Year: 1869

|
dehce to make inquiries, and Won will have
to be confined until their reply arrives. Mr..
oteei; he added, turning.to the detective.


Will you show him down stairs to the floor
below do not wish to make his case a
public one. until we ascertain whether there
be any truth IN his statement. He does not
look as if he were guilty"


AS the detective requested me to follow
him, thanked the Superintendent for his
courtesy, an requested him to endeayor to
let me go on by the IL A. NJ. train, as | had
lost too much time already lie said he
would DO what he could, and with courte-
Gus bow to me, followed the detective


lie conducted me to the cellars of the build
ing, and alter turning several corners, ush.
cred me INTO room in which there was no
window. lie lefta lamp with me, and telling
me that he would return or send some break
last to- me, he departed, lockirg the door be-
| hind him.


Whas followed seems to me, even now, like
a hideons dream. As the detectives footsteps
receded beyond hearing, cold shiyer passed
through me as If | were being shut out from
the worl1 and had taken my last look at the
sun. This feeling | tried to cast off as heinz
without foundation, since l would certainly
be released within few hours. But ever
and anon an agonizing gloom would come
across my soul as listened to catch the noises
which knew the traffic of the city beginning
ior the day must be causing, and failed to
hear the slightest murmur of a voice or the
faintest roll of wheel. As time wore on
and nine O'Clock approached, began to be
impatient for the detective s return but nine
O'Clock came and went, and yet he did not
make his appearance. At first | had seated
myself on the bench which | found in the
room +; but my impatience had soon caused
me to pace from end to end of the apartment
chafing in spirit at the disgrace which my
employers suspicion had brought upon me.


Eleven o'clock passed away. and yet no
release The ticking of my watch alone
broke the intense stiffness around me, and
the watch continued its sharp click, till
knew the afternoon had passed and that
night was closing upon the city. Night had
come, but it had brought with it no prospect
of escape from the solitary cellar in which
was confined. For time my anxiety about
the result prevented me from feeling hunger
or thirst, but by degrees these two enemies
attacked me with full vigor. | had eaten
nothing since my usual dinner hour of the
previous day, the illness which had attacked
me having made me think nothing of supper.
and the haste with which | had left Provi-
dence IN the morning having precluded the
possibility OF my eating anything then. But
| hunger and thirst were alike forgotten for
time as the night rolled away and another
morning found me still a prisoner. The
lamp still burned, but the flame was waning
and another hour would leave me in dark.
! ness


! took the lamp and with it examined every
corner of the room, that | might ascertain
whether there was any way of escape. But,
though found no crevice by which might
effect egress. | made discovery which sent
an appalling thrill of terror through my heart
In sort of cupboard | found three or four
loases of bread and large pitcher of water
As soon | found them, terrible suspicion
struck me that bad been invegled to this
dea by some clever scoundrel who had known
of my having the money, and that he and
his accomplice had locked me up here to pre-
vent my being able to give information of
the robbery They had left me a little food
to prevent my dying for some days; but
whether they had made arrangements for my
final release was of course unknown to me-
Probably not. for dead men tell no tn les"
and possibly they had hoped for my death.
though they had made compromise with
conscience by leaving me what would keep
me in life for time.


These thoughts passed through my mind
with the speed and overwhelming force of n
thunder bolt Whatif should never escape !
And if this should happen. not only would |
lose my life, but my good name would also
be destroyed; for my employers would never
doubt that bad fed With the money. The
sickening terror that came over me unman-
ned me for time but after little | recov-
cred my fortitude, and uttering short prayer
for support | shouted for help at the pitch
r L., Il ~, l. 1
the door After had made as much noise
as | could for several minutes. stopped to
listen but all was silent as the grave At
intervals repeated my endcayors to make
myself heard, but no reply came to my cells,
nor did any sound indicate that bad sue.
ceeded in drawing attention to my place of
CONTINENT. Faint and weary, | again be-
thonght me of the food, and cropping my way
to the place where it had been left, for my
light was now gone, ate and drank raven.
ously.


For days and nights this weary, terrible
captivity continued. How time was passed
could not tell had no light to let me see
my watch. | called for help till my voice
grew hoarse from the continued shouting /
battered the door with my clenched fists till
the skin was peeled off them in flakes. /
prayed for help till my heart was weary with
the unanswered cry, Lord help and deliv-
er me-" In vain did l shout; in vain did
wildly rush against the unyelding door in
vain did send up my cry to heaven. No
help came; and | was almost tempted to curse
God and die. at last there came time
when consciousness departed from me- and
at the darkest hour, when hope had given
way within me, and the PRAYER which |
thought unanswered was heard, and the help
of which had despaired arrived.


When recovered consciousness, was
lying on a sofa in handsomely furnished
room. There were three persons around the
sofa. two gentlemen, one of whom was a doc
tor, and a young lady. The lustrous eyes of
the latter were filled with tears and, though
she did not know that heard her, she NUT
tered words ofdeepest and most earnest sym
pathy. had again shut my eyes after
single glance at these bright orbs of hers,
and now again opened them much to the
satisfaction of the 1Esculapius who had been
| laboring to restore me to life. After q little
| was able to sit up, and the doctor, seeing
! that was very weak, asked the other gen