Year: 1859

ture. They had urged him, since he had
taken up his abode in Jerusalem, to settle
more comfortably, to get into better and
more convenient workshop, and, since his
skill as u workmen always ensured him
the means of living, to marry. For they
knew that the fresh interests of domestic
nature which would follow would be of the
greatest possible service to him.


The day will come" was his invariable
answer to all such advice" the day will
come when some one will shoot me with
pistol through the back, just as | shot my
friend That day will surely come; what
have to do, then, with a wife or children
with wife whom | should leave a wild
ow-with children whom | should leave
fatherless? What have / to do with set
tling-with comfort or home2 l shall
have a home when the pistol-bullet sends
me to my grave beside my friend. l shall
go home then" said the Germanlocksmith


NY revolver was sent back to me re-
paired, and as / was just about to start
away on short journey into theenvirons,
and was in some haste, | set off without
trying it.


In the course of the day, however, part
" wishing to ascertain how far my pistol
was restored to condition of usefulness,
partly from desire to bring down bird
which l saw on the wing, apparently with
in pistol shot, / lifted my revolver to let
fly at him.


The weapon missed fire.


On examination, found that the defect
this time was precisely the reverse Of what
it had been before The lock went SO
loosely now, and had so little spring in it,
that the hammer did not fall upon the cap
with sufficient force to explodeit. tried the
pistol several times, and, finding it useless,
sent it again, on my return to Jerusalem,
to the German locksmith, charging my ser
want to explain to him its new defect, and
above all things to caution him as to its be-
ing loaded, as / had done myself on the
former occasion.


Mark how that pistol played with the
mans life! Mark how it returns to him
again and again! Why not have done its
work at once?


The revolver was brought back to me
the next day in a state, as | was told, of
perfect repair.


This time / took it into the garden to
try it. The first time it went off well
enough, but at the next time-for was
determined to prove it thoroughly found
that its original defect had returned, and
the lock would not stir, pull at the trigger
as / may


There is something radically wrong
here" said. II will go myself and see
the German locksmith about it, without
delay"


"That pistol again." said the locksmith,
looking up, as / entered his miserable
abode


What would l not have given to have
oeen able to say anything that would have
altered the expression of that haggard
countenance But it was impossible. l
made some attempts to draw the poor fel-
low into conversation, though felt that
even if these had not proved las they did,
wholly useless, my comparative ignorance
Of his language would have stood in the
way of any service Our conversation,
then, limited itself to the matter in hand,
and we agreed that the only thing to be
done with the pistol now was to take its
lock off, and make a perfectly new one in
imitation of it. Hlis, however, would
take some time, and it would be necessary
that the locksmith should keep the weapon
by him for three or four days at least
He took it from my hands as he told me
so, and placed it carefully on a shelf at the
back of his shop.


"Above all things" I said, as l left the
house" above all things, remember that
the revolver is loaded"


shall not forget it," he said, turning
round to me with ghastly countenance.
This, then, was the third time that that
pistol was taken back to the German lock-
smith for repair


1t was the last.


| can see-continued the narrator of
this strange story, looking round ON us, af-
ter pause-I can see that you all know
what happened, and that l have only to
tell you h010 the fatal termination of my
story was brought about.


The German locksmith, being very
much occupied, owing to the reputation he
had obtained as a clever workman, had
Ldhcl lulD li5 fiIpipf iiSlih " '''' - II
prentice or assistant, to help him in the
simple and more mechanical parts Of the
trade. He was not much use-a stupid,
idle, trifing fellow at best. One day, soon
after had left my revolver for the last
time to be mended, this lad came in from
executing some crrand, and standing idly
about the place, took down my pistol from
the shelf on which it lay, and began to
look at it with some curiosity, not being
accustomed to the sight of a revolver.


The locksmith, turning round from his
work, saw the lad thus occupied, and hast
lily told him to put the pistol back in the
place he had taken it from. He had not
had time, he said, to attend to it yet. 1t
was loaded, and it was dangerous to pull it
about in that manner. Having said this,
the German locksmith turned round, and
went on with what he was about, qoith has
back toacards the lad whom he had just
.autioned, and whom, lie naturally sup


l. .,o.4o,,ol 4bo ,lseEo1 at opoa fo itc