St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1895-07-26

he boldly reached for his baseball
bat, which he had carefully tucked
under the bolster and then sat up
and listened.
A low, distinct knocking was heard
down stairs, And now the knock
grew louder. There was no doubt
about 1.-THE burglar had come.
"Hullo!" cried a gruf voice. "Let
me in! Pm" The rest was smoth-
cred in persistent knocks.
HE saw them 90 off" cried Hal
"He knows we're alone. But this
burglar won't take us in, will he
Lolo?'
The girl had now slipped on her
dress and had come into the boys
room for protection.
Hell catch it pretty soon" quay
cred Hal, IF he tries to get in. /
hope the stuff'l go off.
He had hardly expressed this mod
est desire before he heard the front
door forced open. There was clat-
ter Of tin that might have walked a
mummy. Then followed resound-
ing shrek. In spite OF their terror,
the boys could not help laughing.
"IIl bet that caught him in the
eye! He won't burgle long in this
house." said Hal, gathering courage
from the very audible groans. I'm
going to look over the stairs and see
if l can hit him with the bat"
They tiptoed so lightly that they
could hardly hear themselves, and
when they got to the railing they
peered cautiously over down stairs.
If the burglar could have only
known how harmless were the trem-
bling inhabitants of the upper story!
The only sounds were succession
of groans and gurgles and scufllings
OF feet and muffled calculations that
found no difficulty in reaching the
children's ears.
20, my head What an awful
place | wish I'd staid. What am
in 2" All at once there was another
crash.
"It's the chairs this time, wills
pered Lolo as softly as she could. Il
hope he won't break 'em all up"
The children could hear the intrud-
er wrestling with the rounds OF the
chairs in which his feet had evidently
become entangled.
"There's II of 'em!" whispered
Billy. Even while he spoke. the burg
lar extricated himself and made
rush as If to 60 out.
But the stairs were in front of the
dining room door, and, being turned
about in the dark, and in a strange
place, he made, instead, a dive up
ward.
He's coming upl Give it to him!"
shrieked Hal.
There was splash of water-then
the cawing of hands upon tobog
gan. There was a clatter of springs
and Stats as the bed toppled over
from above. Then hat came whirl-
ing through the darkness at the
enmeshed man. A pair of skates
succeeded-a pitcher of water
drowned the whole.
Splutters, bowls, groans and even
Shreks of agony now reverberated
through the house. 1t was as if
regiment were stampeded below.
Judging by the cracking OF states and
the clanking OF dishpans and the
wash boiler, the burglar was now
making the effort of his lite to escape.
BY this time Hal had opened the
window, and thinking the final crisis
had come, fired all the chambers OF
his fathers revolver into space. Billy
blew a tin horn almost as big as
himself, while Lolo rang the dinner
bell as if a thousand aborers were
to be called from thousands miles
away.
In five minutes a dozen neighbors
were hocking to the house. Several
places had been entered and robbed
during the last few weeks, and they
were ready for any emergency.
After some little consultation. the
neighbors formed a bold column and
pushed in, each holding his pistol in
front of him at full cock.
On the floor in front of the parlor
door sat a poor paralyzed figure. He
was the most ridiculous burglar that
respectable home had ever caught.
There he sat, helpless, battered
and bruised, with a family picture
caught around his neck-evidently
not daring to move. His head was
protruding through the portrait.
Instead of shrinking away from his
captors, the burglar groaned,-
"Thank God, you've come! Where
am |? What lunatic asylum have |
struck ?"
Sir" reproved the potato man
Deacon Smithkins-"
"Smithkins? Is this John Smith
kins' house? Impossible. Pm-'
the end Of his sentence was lost in
the effort to pull him out of the fami-
ly portrait. The two were separat-
ed as gently as possible, while the
neighbors gathered courage to view
the wreck by which they were sur
rounded.
Come down." cried Mr.. Baldwin.
Come down, children. You needn't
be afraid. We've got him safe"
Now, who are you?" demanded
Mr.. Baldwin sternly. what do
YOU mean by entering honest peoples
Al.