The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-03-02

went down, humming the air of a song
to herself, and as she came back up
stairs she was TALKING about the meat
and saying that Uncle Joe must get a
fat-trap. When the door had been
closed she sat down to the table and
said:
Jimmy, you were right about the
man. He is hidden in that first barrel.
shall do"
1t was raining cats and dogs ana
dark night. 1t was half A mile to the
nearest neighbours, and we felt that the
man must be something worse than a
. tramp to have hidden himself away.
There were three cellar windows but
over them had been tackled strong wire
netting. The man must have entered
the house and gone down cellar. Had
he simply wanted something to eat he
could have helped himself from the
pantry and gone before We came in
from the barn.
TN tell you what the miserable
skunk IS after, said my aunt after
| awhile. Uncle Joe will bring home a
| hundred dollars when he comes, and
! this Teller IS after it. He'll keep in
| hiding until your uncle comes and gets
to bed and asleep, and then he'll rob
the house. That is he thinks he will
| but I'll show him what's what in the
next fifteen minutes
But what can we do2" I asked as
my knees knocked together.
See here, Jimmy, you get over be-
ing scared and agree to help me or III
never speak to you again in my life
Do you think the man we saw was as
! big as your Uncle JOe?"
Il guess so"
Wen, your Uncle oe would have to
shut up like jack-knife to crowd
himself into pork barrel His legs
would all be doubled uD and he
wouldn't have much use Of his arms.
Do you understand"
yes"
There's a cover for that barrel right
behind the stairs as we go down. If
/ it was clapped on to the barrel. don
you think we could hold it there in.
/ spite Of all the man could do"
But he may jump out of the bar
/ rel before we can put the cover on
Don't be a coward, Jimmy. You.
are coming right downstairs with me.
/ Wen talk about rats as we move
around. You'll carry the candle. and
I'll get the cover and clap it on. If
i m not strong enough to keep it there,
you must help me.r
'T-I-I--'f began but she caught
me by the hair and sternly said
Jimmy, if you don't help me I'll give
! you the awfUllest licking boy ever got
and then tell everybody that you haven't
/ got as much spunk Is spring chickenI"
was nightly afraid of the man in.
/ the cellar, but I was more afraid OF
my aunt. Had she tried argument or
coaxing I should have funked. She ut
the candle into my hand and opened the
stair door. and began to talk about rats
and what damage they could do about
I house. I believe the man had got
out of the barrel to stretch himself. but
] hearing us coming, had Sought his re-
/ treat again. Without letting up on her
talk at all, Aunt Mary picked up tha
/ cover. and / saw her face grow whita
as we started for the barrel When
nearing 1t she made a sudden jump and
I clapped on the cover and seated herself
upon it, There was a series of muf-
fed yells from the man inside, and for
the first ten minutes he made such a
struggle that I had to help against
him. Then he grew quiet. and we had
no more trouble with him.
For two long hours we kept guard
( over him, ana 1t was fortunate for the
I When uncle arrived and we called him
he came down and upset the barrel and
| poured the man cut. our prisoner was
so rear dead Of suffocation that he did
I not come to for an hour.
Next morning a constable took him of
to jail, and we learned that he was not
only a desperate criminal with a re-
ward of $500 on his head, but had es-
capc6l from states prison week be-
fore.
The reward was paid to Aunt Martha.
and I got a share Of It, and the good
woman never told a soul how I was
il mortal terror and would have shown
the white feather If she hadn't gra bbed
me by the hair and banged my head
against the wall C@aight, 1906, by
X. NJ. Whitehead.l