The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1880-02-11

ering there wasl The streets Of the
little town were so crowded that it was
almost impossible to make ones way
along. In the market-place bevies of
rosy-cheeked servant girls waited to be
hired = pigs grunted and squealed as
the drovers whipped them along; the
shopkeepers shrieking to the passen-
gers to buy-the agent sat in the coy
parlor of the inn comfortably enjoying
his glass of wine; gazing with a smile
into the wild, woe-begone faces of the
creatures whom he had summoned
thither and determinediy shaking his
head at every heart-broken appeal.
Don't come to me-" he said: I'm
done with ye, q lot Of lazy spendthrifts
as ye are. Yell go before them to-day
as II make ye pay!"
I sat in remote corner of the room
and quietly watched the wretched Great
ures who crowded around the man
their wild eyes, their famished faces,
their trembling bodies clad in the dirty
rags which were their sole protection
from the cold. And as l glanced from
them to the frozen window. panes and
the sleet which fell, covering with q
thin crystal sheet the curb-stone of the
street, my heart turned sick. .fq :
Poor, miserable, half-starved wretch
esl" I thought, "most of you will
have sore hearts tonight, for you will
lose your little all, God help you! and
there will be nothing but starvation
leftl"
Heartsick at the sight of so much
woe which 1 was utter] y powerless to
relieve, I arose, and was about to leave
the room, when my eye was suddenly
arrested by figure, ragged, wild and
woe-begone, which crouched close up
by the window. Five minutes before, I
had seen this man crouched like q
stricken beast before the agent, his
skeleton hands outstretched, his parchea
lips suing for mercy.
" For the love of God, Tony Mona
CHAN, niver be hard on poor boy" he
said; "all my potatoes had the black
disease this year, and they rotted in the
ground. My pig took the sickness and
died. I have two little children down
wild q fever, and if ye take away my
COW I'll have no dhrap of milk to give
them, and they'll diel"
This appeal, heart-breaking as it was,
had met with the usual repulse:
"Don't bring yer lies to me. You'll
go before them as IL make ye pay!"
So the man had crept back into the
shadow, and as I saw him crouched be-
side the window noticed that the pit
eous look of appeal had left his face :;
his features were strangely convulsed,
his wild eyes cleaned, and his hand
clenched and unclenched in nervous
dread.
"That man means mischief" I said
as passed out into the street.
At o'clock the tenants cases were
to be called on, and as the hands of the
clock approached that hour I made my
way through the crowded streets in the
direction of the court. The wind blew
bitterly, thin fakes of snow were fall.
ing, and as I walked felt the ice crack
ling and breaking beneath my feet. I
noticed to my wonder that the streets
through which T passed were almost
deserted-presently a succession of
means and cries struck upon my ear,
then I noticed that the people were
running excitedly, and, following the
direction which they took, at length
found myself on the outskirts of great
crowd which was collected in the prin-
cipal street, before the open door OF the
court. Seeing my own servant among
the throng, I questioned him as to the
cause of the excitement, for noticed
that many of the people were wringing
their hands, others moaned feebly,
while others glared around them with
wild eyes, and then seemed to utter
sighs of relief. Instead of replying to
my question, Shawn took me by the
shoulders, and gently propelled me in
to the middle of the throng.
There saw the cause of the disturb.
ance.
Lying on the curbstone, his head
supported in the arms of policeman,
his face open to the wondering gaze of
hundreds of eyes, was the agent, stone
dead. His body was surrounded by po.
icemen-warders of the court-nay, at
the cry of murder the very Judge upon
the bench had stopped the course of
justice and came forth. .-.. -. ..
( GOOD God!" I exclaimed, recoiling
upon Shawn; show did this happen ?"
"He was just walkin' along the street,
yer Honor said Shawn, quietly, "when
he fell, and laid his head down and
died. ,,..
"Murdered?"
"Oh, God Forbid yer Honor; what
for should he be kilt, at all at ALP"
Nevertheless, I felt convinced that
my supposition was right; nay, more, I
believed that I could point out the very
man who had done the deed.
That a murder had actually been
committed could not be proved on the
spot, but the manner of the mans death
was so peculiar as to call for Coroner's
inquiry and post-mortem examination.
The body, therefore, was at once re-
moved to the inn, and several hours
after it's removal the two principal
doctors of the town were on their way
armed with the implements necessary
for their work. On their arrival at the
inn novel scene awaited them. The
people, having at length solved the
meaning of the awfnl words, "post-mor-
tenn examination" had risen up in arms
and declared that no such dissertation