Year: 1869

From the Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle.


In one of the mountain counties of
Georgia there lives two families. each be-
fore the war noted for its wealth and re-
finement Since the war the families
(whom we shall call respectively R and L),
though they had, like nearly everybody
else, lost everything by the conflict, still
retained the high position in society which
they had for some long time filled One of
them, the LIS, lost several of its members,
as well as its fortune, by the war, and at
the time of our story consisted of Mr..
L, a gentleman 55 years of age, his wife,
nearly the same age, and an unmarried
daughter of about 25 Within about a
quarter of a mile of their house lived one
of the Rps, young man who had recently
married a very beautiful young lady of the
county, and having left the paternal MAN.
sion, was farming by himself on small
tract of ground. The two families lived
some distance from the county town, in a
sparsely inhabited section of country and,
being each the nearest neighbor of the
other, were, of course, on terms of great
intimacy. Between the young wife and
the daughter of Mr.. l.. fast friendship
was soon formed.


A few days since Mr.. r. informed his
wife that he had received q letter, which
would compel immediate attendance in At
lanta, where lie would have to remain sew
eral days, and as it would be inconvenient
for him to take her with him to that city,
advised that she should ask her young
neighbor to stay with her during his alb
sence. The next morning he set out III his
buggy for Atlanta, and his wife during the
morning went over to l.. s for the purpose
of inviting her young friend to stay wit her.
The young lady, after consultation with
her mother, readily assented to the propo-
sition, aud promised to come over during
the afternoon.


About o'clock Mrs. r. began to feel q
little uneasy, as Miss L. had not yet come,
when a servant came up to the house and
brought note from her expected friend.
stating that she would be unable to spend
the night with her, as she had promised, for
her father, from some cause OF other, had
positively refused to give his consent to the
arrangement After delivering the note
the servant took his departure, and the
brave woman prepared to spend the night
by herself Feeling that she had protec-
tor in large and very fierce yard-dog be-
longing to her husband, she took him into
her bedroom, and after securing the house
lay down and resigned herself to sleep.


About II o'clock she was awakened from
her slumbers by noise in the house and
the angry growing Of the dog, and discov-
cred that the hall door had been forced,
and that some one was standing at her
room door, seeking an entrance. Speaking
as loudly as heI fright would let her, Mrs.
R asked, "Who is there?" A man S
voice, which she did not recognize, replied
by telling her to s'open the door" Again
she asked the same question, and again re-
ceived the same answer, the stranger adding
that if she refused he would ''break the
door down." During this dialogue the dog,
still growing crouched upon the floor as il
ready to spring. Thinking to intimidate
this man, who sought her ruin, Mrs. R
cried to him that if he forced the door she
would shoot him.


Laughing scornf1lly, the rufian threw
his weight against the light door, burst it
open and entered the room-wben, quick
as thought, the savage dog sprang forward
and fastened on his neck. The man, aston
ished ct this sudden attack, attempted to
Kill the animal with q knife which he held
in his hand, but unsuccessfully, and the
powerful animal dragged him to the
ground, still retaining his hold upon his
throat. Stunned at first by this unlocked
for deliverance, the woman in q few sec
onds, regaining her presence of mind some
what, ran screaming from the house never
stopping until she arrived at the place OF
the LIS, where her cries soon aroused the
family.


Her tale was rapidly told, and the servants
were preparing to go to the scene of dan
ger, when suddenly Mr.. e. was missed,
and his wife almost on the instant as il
struck by sudden presentiment, screamed
"MercifuI God it must be my husbandp
With cry of horror the party set forth,
and run as fast to the house of Mrs r. as
the latter had run away from ita few min
utes before. Arrived there they found the
man still on the floor, and the dog still
grasping his throat Beating him away,
from his prey they found the suspicious Of
Mrs. L. but too correct, it was her husband
but the teeth of the dog had done then
work, and he was dead.