Waterbury evening Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1887-1895, 1893-11-28

little tale. 1t isn't ont of a story
book, but it's just rs good and a long
| sight truer.
"ListcnI Once on time there was
! little village. 1t was in Bucking-
hamshire. The population was small,
| but none the less virtuous on that ac-
count, You understand. In this village
lived maiden. who never had her
| equal in this world and never will. Her
father was market gardener, and her
mother had died when she was baby.
Well, in the next village, some two miles
off, lived young fellow who would
! gladly have laid down his life for that
maid, so madly was he in love with
her. Ho was a dairy farmer and was
said to be very prosperous. Certainly
! he was i'll position to provide ~ COM
Portable home for the maiden that ev-
erybody understood he was to marry.
"As l have said, he loved the girl
madly, and she profcssed TO love him in
return. She had promised to become
his wife, and in the coming spring they
We're to be married.
But she never was his. Do you sup
pose he throw her over? Do you think
he tired of herr Good heaven! He
loved her even more-more madly,
! moro fercely, because she could never
be his wife.
What, then, do you suppose sepa-
rated them? will tell you. y smooth
tongued villain from London came be-
tween them. He fiattered her and lied
to her and spread his vilo net to entrap
her. The poor girl was fascinated,
bewildered by the sleek scoundrel, and
he carried her off.
"A year later sho was in her grave.
Her deserted lover was broken hearted,
desolate, desperate. His business be
came neglected and ended in ruin. As
boy he had tried the sea, and he now
took to the life again, but not for long.
He fell in with a steeplejack, worked
with him and has since adopted the
calling. Still, the great sorrow of his
life hangs heavy on him, and he once
sworc u vow-which he means to keep
that If ever he met the enemy of his life
and of the life of the woman he loved
the great score between them should be
settled one way or the other.
DO you understand the story? That
dairy farmer name was Richard Will
son, and the name is also my own. The
girl was Margaret Snow, and Herbert
Ridley Morris was the scoundrel. We
have now an opportunity of paying off
old debts without fear of interruption. q"
Tho determination in his manner,
the madness in his eye, told mo he was
in deadly earnest.
You wrong me, cried. II never
intended to harm you. As for Marga-
ret, l loved her passionately, and the
marriage was n perfectly happy one.
God knows that when she died it near
~ broke my heart. Poor Margaret If
you loved her as you say. you have my
deep sympathy"
Curse your sympathyl'
He struck mt me with his fist, but by
a quick movement 1 avoided the blow
"One of us has to die-one or both
of us!' he shrieked. IF You so first,
shall throw myself after you. If go
down, You can live and run the risk of
being hanged for my murder! Are you
ready"
He fixed his eyes on me, and saw
he was no longer a sane man, and was
doomed to engage in n most horrible
encounter--a fight for life round the
weathercock of lofty church steeple.
gave one loud cry for help. 1t was
echoed by n neighboring hill and star
tied the birds in the trees beneath.
"Euu fool.' he laughed in derision.
what help do you hope for up here !:
If any one attempts to come up. one
stroke of my knife will cut short his
career
l tried to pacify him, but my words
| seemed only to infuriate him, and sud
denly. with loud execration, he sprang
on me like tiger. The platform that
we were on was formed Of rough planks
and was only few feet square. Be
| yond the standard of the vane and the
| four short ends of scaffold poles. to
| which the planks were secured by
ropes, there was absolutely no proteo-
| ton.
The standard round which the strug
! gle conferred was of stout wrought iron.
! and each mans life depended on his
being able 10 maintain his hold upon
this support. Arms and legs n confu-
sion were cntwined about ii IS we wres-
tied and fought in deadly desperation.
! Oh, those horrible moments! How
! we fought and strained and maneuvered
TO gain some little advantage in posi-
ton! If he succeeded in dislodging
my right leg, it was only TO let my lett
leg obtain an equally good position. Ii
1 forced his hand from ono place. it i'm
mediately grasped another.
l saw clearly, and so, think, did he,
that it was purely question of endur-
ance. The man who could hold out
longest would win. and we were pretty
evenly matched. But what a terrible
fate awaited the vanquished! And
through all the struggle | could hear
the birds in the trees and hedges below,
singing merrily in the warm sun. which
beat down on our uncovered heads and
parched my throat and lips.
l do not know how long we had beer
engaged in our horrible fight. 1t may
not have been many minutes, but to me
1t seemed hours. Neither of us ap-
peared to be gaining any material Rd.
vantage, when, suddenly taking me by
surprise, he seized me savagely by the
throat and forced me, choking, ON my
back across the platform.
Though l was obliged to release th'
iron standard with my hands, still
chung to it with one leg. Wilson helt
my throat with his left hand. so tina
my head hung over the side of the plat
form. With his right hand he graspe(
the iron rod. To his left leg was cling
ing with one arm, and with his RICH
leg he was violently kicking mine ava,
from the support.
How it happened do not know, bu
all at once he lost his hold ON the up
right bar, reeled round, and with quie
cry fell backward over the edge int,
midair. At the same moment my lei
got disengaged, and as was claspinl
one of his limbs l felt myself suddenl,
jerked after him.