The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1891-12-07
LIGHT, AIR AND FOOD.
The Gifts for Which a Forgotten
Prisoner Daily Thanked
Providence.

as II Wear1eu With 1DS WlcKeuDeSS, GOu
seemed TO nave hid his face from the sin
full land.
No n may count up the tears that
were shed, the moans that were made,
the hearts that were broken in those
dreadful times; but here and there ont
Of the great mass Of human misery his
tory has preserved a record of the trials
and sufferings of some hapless ones, read
ing which we shudder and thank God
that we live in happier days.
Some few years after the Reign of
Terror-as this outburst of sin and mad
ness was well named-a man of middle
age entered a small inn in Germany and
called for refreshments. His manners
were timid and shrinking, and he looked
as if he might Just have recovered from
some terrible ilfness-he was so strange
ly, CHASTITY pale.
The landlord supplied his wants, and,
half curious, half in kindness, he made
some remark as to the strangers appear
ance, coupling it with the question,
"Did he want aught else for his COM
fort?.'
May, nothing" said the pale man
hastily; Il have food and light and air,
what could / want more?" and he sighed
deeply.
MY friend" said the landlord, seat
ing himself, "you speak as if you had
known the want of these things. Have
1 guessed aright:"
His guest looked up.
Would you hear my taleT' he asked.
"For years l have kept silence, but to-
day it seems as if it would tighten my
heart to speak. Listen and believe it if
you can. Less than seven years ago |
was a gay, light hearted youth in this
our quiet fatherland. Having no near
relations, / was led to visit some distant
ones who had lived for many years in a
small town in France.
my uncle, as I called him out of
friendliness, was kind, good fellow,
well known and respected in the place,
where he carried on the craft of II watch
maker, and he proposed that l should
become his apprentice and partner. l
liked the little town, l liked my uncle,
l liked my auns, and l soon gave my
consent. They had no children thank
God for that now-but my aunt's kindly
soul could not be content without young
people around her, SO she kept and
clothed two house maidens, children of
some poor neighbors. Trim and neat
they looked, too, wearing the costume of
that part of Germany from whence my
aunt came, O. pretty fancy of her own;
it seemed quaint enough in a strange
land.
st was a happy household. No 0
der l was glad to belong to it; but, alas!
it was soon to be swept away by terrible
affection. For ON time we had heard
of strange troubles going on in Paris and
the large towns, but our little place was
still quiet. One morning, however. we
woke to find everything in confusion.
Our mayor had been ordered to resign,
and his place was to be filed by some
one sent from Paris.
s'Still, we never dreamed of what fear
full misery this was the f%orerunner. We
had no time to dream, either, the blow
fell so suddenly. There had been a stir
going on IN the market place for the two
days following the arrival of the new
official; but my uncle and | were busy
over a discovery which he had made in
our trade, and we were less than usual
in the streets.
cat noon, on the third day, however,
he went out for a stroll to rest his eyes
and look about him for a few moments.
My aunt and her maidens arranged as
usual the midday meal, and we were all
ready to sit down, only my uncle was
missing. He was usually SO punctual
that we wondered and waited, and at
last we dined without him. AT the
close of the meal l stepped out to look
for him.
~ had not got a dozen yards from our
house when | met our bakers wife, her
eyes staring out of her head.
$500 back she said, go back! 1t is
too late. The monster-the wretch! He
has executed the honest man, without
even the farce of a trial, on the accursed
guillotine yonder!
II was petrifed with horror. Could
she be speaking of my uncle. so respected,
SO quiet as he was? 1t was too true. The
wretch in Office had lost no time, but had
begun his work OF bloodshed ut once, and
my uncle was his first victim, his only
crime being that he was of foreign birth,
and had sheltered under his roof, some
months since, q poor Swiss. l retraced
my steps to the house. My aunt's anxious
face met my troubled gaze. She had
begun to suspect evil. The two girls
waited fearfully in the background. |
tried to speak, but | turned away and
burst into tears. | was young then.
Master Landlord, and had tears to shed.
My aunt passed me by and rushed into
the street. straight to the market place.
/ could not follow. What happened
there was told me later.
"Wild with agony at her husbands
fate, my gentle, loving aunt had burst
into a flood of reproach of his murder.
In these days this was crime enough for
the heaviest punishment, and before
evening she had Jared the same fate as
my uncle.
1.-THE Reign of Terror had indeed begun
with US. The girls had fled, terrified at
the fate which had befallen their pro-
t~ectors, and l was m~editating in a half
stupe6ed way the same measure, when a
knock came at the door, and two men,
who had often eaten and drunk at my
uncle's table, came in and made me a
prisoner, co~nfiscating all the possessions
aa L