The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1890-02-19
Imprisoned In aClOck.Face.

- OOQ uOR muCu vi DTOhSu,
But dess ems about all cracked"
Selected.
Imprisoned In aClock.Face.
One of the glories of the ancient
church of St. Martins was in its fine
clock. 1t was the boast of old Hans
Scheller that during the whole forty
wears in which he had never stopped
or gone wrong, and nothing could con
vince him that it was not the finest
clock in the world.
The only thing which troubled
Hans was the fear lest his inquisitive
little son Kaspar, who was always in
some mischief or other, should, in one
- of his boyish pranks, injure the mech.
anism Of this wonderful timepiece
No wonder, therefore, that when one
morning he was about to start for town
to do some marketing, Hans took care
first of all to lock the door Of the
church tower and put the key in his
pocket.
"No harm can happen now," he
muttered; land, in any case, shall
be back before he gets out of school,
But, as ill-luck would have, the
teacher was called away by some bust
ness that afternoon, and the boys got
out of school more than an hour earli.
er than usual. Kasper, finding his
father gone, went straight to the door
of the clock tower, and looked rather
blank on discovering that it was lock
ed. But he was not one to be easily
stopped when he had once made up
his mind Getting out upon the
roof. and crawling along a cornice,
where only a cat or school-boy could
have found footing, he crept through
an air-hole right into the clock-room.
For some time he was as happy as a
child in toy-shop, running from one
marvel to another, till at length he dis
covered another hole, and, thrusting
his head through it, found himself
looking down upon the market-place,
through the face of the clock itself.
But, when he tried to withdraw his
head again it would not come.
Itwas a queer scrape to be in, and Kas-
par was more inclined to laugh than
be frightened; but suddenly athought
struck him, which scared him earn
est; his neck was in the track of the
minute-hand which, when it Preached
him, must inevitably tear his head off
Poor Kaspar! 1t was too late now
to wish that he had left the clock
alone. He tried to scream for help :
but, with his neck in that cramped
position, the cry that he gave was
scarcely louder than the chirp of a
sparrow. He struggled desperately to
writhe himself back through the hole,
but piece of the woodwork had slip
honl- IF hiS noaly nd
held him like vice.
On came the destroyer, nearer and
nearer still. marking off with its meas
ured tick his few remaining moments
of life. And all the while the sun
was shining gayly, the tiny flags were
fluttering OH the booths of the market
place, and the merry voices of his
school-fellows who were playing in the
market-place came family to his ears,
while he hung there helpless, with
death stealing upon him inch by inch.
His head grew dizzy, the measured
beat of the ticking sounded like the
roll of O muffled drum, while the COM
ing hand of the clock looked like a
monstruos arm outstletched to seize
him, and the carved faces on the
spouts seemed to grin and gibber at
him in mockery. And still the terri
BILE hand crept onward, nearer, nearer,
nearer!
What can that thing in the clock
face be?" said a tourist below, point
ing his spyglass upward. "Why, l
declare it looks like boys head ~
"A boys head ~ cried a gray-headed
matchmaker beside him, one of Hans
Scheller's especial friends snatching
hastily at the glass as he spoke.
"Why, good gracious! it's little Kas-
par. He'll be killed-he'll be killed ~
And he rushed toward the church
shouting like mailman.
The alarm spread like wildfire; and
before Klugman, the matchmaker, had
got half way up the stairs leading to
the tower more than a score of excited
men were scampering at his heels.
But at the top stairs they were sudden
ly brought to standstill by the locked
door.
"It is locked !" cried Klugmann, in
tones of horror: land Hans must
have taken the key with him, for it
isn't here"
"Never mind the keyn roared a
brawny smith behind him. "Pick up
that beam. comrades, and run it
against the lock. All together, now !!
Crash went the door; in rushed the
crowd; and Kaspar, now senseless
from sheer fright, was dragged out OF
his strange prison just as the huge Der
of the minute hand actually touched
his neck.
And so it fell out that poor old Schel-
ler, coming home for quiet afternoon
nap, found the door of the tower
smashed in, his son lying in a swoon,
and his little room filled with strange
men, all talking at once. But from
that day forth Kaspar Scheller never
meddled with the church clock again.
Selected.