Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1880-10-27
NO. "A.
a spanish Tragedy.

Near Msestrazgo in Valencia, Spain,
dvells or rather dwelt, family by tbs
name of Bel. The heads of the family
were Joachim Bel. aud his wife, aged
about sixty, and with them lived their
three sons, two grandsons and house ser
vant-a man. The people of the Mes
tIazgo are piols folk, and at four in the
morning on recent Sunday, the whole
family set out to attend early mass at ebert
in the good, oid-fashioned way, Joachim
| Bel riding on one horse with his wife, two
of his sons, Baptist and Joachim. following
| him. with the two little grandsOns nicely
packed in = hamper and swung at the side
| of Baptist's horse, and the servant, Andrew
Nos, trotting Ineekly in the rear on mule.
The third san was left at home to keep
the house. As the little troop were jogging
quietly on they were suddenly halted in a
sharp turn in the mountain road by a
hoarse voice laundering out the familiar
and formidable cry Of all Spanish robbers
on the highway, ''bOcs q tierrG!'
C''DOwn in the dust,'') They all looked
up in CONSERVATION, and saw among the
bushes above the road the uncauny face Of
a distant Hnsman of the family, one
Gabriel Bel y Beltran, a notorious scoun-
drel, about thirty years old, known in the
country side as ''El Pincho," or. the thorn
in the side, " who had recently served out
a term IN the prison of Tarragona and paid
a heavy fine Tor an assault with intent to
Kill, committed on one of the younger Bels.
The fellow was armed with a revolver
and dagger, and the unhappy farmers,
being entirely defenceless, were forced to
halt and dismount. FL Pincho came down
towards them, calling out that he meant to
kill them all. With shot he brought the
odd man to the ground, and rushing upon
the others struck down the wife and SER
want in rapid succession with his long,
sharp dagger. The two sons fed for their
lives, pursued by the murderer. One Of
them fell, struck down by a pistol shot;
the other, a lad Of seventeen, succeeded in
reaching his home and rousing his brother
who had been left there
The two, snaIching up the only weapons
at hand, shepherds hook and a razor,
rushed out 10 meet the assassin, whom
they almost Immediately encountered aud
with whom they had desperate contest.
The youngest Bel was shot, stnough not
fatally, but his brother, having succeeded
In striking down Fl Pincho with the shep-
herds hook, with second blow dispatched
him as he was trying to rise. The two
brothers passed on to the scene of the at
tack, where, in the sad grey light of the
morning, ahideous spectacle awaited them.
The elder Bel was stone dead. He had
fallen forward on his hands and knees,
and the murderer had struck him twice
with his dagger after shooting him.
Their mother was lying desperately
wounded at a short distance from her hus-
band. The bodies of the elder son and the
servant had been rolled by the assassin
down the ravine at the roadside. The
wind had risen and was bowling dismally
through the forests. AS soon as the story
could be conveyed TO the authorities,
picket of the GuaTdia Civil, the efficient
rural police of Spain went out. The elder
son and the servant were found still alive,
and the latter, it is thought may recover.
The two little grandchildren were car
ried long way of by the frightened
horse, but were eventually recovered safe
and sound. OF course the whole neighbor-
hood is in great cOmmotiOn; but some con-
'Olation seems to be found in the fact that
he shepherds staff Of young Bel should
lave made it unnecessary TO pat the cum
,rous machinery of Spanish justice in
notion for the chastisement of the muir
lerer.