Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1876-12-27
Caught in His Own Trap.
New Orleans Bulletin.

Caught in His Own Trap.
New Orleans Bulletin.
Whitmarsh has fine orange tree on
which he has spent great deal of time
during the summer, and as the oranges
on the tree are very numerous and
rapidly ripenins, he became uneasy
about them, owing to the fact of there
being several mischievous boys in the
neighborhood whom he had of late seen
cycling the tree several times. He set
to work to think out plan to save his
oranges from the boys. The plan he
finally adopted was q complicated sys-
tenn of steel traps, SO arranged as to
render it next to impossible for any one
to walk under the tree without stepping
on one Of the traps. The traps were
hidden from view by means of artificial
grass and little receptions of that de-
scription, and to prevent the boys from
discovering his design he worked at
night to get the traps in position.
In the meantime the boys had not
been idle, and every night, while at
work, Whitmarsh had been watched by
some Of the boys who duly reported to
the others, and the boys in turn pre-
pared trap for him, which worked
about this way: One very dark night
Whitmarsh heard a noise in the yard,
and slipping quietly out of the back
door he heard suppressed groan
and saw the figure of a boy under the
orange tree, standing perfectly still.
Surprising this object to be a boy in
trap, Whitmarsh dartcd-at him, and
catching him by the collar, gave him q
Jerk, crying "Aha, I've caught you,
you young rascal" but what he took to
; be boy was an old suit of boys clothes
stuffed with hay, and the unexpected
: lack of weight when he gave the jerk,
made Whitmarsh lose his balance and
stumble forward, and, in doing this, be
unfortunately stepped in trap which
came together as quick as a flash,
catching his foot and holding it secure
ly; this mishap made fall certain, and
Whitmarsh put out his hands to break
the fall, and when the hands struck
they struck on traps which quickly
closed on two fingers of one hand and
three on the other.
Whitmarsh yelled for help, which
|, was promptly furnished in the shape
of answering yells of derision by the
boys who, comfortably seated on sheds,
had witnessed the whole scene, and by
Mrs. Whitmarsh, who hearing the cries
of her husband, rushed into the yard
and increased the racket by her cries of
murder, thieves, police, ETC., in which
she was joined by the neighbors. Sever
al policemen by this time arrived, and
two or three of them seized Whit
marsh, who they mistook for q burglar,
and tried to pull him on to his feet, al
most tearing his fingers off in the at
tempt to and dealing him sturdy blows
and kicks meanwhile. By the time
they had discovered the true situation
of affairs the unfortunate Whitmarsh
had tainted from the effect of pain
and modification. He was carried into
the house and tenderly cared for but
no balm can heal his wounded feel
ings, and the boys, elated by their sue
cess, are rapidly spelling their enemy.
A Pathetic Story.
A pathetic story has been going the
rounds of the papers as to the manner
in which Wachtel, the great tenor, first
became known and famous. This mar
rates how he was originally poor cab.
driver at Dresden, and that one wintery
night as he was singing to
himself upon his box the au-
audience of the Grand Opera began to
dispense. How the entranced multi
tude gathered around the unconscious
, cabby. How he finished his solo amid
a storm of applause; and how the very
! next day large purse was subscribed
;; to send him to the Conservatory at
) Paris. Mr.. Schengler, who lives over
on Rincon Hill, and who is also Ger
: man, was much affected by this story,
) and as he, too, had q voice, he deter
) mined to be sent to Paris at once. So
3 last Tuesday evening he waited until
the California Theatre began to let out,
and, mounting the box of hack in
! in front of it, he lifted up his voice and
) sang. The tumultuous crowd was in
stantly hushed, and stopped transfxed,
! as with closed eyes the absorbed singer
;; sat, his whole inspired soul floating out
in glad triumphant notes. The selec-
I ton chosen by Mr.. Schengler was
: ''Tommy, make room for your uncle"
one of the best of its kind, but we re-
gret to say that at the end of the third
, verse a brickbat struck Mr.. Schengler
Immediately beneath the right ear,
knocking him over the dash board, fol
lowing which he was walked over and
his neck stepped upon by the thought
less throng. Mr.. Schengler is convinced
there is fraud about this Wachtel
story somewhere.-San Francisco News
Letter.
Emigration to North Carolina.
The plans which have for some time
been maturing for planting Western
Massachusetts colony in North Carolina
are about completed, and the first in