Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-05-18

He found an old fire loca lying by hi h
lock falling off and the stock worm
eaten. He now suspected that the grave
registers Of the mountain had put q trick
upon him, and having doscd him with
liquor had robbed him of his gun. Wolf,
too, had disappeared, but he might havo
strayedaway after asquirrel or partridge.
He whistled after him and shouted his
name, but all in vain, tho echoes re-
pented his whistle and shout, but no dog
was TO be seen.
lIe determined to revisit the scene of
the last evenings gambol, and if he met
with any of tho party, to demand his
dog and gun. As he rose to walk, ne
found himself stiff in the joints, and
wanting in his usual activity. "These
mountain beds do not agree with me-"
thought Rip, "and if this frolic should
lay me up with fit of the rheumatism, I
shall have a blessed time with Dame Van
Winkle." With some difficulty he got
down into the glen; he found the gully
up which he and his companion had as
cended the preceding evening; but to his
astonishment n mountain stream was
now foaming down it, leaping from rock
to rock, and filling the glen with bab-
bling murmurs He, however, made
shift to scramble up its sides, working
his toilsome way through thickets Of
birch, sassafras and witch hazel, and
sometimes tripped up or entangled by
the wild grapevines that twisted their
coils and tendrils from tree to tree and
spread n kind of network in his path.
At length he reached to where the
ravine had opened through the cliffs to
the amphitheatre; but no traces of such
opening remained. The rocks presented
N bipb ;p,ponat ro I,Io v+ou nvar which N
torrent came tumbling in sheet of
feathery foam, and fell into broad, deep
basin, black from the shadows of
tho surrounding forest. Here, then.
poor Rip was brought to stand.
He again called and whistled after his
dog; he was only answered by the cav
ing of flock of idle crows, sporting
high in the air about dry tree that
oyerhung a sunny preciplce; and who,
secure in their elevation, seemed to look
down and scof at the poor mans per
plexities. What was to be done? The
morning was passing away and Rip felt
fanished for want Of his breakfast. He
grieved to give up his dog and gun; he
dreaded to meet his wife, but it would
not do to starve among the mountains
| He shook his head, shouldered the rusty
firelock and with heart full of trouble
AS he approached the village he met Q
! number Of people, but none whom ht
! knew, which somewhat surprised him
| for he had thought himself acquainted
with every one in the country round
| Their dress, too, was of a different
! fashion from that TO which he was ac
! customed. They all stared at him will
equal marks of surprise, and whenevcl
| they cast eyes upon him invariably
! stroked their chins. The constant recur
renee of this gesture induced Rip, in
voluntarily, to do the same, when, to hi
nstonishment, he found his beard haC
grown foot long!
He had now entered the skirts of tn,
village. A troop of strange children RAJ
at his heels, hooting after him and point
ing at his gray beard. The dogs, too
not one Of which he recognized for al
old acquaintance, barkcd at him as Il,
passed. The very village was altered
il was larger and more populous. Their
were rows of houses which he had neye
seen before and these which had beel
his familiar haunts had disappeared
Strange names were over the doors
strange faces at the windows--eycry
thing was strange, His mind now mis-
gave him; he began to doubt whethe
both he and the world around him wer
not bewitched. Surely this was his ia
tive village, which he had left but
day before. There stood the Raatskil
mountaius-there ran the silver Hudsol
at a distance-thcre was every hill ant
dale precisely as it had always been--Ri
was sorely perplexed-"That ilagon las
night" thought he, "has added my poo
head sadlyr
1t was with some difficulty that h
found the way to his own house, whic
he approached with silent awe, expect
ing every momen; to hear the shrill voic
Of Dame Van Wrinkle. He found IN
house gone to decay-the roof falle
In, the windows shattered and III
doors of the hinges. A hal
starved dog, that looked like Vol
was skulking about 1t. Rip calie
him by name, but the cur snarled
showed his teeth and passed on. Til
was an unkind cut indeed. my vcr
dog" sighed poor Rip, has forgotte
! mep
us antA<sd thA hn,,aA- r-iAl-h- a. -