St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1892-04-09
A BAD SCARE.
The Mutual Mistake Of Two Be-
nighted Trav eler&

"How far am I from the innf"
Three mileA Sir.
The toll-gate keeper looked anxious
~ in my face aRhs Asldap his lantern,
athwart which d6gptaof rain dashed
what time Asr,-
He glanced over hisshouldsr. through
the half-open door. where IRE and
lamp-light CLEANED 7sheerily upon the
face Of = cheap eloeks
mime o'clock, sir"
Ispurred on my horse, with . word
or two of thanks the closing door Of
the dollhouse shutting out al wsxmth
and light and human eonpsaioaship.
and storm and petcly dsrknesa No
mstter-three miles was no distancs
worth speaking o. should soon be
within shelter; 30 petted my horssAu
neck. and spoke soothingly to him:
''Old fellow. don't b nervoua Heav-
ems artillery will hurt neither Of N,
and you shall have . feed of oats and q
snug dry stable very soonr'
Sultan tossed his superb head q II
he fully comprehended my encourag-
ing words, and, quickened his pece.
But 1t that instant . blaze Of tightening
moro brilliant and vivid then had yet
experienced, revealed the whole sur
rounding scenery to me In ghastly dis
tinctness- woods through which
the narrow rod wound sinuously-a
sunken. xigzag fence on each side. and
could It have been posstble that I was
mistaken? or did . white, terrified
face glare It mine through the low
cedar thicketA In the instant Of illumi-
nation?
..H.llo.r HSrssd' out, listening H.
teutly for soma othoe sound than the
rush Of the raiH' and ~ psepetaal 0nt-
ter Of moving folia9ss = ths wiod. bat
no sound was returned Twice Ire
peated The summons-twice Il was In
vain.
I'VE are dreaming. sultan" said,
encouragingly, to my horse. ''Come.
get on. old fellow. or we shan fancy
ourselves hemmed in by witches."
am not . nervous man BY nature.
but those three miles seemed to me the
longest three had ever travessed, and
unconsciously kept listening Cor foot
steps on the side Of the road. watching
for pale. frightened faces; and when
It last the ruddy lights of the wayside
inn CLEANED through the dense misty
darlkness welcomed them with . glad
heart
That night I slept tho dull. heavy
sleep Of . thoroughly wearisd man.
and rose depressed and uurefreehed In
the morning. Not even the fragrant
slices Of ham. the light biscuit and the
good coffee could inspire No with an
appetite.
Bring me my bill. landlord. il yoa
please" said.
I'm sorry you should have been d.
layed. sir" said the fat and jolly inn
keeper, busting in. but the servants
have Just come in from the village, and
they're telling me Of . very extraor-
binary occurrence-a lunatic. sir-one
Of their worst caseA escaped from the
asylum, and b 1t largo in the Woo1s:'
"A lunatic!- I exclaimed felt the
blood ebb away from my cheeks rs
tie white Ease among the
cedar thickets Of the wilderness.
'What time did he escape:" I asked.
about seven o'clock, sir, he replied. |
And had seen the apparition 1t . /
little after nine. Then Il was no Opt
cal illusion-no specter of disordered
paid my bill without word; then
| told my host what had seen.
Dear me. sir. |" said the excited land
lord but they're on his track; they'll
soon secure him"
''Landlord.r said, q I drew on my
gloves, s.is It Tar 70 Arch hall?"
arch hall. sir? Squire Ackley'set
Only about two miles BY the iootpsG6 |
through the woods-six By the high /
ruad."
waited N instant Bright and
warn The s1nmer morning sunshine
ytreaned b tpea tAs 1oors softly tel