The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1883-11-10

find fortune easily spend freely; in .
short time gambling and drink left me
with Just cash enough to return to the
fields. This time I had no money to
buy q claim. so l had to work for a
percentage. Luck favored me, and
again / was the possessor OF several
hundreds, sufficient to join company
of ten in the purchase of large claim.
There was an old Dutchman who had
daughter, a handsome girl. the only
Young woman for hundreds of miles.
She and / became intimate. The Dutch
man did not approve of my attentions
to his daughter, and the way in which
she favored me aroused the jealousy Of
my companions. The Dutchman deter
mined to get rid of me. One day he ac
cused me of robbing him, and certainly a
package of loose stones, belonging 10
him, were found in my coat pocket. l
had been talking to Gretchen and had
thrown off my coat because of the heat,
and the Dutchman placed the plant on
me. There is not much justice in
mining camp. As l said, was div
liked because of Gretchen's prefer
ences, and my partners, no doubt, were
willing to have my share of the claim
to divide among them; so was tried
and condemned to be hanged in less
than an hour of the old mans accusa-
ton, by a lynch jury. / was allowed
two hours to prepare for death, and
then taken to the nearest tree, where q
rope was placed around my neck and l
was jerked by dozen willing hands
into the air. But before strangulation
ensued l fell to the ground with .
thump. Gretchen had not been idle.
Her entreaties brought an opposition
crowd of diggers to my assistance.
The tide turned in my favor, and be-
lieve the old william would have been
burned in his shanty but for my inter-
cession and his daughters tears.
Gretchen Tilted me, nevertheless, shortly
afterward, and, as i had next to no
luck in my search for diamonds, l left
the fields again for Cape Town, this
time with only two or three hundred
pounds in my pocket. / found letter
awaiting me at the post-office, from
friend in Falmouth, telling me my
father was dying.
FOURTH AND LAST HANGING.s
After again enduring the miseries of
sea voyage, 1 arrived in England only
to find my father dead and buried. Hs
left me small sum of money and his
business. There was no peace for me
in my native city, however; blood was
on my hands and GOODNESS met me ON
all sides. sold my fathers effects Ut
public auction and journeyed to Lon
don, where my identity was soon lost
among the many millions. But the
brand of Cain followed me. TRIED sew
eral kinds of business and employment,
but no luck was mine. Itook to drink
again, and fight with q policeman
landed me once more in prison cell.
was committed to hard labor for four
teen days. Despair seized me. ]
twisted rope out of the strands l was
given to convert into oakum, made a
moose for my neck, secured the other
end to the bars of the window, kicked
| away the stool and lost consciousness.
To my dying day shall remember the
sensations of my last hanging. was
transported to beautiful paradise of
meadows and flowers, where lovely
forms of children greeted me and de-
licious music sounded in my ears. It
seemed to last for an age, but it could
only have been lapse of few mo-
ments, for gruff voices succeeded the
delicious music and the faces of the an
gelic children faded into the stern fea-
lures of a pair o: prison wardens, who
had cut me down just in time. Twas
sentenced to three months longer for
the attempt at self-destruction, and
watched night and day to prevent a re-
petition. / had, however, no wish to
end my life again; on the contrary, the
desire for new scenes and fresh advent
ure was full on me when my release
from prison arrived. l still possessed
little money, so l purchased ticket
for Colorado. In the far West, with a
new name, new associations and clean
shave, for / am younger than look,
Providence may yet send me happi.
ness and fortune.-PhiladelphiG Press.