The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1882-06-30
With red eyes and pert ways like a

the pedestal, and then in turn the
charcoal peddler's broad, sprawl
ing naked feet were coated with
blacking, until they resembled a
pair of cuttlefsh.
AT this crisis of affairs, when the
whole clan of selfish humanity
began to circle around him, like
gnats in the setting sun, a CON-
miserating police officer conducted
him to the station, and there de-
tanned him until his condition
verged upon sobriety.
As lie stepped out once more into
the sunlight, he opened wide his
mouth, aud broke the afternoon
stiffness with stentoriau shout
Of
"Charcoal-coal coal.coal!p n
Ii was the triumphant outburst
of a blackbird, suddenly and unex-
pectedly liberated from the snares
of q cruel captivity. lie discov-
cred his oxen MS be lett them They
had not stirred an inch during his
imprisonment, nor would they had
earthquakes throbbed under their
steadfast feet or tornadoes swept
over their burdened heads.
Once again he was astride the
swinging tongue and driving his
obedient beasts countryward, when
he was startled from II momentary
dozc by the uproar and cry of u
runaway, right ahead of him aud
rushing down upon him turiously.
He saw il all in one second. A
span of stalwart iron grays, harm,
essed TO a coach, upon the back seat
OF which was little girl, alone and
without assistance, for neither
coachman nor footman was to be
seen before or behind.
The blackam0Or Of the brands
leaped from the tongue, headed his
cattle aud cart for the sidewalk, aud
| in a moment more was in the street,
ready for a spring at the brides OF
the bounding runaways.
lie saw their dilated eyes and
smoking nostrils; he heard their
defiant suorts, and the echoes OF
their eight sharp striking hoofs /;
aud once he caught u glimpse OF a
little face, CHASTITY pale and piteous,
and pair of unilung arms, like the
last despairing act OF the drowning
lie was ready, aud those nerves
Iund muscles strained to rigorous
har,lships were without u tremor
He was ready, and putting his
readihess into action, he had the
| inturiatcd irou grays with grasp
that never set had known compuls
AIRY relaxation.
Forgetting now the unwashed
face--the incongruous, crows nest
clothing, the utsightly grub has ex
banded into a beautiful creature
a creature whose beauty is that il
| is risking Its own lie 10 rescue tnt
life. of another.
The wild horses lifted him from
his feet, aud flung him to and fro
| in their united wrath, but be held
them as il he were part Of them
aud they could not get rid OF theil
raging selves.
And IN his ears often rang the
plea of the poor, terrified little thinl
on the cushions OF the reeling coach
"Stop them! Oh, stop them, ant
my papa will make you rich."
Madly around the corner they
dashed, the magnificent coach ca
reering until its lamps almos
touched the curbing, dragging hin
mercilessly over the cobblestone'
through the mire, at times half i'm
paling him upoa the plunging car
riage pole; but he never gavHpl
his grand life or death grip ofh1tb
ism.
"What is It'll who is itin erie,
the horrified groups on the side
walks.
They saw the rearing horses
the sweet little face pleading in 10
mortal peril; they heard the jingle
} of the golden harnesses, the rattl
of flying wheels, the clatter Of flee
ing hools, and comprehended all
all but that vile looking objec
there, blackened with mire, flecke
with foam, beat from the whitenin
breast of one wild charger to til
whitening breast Of the other, an
still clinging on as II clutching a
the horses throats with the tenacit
J of q vampire.
The foaming iron .grays, rendere
, more furious by this foul pressure
: at their heads, tried 10 trample hin
I with their steel-shod, ferce.fyin
J boots, but they could not break th
r hold Of man, who, in boyhoot
: had descended precipices, when hi
!, life depended, every instant, upo
/. the qnickness of his eyes, and til
!, quietude Of his nerves. And agai
T and again he heard her agonize
! cry:
t "Save mel save me; for m
mammals sake p
n For along distance, through man
8 streets, tore these terrific runaway
n before the brave, vile thing at the
0 heads brought them to halt, au
g even then they persisted in pawn
o the ground, az IL the round glol
, did not roll fast enough, and The
n wonld give it q fresh impulse al
D. when the charcoal hlackamoor dro
ped agilely upon the sidewalks, d
9 quickly collected crowd saw th
?, the vampire was a sorry, shredde