The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1879-06-27

l passed on to the houses. the nearest
one dwelling, not fifty yards distant.
The group of houses consisted of a
dwelling. inhabited. a small store better
termed, perhaps. a grocery, and a black
smith S Shcp-the ringing anvil and the
welding hammer silenced long since.
and near by the remains of what was
once good, roomy barn.
On approaching. q man whose appear-
ance | did not particularly fancy. and a
woman not altogether unprepossessiuC
came out into the piazza, and in what |
conceived to be a very kind. hOSpitabIe
manner invited me to eight and come
IN and as | had a good repeater. and
saw but the two, | readily accepted their
invitation and was soon resting. refresh
ed by cool drauoht of water from q
mountain spring near by.
without waiting for the usual inquiry
of a soldier. Have Won auytbino to
drink :" the man produced a small iur
a common. plain green looking tumbler.
and asked me 10 take drink. telling me
;hat 1t was good old apple brandy /
readily accepted, took rather a large
quantity Of the brandy, and, after dilut-
ing il with a little water guaffed If nj a
single draueht- and in about ten minutes
was yiSibly and powerfully affected bv
it. / did not experience that feeling of
droWaIneSS and Unconsciousness men
TONED 10y SO many writers. but, on the
contrary was quIckcncd and enerrized
my perception was sharpened. and for
the first time / saw clearly the possibili-
ties OF my situation. | arose. thanked
the deniZen Of the valley for his courtesy.
and started to leave. when suddenly
discovered that we three were not alone.
l had. during my lisiOinted conversation
with the man. noticed that the woman
was silent, looked thoughtful. had really
little, if anything, to say: but | was not
aware, as ! afteTward learned. that she
was distressed and uneasy about ny pro-
hahle fate. As | have stated. I arose to
leave, when two men, as dangerous III
appearance and as villainous in their
looks as were ever described or portrayed
by the widest imaginations of dime
novel writers, came out of the little gro
cery. placed themselves behind me and
my horse and babe me be seated. as
was their prisoner. and told me that If
escaped from them | would be the first
id rebel that had ever done so. ." In
vain | pleaded and persuaded. for | saw
that resistance would be folly. but my
appeals might as well have been made
to the hard granite rocks near by. and
just when | lost all hope, when despair
was settling over me and a mist seemed
to gather before my eyes. | saw the
Woman's s face suddenly tighten up. and
looking from her to my horse I saw him
restively looking in the direction from
whence l came. OF course looked too.
and to my great JOY, to my unspeakable
satisfaction. I saw the familiar form of
our wagon master, one Of our guard and
two Confederate cavalrymen whom |
could not recognize, emerging from the
gap into the V Hey.
In a twinkle the two scoImdrels were
gone; theman disciaimed any knowledge
Of them and the woman. with true ten
der. wOmanly instinct. was OyeriCyed at
myrescue. The jug was again produced.
pledged. and near night
fall we pitched our camp, a united party.
near TaZeWelI.
! left my friends about 10 o'clock. a.
m, and as | instructed, they stopped
about noon to rest and refresh them
selves, and, as | did not come uD in a
reasonable length Of time, the wagon
master and Private l.. Joined a couple of
navalrymeH, then on their way from
TaZeWell to MOrristown. and knowing
my trail, had followed me with tie pro-
yidential results already stated But. as
in the sequel of My Midnight Peril, -
here IS the stranger part of my story
When | left Alabama i'll 80 my little
laughter Lillian was scarcely eleven
months old and while she knew me
then, my image passed from her infan-
tile mind as a shadow, and, save in the
evening prayer when she Isped my
name. she was unconscious of my very
existence. at the time of which |
write six hundred miles separated u.s.
She had grown during the long inter
vening months of my absence. and on
That July day of which | have written.
She was a tWO-vear- old child, sleeping in
he long summer afternoon. as children
u her age usually do. Suddenly her
mother heard her scream and hastened
To- her as only a mother could or would
'upposiug her to be in intense pain, and
Il was for some time impossible for her
10 tell through her sobS the burden of
her sorrow. When she could make her
self understood, her wall for two long
hours of CHAT. TO her and to me, cventful
evening. was ''SUme old men are try
ing to Kill my papa.
She was a charge upon her mother
during the remainder of the day. and
not until near nightfall. when sleep
again visited her ewes and slumber shut
out from her heart the first sorrow she
had ever known. did she cease. at inter
walls, to cry out. My poor papa. -
some old mean men are trying to Kill
my papa Letters passed at once be-
tween my wife and myself, but not Uu-
til now have we ever mentioned the sub
iect. save only to "a few friends with
whom we are on terms of the closest in
timacy.
In conclusion / again quote from your
Midnight Peril. -
This is M plain. unvanished tale.
/ do not pretend to explain or account
for its mysteries. I simply relate facts
and leave the psychologist TO mravel
the labvrinthean skein.
One thing I do aSsert-my story is
true, and all the parties, father. mother
and child. live within one hundred miles
of Eutaula.
An Ice CAyE.-A correspondent of
the Pittsburgh Post, writing from But