Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1882-09-06

ear" ] replied. eft is true the idea is
perfectly my own, but as introduced by
me it is quite practicable, for it has been
put on trial; III fact, by means of the
hammer system we might dispense with
the police entirely. Once when / lived
In quite deserted neighborhood-a
long row of houses in a suburban part
of the city organized a hammer
alarm. I had to do it for seli-protec-
ton. There had been robbery after
robbery In the row, and the police were
afraid to interfere. Everybody in that
row went regularly to be with hammer.
1t was very hard on the thieves, for, as
bad luck would have it for those rascals,
they tried to break into one house, just
at the end of the row. In six seconds
every inmate in the row had been in
formed that burglarious attempt was
being made. You might have heard the
three taps working along from house to
house IN the stiffness of the night. Every
body turned out under my lead. We
made Gordon, swept the street, and
captured six OF seven OF the robbers. [
don't rem omber the number of them ex-
actly, only that they were the most
! bloodthirsty rascals known in the annals
| of crime.
The old lady, whose hair fairly stood
| up by this time-or would have stood up
| if she had had anyways profuse III her
thanks. Just what [ wanted took place.
[ was invited next evening to take tea,
and the old lady in person showed me
her garden, SO that L might understand
the lay of the land.
Now, [ had reconnoitred the premises
before, not that I thought anything
would ever happen, but really out OF
consideration for the young woman.
The fence was not very high one,
though adorned with spikes. To facili-
tate my climbing I rolled big barrel
near it. I could step on that and then
with light effort could scale the fence.
| showed my plans OF suceor and the old
lady approved of them. bought a
tack-hammer, presented it to her, and
explained to her, in detail, the method
of signaling. a
The tea was a very pleasant one, and
the young lady agreeable. [ went to bed
that night quite happy and quite forgot
all about the signals. In fact, week or
SO elapsed, and nothing occurred to
break the quiet of that really peaceful
| neighborbood.
am sound sleeper generally, but
on a certain night not long afterward
there was such terrible storm of wind
and rain, with rafting of windows, that
my usual rest would not come. At last
[ went off into half-dreamy dose, when
suddenly close to my ear was awakened
with a start heard the three ominous
| taps on the wall! I never listened to
anything so dreadful in my life. Was 1
awake? / waited a while. 1t was the
precautionary signal, but not the posi-
| tive alarm. Rat-tat- tat-went that devil S
tattoo on the wall, then knew that dan
ger was imminent. [ looked out of the
window and it was raining cats and dogs.
/ shuddered! Still the cursed trapping
of the hammer reYerberated through the
room. l huddled on my clothes. [
never had revolver in my life, and had
[ owned one, would not have known how
to shoot it off. I wished I had not lied
SO, but / always was romantic. The
rapping continued like mad. Suppose
these were real, true for true robbers
next doorl What could a single, poor,
inotfensive, unarmed young man like me
do against a whole gang of bloodthirsty
housebreakers know that they would
murder me for interfering with their
legitimate business. | thought one |
would open the window and yell MUIR
der! thieves!" but my window looked on
the yard, and the wind was bowling so
that had their been a whole squad of
police below not one of them would have
heard me. 1t was dreadful to be walked
up that way, to walk to sudden death,
and so unprepared, as knew / was. [
cursed my officiousness. l was dressed
somehow at last, and went slowly, shiv-
ering down the stairs, making all the
noise / could, but it was just one of
those selfish boarding houses where the
inmates never take notice of anything.
| opened the back door which led to the
garden.
was wet to the skin before [ found
the barrel, and what was mysterious
about it was that the barrel had been
moved away from the fence. In a min
ute it flashed across my mind that did [
once venture into the adjacent garden
my retreat would be cut Off, and that, as
the victim of some v1lainous trap, next
morning : would be found dead-dead-
my skull beaten in with a jimmy.
At last, however, at the expense of
several severe excavations, was over
the fence. I gazed at the back of the
house. All was still-stiI as death
there was lull in the storm. I waited
to hear the agonZed scream of the VIC
TINS, but there was nothing save an ap-
palling stiffness. Then something rus
tied, and I covered my face with my
hands. I was awaiting some crushing
blow on the head, when a stray cat
| bounded past me. Ne lights were WISH
BILE. J. waited ten minutes, exposed to
the drenching of the pitiless storm, for
it rained now harde than ever; then,
feeling that if the worst had come it was
all over now, and could do nothing, [
retreated, quietly, deliberately reclimb-
ing the fence, and at last regained my
bed. 1 was miserable, chilled to the
marrow, and so nervous and excited that
I never went to sleep any more during
the whole of that wretched night.
Next morning, having recovered some
| what from the effects of that night of
terror, I awaited with much anxiety the
appearance of that old lady at her door,