Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1883-02-01

When III. ID. was attached to nv
name, bowed at two shrines, my
profession and-lny Angelina
Her name was not Angelina, but
my wife being q modest little lady,
desires she shall not be dragged
before an inquisitive public. Let,
then, the abstract. Angelina. rep
resent the real woman. conceal
my OWE name for similar reasons.
Or course 1 had a rival. Name.
Richard SOmeTs; age, twenty six;
general appearance. striking and
handsome; character, very bad.
Neither my affection for this
gentleman nor his affection for me
would have caused conilagration
on any river which / know. We
disliked each other heartily from
the first. Being much handsomeF
than myself, he might have been
a dangerous rival. However, he
saved me NIL the trouble. He
committed a forgery which was
discovered sooner than he expec-
led. He was arrested for the Of
fence, tried aud convicted. /
was one Of the principal vii.
nesses against him. When the
sentence was passed upon him, lie
requested a moments conversa-
tion with me. / shall never for
get the look ofhatred upon his
face as he Kissed out:
1@Y0H have ruined my love and
my life. Remember that, and fear
me"
| am not a timid man, and at
tached but little Importance 10 his
implied threat. thought il sim
ply the bluster of a self-defeated
and disgraced rival.
Shortly after Angelina and |
were married, and, as the story
book says, ''lived happy ever af-
terward."
So much by way ofintroduction,
now "a my story. E~s .
r' We had been married q little
over two years. During that time /
had hearu nothing of Somers. His
sentence had been a c0mparative-
ly hight one-a year and half.
Z After his discharge from prison,
however, | neither saw nor heard
of him. Yta H'tt
For so young q man, had been
! very successful as a physician.
Perhaps my success was princi-
pally due TO my strict attention
TO practice. No matter how late,
or dark, or stormy might be the
night, i promptly attended to all
summons at the bedside of the suf-
fering.
One night, a little while before
the hour OF retiring, the door bell
rang, end shortly alterward man
entered the room where we were
sitting. lie was not prepOsSessing
His hair was short and thick, and
the general cast Of his features vii
lainous.
He evidently belonged to that
variety of fowl known as the jail
bird. Nevertheless, without hesi-
tatiOn, put on my hat and coat,
and prepared to 20 with him.
"A gentleman" he said, ''has
broken his leg"
i thought it pity that. if he
was anything like his messenger,
he hadn't broken his neck. l did
not tell my wife where | was g0-
ing, for il was a distant part of the
town, and in anything but re-
spectacle neighbOrhoOd. | did not
wish to make the little woman
nervous.
On our waymy friend, the Jail
bird, was very uncommunicatiye
lie answered my inquiries about
the injured man in surly mono
syllahles. He was apparently in
no haste, for he walked very slow
ignore slowly. / thought. than
was consistent with the welfare OF
my patient.
At last we arrived AZ our desti-
nation. 1t was a very dark look
ing house, in a very dark street.
My guide me led me up two
flights oil very dirty and rickety
stairs, that creaked objections
10 our weigh upon them. In
The third story we stopped be
fore door, which, to my sur
prise, my companion opened with
\ key which he took from his
pocket. Was he afraid that man
with q broken leg would escape |!
was still more surprised when,
on entering the room, found il
empty. lie motioned me to a
chair, and, remarking he would
return soon, left the room.
For the first time | was some
what nervous and suspicious. The
empty room-the last action of my
gIiide-his carelessness on our way
as to the health of the supposed
injured man, the lonely house and
neighborhood, all combined to
make me suspect foul play.
/ stepped TO the door, only TO
find il locked from the outside; to
the window, only ID find escape
impossible there. 1t was many
feet frum the grDnnd. sT
NY suspicious were now certain
tiess 1wtas trapped. NOaeof nay
friends, not even my wife, knew
where / was. ! might be murder
ed in this den, and my death re-
main a mystery. .s
] suppose Iwaited about m hour
before heard the key In the door.
Then, 10 my dislnay, half q dozen
men entered.