The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-10-23
CARRYING REVOLVERS-
Some Good Advice On a Danger
GUS and Deadly Weapon
The Man Who Carries u Loaded Shooting
Iron Ia u Menace to Himself and
Friends-Rely on Muscle and

Stont Stick.
1t was midnight 1 had Just gotten
off the late train from the city and was
starting to walk four miles across coun-
trv 10 the village wherein / lived
had been detained in town by business
until the smaller railroad on which |
usually travelled was laid up for the
night, compelling me in order TO reach
home to take this roundabout way Of
getting there.
It was in the summer time and the
country roads were deep with dust.
Soon l left the gas lamps of the
town behind me and came to the long
nni lonesome stretch (wherc for two
nils there wasn't L light or 4 house,
which l must pass before reaching my
destination
Horc, also, the sidewalks stopped, so,
of necessity, 1 took the middle of the
road, plodding through the soft and
unusually thick dust
The sky was black with low lying
clOuds-so intensely black that il
couldn't be distinguished from the
earth, and all was as still as death. No
football sounded in that carpet of dust,
not a dog barked. not a frog croaked,
not an owl hooted, not breeze stirred.
The awful silence was oppressive and
the more than Egyptian darkness was
horrible.
Beside the spookiness of that silent,
ghostly tramp through the dust and
over strange roads on such a hideouSly
black night there was cause TO apprc-
hcnd danger from robbers, for several
2 'rsons had lately been Saylaid and
attacked in the very spot / was APP
proaching.
| possessed q revolver. bat II wasn't
with me, for. not expecting TO be de-
tanned, had left it home.
The feeling of security it would have
given might have taken away some of
my uncomfortable thoughts as i plod-
ded along on my unpleasant journey.
Owing to the darkness and difficulty
Of keeping path, / was in the middle
of the road, and soon reached the
drcaricst part of the walk, midway be-
tween the two villages, and a good
mile and over from u human habita-
tion.
Suddenly a mans gruff voice sounded
not three feet away
Hello, stranger" it spoke, where
yer going?" Then another voice too,
close behind me- said: What time is
it?"
Then both the men, one at my side
touching me and the other just behind.
walked along with me. for l hadn't
stopped when they spoke.
The inlsy darkness was SO utterly in
tense that not even ther shadows
could see, while the soft dust gave no
sound from their feet
The silent manner of their waiting
for and joining me looked bad / GER
tainly should have heard them talking
together before accosting me il they
Were bent on no mischief.
OF course / was frightened. and more
SO because l could not in the pitchy
blackness get the slightest idea of
their looks.
But | managed to return their salute
as carelessly and as fearlessly as 1
could and then told them to keep
away.
What for?" the fellow at nv side
asked, brushing against me, don't you
like company"
keep away!" said !, again, "I've
got pistol, and warn your
I've got one, uoo," he laughed, rub
bing up nearer, and the fellow behind
me stepped on my heels
They seemed slightly the worse for
drink, or. maybe only pretending, so
as to get me off my guard.
At any rate they entirely ignored my
warning and stuck even closer than be-
fore, at the same time trying to start a
conversation with me, which / had no
humor to encourage.
Being, as i have mentioned, without
my pistol, had no choice but to walk
along in their company, every moment
expecting to get blow from the fellow
behind.
When it came-if it didn't knock me
senseless-I intended to get one hit
back and then run for my life, trusting
to escape in the darkness.
But to my most agreeable surprise, /
was not molested and soon the lights
of my native town appeared. At the
first crossroad my unseen and unasked
for companions said: Good night
and vanished, and do not know yet
who they were or how they looked.
The point of my story, which looked
like an adventure at first, is this:
If had not fortunately been with
out my pistol, / should certainly have
ordered them off to a good and proper
distance Then the fellows, being fool
ishly familiar and affectionately dis
posed by drink, would have done Just
what they did or they might have put
an arm about me to show their friend
ly feelings or their lack of fear at NV
threats.
Then I'd have shot them, or they me.
In either case l should have been pun-
ished severely.
One winter ! was spending a week
with a brother-in- law
/ slept on the second floor and he
occupied the back parIOr ON tho g.,