Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1875-09-17


looking so white and haggard that she
hardly knew it. 81
sWhat is it, Will? What makes you
look SO? And oh, how did you dare to
come here9 Father may come home to
dinner at any mlinuten' 7siai ga
.seLet him come!g He needn't grudge
me a minute with you. / shan't come
again very soon, Syl," said the young
man, in a bitter, reckless Tone M
/ That and his white. face frightened Syl
so that she trembled and could not speak.
Will reached through the window and
caught her hands, and almost crushed
them in his clasp.
"Will you stand by me, Syl, when all
the world scorns and ieers at me for
thief? Or will you decide that your ia
theirs worldly wisdom is best, after all,
and marry that honest, godly man, Silas
Daggett?" ~
The fierce ,scorn in Willis voice told
Syl that, whatever. his new trouble might
be, Silas Daggett was at the bottom
of it. w
What has he done now? Do tell me,
WHIP F-i,e
"The store was robbed last night-you
hadn't heard Of that? The village is alive
with it; the safe and the money-drawer.
Stevens paid Daggett So 900 yesterday; he
left it in the safe, intending, so he says, to
put it in the bank this morning. Ofcourse
he managed to make suspicion fall upon
me at once, and he has got warrant now
for my arrest"
Indignation got the better of Syl's fear
at once.
:" How dared he? How could he?
What possible reason could he give for
suspecting yoD?" IN
ooh, good many! Heis keen enough,
you know, and / believe that he has been
planning this for long time. A key was.
broken off in the lock of the money draw
er, and the other half was found in the
pocket of my coat, which [ left in the
store. OF course it is of no use for me to
say that left the coat in the store. Dag
gett says didn't, and of course his
word could not be doubted Then | was
out until after eleven O'Clock last night,
and / can't say where | was; that is
against me, you know"
"Can't? Why not? Don't mind me
don't think of me! Tell just where you
were, and | will tell, too. Oh, Will, don't
look so! don't feel sol How can he prove
you guilty when you are innocent?" Z.
:" If he can't prove me guilty neither
can I prove myself innocent, and the dis
grace will cling to me-will cling to you,
too, Syl until you cast me off. l think
you had better do it, dear; seem fated
to bring nothing but trouble upon you"
Syls brown eyes flashed, and then filled
slowly with tears.
"Will, don't talk like that; do try to
have more hope and courage. Silas Dag
gett is a bad man, know; / was sure of
it from the first; and he is SLY and cum
ming, but we shall find a way out of this
trouble, or, if not, we will bear it to-
gether."
Will was evidently not to be cheered,
but Syl's courage made him ashamed of
his weakness. Syl let him stay a few mo-
ments longer; she wanted to hear the de-
tails of the robbery, and she could not let
him go until she had inspired him with
little hope and confidence, and then she
hurried him away. She knew that it
would not help his cause to have her
father find him there.
s When he was out of sight Syl sat down
on the window-se and buried hel face in
her hands. She had spent all her stock
of hope and courage in trying to cheer
Will. The future did look gloomy to
her.
Silas Daggett was so powerful and so un-
scrupulous, and her father would be sure
to be on his side, and leave no stone I'M
turned toprove viii guilty; and he said
it would be very hard for him to prove
himself innocent. Silas Daggett had
woven a subtle snare. Syl knew him well
enough to be sure of that. She did not
believe that he had been robbed at all, but
had formed the plot for the sole purpose
90 i,
rather, her fathers money, upon which
his affections were firmly fixed. Some
way must be found to outwit him, Syl
said to herself over and over again, as she
sat there in the pantry-window; but still
no way suggested itself; and she had
promised never to marry Will without her
fathers. consent, and that would never be
given now. Syl gave way to despair at
that thought and cried until her head
ached. and the biscuits were burned to a
cinder in the oven.
The Deacon looked at her red eyes
when he came home to dinner, and hav-
ing, doubtless, little pity for his daugh-
ter in his heart. forebore to enlarge upon
upon the subject of the robbery, as Syl
expected he would; but he spoke as if
there was no doubt of Willis guilt, and
Aunt Dorcas and Syl's mother groaned in
unison, and said it was no more than they
had expected, and Silas Daggett had-or
Syl fancied that he had-a look of COM
placency under the distress and anxiety
that he assumed.
Svl scrutlnized him carefully at every
opportunity, and was more firmly con-
WINGED each moment that he himself was
the robber whom he expressed such anx-
iety to bring to justice; and once she
said, quietly, yet with searching glance
at his face:
81 will do all that can to bring him to
justice, Mr. Daggett."
A dark red flush rose to Mr.. Daggett's
face, but he answered with smile that he
should be very glad OF her aid.
But what could she do? She could
think of nothing, though she racked her
brains for hours, but to openly declare
| that Will had been with her the evening
before, and to wait patiently and watch ST
las Daggett.
She ran over in her mind the facts
concerning the robbery which she had
| gained from the conversation at the din
| ner-table.
The KEYS of the store-door had been in
| Wills possession, AMI that told against
him, as the thief seemed to have entered
in that way; at least, according to Silas
Daggett, though Deacon Rankin did remind
him that somebody had discovered that a
window in the back part of the store was
unfastened. And then that half of the
broken key found in Willis pocket For
herself, she had not the slightest doubt as
to how it came there; but could the pub
lie ever be brought to believe that 81
las Daggett had been guilty of so base
an act?
The next few days were full of anxiety
and suspense that tried her sorely Will
was examined and committed for trial.