house, they were off again.
"What shall l do? what shall do F'
gasped the woman; "they will be back
in twenty minutes, for l believe that
your horse is in sight, not more than
three-quarters of a mile off, and my
husband is liable to come at any mo.
ment."
"But with him inside the house we
might"
"With himp-she emphasized it In de-
spairing tones-'he's Bill VOLTS broth
er."
was out Of the coffin in trice then
you may well believe.
SIT is death for you any way" she
moaned, "for hear the rattle Of Dicks
axles already"
"Stay, there's the rain BARREL" said I
in desperation, "theyv'e tried that once
they may not again."
And before you would be able to spea
a sentence, the water was dashed out o
the cask and stealing down into the arit
soil, and l was IN the barrel, and the
woman dropping tub half filed with
| W atpr in at the ton aS n cOVpr