The weekly messenger., 1889-10-12

simple requc,t. "L;eschcn." ho soil ~
the older OF the children, "pring vorI
Srandialder some peer"
Inc child obtained a brown pitcher
with blue stripes ubon it from the table.
and went forth sobbing upon her errand,
when she returned Werner took fine
pltcher from her, eyed for a moment the
loam rounding from its top, and empti-
ed IL without taking breath. Havinp
done that he set tho pitcher canefnIlv
down, wiped his mouth with the kck of
his hand, and observed; -
! II trlnks no more peer"
1hat was three weeks ago, and for fif.
teen days Werner, who had been accns.
toned to consume q large quantity of
Deer daily, drank none at all. II seem.
Ell to make no difference in his physical
! person or his spirits. He smoked with
equanlmity, aAd his face lemaiped as
round and placid AMI vacant as before.
oh ihe SlNtecnth day, however, he re.
gard'd LIeSchen with unusual thought.
iulness rs he sat down to the breakfast
table. lie was still ont of work, althourb
he had made application for employ
ment ut all the pickle factories in the
CITY, and on the evening previous Mrs.
Werner had consulted him as to the ad.
Visibility OF drawing. for the defray-
ment Of current household expenses. n
small part of the nine hundred and odd
dollars which lay to their credit in the
savings bank After he had REGARDED
the elder of his grandchildren unintcr-
rnptedly for the betterpart of a minute,
hls little family were mildly surprised
t. hear INN say, in the words which he
had employed on the day of his dis
charge from the pickle factory:
Lleschen, pring your grandfather
some peer
The child obeyed with alacritv, and
Mrs. Werner seemed cheered by this re-
newal of habit which her hu usband had
followed during more than thirty wears.
Werner took the pitcher from his little
granddaughter when she returned, look
ed retiectively at the beer, and then
emptled into it a paper of paris green
which he took from his waistcoat pock-
ct. Having so done, Werner softly agi-
tated the pitcher, in order that the pois-
on might be well stirred up, and calmly
drank the contents.
For the rest of the day the discharged
plckle-maker sat smoking ut the WIN
dow, while the family wept Mrs. Wer-
ncr would have given notification of her
husbands act, and would have summon
ed medical assistance, but he command
Ell her to the contrary, and she had
long been accustomed to acknowledge
his will as law. The poison sickened
hlrt Ill, -.
any more ser. .ous result Werner waited
patiently until o'clock in the after
noon, and then once more summoned
the little Lieschen, whom he instructed
to procure for him another pitcher of
beer, and to stop on her way to the
paint store and buy five cents worth of
paris green.
"Iou tole der boss dot was for rats"
said Werner.
Mrs. Werner went into paroxysm of |
sobbing, and the child was frightened !
and unwilling to do the errand, but the !
of Werner prevailed, and |
Lieschen brought the beer and the poi
fon duly. Werner drank the beer, all |
but a single glass, without admixture. /
Into the last glass he poured the pow
~" PiPO Al OhC manu-
and the deadly dose in the other, he was
about to drink, when his wife struck the
mixture from his grasp and it was spill
ed upon the floor. Werner contem-
plated his wife in placid sorrow, and
then turned his attention to the glass.
A thick green mess remained at the bot
tom of it. He took up the glass and
swallowed the poison ut gulp.
1t was then about 430 o'clock, and
Werner stretched himself upon the
kitchen floor and closed his eyes. Mrs.
Werner sat by him, torn by conflicting
emotions. Whenever she or the chill
1ren moved as though to summon isis
lance he commanded them to desist
None of them dared to disobey him. 1t
nay be that man less obstinate would
nave died more easily. This one died
It last. At I'D o'clock that night the
'pirit left him, and his wife and gran /
'hildren went sobbing with the story to
he police.