Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1885-06-26
THE FIERY DEATH.

FOR her evil doings !" shouted the mob.
It was early morning. yet even at that
hour the Judgment hall Of the little
town Of Bourdonnis was thronged with
the populace. Men, women and chill
! dren, old and young, the noble and the
bnrgher, priests, soldiers and common
people, crowded the spacious hall and
S7ied madly for her blood
The evening before a female, closely
yelled and attended by two servants,
whose dark countenances bespoke the
sons Of Ethiopia, had arrived at Bour-
donnis and put up at one of the princi
pal hostelriss of the place. Strange
rumors soon arose respecting her. Her
garb, her mien, her language and her
complexion were said to be those of
Saracen, against which accused
race the ch;valry of Europe and the
church itself varied in vain. These ru-
mors gained additional strength when
the landlord of the inn where she had
stopped was heard to say that he had
seen her practicing sorcery, q charge
easily credited in that age, and one
which few. especially in a case like this,
had the hardihood to disbelieve. In
less than an hour the whole population
Of the town was about, surrounding the
hostelry, and crying out for vengeance
against the sorceress. Such conlmo-
tions were both frequent and sanguinary
in that superstitious age.
The soldiery, however, interfered by
arresting the unsuspecting victim Of
these rumors, and at this early hour the
prisoner had been brought into the
Judgment hall to await the mockery
OF trial. .-
ANSWER me, daughter of Belial!"
said the judge, as soon as the murmurs
of the mob allowed him to be heard.
twill you confess your crime? Speak,
or you die! Know you that the rack,
aye! fire itself, awaits you If your OBJ
stinacy continues?"
The prisoner was slight girlish crea-
ture, sitting with her face buried in her
hands, directly opposite to the judge.
She was apparently young and her fig
ure, SO far as could be seen through the
thick veil which shrouded her form, was
light and agile as that Of sylph. To
the Judges question she made no an
swer. She only shook her head des-
pondingly, and those nigh her fancied
they heard her sob.
AT these fearful words, repeated now
for the second time, and growled forth
with an ominous fierceness, appalling
even to the nearer, the prisoner was
observed to tremble, whether with fear
or otherwise we know not, and lifting
her veil up with sudden effort, she
rose to her feet, turned hastily around to
the mob, and disclosed {. countenance of
such surprising loneliness to their gaze
that even those who had cried out most
unrelentingly for her blood now shr..nk
abasked into silence, while others who
had Been less eager for her condemna-
tiQeaaudibly murmured in her favor.
What would We have of me?" she
said, addressing the judge, and for the
first time standing unveiled before him.
Gas there is God in whom we both
believe, I have told you only the
truth. l am stranger, o foreigner,
defenseless woman, but not the
less the afIianced bride Of one of your
proudest noblemen, the Count de Gar
onne."
The tone in which she spoke was low,
but oh ! how touchinsly sweet; and her
words were uttered in broken French,
with perceptible oriental accent.
Loud murmurs rose in her favor as she
ceased speaking. The tide was turning.
But the judge now spoke.
"Out on thee, woman of hell! Out on
thee for a base slanderer Of noble Of
France and holy crusader! Thou the
bctrothed bride OF Garonne! AS soon
would the Gag ie mate with the vulture.
I tell thee woman, that thy story Of hay
ing been shipwrecked in coming to
France, and Ct all thy train having been
lost except thy two Ethiopian myrmi-
dons. is q foul lie. aud I am almost mind
eel to wiring the truth from thee On the
rack"
II have said it," said the prisoner,
in firm voice, for she felt that her
life depended on her frmness,. "and if
you will give but one week, one
little week, and I will prove it
before man as we'll as God. l came
from Syria in the same fleet with my
lord, but under charge Of his mothers
confessor--now saint in heaven but
being separated by storm, in which
CUE galley was: shipwrecked, I was
thrown unprotected on your shores. I
am stranger here. My servents even
have deserted me. I do no one harm.
I plot no treason. All ask is to pass
on my way. Oh" she continued III a
burst Of emotion, IF you have a daugh-
ter think what would be your feelings
ii she was thus to be set upon in a
strange land" and she burst into tears.
Again the crowd murmured in her IA
yor. ~ 80, d..
"Woman!" sternly interposed the
Judge, unmoved by her emotion, "look
at the victim of your sorcery, and seek
no longer to deceive us by your lies.
Send forth, Philip the Deformed!"
At the words OF the Judge, an official
bearing white wand stepped into a
side room, and in moment reappeared
with cripple hideously deformed,
whom the populace recognized as the
landlord of the hostelry. When con-
fronted with the prisoner he glared at
her with look of demoniacal hatred. n
=. Know you this woman? ?" asked the
; judge. ! ..S Fl
sSApi tn NV. cost. y ansHared The crip-