The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-01-21

the possible dangers inside the house
than the merciless storm without; so L
answered:
"a nights lodging. can get no far
ther in this snow."
The man hesitated n good deal; GER
tainly an innkeeper, this, who did not
care much for custom; and at last he said
gruffly:
"Come in.
With shiver that was not owing to
the cold, crossed the threshold, and
found myself in a low room, very rough
ly an scantily furnished, with door
way in corner leading out of it to the
upper story. 1 could see also, by the
dim light, few rough shelves, with
some bottles and pewter pots upon them.
Still keeping his face as much as possible
in shadow, but still, could see, intently
Watching me, no took down a bottle and
n wineglass, and then, saying biusJuely,
"This road; l SLEEP here" led the way
up stairs. AS he strobe up he said, IA If
an afterthought, "And there's no one
else in the house"-pleasant news from
such man. 1 followed him, and was
shown into small room containing n
bed, n chair, and a table, and small
press near the door. Sturm put the
lantern on the table, filled out wine
glass of the liquor, and, saying "Whis-
ky" he handed it to me. Strange to
say, he retained the bottle, which mt once
aroused my suspicious; so 1 drank, and
then only nodded. He gruffly said
"Good night" and strobe out of the
room. The moment his back was turned
l discharged the whisky, which L had
retained in my mouth, into the basin; at
all events, thought, L would not DO
drugged.
Two things were very noticeable: his
anxiety not to be seen himself, and his
evident desire to watch n,e that / should
see nothing more of the house than he
chose to show me-should not take a
step into any room or passage other than
those through which he led me. He
succeeded in both, for l never, even
when he offered me the whisky, had a
fair look at his face; and, at the same
time, L felt that he watched me mar
rowly.
felt very sleepy from cold and ex-
posure; but 1 had made up my mind
that must not go to sleep, or my life
would be in danger. / fel. that as l
stepped over the threshold, and it in
creased upon me every moment; a con-
clusion arrived at on insufficient prem
ises, you Will gay, but, nevertheless,
one that l never staid to argue with
myself; conclusion justified, too, after
these discoveries.
After putting out the whisky, which, as
L anticipated, smelt strongly of opium, /
tried to fastcn the door, but found no
lock or means of doing so merely
latch. This was not reassuring !;
and / made another discovery shortly
which alarmed me still more. The table,
L found, formed part of the bed. The
chair, rs it seemed at first, was seat
initiating one let into the wall, into which
also the press was fastened. There was
nothing to drag against the door, and
nothing to turn into defensive weapon
for there was neither fender nor fire.
irons, and the wash-bowl was tin, and
very small. / was caught in death
trap, and scarcely dared to breathe a
prayer that ! might get out of it safely,
40 impossible did It seem. For some
time | was stunned and if Sturm HAD
easy victim. / seemed in imagination to
die, and the shock nearly deprived me
of my senses.
But kept awake, and gradually got
accustomed to the situation, awful as it
was. / seemed resigned to the struggle
which L felt must come sooner or later,
and my mind began to wander vaguely
round the subject. / can recall my
thoughts now but hardly know in
what order they succeeded each other
then.
Sturm would be sure to be armed
moreover, he had evidently the siren eth
of giant, and was by no means strong,
and had nothing whatever with which to
defend myself, except Qhe absurdity
struck me even them n syringe A syr-
lnge and bottle of diluted acid. You
smile at the idea now, as, even in the
horror OF the moment, / could smile mt
1t then and vet, as the event proved,
the two together made weapon not to
be despised. The syringe, IA l have said
before, worked perfectly WELL and only
wanted the ring-handle fastening 1t was
n very powerful instrument, and would
carry strong, continuous douche of any
fluid within it considerable distance,
spreading as it went farther, just as shot
spreads out of gun. AS for the acid,
II once man received any of that, or
even the spray, in his eyes, he would
certainly be blinded for some hours, if
not for life--the latter q contingency
which. in my desperate situation then, L |
did not for moment consider.
L do not know how the idea, which |
You will now have seized, flashed across
my mind; but saw that, if only could
get an opportunity Of syringing Mr..
in a wholly professional
way, / had n very good chance of escap-
ing. The only difficulty was how to get |
the chance of applying my novel charge
when the attack came and though it
seems simple enough now, it cost me
many minute. of agonizins thought be-
Tore could determine il ON that night.
The storm had abated, and tho moon
vas shining ont, flooding the room-for
The window had no blind-with stream
of silver. 1t behooved me-, in the first
place, then, to make up some semblance
of myself, and place it in the bed, and,
n the second, TO conceal myself where,
/ could get neer my assailant. +
MI IL "a I