The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1896-12-26

our trousers n socks, n descended
the stairs, which led up from the family
sitting-room. Only two rustics, lgnor-
ant of the peril of such an undertaking,
would nave done as W. did. When We
got downstairs we found the parlor
door wide open, the room lighted, and
the stranger stood at the table with the
watch in his hand. We had crept down
so softly that he heard nothing. He
was fully dressed, even to his overcoat
and arctics, and as we watched him he
pocketed the ~timepiece and removed
the wrapper from the shawl. Sans
idea had been to raise an alarm, or per
haps rush in on him, but as we cow
cred there and watched, q sense of help
lessness came over him, and his teeth
began to chatter before mine did. We
were about to creep back to the stairs,
when the man turned the lamplight al
most out, and anne into the sitting
room, and made for the outside door.
He passed within a foot of US, and why
the humping of my heart did not catch
his ear has always been a wonder to
me. He unlocked the door, passed
out and softly closed it behind him, and
we heard him going down the frozen
path to the barn. 1 was for going up
stairs for father, but Sam drew me
across to the side window, and pulled
aside the curtain and said:
"He's got the watch and shawl and is
now after that span Of horses"
Let me explain that about the first
of the month the sheriff of our county
had taken possession of a span Of fine
horses, supposed to have been stolen,
and they were being cared for in our
stables until the owner should turn up.
The stables were in the basement Of the
barn and half underground. The win
dows were very small and the door q
stout one. This door had no lock, but
fastened with hasp and pin. We
watched the man until he opened the
door and entered the stables, and then
Sam said:
eyes, he's after the horses and Tn
going to do something"
"We must call father"
eff we do, the man will kill him.
for he hasn't got nothing to fight with.
You stand right here and hold the door
a little open for me-"
"What are you going to do"
I'm going to shut him in the stable.
Don't holler nor run away, for I'll be
back in a minute"
Out into the snow and cold dashed
Sam. 1t was about 300 feet to the barn,
and being in his stocking feet he ran
like a deer and as noiseless as a cat.
He found the door shut. and it did not
take him ten seconds to lift up the hasp
and slip the pin through the staple.
When he came back we ran upstairs and
aroused father and mother. and just as
We all got down. we heard the man
kicking on the stable door. He had
both horses ready to bring out before
he discovered that he was locked in.
From the rumpus he made you would
have thought that he was tearing the
whole barn down, but it was useless to
kick against that door. In daylight he
could have made his way up through
one Of the feed-racks, but he had used
his last match and had to go slow in
the darkness. We routed out the neigh
bors, sent for the sheriff, and in about
an hour the door was unfastened and
the fellow invited to come out. He had
strapped mothers new shawl on n OF
the horses for q saddle. and fathers
Santa Claus watch was ticking away
in his vest pocket. Why he had no
weapons I never could understand,
for he turned out to be a professional
horse thief and a desperate man, but he
had neither knife nor pistol. He was
marched OFF to Jail while the boosters
were Growing for Christmas. and Sam
and / were in court later on when he
was sent to prison for five years.
"Boys." said my father, after the man