The Newtown bee., 1898-10-28
Fairfield County.
STEPNEY.
DO THE GUILTY TREMBLE?

During recent weeks this quiet village
has been in the thrOes Of great excite
ment and all sorts of rumOrs have been
rife. Public opinion is in that acute
stage where it is easily swayed to and fro
b ~ the advancement Of successive theories
and rumors that may materialze in tar
g1Dle developments at any time. The
tension is SUCH that il must result in
some startling enclosures of extraOrdi-
nary local Interest ere the lapse of many
moons, unless all signs absolutely fail.
Preceding and leading up TO the interest
ing present thee ia a story tO-a story
that should it terminate as it now bids
fair to do will in all probability result in
some sensational changes in the hitherto
peaceful and serene atmosphere OF neigh
b0rLy good feeling for which this little
hamlet has SO long been Justly noted.
diotC ry for yes r ago must be option u
ed that the reader may understand the
true inwa rdness of the situation. The
basis Of the trouble is the fact that a
vel known citizen essayed, las, year, to
augment his income by u branch of
nus bandry hitherto given little attention
in Stepney, i. e., the raising Of luscious
musk ana watermelOns for Bridgeport
consumption. AS q result of his COM
mepda BILE enterprise and Yankee thrift
his field bore proudly upon it's bosom,
dozens Of great, big, round, fat, juicy
melons that might easily have excited
the salivary glands of marble image.
Sad, sad to relate, we must record the
unfortunate fact that the larger part of
the incest and juiciest melonesVery mys.
| ter ously disappeared one night when the
! m( on hung far below the horizon. Var
ious village youths, whose propensities
were as an open book to all who could
run or read, were suspected and for q
| time were kept under rigid urveillaDce.
No one visited the field AGAR, however,
and the perpetrator of the base outrage
was never found, that is to say no actual
proof could be adduced against any of
| the suspects. So the matter rested and
i events shaped themselves in the usual
humdrum way during the winter and
! throughout the summer months until
about month ago, when the husband
man, doubtless with a vivid remem-
brauce of last years dissertation of bis
| field, publicly announced that it would
not be safe to tamper with his field, hint.
ing about poi n in some of the melons,
bear traps in ureuapected places, etc.
1.-TWO others, wFo al o had extensive
patches we'll on towards abundant fruit
lion, adopted the same protection system
land the three up-to-date husbandmer
smiled gleefullv as they perched com
Eposedly on their fences at odd moments
and viewed the bountiful crops that 81
DON would be resolved into coin of the
| realm. Air castles tley undoubtedly
built. Alas! for human hopes.
"The best laid plans of mice and men
Gang aft aglee."
Like the worm at the heart of the ros
the youthful miscreants we're again
abroad and again accomplished thei
villainous purpose. Last Tuesday morn
J | ing when the six eyes of the three own
Iers we're turned to their fields they say
that which filled them with mental an
8 guish and caused them to gnash thei
teeth and tear their hair in impoten
Irage. All their finest melons were gone
o Not only that but insult was added {
injury by the malefactors abscondini
with the bear traps, set to secure thei
s Ihapless selves. Then their wrath wax
ed, yea, even like,unCo the heat of fer
y furnace and even unto this hour it Ia
mot waned by one degree. They breath
q horrible vengeance. They vow TO max
70 terrible examples Of the culprits,
l. Icaught. With sleuth-like perseverance
), they are following numero clues wit
d untiring zeal. The chances are th
= guilty cannot escape, but we will mai
II no predictions as to the ultimate GU
se come. Meantime, the townspeop
await the finale in this tragic chapter I
local life, in breatbless suspense. 4
this writing it must be left to Fate an
is the logic of events. 1t is a notewortt
o. fact that the melons that presumab
z. contained poison were left, every on
a mot a ''plugged" melon was take
IS Even befoEa+his next issue OF The 81
as appears the iron hand of justice may d
ed scepd upon the shrinking, hapless gull
ZONES.