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

the truth, Dam Van Wrinkle had always
kept In neat order. Il was empty. for
lorn and apparently abandoned. This
desolafeness overcame all his connubial
fears-hc called loudly for his wife and
children--thc lonely chambers rang for
q moment with his voice, and then all
again was silence.
He now hurried forth, and hastened
to his old resort, the village inn---but It
building stood In its place, with great,
gaping windows, some Of them broken,
and mended with old hats and pctticoats,
and over the door was painted, "The
Union Hotel, by Jonathan Doolittle."
Instead OF the great trce that used to
shelter tho quiet littlo Dutch inn of yore,
there now was reared tall, naked pole,
with something on tho top that looked
like red night cap, and from Il was
fiuttering flag, on which was . ein-
g,llar assemblage Of stars and stripes
all this was strange and incompre-
hensible. He recognized on tho sign,
however, the ruby face Of King George,
under which no had smoked 20
singularly metamorphosed. Tho red
coat was changed for ono Of blue and
buff. a sword wns held in tho hand in
stead Of sceptcr, the hend was deco
rated with cooked hat, and underneath
was painted In large characters, Gen.
Washington.
There was, as usual. crowd of folk
about the door, but none that Rip recol-
lected. The very character Of the people
seemed changed. There was busy,
bustling. disputatious tone about it, In
stead Of tho accustomed phlegm and
drowsy tranquility. He looked in vain
for tho sage Nicholas Vcdder, with his
broad face, double chin and fair long
pipe. uttering clouds of tobacco smoke,
instead of idle speeches, or Van Bummel,
the schoolmaster, doing forth the con-
tents of ON ancient neHspaper. In place
Of these, lean, bilious looking fellow,
with his pockets full of handbills, was
hnranguing vehemently about rights Of
citizens-election- OF congress
-libcrty-Bunker's Hill-heroes Of T8--
and other words that were perfect
Babylonish jargon to the bewildsred Van
Winkle.
Tho appearance Of Rip, with his long,
grizzled beard, his rusty fowling piece,
his uncouth dress, and the ormy Of
women and children that had gathered
ut his heels, soon attracted the at.
tention of the tavern politicians. They
crowded round him, eyeing him from
head to foot, with great curiosity. Tho
orator hustled up to him, and drawing
him partly aside, inquired, "on which
eide he votedy' Rip stared In vacant stu-
pidity. Another short, but busy littlo
fellow pulled him by the arm, and rising
on tiptoe, inquired In his ear, whether
he was Federal or Democrat" Rip was
equally ut q loss to comprehend the ques.
ton; when knowing, self important
old gentleman, In sharp, cooked hat,
made his way through tho crowd, put
ting them to tho right and left with his
elbows as he passed, and planting him.
self before Van Wrinkle, with one arm
akimbo, the other resting on his cane,
his keen eyes and sharp hat penetrating,
as it were, into his very soul, de-
manded in an austere tone, "what
brought him to the election with gun
on his shoulder, and mob at his heels,
and whether he meant to breed riot in
the villagc%
"Alasi gentlemen" cried Rip, some
what dismaycd,. g! nm a poor, quiet
man, native OF tho place, and q loyal
subject of the king, God bless him"
Here a general shout burst from the
bystanders--"a Tory! Tory! spy! a
refugee! hustle him! away with him!"
1t was with great difficulty that the
| self important man in the cooked hat re-
stored order, and having assumed ten
| fold austerity of brow, demanded again
Of the unknown culprit, what he came
there for, and whom he was seeking.
Tho poor man humbly assured him that
he meant no harm, but merely came
there in search of some Of his ncighbors,
who used to keep about the tavern.
"Well, who are they? Name them"
Rip bethought himself moment, and
| 4. I'll ~
There was silence for n little while,
when an old man replied, in n thin,
| piping voice, "Nicholas Vcdder? Why,
no is dead and gone these eighteen years!
There was wooden tombstone in the
churchyard that used to tell all about
him, but that's rotten and gone, too"
| "Wheres Brom Dutcherf"
| "Oh, he went off to the army In the
beginning Of the war; some say he was
killed at the stornipg Of Stony Point
others say he was drowned in the sgunll
at the foot Of Antonys Nose. don't
know-hc never came back again"
"Where's Van Bummel, the school.
master?"
"He went off to the wars, too; was a
great militia general, and is now In con
gress,"
Rips heart died away at hearing OF
friends, and finding himself thus alone
in the world. Every answer puzzled him
too, by treating of such enormous iapses
of time, and Of matters which he could
not understand: war-congress-Ston
Point!-he had no courage to ask after
any more friends, but cried out in de
spair: Does nobody here know Rip Var
Winklef"
"Oh, Rip Van Winkle!" exclaimed tive
or three. "Oh, to be sure! that's Ri
Van Wrinkle yonder, leaning against thu
tree"
Riplooked and beheld precise counter
part of himself as he went up the noun
tain; apparently as lazy and certainly n
ragged. The poor fellow was now com
pletely confounded. He doubted his owl
identity, and whether nc was himself o
another man. In tho midst of his he
wildcrment the man in tho cooked ha
demanded who he was, and what wa
his name?
"God knows" exclaimed he at hi
wits end; "t'm not myself - In
somebody else-that's me yonder-no-
that's somebody else, got into my shoes
was myself last night. but fell aslec]
on tho mountain, and they've changed
my gun, and everything's changed, an,
I'm changed, and can't tell what's IN,
name or who ami"
The bystanders began now to look a
each other. nod, wink significantly, an
tap their fingers against their foreheads
There was whisper, also, about secul
ing tho gun, and keeping the old felloy
from doing mischief; at the very suG
gestion of which, the self important ma
with the cooked hat retired with som
precipitation. At this critical moment
fresh comely woman passed through tn
throng TO get peep at the gray bearde
man. She had chubby child in he
arms, which, frightened at his looks, bC
o,an 10 CRY .tIIusb Rim - crio1 sb.