Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-01-12
Warning from the Other World .s :.
A Cavalry Officers Narrow Escape from A Trap in the Franco German War.

dntk9aS1k1xx1t1tk1Sxrtk rxk<s1a YKTE are living in an age of discov- WV cries and solutions of great mys. teries. Who, 50 years ago, would have dreamed of the existence of the X-rays of all the marvels of electricity, oi bacilli and serums?
 Yet the human intellect is far from having attained the goal of it's desire o1 investigation. On the contrary, the wonderful discoveries of the great scien- lists have but stimulated and urged il more swiftly than ever along the great race course whose prize and goal are in vention and success!
 What marvel If the learning of the twentieth century, which has already made so many impossible things possi- ble, seeks to transform the pretense oi conjuring up ghosts into earnest and to cast light even into the gloom of the grave?
 Ghost stories are told by the thousand and, if the tales of old women could be believed, we should all have walked long ago in a blaze of light and known that precisely at 12 o'clock skeletons danced in the churchyards and pallid an cestral danes wandered restlessly through every old castle.
 But such tales would possess abso- lutely no interest for the public, who de- sire to see this subject treated seriously Therefore the following one is related on the authority of persons whose char acter is guarantee of trustworthiness
 The incident was related by Joseph Victor von Scheffel, the famous author of seEkkehards" by an intimate friend cavalry officer, whom he called s. and described in the following terms:
 His character excludes the possibi. lity of any distrust. A thorough soldier very practical in his mode of thought frank to bluntness, yet genuinely re- ligious; man who, though he never talks of his piety, in the hour of need sends forth prayer from the inmos' depths of his heart.
 "He was a cavalry officer, and durins the campaign of 1870 and 1871 was prin. cipally engaged in pursuing Franc tireurs, a service for which his caution coolness and courage bordering upor recklessness, rendered him specially fit. ted.
 "The following story was told me with his own lips"
 It was warm moonlight night when with a few picked men of my squadron set out to reconnoiter the enemy's DO sition.
 We had only general knowledge o the country; we were aware that 1T front of us was wood of moderate size behind 1t open meadows and titled land and adjoining the latter farmhouse which we suspected to be the principa hiding place and storeroom of ammuni 'tion of the Franc-tireurs.
 The wood, however, proved larger ant more difficult to traverse than we ex pected, and although we used every pos. sible precaution we were often dis turbed by sounds as If the enemy were at hand and watching us.
 We were already considering whether under the circumstances, it would be ad visable to pass out of the protecting gloom of the forest into the brigh moonlight, when the rising storm GOV. | the brilliant moonlight into the most intense darkness.
 VI We had reached the edge of the woods and stopped a nom lent irresoluteIy gag ing out upon the dark, silent plain The wind bowed the treetops and swep bowling over the level country, the rain drops battered down, and night bird. with hoarse cries, futtered over oul heads.
 We could not see an inch beyond oul eyes, and it seemed an impossibility tc find our way to the farmhouse. wa just making up my mind to turn bacl when light gleamed some distance be fore us.
 '"The house! Hurrah--there's tn, house!" whispered one of the men, ant took my field glasses and anxlousls tried to discover the building.
 Yes, the light was shining througl the glass-it must be the window pane and at times was obscured as thoSgl shadows were gliding before it.
 The room was evidently occupied b, the enemy.
 We rejoiced. The stormy weather ia Vored our approach, the wind and rais would drown the noise of the horses hoCfs. We had the best prospect of be ing able to reconnoiter unseen.
 So we rode forward, first cautiousl. examining the ground: then, as -------------- ------------ - NzEz N glS9SFs " lzZE 8