The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1898-04-23
! ProvidentiaI Escapes.

"HE person who does not AZ some
time or other of his life experience
what can only be described as "provi-
Dental escape" must be quite unique
parsonage. We have all known or ex-
perienced them, and tales of this order
are multitudinous in their number.
Some of them may briefly relate
The celar-fap was cautiously raised,
and the head of woman appeared
through the dark entry--a woman of
three or four-and-tweaty, with fair, dis
hevelled hair, and face in which con-
siderable beauty combated an anxious,
worn expression. The woman had
passed through the terrors of the first
siege of Paris, and was now experience
ing all horrors of the Commune.
She looked anxiously in the direction
of groupOf men, who were hauling
with ropes the carcass of horse (kiIled
by a shell from Versailles) in the direc-
ton of that cellar-hap which she now
carefully raised.
In this way did Gretchen Hoffman,
and her sister run" the Hotel du Nord,
the shutters of which were closed dur
ing that memorable occupation of Par
is. They supplied the wants of many
old customers, who might otherwise
have starved, while their cowardly
brother Carl, the proprietor of the
hotel, was chuckling in comfortable
lodgings in Soho. Carl had fed to Eng
land, leaving his plucky sisters to bear
the brunt and burden of the day alone.
Some time had elapsed since the
trifiing incident just recorded, when q
scene took place on the steps communi-
eating with side street to the st.
Lazare station.
A man with portmantcau was nerv-
ously descending, looking from, right to
left, when he attracted the attention
of tall, seedy, OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
individual, who arrested him In the
name of the Commune as Mons. Jac-
quelard. The mans first impulse was
to run-but he was speedily seized, and,
after brief struggle, hurried into a
fiacre. in which his captor rapidly con-
yeyed him to the prison of Ia Ro-
quette;" his explanation that he never
heard of Jacquelard in his life going.
of course. for nothing. Now, in those
days the accused had short shrift; the
fact that . man was believed to be a
notorious informer was enough for his
hastily-assembled judges. After a
mock trial, at which the prisoner had
no opportunity of clearing himself, he
was condemned with nine Others
charged with various real or supposed
offenses) to execution within "a hours,
in the prison yard.
The man of whom I particularly
speak was absolutely innocent of the
offense imputed to him; in fact, he had
had no concern whatever in the affairs
of the Commune. To dilate on that
terrible interval, day and night. be-
tween his condemnation and the mo-
ment when he was led out into that
prison yard to be shot like a dog, would
occupy unnecessary time, since, If it can
be realized at all, it can be better
imagined than described; suffice It TO
say. he was the last of the victims
brought out. His face was of green
ish-gray hue, his eyes were dilated, his
reason already almost unseated; in
deed, had it not been for the support of
the prison wall, he must have fallen.
The firing party were already drawn up
in line. the moment for the command
to "Fire!" had come.
Suddenly an officer who, with a
group Of oshers. was looking on. rushed