Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1891-06-20

| pale at tho suggestion, and my father
refused in peremptory tone The cid
man went on his way without another
word, and ran after him and whis-
pered
Uncle Fedia, the mill is open; you
/ could take shelter there"
Thanks, child" he answered, but |
shall soon reach town"
But suppose the storm overtakes
your"
1t will not matter, child; there would
be no one to grieve for Uncle Fedia," he
| said sadly
nau never known him to give utter
ance to so many words in q breath be-
fore, and | turned back, thinking that
be could not be such bad man as peo-
pie said.
The next day, however. l felt ashamed
Of my decision, for my father came into
my room exclaiming in an excited tone:
Il congratulate you upon your pro-
tege. Thanks be to heaven that did
not listen to you yesterdayr
And he told me that during the night
some one had set fire to a house in the
neighborhood whose owner was hard
on the peasantry and cordially disliked
by them. Ny father made sure that the
old peddler was the culprit, and Uncle
Sedia was arrested the next day.
There was not sufficient proof against
him, however, so he was released. and
! suspicion fell upon a woman named
Aaonlina, who had been employed in
our neighbours house. She had been
discharged for impertinence on the even
ing before the FIRE, and after uttering
sundry threats, had gone toward her
home. She had not, however, appeared
in the little cabin until morning, and
now was unable to give a satisfactory
account of her whereabouts during the
night.
Three months later the trial took
place My father was called as a wit
ness, Akonlina having formerly been his
tenant, and yielding to my boyish en-
treaties he took me to town with him.
On arriving he left me with the horses
and carriage ut the inn, and told me to
wait there patiently until his return
But this being too much for my curiosi-
ty | slipped out behind him, followed
him down the street aud crcpt into the
courtroom. Here | crouched uunoticed
In q corner near the doorway and listen
ed to the proceedings with the .iveliest
interest
1t was very ]are looking room, with
o long row of benches on each side, a
platform at one end, where sat the
judges, and just overhead on the white
washed wall was a large, round clock,
with a cruciGx hanging aboyeit
The bali was full Of people, On the
right sat the mobiles, land owners and
city officials; on the left were the peas
ants OF Iyanofka, where the fire had taken
place, and Of our village. On the prison
ers' bench sat Akonlna, and just behind
her one Of her relations was holding an
infant, and nj the same time trying to
keep two little girls unused. These
were Akonliua's children.
Every eye was fixed upon the accused.
She was young, strong and straight;
neither pretty nor plain, but true
Russian type with a round, fat face,
bright color, and duh, stubborn express
sion. She seemed to pay no heed to
what tho clerk was saying in his sleepy
voice, and looked at neither the Judges
nor the audience, but kept her eyes fixed
upon the great clock. whence she occa-
sionally glanced at the door. as if anx-
iously expecting an arrival
The testimony against her W over
whelming, She was Of a turbulent. in
tractable disposition, bat worked hard
to support her children, having re-
Gently lost her husband, a worthless
fellow who had died of drink. After
being discharged by the lady of
Ivanofka she had been heard to use
threatening language while stopping at
the min to buy some straw, and had APP
peared in our village the next day tired
and muddy and affecting to be ignorant
of the fire in the night
Akonlina declared that she had slept
In barn belonging TO cousin of hers
named Anton Petrovitch Unfortunate
ly this person had lately left the country
and gone to seek his fortune at Odessa,
whence he was supposed to have en-
barked as sailor in a foreign ship. In
quiry proved fruitless respecting his
whereabouts, but that fact was thought
to be Of but little consequence. as the
womans statement was evidently false
one,
The punishment for incendiarism is
Punishment to Siberia, but before sen
teuee was passed a number of witnesses
were % be examined.
Akonliua paid little or no attention to
the examination Of the witnesses, but
kept looking from tie clock TO the door,
and it was evident that only one fact
was clear to her dull understanding
Anton Petrovitch was tho one person
who could save her, aud She chung tena-
ciously to the idea that Anton Petro- /.
witch would enter 10y that door and say
the necessary words before it was 100
late People had told her that her cousin
was reported to have persisted by ship
wreca in the distant sen, but that could
not be- God was too just TO bet her suf- .
fer for the want of few words. Mes.
sages had been sent to odessa, and sha .
clung desperately To the hope that Anton