The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1915-08-27

mat sound have never understood,
IL could not have been Scoville, since
IN the short time which had passed he
could not have fed from the point
where heard him last into the ravine
oeIoW Ostrander lane. But, il not he.
VINO was it? Or If it was he, and
some other hand threw his stick
across my path, whose was this hand
ana why have we never heard any
'nIng about 1t? 1t is question which
sometimes floats through my mind,
out did not give 1t a thought then.
was within sight Of home and Oil
Vers possible presence; and all other
dread was as nothing in comparison
10 what felt at the prospect of meet
Ing my boys eye. My boys eye! my
greatest dread then, and my greatest
dread still! In my terror Of 1t l walked
as to my doom.
The house. which had left empty,
| found empty; Oliver had not yet re-
turned. The absolute stiffness of the
rooms seemed appalling. Instructive
ly l looked at the clock. It had
stopped. Not at the minute-I do not
say 1t was at the minute-but near,
very near the time when from an
innocent man l became q guilty one.
Appalled, at the discovery, l fed to
the front. Opening the door, looked
out. Not a creature in sight, and not
a sound to be heard. The road was
as lonely and seemingly as forsaken
as the house. Had time stopped here,
too? We're the world and its inter.
ests at a pause in horror of my deed?
For moment believed 1t; then more
natural sensations inte-vened, and, re.
Joicing at this lack of disturbance
where disturbance meant discovery,
stepped inside again, rewound the
clock, and sat down in my own room.
My own room! Was it mine any
longer? It's walls looked strange; the
petty objects Of my daily handling,
unfamiliar The change in myself in
fected everything saw. l might have
been in another mans house for all
connection these things seemed to
have with me or my life. Like one
set apart on an unapproachable shore,
stretched hands in vain toward all
that | had known and all that had
been of value to me-
But as the minutes passed | began
to lose this feeling. Hope, which
thought quite dead. slowly revived.
Nothing had happened, and perhaps
nothing would.
Men had been killed before, and the
slayer passed unrecognized. Why
might it not be SO in my case? If the
woman continued to remain silent; If
for any reason she had not witnessed
the blow or the striker, who else was
there to connect me with an assault
committed quarter Of mile away?
No one knew of the quarrel; and If
they did, who could be so daring as
to associate one of my name with an
action so brutal? A Judge STAY his
friendi It would take evidence of a
very marked character to make even
my political enemies believe that.
AS the twilight deepened rose from
my seat and lit the gas. l must not
be found skulking in the dark. Then
l began to count the ticks measuring
off the hour. If thirty minutes more
passed without rush from without |
might hope If twenty?-if n?-then
it was FIVE! then it was
All! The gate had changed to. They
were coming. | could hear steps
voices-a loud ring at the bell. | !
moved slowly toward the front. | !
feared the betrayal which my ashy
face and trembling hands might make. |
Agitation after the news was to be
but not before! So left |
the hall dark when opened the door.
And thus decided my future
For in the faces of the small crowd
which blocked the doorway I detected
nothing but commiseration; and when
a voice spoke and heard divers &C.
cents surcharged with nothing more
grievous than pity, realized that my
secret was as yet unshared, and, see
Ing that no man suspected me, fore
bore to declare my guilt to anyone.
This sudden restoration from sound.
less depths into the pure air of respect
and sympathy confused me; and be-
yond the words KILLED! Struck down
by the bridget" | heard little, till
slowly, DULY, like the call of a bell
issuing from smothering mist
caught the sound OF q name. 1t struck +
my ear and gradually it dawned upon
my consciousness that another man
had been arrested for my crime and
that the safety, the reverence and the
;ommiseration that were so dear to
ne had been bought at a price no man
If honor might pay.
But was no longer Iaan of honor,
was a wretched criminal swaying
above gulf of infamy in which had
seen others swallowed but had never
ireamed Of being engulfed myself.
lever thought Of letting myself 60
lot at this crisis-not while my heart