Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1915-03-11
Agatha
Wedding Gift
By EUNICE BLAKE

1.-The passes in the Swiss mountains
have doubtless been used by man ever
since he began to travel. but in former
times they were crossed very different
ly from the present. During the mid
die ages small parties Or even individ-
nails would cross the mountains on
foot, usually conducted by guide
During that period when William
Tell is supposed to have shot the apple
from his sons head, in the village of
Altdorf, where he fourished, lived a
yOnng Swiss named Friedrich Sohm
Ellis occupation was to guide persons
over the st. Gothard pass down into
northern Italy, then bring others back
To 1ucerne. Friedrich loved and was
loved by a young girl named Agatha.
and they were only waiting till be had
made one more trip over the pass to be-
married. Then he was intending to
build boat on the Lake of the Four
Cautions in which to carry passengers
back and forth between FleWeln and
Lncerne.
One day came Leonardo Morelli. a
Florentine who had been to Paris with
some jewels which he had sold and
WAS taking back the gold he had re-
ceived for them. He engaged Fried
mich to conduct him across the pass
ito the point on the italian side where
now lis the mouth Of the tunnel, whence
HE could proceed by road to Lugano
All day guide and man toiled up the
mountain and in the evening rested
at nm inn on the Italian side. The
merchant carried his gold in leather
hag .sewed to belt at his waist
When he entered the inn and the land
lord conducted him to his room Sohm
tossed his bag on a table, causing the
gold pieces inside to give out the sound
of coins. This excited the cupidity of
the landlord, and during the night.
when the merchant was asleep, he stole
into the room and took his gold Then,
i'm order to avert suspicion. he opened
the door to the guides room and drop
ped one Of the coins on the floor.
I'm the morning the merchant made
"a great ado about his loss, and the
landlord suggested that he search the
gnide's room. OF course a piece of
gold was found on the floor. Fried
Tidh protested his innocence, but was
unable to make the merchant believe
Tint he was not the thief. The guide
consented to continue the journey to
Hugano, where he would give himself
MP, Ipreferring this course to being
fugitive and an outlaw
lit was the month of May, when the
esnow in the Alps is melting, and in
certain parts of the journey the guide
and the merchant travelled joined by
"a rope. In passing over narrow path
Whore on one side was a precipice the
Bnow gave way and the merchant
1.-THE guide braced himself so firmly as
ito save him.
sS0hm was so grateful that be offer
eetl ito forgive Friedrich the theft of his
gold provided he would return one
lhalf OF it. Friedrich still Insisted that
The knew nothing about the money, that
ethe Landlord must have stolen it and
proposed that they return to the inn
and investigate the matter. To this the
merchant consented. and they retraced
their steps. When they reached the
inn they accused the landlord Of the
theft and declared that if he did not
lTestore the property constable would
7be drought to take him where he would
he tried
Hhe landlord was much agitated at
this, for in those days criminals were
usually put to the torture to make
them confess. However, he stuck to
His denial. claiming that the coin found
in 1.-THE guides room was proof positive
that he was the thief,
The inn stood on n southern expo
SSllre which in summer was free from
asnow, but though it was now getting
thin the ground. or, rather, the rock on
which it stood, was still covered. The
Gday had been very warm, and since
1.-The departure Of the two men in the
morning the sun, shining through the
iiiin atmosphere, had left several bare
spots. Friedrich just before sunset
went out on the ledge. where the Ital
ian sunset was spread out before him.
ito think of some plan for finding the
gold which he believed the landlord
Slmd hidden While sitting there wa.
ter was trickling from the melting
asnow. Before arising to return to the
Sinn "A space had been uncovered and.
Choking down beside him. he saw what
ant first he believed to be a yellow
astone, but on closer inspection proved
ttolbe q gold coin.
Hsriedrich's first impulse was to ac-
clise the landlord anew, fortified by
this lproOf, but he was not used to act
ling ION impulse. Instead. he went to
1.-THE merchant, told him what he had
found and suggested that the thief had
IirIIried the gold in different places un-
der THE snow and if they waited till
the sun uncovered the ground they
yY,1fsfl,t recnyor If all