I remained here some four weeks, and should have remained longer, but an
incident transpired that awakened all my fears, and again sent me forth
into the wide world, a fugitive, and a wanderer. I went to my chamber
one night, when I heard a sound like the full, heavy respiration of a
man in deep sleep. The sound appeared to come from under the bed, but
stopped as I entered the room. I was very much alarmed, but I controlled
my feelings, and instead of running shrieking from the room, I
deliberately closed the blinds, shut the windows, adjusted the curtain,
all the time carelessly humming a tune, and taking up my lamp I
slowly left the room. Once outside the door, I ran in all haste to Mr.
Williams, and told him what I had heard. He laughed at me, said it was
all imagination, but, to quiet my fears, he went to my room resolved
to convince me that no one was there. I followed, and stood at the door
while he lifted the bed valance, when a large, tall man sprang forth,
and caught him with one hand while with the other he drew a pistol
from beneath his coat saying, "Let me go, and I'll depart in peace; but
attempt to detain me, and I'll blow your brains out." I shrieked, and
Mrs. Williams came in great terror and consternation, to see what was
the matter. But she could render no assistance, and Mr. Williams, being
unarmed, was obliged to let him go. The watch were immediately called,
and they sought for the intruder in every direction. No effort was
spared to find him, that we might, at least, learn the object of
this untimely visit. But the search was all in vain. No trace of his
whereabouts could be discovered.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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