Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1896-10-29

| preparing 10 take my departure WneI
suddenly the oppressive silence of thu
midnight was broken by the most hor
rible yell that ever assailed my ears. II
fairly curdled my blood, so full of the
agony of fear was it, and sat still anC
held my breath until second and Q
ears, and then l gathered myself to
gether, rushed to the window and threw
up the curtain.
By this time all was silent again, and
half wondered if had only imagined
rhe cry. looked out over the field ant
track, seeing nothing but the shifting
shadows, more bewildering than abso
lutte darkness, which half moon throw:
through broken clouds. 1t was par
ticularly CHASTITY light; there was not
a thing stirring, not even the wind, UNI
til suddenly the bending figure of a mar
at extreme speed emerged from the
gloom, sprang up the steps at a singh
leap, and second later the huge doc!
| beneath my feet was shaken in a furious
| fashion. %. ..
1 confess to a feeling of relief as
thought of it's two-inch oak plank, mai
studded and heavy hinged, and knew
that the assailant, whoever he was
could not gain entrance with anything
| less than an oldfashioned battering
ram. / was also bit startled, for
could not at all make out what the
trouble was. The door shaking con,
tinuing, accompanied by the kicks of {
heavy foot and n series of yells, seized
the heavy poker from the hearth and
| hurried downstairs.
When reached the door hesitated Z
moment, wondering if the man was
mad, and then tried to turn the key with
my left hand, holding the poker firmly
in my right. In this L was unsuccess
ful, so tightly was the door pressed by
the frightened man outside. l shifted
the poker to my left hand, and put my
shoulder against the door; there was :
sharp click of the opening lock, and the
next second l was hurled like a boil
from catapult by the heavy door.
AS l landed on my back, Paddy the
Leaper" appeared with the suddenness
of "Jack-in-tLe-box." He slammed
the door after him, threw the bolt with
single motion, and, slapping himself
on the floor, pressed his broad bacli
enings would not hold.
l came to myself first, and was begin,
ming to ask the crazy bog-trotter what
was the matter with him, when he sud.
denly found tongue, and broke in with
n husky: "The saints save us! Howly
hiven hip us! Fur the luve av God
Misther Brown, git up an put yer fut
ag'in the dure."
1 slurg the poker into the pit of his
stomach, got on my feet and gave him a
clip on the head with the fat of my
hand that would have felled a man with
an average thickness of skull. The
blow frcm the poker resulted only in a
grunt, and while that of my hand re-
lieved my feelings bit,it seemed to help
Paddy's added brains not at all. He
caught me by the leg, pulled me down
| and sat Ine up against the door by his
side as il l had been n wax doll, saying
in Numbering and contcnted fashion
Faith, thin, Misther Brown, it's now
we have it, an safe we are
Safe, are we? I'm safe enough; but
as for you, you bowling idiot, if you lay
your hand on me again, you'll wish you
| had stayed outside"
Suddenly he looked up to me and
asked in loud whisper: For the luve
of hiven, Misther Brown, tell me wha,
was it?''
what was it?" answered I. "What
was what?"
Sure it was" said he; and at this re-
marka BILE dialogue seemed perfectly sat.
| isfed, began to Groom and rock again
and lapsed into a state of ''innocuous
desuetude," as before.
| Deciding, at last, that the time TO,
| heroic measures had arrived, l tool
hold of Paddy's collar with both my
hands, shook him violently for few sec
onds, and then began TO bang his heaC
against the door. 1t did not take many
raps against the hard oak to bring into
the vacant face hint Of reason, and, al
last, with good blow of my fist, which
bowled him over, / told him either to tel
me at once what the trouble was, or
would open the door and throw him out
The last threat was enough, and he
raised himself to the perpendicular
again, lifted his hands with a gesture
half resistance and half petition, saying
in an appealing fashion: "Sure, YOU'D
not hev the black heart to do it; an 'tis
Gods truth I'll tell"
He told his story as follows, in &
hoarse whisper, growing little louder
toward the end of the tale: IT'S guilty
av nothin' 1 am at all; twas walkin
home / was, all innocent an aisy loike
afther bit av picnic at Larry COST
cams, the same thot lives forninst the
junk shop by the river. / lift the
street, TUX a cut acroost the tennis
courts to save me tonne (fer late it was
an Mrs. Dooley, me boardin' misthress
locks the dure at 12), an was follerin
the track along the stritch, whin on tho
suddint 1 heard futstips behindt, an
whin l turned me head I saw (howly
hiven guard her own) big, white spool
a-follerin' in mo track" "
At this Paddy went back to his Groom
ing and crossing again, and I wa.