The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1880-02-11
CLAWDEVIL.


1have been taken with queer fainting|
fits fora month past, snd in the half
doze and half wakefnlnes that kept me
lying about while ] was getting round,
1t was nothing but FaAerton church,
with the tower smothered with ivy, out
Of which / had taken many sparr0w's
egg and young iackdaw, that I had be-
fore my eyes. Harperss mead down there
by Barker's mill, and the hazel copse,
where we went nutting ON Sunday after |
moons. have risen up, one after another
like pictures; and the funny thing is, IL
was always in the piceIre little chap
in pinafore and leggings, just as was
when l went to school in the'0ld matched
house near the chTchyard. Fallertonl
Hal God help usp
The old man {, auditor had opened his
eyes too on hearing this for IN the de
scription he recognized the village from
which his family derived its name. Fal-
lerton Of Fallerton you may hunt up for
yourself in any good county history.
The astonishment Julian FELT, however,
he did not exhibit. He smiled encour-
agingly, for the old fellow had buried
his face in his hands toward the conclu-
saion of his remarks.
"Cheer up" he said; '"yOu are weak
rust now. 1t will be, to use your own
word. right presently. Now, then, you
have my name, what's yoursf'N
"Well," was the hesitating reply, "1
have had many names in my time, but
/ was pretty generally known as -. But
stop;, let me go back. 4can see you are
gentleman. I know these colonies we'll;
the gentleman sometimes is as big a
blaokguard as the rest, hlt you can al
ways see he is a gentleman born. But
that is neither here nor there. If ever
you 90 back to England, and should find
yourself in Fallerton churchyard, stroll
across the graves to the last yew tree;
there's headstone on the farther side of
it, and this lis what you'll read on it:
SACRED to the memory Of Barnaby Ship-
ton Barnaby Shipton was my father"
"And your Christian name?" inquired
Julian quickly.
"Ask any Of the people in Fullerton
who was the worst scapegrace ever known
in those parts and they'll say itwas
Farmer Shipton's son Luke. That's
me-"
Here Julian rose from bis stool, threw
up his hands in amazement, and paced
to and fro along the smooth floor.
"Oh! there's worse TO come, MIR. Fal-
1ertm; so don't be shocked yet" pro-
ceeded the speaker, imagining that his
hearer was Mortified at the mere mention
of his juvenile delinquencies. a
But Julian, in the half-dozen turns he
took in the chamber, had been taken
captive bya host of thoughts that came
in like a fiood, and he scarcely noticed
that Luke Shipton, sas he now was con-
fused, had, exhausted, turned his face,
fas before, to the wall. No system of
shorthand writing hasryet been diseUv-
cred that can keep pace with the ire
sistible speed Of human thoughts. There
are times when soul and body are quiv-
ering with pulsztions, and we live long
life in q few moments of time. Some
thing like this Julian was experiencing
now.
If that undiscovered system Of short
hand had been invented for Julian, this
would have been it's transcription:
'This poor fellow, as he says, has a his
tory, and by some strange fatality I my
self fill up the earlier chapters. Luke
sShipton? 1t is a strange coincidence. q /
am almost led to think the finger of
Providence is here. Letme think. Yet
there is not much thinking required, for
often indeed have / heard my father
speak of this self-same scapegrace, upon
whom fear Death has laid his stealthy
grisly hand. Then this is Luke Shipton,
9he poacher, the prodigal, the rustic Don
Juan, the daredevil, the law-breaker,
who was at last transported for what
many said was the very trivial offense of
knocking down hare. And the villa
gers, l remember, talked of him and all
his faults with good deal of tenderness.
1t was always Poor Luke. Ay, the
Fallerton keeper would recount his ,ex-
ploits until Luke Shipton was somewhat
Of hero in our boyish fancy. Ihaye
heard the women call tosmind his hand
;aome figure, tawnyskin, and raven nhair;
and the -Iihave heard them at har-
vest time, resting in the midday heat
over their bread and cheese and cider
tfagons, remind each other of his pluck
and good nature. At dinner, sometimes,
people in our own'oondition would sum
him up as wild fellow. That was the
'Squire's dining-room verdict, but out
in the field, or in the barn, or on the
rude elm benches under the chestnut
tree by the Hare and Hounds they
would always end their mention of him
with Poor Luke And here lis poor
Luke thinking of the rural life whose
peace he disturbed. Yet, hold! 1t oc-
Ours to me that one Of the Justices who
assisted in the committal of Luke Ship
ton was Fallerton, Of Fallerton, Esquire.
1t was certainly SO. / have heard my
father defend the .committal, which af-
terward weighed 'heavily son the lmagis-
iterial mind, by saying that Luke was
transported, not SO much for knocking
down a hare and thrashing a keeper, as
for long line Of misdeeds. And here
lies Poor Lukep I wonder how far he
luL ,>:&xx al. bo. Loo~ Il