, 1896-03-02
~LANGDON'S MILL.

which STRANGE traditions are told. Tho
lower story is builG Of uuhewn rock, while
the upper story consists OF two substantial
rooms. One of the rooms il much larger
than the other, the smaller one being u
mere closet in comparison with the front
apartment. Tho mill looks rs though it
had goon built Ia resist II siege, and it
surclg has witnessed man. strange and
horri cones, even if hut the half that is
told i cue.
Tn mill was built just before the war
of the Revolution. 1t appropriately stu
ntcd ut the foot of n rcd hill. The trees
that stand around are massive, but few.
A gray and solitary sycamore grows near
the little bridge and stands like II shroud-
ed form: The rest OF the trees are oak.
Til trumpet vino IS now rank near the
entrance to the huilGinE, and its blooms
are to the f~anciful mind the CORY fingers
of a mu dercr, rocking with tho fresh
blood Of his victim. TIC pokcwrcd is
there. too, with its red stalk, red berries
and reddish leaves. Tho little stream al
most encirclcs the mill in IL sinuous limo.
About the beginning of tho Revolution
several Tory families inhabited the coGn-
try. A young man of II of these families
loved the daughter of IA Jealous Wing, and
tis utN Hhu btti hIiltiii'h i'E NHo mn
riagc. Whom it was first whispered among
the neighbors that the youth had sided
with the Tories, the girl was almost broken
hearted, but declared that she would not
believe the fact till she had heard it from
his own lips.
Sooner than she expected She had the
chance. One evening us she was milking
tho cows her lover jumped over the fence
and stood before her. She told him in
stantly what she had heard, expecting u
vehement denial.
Eyes" he said. at is all true, and be-
fore another year your father will wish he
was ms | am
"He would SEQ his grave first!" the girl
indignantly replied.
Gle may not have far to go TO find il, "
the young man ayowoi, with II peculiar
information in his voice.
He persisted in following tho girl,
against her will, to tho house. The girls
father was there, and he forbade bis
neighbor entrance, saying an enemy to
his country was not welcomed in his
house. The girl ardently sanctioned, by
word and manner, the action of her father.
Tradition does not tell all that followed.
However, the young man, whosc naIne
wa Jack Cotton, left in n towering rage
swearing that when X he returned he
would enter If he pleased. He won't away
and was seen no more until Il year after
ward. Pretty Nancy Langdon continued
to milk hor cows.
There were so much tumuit and confu-
sion in the country that people became in
urcd to danger and were not afraid. And
Nancy, a large, buxoin maiden OF IS, was
proud of her own courage Her mother
was an invalid and timid. and she closed
the shutters if the wind was heard among
the pines.
at all sounded like the groans of dying
men," she would say. Her husband and
four SONS were with General Greene, and
even the slightest suggestion of their death
was terrible TO her. Her younger daugh-
ter, Eva, WAS of her temperament. She
shivercd, too, when tho wind blow too
hard or when a ncighboring woman
brought in the tidings of the disastrous
result of some faroff battle. Little Eva
would crouch closer to her mother, and
they two, with hands clnspcd, would pray
for their faroff loved ones, and that tho
merciful Father would not forget them in
their helpless condition.
But on such occasions Nancy would
throw open the windows and wish that
she were n MAJ that she might be with
her father ard brothers to fight for tho
country she loved 50 well.
One day their father returned quite IN
expectcdly. The news had just preceded
his arrival that Jack Cotton and "A dozen
other Tories were in the neighborhood.
The women were torn by conflicting emo
tions-joy upon the return of the father
and husband, mingled with fear for his
safety.
There was II neighbours daughter spend
ing the night with Nancy and Eva, and
carly the next morning the two girls
started to accompany their friend part
Of the way home, which was not far dis
tant. Tho direction lay toward the Old
mill. T iider the shadow of the building
lay the bridge, n rs the two girls stood
bidding their friend goodby Jack Cotton
with n half dozen comrades ran down tho
stone steps and seized them.
The three girls were borne, screaming,
to the rooms above.
Their little brother, u lad of o or 10.
who had trailed after his sisters, but had
fingered behind throwing stones and cat.
ing the wayside berries, saw the terrible
scene.
He was Mt tho top of the hill and was
not seen or could not be caught, or per-
haps jack and his followers did not care.
The child ran back and told the terrible
tale. TIT old father started after his
daughters. From the window of the mill
he was seen, but not until no had taken
his stand under n Straight tree, whose
branches were all far above his head.
He was now plainly visible and was u
clear target. He appeared unarined. But
he might have stood there. Ho was safe.
It was not his blood tho neighbor wanted,
knowing as he did that life md conscious
ness were such agGny to the stricken father
as a thousand bullets could never produce.
He heard his daughters screams Ono
was allowed to appear for n moment at tho
window that he might see her, and still
no stood, appearing not to have the power
to move.
Jeering faces appeared Mt the window,
and taunts were hurled ut him. Then
suddenly Jack Cotton flung wide open tho
door and appeared standing on the thresh-
old. With a laugh end n curse he cried
out to the old maj to come and join them.
Quick as a fash the old flint and steel
was caught up from against the dark
trunk of tho tree, where 1t had, upper
ceived, been placed. In an instant there
WAS u flash, followed by a report, and
Jack Colton's brains and blood stained the
door against which he was leaning. The
stain il pointed out to this day.-Phila-
delphia Times.
1he Cynic's BOOK.
"Look here" said the publisher to the
author. ''tliS story of Yours HASN'T any