Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1890-09-05

one, though rather larger, perhaps and in
a great deal lonelier place in the midst Of n
thick wood. We used to keep supplies
there-railroad iron, blasting powder, and
the like-and at night some of the tools
used by the men during the day There
were lanterns there, too, and after had
unlocked the door and gone in, found one
of them and lighted it. | had had rough
sort of desk made and set up in one corner
and there it was | expected to find my
book. As | was raising the lid | heard a
noise behind me. | turned around and saw
that man had just come in. 1t was Black
Jack, and was much surprised to notice
that there was not trace Of anger IN his
face. This fact ought to have made me
suspicious, and so it did a little, but not
enough for my own good.
" Borss, he drawled, you turn-a me off
dis af'noon.'
Well, if did, you richly deserved it, )
said l.
Yes borss, you turu-a me off but |
vanta ma morney, said he, in a smooth
voice But all the while his eye was glanc
ing restlessly about the room, and never
meeting mine fairly and squarely.
" Your money T. said |. you have
worked only a day and half this week :
you II get your pay on Saturday
" Sat'day, no. You turn me off, you
givea me ma morney now, borss, he in.
sisted and while he spoke he moved around
in such a way that in order to keep my eye
on him had to stand with my back to the
door.
why, | haven't got your money, Jack,
as you know well enough, said |. When
the pay clerk comes Saturday, you'll get
what is due you and not before
! You no give-a me ma pay, / take a ma
pay, said he, darting quick look at the
doorway.
"'What do you mean by that, you impu-
dent, coffee colored rascal said /, losing
patience
You don't know show-a you, borss,'
he exclaimed, and suddenly he whipped out
a knife and was ON me with the quickness
| of cat.
81 wasn't wholly taken by surprise, and
if had had only one to deal with think
l should have come out of the affair easily
enough. But while was engaged with one
scoundrel in front, the other came at me in
the rear. Big Frank had stolen up quite
unPerceived by me, and now threw his
arms about me, and held mine pinned TO
my sides if they had been grpped by
wise
All Jeem Grant, you deessharge a
me = he hissed in my ear-you deessharge.a a
| me las Tuesday cause some one tell lie
about-a me. You nice a borss, you, Jeem
Grant. All ! feex you. you see
II am pretty strong man, but so were
those scoundrels strong, too, especially Big
| Frank. The odds were too much for me,
and after short though desperate strug-
| gle | was obliged to give in. They threw
me down and sat on me. Then. while Jack
| held a knife at my throat, the other rascal
bound me hand and foot with some new
| rope that happened to be there in the shan
ty. Even when they had me so l couldn't
stir muscle, they weren't satisfied, but
must lift me up and put me on a stationary
bench beside the wall, and tie me fast to
that By this time | concluded they didn't
mean to kill me outright as they could
easily have knitted me if they had wanted
1t seemed that they had other views about
me, and they presently began to talk them
over. The question of what they wanted
to do with me was one that interested me
quite as much as it did them but they
didn't offer me a voice in their consulta-
tion, and, by the way, they had gagged me,
so couldn't have said anything if they had
They spoke in Italian, and couldn't under
stand much that they said, but l was able
to understand only too well what they did
In few minutes they seemed to come to a
decision that pleased them nightly. have
mentioned, | think, that there was some
blasting powder in the shanty There were
several kegs of it more than enough to
blow even six footer like myself into bits"
An exclamation of horror from the lips
of his young friends here interrupted the
speaker.
'Well, boys, that's just the way felt,
only more 50, when it dawned on me what
those villains were going to do, :" remarked
Grant, quietly. big Frank found "a nail
keg, and emptying out some spikes that
were in it, he set it out in the middle of
the floor. Then Black Jack poured thirty
five or forty pounds of powder into it, and
began to look around for piece of fuse.
There wasn't any TO he found. We were
all out of the article, and though | had
sent for more, it hadn't arrived. But that
little difficulty was easy to get over. Black |
Jack very soon had an idea that he pro.
ceeded 10 put into execution. He found |
piece of board about a foot and half long |
10y six inches wide He drove a nail into
the end Of this and tied to it a stout cord |
that he took from his pocket. II suppose
he had got it to bind me with, but finding |
the rope there, he hadn't needed to use it, |
He next laid the board across the open part |
of the keg in such way that the end with |
the string hitched to it was pointed toward |
the door, aud the other end was Just rest
ing on the very edge of the side of the keg |
Then he took from one of the lanterns a |
lamp that appeared to be well filed with oil, |
and lighted il, after which he placed it on the |
board over the powder had been watch |
ing these doings with some slight interest,
as you may well believe, and now thought |
| understood their infamous scheme As |
no slow match was to be had they meant |
to get outside at safe distance, and then
pull the string. Whereupon, away would |
90 the board, down would go the lamp and |
up would 90 yours truly"
The heartless scoundrels I" cried sgd
ney, while his cousin was too much horr-
fled to say anything at all.
'N es they were scoundrels they were
heartless, and | knew | could expect no
mercy from them" pursued the foreman
However, hadn't guessed quite right as to
how they were going to manage the bust
ness. They did not propose to blow me up
by hand, when it would be so much neater
and safer to them TO do the job by machin-
cry
What do you mean by that :" asked Ned,
looking puzzled
II viii explain After they had put out
the other lantern, and finished their prepa-
tions, a. | supposed Black Jack came to
me- and coolly helped himself to my watch
and pocket book.
q" Il take-a dis an dis for to member vat
good-a, kinda borss you be- he remarked.
Then, with one of his grins, he added You
tink We goin' kill you, borss Oh, no you
git kill by what you call accident
"'Yess; an aftward de folk-a say,
Poo Jeem Grant he so carless he play
vid powder an blowa hisself up, said Big
Frank, taking his turn.
Just then Jack seemed to be struck with
a thought 'Borss de light he shine-a in
youair face, said he, pretending pity.
Wait, l feeX him, and he bent piece of
tin into the shape of half. cylinder, and
put it in front of the lamp.
"'Jeem Grant, said Big Frank, you see
dis string Yes We tea him by de end to
tree cross de track. Ven de train he
come, de engine he pull-a de string, an den,
bang dat is de berry las o poo Jeem
Grant
eyes dat jus So put in the other v il.
lian. 1t is now ten o'clock in fifteen-a
minute. De las train he go pas in one
hour. Ven you hear hima come, den you
know you got to go pity soon, borss.
with that they both bade me good bye,
making believe wipe their eyes because they
felt so badly, though they were grnning all
the while like IA pair of fends, and went
out to fasten the other end of the fatal cord
to a sapling on the opposite side of the track
Then, having fixed things so that should
lie about sixty minutes later by accident
they left me to my fate. "
"lou must have felt just awfully," re-
marked Sydney, hesitating for word
strong enough to express properly Grants
supposed state of mind, aud not finding one
quite to his satisfaction.
ITO be candid with you, boys, | was
about as much cut up as a man well could
Do. | DON'T think l am n cnwarl hut