The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1900-03-30
CHAPTER VII.

The anonymous letters, or rather
scrawls, hich Philip found by the
side of his unconscious wife as he
Preacher-Better pack up and leave. Milton is
not big enough to hold you alive Take warning
in time
Preachers Wife-As long you stay in Milton
there is danger Of two funerals. Dynamite kills
women well as men.
Philip sat by the study lounge hold
ing these scrawls in his hand as his
wife recovered from her fainting fit
after he had applied restoratives. His
heart was filed with horror at the
thought of the complete cowardice
which could threaten the life of an in
nocent woman. There was with it a
feeling of intense contempt Of such
childish, dime novel methods of in
timidation as that of sticking a knife
into the study desk If it had not
been for its effect on his wife, Philip
would have laughed at the whole
thing AS it was, he was surprised
and alarmed that she had tainted, q
thing he had never known her to do,
and as soon as she was able to speak
he lis ened anxiously to her story.
at must have been an hour after
gou had gone, Philip, that l thought l
aeard a noise up stairs, and, thinking
perhaps you had left one of your win
dows down at the top and the curtain
was Tapping, l went right up, and the
minute 1 stepped into the room l had
the feeling that some one was there
Didn't you carry up light?'
mo. The lamp was burning at the
end of the upper hall, and so l never
| thought of needing more. Well, as
moved over toward the window, still
| feeling that strange, unaccountable
| knowledge of some one there, man
stepped out from behind your desk
| walked right up to me and held out
| those letters in one hand, while will
| the other he threw the light from d
| small bulls eye or burglars Lantern
| upon them"
| Philip listened in amaZement.
| SARAH, you must have dreamed al
that. 1t isn't likely that any mai
would do such thing"
philip, did not dream. 1 was ter
| ribly wide awake and so scared tha
l couldn't even scream. My tongue
| seemed to be entirely useless. But
felt compelled to read what was writ
ten, and the man held the. papers ther'
until the words seemed to burn m,
I-eyes He then walked over to tn,
desk and with one blow drove tn,
knife down into the wood, and then
eo; hot ic,a an I
member"
"And what became of the man?
asked Philip, still inclined to thinl
that his wife had in some way fallel
asleep and dreamed at least part o
this strange scene, perhaps before sh
went up to the study and discovers
the letters. Il don't know; maybe h
is in the house yet. Philip, l am a
most dead for fear-not for myself, bu
| for your life"
Il never had any fear of anonymOu
7 letters or of threats" replied PhiliI
contemptuously eying the knife, whic
was still sticking in the desk. ''Ev
IDENTITY the saloon men think l al
child to be frightened with thes
bugaboos, which have figured in ever
sensational story since the time c
Captain Kidd"
"Then you think this is the work c
the saloon menY'
"Who else can it be? We have L
other enemies of this sort in Milton"
"But they will kill you. Oh, Philil
1 cannot bear the thought of livin
here in this way! Let us leave til
dreadful place"
Little woman" said Philip, while
bravely drove away any slight anXiet
he may have had for himself, ''don
you think it would be cowardly to II
away so soonT
"Wouldn't 1t be better to run ava
: so soon than to be killed? Is there al
bravery in staying in a place whe
you are likely to be murdered by son
cowardH
81 don't think shall be-" said Phil
confidently. "And l don't want "
to be afraid. They will not dare
harm you"
"No, PhilipW exclaimed his wife e
gerly; "you must not be mistaken.
- did not faint away tonight because
was afraid for myself. Surely | ha
no fear there. 1t was the thought
the peril in which you stand daily
you go out among these men, and
you go back and forth to your me-
ings in the dark. l am growing mel
y; Gus and anxious ever since the sho'
a. ing, and when l was startled by t
p man here tonight l was so weak tha1
ad tainted. But l am sure that they
not care to harm me; you are the {
ject of their hatred IL they strike a
one it Will be you That is the reas
want to leave this place. Say )
, will, Philip. Surely there are otl
churches where you could preach
you want to and still Tot pc IN su
constant danger"
ne, 1t required all of Philips wisdom a
love and consciousness Of his imme
ate duty to answer his wife's app
and say no to it. 1t was one of the
verest struggles he ever had. Tn
IL. was to be taken into the account
only his own safety, but that OF
his wife as well. For, til X what
!" would, he could not shake off the II
ing that a man SO cowardly as to
fo tba eSiDa tipn of II