Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-12-18

He ,ras dumped dorm on the three tcIqed
stool.
non river, poisoned If I wouldn't yard
arm the little fagot in rale earnest.
What! make joyful ANNIVERSARY of
his wife's death, and fire off guns that
the whole blooming country may know
what little beast it is. Sit you down,
Bob; there's "a glass-help yourself. This
is what we mean to do, and he forth
with related his scheme for the morn
ing to Robins and Plum.
They smoked hard and reared out in
great peals Of laughter. The bulkheads
of little ship such as the Tom Bowl
ing are not, as may be supposed, of very
formidable scantling. There is no doubt
that Sloper i'll the hold heard these wild
shouts of laughter which the muffling
Of the bulkhead and his own terrors
would render awful to him, and we
may be sure that as he lay in the black
ness hardening to those horrid notes of
merriment, he feared and perspired ex-
ceedingly.
Somewhere at about O'Clock next
morning the Tom Bowling was got IN
der way, and when all hands had break
tasted, Joe Westlake took the tiller. and
Plum, Robins and Tuck went to work
to construct the machinery for the re,
tired tailor's execution. They filed a
big tub with wateS and covered it loose
ly with tarpaulin. Close against this
tub they placed three legged stool.
Alongside this stool upon the deck was
a tar bucket with a tar brush sticking
up in it. They also procured and placed
beside this tar bucket a piece of rough
iron hoop. At the time that these prep
arations We're completed the cutter was
running through the Warp. which is
some little distance past the More light.
The river had widened into the aspect
Of an ocean and over the bows Of the
craft the water stretched boundless and
blue as the horizon Of the Pacific
They opened the hatch and brought
the tailor on deck. Needless to say, he
had not slept wink all night. Who,
accustomed to feather bed, could
snatch even ten minutes sleep when his
couch is Thames ballast? Sloper's eyes
were bloodshot, and his countenance
haggard. He looked inconceivably gri-
my and forlorn, and Bob Robins felt
sorry for the little creature till he rec
objected on a sudden the mans reason
for letting off his cannons. Tuck took
the helm, and old Joe with a solemn
countenance and slow gait rolled for
ward to where the apparatus was sta
toned.
''Now you see your fate," he ex-
claimed, lifting up his eyes as though
he beheld rope with moose dangling
from the masthead, land since no good
can come off cautioning corpse, why
then. sorry I am that there aren'tssa,
company Of people arter your kindkas-
sembled aboard this craft to witness the
execution Of my sentence upon you. Last
night heard that the reason of your
firing off your guns were to celebrate
the ANNIVERSARY Of your wife, 3 death. = /
dunno, I'm sure, whether such , psac-
tice wouldn't be considered rs more
criminal and worthy. of a fearfuller
punishment than even the shooting at a
mans flag and degrading the honorof.
it. But to say more 'ud only be a-wast-
ing Of breath. Ny lads, do your duty. !"
Robins, with powerful arms. grasped.
the tailor, who shrieked murder and.
struggled hard. His struggles were "a
the throes and commissions Of a mouse
in the teeth of eat He was dumped
down on the three legged stool. In an
instant Plum lathered his jaws with
the tar brush. and picking up the piece
of BROKEN iron hoop scraped little Slo-
Tper's cheeks till the lather was as much
blood as tar Then, lifting his leg. he
tilted The stool. and Mr.. Sloper fell
Backward on to the tarpaulin, which,
yielding to his weight, soused hink INTO
the,water. They left him to kick and
splash awhile, then pulled him ont and
ran him forward into He head where