Waterbury evening Democrat., 1890-01-27

"I think that what you say is true," remarked my wife; ''but still, if he has a story to tell should lilo to hear it."
 I think heard David give a little grunt, but he was too well bred to say any thing.
 ''Very well,'' said I, eff you choose to sit up and hear him talk it is your affair. I shall be obliged to remain here any way, and will not object to any thing that will help to pass away the time. But these men must not be the only ones who are seated. David, you and Alice can clear away that broken table and the rest of the stuff, and then we might as well sit down and make ourselves comfortable"
 Alice, with cloth and brush, ap- preached very timidly the scene of the disaster, but the younger burglar, who was nearest to her, gaZed upon her with such gentle and quiet air that she did not seem to be frightened. When she and David had put the room in fair order placed two easy chairs for my wife and Aunt Martha at a moderate distance from the burglars, and took another myself little nearer to them, and then told David to seat himself near the other end of the bench, and Alice took chair at little distance from the ladies.
 "Now, then, said Aunt Martha, to tho burglars, ''I would like very much to hear what any one of you can say in cx- tenuation of having broken into gentleman's house by night"
 Without hesitation the tall man be- gan his speech. He had long and rather lean, close-shaven face, which at present bore the expression of an undertaken conducting funeral. AL though it was my aunt who had shown the greatest desire to hear his story, he addressed himself to my wife. 1 think he imagined thnt she was the moro in- fuential persou of the two.
 Madam S, i'd he, '.I am glad of tho opportunity Of giving you and your fam fly an idca o; the difficulties and mis- cries which bc-2t large class of your fellow-beings cf whom you seldom have any chance of knowing any thing at all, but of whom you hear all sorts of tho most misleading: accounts. Now, l an poor man. have suffered the greatest riseries that poverty can infiict. I am here, suspected of having committed a crime. It is possible that may be put to considerable difficulty and expense in proving my innocence"
 II shouldn't wonder" interrupted. To this remark he paid no attention.
 Considering all this,' he continued, ''you may not suppose, madam, that as boy was brought up most respect. ably and properly. My mother was a religious woman, and my father was a boat builder. ] was sent to school, and my mother has often told me that I was good scholar. But she died when 1 was about sixteen, and l am sure, had this not happened, I should never hayo been even suspected of breaking the laws of my country. Not long after her death my father appeared to loso interest in his business and took to rowing about the river instead of build ing boats for other people to TOW. Very often he went out at night. and I used to wonder why he shouldtare to bc on the water in the darkness, and some times in the rain. Ono evening at sup per he said to me: Thomas, you ought to know how to row in the dark as well as in the daytime. am going up the river tonight and you can come with me-
 Ut was about my ordinary bedtime when we took a boat with two pair of oars, and we pulled up the river about three miles above the city,
 ''What city?" l asked.
 'The city where I was born, sir" he said, and tho name of which I must be excused from mentioning for reasons connected with my only surviving pa rent There were houses on the river bank, but they were not very near each other. Some of them had lights in them, but most of them were dark, as it must have been after eleven o'clock Before one of them my father stopped rowing for moment and looked at it pretty hard. It seemed to be all dark, but as ~e pulled on little I saw D light ill the back of the house.
 My father said nothing, but we kept on, though pulling very easy for mile or two, and then we turned and fioated down with the tide. You might as well rest, Thomas,' said he, for you have worked pretty hard
 No I,