Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1898-01-15
staircase. determined to annihilate ti1s

staircase, determined to annihilate ti1s
thief.
Simpson hC"l i tie noise at the same
moment. They stopped and listened.
Wash thought he heard the burglar in
the parlor. Simpson felt sure the rascal
was i'll the dining room pOcketing the
spoons. So, while Wash trod noiselessly
frontward, Simpson stepped stealthily
to the rear Midway in the hal they
came into collision. Each felt perfectly
certain that the other was the burglar.
Wash grapplcd with his antagonist
instantly. Simpson knew that death
struggle had begun, so he took hold
with all his might. Neither had a
chance to draw his weapons
Wash strove to throw his burglar
down, and Simpson, perceiving the
game, made huge effort to PROSTATE
Wash. They pushed and pulled and
jerked ard showed and painted, humping
up against the wall, kicking up the car
pet and making such hubbub that Mrs.
Simpson, up stairs i'll her room and
afraid to come out, lifted up her voice
and screamed with awful vehemence.
-hi''i q tN"i anu utSl)cIulc SlEuS-
gle, during which Wash had his coat
torn to rags and couple of handfuls of
hair pulled out and Simpson had his
nose jammed against chair until it
felt as if it had swelled to the size of a
watermelon, Wash let go moment to
get his breath
Thereupon Simpson made rush for
the front stairs quietly in the dark, and
Wash, pretty well scared and tired of
war dashed off up the back stairs, re-
solved to go and see why Simpson didn t
come down and help wipe the burglar
out.
AS Simpson got to the landing he saw
Wash s form by the dim light from the
bathroom in the back entry.
"Who's that?" shouted Simpson,
nervously feeling for his revolver
"Me-Wash, replied the brother
m-law
Simpson went up to him and said:
"Thunder and lightning, Wash
Why didn't you come down sooner?''
''Sooner! Why, where've you been?
I've had the most awful time you ever
heard Of ~
"So've l, replied Simpson "There' S
burglar i'll the house, and I've been
tearing him to pieces''
''You don't say so? Why, my gra-
cious, I've had fight with one, too and
| think | laid him outH'
"You did? Where?''
"Why, down stairs there, in the front
entry"
Not i'll the entry, you don t mean?"
eyes, said Wash, Gin the entry.
Nearly banged the head off of him.
Where was your MANI"
"Why, in the entry too Queer I
didn't hear you.
''It is queer replied Wash, "be-
cause | hammered his nose against IL
chair until it must be mashed fiat
"Whose nOse?'
1.-THE burglar S. And he tore my coat
to rags and pretty nearly scalped me. "
"Who did?'
"The burglar "
Simpson was silent a minute and
then he said:
''Come here to the light. "
They entered the bathroom and Wash
looked at Simpson and Simpson looked
at Wash
WASH said Simpson.
''What?' said Wash.
"Wash, you re the biggest idiot in
the state, Hang me if l don't believe
you've been fighting with me! Look at
my nose!'
"No! You don't say? Did you pull
out your burglars hair and splinter up
his coat?"
Il am afraid l did, " said Simpson.
''Mr. Simpson, said Wash calmly,
"if there is a bigger ass on the conti-
nent than | am | think l can lay my
hand on the mana party by the name
of Jim Simpson.
just at this juncture Mrs. Simpson
flew from her room down the hallway
and into the bathroom, where she fell
on her knees and clasped her hands and
shrieked:
"Save me, James! Oh, save me,
Washington, save me! Don't let me be
murdered! Don't! Don't, oh, don't"
Simpson looked sheepishly at Wash {;
then, without saying a word, he seized
Mrs. Simpson by the arm, ran her over