The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1876-04-27

silence, and we were about to start,
when voice of entreaty little behind
stayed US.
Hold hard, sir-hold hard, sir.''
came the cry. ''Here's the instrument,
SIR"
Looking back, saw little man hur-
rying along the center of the road to-
wards us, and holding in his hand and
waving up and down something that
shone bright in the fast-departing light.
"Oh, ah, the blunderbuss," said my
father. 81 had forgotten it. Thank
you, Connolly; you needn't have fol-
lowed me with it. I could have had it
on Monday"
81 promised it fur to-day, sir,' re-
piled the old man, painting gly, as he
reached the pony's side, and held up the
weapon, "an' always like to keep me
word. Here it is, sir.''
"Thank you, Connolly. Goodbye" !"
returned my father; 'sgood-bye, boys
all. Get along, Dolly'
Next moment we were Gathering away
down the street that looked towards
home at a great rate.
When we were well clear of the town
we slackened somewhat, for the road
had grown dark. Then my father turn
ed to me little.
"Well, Dick" he said, show have
you enjoyed yourself, and how did you
like the townpn
"Oh, papa, it was lovely" replied,
as | squeezed his arm; land you're so
good for letting me come with you.''
"Lovely, was it?'' he murmured, with
a laugh which was half sigh. "I'm
afraid one day you'll see as little beauty
in it as do, and be as tired of it as
am"
Then he relapsed into silence; but
the tone of his voice had been so kind
to me that presently made bold to
speak to him again.
80 Papa" said I, laying my hand up
on the butt of the blunderbuss, which
hung, mouth downwards, from his
shoulder, lis this the old blunderbuss
that used to hang in the hall at home,
or is it a new one?''
"It's the old one, Dick, my boy" re-
piled my father. "Clean or dirty, !
wouldn't part with it for the best score
of Queen Bosses in the English army" :"
"Papa,' said, with something of a
shiver, and yet feeling attached to the
shining, cruel thing, has it ever killed
any body?"
'sOh, yes; it has done its duty many
time" replied my father. "My great
grandfather took it from the hand of a
dead cateran on the field of Aughrim.
It was then black and bloody, and it
has done many days work SINCE"
/ sLuddered, and shrank back from
the evil thing so far as could without
losing my balance. My father felt the
action.
"Don't be afraid of the poor thing,
he muttered, half laughingly-" it won't
hurt you. And l do hope it may never
more have any work to do"
"Ah!" said, .s HI never go near OF
touch the nasty thing again. I'll-''
talk like girl! But halo! here wi
are in the middle of bog, and | in
tending to go the other road. That
what comes from gossiping."
| Looking around, recognized q por
| ton of the road over which we had
passed in the morning. It was a sor
of raised causeway, like railway em
bankment, and ran right across tn,
center of large tract of bog. It wa
the nearest way from our house tt
town, but was seldom made use of ex
cept in the daytime. Out of repair
unsheltered from wind or rain, ant
faHked on either side by deep ditch
full of ugly, black, deadly looking water
it was any thing but a pleasant road t,
travel after dark. In addition, an evi
lrepute hung over it. Several lives hat
been lost in the ugly ditch on eithe
side; and of late it had become notori
GUS as place frequented by agrarial
criminals. This, of itself, was enough
to deter most men; and my father halt
ed the pony, and looked around.
"Ah!" he said, after moment
pause $ it's all right. See, the moon'l ]
be out in a minute or two, Meanwhile
we'll jog on quietly"
Dolly knew the road Of old, and ster
ped forward carefully. But scarcel
had she gone dozen yards, when, a
if sprung from, the bowels of the earth
or rising out of the black ditch, a
Venus from the sea, a tall form -lookin
taller than it really was in the weir
light--stood forth in the way.
!, Another step, and we saw that th
figure was that of man, dressed in
long frieze coat, and carrying a
enormous stick or waffle, SO lon
, that when used for resting it was grasl
ed one-third of its length below the toI