The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1875-04-17

to grope my way down the narrow side
aisle. The darkness i'll the church wat
so intense that could not see an arm
'ength ahead of me, and my matches
ID lantern were slowed away in the
sacristy.
was soon feeling for the key hole Of
the iron-clad door that separated the
sacristy from the body of the church
The key-hole found, the next thing wa,
to pick out the right key from the huge
bunch that hung by my side. Thu.
done, found no difficulty in fitting il
into the lock. Before turning it
paused a moment to listen. Death lik.
stiffness reigned supreme.
One!
1t was the iron voice of the big clocl
overhead that broke the silence in sue;
an awful manner that my heart jumped
in my bosom like a frightened bird il
its cage.
ItOo!
A peculiar feeling, that succeeded tn,
startle, began to creep over me rs
stood there in the utter darkness tina
seemed tingling aad vibrating with tn.
jarring blows of the midnight hours.
Three!
The atmosphere of the old church wa.
damp and moldy. and smelt like thu
air of an unsunned vault.
-Four!
A horrible feeling of faintness came
over me, and a humming in my head
like the buzziDg of q swarm of bees
put forth a great effort and listened
more carefully.
Five!
Then the sound seemed to resolve it.
ca1f rv,f< that Dapfnos1 kk1,vv &c
and pulleys which precedes Immediately
was dreadfully puzzled to accoun,
for this sound. knew the bellringel
was not up in the tower, for l had left
him home sick in beda
Seven!
Besides, had the belfry keeps in my
belt, and how could any one have gained
access there without them?
Eight!
By this time the giddy sensation had
passed away and had begun to chide
myself for my delay and for being such
an arrant coward.
Nine!
How foolish to imagine myself fol-
lowed, peeped at from behind a tomb
stone, or hearing strange noises in the
church.
Ten!
The wind, said I, often makes very
strange and remarkable noises about the
towers, and angles, and windows of an
old. dilapidated building.
Eleven!
And Holtug church was rare instru-
ment for that famous old musician to
play upon.
TtOelve! g.
The last stroke of midnight found me
standing thus debating before the sa-
cristy door, instead of being up in the
belfry, ready to pull, pull with a vim,
and pail with might and main as soon
as it had died away. I knew that there
was not a moment more to lose.
What was to do?
My unfuIfilled promise now seemed
to lash me on. knew that at that very
instant hundreds of ears were eagerly
strained to catch those chimes that
until now had never before failed to
proclaim "Peace on earth, good will
to men,"
Ifoon succeeded in lighting the cam
die and sticking it in the lantern. But
at best it gave miserable poor light,
oe0oueo ouo tAicAs yeioW AOIu SUES
were rendered semi obaque by dirt. I
put some billets of wood under one arm,
and holding the lantern aloft started
for the belfry. Just as I was shutting
the sacristy door behind me q heavy
hand grasped my arm. I shrank back
and exclaimed, +" Who's that ?" The
lantern dropped to the floor and the
light was extinguished, leaving me and
tho nnknnvzv1 k1ko =.
The only way the latter answered my
question was by seizine both of nv
arms from behind and with great force
attempting TO keep them firmly against
my back.
As soon as the men had Lit the lam
tern, ono of them came up TO me md
said in harsh, firm voice, "Give me
the keys r. "You can take then, ."
said "as I am not in a condition
very we'll to refuse you. All you have
to do is 20 take them from my belt.
am as helpless as baby and can't pre-.
vent you" The man then took the
keys from my belt. Said I, "I can
cheerfnlly volunteer the information
that all the church treasures are in safe
keeping in the village, and that with
the exception of few bottles of sacra.
mental wine and few rat gnawed wax
there's nothing in the church
worth the trouble of your stealing"
Danger sometimes makes us very pre-
sumptuous, and I suppose there must
have been something CALLING in my
tone that irritated them, for the elder
Of the two, a short, thick-set man, de-
of me, with harsh voice and
q fearful imprecation, where the parish
registry was kept. This was an unex-
pocted question. and to it remained
silent. He tllsn repeated the question
with an OATH and I could see Mat he
was getting mad. 6eidI, aftor 8 pause,
II shan not ten you Nhers they re, for
great misuss could Be made Of the
books" "Come, where are those
books ?" said he, in veRy thseatening
You have mistaken your
mar" was Ill I said inreply. =
"Onew
1 sat and listened. Time, seemed
suddenly rolled back, - uyswhele
ife was flashed before me-. In the
lgony of my desperate situation lifted
. condensed and passionate prayer to
9od for deliverancs Of salvation.
" ztC0 2" s-
I felt the muscles OF that portion of
he scalp against which the cold muzzle
II the pistol pressed twitching fearful
y. Death never stood so near me be-
ore. It was a moment of higher ex-
,itement and darker and deeper asita-
ion of the soul than any that had ever
hitherto known, or care ever again to
" Three ="
Notwithstanding death stared me so
yrimly In the face determined to &C.
,ept it rather than break a vow, made
n the very sanctuary of Coda sin
hat thought would bring q more fear
nj curse upon me than any death could
10. No with my teeth set hard to-
sether, and my soul braced to meet my
fate, I sat and listened to the
low, mechanical words, as they fell
rom the lips of my cruel captor, and
when he said Three! I muttered 81
lefy you, death II
He saw it was no use. He had ex-
orted an answer, but it was not the
me he wanted. He laid the pistol back
gain upon the table, and began trying,
me by one, the iron doors of the vaults.
1t last he found the vault which con.