Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1892-12-09

Silas Craig. This was to be repaid up
on certain date; that date fell about
a month after your departure for En-
gland. held the money more sacred
than my life. and | laid it by in the
strong box devoted to important docu-
ments."
"You did as I myself would have
DONE" said Gerald Leslie
Il did; but was by no means fault
less. | was the victim of a vice which
has brought dishonor upon men who
| never thought to blush before their
fellow men-I was gamester! | de-
voted my days to business cheerfully,
| conscientiously; but at night the de-
mon of the dice-box lured me from my
! quiet home, and led me. to secret
gambling-house in Columbia Street-a
house known to all the gamblers of
New Orleans, but which ffourishes in
bold defiance of the law. had known
this house for years, and had been
constant guest at its unholy affairs, but
there was one thing concerning it that
did not know"
and that Was-~
"1ts owner! [ did not know that
Silas Craig, the lawyer, that sanctimon-
lous attorney whom men met every
Sunday morning in the sacred temple
| Of Heaven; [ did not know that this
| man was the proprietor of that earthly
hell, the wretch that pandered in secret
| to the vices of his feIloW-citiZens. I
did not know this, and did not know
| that the Clearinghouse in Columbia
Street communicated by a secret pas
sage with the office of Silas Craig"
"Impossible!' exclaimed Augustus
| Horton.
"Ay, the secret has been well kept;
and it is secret that was only to have
IYI1nN tn mo VIII hnJ nf
| Death was on my lips to seal them to
eternal silence. But the ways Of Prov
idence are inscrutable. The day ar
| rived upon which our debt to this man
| became due. At twelve O'Clock on that
| day | called, delivered to him the sum
| of one hundred thousand dollars i'll
| bills Of exchange, and received his
| written acknowledgment of the
money. This done [ left as light as a
| feather. a Load was removed from
my mind, and | determined to spend
| q day Of enjoyment. | dined with
| some friends at d hotel, and after sit
| ting late over the table. and drinking
good deal of wine, we adjourned to the
| gambling-hOuse i'll IColumbia Street."
There was brief pause; but Silas
| Craig never stirred from his abject at
| titude, never attempted by either word
or gesture, to contradict the speaker.
| 1--WE played for some hours, but my
| friends were not such inveterate
| gamesters as myself, and they grew
| weary of the demoniac fever. After
persuading me to quit the place with
| them, they at last lost patience with
my folly and departed, leaving me still
at the fatal green cloth. 1t was by this
| time four O'Clock i'll the morning. L
| had drunk u great deal, and had been
| losing money. My head was bewildered;
my brain dizzy, aud my temper soured
| by my losses. The room was almost
| deserted, but [ still sat with my eyes
| fixed upon the game madly endeayor-
| ing to retrieve my losses. At this crisis
a great brawny fellow opposite to me,
a Frenchman, ventured to insult me.
| TipSy as | was, | was III 10 humOr to
brook this. l sprang toward him to
| chastiSe his lnsoence. and il light en-
| sued, i'll which | was getting the worst
| of it. when one OF the DYStanderS inter
| fered, and suggested that we should
| resort to small swords, and finish the
| business i'll Z; more gentlemauly man
| ner."
| 1T was plot" said Gerald Leslie.
! at was. 4 villalnous aud fol plot,
| concOcted by yOnder stricken wretch.
| Stupeed and beWildered | let them do
| what Gney pleased With me, ami Know
nothing Of What happened till | found
| a dueiing sword III my hand, ana saw
| that my adversary was armed III the
| same fashion. BY this time the room
| was entirely deserted, except by my
| antagonist. the other man and myself.
| This other nan-the same who had
| suggested our using sWords-opened Il
| door i'll the wall, Il door which | had
| never perceived, and pushed me into d
long dimly lighted corridor, which was
also strange to me. The door closed
behind us, and we hurried along the
| corridor for some distance, until we
were stopped by the stranger who had
ttaken upon himself the management of
| the business. He placed us opposite
each other, put the swords in our hands,
and gave rs the signal to begin. l felt
| in moment that [ was a lost man
| My head spun round. In the dim light
| | could scarcely see my adverSary'S
| face. as the lamps were 50 arranged
that what light there was fell full upon
mine. In vain [ tried to parry his
| thrusts. [ had been twice wounded
Slightly i'll the shoulder, when the
! lights were suddenly eXtinguished, and
felt the sharp pang OF a stab from
| long and slender sword.
| But this stab did not come from my
opponent. Although | lost conscious
ness upon the moment OF receiving the
stroke, knew that | was stabbed in
| the back"
| "EXecrable traitors." exclaimed Ger
aid. Mortimer, and Augustus.
| when | recovered my senses |
| found myself in a lonely boat-house on
| the banks of the Mississippi, for miles
| from New Orleans. | was lying on
mattress, and my wound had been
| dressed by a surgeon; but | was too
| feeble, from loss Of blood and the pain
| l had endured, to utter word or ask
one question of the man seated by my
side"
You were not alone. them"
NO! William Bowen, the accom-
| plice of Silas Craig, had repented of the
| horrible work as soon as it was done,
and, under pretense of carrying my
| body to the river, had contrived to con-
| vey me to this lonely shed, which be-
| longed to a friend Of his"
stop a bit, Mr.. Treverton." inter-
rupted William; when Mr.. Craig set
| tied with me that we were to set that
villainous Frenchman on to YOU.
| get up duel, and rob you of the
| receipt for the hundred thousand
| dollars. it was agreed that you were to
be attacked in fair fight, and that you
were not to be seriously hurt. 1t was
| Mr.. SilaS Craig yonder who couldn't be
| content with this; it was he who turned
| out the gas in the thick Of the fight.
and stabbed you in the back. You
| dropped down like dead man, but the
| lawyer there was too great coward to
make sure whether you were really
| dead, he dared not approach within a